NBA FINALS: LAKERS VS. HEAT

October 4, 2020

Erik Spoelstra

Miami Heat

Game 3: Pregame

Q. How difficult was the decision, especially on Bam, since it seems like he's lobbying literally anybody within listening distance of him to play, to not have Bam and Goran play tonight?

ERIK SPOELSTRA: Absolutely. Both Goran and Bam are literally like family members and I can see the anguish literally in their eyes, both of them. And everybody in the locker room feels that when you're in this elite percentile of being a competitor in this league and you get to this stage and you have these kind of unfortunate injuries. I know them and their soul, they both will do anything to get out there and it puts me in a different position. We also have to be responsible, and that's out of love for them. They both are making progress. They're not ready to play or compete in this game at this intensity level. But they really want to be there because they love their teammates and they have put their heart and soul into this. Their teammates really feel the same way. We're all feeling it. This is the most responsible thing to do right now. And they still will have an impact with their leadership and their spirit on the bench.

Q. Will Bam be listed as active?

ERIK SPOELSTRA: Yeah, probably. I’ll probably do it the same way. So, we can go without this. Can't we just make everybody active? We're in a damn bubble. You know, let's get everybody active and -- whatever. That's another thing.

Q. Bam was just out on the court warming up a little bit which was something he wasn't able to do, at least in front of us last game. Is he closer? How does he look to you?

ERIK SPOELSTRA: No, I don't have a timeline on him. He is feeling better. He's not going to play tonight. I know how much that this means to him and I know how much he wants to be out there. This is one of the most difficult decisions that I've had to make with the trainers and with Pat and everybody, but it's the most responsible thing. And then we'll just continue to re-evaluate him.

Q. What are the peculiar challenges that this bubble presents in dealing with the recovery of injured players, I guess, from not having available things that a training and medical staff are used to work with, to I guess not having enough medical personnel?

ERIK SPOELSTRA: I'm sorry, what was the question? I heard some of the statements.

Q. I wonder what are the peculiar challenges of the bubble? I guess you're not used to work with the machinery that you have in the bubble and you also don't have enough medical personnel to work with your players.

ERIK SPOELSTRA: Yeah, we have enough. We have our entire staff here, we have our team doctor here, we have everything you need here. And I think if anything in 2020 it's just prepared you to expect the unexpected and you just keep on plugging away. We have been dealing with a lot of different unpredictable circumstances during the bubble. I think emotionally our guys are more than stable enough to be able to manage this and focus on the task at hand and that's the game tonight. That's all anybody's focused on right now. Nobody's making excuses or feeling sorry for themselves, we're just excited about this opportunity tonight.

Q. Following up on that and you're not feeling sorry for yourself, what allows you to not go to that place and even have a moment of frustration and a little pity party for yourself?

ERIK SPOELSTRA: We have been through it, we know a lot already. All these experiences prepare you for this and this is still an incredible opportunity in front of us. Our guys are very mentally tough, they love competition. That doesn't change anything in terms of our wanting to compete, wanting to take on the challenge, wanting to play better than we did in the first two games and figure out a way to get over the hump. That's what it's all about and if you're a competitor you absolutely love it.

Q. What do you think are the most important lessons on and off the court that the team has learned from this completely new experience?

ERIK SPOELSTRA: This has been so remarkable for all of us. This is an experience that we're all going to remember the rest of our lives, just by the very nature of all of it. And I just feel very grateful like everybody else in the locker room to be on this journey with this group. It's been amazing and we're just looking forward to tonight.