NBA Finals Game 3 Preview
Status: Series tied 1-1
Date: June 11th
Time: 9:00 p.m. (EST)
Location: AT&T Center (San Antonio, TX)
TV: ABC
In Game 2, the Miami Heat left little doubt that they were still a threat to repeat as NBA Champions. After dropping a close Game 1 to the San Antonio Spurs, the Heat rebounded for a big 103-84 win on Sunday night to tie the series.
The NBA Finals now shift to San Antonio as the Spurs will host the next three games.
If the Spurs are to win Game 3, shooting a bit more accurately wouldn’t hurt. San Antonio, who has shot well at other times in these playoffs, made only 41% of their attempts from the field over the first two games, scoring 88 points on average. That’s a full 15 points lower than their regular season total of 103 per game and the team has been hurting on offense.
San Antonio needs a lift from their two main stars, Tim Duncan and Tony Parker. After both played an exceptional Game 1, the pair faltered in the second game. The duo combined for only 22 points and shot woefully on Sunday, making only eight of their 27 shots (29.6%). Danny Green stepped up in Game 2 game with a team-high 17 points, but it wasn’t nearly enough as the Spurs were overcome by a Miami Heat run that spanned over the third and fourth quarters.
In reality, though, winning one game out of two scoring as few points as they have has to be mildly encouraging for the Spurs. The team hasn’t played their best and even though they took a pretty good shot from Miami in Game 2, the Spurs head back home to San Antonio with home court advantage.
But it’s not only the Spurs that can use more offense. LeBron James, one of the most prolific scorers in the NBA, has been surprisingly kept in check. James has averaged only 17.5 points over the two contests – well below his season average of nearly 27 points per game. Still, the star has found other ways to contribute. In Game 1, James had a triple double adding a game-high 18 rebounds and ten assists with his 18 points. He followed that up with eight rebounds, seven assists, three blocks and three steals on Sunday in the win.
The Heat can find a way to win if James doesn’t score … as long as other players step up. And that’s exactly what’s happened so far in the series. Miami got 30 combined points from Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh as well as 13 off the bench from Ray Allen in the opener. In Game 2, Miami was led by 19 points from Mario Chalmers and got 40 points from their bench. Getting fewer than 20 points from James isn’t ideal, but if other players are stepping up, the Heat are still capable of winning games and ultimately, the series.
Another key factor for both teams? Turnovers. As would be expected, the team that has taken care of the ball has been the side that’s come out on top in both games. San Antonio was nearly perfect in Game 1 with a total of only four turnovers and they went on to win that game. In Game 2, though, Miami turned up the pressure, forcing the Spurs into 16 of them. Conversely, Miami had only six turnovers in that 19-point victory. Whichever team comes out with a strong intensity on defense will have an excellent shot to win the pivotal Game 3.
