Why were the Lakers able to shut down the Heat but the C's could not?

[Spicoli]

Serious question. How were the Lakers able to completely neutralize Herro, Robinson, and Adebayo while the Celtics could not control any of these 3 players? Herro has a ton of confidence for a rookie so I really don't think this had anything to do with nervousness. Are the Lakers that much better than the Celtics on the defensive end?

[Roy H.]

Heat against Lakers:

36.5% 3PT%, .534 eFG%, 11.0 turnovers

Heat against Celtics:

32.3% 3PT%, .526 eFG%, 11.0 turnovers

I don’t think it was the Lakers defense that was the difference maker.  The Heat shot worse against us, and we forced an equal number of turnovers.

The Lakers are simply better than us on offense.

[Spicoli]

Heat against Lakers:

36.5% 3PT%, .534 eFG%, 11.0 turnovers

Heat against Celtics:

32.3% 3PT%, .526 eFG%, 11.0 turnovers

I don’t think it was the Lakers defense that was the difference maker.  The Heat shot worse against us, and we forced an equal number of turnovers.

The Lakers are simply better than us on offense.

I have no doubt that the Lakers are better on offense but defensively i saw Herro, Bam, and Robinson get swallowed up against the Lakers while being able to run wild against the Celtics. I would be interested in knowing what the stats were for these 3 players against both teams because i feel like the Lakers did a FAR better job containing them than the Celtics did but i'm just not sure how or why.

[Moranis]

The Lakers are just a better team with the two best players in every series they played this year.

That said, Duncan Robinson had basically the exact same TS% in both series.  Bam was injured and banged up against the Lakers, but was still pretty good against the Lakers.  Herro performed worse, but he also went from the bench to starting.  Dragic being out altered Herro's role a great deal.  It isn't rocket science.

[SparzWizard]

None of them played in the NBA Finals before, the pressure may have gotten to them which is one factor.

[Roy H.]

Heat against Lakers:

36.5% 3PT%, .534 eFG%, 11.0 turnovers

Heat against Celtics:

32.3% 3PT%, .526 eFG%, 11.0 turnovers

I don’t think it was the Lakers defense that was the difference maker.  The Heat shot worse against us, and we forced an equal number of turnovers.

The Lakers are simply better than us on offense.

I have no doubt that the Lakers are better on offense but defensively i saw Herro, Bam, and Robinson get swallowed up against the Lakers while being able to run wild against the Celtics. I would be interested in knowing what the stats were for these 3 players against both teams because i feel like the Lakers did a FAR better job containing them than the Celtics did but i'm just not sure how or why.

Well, Bam was injured, and had bigger players defending him.

Herro averaged 14.7 ppg / 36.7% 3PT%, while Robinson had 12.5 ppg / 39.1% 3PT% against the Lakers.

Against the Celts, Herro was at 19.2 points / 34.9% 3PT%, with Robinson contributing 12.5% / 40.8% 3PT%.

I didn’t watch a single minute of the series, but my guess is that the Lakers did a better job cutting off Herro’s ability to drive inside. 

[MichiganAdam]

I think no dragic and a weakened Bam were the majority of it.  We were not far behind them, and those two facts would have likely changed the outcome for us too.

[Ogaju]

Serious question. How were the Lakers able to completely neutralize Herro, Robinson, and Adebayo while the Celtics could not control any of these 3 players? Herro has a ton of confidence for a rookie so I really don't think this had anything to do with nervousness. Are the Lakers that much better than the Celtics on the defensive end?

lol Lakers play with toughness... Celtics are soft!!!

[Spicoli]

All valid responses. Thank you all for the insight. This has definitely been bothering me since our series with them. I feel that the Lakers played with more effort than the Celtics on the defensive end. The Lakers just played harder which sucks.

[wiley]

 losing your playoff scoring leader in the first game, and your star center for a couple games, is not a recipe for success...

[Somebody]

1. Heat had injuries
2. Lakers have a defensive cheat code in playoff matchups called Anthony Davis
3. Lakers can play defence like it's the late 80s and early 90s without getting calls against them

[LilRip]

I didn’t watch the games either but if I had to guess, the Heat couldn’t stop LA the way they could stop us.

It’s not like the Heat were running wild on us, offensively (although it’s true that Bam took Theis to school).

[RodyTur10]

I didn’t watch the games either but if I had to guess, the Heat couldn’t stop LA the way they could stop us.

It’s not like the Heat were running wild on us, offensively (although it’s true that Bam took Theis to school).

Robinson was the same against us as he was he against the Lakers. A threat, but never a game changer.

Adebayo abused Theis. He was never going to do that against Davis.

Herro had one great game against the Celtics from the bench, but against LA he had to start and initiate the offense and that was a bit too much for him to deal with as a rookie.

[PhoSita]

Dragic tore his plantar fascia in the 1st half of game 1.  Dragic gave the Celts fits and would have been a problem for the Lakers since they lack guard defenders.

Adebayo was never the same after straining his neck / shoulder, also in the 1st half of game 1.  He missed Game 2.  He was the best player in the ECF so that was a huge factor in the series.

On top of that, having a guy like Davis inside makes a huge difference when you're going against a team with (a) a big like Bam and (b) a star that likes to attack the hoop like Jimmy.


I do think if you play this series over again with both teams healthy, the Heat at least push it to 7, whether they win it or not.

[Birdman]

Think Heat players were worn out..Butler was exhausted plus Dragic was out