MIAMI — The Oklahoma City Thunder did not look interested in waiting their turn to become NBA champions.
On their way to their first NBA Finals, the Thunder eliminated the past three winners - the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs. Once there, Oklahoma City overcame nerves and a 13-point firsthalf deficit to easily defeat the Miami Heat in Game 1.
But only one week after looking like the team to beat, the young Thunder looked overwhelmed Thursday night as the Heat capped their championship run with a 121-106 victory. It was Miami’s fourth consecutive victory over a stunned Oklahoma City team.
“It hurts, man,” Thunder star Kevin Durant said. “We’re all brothers on this team, and it hurts to go out like this. We made it to the finals, which was cool for us, but we didn’t want to just make it there.”
Durant and the Thunder had every reason to believe a championship was possible, even after sustaining their first playoff loss at home in Game 2. Oklahoma City trailed by 18-2 to open the game but fought back and had a chance to win in the final minute. The defeat seemed more a sign of the Thunder’s explosiveness and resiliency than a source of concern.
Once the series switched to Miami, Oklahoma City made key mistakes at the end of Games 3 and 4. With a chance to extend the series and return home for Game 6, the Thunder were run off the court by MVP LeBron James (26 points, 11 rebounds, 13 assists) and an outside shooting barrage by the Heat, who tied the NBA Finals record with 14 three-pointers.
“They were just on fire,” Thunder Coach Scott Brooks said. “They had everything going, everything clicking. They just took it to us tonight.”
The Thunder’s defense had helped them erase an 0-2 deficit to beat the Spurs in six games during the Western Conference finals. That defense was on its heels all nightThursday as James attacked the basket and created open shots for his teammates.
Even when the Thunder trimmed the lead to 61-56 early in the third quarter, the Heat hit consecutive threepointers and never looked back, extending the lead at one time to 27 points.
The Thunder’s offense, third in the league in scoring during the regular season (103.06 points a game), could not keep up as the Heat contained point guard Russell Westbrook, sixth man James Harden continued to struggle, and Durant finally succumbed to Miami’s defense and committed seven turnovers.
Coming off a 43-point performance, Westbrook shot 4 of 20 from the field as the Heat made a point to close off his driving lanes to the basket.
“They were challenging every dribble, they were challenging every pass, they were challenging every shot,” Brooks said. “They really played a physically intimidating brand of basketball.”
Harden had some open looks, but he continued his woeful shooting during the series. The NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year for his instant offense, Harden failed to score at least 10 points in three of the first four games and hit four shots in mop-up time Thursday to end up with 19 points.
“It was definitely a learning experience for us,” Harden said.
No team had overcome a 3-1 deficit to win the NBA championship, but the Thunder had expected to put up a better fight in the end.
Veteran reserve forwardNick Collison, who along with Durant was with the team in Seattle before it moved to Oklahoma City in 2008, said the Heat seemed to get stronger as the series went on.
“We had times with mental breakdowns; some of that probably is mental fatigue,” Collison said. “Miami didn’t have it, so it’s something we have to get better at. It’s the test of an NBA season.”
Losing on the big stage is often another test, as well as a rite of passage for many future champions, including the Heat.
“They had a bad taste in their mouth,” Brooks said of the Heat, who lost in six games to the Mavericks in last year’s NBA Finals. “There’s no question when you experience that, there’s something more to that next time when you get back.”
Sports, Pages 21 on 06/23/2012