0-151!

Miami came back from the dead after leading 3-0 in the series to finish off Boston at the TD Garden. Miami completely dominated Boston from the get go, as the long standing NBA Record of no team coming back from a 3-0 deficit is safe for another year.

Jimmy Butler and unsung hero of the series Caleb Martin (extremely unlucky not to be named Eastern Conference Finals MVP) were dominant in this one, winning 103-84, leaving Celtics fans gobsmacked.

Butler finished with 27 Points, 7 Rebounds and 6 Assists, with Martin adding a huge Double-Double with 26 Points and 10 Rebounds.

Boston were extremely disappointing, with Tatum rolling an ankle on one of the first plays of the game. He was given no support from the rest of his team mates.

Tatum finished with 14 Points and 11 Rebounds, which was never going to be enough in a close out game to make the NBA Finals.

Jaylen Brown went for 19 Points, 8 Rebounds and 5 Assists, but shot 8-23 from the field, to go along with 1-9 from deep.

Derrick White was their one shining light, a man who got them here to begin with, finishing with 18 points on the night. As well as Brown, he struggled from 3, going 2-9 from deep.

The Heat is well and truly on in Boston. This may be the end for Tatum and Brown, who after making their maiden NBA Finals appearance last season, came up short to the 8th seeded Miami Heat this season. Losing a Game 7 at home is incredibly tough to come back from for a team with expectations that high (Miami proved otherwise this season with lower expectations going in) and it’s hard to see this team going back to the well next season.

The only thing in Boston’s favour is the age of their two stars, with Brown turning 27 in the off season and Tatum only 25, but they’ll need another piece to go with them.

If they do keep these two, then it may be Smart and others who make way for a Point Guard who can lead them to a title, someone like Damian Lillard would have to be in the conversation, but without giving up someone like Brown, it’s hard to see the Blazers taking an offer for any less.

Denver v Miami would not have been on the cards for any NBA pundits going into the playoffs this season, with Miami shocking just about every opponent on their way to the NBA Finals. 

They beat out the Bucks in 5 games, even with Giannis getting hurt (and eventually coming back), they were still predicted to exit early in the first round. 

They then went into the Garden and finished off the Knicks in 6 games, somewhat flattering to the Knicks given how dominant the Heat really were all series. Jimmy was hurt in that series and it never seemed to bother a Miami team riding high on confidence.

The final straw being knocking off the Celtics, a team who sent the Heat home in their own arena last year, to make the NBA Finals. They wouldn’t be there without their stellar role play from the likes of Caleb Martin, Gabe Vincent and Duncan Robinson, and who’s to say they don’t have one more shock in them to knock off the high flying Nuggets.

Denver came in as the 1 seed and played exactly like one, finishing off the TWolves in 5, having a minor scare along the way in that series. They then went on to face the Suns, a team who dismantled them 2 years prior, now adding KD into the mix. Denver won in 6 games, which one again flattered the Suns as the series was never really that close. Denver just had to overcome their demons of finishing off a team talked far more about than them, and did so comfortably. Finally, the demolition job of the Lakers was the icing on the cake out West, and one in which finally looks like this team has done enough to complete their NBA Championship dream. Not to discount anything Miami has done, this just has to be Denver’s year.

Prediction: Denver 4-1.

Bauky