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The Los Angeles Lakers and Lebron James are considerable favorites to beat the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals say Sportsbook Wednesday, Sept.28, 2020. Jimmy Butler and the Heat will have something to say about that.
Analyst Thoughts
Steve Jones Jr., son of broadcasting legend Steve “Snapper” Jones Sr, brings his old man’s perspective to the finals. “Ball movement and player movement” is what my father preached. He said, “If one team is in constant motion, putting pressure on the defense, and the other is moving slowly, running one action and forcing a shot, that kind of thing really stands out to me.”
The Heat consistently targeted Kemba Walker in the conference finals the same way the Nuggets went after Williams and Harrell. Pace has always been a topic of discussion, but tempo in the halfcourt might be more important. Looking for key matchups or a proverbial post-up helps the offense to flow.
If the Lakers stay big with Dwight Howard, you can expect Miami to put him in pick-and-rolls, a situation in which he struggled against Denver.
“It’s not one-on-one with four guys standing all the time,” Jones said. “I think sometimes this gets misunderstood.” For the Heat, the challenge will be continuing to play to their identity against the Lakers’ defense that is better than Boston’s.
Game One Results
Wednesday after game one of the Finals, the 98-116 victory by the Lakers could be a sign that the sportsbook got it right. To make matters worse for the Heat, starting guard Goran Dragic and All-Star big man Bam Adebayo left Game 1 with injuries. It is unclear if Dragic and Adebayo will be available for Game 2, but the loss of either player would be a huge blow to Miami’s championship chances.
Written by Omari Jahi
Edited by Cathy Milne-Ware
Sources:
ESPN: Los Angeles Lakers heavy favorites to win NBA Finals, but Miami Heat drawing early action; David Purdum
NBA: Lakers vs. Heat: What we’ve learned from the playoff bubble, and how it applies to the 2020 NBA Finals matchup; James Herbert
Sporting News: Lakers vs. Heat score, results: Los Angeles cruises to Game 1 win as injuries ravage Miami; JORDAN GREER
Feature Image Courtesy of Ken Lund’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of All-Pro Reels’ Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
