NBA Finals: Spurs vs. Heat

[Beyond]

Pancake has the best post in this thread so far.

Originally Posted by Aero the Apex

Heat have the younger legs and less playoff mileage as it concerns to this year. Rashad Lewis has stepped up and if it came down to it they could play Greg Oden. Spurs have a great system and unselfish style of play but so do the Heat.

Heat in 5.

You don't watch basketball. Heat are actually older than the Spurs overall. This is the 4th straight year Heat have gone to the finals. Oden is injured. There is no way Heat will win in 5 unless half the Spurs roster is out due to injury.

You clearly didn't watch last year's finals with a worse Spurs team taking a better Heat team to 7. Heat actually would of lost in 6 if not for 2 back to back 3's in the last 28 seconds of the game. Logic dictates this series is the Spurs' to lose, but people have a 'feeling' the Heat will win. That feeling wouldn't happen to be officiating would it? Because if it is, the Spurs actually got more calls last year.

I just don't see how any sane person would believe the Heat will win in 4-5 this time considering the following: (1) the Spurs are better this year. They have a better record, they are the #1 seed and have home court advantage this time (2) the home court system was changed this year from 2 3 2 back to 2 2 1 1 1, making it less favorable for the away team since they won't get 3 games in a row at home anymore (3) the Heat is worse this year. They lost one of the best 3 point shooters in the league in Mike Miller and were a .500 team in the second half of the season.

Another thing to consider going back to your point about the Heat playing less minutes in this post season. They haven't really been tested too much yet. Their hardest test was the Pacers and they turned into a .500 team, too, in the second half of the season and then looked mediocre in the play offs every other game. Not only that, but you also have to factor in the fact that the Spurs get to rest their starters a lot more than every other team in the NBA, including the Heat. I mean, Pop sat them out in the 3rd quarter of Game 5 vs. OKC this last round and then Parker sat the entire 2nd half in Game 6 in preparation for the Heat.

They're ready. First 1 seed since the merge to not have any players playing over 30 minutes per game this season. The Pacers wanted home court advantage in order to beat the Heat this season and ran their starting line up into the ground in order to get it. On the other hand, the Spurs realized they were older this year and made sure to play their bench more than ever this season, not only to rest their starters for the post season, but to also get their bench plenty of confidence and playing time in anticipation for the finals this year.

It's chess, not checkers, and the Spurs have made the all the right moves in order for them to accomplish what they want to accomplish this year. I'm not saying they can't lose, or even that they should be favored against the 2-time defending champs, but they have more than a snowball's chance in hell of winning. I can see the Heat trying to clinch in 6 like they did the Pacers (although the Spurs are wayyyy more consistent, have more offensive weapons, have much better ball movement, etc etc etc), but saying the Heat will win in 4 or 5 just doesn't make any sense.

Either way, should be a good and exciting finals. Can't wait.