Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra Shuts Down ESPN Reporter: 'Untrained Eye'

Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra had a scathing response for ESPN's Ramona Shelburne during Sunday's Game 2 postgame presser.

The Heat appear alive and well in the series after surviving a 40-burger from Nuggets star Nikola Jokic and winning, 111-108, to tie the series at 1-1.

Head coach Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat speaks to media after a 111-108 victory against the Denver Nuggets in Game Two. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Jokic, a triple-double machine, scored 41 on the Heat but only registered four assists.

Erik Spoelstra Has Stern Response For Ramona Shelburne

Shelburne pointed to Nikola's lack of assists for Denver's loss, and Spoelstra was quickly set off by the question. He essentially blamed her "untrained eye" for the bad analysis, seeming bothered by the ESPN reporter's take on Jokic.

She contended that turning Jokic into a scorer worked against Denver's odds of winning.

"That's ridiculous," Spoelstra started, "that's the untrained eye that says something like that."

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"This guy is an incredible player. Twice in two seasons he's been the best player on this planet. You can't just say, 'Oh, make him a scorer.' That's not how they play," Spoelstra added. " has our full respect."

However, Shelburne may be onto something. The Nuggets lost their third game of the postseason after Jokic scored more than 40.

Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets prepares to shoot free throws against the Miami Heat. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)

ESPN, NBA Clash (Again)

NBA players and personnel have a track record of being blunt with the media.

From Giannis' ignoring of Malika Andrews' questioning to Kyrie Irving getting in a spat with Nick Friedell, NBA personnel haven't always been impressed by ESPN's talent.

Heat center Bam Adebayo had his own viral moment with the media when he dismissed a postgame reporter.

Perhaps Miami's fed up with not receiving their due credit. All championship talk has been in favor of the Nuggets after they dominated the Western Conference Finals and Game 1 of the Finals.

The Nuggets, collectively, are guilty of fumbling an eight-point advantage in the final minutes of the game. It's truly hard to fault Jokic for what felt like a Miami win.

Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo stepped up to the moment: scoring or assisting the final 18 of 21 points for Miami.

Leading the resurgence in the final quarter was three-point assassin, Duncan Robinson. He logged all 10 of his points (4-of-5) in the fourth and kickstarted the period with relentless shooting from deep.

With Sunday's loss, Denver suffered their first loss at home since Mar. 30.

With the win, Miami holds the advantage as they travel back home for Game 3 on Wednesday.