MIAMI – When the Nets and Heat take the floor Tuesday night at American Airlines Arena, it will be the 60th time – 34 in the regular season, 26 in the playoffs – that Paul Pierce and LeBron James will face each other in an NBA game.
Though there is clearly no love lost between them after their battles over the years — starting with Celtics-Cavaliers — Pierce said the dislike isn’t personal.
“I think it’s more of a basketball thing,” Pierce said prior to morning shootaround ahead of Game 1. “When you’re aiming for the same prize, and only one of you can get it, there’s going to be a dislike there. There’s nothing that’s carried over off the court.
“I think any dislike between me and LeBron in Miami or Cleveland is all based on what we’re both chasing. That’s about it.”
Part of the reason they may not have any issues off the court is they don’t spend any time together.
“I don’t really have a relationship with anybody in the NBA, outside my teammates,” Pierce said. “These are guys I respect, I’ve been to the All-Star Game with a lot of them, but it’s just a mutual respect, that’s all. It is not like I am calling anybody. My friends are pretty much who I grew up with and my family.”
Deron Williams clarified the treatment he received for his ankle prior to the Nets’ Game 7 victory over the Raptors was a cortisone shot and an anti-inflammatory injection. He twisted his ankle in the third quarter of Game 6.
Williams, who initially revealed he received an injection during an interview Monday, said he’s also fighting a cold, but that neither would be an issue for Game 1.
“I’m fine,” he said.
After playing 25-plus minutes in both Game 6 Friday and Game 7 Sunday, Kevin Garnett wasn’t interested in talking about his energy level prior to Game 1.
“Doesn’t matter where it’s at, because we’re here,” he said. “I don’t think any of us are going to use that as an excuse, but we’re here. We’re here to play, and we’re here to win.”
Garnett hadn’t played over 25 minutes in consecutive games since Dec. 7 and 10. But Garnett took the minutes Nets coach Jason Kidd gave him in the most important games of the season and made them count, finishing with 13 points and five rebounds in Game 6 before recording 12 points and 11 rebounds in Game 7 for his first double-double since Feb. 1.
“I thought I was aggressive when I needed to be, but more importantly, I haven’t forgotten my role on this team, and what the priority is in that role,” Garnett said.
Kidd would not reveal his starting lineup – namely whether Shaun Livingston will return to the guard spot next to Deron Williams or if Alan Anderson would remain a starter for the third straight game.
The Heat were wrestling with the idea of keeping Udonis Haslem in the starting lineup or switching to a smaller group featuring either Rashard Lewis or Shane Battier at power forward.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said to expect the chess match between the two teams to become a running part of the series.
“I think you’ll see as much versatility and flexibility in these matchups as you will anywhere in the playoffs,” Spoelstra said.