Every time he catches the ball, he's asking himself the same question. Seeing this scheme over and over again is having a dizzying effect on James. His only choice is to fire a mid-range jumper that misses. At this exact moment, there's nowhere for James to go. Manu Ginobili has cheated off Dwyane Wade and is plugging a potential James drive to the middle, while Tim Duncan is lurking to stop James at the rim should he drive left. Kawhi Leonard, James' primary defender, has two feet in the paint to cut off any drive. The second screenshot also displays the preventative measures the Spurs' defense is taking. Save for that possession, you saw James go to work outside the block a lot, and San Antonio responded by laying off him again. The second of the previous three screenshots, as well as the video, came when James pinned his primary defender just outside the lane with deep post position, showing that San Antonio's help defenders were sometimes just too good. James only occasionally got deep post position, and when he did, the Spurs converged. The Heat countered by sending James to the low post, particularly in the second quarter, but it didn't work out as planned. It's a miracle James was even able to see well enough to get the layup attempt toward the basket. Look at how many arms are in the picture here. The fact that they are so far off James already means they have less ground to travel to beat James to the spot. When he drove, the Spurs converge, sending everyone to the rim to get as many arms around the ball as possible. James attempted jumpers on a couple of these, but for the most part, he either hesitated or drove. Look at the space James is being given in these screenshots. It's not unusual for teams to give James space at the top of the key, but the Spurs are taking it to an extreme, basically daring him to shoot jumpers. Now, the Spurs, much like the Mavericks in 2011, have flipped the script on its head. He's heard all those who wondered why he settled for so many jumpers in Cleveland given his size and adjusted his game accordingly. James has often been a reluctant perimeter shooter since coming to Miami, choosing instead to enforce his will around the basket. It's not always about a player's shooting percentage, it's how much they make themselves into a threat by shooting confidently. San Antonio knows that James has improved his perimeter shot significantly since he entered the league, and they don't care. The Spurs have defended James by daring him to do what he doesn't want to do on every single possession: shoot from the perimeter. More: Flannery on Spurs' Not Big Three Pounding the Rock on Game 3
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