Chris Bosh came through in the NBA Finals for the Miami Heat on the defensive end. (Photo Credit/Keith Allison/Flickr)
After splitting the first two games in South Beach, the San Antonio Spurs couldn’t achieve the same feat to win the 2013 NBA Finals. The Spurs came back to Miami just a win away from the franchise’s fifth triumph at the biggest stage, thanks to a couple of dominating performances on their home court to take the lead the series 3-2.
Instead, desperately clinging to their back-to-back title hopes, the Miami Heat and LeBron James came roaring back to win two straight in front of their home fans in an exciting Game 7.
Here’s a quick recap of how the series unfolded.
Scoring Runs
An NBA game is 48 minutes long but don’t get it twisted, it only takes a 30-second spell, a two-minute stretch, even a single shot to turn a game or even a series on its head.
During these NBA Finals, it was all about scoring runs.
In the thrilling opener of the series, the San Antonio Spurs made a 15-5 run to help them take the lead as Tony Parker scored the 10 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, the highlight being his game-sealing circus shot.
Miami, as they did after losses in these playoffs, recovered with a big win in Game 2, which included a merciless 33-5 scoring run on their way to a 19-point win and leveled the series at one all.
Not to be outdone, the Spurs had a 29-8 run in the third quarter of Game 3 which was triggered by Gary Neal’s momentum-swinging, buzzer-beating 3-pointer to end the first half. This all came after Danny Green blocked LeBron James’ layup and San Antonio went on to win by the third-highest margin in NBA Finals history with a 113-77 victory.
However, amid all the big scoring runs, the most important was Miami’s 6-1 run in the final 28 seconds of the penultimate game to save their season as Ray Allen forced overtime and ultimately, Game 7. The most decisive was the Heat’s 5-0 run with less than a minute left in the final game, whereby Tim Duncan missed a hook shot and an easy tip-in.
Role players
When in need of a 3-point shot late in the game, it’s nice to know you have the all-time leader in made 3-pointers in NBA history. And in Game 6, future Hall of Famer Ray Allen did what he does best and what he been doing his entire career, hit a corner 3, consequently saving Miami’s season in dramatic fashion.
It’s well known that Mario Chalmers is a player who isn’t fearful of the big stages, just ask Derrick Rose. However, in the 2013 NBA Finals, the fourth-year point guard’s biggest problem was consistency. Chalmers was unable to continue his play from game to game.
In Game 2, Chalmers had 19 points but followed that up with a 0-for-5 performance in Game 3 and scored less than 10 points in the following couple of games. Rio has also been struggling to keep the ball, racking up more turnovers (18) than assists (15) throughout the series.
Last year, the unlikely hero for the Miami Heat was Mike Miller, who hobbled out to the 3-point line and hit shot after shot after shot. In 2013, that honor belongs to Shane Battier.
No, he wasn’t hobbling, but after a 6-for-19 start and losing his playing minutes to Miller, Battier came roaring back by making six of his eight 3-point attempts in Game 7 and providing a much needed scoring punch. When asked about his struggles, Battier told ESPN’s Doris Burke that, “Sometimes it’s better to be timely than good.”
For San Antonio, Kawhi Leonard continued his incredible play in his first NBA Finals and the 21-year-old had arguably his best game at the biggest stage, grabbing 16 boards and scoring 19 points. However, defensively, as the series wore on, he became powerless to stop LeBron James, who was now getting into the paint with a bit more ease.
Coach Gregg Popovich gave the North Carolina product the Green light (sorry, it had to be done) to “jack ‘em up,” and boy did he reward his trust, hitting an NBA Finals-record 25 3s on 45 long-range attempts.
Miami, which is renowned for having a stellar defense, just didn’t have any answers for the Spurs offense. I think Ray Allen’s expression says it best about how the Heatles felt at that particular moment.
In Game 3, Green and Gary Neal combined to burn Miami for 51 points as the Spurs pounded Miami 113-77. A long-range assault was the duo’s preferred method of attack as they combined to hit 13 from behind the arc. As you can guess, it was a long night for Miami.
Simply put, Mr. Green was firing on all cylinders and seemingly headed to an unlikely Most Valuable Player award in these NBA Finals–after all, he was the highest scoring Spur with 90 points through five games.
However, Game 6 and 7 told a different story. The Heat locked into the Green, sprinting to every shot he was winding up to take and forcing him to put the ball on the ground or take an extremely difficult shot.
Clearly all the attention took its toll on him as he went just 2-for-11 on 3-pointers in the series’ final two contests.
