ESPN NBA

There are so many storylines for Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Let's take a look at the ones that relate to the history of Game 7s in this round.

Home-Court Advantage
The last team to win Game 7 of an NBA Finals on the road was the 1978 Washington Bullets, who upset the Seattle SuperSonics in Seattle, 105-99. Six Bullets scored in double figures that game, which may best be remembered for the shooting struggles of future Hall-of-Famer Dennis Johnson, who went 0-for-14 from the field.

There have been five Game 7s since, four of which came after the NBA went to the 2-3-2 format in 1985. Each of the previous five was won by the home team, but was reasonably close. The average margin of victory of those five games was six points.

In the last 30 postseasons, home teams are a combined 17-2 in Game 7s in the Conference Finals and NBA Finals.

The two losses were by the Sacramento Kings against the Lakers in the 2002 Western Conference Finals and the Pistons against the Heat in the 2005 Eastern Conference Finals.

The NBA has the longest drought among the three major sports for a Game 7 winner, but only by one year. There hasn't been a Game 7 of the World Series won by the road team since the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Baltimore Orioles in 1979.

Come So Close in Game 6, what happens in Game 7?
Seven teams have had a chance to clinch an NBA title and lost a Game 6 by one to three points.


There is precedent for those teams both to win and to lose.

Of the previous six instances, four have won-- the 1954 Los Angeles Lakers, 1957 Boston Celtics, 1960 Celtics, and 1974 Celtics.

The 1974 Celtics share the distinction with the Spurs of being the only ones to lose in overtime (on a sky hook by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of the Bucks with two seconds left). Those Celtics bounced back to win Game 7 handily, but unlike the Spurs, they had the advantage of being at home.

The two most recent cases both lost.

The 1988 Detroit Pistons lost a heartbreaker to the Lakers in Game 6, then lost another very close game in Game 7 in Los Angeles.

And the 1994 New York Knicks had their Game 6 hopes of victory end in the same way the Spurs’ did, with a 3-pointer blocked (in this case, John Starks by Hakeem Olajuwon) at the buzzer.

That shot (which would have been a title-winner if made) was the Knicks' best shot. They lost to the Rockets in Game 7, 90-84.

LeBron and Duncan in Game 7s
LeBron James is 2-2 all-time in Game 7s, with wins in his last two. In those four games, he’s averaging 33.8 points and 8.3 rebounds, almost a match for his numbers in his last Game 7 (32 points, 8 rebounds)-- the win over the Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Tim Duncan is 2-1 in Game 7s, including a win in Game 7 of the 2005 NBA Finals against the Detroit Pistons. Duncan had 25 points and 11 rebounds in that game en route to winning the NBA Finals MVP.

Duncan and James share the common bond of having their highest-scoring Game 7 in a loss. Duncan scored 41 in a Game 7 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in 2006. James scored 45 in an Eastern Conference semifinals loss to the Celtics in 2008.

The Experience
The Heat have been through the Game 7 rigors quite a bit (including the once previously this season). Their roster has a combined 48 games worth of Game 7 experience (in any series), though only one player (Ray Allen) has been in an NBA Finals Game 7 (2010 with the Celtics).

The Spurs have three players with NBA Finals Game 7 experience-- their Big 3 of Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobili. Their roster in total has a combined 14 games of Game 7 experience.

The Miami Heat staved off elimination with a thrilling 103-100 overtime win over the San Antonio Spurs, behind a clutch 3-pointer from Ray Allen and an all-around masterpiece from LeBron James.

Let’s take a look at how this went down.

Key Plays
Allen tied the game with 5.2 seconds left, his fifth postseason game-tying or go-ahead 3-pointer in the final 10 seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime. That’s the most by any player in the past 15 postseasons. Robert Horry and Reggie Miller are the only other players with multiple such shots in that span.

It was the second 3-pointer after an offensive rebound for the Heat in the final 20.1 seconds (James made it a two-point game after his miss was rebounded by Mike Miller).

Chris Bosh struggled defensively early on; Tim Duncan shot 9-for-9 with Bosh defending him in the first half. After halftime, Bosh pulled down six rebounds, none bigger than the offensive rebound that led to Allen’s game-tying 3-pointer.

He also blocked the Spurs’ final two field-goal attempts of the game, both in overtime, including a potential game-tying 3-point attempt by Danny Green at the buzzer.

All-Around Domination
The MVP had 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, his 11th career postseason triple-double -- tied for second-most all-time, according to the Elias Sports Bureau -- and his fourth in the NBA Finals (only Magic Johnson has more, via Elias).

In fact, the past four NBA Finals triple-doubles have been recorded by James.

He joins an illustrious list of players to register a triple-double in an NBA Finals elimination game (see chart on the right) and he’s just the fourth in history with a 30-10-10 game in the NBA Finals, according to Elias.

And he came alive late, scoring 18 points in the fourth quarter and overtime after scoring just 14 in the first three quarters combined.

The Other Superstar
Tim Duncan came out firing on all cylinders, scoring 25 points on 11-for-13 shooting in the first half, the most he’s ever scored in the first half of an NBA Finals game. Over the past 15 seasons, only Allen Iverson in 2001 and Ray Allen in 2010 scored more in the first half of a finals game.

His 25 points were the same as the rest of the team combined and more than Miami’s Big 3 (21 points combined). But the rest of the game was a different story.

He attempted only eight shots after halftime, making just two of them, and scoring five points in the second half and overtime.

A Rare Loss for Spurs
The Spurs led 94-89 after Manu Ginobili hit a free throw with 28.2 seconds remaining, but were outscored 6-1 the rest of the fourth quarter. Over the past 15 postseasons, teams win 98.6 percent of the time when leading by exactly five points with between 20 and 30 seconds left.

Looking Ahead to Game 7
The Heat’s win came exactly seven years to the day after they beat the Dallas Mavericks in overtime in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. Two days later, they won their first NBA title.

The Spurs can look to the 1974 Boston Celtics, who are the only team to lose Game 6 of the NBA Finals in overtime. They came back to beat the Milwaukee Bucks on the road in Game 7 and win the NBA title.

