photo: Getty Images
The 2020 NBA Finals begin Wednesday night, as the Los Angeles Lakers take on the Miami Heat.
With the Lakers heavily favored in the series, we polled our staff to find out who they think will be crowned the next NBA champion.
Sean Casey, staff writer: Lakers in 7
Series MVP: LeBron James
Keys for Lakers: Must shoot well from 3-point range to open things up for Lebron and Anthony Davis, need to play fast and get points in transition, figure out Miami’s 2-3 zone early in the series, and Anthony Davis needs to outplay Bam Adebeyo
Keys for Heat: Use their depth to their advantage and get solid contributions from their bench and role players, slow the Lakers down in transition, Bam needs to be best player in this series for them to win, and finally, find the player to take on the assignment of attempting to lock up Lebron.
Nic Gelyon, staff writer: Heat in 6
The Miami Heat have, on a really good night, five decent mid-range shooters in Tyler Herro, Jae Crowder, Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic. If you add Duncan Robinson and Kelly Olynyk, the Heat have four very good three-point shooters as well. And yeah, their defense is pretty good too.
The Lakers have been missing their best defenders throughout their time in the bubble, and its showed. LeBron James and Anthony Davis are the only ones on their team who can get a rebound, or an assist, or a block, or just points in general. The Heat will outscore the Lakers, and it’ll seem a lot closer than it actually is.
Jonny Walker, staff writer: Lakers in 5
Series MVP: LeBron James
The Heat are a nice story, but the Lakers are simply on another level. The NBA is a star-driven league. Anytime you have the two best players (LeBron James and Anthony Davis) in the series playing for the same team, it’s hard to imagine them not dominating.
Plus, I’m not convinced that Jimmy Butler is good enough to be the best player on a championship team. The lack of a true superstar on this squad feels reminiscent of those early 2000s Pistons teams, just significantly less talented.
Ryan Surmay, staff writer: Lakers in 5
While Miami is one of the hottest teams in the league right now, LeBron and Anthony Davis will put the heat out and win in five games. Miami can steal a game and catch the Lakers off guard with their 3-point shooting, but they have no answer to the Lakers’ dynamic duo.
Peter Byrne, staff writer: Lakers in 6
The Heat have been fantastic throughout the entire playoffs. They’re carried an underdog mentality into every series, and have come away with win after win, as well as a gained sense of confidence. This will be their toughest test yet, and while Milwaukee had the best record in the NBA this season, the Lakers have more star power and playoff experience.
If all goes right, Miami can win this series. However, I think the star power LA possesses, as well as its experience, will prove too much to handle for this young Miami team.
Jeff Uveino, Editor in Chief: Lakers in 6
Series MVP: Anthony Davis
How does the saying go? We all love a good underdog?
The Heat’s improbable run to the Finals has won the hearts of many fans, but the Lakers just have too much star power. Expect each game to be close.
Anthony Goss, staff writer: Lakers in 6
Mike Hogan, special contributor: Heat in 6
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