Boris Diaw came on strong as the series went on. The 6’8”, 235-pound big man gave LeBron James a troublesome time, neutralizing his strength, while backing off to take advantage of James’ iffy outside shot. His fellow big man, Tiago Splitter, didn’t fare so well. I think this play best describes his first NBA Finals experience.
The Stars
Once he was added into the starting lineup in Game 5, Manu Ginobili exploded for 24 points and led the Spurs to victory. In vintage Manu mode, the 35-year-old contorted his way to the box score while still getting others involved, as he ended up with 10 assists.
In Game 6, though, Ginobili and Tony Parker struggled mightily as the former turned the ball over eight times while Parker went 6-for-23.
After the devastating loss in Game 6, Parker failed to show up in Game 7 as well, scoring 10 points on 3-of-12 shooting. Ginobili increased his scoring significantly, but had key turnovers down the stretch which allowed Miami to run away with a 95-88 win.
Even at 37 years old, Tim Duncan is still producing at a high level and in the NBA Finals, he was determined to win his fifth NBA championship, averaging 18 points, 10 rebounds and 1.6 blocks throughout the postseason. In the Finals, the 16-year vet racked up nearly 19 points, 12 rebounds and 1.4 blocks against Miami.
However, when it came to it, as mentioned before, Duncan missed two chances to draw his team level. He would later go on to say, “Missing a layup to tie the game, making a bad decision down the stretch. Just unable to stop Dwyane [Wade] and LeBron [James]. Game 7 is always going to haunt me.” (Source – Yahoo Sports)
LeBron James on the other hand “ain’t got no worries,” as the now two-time NBA champion and back-to-back Finals MVP racked up two triple-doubles in the series and in the last game of the season, he finished with 37 points and 12 rebounds to lead his team to victory.
Despite a tentative start to the series, shooting 29 percent from 3, LeBron James’ outside jumper was now coming back to him. The four-time MVP went 5-for-10 from behind the arc in Game 7 as the Spurs’ defense continued to dare him to shoot.
Dwyane Wade, too, seemingly got stronger as the Finals went on. Following his second-half struggles in earlier games, the 2006 Finals MVP had a flashback to his older, more dominant days as he contributed 32 of the Big 3s 85 points in Game 4. In the remaining three games, Flash averaged 21 points as his jumper was also now falling on a more consistent basis.
Offensively, Chris Bosh continued to be sporadic, but defensively, the 6’11” converted power forward was the anchor. He made smooth transitions as a help defender while holding his own against arguably the best power forward of all time, Tim Duncan. Bosh also backed up his statement in Game 6 as he blocked Danny Green’s would be game-winning corner 3.
Coaching
After starting Tiago Splitter, in Game 5, Gregg Popovich rolled the dice and inserted Manu Ginobili into the starting lineup for the first time all year.
The move to start Ginobili exemplifies what Gregg Popovich is all about, flexibility and adjustment. He realized that his sixth man was struggling coming off the bench and wasn’t afraid to try something different.
Having said that, in Game 6 of the NBA Finals,a tactical mistake on Gregg Popovich’s end–that’s not something you will hear often–led to a Miami win.
With less than 30 seconds left in regulation, Pop yanked Tim Duncan (his best rebounder) for Boris Diaw, who is a better perimeter defender, as the Heat needed 3s to keep the game alive. Unfortunately, Miami grabbed two key rebounds to hit not one, but two vital, game-tying shots.
Now, I’m not going to sit here and criticise Popovich for his questionable decision; after all, his long-term success and four NBA championship rings suggest he knows a thing or two. This was simply a matter of Pop over-thinking and ultimately defeating himself. That’s why even though Duncan was clearly angry during the postgame press conference, he bit his tongue and did not verbally lash out at his long-time coach, because he knows how great a coach he is.
In hindsight, maybe Popovich decides to stick with Duncan, but there’s still no guarantee he would have grabbed either rebound. It also has to be said that it is a lot easier to ridicule his decision retrospectively.
His opposite number in these Finals, however, is always under the microscope. There’s no two ways about it, Erik Spoelstra is the most scrutinized coach in basketball, sometimes unfairly so.
Spoelstra is now a two-time NBA champion and has the most playoff wins in Miami Heat history with 50 and in 2013, he made all the necessary adjustments to win.
In several games, Ginobili and Parker feasted upon Miami’s defense as they often targeted poor Mike Miller every time there was a screen set, as the Heat switched on picks. Eventually, they did make the adjustments and stop switching. Also, at time Spoelstra put James on Parker and Ginobili and the duo often struggled against him.
Obviously he has his flaws, but then again, who doesn’t? Even the great Phil Jackson had things he could have improved and San Antonio now know first-hand that he is a great young coach.
Although, even in defeat, the San Antonio Spurs players and coaches were still classy.