Historical storylines abound going into Tuesday's Game 6. Can the San Antonio Spurs continue their road closeout dominance? Will LeBron James have another big scoring game to stave off elimination?

Here's a look at the numbers in support of each team.

Why the Spurs Will Win
The Spurs enter Game 6 leading the series 3-2. Teams up 3-2 in the Finals have gone on to win the series 83.3 percent of the time (35-7) all-time. Since the 2-3-2 format was instituted in 1985, teams up 3-2 have gone on to win the NBA Finals a virtually identical 82.4 percent of the time (14-3).

Even with the final two games of the series in Miami, the Spurs have recent history on their side.

The Spurs are an NBA-best 14-2 in potential series clinching games on the road in the Tim Duncan/Tony Parker/Manu Ginobili era since 2002-03. Those 14 wins are six more than any other team over that span.
Gregg Popovich is 19-5 when his team had a chance to clinch a playoff series on the road. Only one head coach in NBA history has a higher career winning percentage than Popovich in those games (min: 2 games): Tom Heinsohn (8-1, .889).

The Spurs closed out each of their previous three series on the road this postseason, taking down the Lakers, Warriors and Grizzlies. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only two teams in NBA history have won four series clinching games on the road in a single postseason: the 1989 Pistons and 1999 Spurs.

San Antonio is just one win away from its fifth NBA Title and would remain one of just two teams in NBA history with multiple NBA titles without a Finals loss (Bulls, 6-0). It would also be their first NBA Finals series win without home-court advantage.

Why the Heat Will Win
Not surprisingly, it all starts with LeBron James.

He’s averaging 31.5 points per game in his career when facing playoff elimination. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, that’s the highest for any player in NBA history (min. five games). In fact, only Michael Jordan (31.3) and Wilt Chamberlain (31.1) are also above the 30 PPG threshold.



The Heat have been here before. In 2012, they climbed back from a 3-2 deficit to beat the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. However, Miami couldn’t pull it off in the 2011 NBA Finals, falling to the Mavericks 4-2.

Only three teams under the current format have won the NBA Finals after trailing 3-2 with the remaining two games at home. Most recently, the Lakers came back to beat the Celtics in 2010.
On the most basic level, it’s the Heat’s turn on Tuesday. Neither team has won back-to-back games in this series, just the third time that’s happened through five games of the NBA Finals since 1985.

Miami has been dominant following a loss this postseason, winning all six games by an average of 20.7 points. The Heat haven’t lost back-to-back games since January 8-10, going 12-0 following a loss since then.

It turns out that all Manu Ginobili needed to get his game going was a chance to start.

Ginobili’s 24 points and plenty of 3-pointers from Danny Green were the keys to supporting another big game from Tony Parker on the offensive end, and a different look for LeBron James was huge on the defensive end and pivotal to the Spurs taking a 3-2 advantage in this series.

Let’s break down the statistical highlights.

Difference Maker: Ginobili’s great game
The Elias Sports Bureau noted that Ginobili became the first player to start an NBA Finals game after not starting a game all season since Marcus Camby for the 1999 Knicks.

Ginobili made Gregg Popovich look very smart. His 24 points nearly matched the 30 points he had in the first four games of the series.

Ginobili got 50 touches of the basketball in this game and drove the ball to the basket a dozen times, both numbers far exceeding what he’d done previously in this series.

The Spurs outscored the Heat 45-33 on drives in Game 5, including 14 points when Ginobili kept the ball on his drives, and nine points on drives during the Spurs 19-1 run.

The Heat shot a series-low 39 percent on drives, including 4-of-12 from Dwyane Wade and LeBron James (who were a combined 11-of-15 for 26 points in Game 4).

Green makes it look easy
Danny Green matched Ginobili’s 24 points and made six more 3-pointers.

That gave him 25 3-pointers for the series, breaking Ray Allen’s record for most 3-pointers made in an NBA Finals. He made only 28 3-pointers in the previous three rounds of the playoffs combined.

Green was equally good whether the shot was open (3-for-5) or contested (3-for-5) in this game. He's 18-for-24 on open 3-pointers in the series, 7-for-14 when contested.

Boris Diaw: Defensive Stopper
The other big adjustment the Spurs made was to throw one more look his way-- putting Boris Diaw on him for an extended period of time.

James was 1-for-8 shooting against Diaw in Game 5, and 7-of-14 against all other defenders.

James’ first four shot attempts against Diaw were all at least 19 feet from the basket, and when he changed course and posted up, he was 0-for-3 on those attempts.

The Spurs did a good job at thwarting the Heat both from inside and outside. They contested eight of Miami's 12 shot attempts from beyond 10 feet in the first quarter. The Heat missed all eight of those shots.

Looking ahead …
The winner of Game 5 of the Finals when a series is tied, 2-2, has won seven of 10 possible titles under the 2-3-2 format.

The Heat will try to become the fourth team within that format (which dates to 1985) to win Games 6 and 7 at home in the Finals after trailing, 3-2. The other three are the 1988 Lakers, 1994 Rockets and 2010 Lakers.

The last team to defeat the defending NBA champ in the Finals was the 2005 Spurs who beat the Detroit Pistons.

The Heat have not lost consecutive games since January 8-10. Losing on Tuesday would end their streak and their season.

The Spurs are 14-2 in potential series-clinching games played on the road since the start of the 2002-03 postseason. The rest of the NBA is 61-75 in that span.

Fifteen years ago today, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen led the Chicago Bulls to their third straight NBA Championship and sixth title in an eight-year span.

Jordan's game-winning shot over Bryon Russell signaled the end of the Bulls dynasty.

Fifteen years later, another dynamic duo -- LeBron James and Dwyane Wade -- is potentially on the verge of a second straight NBA Championship while competing in its third straight NBA Finals.

Which is the better duo: Jordan/Pippen or James/Wade? Let's compare their three-year playoff runs.

