After some exciting conference finals, he Miami Heat and the Denver Nuggets They have managed to overcome adversity to emerge as the champions of their respective conferences. On the one hand those of Erik Spoelstra want to become the first team to win a championship after being seeded number eight, while those from Mike Malone they plan to bring the Colorados their first NBA title.
The ‘Underappreciated’ Nuggets
Los Denver Nuggets They are probably the most undervalued team in the league, because although it is a reality that in recent years they had needed that last push to reach the Finalesmanaged to finish on top of the West and with a Nikola Jokic playing at candidate level Most valuable Player.
After 47 seasons, the Denver Nuggets finally got access to some nba finals and be the number one seed in the West. Similarly, they aim to become the third franchise in the last eight seasons to obtain a first championship ring after the Cleveland Cavaliers (2016) and the Toronto Raptors (2019).
As if that were not enough, the Nuggets They have one of the most complete lineups (if not the most) in the NBA. Well, they don’t just have the two-time League Most Valuable Player: Nikola Jokicbut rather it was surrounded by dynamic elements such as Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, Michael Porter Jr y Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Murraywho had missed the last two Postseasons with Denver and the 2021/2022 regular season returned to demonstrate his talent on the court. Jamal is averaging 27.7 points in Playoffsincluding 32.5 in the sweep against Los Angeles Lakers of LeBron James. He currently exceeds the 26.5 points he averaged in 2020 to help Nuggets to reach the Conference Finals.
The Heat vs the odds
For his part, he Miami Heat of Erik Spoelstra could become the first team to be the number eight seed and win a title from NBA. It should be remembered that those of the 305 are only the second team in history to have reached the nba finals with eighth place, tying the New York Knicks from 1998/1999 (lost 4-1 to the San Antonio Spurs).
After having prevented the Boston Celtics come back from 3-0 in the Conference Finals, this was largely down to the sensational performance of Most valuable Player of said instance in the East: Jimmy Butler. Miami’s explosive basketball player averaged 26.2 points, 9.8 assists, 8.3 rebounds and two triple-doubles in his only Finals appearance against the Lakers in 2020.
However, just like Jokic and Denver, Jimmy Buckets will not go to war alone, as it has a dynamic arsenal of players in Bam Adebayo, Kevin Love, Kyle Lowry, Caleb Martin, Gabe Vincent. This added to the possible return of Tyler Herro who could return to the court after suffering a hand injury in Game 1 against the Milwaukee Bucks.
As if that weren’t enough, he Heat can boast of having converted some of its elements from “zeroes to heroes”, since Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Caleb Martin y Duncan Robinson they are four of the seven undrafted players in the NBA Draft to have appeared in the 2023 Postseason. Thanks to the player development program and effective use of the NBA GLeague, Miami He manages to find greatness in the least expected places.
experience duel
as if you are nba finals weren’t exciting enough, it’s a true tactician’s duel between Mike Malone y Erik Spoelstra. The latter is completing his 15th season with Miami, while Malone is in his eighth with Denver, making them the second and fourth longest-serving coaches in the league, respectively. Being Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs) and Steve Kerr the first and third with the highest number of seasons.
When are the NBA Finals games?
- Game 1 – Miami Heat vs. Denver Nuggets – June 1 – 6:30 p.m.
- Game 2 – Miami Heat vs. Denver Nuggets – June 4 – 6:00 p.m.
- Game 3 – Denver Nuggets vs. Miami Heat – June 7 – 6:30 p.m.
- Game 4 – Denver Nuggets vs. Miami Heat – June 9 – 6:30 p.m.
- Game 5* – Miami Heat vs. Denver Nuggets – June 12 – 6:30 p.m.
- Game 6* – Denver Nuggets vs. Miami Heat – June 15 – 6:30 p.m.
- Game 7* – Miami Heat vs. Denver Nuggets – June 18 – 6:00 p.m.
2023-06-01 16:47:17
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