The Miami Heat’s Big 3 era was built to be unstoppable—three superstars, one mission, and the kind of hype that had fans expecting a dynasty. With LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh leading the charge, South Beach was supposed to be the center of the basketball universe. But after a humbling Finals loss in 2011 against the Dallas Mavericks, the dream looked shaky. And while they went on to win it all in 2012 and 2013, that first redemption year? It came with cracks.
Just think back to the 2013 Eastern Conference Finals… That was pure drama from start to finish. Game 1 alone had 18 ties and 17 lead changes—LeBron dropped a triple-double with 30 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, and sealed the 103-102 win with a layup in OT. The series see-sawed all the way to Game 7, and when it mattered most, Miami shut the door. LeBron went off for 32 points (15-of-16 from the line) while Wade added 21 and nine boards as the Heat crushed Indiana 99-76. By the end, it felt more like a Finals party than a conference showdown.
Imagine sitting in a room full of NBA vets just cracking up over playoff war stories—and that’s exactly what happened when Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller joined David West on The OGs. The topic? Poor Shane Battier, who apparently went through hell during those Miami-Indiana matchups. UD started it off, half-laughing already: “If you remember the second time we played y’all in the playoffs, you beat the s— out of Shane.” Mike Miller didn’t even flinch—deadpan face, like he was delivering a eulogy for Shane’s knees: “Oh yeah, Shane still can’t walk.” At that, the trio lost it.
Haslem kept going, gasping for breath between laughs: “We used to be like, ‘you all right, bro?’ You beat him up.” he said. “And he used to come to the locker room and we just used to look at him,” UD said, cracking up. “We used to look at each other like, ‘boy, we don’t know how much more he can take.’” And Mike? He sealed it with a smile and a one-liner that sent everyone over the edge: “Shane on the last leg.” That right there? Brotherhood, comedy, and straight-up playoff PTSD—all rolled into one hilarious memory. And at the heart of it all, was a hardcore strategy of squaring up and tackling the enemy.
West reflected on his evolution from high school to the NBA, saying, “I’m a little heavier now, so I could use my big shoulder and move people around.” That shift in his game, from finesse to more physicality, was exactly what Shane found himself up against in that series. West didn’t hold back, saying, “We tried everything, that was the thing with us, man.” The Pacers were hungry, and Coach Frank Vogel’s pep talks played a big part in their mindset. “One thing about Coach Vogel was like he has this gift of like, pumping energy into you. Like he’s almost like he’s constantly just gassing you,” West laughed, remembering how Vogel pushed them to the limit.
For West, that meant getting through with Miami’s stars. “He’d be like, ‘beat these guys up. Just beat them up.’ That’s the way we played,” West said. And it wasn’t just empty words; it was their strategy. The Pacers believed in their shot, no matter how grim it seemed. “It gave us a shot. So, I felt like, you know, for those years we were in Indy, we were one of those teams that, you know, if things break the right way, um, we probably have a shot at the title.” West’s mindset reflected how tough they were—playing rough, pushing the limits, and always going for it.
But Shane was not just on the receiving end of the toughness. He did his thing.
Shane Battier’s underrated impact with the Miami Heat
During the 2013 Eastern Conference Finals, the Indiana Pacers were clearly on high alert when Shane Battier was on the floor. David West revealed just how seriously they took the matchup, saying, “I (learned) to always have my guard up and protect my knees. (Battier) has got this funny way of moving into your knees. We’re very conscious of that. We talk about making sure we protect our knees,” he said to ESPN.
Roy Hibbert wasn’t shy about his feelings toward Battier’s approach either, calling him a “dirty player” after Battier kneed him in the midsection earlier in the series. Hibbert said, “I know what (Battier) brings to the game and it’s worked for him in the past. He has to do whatever he has to do to make sure his team wins. I’m going to watch my knees, watch my groin… I don’t care. I’m in there, I’m playing tough.” Hibbert wasn’t about to back down, despite his concerns about Battier’s style of play.
Battier didn’t directly respond to the Pacers’ accusations but did address the physical nature of guarding bigger players like West and Hibbert. He admitted, “In a perfect world, we’d all love to be stoic, immovable forces where the force of very large men throwing themselves into you doesn’t affect you,” acknowledging the challenges. West, who had previously torn his ACL, explained how frustrating it was to deal with Battier’s tactics, saying, “It’s an irritant; when guys are bearing into your knees… I just know the way he plays, he’s trying to make an impact any way he can.”
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