Jordan and Pippen were the better scoring duo but James and Wade have scored more efficiently than the Bulls duo did from 1996-98. During that run, Jordan and Pippen shot just 44 percent overall and 29 percent on 3-pointers, while James and Wade have shot 48 percent overall and 31 percent on 3-pointers over the last three postseasons.

The Heat duo has also trumped the Bulls duo from 1996-98 in rebounds, assists and blocks per game.

However, the 1991-93 Jordan-Pippen combo has outdone James and Wade in virtually every category. They totaled more points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks with a better field goal percentage and 3-point percentage than the Heat duo.

Which duo is more clutch?

The biggest difference between the duos is their performance on the biggest stage -- the NBA Finals -- in clutch time -- the last five minutes with the score within five points.

In the 1998 NBA Finals, the Bulls scored 60 points in clutch time. In the last three NBA Finals, the Heat have scored a combined 63 points in clutch time.

Jordan alone scored 30 points in clutch time in the 1998 NBA Finals, the most by any player in an NBA Finals series since 1997. Jordan didn't commit a single turnover in clutch time in that series.

Jordan and Pippen combined to score 38 points in clutch time in the 1998 NBA Finals, the same amount of points James and Wade have scored in clutch time combined in the last three NBA Finals series.

The Bulls scored 0.98 points per play in clutch time in the 1998 NBA Finals, compared to the 0.78 points per play in clutch time for the Heat over the last three NBA Finals.

James is shooting 4-for-15 from the field (27%), including 1-for-9 on 3-pointers (11%), in clutch time over the last three NBA Finals series.

If James, Wade and the Heat are going to close out the Spurs, there's a good chance it will come down to clutch time. If it does, the Spurs will be prepared. In their five NBA Finals series, the Spurs have outscored their opponents by 40 points (124-84) in clutch time. They've done so by scoring a point per play and shooting 48 percent on 3-point attempts.

Dwyane Wade came up with a vintage performance, the kind that the San Antonio Spurs had no answer for, and exactly the kind the Miami Heat needed to even the NBA Finals.

Chris Bosh came through too, with a 20-10 game. And all LeBron James did was score a personal-Finals high 33 points.

The Heat improved to 6-0 this postseason following a loss, and have won 12 straight games following a loss dating back to the regular season.

The Spurs' two losses in this series equaled their total from the first three rounds, in which they went 12-2.

Let’s take a look at some of the statistical highlights from today’s game.

Wade at his best
Wade finished with 32 points and six steals, the first player to hit those benchmarks in an NBA Finals game since Isiah Thomas for the Detroit Pistons in an epic Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers (43 points, six steals).

Tweak the numbers a little bit and you net a list of the five players with 30 points, five rebounds and five steals in an NBA Finals game, via the Elias Sports Bureau.

It puts Wade in pretty good company.

Wade was 9-for-11 in the paint and scored on all six of his drives to the basket. He was averaging nine points in the paint on 58 percent shooting through the first three games of the series.

James is king from outside the paint

LeBron James has a history of shooting struggles from outside the paint in NBA Finals games against the Spurs. He had made only 15 of 77 shots prior to Game 4.

But in this game, he was in can’t-miss mode, netting eight baskets on 11 shots from outside the paint.

The Elias Sports Bureau notes that James and Wade are the first teammates to each score 30 points in an NBA Finals road win since Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant did it once in 2001 and once in 2002.

James actually had his fewest touches of the basketball in this series, with 63. Wade (58) and Bosh (38) each had their most in any game in this series.

Bosh brings it

Bosh finished with 20 points, 13 rebounds, two steals and two blocks, making him the first Heat player to hit those plateaus in an NBA Finals game.

The only player in the last 25 years to reach those numbers in a road Finals win was Shaquille O'Neal in the 2000 Finals at the Pacers.

Key to the game: Spurs pick-and-roll comes to halt
The Spurs scored a series-high 29 points on Tony Parker drives, but only eight in the second half after running Parker off fewer screens.

Parker ran off nine screens in the second half and those led to 3-for-8 Spurs shooting, and eight points.

The Spurs scored 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting in the first half, running Parker off 31 screens.

Looking ahead

When an NBA Finals series is tied 2-2, the Game 5 winner has gone on to win seven of 10 series under the 2-3-2 format that began in 1985.

This is the third time the Spurs have been tied 2-2 in an NBA Finals. They won the previous two against the Nets in 2003 and Pistons in 2005.

The Heat have won three of four series in the James/Wade/Bosh era when the series was tied 2-2, with the loss coming to the Mavericks in the 2011 NBA Finals.

LeBron James has scored just 50 points for the Miami Heat in the 2013 NBA Finals, his fewest over a three-game span (regular or postseason) since the 2011 Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.

After shooting 62.7 percent against the Milwaukee Bucks, James’ highest shooting percentage in any career playoff series, he’s shooting 38.9 percent in the NBA Finals, his lowest shooting percentage in any postseason series with the Heat.

If it holds, James’ field goal percentage would be the third lowest of all time in the NBA Finals by a player who won the regular-season MVP, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

How is this happening?

Getting farther from the basket
One factor is shot distance, as James has moved farther away from the basket throughout the playoffs.

His average shot distance has increased in each series, beginning with an average distance of 8.5 feet in the first round versus the Bucks to 13.3 feet in the Finals versus the San Antonio Spurs.

Midrange struggles
James continues to struggle with his midrange jump shooting (outside the paint and inside the 3-point line) in his NBA Finals career. He’s shooting 23 percent from that area, including going just 4-for-17 (23.5 percent) in this season’s Finals.

The Spurs have had success keeping him out of the paint. James has attempted 17 midrange shots through three games after attempting 22 such shots in the 2012 NBA Finals.

No freebies
In Game 3, James failed to attempt a free throw for the first time in his Heat playoff career. In fact, he has shot just six free throws in three games this series.

To compare, James averaged 7.7 free throw attempts per game in the Eastern Conference finals versus the Pacers. Even that was down from the 8.5 per game he averaged in the first two rounds this postseason and the 10.3 he averaged in his playoff career entering the 2013 postseason.

