Post Game - NBA Finals - Heat vs Thunder

Miami Heat vs Oklahoma City Thunder

1. Will the lack of experience help or hurt the young Thunder team? - Before this series started I said one of two things could happen: Either the Thunder can go into this not knowing any better or they could start making big mistakes that would cost them a few games. Well I guess I have to take the latter on this one. This may have been the one thing on a checklist that the Thunder could not check-off: Experience. Some will not use this excuse, but I don't think its no longer an excuse, its a reason....well THE reason the Thunder lost in the NBA Finals.
2. Will last year's collapse against Dallas be enough for help the Heat win their 2nd Championship? - Well during their post-game celebration, everyone who played on this team all mentioned how embarrassed, disappointed and hurt they all were last season after the Mavs beat them for the championship. Last year's NBA Final helped the Heat in the sense that they learned from their miscues from that Finals and implied them to this year's Finals, thus being able to win it when it counts.
3. Which Big 3 will control this series: Wade, James and Bosh or Westbrook, Durant, and Harden? - Clearly the Big 3 of the Heat played the Big 3 of the Thunder as a whole throughout this series. For the Thunder, everyone didn't show up at the same time when counted the most. Someone needed to put a missing person report on James Harden simply because he did not show up for the majority of this series. Consistency was huge for the Heat big 3, thus this is why they are champions.
4. Which team will benefit the most from the 2-3-2 format in this series? - Well this is the 3rd time that the home team has swept the middle 3 games in this format. Of course, each team who's done this has won the championship. The Heat has done it twice 2006 & 2012 and the Pistons in 2004.

Next Up: The NBA Draft, Olympics, and the Off-season. Congratulations to the 2012 NBA Champions Miami Heat 

Down 3-1, Well The Series May Not Be Over Just Yet.......

When you're down 3-1 in a best-of-seven series in the NBA Finals, history suggests that you're toast!!! 30 times this occurrence has happened and 30 times the team who's up 3-1 went ring-shopping for the summer. However, I am here to tell why some would think that a team down 3-1 will have a chance to still win the series.

2012 NBA Finals (prior to Game 5) is 3-1 Miami Heat over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Most suggest that history will take its place and that the Heat will win game 5, thus the championship. Heat fans all over this nation will pretty much want this series to end tonight, just as the whole Heat organization. I am here to tell you why I have some doubt in the Heat winning tonight and possibly the series.

Since 1985, when the NBA implemented the 2-3-2 format, there have been 14 occurrences of a team being up 3-1 in the Finals including this year's series. Of the 13 times this has happened, seven times has the series ended in 6 games and six times has the series ended in 5 games.

I'll focus on 3 of the 13 series that I've mentioned earlier: 1993 Finals - Bulls/Suns, 1998 Finals - Bulls/Jazz and 2004 Finals - Pistons/Lakers. Of these 3 series, these are the ones in which the team with home-court lost the series while being down 3-1. As Game 5 scenarios with Thunder/Heat series in this year's Finals. I'll compare the 3 series from the past with this year's Finals series.

• 1993 Finals with the Bulls/Suns is a little different from the 2012 Finals. The Bulls, which started out on the road, actually won all three games in Phoenix, but lost 2 of 3 at home to the Suns. 
• 1998 Finals could be the closest comparison that would favor the Thunder in the 2012 Finals. The Jazz had home-court and lost game 2 at home to Bulls, before going to Chicago and getting smoked for games 3 & 4 before winning a close game 5 to force the series back to Utah. Thunder fans may like to hear this news.
• 2004 Finals could be the closest comparison that favors the Heat in the 2012 Finals. The Lakers we're the clear favors to win this title, kind of like the Thunder was mostly favored to win the 2012 Finals. One problem with this: The Lakers got smoked in 5. The Pistons won game one in L.A. and nearly won game two, before coming home and sweeping the middle 3 games to win the championship in 2004. This is would be the dream idea for the Heat to do in game 5 of the 2012 Finals.

Of the two series that went to game 6's, both of those where ended by historically great shots that will forever live as great moments of the NBA. Home records in the postseason of the team with the home-court advantage combined was 25-5. So the chances that the Thunder could come back in this series is pretty good too. Now the thing with history however could negate that probability

Game 5 could resemble one of these past scenarios, but in order to challenge history, one must win every single game. Could the Thunder win 3 straight games? Of course they can. Will history get into the way of the Thunder's chances? Of course it will......if one doesn't study history, you're domed to repeat it. In American sports over the last 100 years, only once has a team come back from 3-1 hole to win a series: 2004 Boston Red Sox, en route to "challenging history" and winning a World Series Championship for the first time in 84 years. It only takes one time to change history. Just ask the Boston Red Sox....

