2014 Year in Review: May Edition
By DJ Smith
Miami and San Antonio’s cruise to NBA Finals
May 31, 2014; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili (20) is hugged by forward Tim Duncan (21) during the fourth quarter in game six of the Western Conference Finals of the 2014 NBA Playoffs against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. San Antonio won 112-107. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
The Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers met up in the Eastern Conference finals, while the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder met up in the Western finals. LeBron James and co. dropped the first game to the Pacers on the road as Paul George lead Indiana to an early 1-0 series lead. But from there it was all Miami capitalizing on three straight wins and holding on to a commanding 3-1 series lead going back to Indiana for Game 5. While Paul George carried the Pacers on his back, scoring 37 and capturing the win, the Heat managed to come back in Game 6 and finish off the Pacers with a 117-92 win to head to their 4th NBA Finals in the ‘Big 3’ Era. Meanwhile in the West the Spurs and Thunder went at it for a chance to reach the NBA Finals and to knock off the Heat. The Spurs got ahead to an early 2-0 series lead thanks to Tim Duncan who lead the Spurs with 27 points in Game 1 and then lead all scorers with 12 rebounds in Game 2. The Thunder managed to go back home and even the series up thanks to Russell Westbrook who lead all scorers with 26 points in Game 3 and in Game 4 went off, scoring 40 points in route to a 105-92 victory for the Thunder. However it was Duncan once again that lead the Spurs to the final two victories as he once again lead both teams in rebounds in Games 5 and 6. The Spurs were heading into a rematch of last years NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, looking to avenge last years disappointing loss.