The significant reduction in looks from the charity stripe could explain why James’ scoring average has dropped to 16.7 PPG in the Finals. That would be the lowest of any individual playoff round in his career if it holds up.

The San Antonio Spurs rode the performance of their big three to a dominating win over the Miami Heat in Game 3. their 36-point victory is the third-largest margin in NBA Finals history and the second-largest in Spurs postseason history.

Danny Green (7-for-9) and Gary Neal (6-for-10) both broke the Spurs franchise record for 3-pointers in an NBA Finals game (five) and Green was one shy of the NBA record (Ray Allen in 2010). Green has made 16 3-pointers through three games, already the most in an NBA Finals series in team history and easily the most of any player through the first three games of an NBA Finals series.

As a team, the Spurs' 16 3-pointers are a new NBA Finals record.

The New Big Three
The big three came through for San Antonio, but it might not be the names you’re accustomed to.

Green, Neal and Kawhi Leonard combined to score 65 points on 50 percent shooting, including 15-for-22 from 3-point range.

LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh combined to score just 43 points on 18-for-46 shooting (39.1 percent).

The Spurs' typical big three of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili combined for just 25 points, but Duncan pulled down 14 rebounds and the latter two combined for 14 assists.

Green has scored 56 points in this series to lead all players, six more than LeBron James and 15 more than any of his teammates.

Key to the Game: Spurs shut down the pick-and-roll
Defensively, the Spurs bottled up the James-Mario Chalmers pick-and-roll. In Game 2, the Heat shot 7-for-9 with no turnovers off that pick-and-roll combo, but in Game 3 it netted them no field-goal attempts and three turnovers.

James has been held under 20 points in all three games in the series, only the second time that’s happened to him in his career (he’s played 134 playoff games). The other time it happened was in Games 3-5 of the 2011 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, the only postseason series Miami has lost since James joined the team.

He was -32 in this game, the worst plus/minus of his NBA career. He’s played three NBA Finals games in San Antonio (two with Cleveland in 2007), posting a negative plus/minus in all three games and shooting 34.5 percent in the three games combined.

Stat of the Night
Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili registered their 100th playoff win together, the second trio in NBA history to reach 100 (Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Cooper won 110).

The Spurs have played 25 NBA Finals games in franchise history and have yet to trail in the series. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, that’s the most NBA Finals games played before trailing in NBA history.

Looking Ahead
The Heat are 4-5 in their past nine games after going 46-3 in their previous 49 games dating to the regular season. Since the 2-3-2 format began in 1985, the Game 3 winner of a tied NBA Finals series has gone on to win the series almost 93 percent of the time (12-1).

The winner of Game 3 figures to have a pretty significant edge in the NBA Finals, given the recent history.

Since the 2-3-2 format began in 1985, the Game 3 winner of a tied NBA Finals series goes on to win the series 12 out of 13 times.

Let's take a look at five of the statistical storylines to watch that could make a difference in which team has that advantage.

How do the Spurs respond to being blown out?
The Spurs are 3-0 this season following a loss by at least 19 points. They are 28-11 following such a loss since the 2002-03 season (when Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan first played together).

If the Spurs lose Game 3, it will be the first time that they have trailed in the NBA Finals in franchise history. The Elias Sports Bureau notes that among teams to appear in at least one NBA Finals, the Spurs and Sacramento Kings franchise are the only teams to have never trailed in a Finals series.

How do the Heat respond to their win?
The Heat put the Spurs right where they wanted them by losing Game 1.

In the LeBron James/Dwyane Wade/Chris Bosh "Big 3" era (since 2011 postseason), the Heat have lost a Game 1 of a series four times.
Following a Game 1 loss, Miami is a perfect 13-0 in games within those series over that span.

The Heat scored 103 points in their Game 2 win. They are 21-1 when scoring 100 or more points in postseason games in the Big 3 Era.

Lebron and the 20-point mark
The Spurs have held LeBron James under 20 points in both games this series.

James has played 133 career games in the postseason and been held under 20 points in three straight games just once.

It happened in the 2011 NBA Finals against the Mavericks in Games 3-5.

That was the last postseason series the Heat have lost.

Heat have the edge from in-close
The Heat shot 15-of-21 from inside five feet in Game 2 and are shooting 30-for-47 (64 percent) on such shots in the series. LeBron James, Chris Andersen and Norris Cole have been the Heat’s Big 3 on those shots, making 16 of 21.

The Spurs were 11-of-24 (46 percent) from inside five feet in Game 2, their second-worst percentage on those shots in a game this postseason.

The Spurs are shooting 24-of-50 (48 percent) inside five feet during the series after shooting 63 percent on such shots in the postseason prior to the NBA Finals. The two players who have had the most trouble -- Ginobili (2-of-7) and Tiago Splitter (1-of-5, including one shot rejected by James).

Spurs matchup of note: Tony Parker in pick-and-roll vs Heat defense
The big men for the Heat did not hedge out to help on Tony Parker in the pick-and-roll in the first half, and the Spurs scored 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting off Parker’s pick and rolls. That followed Game 1, in which the Spurs scored 20 points on Parker pick-and-rolls.

In the second half, the Heat were more aggressive in helping on Parker (such as in the opening minute of the fourth quarter when Chris Andersen and Mario Chalmers fought through two screens to contest Parker’s attempt), and the Spurs went 1-for-6 on the nine instances in which they ran a pick-and-roll through him.

Parker was 0-for-3 in his shots in the second half off the pick-and-roll. He’s averaging 10.4 points-per-game on pick-and-rolls this postseason, second-most to Chris Paul's 12.0.

When things looked precarious for the Miami Heat in the second quarter and LeBron James’ stat line looked pedestrian by anyone’s standards, it became throwback night:

What was going on? Was he being too deferential? Not sufficiently assertive? And was this lack of assertiveness actually a lack of resolve and the symptom of a deep character flaw?

How we miss you, 2011 C.E.

