Miami Heat Crowned 2013 NBA Champions & Twitter Reactions

The much anticipated and closely followed finals series between the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs has reached its conclusion today with the former taking the crown for its first back-to-back championship. The series was highly fought that no team has established a back-to-back win, until Miami did so today in the most crucial game of the season. Lebron James, also season MVP, performed in the clutch with key baskets such as his two-point shot with roughly 30 seconds in the game that put the lead up to four points. Meanwhile, Manu Ginobili also suffered several lapses and unforced errors down the line that ruined the chances of the Spurs to make a come back.

In addition to winning the championship trophy, Lebron James also earned the honors of Finals MVP during the awarding ceremony after the game. Meanwhile, the social media sphere had been closely following the series, too, wherein fans and NBA players or personalities alike gave their two cents about the development of the series, and most especially the pivotal Game 7.

Here are some of the player reactions at Twitter:

And the funniest tweet/reference of them all...

Are you happy with the outcome of the NBA Finals series this year?

2013 NBA Western & Eastern Finals Schedule

Image: USAToday.com

The stakes are bigger at the upcoming game schedules in the NBA as the competition is down to four teams. Memphis Grizzlies (first time in the Western Conference finals) and the playoffs veterans San Antonio Spurs are slugging it out for the Western Conference trophy. Meanwhile, Indiana Pacers have their backs against the wall as they're going up against Miami Heat, which is a favorite to win it all this year.


Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals series tipped off last Sunday, May 19, at San Antonio wherein the Spurs blasted the Grizzlies by winning 105-83. The game started off with the Grizzlies trailing in double digits and they staged a short comeback that cut the lead to only six by the third quarter. However, the Spurs quickly put an end to Grizzlies' attempt to make a dominating debut in their first Western Finals appearance. Matt Bonner lead an 11-1 run to close out the third with 16 points between them.

Many of the Grizzlies top players didn't show up during Game 1 namely Zach Randolph, who left the game with more than 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter to play and only two points under his belt. It has been noted that the Grizzlies executed the classic gritty defense and inside-out offense during the entire season, which has worked successfully for them at this point. But the Spurs beat them at their own game. Now, the Grizzlies are hoping to make the necessary adjustments come Game 2 in order to even up the series and more importantly, steal one on the road.

You can check the rest of the schedules below:

Western Conference Finals

Game 1 in San Antonio: Spurs (105) def. Grizzlies (83)
Game 2 in San Antonio: Tuesday, May 21
Game 3 in Memphis: Saturday, May 25
Game 4 in Memphis: Monday, May 27
Game 5 in San Antonio: Wednesday, May 29
Game 6 in Memphis: Friday, May 31
Game 7 in San Antonio: Sunday, June 2

Eastern Conference Finals

Game 1 in Miami: Wednesday, May 22
Game 2 in Miami: Friday, May 24
Game 3 in Indianapolis: Sunday, May 26
Game 4 in Indianapolis: Tuesday, May 28
Game 5 in Miami: Thursday, May 30
Game 6 in Indianapolis: Saturday, June 1
Game 7 in Miami: Monday, June 3

Which team do you think will take home the 2013 NBA championship? Be sure to vote in on the poll!

Disclaimer: Photos and NBA 2013 Finals Schedule credits to www.usatoday.com

NBA 2013 Playoffs: First Day Results

NBA teams had entered the next phase, a more intense level, of competition in the league - the 2013 Playoffs. The regular season has been marked with a lot of exciting news and action with Kobe Bryant acquiring an injury on his Achilles tendon, which means he will be out for the rest of the season. In addition, the regular season also saw a dominance by the Miami Heat extending their game winning streak to 23 that had compelled a lot of fans and analysts to believe that another MVP trophy for Lebron James could be likely.

