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NBA Finals Preview: Heat vs Nuggets

Get ready for an in-depth NBA Finals preview of the highly anticipated matchup between the Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets. We discuss it here!

 

MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - MARCH 31, 2023: Jimmy Butler, an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat, attend the semifinal match at 2023 Miami Open at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami

Credit: Leonard Zhukovsky via Shutterstock

By: Joshua Martin

We may not have arrived to the Finals matchup we expected but it's definitely the one we deserved. The two best players in this year’s playoffs lead two squads who are polar opposites in almost every spectrum. 

You have Jimmy Butler who, with the combined forces of excellent coaching by Coach Eric Spoelstra and timely shot making from undrafted vets, helped propel a squad without its second leading scorer back to the championship round for the second time in 4 years. It's truly a David vs. Goliath scenario. So has been the journey for the Heat the entire way it seems. Starting in the play-in tournament, eventually becoming an 8th seed. No one had the Heat in this position.   

Then there’s Nikola Jokic, two time MVP, undisputed leader of the best team in the western conference all year long, leading a squad that's incredibly deep, consistently brilliant offensively and poised to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy for the first time in its franchise’s history. Jamal Murray and Jokic have been historically good this postseason and the Nuggets are finally healthy at the right time. 

The Journey

The Nuggets haven’t been tested much this postseason if we're being honest. Jokic dominated a brittle Lakers team with a flurry of triple doubles, sweeping them in the Western Finals. Murray turned back the hands of time and gave us a taste of what we saw from him in the bubble against the Suns, lifting them to a 4-2 series victory. The Timberwolves stole a game but it’s called a “gentleman's sweep”, emphasis on the word sweep, for a reason. 

The Heat on the other hand lost its first game of the play-in tournament but bounced back to secure an unfavorable first round matchup against. Unfavorable until Giannis sustained a back injury. The Heat handled the Bucks in 4-1 series thumping. Kept that same energy against the Knicks, reaching 4 wins in 6 games. Though pushed to a game 7, the Heat's supporting cast stepped up again led by Caleb Martin's deadly stroke from deep, becoming the first 8th seed since 1999 to reach the NBA Finals.  

Heat X factor - Caleb Martin - averaged 19.3 points per game in the east finals, along with shooting 60 percent from the floor and 49% from three.

X-Factors

Stars like Jokic, Butler and Jamal Murray will definitely have their say so on how this series will unfold but like most cases, the championship series is usually won between the margins, X-factors making timely shots and crucial decisions made by coaches in pivotal situations.

For the Heat, their fairing in this matchup hinges largely, in my opinion, on the health of Tyler Herro. After averaging 20.1 ppg for the Heat during the regular season, Herro has played only 19 minutes this postseason after suffering a broken hand in game 1 of the Bucks series. Herro isn't known for his defensive prowess but he is a capable scorer. For the Heat to have a legitimate chance in this series, they need all the firepower they can get to keep pace with the Nuggets. Shortly after Game 7, Senior NBA analyst for TNT, Chris Haynes, reported that Tyler is on course to return very soon.   

The Nuggets have a number of players to pinpoint in this section. Bruce Brown, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Aaron Gordon. All are solid choices but the former number 2 overall pick in the 2018 draft may be the key to securing a title. Over the past few seasons, MPJ has thoroughly bought into being a role player but there are still plenty of moments when his pedigree shines through. Standing at 6’10”, once Porter Jr. gets going it's easy to see where the Klay Thompson comparisons come from. At his size, he will be able to simply shoot over or dribble past many of Miami’s defenders. If MPJ is involved and hitting his shots, he could be a nightmare matchup for the Heat. 

Final Verdict

I've been totally wrong this entire playoffs. I initially thought the Bucks would represent the East with the Suns coming out of the West in a possible 2021 finals rematch. Both teams eventually fell by the wayside after sustaining crucial injuries and facing scorching hot teams who couldn’t miss from the field. But this is about the present, the here and now. And honestly, I believe the Heat will win. I know the Nuggets have a better deeper team, so did the Celtics. I know the Nuggets have a dominant MVP big man, so did the Bucks. The Nuggets faithful don't tend to reach the heights of some of your more delusional Knicks fans but I'm pretty sure Ball Arena will be in a raucous frenzy. With all that being said, this year’s playoffs have shown me that my gut is no longer reliable. Whatever I know, I truly don’t. 

Heat in 6. 

NBA Finals Schedule

Denver Nuggets vs. Miami Heat

Game 1: At Denver, 8:30 p.m. ET Thursday (ABC)
Game 2: At Denver, 8 p.m. ET Sunday (ABC)
Game 3: At Miami, 8:30 p.m. ET June 7 (ABC)
Game 4: At Miami, 8:30 p.m. ET June 9 (ABC)
*Game 5: At Denver, 8:30 p.m. ET June 12 (ABC)
*Game 6: At Miami, 8:30 p.m. ET June 15 (ABC)
*Game 7: At Denver, 8 p.m. ET June 18 (ABC)

* - if necessary

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Sports 4 Adonis Armstrong Sports 4 Adonis Armstrong

First Week of NBA Playoff Basketball Recap

The NBA Playoffs kicked off with a bang we take a closer look at the highlights and lowlights of the first week, from unexpected upsets to standout players and controversial moments. We discuss it here!

