#4 - 2013 NBA Finals Game 7 - San Antonio Spurs (H)
#4. 2013 NBA Finals - Game 7 - San Antonio Spurs (H)
San Antonio Spurs 88, Miami Heat 95
A game 7 in the NBA finals has to make the list, right?
Unfortunately for this game, it came right after game 6, which many labelled as
one of the best games of all time. But this game had enough in its own rights,
whether they will be remembered or not. Firstly, every game between these two teams
in 2013 was incredible. The quality of basketball from both teams at the height
of competition was being marvelled at by all neutrals watching on. Even though
the Spurs had thrown away a championship that seemed like theirs in Game 6,
they still were just one win away from
making that an interesting asterisk in a championship winning season. And even in
this one, the Spurs were incredibly close. They may have been two Tim Duncan bunnies away from winning it.
But instead, it was LeBron who hit the iconic jumper, to win his, and this incarnation
of the Miami Heat’s, 2nd and final NBA Championship.
As a fan of this team and LeBron, the first win in 2012
meant a lot, but it didn’t mean quite everything. It partly erased the pain of the
2011 defeat, but it didn’t completely erase it. As I was watching it, I
needlessly asked of the universe that they let this team win two. One would be
enough for most teams, but it didn't feel like enough for this one. Not with all the hype that had gone
in. Not after all they had said. Not after all the things they had been through. Not after they had let a
2-1 lead slip away in 2011. One was the minimum, three would be gravy, but two
was enough. I found myself thinking that I would take a guaranteed win in this
series, even if it meant they would never win again, rather than take the
allure of a potential win in 2013 and 14 and beyond with the risk of only succeeding once. I needed two, and I felt like this
team, and these players, needed two. And after they won it, I promised myself I would
never hold any grudges about what this team did or did not accomplish in the future or in the past.
For me, they had done enough.
So when 2014 came along, and the Spurs started
brushing aside the Heat, I hoped that it wouldn’t hurt as much. But it did, it hurt
a lot. I hadn’t forgotten the promise I had made to myself, it just wasn’t so easy to keep it. Time is cruel like that. But after the series was over, the pain
went away a lot quicker. And after the big 3 broke up, it provided a chance to
reflect on what was accomplished over the past 4 years. 2 wins and 4 finals
appearances. There was a nice and somewhat fitting symmetry to it all. If they
had won everything it wouldn’t have been an appropriate reflection of the
difficulty of the journey. It was that difficulty that made those two wins
special. And even if they had won 3, until they stopped playing together,
nothing would have truly softened the blow of seeing them lose in the moment,
whenever they eventually did, as all must inevitably do. The happy feelings of
2013 have been replaced, in 2014, by the unhappy feelings of the present. And
so, as we all must do, Heat fans must turn to memory.
The 2013 celebrations had a different feeling to 2012. The
mood had shifted from a exuberant relief to a highly satisfied swag. These were
the glory years for the heat. Where they got to live life as the champions.
The reasons:
LeBron - 37 points. One of the best game 7 ppg’s
ever, Led by good 3 point shooting in this one. Not only that, but the team
looked to him for points in the 4th quarter and he rose to the
occasion and hit some big jumpers. Including …
LeBron’s game winning shot. Not enough gets made of it.
LeBron’s steal to wrap it up
Duncan slapping the floor after missing those shots
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