San Antonio Spurs dominate Miami Heat 107-86 in Game 4 of NBA Finals, take 3-1 Series lead
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Copyright 2014, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc.
The San Antonio Spurs completely dominated the NBA defending champion Miami Heat 107-86 in Game Four of the 2014 NBA Finals on Thursday, June 12, 2014, at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida, as the Spurs total team effort suffocated the LeBron James-led Heat during the entire game.
The Spurs jumped out to an early first quarter lead which they would never relinquish throughout the game led by a stifling defense, stunning the hapless Heat.
Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard continued where he left off in his career high 29 points performance in Game Three by covering Miami’s star LeBron James like a glove on defense and his youthful athleticism led to another commanding offensive showing with 20 points to lead the Spurs, 14 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 3 steals, including a monster jam on a high flying rebound which caused TV announcer and former NBA Coach Stan Van Gundy to simply state “Ka-whi!” as the basketball rim and backboard was still vibrating from Leonard’s acrobatic slam dunk. NBA Analyst Stephen A. Smith called Leonard “the best basketball player on the court” in the 2014 NBA Finals.
Leonard was joined by his Spurs teammates in a total team effort to earn the visiting Spurs their second win over the Miami Heat in their very own home at American Airlines Arena, including Tim Duncan with 10 points and 11 rebounds to break former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson’s record of most double-double games in the NBA playoffs with 158 games as well as breaking former Lakers great Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s record for the most minutes played in NBA playoff games. Spurs down under Australian guard Patty Mills chipped in 14 points while Spurs French guard Tony Parker added 19 Points and French Forward Boris Diaw contributed 9 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists. All 13 Spurs players scored in Game Four.
Heat guard Dwayne Wade was flat throughout the game while LeBron James did not score very much until the third quarter when the game was out of reach, finishing with 28 points.
The Spurs will seek to dethrone the NBA defending champions Miami Heat in Game Five on Sunday, June 15th, in San Antonio, Texas, going for the Heat’s jugular vein and the Spur’s fifth NBA Championship.
During the season, Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich has been saying that Kawhi Leonard is the future franchise star for the Spurs having seen Leonard’s athleticism and talent during practice as well as the 2014 season.
However, Leonard’s shyness, quiet personality, unselfishness, and total team player attitude held back until his Spurs teammates like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Tiago Splitter, and Popovich asked him to unleash his athleticism and talent upon the Miami Heat as his breakout rise to NBA stardom. Leonard did not disappoint them as he has delivered in Games Three and Four after a slow start in Games One and Two. Finally, the whole world witnessed what the San Antonio Spurs have known all along about Leonard’s incredible basketball talent and skills. “Ka-Whi!”
The Spurs back to back victories against the Miami Heat in their home broke the Heat’s record of 48 NBA Playoff Games wins at home going back to the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals.
The Miami Heat do not have an answer for the San Antonio Spurs pass happy offense and total team defense, especially no one to stop Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard’s rise among the NBA’s elite players.
