Not every coach can fashion a diamond out of a lump of coal when the pressure of the game bears down on them, but Erik Spoelstra can toss another gem in his bag after chess-moving the Miami HEAT into a win over the Washington Wizards Monday night.
Few coaching moves of the last decade are remembered as fondly as what Spoelstra did in the 2012 playoffs. When Chris Bosh went down with an oblique injury in the second round against Indiana, with the team down 2-1 in the series, Miami’s season was on the brink. Spoelstra made the unconventional choice of starting Shane Battier, commonly viewed as a small forward, at the four spot.