Erik Spoelstra on Finals vs. Lakers: Heat 'Never Expected This to Be Easy'

The Miami Heat fought hard Tuesday but ultimately fell 102-96 to the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

The Heat now trail three games to one in the best-of-seven series, and after Game 4, Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra spoke with reporters about the team's expectations and thoughts moving forward:

Battling back from a 3-1 series deficit has proved near-impossible in NBA playoff history, but it's been done 13 times, per Yash Matange of NBA.com.

The Denver Nuggets notably did so twice in this year's playoffs alone when they defeated the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Clippers in the first and second rounds, respectively.

There's also an NBA Finals precedent, as LeBron James led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 3-1 comeback against the Golden State Warriors in 2016.

The Heat will have to take down James, now a Laker in his 17th NBA season, in order to match the Cavs' feat.

It won't be easy, but the battle-tested Heat have fought through difficult matchups and adversity just to get this far. They took down the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in five games and held off a gritty Boston Celtics team in the Eastern Conference Finals in six games.

Injuries have beset the Heat in the NBA Finals, with Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic both sitting out Games 2 and 3 and the latter still missing for Game 4.

However, Miami won Game 3 behind a 40-point Jimmy Butler triple-double before just falling short against the Lakers in Game 4.

Game 5 is scheduled for Friday at 9 p.m. ET.