Lakers: How Miami freed up Jimmy Butler and co. to extend NBA Finals

The Los Angeles Lakers were unable to finsih the season in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

The Los Angeles Lakers won 102-96 in Game 4 and if the 2020 NBA Finals have taught us anything, it’s that these Miami Heat, despite their injuries, will not go down easy. Ditto for Game 5, as we witnessed spectacular individual performances from a plethora of guys, most notably Jimmy Butler, Duncan Robinson and Kendrick Nunn.

LeBron James had a typical Finals game on the other side it seemed like, going for 40/13/7 on ridiculous efficiency in an unfortunate loss. Feeding off that, I feel a need to address the “Should James have shot it” discourse that’s become overwhelming following the final buzzer.

The answer for me is an easy “no” because he put a career 40% Finals three-point marksman above the break for a wide-open chance to seal the title. If he makes it, nobody bats an eye, right? This is a classic case of confirmation bias. Anyways, game six is scheduled for Sunday, so let’s recap why James and the Lakers aren’t celebrating banner number 17 quite just yet.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope — among other Laker wings — have done a pretty solid job blanketing Robinson through games 1-4, but Game 5 was turned upside down. Robinson exploded for 26 points on seven three-pointers, a multitude of which were a byproduct of lackadaisical defense,  but also sheer force of his route running. His gravity opened up Miami’s offense in game five, but he wasn’t the only story.

Jimmy Butler, in partnership with his queen of chessboard head coach, devised an alternative strategy to combat Anthony Davis guarding him and routinely going under on ball screens. In the previous game, Butler only scored 12 points in the paint, compared to 26 in Game 3, primarily because of Davis’s versatility.

Davis is comfortable giving Butler a cushion in isolation during stationary actions. What Miami changed was Butler’s screening angle which made Davis guard more and more actions. Miami also found success utilizing Butler as a screener. This way, Davis is forced to stunt at the ball-handler, leaving Butler free to survey.

He scored 10 points in the paint in game five, but that was compounded by his 12/12 showing from the charity stripe. He also showcased heightened confidence via shooting mid-range jumpers over Davis, something the non-paint 33.4 eFG% regular season shooter didn’t do in game four.

Breaking down the Los Angeles Lakers’ film in Game 5:

All data per NBA.com & BasketballReference.com

Exhibit A: 0:29-0:41

Instead of the “gravity guy” being Robinson here, it’s Tyler Herro, who provides similar relief due to his shooting. Davis’ number one priority is to go under the screen, which he does. Pope stunts at Herro to give Davis time to recover but the worry of not staying connected to Herro frees up a big shooting window for Butler, who at this juncture is already two steps ahead.

The bigger idea though is the fundamental change from game four, where the screening angle is now changed. It’s less stationary pick-and-roll and more “on the move” to get Butler into more opportunistic scoring areas. Some reassurance for Los Angeles though could be the fact that giving up that shot to Butler is better than any alternative aside from a contested three.

Exhibit B: 1:40-1:47

Here, Butler’s game-to-game personal adjustments are on full display. He didn’t take this shot much in Game 3 but recognized he needed to in Game 4. This is just good offense beating good defense, and again, I’m not sure the Lakers are upset with giving up that shot.

Exhibit C and D: 1:58-2:05, 2:15-2:22

Butler’s effectiveness as a screener puts James (who for argument’s sake is Davis) in a tough position. His screen takes Rajon Rondo out of the play entirely, leaving Nunn a whole bunch of room to attack downhill. James sags off and it’s two for Miami.

Since Frank Vogel encourages “go under” on every Butler pick-and-roll, doing so to such an extent if he’s a screener puts your defense in a bind. Speaking of Nunn, the undrafted rookie shined for 14 points on 2-4 from three in his breakout Finals game to help keep Miami alive.

The second clip features Butler quick-slipping a DHO, positioning him on the move headed towards the basket. He’s super adept at drawing contact as we know (leads Playoffs in FTA), thus parsing the reasons why Spoelstra altering some of his Butler tactics were so crucial.

A weak rim challenge by Markieff Morris sort of seals that as well. Butler isn’t a tremendous leaper, nor is he super quick. His wingspan isn’t entirely that impressive compared to some of his peers either, but he uses elite balance and strength to get to his spots and get off his shots. He additionally has very fundamental footwork which aids him in drawing fouls.

Exhibit E: 2:34-2:41

Davis, if involved as the roll man on defense, is preoccupied now with the threat of Nunn on the drive. Alex Caruso’s trailing and Davis now has to contain two things at once. Butler as the roll man can be distracting, and in turn, grants him more freedom near the rim. The pick-and-roll is alive and well. Three-point play.

There were roughly three or four more possessions where Butler shocked the world with his mid-range shooting ability on fine defensive sequences. I don’t think those possessions will particularly stick out in the Lakers film session, you just live with those sometimes.

I would argue the possession featuring Jae Crowder’s “flat screen” and the Davis verticality controversy should though. Morris assumed Crowder would set a side screen and pop out (Klay Thompson does this a lot) but winds up on the wrong side, allowing Butler to capitalize on James getting caught on the screen.

A flat-screen is just a screen where the “screener’s back” is facing the hoop, opening up both driving angles. That was a schematic error by Morris during a frequently ran play by Miami.

The Lakers did more than enough on offense to win the game but surrendered a 119 DRTG to Miami following some of Spoelstra’s adjustments. If you come away from this series with anything other than praise for Miami’s tactics, then I’m not sure what you’re watching.

If the Lakers want to aim for perfection on Sunday, they need to bottle up Robinson as they did in games 1-4, hope Butler misses some more shots than he did in Game five and hope Anthony Davis’s ankle is good to go.

For a series that looked bleak after some initial unfortunate injuries, Miami has responded incredibly and their performance over these Finals should paint a picture about NBA team building. In fact, of the 20 quarters played so far, Miami has won 11 of them compared to eight for L.A. Game six should be another fantastic game.