A combination of factors were at work, but to the extent there was a problem, it was far more rhythm than resolve. Unsatisfying as it sounds, there were a lot of possessions that simply didn’t end up in LeBron’s hands.

The defense of Kawhi Leonard also has to be cited, as it clearly bothered LeBron more than occasionally. The best example came toward the end of the third quarter, when Leonard recovered from a Mario Chalmers screen and quickly caught a driving James and deflected his pass for a turnover. He played on LeBron’s right shoulder fearlessly all night. When James held the ball, Leonard gave him a little space but was hyper-alert to potential closeouts.

But there were plenty of good opportunities all around for Miami, and the Heat -- often James himself -- frequently chose the one that happened not to be LeBron.

Dwyane Wade and James orchestrated a pick-and-roll with just less than four minutes to go in the first half, right about the moment of the game when LeBron’s limited level of involvement in the offense went from a peripheral plot point to a major storyline. Together, they forced a defensive switch by San Antonio.

The immediate expectation would be to empower James, who was eight feet in front of the basket one-on-one against Danny Green. But just when it seemed like Wade blew it by not finding LeBron, Wade bounced into the lane against Leonard, rose and flicked the ball at the rim over Leonard.

It was an obvious opportunity for LeBron, but there’s no faulting Wade for not giving it up.

James drew Green again on a switch the very next possession, and James shot a 17-footer directly over Green. It was a shot he hits at a decent clip but didn’t fall.

A couple of possessions later, James ran directly at Gary Neal in transition off a Spurs miss. He bullied Neal into the lane just beneath the basket and established position. But Wade either didn’t feel like he could lob a pass inside that would have cleared Tim Duncan, who stood between Wade and James, or felt he had some real-estate opportunities of his own to exploit. Either way, Wade drove the lane, lured Tony Parker away from Chalmers on the strong side perimeter, then dished to a wide-open Chalmers for the 3-pointer.

Just as James made his approach to the paint while leading a break in the third quarter, he kicked the ball out to the arc and rang up the hockey assist on Ray Allen’s trailing 3-pointer.

A minute later, James jump-stopped in the paint on a drive, saw Mike Miller wide open and gave it up again for a teammate’s open 3. Then followed a James laser to a cutting Wade for an easy layup and a dish to Wade again on the break when Wade settled for an awkward runner. The Heat went to a successful Wade-Chris Bosh pick-and-roll off a subsequent inbound.

In the Heat’s final possession of the third quarter, James’ sturdy screen for Chalmers took Parker out of the play, allowing Chalmers to drive to within five feet of the basket for the floater and the foul. A pass of medium difficulty to James would have resulted in a high-percentage shot but probably not one better than Chalmers’.

And the Heat first mounted a 15-point lead after James took control of the left block against Manu Ginobili, got the pass, saw an immediate double-team and whipped a pass along the baseline that landed in Miller’s hands in the right corner for an open 3-pointer.

Time and again, James hunted mismatches and dragged the unsuspecting victim into the post, and there was a classic example of how quirky the game was for LeBron as he tried to get on track down low.

With a little less than five minutes left in the third, James dragged Green onto the low left block and got an entry pass from the left sideline. This is one of Miami’s corner-post sets run for James at the spot on the floor that best allows him to be a true triple threat. But just as he started to go to work, Duncan was whistled for defensive three-seconds.

So, yes, by both conventional and LeBron standards, he had an unremarkable first three quarters. There were definitely uncharacteristic moments. Having his shot blocked at the rim by Green wasn’t one for the reel, and he failed to convert on the break after Green performed the aerial version of pulling the chair out (opening the door to the plane?) on LeBron, throwing the shot attempt off.

But LeBron’s results over the first three quarters weren’t worrisome or a betrayal of his powers. And assertive can mean different things. His team was performing efficiently overall, and, by a combination of chance, the appetite of his teammates and some pretty strong defense by Leonard, the individual production wasn’t there until late. It happens, especially against disciplined defenses that plug the lane before James can find a seam.

---

Chalmers is one of those players we rarely look at with a long telescope. It’s easy to forget he was a second-rounder out of Kansas in 2008. As the draft drifted toward the end of the first round, he was one of those potential draft-night steals, a guy who might surprise and become an effective backup NBA point guard.

Chalmers' career has exceeded those projections. He isn’t a perfect solution, but he’s one that’s been far more than adequate holding down a very serious responsibility for an elite team and doing it during the nuttiest of environments in which the people he works with yell at him a lot. He’s essentially the long, spot-up threat, the stretchiest guy in the starting lineup for a team featuring James in his prime.

In Game 2, Chalmers led the Heat in scoring and drained a big 3-pointer that re-established the lead for Miami 90 seconds before halftime. We saw in Game 1 that he can be an effective weapon if he can clear the corner on the screens from James and Udonis Haslem. Leonard can’t do much to help since he’s on James, which means if Chalmers can pick up a little speed around that turn, life becomes more difficult for Duncan or whomever is waiting.

The defense has gotten inordinately smarter, even if there are occasional groaners. The staff gave him a directive to run under screens for Parker and work with his big men to make sure they nailed the timing of the recoveries. He shined in those capacities as well in Game 2.

---

In Game 1, the Spurs found quality looks inside for their big men against smaller Heat defenders, the guys who have to rotate from the wing when the Heat blitzed pick-and-rolls. The Heat still ran a few blitzes on Sunday night (early), and we saw Tiago Splitter as the beneficiary when he drew Miller as the rotator. Splitter scored an easy bucket at close range to settle the Heat’s first-half run.

Blitzing the pick-and-roll is a tough full-time strategy for the Heat because they’re already pretty small behind a trap on the ball handler. Combine that with Parker’s speed, which requires the big man to hang around longer, and the Heat’s defense can get destabilized pretty quickly when that happens (as it did in Game 1).

With that in mind, the Heat began to switch some pick-and-rolls. Ideally, this strategy is less likely to put a defense into rotations, which is death against the Spurs. Initially, Miami’s switches came almost exclusively in late shot clock situations. If Parker or another guard can make a play from 25 feet with five seconds left, then so be it.

