Who Won the 2014 NBA Finals?

The San Antonio Spurs won the 2014 NBA Finals.

The Finals

In the 2014 NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Miami Heat in five games. It was the Spurs’ fifth NBA championship, and their first since 2007. Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs in scoring, while LeBron James led the Heat.

The Teams

The Finals were the championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA)’s 2013–14 season and the conclusion of the season’s playoffs. The Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeated the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in five games (4–1) for the Spurs’ fifth NBA championship in franchise history. This series was a rematch of the previous year’s Finals, which Miami had won in seven games.

The Spurs outscored the Heat 503–487 in the series, becoming only the third team since 1987 to beat an opponent by 16 points or more over an entire NBA Finals series, joining the 1989 “Bad Boys” Pistons and 1990 “Showtime” Lakers as teams to have accomplished that feat. In addition, it was only the second time since 1987 that a team had won back-to-back titles by winning each finals matchup by 16 points or more; joining those 1990 Lakers as teams to have accomplished that feat (although it should be noted that neither dynasty won their repeat titles against each other). San Antonio shot better in almost every statistical category than Miami. The Heat committed more turnovers and had a lower assists-per-turnover ratio than 2018 NBA Finals Game 1 Golden State Warriors

Basketball Hall of Famer Alonzo Mourning stated that he believes San Antonio guard Manu Ginóbili deserved final series MVP honors over Leonard. “It came down to making big plays,” Mourning said. “And Ginóbili made way more big plays than Kawhi.”

The Players

The Finals were the championship series of the 2014 NBA playoffs. The Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeated the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in five games (4–1) for the Spurs’ fifth NBA championship in franchise history. The Spurs outscored the Heat in the series by a margin of 201–176.

San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard was named the Most Valuable Player of the series, becoming the third Spur to be named Finals MVP, joining Tim Duncan and Tony Parker.

The Game

The Miami Heat won the 2014 NBA Finals. The final score was Miami 95, San Antonio 88. It was a close game, but the Heat pulled ahead in the end. This was a huge win for the team and their fans.

The Score

The 2014 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2013–14 season of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the conclusion of the season’s playoffs. The Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeated the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in five games (4–1) for the Spurs’ fifth NBA championship in franchise history. The Finals were played between June 5 and June 15, and was broadcast on ABC in the United States. This was a rematch of the previous year’s Finals in which Miami had defeated San Antonio 4–3.

For the second straight year, Tim Duncan was named Most Valuable Player of the Finals. Duncan became only thFThe Spurs outscored Mavericks 32–8 in fast break points, with 17 coming from Parker and Ginóbili.”e third player ever to win back-to-back Finals MVPs (joining Michael Jordan and Shaquille O’Neal), joining Jordan as the only players to do so while winning consecutive championships. Additionally, these were Duncan’s fifth NBA championships (1997, 1998, 2003, 2005 and 2007), which tied him with Robert Horry and Kobe Bryant for fourth place all-time among players who have won five or more NBA titles; behind only Bill Russell (11), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6), and Michael Jordan (6).

This series marked the sixth time that two teams have met in The Finals for a second consecutive year—the first being because of a lockout that delayed start of the 1999 season until February 2000. The others were 1947–1948 (Minnesota Lakers vs. Philadelphia Warriors), 1950–1951 (New York Knicks vs. Rochester Royals), 1957–1958 (St. Louis Hawks vs. Boston Celtics), 1982–1983 (Los Angeles Lakers vs. Philadelphia 76ers) and 1991–1992 & 1992–1993 seasons when Chicago Bulls defeated Portland Trail Blazers in six games followed by Phoenix Suns in six games.”

The Highlights

The 2014 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2013–14 season of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the conclusion of the season’s playoffs. The Western Conference champions San Antonio Spurs defeated the Eastern Conference champions Miami Heat in five games for the Spurs’ fifth NBA championship in franchise history. The Spurs outscored the Heat in the series by an average of 92.3 to 86.8.

Game 1 was a lopsided affair that saw the Spurs hold the Heat to just 63 points, which was an all-time Finals record for fewest points allowed in a game, and led by as many as 36 points throughout the course of the game. The Spurs went on to win 110–95. In Game 2, neither team led by more than six points throughout regulation, and tied at 95–95 at the end of regulation, forcing overtime. The teams exchanged leads several times in overtime before Miami finally prevailed 103–100 to even the series at 1–1. In Game 3, with Tim Duncan leading them with 21 points and 16 rebounds, San Antonio cruised to a 111–92 victory, giving them a 2–1 lead in what would be their final series victory. In Game 4, LeBron James bounced back with a 32-point performance as Miami evened up the series again with a 109–93 win; this was their first road win of these playoffs.

In Game 5, Kawhi Leonard scored 22 points as San Antonio pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 104–87 victory and their first championship since 2007; it was also Gregg Popovich’s fifth title overall as head coach (he had previously won four championships while head coach of Wisconsin). This was also Pat Riley’s ninth appearance in an NBA Finals as head coach (sixth with Miami), which tied him with Red Auerbach for second-most all time behind only Phil Jackson (13). For James, it marked his fourth consecutive trip to an NBA Finals (and fifth overall), which tied Magic Johnson’s record set from 1980 to 1991; it also marked his fourth consecutive loss in an NBA Finals (and fifth overall), joining Jerry West as one of only two players ever to do so. James had 23 points and 10 rebounds for Miami, while Duncan led San Antonio with 21 points and 10 rebounds; Leonard was named finals MVP after averaging 17.8 points on 61% shooting over five games.

After the Game

The San Antonio Spurs won the 2014 NBA Finals after defeating the Miami Heat in five games. It was a hard-fought series, with the Spurs coming out on top. This was the Spurs’ fifth championship in franchise history.

The Reactions

After the game, the Spurs’ Tony Parker was emotional, saying, “It was an unbelievable feeling to win my fourth NBA Championship. I’m just so proud of my team. We worked so hard all season long.”

The Heat’s Dwyane Wade was gracious in defeat, saying, “The Spurs were the better team. They played great basketball and deserve all the credit.”

Both teams showed a lot of heart during the Finals, and fans can be proud of their favorite players regardless of the outcome.

The Analysis

It was a close game, but the Warriors pulled it out in the end to win the 2014 NBA Finals. Here’s a look at some of the key players and moments that decided the series.

Leading up to the Finals, much was made of the fact that neither team had lost a game at home during the playoffs. That streak continued through Game 1, with each team winning handily on their home court.

What changed in Game 2? The answer seems to be three-point shooting. After shooting just 20% from beyond the arc in Game 1, the Warriors came out firing in Game 2, hitting a blistering 52.4% of their threes. That hot shooting continued for the rest of the series, as the Warriors won four straight games to take home the championship.

A big part of that three-point barrage was due to Steph Curry, who set an NBA Finals record by hitting 32 threes over the course of the series. Curry was simply unstoppable, averaging 32 points, 5.6 assists, and 5 rebounds per game while shooting 46% from three-point range. He was named Finals MVP unanimously, and it’s easy to see why.

The other hero for Golden State was Andre Iguodala, who made key plays on both ends of the floor throughout the series. Iguodala also won Finals MVP in 2015 when he helped lead the Warriors to victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

It was a tough loss for LeBron James and company, but there’s no shame in losing to perhaps the best team ever assembled in NBA history. The Warriors are certainly a dynasty in waiting, and they’ll be looking to add more championships in years to come.