The 2020 NBA playoffs has given fans another surprise. In the Western Conference Finals, instead of the Battle of Los Angeles that everyone envisioned since before the season began, we got the Los Angeles Lakers facing the Denver Nuggets after the Nuggets completed an upset of the Clippers. In the 2020 NBA Finals, instead of the Lakers facing the Boston Celtics and adding a chapter to one of the greatest rivalries in sports, they will square off with the Miami Heat, which has dominated the rest of the Eastern Conference.
While a Lakers-Celtics matchup has a rich, decades-long history, a Lakers-Heat Finals also has intriguing storylines of its own. These are two teams with several titles and winning cultures, with a combined four All-Star players surrounded by talented role players. Some of the Finals protagonists having close ties to both teams, whether it’s Lakers forward LeBron James or Heat president Pat Riley. Here are the biggest storylines of the Lakers and Heat heading into what should be a thrilling Finals series:
1. LeBron James faces his former team
“In this fall, I’m going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat.” With those words, James shocked the basketball world a decade ago when he decided to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers to join Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade with the Heat. Team president Pat Riley was the mastermind behind the move, and it brought the franchise to greater heights as Miami won two championships and made the Finals four times during the team’s four years together.
Now, in his 10th Finals appearance, James is looking to win his fourth title with a third team while facing the team where he won his first two championships. Making this Finals meeting more intriguing is the fact that after winning his third title in 2016, James admitted there were people from the Heat organization who didn’t like his departure in 2014, when he returned to Cleveland.
Riley, meanwhile, lamented the dissolution of the Heat’s two championship teams, saying that it was a dynasty that could have lasted longer. Now, LeBron has a chance to win another ring and prove he’s still the best in Year 17, while Riley gets another chance at establishing the dynasty he wants.
2. Pat Riley against the Lakers
While James has a four-year history with the Heat, Riley’s ties to the Purple and Gold goes back much further than that. He played for Los Angeles from 1970-1975, winning a championship with Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain in 1972. He then joined the Lakers coaching staff, first as an assistant from 1979-1981, then as head coach from 1981-1990. He guided the Showtime Lakers of Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to four titles in the 1980s, with his designer suits and slicked-back hairstyle becoming a part of the team’s Hollywood image.
The 75-year old executive, however, is no stranger to facing his former teams. In the 1990s, after coaching the New York Knicks for four seasons, he joined the Heat as head coach and president, memorably announcing his departure from the Knicks via fax. He then coached against the Knicks in four consecutive postseasons from 1997-2000. Now, as Miami’s president, he faces the team where he first made his name led by a player who helped him win two championships.
3. Anthony Davis wins his first championship
When Davis hit the game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer to beat the Nuggets in Game 2 of the Conference Finals, it seemed to be the playoff moment that he was meant to have since joining the Lakers last offseason. He later called it the “biggest shot of his career,” fulfilling his goal of being able to compete for a championship, which he wasn’t able to do while he was with the New Orleans Pelicans.
Davis carried great expectations when he entered the league after leading Kentucky to the NCAA title as a freshman and becoming the youngest member of the Team USA that took home the gold medal in the 2012 London Olympics.
But despite putting up gaudy numbers and emerging as an MVP candidate with the Pelicans, it never translated to a lot of success in the postseason. But during his playoff run with the Lakers, the 27-year old has shown he can deliver under the spotlight. He has proven to be the ideal co-star for James and even though he did not win the Defensive Player of the Year award, he has been a menace on both ends for Los Angeles. Winning a championship eight years after entering the NBA as the first overall pick would further elevate his status as one of the best players in the league today.
4. Jimmy Butler proves his doubters wrong
It seems so long ago, but there were actually doubts about the Heat’s move to trade for Butler from the Philadelphia 76ers in the offseason. There were questions about whether it was worth it to sign him to a four-year, $142 million contract, while there were those who lauded the deal but were unconvinced that getting Butler alone could get them over the top in the East. After all, the 31-year old was joining his third team in the last three seasons after stops with the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Sixers.
Fortunately for the Heat, proving doubters wrong has been a specialty of Butler’s, starting when he spent his freshman season in college at Tyler Junior College in Texas before eventually playing for Marquette. It his first season, not only was Butler able to lead the team back into the playoffs, but he was able to take them all the way to the Finals, proving that he can be the best player on a championship contender. Even if Abedayo, Herro, and his teammates outperform him in some games, he remains the team’s unquestioned leader. After leaving the Chicago Bulls, Timberwolves, and Sixers, Butler has found a home and a team that wants him, and winning a championship would be the ultimate proof against his naysayers.
5. The Heat complete an unlikely title run
While the Lakers finished first in the Western Conference and were considered among the teams to reach the Finals when the playoffs started, the Heat did not have the same expectations. They entered the postseason as a fifth seed, but managed to sweep the fourth seed Indiana Pacers, take down MVP and Defensive Player of the Year Giannis Antetokoumnpo and the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in five games, then beat the third seed Celtics in the Conference Finals. They became the first team since the eight-seeded 1999 Knicks to reach the Finals despite being seeded fifth or lower.
Not only did they reach the Finals, but they dismantled the rest of the Eastern Conference along the way, compiling a 12-3 postseason record. And it seemed as if a different player stepped up every time they won. In Game 1 against the Bucks, it was Butler who dropped 40 points and took over in the clutch. In Game 4 against the Celtics, it was Tyler Herro’s 37 points that proved crucial for their win. In Game 6, it was Bam Adebayo’s monster effort of 32 points, 14 rebounds, and five assists that carried them to the Finals. Teams with young, inexperienced players are supposed to fold under the pressure of the playoffs. But instead, the Heat’s players have announced their arrival way ahead of schedule, and Miami is just four wins away from completing one of the most unlikely title runs in recent memory.
6. The Lakers win it all for Kobe
Kobe Bryant is never far from the Lakers’ minds even during their playoff run. It’s evident from the Black Mamba alternate jerseys that they’ve worn in their games to their huddles ending with the players and coaching staff shouting “Mamba on three!” to Davis yelling “Kobe!” as he ran to his teammates after sinking the game-winning triple in Game 2 of the Conference Finals. Since Bryant’s untimely passing last January, James and his teammates have talked about continuing his legacy.
Bryant is, above all, a winner, and there’s no better way to honor one of the game’s greatest players by winning it all for him. The five-time champion was the last player to lead the Lakers back to the Finals and win a title, which happened in 2010 when they beat the Boston Celtics in a thrilling seven game series. A decade later and James, Davis, and the rest of the team have a chance to give the Lakers their 17th championship banner and leave a legacy that would make the Black Mamba proud.
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