Sometimes, the Spurs did, as when Parker in the first quarter zipped past a screen from Boris Diaw just in front of the left sideline and flipped up a teardrop over a backpedaling Bosh with the shot clock expiring. Green sank his third 3-pointer of the game when Splitter gave him a screen that bought Green enough space to step back and launch an uncontested look from beyond the arc.

But the Heat accomplished much of what they wanted defensively with the switch (credit them for getting into late shot clock situations by defending for 18 seconds). Duncan missed a 20-footer over Wade with the shot clock expiring. Bosh, Haslem and James handled Parker and the guards sufficiently. The Heat were still put into their share of rotations -- many of them the result of Spurs cutters and divers -- but distances were shorter because nobody was more than a few feet from their assignment to trap Parker or pick up Duncan on the roll.

Whether it was the switch or something else, the Heat desperately needed some variance in their pick-and-roll coverage coming into Game 2. And throughout the second half, we saw the Heat’s big men give Parker a long show with Chalmers taking the long way under the Duncan screen.

A team has to mix up its pitches against San Antonio. If the new plan is a disaster, you can always ditch it, but sometimes, a competitive series demands trial and error. You have to know when to abandon the experiment (and/or be willing to cut bait early), but even the remote possibility that you can win a few possessions makes it a worthwhile gamble.

It took one quick basketball blitz by the Miami Heat to even up the NBA Finals.

The Heat's run in the closing minutes of the third and fourth quarters was the knockout moment they missed out on in Game 1.

They've now won their last 11 games following a loss, including all five they’ve played this postseason. They are 4-0 in Game 2s following a Game 1 loss in the “Big 3” era.

The loss snapped the Spurs’ six-game NBA Finals winning streak.

Only two teams have had that long of a winning streak in the Finals—the Los Angeles Lakers (8) from 2001 to 2002 and the Houston Rockets (6) from 1994 to 1995.

Let’s take a look at some of the highlights from the series evener.

Keys to the win
It was a 33-5 Heat run over a span of just under eight minutes beginning late in the third quarter that was the difference in the game.

In that spurt, the Heat made 12-of-13 shots, including 5-for-5 from 3-point range.

The Spurs were 2-for-10 with six turnovers over that same time period.

The Heat had two things going for them in this contest: success with drives-and-kicks early, and then pick-and-rolls in the latter part of the game.

The Heat scored 15 first-half points on drives that led to kickouts, more than twice as many points as they had on those plays in Game 1.

The Heat did particularly well when Dwyane Wade drove to the basket, as noted in the chart on the right.

The pick-and-roll worked to perfection during the big run. Over the final 1:50 of the third quarter and the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, Miami made five of six shots off pick and rolls, netting 13 points.

James was 5-for-5 for 11 points during the run, and also had a major impact on the defensive end with the night’s most impressive blocked shot.

The Mario Chalmers-James pick-and-roll combo netted 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting in Game 2 after going scoreless on 0-of-4 shooting in Game 1.

James was held to four first-half points, tying his NBA Finals low for points in a half (done once against the Spurs in 2007 and once against the Mavericks in 2011). James’ career-low for points in the first half of a playoff game is two, done earlier this postseason against the Bulls.

This was more about how he finished though. He had four baskets in the fourth quarter after making only three in the first three.

Bosh brings needed support
Chris Bosh was 6-for-10 from the field, and finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

The Heat have now won 30 straight games in which Bosh shot 50 percent from the field or better.

Duncan a non-factor
Tim Duncan was held to 3-for-13 shooting from the field, including 0-for-5 from the left side, just outside the lane. This marked his worst shooting game in the NBA Finals in his career.

This was Duncan’s 206th career playoff game. He’s only shot worse from the field than his 23 percent on five other occasions.

As a team, the Spurs struggled with their shooting.

The Spurs were 10-of-23 inside five feet Sunday, their second-worst shooting performance from that distance of the postseason. By comparison, the Heat shot 15-of-21 inside 5 feet in Game 2, and are shooting 64 percent on such shots in the series.

Looking ahead
Since the 2-3-2 format began in 1985, the Game 3 winner of a tied NBA Finals series goes on to win the series 92.3 percent of the time (12-1).

As the NBA Finals heads to Game 2, let's take a closer look at the postseason struggles of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, which figure to be a key storyline in the rest of this series.

1. During the regular season, Wade and Bosh shot a combined 61 percent from inside the paint.

In the postseason, as their shot charts show, they are a combined 52 percent from the field.

2. LeBron James made three of four shots in the paint in the second half against the Spurs. His teammates were a combined 4-for-13, including 2-for-8 from Bosh and Wade.

3. Bosh is 14-for-50 from the field in his past five games, including 3-for-16 in the paint. He was one for four in the paint in Game 1 against the Spurs.

Of the 85 shots Bosh has taken this postseason, 49 have been from at least 15 feet out, including 12 of the 16 he took in game 1.

Here's a look at his shot chart, comparing his regular season with his postseason.



4. Wade is averaging 2.3 points per game in the fourth quarter this postseason. He was held scoreless in the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Wade is a respectable 12-for-20 when shooting from inside the paint but has one basket outside the paint in the fourth quarter or overtime this entire postseason. He averaged 5.8 points and had 37 hoops from outside the paint in the 63 games in which he played the fourth quarter or overtime in the regular season.

5. Wade has shot 50 percent or better from the field in six games this postseason. The Heat have won all six of them. The Heat are 44-5 this season (regular season and playoffs combined) when Wade makes at least half of his shots.

Likewise, the Heat are 9-0 in games in which Bosh makes at least half of his shots this postseason. They’ve won the past 29 games in which Bosh shoots 50 percent or better.

The San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat did basketball proud on Thursday night in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The series opener was a nice composite of the most likeable qualities of two really good basketball teams. Neither San Antonio nor Miami was the very best version of itself, but that wasn’t the result of selfishness or poor execution or anything other than the fact that the game is challenging when you’re playing the best competition.

