Hacked By Syneld NBA 2020 Finals
The 2019-2020 NBA season concluded with the Los Angeles Lakers taking down the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals, 4-2, for their first title in the last decade. Overall, the victory was the 17th in franchise history, which tied the Boston Celtics for most in NBA history. LeBron James continues to make a case for one of the very top players in NBA history by becoming the first player to earn NBA Finals MVP with three different teams.
As the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference entering the playoffs, the Heats track to the Finals was somewhat remarkable. They became the third-lowest seeded team to ever play in the NBA Finals. Not only were the Lakers the top seed in the Western Conference, they were out of the playoffs a year ago. In fact, this season marked the only time in NBA history that neither NBA Finals team made the playoffs the previous season.
The NBA season started as planned and was producing some of the best basketball the league has ever seen. The All-Star game was a stellar display off offense, resulting in a 157-155 win for Team LeBron. However, on March 11, 2020, the NBA suspended the season after Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz tested positive for COVID-19 and then several others tested positive within the week.
After nearly three months, the NBA Board of Governors approved resuming the NBA season at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World. The format would be unlike anything ever seen, with 22 teams within six games of a playoff berth invited to play in an eight-game schedule for seeding purposes. All teams would assemble, and game played in the “bubble” without fans. Nevertheless, the NBA season, which once appeared to not have a conclusion, would set to resume with the Finals scheduled for September 30 through October 11, nearly 3 ½ months later than usual.
Taking a look at the two NBA Finals teams, the Miami Heat pulled off a deal with three other teams to get All-Star forward Jimmy Butler from the Philadelphia 76ers. He was the key component to the team that started two rookies on opening day. Butler and Bam Adebayo were all-star selections, which was Adebayo’s first and the fifth for Butler. Even before the season was suspended, the Heat had secured a playoff berth and solidified the number five seed in the “bubble”. During the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Heat disposed of the Indiana Pacers, top seeded Milwaukee Bucks, and Boston Celtics, losing only three games combined.
The Lakers missed the playoffs last season for the fifth straight year, largely in part due to a serious injury to LeBron James. There was shakeup at the top, as head coach Luke Walton moved on, as did president of basketball operations Magic Johnson. Frank Vogel became the new head coach and the team went to work to build a force to be reckoned with by trading for All-star Anthony Davis. He and James proved to be the top frontcourt duo in the NBA this season.
Much like the Heat, the Lakers solidified a playoff spot before the suspension and once play resumed, the Lakers clinched the top spot in the Pacific Division and conference. The dominance of James and Davis were noted, as James finished 2nd for MVP and Davis was second for NBA Defensive Player of the Year. In the playoffs the Lakers steamrolled through the Portland Trailblazers, Houston Rockets, and Denver Nuggets to reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 2010.
Game one of the NBA Finals went to the Lakers by the score of 116-98. The Heat jumped out to a 13-point lead in the first quarter, but the Lakers scored 55 of the next 80 points to take control of the game by halftime. The lead actually grew to over 30 points in the third quarter and the Lakers cruised from there. Anhtony Davis led the Lakers with 34 points and LeBron James added 25 and 13 rebounds. Jimmy Butler led the Heat with 23 points, but both Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic failed to finish the game due to injury.
Another dominating performance by James and Davis put the Lakers up 2-0 in the series. They combined to score 65 points, both surpassing the 30-point mark making them the first Lakers’ duo to reach that mark in the same Finals since 2002. The Lakers used red-hot shooting to start the game, hitting 88 percent of their first 25 shots.
The Heat played without Dragic and Adebayo and were down by 14 at halftime. Despite a nearly 40-point third quarter, they were only able to cut into the deficit by four points. That was as close as the Heat would get in the game. Butler paced the team with 25 points and Kelly Olynik added 24 coming off the bench. With Dragic out of the lineup, Tyler Herro was forced to start, becoming the youngest player to start a game in the NBA Finals.
Jimmy Butler took control of the third game with Dragic and Adebayo still sidelined, scoring 40 points in an 11-point victory. He added 13 assists and 11 rebounds to become the third player in league history to have a triple-double with at least 40 points. The Lakers, who got 25 points and 10 rebounds from LeBron James, committed 10 turnovers in the first quarter and 20 overall, leading to their downfall. Normally a dominating first team, the Lakers starters were outscored by 38 points in the defeat.
The Lakers continued their sloppy play in the first half of game four, committing nine turnovers in the first half. However, they took the lead in the middle of the third quarter and never trailed again. Their 102-96 win put them within a game of claiming their 17th NBA title. LeBron James and Anthony Davis combined to score 50 points. Cantavious Caldwell-Pope added 15 points off the bench. The Heat got 22 points from Jimmy Butler, who nearly gave the Heat the lead late with a narrowly missed 3pt attempt. Hero continued to play well, dropping 21 and Duncan Robinson added 17 in the loss.
Jimmy Butler nearly single-handedly keep the Heat in the series, recording another triple-double in game five. He scored 35 points, hauled in 12 rebounds and added 11 assists, fending off the Lakers and LeBron James, who finished with 40 points and 13 rebounds. Butler became the first players in NBA Finals history with at least 35 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and five steals in a game. The Lakers had a chance to win the title but a wide-open three-point attempt by Danny Green failed to drop with time ticking away. Duncan Robinson was an unsung hero in the contest, dropping seven three-pointers and scored 26 points.
In game six, Lakers coach Frank Vogel opted for a smaller, quicker starting lineup and it worked to perfection. They led by eight after one and increased the lead to as much as 30 points in the first half. Clearly showing they were the best team in the NBA this season, the Lakers cruised to a 13-point win. LeBron James led the Lakers with 298 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists. Anthony Davis contributed 19 points and 15 rebounds. Adebayo led the Heat with 25 points, while Jimmy Butler was limited to 12 points. James was named Finals MVP for the fourth time after averaging nearly 30 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists per game.
The good news for the NBA this season was that, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, they found a way to complete the season ending in an exciting NBA Finals. The bad news is that the ratings plummeted, down to around seven million viewers for the Finals, the lowest on record. Many factors are involved in such declines, which frankly began when the games went to the “bubble”. Perhaps with no fans at the games, virtual fans, fake crowd noise, all games being played at the same venue was just too strange for the average fan to gravitate towards. Perhaps the political issues pertaining to an election year and varying stances on the social issues have played a part. Whatever the case may be, the NBA needs to figure out a way to increase interest again and perhaps just a normal season with fans back in the seats and true home court play will solve the problems in 2020-2021.
