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The San Antonio Spurs reached the final defeating the Dallas Mavericks 4-3 in the first round, the Portland Trail Blazers 4-1 in the Conference semifinals and the Oklahoma City Thunder 4-2 in the Conference Finals. They’re in their second consecutive final.
The Miami Heat reached the final defeating the Charlotte Bobcats 4-0 in the first round, the Brooklyn Nets in the Conference semifinals and the Indiana Pacers in the Conference Finals. They’re in their fourth consecutive final and won the last two.
Game 1. San Antonio. June 05, 2014. The beginning is balanced with the San Antonio Spurs trying to take a good lead but the Miami Heat always come back. Both teams’ offense start immediately quite well and the first quarter ends with the Spurs leading 26-20. In the second quarter, especially Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili for the Spurs and Dwyane Wade for the Heat do great things spicing up the game even more. The second quarter ends with the Spurs leading 54-49. In the third quarter, San Antonio is still trying to take a good lead but this time Miami comes back and even manages to take the lead. The third quarter ends with a 78-74 lead for the Heat. In the fourth quarter the Spurs tighten their defense but also improve on offense. The air conditioning is broken and in San Antonio’s hot temperature the home players seem to feel better. Danny Green helps to give the Spurs a new lead while LeBron James starts have cramp trouble. The home team take the decisive lead in the last minutes and end up winning 110-95 to go on 1-0 in the Finals.
Game 2. San Antonio. June 8, 2014. The beginning is similar to Game 1, with the San Antonio Spurs who immediately try to take a good lead. The Texans start significantly better than their opponents with a dominant Tim Duncan. The home team ends the first quarter with a 26-19 lead. In the second quarter the Spurs reach their top lead on 30-19 but the Miami Heat react, especially LeBron James, who leads his teammates to the comeback and even to a 34-33 lead. The Spurs play better, as usual a real team, while the Heat rely on their stars, but the second quarter ends on 43-43. In the third quarter James still leads the Heat, now aided by Rashard Lewis, in a game that’s become close. Both teams score a lot and the third quarter ends 78-77 for the Spurs. The balance continues in the fourth quarter but in the end the Heat have something more, such as a triple by Chris Bosh with just over 1 minute left, while the Spurs make some mistakes. With 5 seconds left Dwyane Wade scores the winnin points for Miami to end 98-96 and tie the Finals on 1-1.
Game 3. Miami. June 10, 2014. The beginning is extraordinary for the San Antonio Spurs and especially for Kawhi Leonard, who scores 10 points in less than 5 minutes. The Texans take a wider and wider lead until they go on 25-12 before LeBron James scores two triples giving the Miami Heat some oxygen. The Texans score with amazing percentages and end the first quarter with a 41-25 lead. In the second quarter, LeBron James is the only one to try to oppose the Spurs but it’s too little. The visitors’ lead reaches its highes on 55-30 and despite three triples by Rashard Lewis the second quarter ends on 71-50 for the Spurs. In the third quarter the Heat try to come back, starting with a 6-0 run. The home team now is defending and Dwyane Wade is now in the game. The defending champions believe it and obtain a partial comeback ending the third quarter on 75-86. In the fourth quarter the Spurs try to defend the remaining lead, taking advantage of the Heat’s mistakes. Tony Parker is still suffering because of his physical problems but his teammates manage to give what it takes to give the Spurs a 111-92 win to move to 2-1 in the Finals.
Game 4. Miami. 06/12/2014. Once again, the San Antonio Spurs start very well, this time with a 13-4 run. after a time-out the Miami Heat have a partial comeback but the home team don’t shoot well and the Texans close the first quarter with a 26-17 lead. In the second quarter the Spurs play very well even when Duncan, Ginobili and Parker are on the bench, forcing the Heat to trail. The Texans reach their top lead on 55-33 before closing the second quarter on 55-36, a score that shows very well their dominance in both offense and defense. In the third quarter LeBron James tries to drive his teammates to the comeback but they don’t seem to have enough energy and he must score almost all the points for his team. Not even him can beat the Spurs by himself and the third quarter ends with the Texans having an 81-57 lead. The fourth quarter is an unexpected garbage time when the Heat finally score a lot but it’s far too late. The game ends with a San Antonio 107-86 win to take a 3-1 lead in the Finals.
Game 5. San Antonio. June 15 2014. The Miami Heat star well with a 8-0 run and hold the lead up to 22-6, as usual thanks mainly to LeBron James. The San Antonio Spurs react with Manu Ginobili starting the 12-0 run that balances the game. The first quarter ends with the Heat leading 29-22. In the second quarter, the Spurs start showing that they want the title and even take the lead on 37-35. Those are the decisive minutes because the host team starts taking control of the game ending the second quarter leading 47-40. In the third quarter the Texans increase their lead while the Heat can’t seem to react. Mills and Ginobili score the decisive triple to end the third quarter 77-58. In the fourth quarter the Heat try to come back with a 6-0 run but again they don’t seem to have the energy they need. The San Antonio Spurs win the game 104-87 and conquer the NBA title.
In these finals the Miami Heat didn’t have the strength to win their third title in a row. Perhaps they no longer had the same motivations of the past years but seemed without energy and LeBron James often played alone or nearly so. Now it’s hard to tell what will happen in the off season: there are many rumors but it’s not an easy situation to handle. If the current group of players will undergo significant changes, they have have played four consecutive finals winning two of them.
I think this is a masterpiece for the San Antonio Spurs, especially for their coach Popovich, who has managed to preserve his older stars from fatigue. The biggest revelation, however, is Kawhi Leonard, a young rising star who in these finals has proven he’s ready to play games at the highest levels, so much that he was elected MVP. Of course, replacing Duncan and Ginobili when they retire will be impossible but the Spurs have shown they0ll still have a top level team.