A good number of missed shots came off well-executed actions, and some of the best shots -- in fact, the best shot -- were scored against incredible defensive efforts. Tony Parker’s improbable, leaning bank job came a second after he was literally on one knee against the Heat’s best pressure defense of the night.

When Parker put the Spurs up by six points earlier with three and a half minutes to go in regulation, the bucket was the result of the nastiest of crossover dribbles against a pesky Mario Chalmers. Parker skidded left, rose with the ball and nailed the well-contested jumper.

And when the Spurs went up seven on Danny Green’s big 3-pointer just before the 2:00 mark, it was after a series of passes when the ball went side-to-side and back again in a span of two seconds.

We didn’t see any transcendent individual performances in Game 1. Parker led all scorers with 21 points, and none of the high-volume guys on either side shot better than 50 percent from the field. But we saw Parker square off against LeBron James in the game’s final minutes, the Heat go point-less down the stretch and, of course, Parker’s bank shot, which will occupy a place in the constellation of bright NBA Finals moments.

Let’s play seven.
 

---

Pick-and-rolls with Parker and Tim Duncan are mainstays of the Spurs’ offense, but certain risks arise when the Heat blitz Parker (or any ballhandler when Duncan is the screener) while playing small. By doing so, the Heat effectively put one of their perimeter players in a rotation to pick up Duncan, and that can be dangerous for Miami.

At the two-minute mark of the first half, Shane Battier didn’t stand a chance as Duncan rolled hard to the basket after Chalmers and Joel Anthony trapped Parker off a pick-and-roll in the middle of the floor. Battier tried to station himself between Duncan and the basket, but Duncan was too big and too deep and drained an easy hook shot from about 5 feet out.



This represents a huge opportunity for San Antonio in the series. If the Spurs can keep the Heat scrambling in defensive rotations during small-ball, Duncan should have some stellar looks at the basket against much smaller defenders, so long as Parker can make the pass out of the trap. This might once have been an issue for Parker, but it has been years since he couldn’t move the ball against pressure.

The Spurs weren’t successful on every possession -- Mike Miller was ready and waiting for Duncan when the Heat blitzed Ginobili on an angle pick-and-roll with about 4 minutes to go in the third quarter -- but they generated a number of good chances for Duncan, both for himself and as a playmaker, and on the offensive glass.

Why blitz, then? Because laying back means Parker is looking at open jumpers from 18 feet. In theory, it’s a shot Miami can live with, but when Parker is hitting from the floor or has an unobstructed view of the entire floor with options everywhere, it can debilitate and demoralize a defense. Trapping also produces the brand of chaos that fuels the Heat's break. That said, at some point, the Heat might want to mix in a few defensive calls that diverge from their primary coverages.
 

---

Had the Spurs guards hit a few of the wide open 3-point attempts, we might be speaking more poetically about the Spurs’ offensive performance, and with good reason. A bad possession was a rare event for San Antonio, per usual. A primary reason all their stuff works even without conventional athleticism or explosiveness are the ball skills and speedy decision-making of Duncan.

On the game’s fourth possession, Duncan caught a pass at the top of the circle from Parker on his right soon after Parker attacked off Duncan’s high pick. Nothing fancy or unusual or overly aggressive, just basic work in the half court. The ball doesn’t stay in Duncan’s hand, not even for a second. He instantly moves it along to Danny Green on the weak side, far too quickly for Wade to close on Green effectively.

It’s the sort of possession that makes the game look so easy, because the tasks appear so simple -- short pass, short pass, long shot. And they are simple. Most teams at any level can follow that sequence, but how many of them can beat the Spurs’ time? Wade was even cheating that far off Green, but that’s why the speed at which Duncan operates as a decision-maker is so important. The margin between Green being pressured and Green being wide open is determined in the time it takes Duncan to act.

Boris Diaw works well in this capacity, too. In the second quarter, he found Green in the corner out of a baseline trap. A little later, Diaw drove from the right corner along the baseline immediately off a swing pass when he saw Chris Bosh trying to close at an awkward angle from higher up the floor -- another quick decision that yielded a couple of points.

Most big men in the game take a split second, some longer than others. Duncan and Diaw take almost zero time, one reason the Spurs can get shooters wide-open looks with half the shot clock still remaining.
 

---

Most matchups have pretty obvious implications with regard to pace. It’s generally easy to say, “Team A wants to get out and run, while Team B wants a slow-it-down, grind-it-out affair.”

But how fast does San Antonio really want to play? The Spurs generally benefit from a jolt of speed in the game, but the Heat’s fast-and-early game is a different animal than anything else in the league, and that’s where the Spurs can get hurt, and did several times in the first half, when Miami moved into its stuff at a brisk speed.

The best example came with about 3:35 remaining in the second quarter. Wade caught the ball on the move in a half-court set on a corner cut off a down screen from LeBron. Wade collected, dribbled, stepped and soared, the result very close to an and-1 when Green fouled Wade at the rim. The pace was crucial for Wade in the first half because he didn’t have to score against a set half-court offense every trip down, something he had trouble doing against Indiana.

The biggest beneficiary of the Heat’s first-half focus on early offense was James. How did James catch Duncan out on an island midway through the first quarter? Merely by pushing the ball off a miss. The Spurs’ transition defense is as attentive as any in the league, but it’s not always easy to find your man when the stream is running.



A few minutes later, LeBron did the exact same thing to Diaw. Off a long miss by Ginobili, James rushed the ball up and keyed in on Diaw like a predator. James pulled up, slowed down the action so he could let Diaw marinate a little longer in isolation. This is LeBron at his very best: Single-handedly controlling everything from the speed at which nine other guys are going to move and even the pitch of the crowd. Once James had Diaw alone, LeBron backed up virtually all the way to half court before revving the engine, then bulldozing left. The layup at close range missed, in no small part because Duncan disrupted the shot near the rim, but the Heat would gladly simulate that possession 23 times and call it a quarter.

