Miami Heat Wins Game 2 of the NBA Finals, 111-108

The Miami Heat have stolen Game 2 from the Denver Nuggets in Colorado, and they now head back to Florida with home-court advantage in the NBA Finals. Miami won at the Ball Arena 111-108

Many fans and experts have already seen the Heat cooled off in this series, but Erik Spoelstra and his boys aren’t giving up. After a very rough series with the Boston Celtics, they finally had some time to regenerate, and the improvement was immediately seen.

Though, the way the game had started, many at the Ball Arena believed the Nuggets would solve the rivals without too many problems. They were up 15 points, 50-35 in the second period, finding various ways to break through the Heat defense. But all that changed in the third quarter, when the guests took the momentum.

Spoelstra’s offense was much better this time, with three players scoring 20 or more buckets. The highest figure was produced by Gabe Vincent, who had 23 points, 8-for-12 from the field. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo had 21 points apiece, Butler assisting nine times and Adebayo having the same number of boards.

“We’re so focused in on what we do well and who we are as a group that at the end of the day, that’s what we fall back on,” Butler said.

The veteran Kevin Love has made his presence felt, with him having six points and 10 boards, a team-high in 22 minutes. Max Strus finally appeared with 14 points, four threes, and six assists. The Heat had made 17 threes in 35 attempts and also had 20 free throws, compared to only two in Game 1.

On the other side, the Denver Nuggets had only Jokic, who couldn’t do everything on his own. The strong center scored 41 points and had 10 boards and four assists but without the proper help of all the other teammates. This isn’t the first time the Nuggets experience drops like this, and it always includes a lousy performance of all the players but the Joker.

Jamal Murray had just 18 points, assisting ten times, while Michael Porter Jr. scored only five, continuing his poor three-point shooting stretch, 1-for-6. Aaron Gordon had 12 points, and Bruce Brown had 11.

“We had guys out there that were just, whether feeling sorry for themselves for not making shots or thinking they can just turn it on or off — this is not the preseason, this is not the regular season. This is the NBA Finals. That, to me, is really, really perplexing, disappointing,” Mike Malone, the Nuggets’ head coach, told at the press conference.

His Nuggets managed to complicate the entire situation, even though it looked as if they controlled everything. The momentum is not on their side anymore, and the first loss at the Ball Arena in the playoffs could be very damaging to their morale.

Jokic plays incredible basketball, but other players aren’t fulfilling expectations. Jamal Murray is inconsistent again, while Michael Porter Jr. struggles with his three-point shooting. Meanwhile, Spoelstra made certain adjustments, and the Heat immediately responded well to those changes. Kevin Love’s presence was an x-factor in Game 2, with the former NBA champion controlling the rim well during his time spent on the floor.

Game 3 is at the Kaseya Center this Wednesday night, with the tip-off set at 8:30 pm ET.