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Spoelstra sets defensive tone as camp opens
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Sep. 28--MIAMI -- Practice went smoothly for the first-time coach. The players, after they regained their breath, had a different perspective. "I think he practiced in the mirror a couple of times this summer," guard Dwyane Wade said of Erik Spoelstra's comportment during his first training-camp session as Heat coach. "You could tell he's practiced a couple of times." When Saturday's three-hour session at AmericanAirlines Arena ended, you also could tell Spoelstra had made his priorities clear: Defense. Conditioning. Hard work. "We did a lot of defensive drills," veteran forward Shawn Marion said, "and then we did some more defensive drills, then we did some more defensive drills, then we did some more defensive drills." "It wasn't easy," rookie forward Michael Beasley said. "I'll tell you that much. "I had nightmares last night. I didn't know what to expect. I need to go to sleep right now." "I'm just glad we ain't got one more," rookie guard Mario Chalmers said. That will change today, with two-a-days to begin. For now, though, the focus is clear. "Two hours and 15 minutes of straight defense," Spoelstra said of the bulk of the session. "They didn't get into any shots, any kind of offensive thing, except to get shots at the end."
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