The 2023 NBA Finals kick off tonight with the Denver Nuggets hosting the Miami Heat in Game 1. Denver and Miami have had entirely different paths in getting to the Finals this season. Denver is the 1-seed in the Western Conference and had the best record in the West for most of the season. There was much discussion about the upstart Sacramento Kings, the reigning defending champion Golden State Warriors, and the new-look Los Angeles Lakers. Still, the Nuggets deserve their respect for their wire-to-wire dominance this season.
Miami on the other hand eeked into the playoffs after losing their first Play-In Tournament game to the Atlanta Hawks and having to beat the Chicago Bulls in a playoff elimination game for the 8-seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs.