Last year NBA finalists take on each other for the first time this season and produce a game worthy of Christmas Day…..
It was in mid June this year, when Miami Heat overcame a stiff resistance from Oklahoma City Thunder to win the NBA Championship for the first time in the big three era. Back then, the series was all about the clash between LeBron James and Kevin Durant, and going into the night, it was still the same.
However in reality, it was not all about that. There was this battle between Dwyane Wade and Russell Westbrook, Chris Bosh and the OKC bigs, and the tactical duel between Erik Spoelstra and Scott Brooks.
In the end, it all came down to one controversial non-call down the stretch. With Miami leading by 100-97 and ten seconds to go, KD launched a three point effort which hit the rim. Fortunately for OKC, the ball found its way to Westbrook. With three second left on the clock, the point guard let go of a 25-footer. The 3-pointer didn’t found the bottom of the cup, but Wade had made a contact upon delivery. It was a clear foul which would have given Westbrook three throws to tie the game. The official didn’t give it though – rather gave a technical to Westbrook for protesting - and Miami went on to win.
It was that close, and Miami’s coach seemed relieved after his team finally crossed the line. With relief, came a lot of praise for the tenacious Thunder;
"Felt a little bit like a different month," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Regardless of what your script is coming into the game, when you play this team, it's not going to go according to script. They're too good."
Thunder have improved a lot after the Finals’ loss. Durant is just not the same player he used to be. The small forward is not all about scoring now, and much like James he is working on other facets of his game. Tonight KD and his Thunder came close to avenging their loss, but still fell short of matching Heat’s class. Their time however is not far away, and Spoelstra’s comment pretty much highlight that truth.
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