Basketball Wiki
Register
Advertisement
2014 NBA Finals
NBA Finals logo (2003–2017)
Team Coach Wins
San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich 4
Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra 1
Dates: June 5–15
MVP: Kawhi Leonard
(San Antonio Spurs)
Hall of Famers Spurs:
Tim Duncan (2020)
Manu Ginóbili (2022)
Tony Parker (2023)
Heat:
Ray Allen (2018)
Chris Bosh (2021)
Dwyane Wade (2023)
Coaches:
Pat Riley (2008)
Gregg Popovich (2023)
Eastern Finals: Heat defeated Pacers, 4–2
Western Finals: Spurs defeated Thunder, 4–2
NBA Finals
2013
2015

The 2014 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2013–14 season of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeated the two-time defending NBA champion and Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in five games (4–1) to win their fifth NBA championship in franchise history and the first since 2007. The Spurs outscored the Heat in the series by an average of 14.0 points per game, a then-record for an average point differential in Finals history, ending their chances of a three-peat, the first that would have occurred since the 2000-2002 Los Angeles Lakers, led by former players Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. San Antonio's Kawhi Leonard was named the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the first time in his career. Leonard received 10 of the 11 Finals MVP votes.

The Finals was a rematch of the previous year's NBA Finals, in which Miami had won in seven games, handing the Spurs their first-ever Finals loss. This marked the 12th Finals rematch, but only the fifth since the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. The Spurs had home-court advantage, since the team finished the regular season with a better record (62–20) than the Heat (54–28). For the first time since 1984, the Finals were played in a 2–2–1–1–1 format (Games 1 and 2 at home for the higher-seeded team, Games 3 and 4 at home for the lower-seeded team, Game 5 at the higher, Game 6 at the lower, and Game 7 at the higher) after the Board of Governors agreed to change the format from 2–3–2, which was used from 1985 to 2013. The series began on June 5 and ended on June 15. This was the last Finals until 2019 not to feature the Cleveland Cavaliers and the last until 2020 not to feature the Golden State Warriors and where the Heat return the Finals losing to the Lakers in six games.

In 2023, the Spurs were joined by the Denver Nuggets as the only former ABA franchises to win an NBA championship. The 2023 Finals series also involved the Heat on the losing side in five games.

2014 NBA Playoffs[]

San Antonio Spurs (Western Conference Champion) Miami Heat (Eastern Conference Champion)
62–20 (.756)

1st Southwest, 1st West, 1st Overall

Regular season 54–28 (.659)

1st Southeast, 2nd East, 5th (tied) Overall

Defeated the (8) Dallas Mavericks, 4–3 First Round Defeated the (7) Charlotte Bobcats,
4–0
Defeated the (5) Portland Trail Blazers, 4–1 Conference Semifinals Defeated the (6) Brooklyn Nets, 4–1
Defeated the (2) Oklahoma City Thunder, 4–2 Conference Finals Defeated the (1) Indiana Pacers, 4–2

Regular-season series[]

The regular season series was split 1–1, with each team winning at home:

January 26, 2014 Recap San Antonio Spurs 101 Miami Heat 113 American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida
March 6, 2014 Recap Miami Heat 87, San Antonio Spurs 111 AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas

Series summary[]

Game Date Road Team Result Home Team
Game 1 June 5 Miami 95–110 (0–1) San Antonio
Game 2 June 8 Miami 98–96 (1–1) San Antonio
Game 3 June 10 San Antonio 111–92 (2–1) Miami
Game 4 June 12 San Antonio 107–86 (3–1) Miami
Game 5 June 15 Miami 87–104 (1–4) San Antonio

Game summaries[]

The Spurs rebounded from their seven-game loss to the Heat in the 2013 Finals to win the series, 4–1, for the franchise's fifth NBA championship. After winning their first four over nine seasons, this was their first since 2007. They defeated Miami by margins of at least 15 points in each of their four wins and also outscored them by an average of 14.0 points per game in the series, which was the largest differential in Finals history at the time. The Spurs finished the playoffs with 12 wins by 15 points or more, the most ever in the postseason. Miami had won 11 straight playoffs series, which was the fifth longest in league history.

The Spurs' Kawhi Leonard was named the Finals MVP after leading the team in scoring in each of the final three games, averaging 23.7 points and shooting 68.5 percent, after scoring just nine in each of the first two games Overall, he averaged 17.8 points on 61.2 percent shooting in the series, the highest field goal percentage of any Finals MVP, and shot 65 percent when guarded by LeBron James in the series. Leonard also led the team with a 57.9 three-point field goal percentage. Leonard was the third-youngest recipient of the award (22 years and 351 days old) since its inception in 1969, and the youngest since Magic Johnson in 1982.

