The final that everyone wanted started with a bang. San Antonio Spurs-Miami Heat, second volume (or version 2.0, if you prefer) is not only the re-edition of the most beautiful finals of recent years, but it is also, quite simply, the challenge between the best teams in the NBA, those that represent better.
Everything happened in race 1: old lions like Ginobili and Duncan (but also Ray Allen, on the other side) who once again pretend to be young and strong again for one night as they once were, a failure of the AT&T air conditioning Center in San Antonio who forced the players to play in hellish temperatures, an unprecedented injury to Lebron James (muscle problem, there shouldn't be any problems in the continuation of the series). And then, last but not least, at least for us, the first points of an Italian in an NBA final.
The Spurs came out on top, 110 to 95, but the final score shows a wider gap than seen on the field. Two teams almost always paired, side by side, with inertia, a very thin and fickle thread, ready to pass into the hands of one or the other at any moment.
The Spurs, as always, rely on the collective and close the first half ahead 54 to 49, putting the usually tough defense of the Heat in crisis. The big three are on the shields: Manu Ginobili, author of 16 points and 11 assists and immediately very hot, Tony Parker, 19 and 8 assists, but above all Tim Duncan who, in spite of the registry office which says 38, seems to have made a pact with the devil and will close with the usual double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds, with 9 out of 10 from the field. Splitter and Diaw also did well, while Marco Belinelli entered the field in the second quarter and scored a total of 9 points, with two out of three from long range.
On the other hand, the Heat attack is kept up by Wade and Bosh, who on the other hand suffers a lot from Duncan, obviously together with Lebron and a vintage Ray Allen. In the third quarter, together with the air conditioning of the AT&T Center, the fluidity of the Spurs game also disappears. Miami tightens a couple of screws on defense and scores on the counterattack, ending the run with a 78-74 lead.
At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Heat seem to be able to extend, reaching 86 to 79, but the Spurs hold their ground and, pushed by a hitherto deleterious Danny Green, take them to 92 to 90. Here comes the moment that splits in two the match: after a penetration Lebron James collapses to the ground and has to leave the field. The light goes out for Miami: the partial in San Antonio does not allow for replies: 18 to 5 and end credits on game 1. We meet again for game two, the second chapter of the second book of two dynasties probably on its last legs.
