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ESPN staff
The 2023 NBA Finals are here.
The Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat took two different routes to the championship. Denver cruised through the Western Conference finals with a resounding sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers and have been off for 10 days prior to Thursday’s Game 1. The Nuggets are playing in their first NBA Finals in team history. Miami, on the other hand, is in its seventh NBA Finals since 2006. The Heat had to rally through two play-in games before cruising past the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks. It looked like Miami would easily reach the Finals after jumping out to a 3-0 series lead to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals. Then the Celtics rallied to win three straight games to force a Game 7.
The Heat didn’t panic, however, and cruised in that game to have another chance at taking home the Larry O’Brien trophy.
Tickets are going for over $1,000. Jimmy Butler has already made his prediction to tennis star Coco Gauff while most of ESPN’s experts are picking the Nuggets to win the series.
Here are all the happenings around Game 1:
Game 1 arrivals
Can Jimmy and the Heat steal Game 1 of the #NBAFinals on the road? 🤔
📺 8:30 PM ET on ABC and @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/AVX7808VA7
— ESPN (@espn) June 1, 2023
All 👀 on The Joker as he arrives for Game 1 🃏 #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/L9lJqUudcx
— ESPN (@espn) June 1, 2023
The voice of the #NBAFinals in the building 🗣️
Which team will hear the iconic Mike Breen “BANG” when it matters most in Game 1? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/zqmgpb7Pli
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 1, 2023
Larry O’Brien trophy drops in
It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s The Larry O’Brien Trophy skydiving to Heat/Nuggets for Game 1 tonight at 8:30pm/et on ABC! pic.twitter.com/SVF8sZNCLH
— NBA (@NBA) June 1, 2023