The first set of games for the NBA 2013 Playoffs opener kicked off on Saturday, April 20, 2013. If you missed the action, here are the results for those games:

East
Brooklyn Nets def. Chicago Bulls (106-89)

Deron Williams led Brooklyn Nets to this win with his 22 points, together with Brook Lopez' 21 points. It turned out to be a blowout with the Nets dominating the Bulls in the series opener. The game started off on the right foot for Brooklyn Nets as they registered an 11-point lead as the first quarter closed out at 25-14. Even when the Nets were limited to just 17 points at the final quarter, it was not enough to help Chicago Bulls steal this one. Carlos Boozer was the lone bright spot for the Bulls with his 25 points in 45 minutes of play. Other players in double figures for the Bulls are Jimmy Butler, Nate Robinson, and Marco Belinelli. Next game for this series will be on Tuesday, April 23.

New York Knicks def. Boston Celtics (85-78)

Carmelo Anthony took charge in this game with his 36-point performance, along with 6 rebounds, to help the New York Knicks beat the Boston Celtics during the tipoff of their playoffs series. This series is ridden with emotions as the city of Boston was just recently hit by tragedy during the Boston Marathon bombing. However, as the New York Knicks hosted the Celtics, Anthony went on a rampage with his 13-29 field goal shooting. What is more interesting is that besides Anthony, only 5 more players scored during this game including Raymond Felton (13 points), JR Smith (15 points), Kenyon Martin (10 points), and Jason Kidd (8 points). On Boston's end, Jeff Green led the team in scoring with 26 points as Paul Pierce chipped in 21 points.

Game 2 is scheduled on Tuesday, April 23, in New York. Boston is scheduled to host Game 3 on Friday, April 26.

West


San Antonio Spurs def. LA Lakers (91-79)

San Antonio Spurs' get an edge over the Lakers in their round 1 series at the Western playoffs as they took a 91-79 win on Sunday night. The Spurs led early with 24-15 game at the first quarter and the Lakers could not recover. Despite late-season injuries, Tony Parker showed up in this game and helped push Spurs to the win. Manu Ginobili also chipped in 18 points to help his team's cause despite coming off the bench.

LA Lakers, on the other hand, saw the return of Steve Nash after missing the 8 games to close off the regular season for his team after straining his hamstring. He did manage to score 16 points after playing a little over 29 minutes and went for 6-15 in shooting. The Spurs' defensive play helped to contain the Lakers resulting in a long dry spell. The next game is scheduled on Wednesday, April 24, at San Antonio.

LA Clippers def. Memphis Grizzlies (112-91)

This is a re-match from last year's playoff series and the Clippers edged out Grizzlies in a 112-91 game yet again. Seven players scored in double figures but it was Chris Paul who led them all with 23 points. Grizzlies put up a decent defensive showing as they slowed down LA Clippers' pace, but 57 personal fouls were called during that night and it sure did slow down the pace but not the fiery performance from the home team.

Jerryd Bayless led the Memphis Grizzlies in scoring with 19 points but the Clippers dominated in the fourth quarter, fending off any rally from the Grizzlies to come back. The Grizzlies tried to foul DeAndre Jordan and force him to the free throw line during the few remaining minutes of the game. However, it wasn't enough to crawl back into the game. They will attempt to even out the series on Tuesday, April 23.

Golden State Warriors def. Portland TrailBlazers (99-88)

Andre Miller gave his team the winning shot in the dying seconds of their game as he scored a layup to put Denver Nuggets' up 1 in their series against Portland TrailBlazers, 97-95. The game, which was hosted by the Nuggets, is also Miller's first post-season win despite making it to the playoffs in the past. Aside from scoring the winning layup, Miller also led Denver Nuggets in points with 28 in 27 minutes of play. Wilson Chandler and Evan Fournier scored 11 points each as Ty Lawson added his own 12 points.

Klay Thompson put on a valiant effort scoring 22 points for the Blazers. Four other players scored in double figures but it wasn't enough to steal one on the road. Game 2 will be on Wednesday, April 24.

Today, the following games are scheduled to take place:

Atlanta Hawks vs Indiana Pacers
Milwaukee Bucks vs Miami Heat
Houston Rockets vs OKC Thunder


Stay tuned here for updates on game results for the remaining matchups.