The Denver Nuggets are officially the best team in the NBA, and the Miami Heat’s incredible playoff run has come to an end. In hindsight, it’s hard to believe that the one-seed Nuggets were the sixth most favored team heading into the playoffs, with their odds being +200 more than the sixth seed Warriors. I’m punching myself for not seeing that value, but the Nuggies treated me well all playoffs so I can sleep easy.
Jokic proved all of the Marc Jacksons of the world wrong, dominating every step of the way to earning his first finals mvp to go along with the Nugget’s first championship. Jamal Murray, the Robin to Nikola’s Batman, was steady as can be all May and June, even after sustaining a floor burn on his left hand.
There were murmurs across the league about whether he’d be able to play with this crippling wound, but thanks to his father’s early teachings he was able to suit up.
There is just so much to unpack in this short clip. Some may call these “exercises” gritty, others will call it child abuse. Wall sits are a top ten torture method on their own, but take away the timer and throw burning substances on legs and I think it might take a podium spot. Lucky for the Nuggets though, Jamal’s father must’ve never eaten a razor scooter to the shin/ankle. That intolerable pain would force anybody to quit, and we may have never been graced with his skills on the parquet.
What didn’t make sense to me at first was the picking up leaves in the cold. That was, until I found out that his hometown is Ontario, Canada, where the average temperature sits at about 20 degrees Fahrenheit each winter. That doesn’t sound fun at all. Then again, these stories from Jamal could all be bogus, judging by the fact that he’s talking to Malika Andrews who has a talent for making NBA players act up. I can’t blame them though.
Alright, we’re getting sidetracked, so let’s get back to some other important notes from the series:
On the Heat side, Kevin Spoelstra has cemented himself as a top three coach in the league. Miami became the first play-in team to make the finals, and along the way each team they faced had far more talented rosters. Yet, Spo was able to outcoach each and every one of them, until he met a team who’s coach matched their talent level.
Michael Malone did a phenomenal job all playoffs, and he is the coach that I would want to lead the Celtics roster. He kept all of his players in line, checked their ego’s when they needed checking, and got the job done without anybody questioning whether he could. Teams that have multiple stars need coaches like him, not yes men like Joe Mazzulla.
As for the Heat roster, changes need to happen to get them over the hump. Good for them though, I’m pretty sure Reggie Miller mentioned once or twice that they have undrafted players who performed at all star levels. As much as those guys would love to stay in South Beach, they just built up an absurd amount of draft capital for Pat Reilly to work with this offseason. Who knows what moves they will make, but guys like Damien Lillard could be the difference, and we’ll just have to wait and see who, if anybody, they will bring in to try and contend next season.
I’ll end the NBA portion of this blog with a video dump of Jokic post game reactions and celebrations. This guy is the funniest player in the league without meaning to be:
THE FUTURE OF A2Z SPORTS
We have our second writer and long time friend, Jack, joining the the team this week! Expect an especially comedic writing style to go along with even more Boston centered sports takes. The weekly schedule isn’t hammered down quite yet, but check back for at least one blog from him this week. Hopefully in the near future A2Z Sports will be posting blogs every Monday-Friday, with even more styles of content on the horizon!