The Lakers and Heat are an NBA Finals matchup with all sorts of historical ramifications and interesting questions. These are the lineup, matchup and strategic issues that will decide a winner. The NBA Finals are finally here. It’s been a long, strange road, so let’s not bother with a long preamble. Here are the tactical questions
Month: September 2020
The Miami Heat win with depth and versatility. The Los Angeles Lakers win with star power. Which style will win out in the NBA Finals? When LeBron James left Miami to rejoin the Cavaliers in 2014, creating a still unrepaired rift between James and his former team, neither the Heat nor the Lakers appeared remotely
6:57 AM ET It has been 345 days since the NBA tipped off its 2019-20 season, but we’re finally here: Game 1 of the Finals is Wednesday night (9 p.m. ET on ABC). LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Los Angeles Lakers solidified their status as a title contender early in the season and backed
Miami Heat rookie Tyler Herro has made a small leap during the playoffs to help his team reach the NBA Finals in Orlando. The signature bucket of Tyler Herro’s 37-point Game 4 performance will be remembered as the deep, bravado-driven step-back triple he netted over All-Defensive First Team member Marcus Smart. It pushed Miami’s lead
7:30 AM ET After much springtime bloviating, there will be no asterisk on this NBA championship. If anything, it will be more badge of honor — a mark of perseverance through isolation, mental strain, and the internal discord of performing a job in the entertainment industry while issues of social and racial justice roiled outside
MIAMI, FL – MAY 24: LeBron James #6 and head coach Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat (Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images) Twins fan trolling Astros with trash can outside Target Field (Video) by Steven Kubitza LeBron James had a lot of good things to say about Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. Miami Heat head
Joel Embiid and his girlfriend welcomed their first child on Thursday. Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers had NBA championship aspirations this season. But that never came to fruition, as the 76ers were the first team eliminated from the playoffs in the Orlando bubble after getting swept by the Boston Celtics. While getting sent home early
6:09 PM ET LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Like a parent being asked to rank their favorite children, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James wanted no part in assigning special value to a 2020 NBA championship, should he win it against his former team, the Miami Heat. “It’s no extra meaning to winning a championship,
Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler facing LeBron James (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) Ranking the 3-0 teams through Week 3 of the 2020 NFL season by Steven Kubitza Jimmy Butler was very complimentary of the Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron James ahead of the Miami Heat meeting them in the NBA Finals. The Miami Heat have
The Golden State Warriors, who had the NBA’s worst record, are in prime position to get back into postseason contention as early as next season. It feels like a lifetime ago that the Golden State Warriors were the undisputed kings of the NBA: seven consecutive postseason appearances, five straight NBA Finals and three championships in
11:38 AM ET Ramona Shelburne Close ESPN Senior Writer Senior writer for ESPN.com Spent seven years at the Los Angeles Daily News Ohm Youngmisuk Close ESPN Staff Writer Ohm Youngmisuk has covered the Giants, Jets and the NFL since 2006. Prior to that, he covered the Nets, Knicks and the NBA for nearly a decade.