Tim Duncan of the Spurs led all players in the series with 50 rebounds. He was followed by teammate Boris Diaw (43), who was inserted into the starting lineup beginning in Game 3. Diaw led all players in the series in assists (29).

Background[]

Miami Heat[]

Led by their "Big Three" of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh, the Miami Heat made their fourth straight appearance in the NBA Finals, and fifth overall, following two back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013.

They were the first team since the 1987 Boston Celtics and first Eastern Conference team since then to make it to four straight Finals, and only the fourth team in NBA history to achieve that goal, besides the 1966 Celtics (as a matter of fact, ten straight appearances), 1985 Los Angeles Lakers, and the 1986-87 Celtics. From 2015-2018, the Cleveland Cavaliers led by LeBron James also achieved the same feat when they won in 2016. They were seeking to become the first NBA team to three-peat since the 2002 Lakers. Heading into the postseason, the Heat had an 11–14 record in the last 25 games. In the first round, they eliminated the Charlotte Bobcats and won 4–0. In the In the Conference Semifinals, they eliminated the Brooklyn Nets and won 4–1, despite being swept by Brooklyn in the regular season. In the Eastern Conference Finals, they again played the Indiana Pacers in a rematch of the previous year's Conference Finals in which the Heat won in seven games. Miami won the series 4–2, eliminating the Pacers from the playoffs for the third straight year to reach the Finals for the fourth straight year.

San Antonio Spurs[]

The San Antonio Spurs had a deep roster, with no player averaging 30 minutes during the regular season. Their offense relied on ball movement, being called "one of the most beautiful-to-watch teams in the NBA" by USA Today.

This was the Spurs's sixth appearance in the NBA Finals, and they headed to the postseason with the best record in the NBA and a franchise record 19-game winning streak, ending with a 22–4 run in their last 26 games. In the first round, they faced their Texas rivals, the Dallas Mavericks, who surprised the Spurs by taking the series to seven games despite the Spurs sweeping the Mavericks in the regular season for two consecutive years. San Antonio won 4–3 despite being down 2-1 following Vince Carter's buzzer in Game 3. In the Conference Semifinals, they eliminated the Portland Trail Blazers and won 4–1. In the Conference Finals, they played against the Oklahoma City Thunder in a rematch of the Conference Finals from 2012 in which Oklahoma won the series 4-2 after being down 2-0. The Spurs won the series 4–2, despite being swept by Oklahoma City in the regular season, and for the first time, they qualified for back-to-back Finals appearances.

Rosters[]

Template:San Antonio Spurs 2013–14 season roster Template:Miami Heat 2013–14 season roster

Player statistics[]

