2023 NBA Finals: (1)Denver Nuggets vs. (8)Miami Heat

[ProfessaPackMan]

Game 1 is Thursday at 8:30pm and Game 2 is Sunday at 8pm.

[jeebs9]

YESSIR!! But sadly the last game of the year. Should be a good one.

Like I said in the ECF thread. Miami taking the first game

[jeebs9]

This is pure awesome. Screenshot_20230530-110740.jpg

[Majingir]

Feels weird seeing Lowry in the finals with another team.

Either way, I usually cheer for the team that has a drought, so I'm cheering for the Nuggets.

[jeebs9]

I'm on baby leave. So I'll be posting a little more than usually .

The best 2 man game since Stockton/Malone
https://youtu.be/kvDpzytUrRI

[ojandpizza]

Really want to see if there is a degree of "rust" from Denver before making a pick here. As the rest of this postseasons shows you can't let Miami get early wins. Aside from normal rust that can pop up from a break it really felt like Denver was building and building as the postseason went on. They looked like a much better team at the end of the Lakers series than early on in the T-Wolves series. So it's interesting to see if a break effects that.

If Denver just picks up where they left off I don't know that I expect this to be all that competitive. I know Miami has been proving the talent argument wrong all postseason long but Denver has just had too many things going right for them. Everything has been clicking, and their perimeter defenders love pushing guys to the middle of the floor where Joker is actually a great defender in space and they have guys swarmed with length. I don't think they'll give up as many clean looks to guys like Martin and Gabe, I think they'll actually welcome Jimmy dribbling into the mid-range like they did with Book & KD, just felt like Boston would have been a much tougher match-up for them in terms of personnel and playstyle.

Miami is going to have to make Joker a liability. They love the ball screens and they are going to have to cause problems with those. Problem is everyone has been trying to do that and it hasn't worked. Denver has been just as good defensively as Miami so far, and obviously their offensive ceiling is just much higher. Similar to the Lakers Miami has been a good defensive team with random role players torching guys on clean looks. Lakers were dropping 112 a game, on 21+ from Reaves and 15+ from Rui against Denver and it still wasn't enough. Nuggets survived the one game AD was able to get his looks on Joker to drop consistently and went for 40, and the game LeBron used what little gas he had left and went for 40, they nearly survived the game Book went for 47 and the game he and KD both hit 36. They just feel impervious to big games from stars where Jimmy going for 35 in a game or two likely won't phase them.

Currently the two teams are playing at the exact same pace in the postseason (which feels like an odd coincidence playing different teams/conferences) and Denver has nearly doubled Miami's Net Rating thus far. Miami has probably drawn the tougher opponents with Denver playing Minnesota, and the Lakers having about 80% Bron and DLo who might as well have been watching from home.. But Miami's ability to sorta thrive in this slower paced playoff environment feels like an advantage that might get neutralized this time around. Slowing things down and giving Joker the half-court game he loves feels like a not so ideal strategy.

If Denver just picks up where they left off I could see this going 4-1 honestly. If they look off, or can't match Miami's intensity I think it could go 7 just like this Boston series.

[J_Posse]

I have Denver in 5 or 6.

I don't think Denver will fall into the same traps and issues against Miami's zone defense.

Plus, their offensive game plan is a lot more varied than anything Boston was doing.

Getting to the paint and drawing fouls on Bam will be key too. They'll also need to figure out how to take away enough of the role players for them not to matter.

Should be a good series.

Official HQ of Bills Backer/Spurs Nation

[J_Posse]

Quote: Originally Posted by ojandpizza

Really want to see if there is a degree of "rust" from Denver before making a pick here. As the rest of this postseasons shows you can't let Miami get early wins. Aside from normal rust that can pop up from a break it really felt like Denver was building and building as the postseason went on. They looked like a much better team at the end of the Lakers series than early on in the T-Wolves series. So it's interesting to see if a break effects that. If Denver just picks up where they left off I don't know that I expect this to be all that competitive. I know Miami has been proving the talent argument wrong all postseason long but Denver has just had too many things going right for them. Everything has been clicking, and their perimeter defenders love pushing guys to the middle of the floor where Joker is actually a great defender in space and they have guys swarmed with length. I don't think they'll give up as many clean looks to guys like Martin and Gabe, I think they'll actually welcome Jimmy dribbling into the mid-range like they did with Book & KD, just felt like Boston would have been a much tougher match-up for them in terms of personnel and playstyle. Miami is going to have to make Joker a liability. They love the ball screens and they are going to have to cause problems with those. Problem is everyone has been trying to do that and it hasn't worked. Denver has been just as good defensively as Miami so far, and obviously their offensive ceiling is just much higher. Similar to the Lakers Miami has been a good defensive team with random role players torching guys on clean looks. Lakers were dropping 112 a game, on 21+ from Reaves and 15+ from Rui against Denver and it still wasn't enough. Nuggets survived the one game AD was able to get his looks on Joker to drop consistently and went for 40, and the game LeBron used what little gas he had left and went for 40, they nearly survived the game Book went for 47 and the game he and KD both hit 36. They just feel impervious to big games from stars where Jimmy going for 35 in a game or two likely won't phase them. Currently the two teams are playing at the exact same pace in the postseason (which feels like an odd coincidence playing different teams/conferences) and Denver has nearly doubled Miami's Net Rating thus far. Miami has probably drawn the tougher opponents with Denver playing Minnesota, and the Lakers having about 80% Bron and DLo who might as well have been watching from home.. But Miami's ability to sorta thrive in this slower paced playoff environment feels like an advantage that might get neutralized this time around. Slowing things down and giving Joker the half-court game he loves feels like a not so ideal strategy. I Denver just picks up where they left off I could see this going 4-1 honestly. If they look off, or can't match Miami's intensity I think it could go 7 just like this Boston series.

I'll gladly take a 7 game series, but only if Denver wins anyway.

No NBA basketball til Summer League (Victor is likely not playing ), so the more basketball we get the better.

Fatigue for Miami could have a negative impact. The high altitude is gonna be a tough adjustment having played so many extra games.

Official HQ of Bills Backer/Spurs Nation