4 Quarters - NBA Finals: Heat vs Thunder

Miami Heat vs Oklahoma City Thunder

1. Will the lack of experience help or hurt the young Thunder team? - Well two things can happen with this question: 1.) the inexperience could be helpful for a young team like this because they don't know any better and thus will go into this as if "hey, we'll just do our thang" or 2.) the inexperience could undo this team to the point in which they start beating themselves and making way too many mistakes that will cost them a game or two in this series. 
2. Will last year's collapse against Dallas be enough for help the Heat win their 2nd Championship? - For the Heat, this could be the breakthrough they we're looking for. Unlike playing a team last season in the Dallas Mavs, who we're experienced enough when it came to playing the Finals. They will play a very inexperienced, young Thunder team that could just collapse under the pressure of the Finals, as did this Heat team did last year.
3. Which Big 3 will control this series: Wade, James and Bosh or Westbrook, Durant, and Harden? - This will be the biggest challenge that either Big 3 as faced thus far. Miami's 3 vs OKC's 3. This just turned into a 3-on-3 tournament. Miami's 3 would have an edge simply because those 3 have been here to this stage before. OKC's 3, is younger, much more confident than in year's past and this could be their time! This could turn into a new rivarly of sorts, considering that both teams will be together for least one more season after this year. I would have to say that Miami's 3 should feel a little confident about this match-up. But don't let it turn into a clutch shot fest, or OKC's 3 may have something to say on that.
4. Which team will benefit the most from the 2-3-2 format in this series? - This is the most confusing, yet compelling part of the post-season. The 2-3-2. The middle 3 games is the pretty much the series. In 27 years, only 2 teams have swept the middle home 3 games (04 Pistons and 06 Heat). Both teams won the championship as well. Some would have a feeling that this Heat club could do the same feat, but history says other wise. History could be the reason why the Thunder could be saved in this series and may have a real shot at winning this because of this format.

X-Factors: Lebron James and Kevin Durant.

Lets face it, this is only match-up of all in this series that truly matters. Scoring Champion vs the MVP. Both guys could really cement their legacy as big time historical players by winning a championship. For James, this is his 3rd shot at getting that championship. Some would say that this is James best shot at becoming a champion, so he'd better not drop the ball this time.

As for Durant, this is his first of possible many times making it to the NBA's big stage. So not too much pressure is on him to win, but then again he may not want that much pressure on his shoulders, so why not win one now and get it out the way. Whom ever can overcome the pressure of this stage and deliver the big time shots and big plays needed for their teams to be victorious, will be the one who walks away from this champions.

Series Prediction: This is very hard for me to choose, but I'll take Thunder in 6.

2012 NBA Finals Match-up will be.....

With both of the Conference Finals being tied up at 2-2 (as of Monday June 4th) I would love to see which storyline would be the most appealing to fans?? I'll give a brief overview of the possible storylines leading up to the NBA Finals, which will begin on Tuesday, June 12th.

• Heat vs Thunder: This maybe the most sexy match-up of the Final Four teams.
• Heat vs Spurs: This match-up could be the battle of team basketball vs Superstar power.
• Celtics vs Thunder: The main storyline to this could be one person who most wouldn't expect it to be, Kendrick Perkins faces his old team.
• Celtics vs Spurs: This could be the final big match-up between two future Hall of Famers: Tim Duncan vs Kevin Garnett.

Depending on how the rest of this week pans out, either of these match-ups should be good for the true NBA to watch for the 2012 NBA Finals.

4 Quarters - Western Conference Finals: Thunder vs Spurs

2. Thunder vs 1. Spurs

1. Could this be the best Spurs team under the Popovich-Duncan Era? - Well this is the deepest and youngest team under Popovich. As far as the best, this may rival the '99 team largely because that team won during a shorten season, just as this team would if they we're to win it all. I guess the only way to answer this question is the ask it again, after this series and after the NBA Finals. Stay Tuned.
2. Will the Thunder take the step of being the new alpha team of the Western Conference? - This could be the year that the Thunder could put themselves as the "team to beat" for the next few years in the Western Conference if they can get past the Spurs, who use to be that team that everyone had to beat in the West.
3. Durant/Westbrook vs Duncan/Parker - These match-ups can and most certainly will help decide this series. The Spurs are not Parker's team to command, but the old veteran Duncan is still playing at an high level during these playoffs so be careful not to count him out as of yet. As for Durant, he is the scoring leader of this team and most be able to get at least 25 points in each game for the Thunder to have success int this series, but Westbrook could be the overall key for this team advancing or going home. He must play at an high-level in order for this team to be champions.
4. With this being 2012, can the Spurs win a championship in a even-numbered year? - Tricky question, considering that the Spurs won in 99, 03, 05, and 07. This is 2012, so certainly this would be against their norm for winning. But then again, when you're hot, you're hot.

The "X" Factors - Manu Ginobili vs James Harden. Battle of the left-handed Sixth Men. These two players are pretty much alike in a lot of ways. These two are the 6th man of their teams and this will be the spark that comes off the bench to aid the starters of each team. The question is which one will be the difference-maker in changing this series around for their team. Harden must provide the level of play he did to help win him Sixth-Man of the Year this year in order to keep up with that deep Spurs bench.

Series Prediction: Very tough, but Thunder in 6

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