Game 1 is Thursday @ 9PM EST
ESPN's panel is split on their picks (12-6) in favor of the Spurs winning.
Some notes:
MIA and SA are 12th and 14th, respectively, in team offensive rating for the playoffs. They were the 5th (MIA) and 6th (SA) ranked teams during the regular season.
On the other hand, MIA and SA are 5th and 3rd, respectively, in team defensive rating in the playoffs, after coming in 11th (MIA) and 3rd (SA) during the regular season.
Miami played slow ball during the regular season (27th in the league with 91.2 pace) but are even slower in the playoffs (last among teams with an 85.5 pace). San Antonio plays a little faster, but I would expect some slow down, half court basketball in this series. Just for reference, last year's finals was played at a slow pace (88.1 possessions per game).
ESPN's panel is split on their picks (12-6) in favor of the Spurs winning.
Some notes:
MIA and SA are 12th and 14th, respectively, in team offensive rating for the playoffs. They were the 5th (MIA) and 6th (SA) ranked teams during the regular season.
On the other hand, MIA and SA are 5th and 3rd, respectively, in team defensive rating in the playoffs, after coming in 11th (MIA) and 3rd (SA) during the regular season.
Miami played slow ball during the regular season (27th in the league with 91.2 pace) but are even slower in the playoffs (last among teams with an 85.5 pace). San Antonio plays a little faster, but I would expect some slow down, half court basketball in this series. Just for reference, last year's finals was played at a slow pace (88.1 possessions per game).