Doc Rivers, LA Clippers, (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) Texans bringing in Earl Thomas for a visit after Ravens’ release by Scott Rogust As it turns out, the Reds are just as cursed as the Braves by John Buhler NBA Twitter didn’t hold back when Doc Rivers and the Clippers decided to part ways The
6:45 AM ET An hour before the 2019 NBA Finals tipped off in Toronto — the first time the league’s showcase event had been played outside the United States — commissioner Adam Silver reminded those watching that basketball’s founder, James Naismith, was a Christian missionary who brought the game to China and Europe in the
The LA Clippers have parted ways with Doc Rivers. Who should replace him as head coach? Doc Rivers is a well-respected NBA head coach with championship experience. He’s 11th on the league’s all-time wins list, has won nearly 60 percent of his games over 21 years in the association and is one of the biggest
7:50 PM ET The risk profile on next season, already trending toward the red, just got hotter for the LA Clippers. After a devastating postseason collapse along with the crashing realization that both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George can become free agents next summer, parting with Doc Rivers Monday has only increased the stakes. This
The Whiteboard is The Step Back’s daily basketball newsletter, covering the NBA, WNBA and more. Subscribe here to get it delivered to you via email each morning. In 2015, with backs to the wall and 1.5 seconds left on the clock, LeBron hit a buzzer-beating baseline jumper to give the Cavaliers another playoff win. It
2:22 PM ET Sportsbooks have installed the Los Angeles Lakers as considerable favorites to beat the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. The early betting action, though, has been on the underdogs, and the odds are on the move. The Lakers are -400 favorites at William Hill U.S. sportsbooks, with the Heat listed as +320
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Miami Heat celebrate with the trophy after they are Eastern Finals Champions (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) Phillies were the biggest disappointment in baseball in 2020 by Steven Kubitza NBA Twitter reacts to LeBron James facing old team in Finals by Mark Powell The Miami Heat
10:12 PM ET There aren’t many days that go by during the NBA season when LeBron James doesn’t use lessons he learned during his four years with the Miami Heat. One has proven to be the most important: Keep the main thing the main thing. It is one of the core tenets that Heat president
Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler facing LeBron James (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) Miami Heat advance to NBA Finals after taking down Boston Celtics in 6 games by Mike Luciano LeBron James is facing his old team in the NBA Finals, and that’s going to take some getting used to Bandwagon NBA fans have it tougher
Few teams in NBA history have had such a stark contrast between their regular season and playoff success. As a result, the Milwaukee Bucks’ young superstar may be on his way out. If I told you that your favorite team would earn the No. 1 seed in back-to-back years, and on top of that employ
Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo won his second straight MVP award, beating out LeBron James for the NBA’s most prestigious individual award. Bucks superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo took home his second consecutive MVP award on Friday, becoming just the fourteenth player in NBA history to win the award multiple times. Just 25 years old, the
10:06 PM ET Associated Press LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — It was exactly one year ago Sunday when Jimmy Butler walked into the Miami Heat practice gym, took a seat on a makeshift stage and said he wanted to be part of the team’s next title run. He’ll have that chance. The Heat are going
Heat vs. Celtics is the Eastern Conference Finals matchup no one expected. These are the lineup, matchup and strategic issues that will decide a winner. The Eastern Conference Finals are finally set, and the matchup is a familiar one: Celtics vs. Heat. These two franchises met in the playoffs in 2010, 2011, and 2012, though
7:20 AM ET LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — In the NBA bubble, a quality cup of coffee is hard to come by. The sweets shop in the El Centro lobby on the way to the practice facility — which offered bitter dark roast — closed soon after players arrived in early July because it wasn’t
LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates with teammates after their win against the Denver Nuggets in Game Five of the Western Conference Finals during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at the ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on September 26, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User
1:44 AM ET A year ago, the hardest thing in front of LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers was resurrecting a storied franchise that had missed the playoffs six consecutive seasons. And at the time, that seemed like a pretty steep hill to climb. There was no way to know what awful events lay
Denver Nuggets head coach Mike Malone took a shot at the Los Angeles Lakers and the NBA’s controversial officiating after a close Game 4 loss. Nuggets head coach Mike Malone called out the Lakers after a controversial Game 4, decrying the seemingly tilted officiating and Los Angeles’s previous complaints about foul calls, despite the fact
Anthony Davis gave the Lakers a scare in the fourth quarter Davis limped around with an ankle injury after coming down hard in the fourth quarter of Game 4. AD lucked out, ironically, as his ankle didn’t bend at a harsh enough angle to sprain or break completely. Davis scored 34 points in 41 minutes
The modern NBA player isn’t willing to dethrone the King, per Paul Pierce Pierce is a notorious King James hater, but he has a decent point here. On ESPN’s NBA pregame show, the analyst discussed the difference between modern NBA players and old heads of the mid 2000’s in terms of defending LeBron. “Players today
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