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
San Antonio Spurs statistics
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Ayres, JeffJeff Ayres 3 0 2.2 1.000 .000 .750 0.7 0.3 0.0 0.0 1.7
Baynes, AronAron Baynes 3 0 2.1 1.000 .000 1.000 0.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0
Belinelli, MarcoMarco Belinelli 5 0 11.8 .471 .444 .750 1.2 0.6 0.2 0.0 4.6
Bonner, MattMatt Bonner 4 0 6.7 1.000 .000 .750 0.8 1.3 0.3 0.0 1.3
Diaw, BorisBoris Diaw 5 3 35.2 .364 .333 .500 8.6 5.8 0.8 0.2 6.2
Duncan, TimTim Duncan 5 5 33.1 .569 .000 .679 10.0 2.0 0.4 0.8 15.4
Ginóbili, ManuManu Ginóbili 5 0 28.7 .500 .417 .875 3.0 4.4 1.0 0.2 14.4
Green, DannyDanny Green 5 5 21.1 .531 .450 .750 2.0 1.2 2.0 0.4 9.2
Leonard, KawhiKawhi Leonard 5 5 33.4 .612 .579 .783 6.4 2.0 1.6 1.2 17.8
Mills, PattyPatty Mills 5 0 15.2 .543 .565 .000 1.4 1.6 0.4 0.0 10.2
Joseph, CoryCory Joseph 3 0 2.5 .333 .000 .000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.7
Parker, TonyTony Parker 5 5 35.2 .479 .417 .750 0.4 4.6 0.8 0.0 18.0
Splitter, TiagoTiago Splitter 5 2 16.8 .706 .000 .778 3.4 2.0 0.6 0.6 6.2
Miami Heat statistics
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Allen, RayRay Allen 5 1 31.0 .415 .409 .857 3.0 1.8 1.6 0.2 9.8
Andersen, ChrisChris Andersen 5 0 17.9 .250 .000 .700 5.6 0.0 0.4 0.6 2.6
Battier, ShaneShane Battier 4 0 8.2 .000 .000 .000 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.0 0.0
Beasley, MichaelMichael Beasley 1 0 17.0 .571 .000 .333 3.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 9.0
Bosh, ChrisChris Bosh 5 5 36.3 .549 .385 .818 5.2 1.0 0.8 0.2 14.0
Chalmers, MarioMario Chalmers 5 4 23.1 .333 .143 .778 1.4 2.8 1.0 0.2 4.4
Cole, NorrisNorris Cole 5 0 16.7 .316 .143 .750 1.2 1.8 0.4 0.0 3.2
Douglas, ToneyToney Douglas 3 0 3.4 .250 .250 .500 1.0 0.7 0.0 0.0 1.3
Haslem, UdonisUdonis Haslem 4 0 5.6 .400 .000 .000 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 1.0
James, LeBronLeBron James 5 5 37.8 .571 .519 .793 7.8 4.0 2.0 0.4 28.2
Jones, JamesJames Jones 4 0 3.4 .571 .500 .000 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.8
Lewis, RashardRashard Lewis 5 5 22.9 .500 .455 .500 1.6 0.4 0.0 0.4 8.6
Oden, GregGreg Oden 2 0 1.5 .000 .000 .000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Wade, DwyaneDwyane Wade 5 5 34.5 .438 .333 .692 3.8 2.6 1.6 0.0 15.2

Broadcast[]

In the United States, the NBA Finals aired on ABC with Mike Breen (play-by-play) and Jeff Van Gundy (analyst) as commentators. Also beginning this Finals, and for the first time since 2011, Mark Jackson returned as analyst after being fired by the Golden State Warriors early in the season. ESPN Radio aired it as well and had Kevin Calabro and Hubie Brown as commentators.

Aftermath[]

Spurs[]

To date, this is the Spurs' most recent NBA Finals appearance. The team made the playoffs over the next five years, the first two of which involved Tim Duncan. The Spurs won a franchise record 67 games in the 2015–16 season, including a record-tying 40 home victories (shared with the 1985–86 Boston Celtics). However, they lost in the second round of the playoffs to the Oklahoma City Thunder in six games, and Duncan retired shortly after. The following season, the Spurs won 62 games and advanced to the Western Conference Finals, but lost to the eventual champion Golden State Warriors in four games. The remaining core of Kawhi Leonard, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginóbili made one more playoff appearance in 2017–18, but lost in five games to the eventual two-time champion Warriors in the first round. Ginóbili retired after the season, and Parker followed suit after playing one season with the Charlotte Hornets. Meanwhile, Leonard, along with Danny Green, was traded to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for DeMar DeRozan and won the franchise's first championship. The Spurs' run of 50-win seasons ended in the 2018–19 season, when they won only 48 games and lost in the first round in seven games to the Denver Nuggets. It was also the Spurs' most recent playoff appearance as the team gradually declined, culminating in a 22–win season in 2022–23, their worst 82-game season record under Gregg Popovich and worst overall since the 1996–97 season.

Heat[]

After the season, LeBron James rejoined the Cleveland Cavaliers, leading them to four consecutive NBA Finals appearances and the 2016 NBA championship. Meanwhile, Miami underwent a transition phase. Chris Bosh played his last game in the 2015–16 season, retiring in 2019 due to health issues, and Dwyane Wade briefly left the Heat to join the Chicago Bulls. Wade then reunited with James on the Cavaliers, but was traded back to the Heat midway through the 2017–18 season. After the 2018–19 season, Wade announced his retirement. During this period, the Heat made two playoff appearances and won one series, a first round victory over the Charlotte Hornets. The Heat made two subsequent NBA Finals appearances in 2020 and 2023, losing both times to the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets in six and five games, respectively with the 2020 loss against former Heat player James. Udonis Haslem, who was on the roster in all of Miami's Finals appearances, retired after the 2022–23 season after 20 seasons.

Preceded by
2013
NBA Finals
2014
Succeeded by
2015
Advertisement