LeBron is looking to do this off the ball in early situations, too. Off a Duncan miss late in the first quarter, James found himself out on the perimeter and a short jog back down the court. He immediately found Diaw, who was back guarding the paint, and posted him up 12 feet from the basket. James caught the entry from Ray Allen, turned, drove, met Duncan again at the rim, but this time James drew the foul, Duncan’s second of the quarter.

“We’re going to miss some shots,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said during a huddle in the second quarter. “I don’t care. But I care about the transition, all right?”

Had the Heat gotten the same number of opportunities in transition after halftime as before, they probably would’ve won Game 1. Instead, things tightened up and the game became a skills competition. Advantage, San Antonio.

The steadiness of the San Antonio Spurs won out in Game 1.

Their fourth-quarter rally and defensive stand powered them to a victory over the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. The veteran play of Tony Parker and Tim Duncan proved to be the biggest factors in this victory. Let's run through the highlights.

Play of the Game: Parker’s big shots
Parker was 2-for-4 on contested jumpers in the final 3:30, including a shot-clock beating jumper with 5.2 seconds remaining to clinch the win.

Prior to that stretch, Parker was 0-for-3 on the contested jumpers, and the Spurs were 4-for-25 as a team. They finished 6-for-30, but Parker’s beat the-shot clock make in the final seconds was the biggest of the game.

Parker made 3-of-5 mid-range jumpers in the game. He’s shooting 46 percent on mid-range 2s this postseason. His career average on those shots is only 39 percent.

Spurs knocked on the door all night, finally broke through
The Heat took a 21-19 lead with 2:47 left in the first quarter and held that advantage for most of the rest of the game.

The Spurs missed 12 straight shots that would have tied or taken the lead, but finally broke through, going ahead briefly on a Parker free throw with 7:47 left in that game, then getting a Kawhi Leonard putback with seven minutes remaining that sparked an 8-1 run.

Historical Perspective: Duncan’s 20-14
The 37-year-old Duncan finished with 20 points and 14 rebounds. Only one player older than Duncan has had a 20-point 14 rebound game in the NBA Finals—Kareem Abdul-Jabbar- who did so at age 38 twice in three days in 1985.

Historical perspective: LeBron’s Triple-Double
LeBron James had 18 points, 18 rebounds, and 10 assists. His 10 playoff triple-doubles are tied for the third-most all-time with Larry Bird and Rajon Rondo. Only Magic Johnson (30) and Jason Kidd (11) have more.

This was James’ third career triple-double in the NBA Finals. That ranks second-most all-time, trailing only Johnson’s eight.

The Elias Sports Bureau notes that James is also the third player to have a triple-double in consecutive NBA Finals Games (he had one in Game 5 of last year’s Finals), joining Wilt Chamberlain (1967) and Johnson (1984).

Elias also notes that he has twice had at least 18 points, 18 rebounds, and 10 assists in a playoff loss. In NBA history, teams with a player that went 18-18-10 in a playoff game are 13-5.

The last player prior to James to reach those numbers in a playoff loss was Billy Cunningham for the 1971 76ers.

Lastly: This is the third time in the last 20 seasons that a player had a triple-double in an NBA Finals loss. Two of those were by LeBron James (one in 2011, one this season). The other was by Jason Kidd in 2002.

The one player able to stop James was Kawhi Leonard. James was 2-for-8 shooting against him, 5-for-8 against everyone else.

Looking ahead
In NBA Finals history, the winner of Game 1 has gone on to win the series 71.2 percent (47-19) of the time. However, the Game 1 winner has lost each of the last two NBA Finals (Heat in 2011, Thunder in 2012).

The Heat have been down 1-0 in a playoff series four times in the James/Bosh/Wade era. In each of the other three instances, the Heat swept the next four games, including last year’s NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Miami Heat are in the NBA Finals for the third consecutive season and for the fourth time in franchise history (2-1). The boys from South Beach are seeking to be the first team to win back-to-back NBA titles since the Lakers did it in 2008-09 and 2009-10.

On the other hand, the San Antonio Spurs are in the Finals for the fifth time in franchise history and the first time since the 2006-07 season. The Spurs are 4-0 all-time in the Finals and are one of just two teams with multiple NBA titles without a series loss (Bulls, 6-0).

There have been 66 NBA Finals all-time. The winner of Game 1 has gone on to win the series 71.2 percent (47-19) of the time. However, the Game 1 winner has lost each of the last two NBA Finals (Heat in 2011, Thunder in 2012).

The Spurs have never lost Game 1 in the NBA Finals. They are one of two teams with a perfect record in the opening game of the NBA Finals.

A Battle of Big Threes

The Heat and Spurs met twice during the 2012-13 regular season, with the Heat winning both games. However, the two teams haven’t met at full strength in more than two years.

On March 31 in San Antonio, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Manu Ginobili did not play. On Nov. 9 in Miami, none of the Spurs’ Big Three played. And in the teams’ lone meeting in the 2011-12 season, on Jan. 17, Wade and Ginobili did not play.

The previous time these teams’ Big Threes met was on March 14, 2011, which the Heat won 110-80; it was the first season of Miami's Big Three.

Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Ginobili have recorded 98 postseason wins as a trio, which ranks second all-time behind 110 from Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Cooper.

James has carried the weight of the Heat’s Big Three this postseason, averaging 26.2 points per game compared to 25.5 points per game from Wade and Chris Bosh combined.

Offensive Powerhouses

This marks a matchup of the two best offenses this postseason.

The Heat have had the most efficient offense in the NBA this postseason. Miami averages a league-high 108.4 points per 100 possessions, with the Spurs second at 106.5. The Heat also lead the NBA in half-court efficiency, averaging 0.94 points per play, with the Spurs second at 0.93.

In transition offense, the Spurs average an NBA-high 1.28 points per play, with the Heat second at 1.26.

Duncan averages 22.7 points and 14.4 rebounds in 22 career NBA Finals games. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Duncan is one of just four players all-time to average at least 22 points and 14 rebounds in the Finals.