 

By: Joshua Martin

A week’s worth of NBA Playoff basketball is officially in the books and well… This might be the most compelling first round we've ever seen. 

From marquee players suffering untimely injuries, to blowouts of the 20 plus point variety, stompings and suspensions, this year’s playoffs have featured a little bit of everything so far. 

We all know things can change quickly and so will our opinions on each of these remaining teams. But that's the beauty of postseason basketball: one game, one series can change the narrative around any organization.

Here are some of my observations…

The Knicks are legit and have their sights on a ECF berth.

It's amazing what great point guard play can do for a once moribund franchise. Jalen Bronsun might be the greatest off season acquisition of the past few years. He, along with Josh Hart, Julius Randle, Mitch Robinson and R.J. Barrett has revitalized the New York Knicks and has them in position to pull off the upset in this 4 versus 5 seed matchup. A suffocating New York Knicks defense forced Donavon Mitchell to have one of the worst performances of his playoff career in game 4, going 5 for 18 from the floor, with his teammates also turning in lackluster performances.

“The way we lost sucks. We can’t hang our heads and ultimately give up. We’re not that type of group. Like I said, we’ll be ready for Game 5.” - Donavan Mitchell, Yahoo Sports

“Spida” Mitchell deserves our collective benefit of the doubt but the way the Knicks are playing, it's hard to envision the Cavaliers climbing out of a 3-1 hole. 

The Best Series of The first round has been the Warriors vs the Kings.

The Kings are maturing right before our eyes. The coach of the Year Mike Brown and the league’s most clutch player De'aaron Fox are going toe to toe with the defending champs and don't seem to be phased by the bright lights of the postseason at all.  Draymond’s stomp on the chest of Kings big man Domantas Sabonis, forced the dubs emotional leader to sit in game 3 but the Warriors protected their home court and head back to Sac-town tied 2-2. Albeit with controversy, with Steph Curry inadvertently calling a timeout without realizing they were out of them after a challenge call didn't go in the Warriors favor moments earlier. Kings Forward Harrison Barnes eventually missed the game winning 3 point shot but the events leading up to the potential buzzer beater left many wondering who was to blame for such a crucial gaffe in such a pivotal moment.

Dub-Nation can collectively take a deep breath as the mishap is only a footnote in what has been an excellent series. The Kings have home court advantage with 2 of the next 3 games in Sacramento and the Warriors have been notoriously awful on the road this season. In order for them to advance they will have to win at least one game on the road.

The Bucks aren’t going anywhere without a healthy Giannis.

A back contusion has forced Giannis Antekounmpo to miss the last two games for the Milwaukee Bucks and they are in serious trouble. “Playoff Jimmy” is a real thing and the resilient with yesterday he scored a Miami Heat playoff record by scoring 56, the battle tested Miami Heat are showing the league how important it is to have your Superstars available during the final stretch of the season. Two blowout victories have the Heat in position to pull off the ultra rare feat of a 8 seed upsetting a 1 seed. The Greek Freak did return for Game 4 but it wasn’t much the Bucks could do to contain Jimmy, but it’s still not over anything is possible.

Are the 76ers for real?

The Philadelphia 76ers were undoubtedly the most impressive team during the first week of games. Not only did they sweep their opponent, the Brooklyn Nets, but they did so without Joel Embiid in game 4 because of injuries. James Harden and Tyrese Maxey blitzed the Nets by constantly attacking the interior and setting up teammates for easy shots. We even got a Tobias Harris sighting, as he is often the forgotten man on a team filled with talent and trustworthy vets. After trading away KD and Kyrie, no one expected the Nets to truly contend with the East’s elite but give the 6ixers credit, they took care of business and now one of the title favorites gets a much needed break as they await the winner of the Hawks versus Celtics series. 

RusselL Westbrook quiets critics with impressive play, momentarily.

Russ may be having the greatest stretch ever in his hall of fame career. He has shot 54% from the floor and is currently 8 of 16 from three in this first round series against the Suns. We can expect those numbers to taper off a little but one thing is for sure, Russ never cheats us on effort. The L.A. Clippers have once again been devastatingly hit with the injury bug and all in all honesty should be getting blown out by this Phoenix Suns team littered with allstars and future hall of famers. Currently, as the lone “star” on a team filled with championship aspirations, Russ’s amazing play has the Clippers competitive.

Strong words from his former teammate Kevin Durant and longtime friend Chris Paul.

Lebron and AD leading Lakers resurgence.

Despite lackluster play from a few of their mid season acquisitions, the Lakers are enjoying a 3-1 series lead after last night thrilling overtime heading in game 4. LeBron had a game for the ages with his 20 point 20 rebound performance last night. Behind the magnificent play of Anthony Davis and the consistency of Lebron James, the Lakers may be the scariest team in the western conference. The on court antics of Dillon Brooks has dominated headlines but no one can deny the legitimacy of their title hopes, especially since the team made drastic changes to their roster a few months ago acquiring the likes of D’Angelo Russel, Jarred Vanderbilt and Malik Beasly. The Grizzlies have been snake bitten with major injuries to their frontcourt with Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke not being able to suit up and recently Ja Morant injured his hand after a hard fall in game 1. The basketball gods seem to be favoring the Lakers as much as any team in recent memory. Inconsistent play from the Grizzlies and injuries have the Lakers super confident and they should be. I hope “Dillon the Villain” realizes it's never a good idea to come at the King.   

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