OKC Thunder vs. Miami Heat: Who Ya Got NBA Fans?

The manner in which these two heavyweights came to meet in the NBA Finals couldn't be more different. The Thunder did it thru savvy free agent signings and trades coupled with hitting the mark on a few top 5 picks. The Thunder also took the precarious route of ducking and running from a city that loved them, Seattle, and kindling a passion for basketball in a city that is as far from a basketball hub as humanly possible, Oklahoma City. The Miami Heat on the other hand become the NBA's resident villain by convincing 2 of the games top 15 players, sorry Boshtrich I can't call you top 10, to take their talents to South Beach and join resident superstar Dwayne Wade. In most people's eyes the Heat took the easy route by luring multiple marquee free agents to Miami and convincing them to coexist with a street ball offense. The Thunder did it thru development the Heat thru spending but one thing they do have in common is that they are both led by out of this world talent in Kevin Durant and LeBron James, respectively.

A Thunder/Heat matchup is a great study in depth versus pure star power. The Thunder do have supreme star talent in SF Kevin Durant and PG Russell Westbrook but those two are backed up by the NBA's best 6th man in James Harden and a stable of interior strength in athleticism headlines by Serge Ibaka. The Heat happen to run 2 of the games top 5 players out there for 42 minutes a night and with the Boshtrich healed and ready to go they now have somewhat of an inside presence. With DWade and LBJ the Heat are never out of a game due to either ones ability to take the team and put it on their back for an extended period of time. The rest of the starting lineup and those off the bench however would struggle to start for the Kentucky Wildcats. This is truly a full team effort versus a few very talented individuals.

Most casual fans assume that the Heat hold an advantage in the athleticism category but a look at their roster beyond the Big 3 reveals a roster full of underwhelming athleticism. When Mario Chalmers is your 4th most athletic player well you're teams not all that athletic then is it? Shane Battier and Mike Miller are both spot up shooters, Joel Anthony is a nice defensive center but he's way too easy to guard on the offensive end and Norris Cole and Ronny Turiaf aren't even worth mentioning. The Thunder on the other hand run out 5 guys all under the age of 28 in Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Serge Ibaka, and Thabo Sefolosha who can hang with anyone in the NBA.

The Thunder have the right combination of length defensively and scoring prowess offensively to neutralize the high octane offense the Heat have put together. The Heat have played solid defense so far through the playoffs but a look at their opponents shows a much weaker road to the Finals then the one taken by the Thunder. The Heat have played the Knicks, Pacers, and an aging Celtics team while the Thunder have had to go through the defending champion Mavericks, Lakers, and the recent winners of 20 in a row Spurs. The Thunder have played top notch teams while the Heat have battled through a much weaker Eastern Conference. The Thunder have proven that their full of 'grit and balls' as KG would say and that they are ready to deliver a knockout blow to the Heat after they escaped the Celtics grasp by winning game 6 in Boston and game 7 at home.

Of course the great equalizer in all of this analysis is the ability of LeBron James to become the best player the NBA has seen since Jordan's hay day. Don't get me wrong I love Kevin Durant, partially because he's amazing and partially because we spent 2006-2007 at the University of Texas together, but LeBron James has the ability to absolutely shred a defense and create plays for his teammates like no other. So far throughout the playoffs no team has had the length or athleticism to hang with LeBron for a full series but that's where I think the Thunder gain an advantage over the Heat's other opponents. Between Sefolosha, Durant, and Ibaka the Thunder have the length to bottle up James and frustrate him. Nobody has the ability to complete shut down James for 48 minutes but I believe the Thunder will be able to slow him down and force DWade and the Boshtrich to pick up the slack and deliver a win.

The Thunder are currently riding a 4 game winning streak over a team in the Spurs who before losing 4 in a row to the Thunder had won 20 straight games and looked like the clear cut favorites to wear the crown as champion yet the Thunder were able to outmuscle them with the likes of Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins, and Nick Collison. The Thunder are flying high and have one of the best home crowds in the NBA that will come in handy with their home court advantage. The Heat have been tested this postseason and they have, for the first time, answered the bell and won the big games. They won't go down without a fight but I think that in the end the Thunder will pack too much of a punch for the Heat to survive.

The Thunder DO have the 3 time reigning scoring champion in Kevin Durant who, unlike LeBron, appears to have the clutch gene after scoring 18 points in the 4th quarter of game 5 against the Spurs to steal home court advantage. Durant is a stud scorer and is a natural at pouring in buckets on a consistent basis. The Heat also don't have a matchup that they like against him. He's too tall for LBJ to guard him and he's too quick and can pull Bosh or Anthony away from the hoop. He's the exact type of the player the Heat struggle to defend and will continue to struggle to defend in this series.

The final piece of the puzzle that tips the scales in the Thunder's favor is the matchup of Scott Brooks vs. Erik Spoelstra. Spoelstra can't diagram a play or come up with someone creative in crunch time to save his life and Scott Brooks is currently the best coach in the NBA that nobody knows his name. He's a whiz and he's got the Thunder to play up to their abilities and even beyond. He's a great coach and one of these days, if the Thunder win the NBA title perhaps, he'll get his due as a top XO's guy and master motivator. The Thunder emerged victorious in the brutal Western Conference and I believe that they'll also emerge victorious in 6 games over the Miami Mojitos. LeBron James will have a good series but I think Kevin Durant will do him one better and get his first championship again shutting LeBron out in the cold.

STAFF PICKS:


Nort - Thunder in 5
ZHawk - Thunder in 5
Lang - Thunder in 6

Geoff Jablonski