2014 NBA Finals: 5 takeaways from the Games 1 and 2

Whether you’re a fan of the Miami Heat or the San Antonio Spurs or a neutral fan, the NBA Finals have not disappointed so far as both teams are battling it out for silverware.The fact that the Spurs have the home court advantage will not be a point of discussion until we get to Game 7 of the finals.As the scene for the Finals shifts from San Antonio to Miami for the next two games, here are the 5 biggest takeaways from the two games played so far:

#5 Defence

A team could get away with a couple minutes of bad offence by playing good defence on the other end of the floor, but a couple minutes of bad defence could very well open up the game for the opponents.

The Spurs and the Heat rely heavily on their defence to win games, and so far it has only been turnover or lapses in execution on the offensive end, which have cost them the games.

The Heat have made the adjustment of putting size on Tony Parker to curb his speed and effectiveness in the paint, thereby reducing his penetration.

On the other hand, the Spurs have shown that they are capable of playing zone defence, and their basic strategy has been to give the Miami Heat low percentage jump shots from the field.

#4 Kawhi Leonard has been a non factor

Kawhi Leonard has been given the tough assignment of guarding LeBron James and while he hasn’t been able to keep the reigning Finals MVP work for his points, it has quite clearly affected his performance on the offensive end of the floor.

Head Coach Gregg Popovich expects more than 9 points, 2 rebounds and 4 turnovers from the 22 year old Leonard had in Game 1. In Game 2, he got into good rhythm early in the game knocking down few shots but once again finished with only 9 points and 2 rebounds as he was limited to just 24 minutes due to his six fouls.

The young player will have to find his groove as he is not a spot up shooter, who can get going if Coach draws up few plays for him. He must be more active on the floor as his play is extremely crucial to the team’s success.

#3 The (over)reliance on LeBron James

LeBron James has been terrific so far in the Finals and if it wasn’t for the cramps in Game 1, the Heat could have been flying back to Florida with a 2-0 series lead.

He averages 30 points and 8 rebounds so far in the Finals with a shooting percentage of 59%. Although the three point attempts have been limited, he has been efficient on the shots that he did take, shooting 5 of 6 from long range.

But will this over dependent nature of the Heat come back to haunt them later in the series, or is it just a matter of the other players not having to step up since James is on the floor?

We will find out as the series goes on.

#2 The team which comes big in clutch wins game

The teams play extremely good basketball for the entire 48 minutes. In Game 1 it was the San Antonio Spurs putting up a terrific display of ball movement and shooting in the second half of the final quarter, while LeBron James sat on the bench with cramps. In Game 2, it was consecutive clutch plays by Chris Bosh that sealed the deal.

Unless it is a blowout game which is highly unlikely given the standard of ball the teams play, one can expect all the remaining games to go down to the wire.

#1 Competitive & edgy

These two teams are meeting in the Finals for the second consecutive time and there is no love lost between them. Both teams have immense respect for each other, which was evident by the body language of the players on the court.

Any Finals series will be competitive, after all the teams can’t get lucky in each of the preceding three rounds right? Barring an unintentional elbow by Mario Chalmers which resulted in a Flagrant 1 call, this series has been clean. The number of technical fouls called by the referee is a clear indication of that.

Not a single technical foul was called when these two teams met in last year’s Finals. The two fouls called on Tim Duncan and LeBron James this year have more to do with the players reacting to a foul call, rather than getting into an altercation with the opponent.