Ah yes, tonight the NBA Finals kicks off and your boy has to say he is pleasantly pleased. I am so jaded by 2020 I had no faith that the bubble would work, let alone to get to a point where we would be crowning an NBA champion. And after an exciting playoffs seeing the demise of Brett Brown in Philadelphia, and epic collapse by the Clippers and an ascension by Jamal Murray and the Denver Nuggets we have reached the final two.
Point Guard:
Miami is going to bring out Goran Dragic to run the point against the Lakers. And while he isn't the deadliest 3 point shooter you can always count on him and his solid and efficient mid range game to get you at least 15-20 points per night. Kendrick Nunn should also have a better series than he did against the Celtics. Meanwhile the Lakers are bringing out Rajon Rondo and Alex Caruso, bringing both good defense, a wealth of knowledge from Rondo and hustle from Caruso I can't pick who has the advantage.
Advantage: Draw
Shooting Guard:
The Lakers have the most unintentionally hilarious group at shooting guard it's ridiculous. First you got Dion Waiters who in his mind believes he is the baddest man on the court at all times. Then you have JR Smith who may be either the highest or most confused man on the planet and you have pure hilarity. Danny Green and Kentavious Calwdwell Pope round out the position and compared to the other two are damn Rhode scholars. The Heat have the stories of the bubble with the inspired play of Duncan Robinson and the wildly entertaining Tyler Herro. Better shooters, Herro is rebounding and passing extremely well, so I am gonna roll with the hot hand.
Advantage: Miami
Small Forward:
This is the undercard to the main event here. The Lakers have the man who has a statistical claim to be the GOAT starting at small forward and he is playing like a man possessed. In a close out game in his 16th season he casually dropped a 38 point, 16 rebound, 10 assist triple double in 40 minutes. While Miami has someone I am familiar with, Jimmy Butler leading the way. He has played great defense, provided some tough baskets and apparently selling coffee at $20 a cup so that better be the best damn coffee ever. All of that said even with Jimmy Buckets and Anre Iguodala the advantage is clear.
Advantage: Lakers
Power Forward:
So the Heat have been rolling out with Jae Crowder at power forward and while he is a very good 3 and D player to have, not sure if he is best suited at power forward. For some reason Kelly Olynk and Derrick Jones are not really seeing the floor so this is the clear weak spot for the Heat. The Lakers are bringing Markieff Morris and Kyle Kuzma. If ever there was a contrast of styles and personality this is it. Morris is famously about that action boss. Seriously. Google "Morris twins beat up..." and there will be MULTIPLE entries. Kyle Kuzma is a nice guy, just a bit corny. That said they have a pretty good rotation going here with contrasting styles that should keep the Heat off balance. Either that or I'm afraid of Markieff Morris if I doubt him.
Advantage: Lakers
Center:
Now the Heat have possibly the most intriguing player in the series to me in Bam Adebayo. He is one of the most athletically gifted big men to come out in the last few years. He can guard literally any position on the floor. And this season we saw his offensive game take a leap that has me quite excited to see how he progresses. On the other side we have the gold standard of NBA big men, Anthony Davis. 7 footers should not be able to do the things that he regularly does. Just last round he hit a step back three pointer fading away to win the game at the buzzer. WHAT?! He also happens to be one of the 2 or 3 best defensive players in the league. You add in the perpetually goofy Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee and as much as I love Bam, the Heat just won't have the size to contend with the Lakers.
Advantage: Lakers
Coaching:
I gotta give credit where credit is due. When Spoelstra took over as coach of the Heat I thought he was just Pat Riley's hand picked stooge. Boy was I wrong. He took a team with 3 of the best players in the league, managed those egos and got two championships out of it. Since LeBron's departure he has developed a team that was not expected to contend and even though he is using a zone defense which I don't agree with, the results are there. I think between he and Frank Vogel, Spoelstra is the better X's and O's coach of the two. However, it would take a hell of a
Final Prediction:
I think the size and the fact the Lakers have the two best players on the floor by quite a margin is going to lead to the moment we all knew was coming. As Thanos said, dread it...run from it...destiny still arrives.
Lakers in 6.
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