The 2012 NBA Finals is the championship round of the 2011–12 NBA season and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat will face the Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder under a 2–3–2 rotation. The Thunder will have home-court advantage in the Finals since they had a better regular season record than the Heat.
Game 1 of the Finals will be played on June 12, five days later than its originally planned June 7 start. This delay was due to the lockout that pushed the start of the season to late December and shortened the regular season to 66 games.
This marks the first time that the Oklahoma City Thunder will appear in the NBA Finals since the franchise's relocation from Seattle, Washington in 2008, and their first Finals appearance overall since 1996 as the Seattle SuperSonics. It also marks the Miami Heat's third appearance in the NBA Finals since their championship season of 2006 and their first Finals appearance against teams other than the Dallas Mavericks.
WHAT THE HEAT MUST DO TO WIN THE 2012 NBA FINALS
Drive to the Basket — As LeBron James and Dwayne Wade go, so go the Miami Heat. Unfortunately, both superstars can sometimes struggle when shooting from the floor. Oklahoma City plays very good defense and fills the passing lanes. James and Wade must drive to the basket and force the Thunder front court of Kevin Durant, Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka to choose between foul trouble or allowing easy baskets.
Contain Russell Westbrook — Oklahoma City has a tremendous edge in the point guard match-up in this series. When he’s playing in control, as he did over the last four games of the Western Conference Finals, the Thunder’s Russell Westbrook can create havoc on offense and defense. He’s an excitable player, so Miami’s Mario Chalmers may want to try to lean on him a bit and get him off his game. Chalmers must give the Heat some production on the offensive end, at least enough to keep Westbrook and others from easily helping on James and Wade.
Force Kevin Durant Into Bad Shots — The Thunder’s Kevin Durant is an incredible scorer. He may have the best shooting range of any current NBA player. Miami must rotate fresh defenders on to Durant so that he rarely has a clear look from his favorite shooting spots. Still, Durant will score 20 per game; Miami must keep him under 30.
WHAT THE THUNDER MUST DO TO WIN THE 2012 NBA FINALS
Unleash James Harden — The NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year gives Oklahoma City the edge in bench strength. What Harden must do is find a way to score when Miami has both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook covered. Already averaging 17.6 points per game in the playoffs, Harden is capable of turning a game around in seconds. The Heat may not have an answer for him.
Be Physical — Miami’s Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem do not stack up against the Thunder’s physical duo of Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins. Ibaka and Perkins have to dominate the rebounding at both ends of the floor and get back on run-outs so that James and Wade never score an easy basket.
Get in LeBron James’ Head — LeBron James has played like the MVP that he is. Until he gets an NBA title, James will carry pressure around with him to succeed, and it will get greater with every loss in this 2012 NBA Finals. If Oklahoma City can get ahead in this series, the pundits will start pecking at James. That could be enough to tip the series their way.
