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Spurs 104, Heat 87: Spurs blow Heat away again to capture 5th championship

Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

What happened?

After the Heat jumped out to a 22-6 lead and LeBron James dominated the first quarter to the tune of 17 points, six rebounds, two blocks and an assist, the Spurs responded with a three-and-a-half quarter run of their own to blow Miami out of the building for a third straight game, 104-87, clinching the franchise’s fifth championship and first since 2007.

The scoring

Three buckets stand out from the Spurs’ dominating series clincher.

First, after the Spurs had chipped away at their early deficit late in the first quarter and early in the second, Kawhi Leonard grabbed a rebound with just under five minutes remaining in the half, led the fast break and hit a pull-up three in transition to give San Antonio their first lead of the game. They wouldn't relinquish that lead for the rest of the night.

A little later in the quarter, Manu Ginobili turned back the clock to do this to poor Chris Bosh:

It’s safe to say Tim Duncan was pretty excited about it.

Lastly, as the Spurs really started to pull away in the third quarter, a phenomenal sequence midway through the frame that saw Tiago Splitter deny Dwyane Wade at the rim before a Patty Mills three served as the early dagger in the Heat’s season.

Spurs MVP: Manu Ginobili

Kawhi Leonard is the worthy Finals MVP and was the best statistical Spur in Game 5 (22 and 10), while Patty Mills’ 14-point third quarter served as somewhat of a finishing blow, but Ginobili’s first half spark off the bench completely changed the game, much like it did in Game 1.

Ginobili finished with 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting to go with four assists and four rebounds, with an eight-point stretch over a span of just a minute and a half late in the second quarter (3:39-2:04) standing out in particular. He then started the second half in place of Danny Green and also finished with a game-high plus/minus of +21 in 28 minutes.

Heat MVP: LeBron James

When James was substituted out for the final time this season with 6:30 to play in the game, he left having played 41:16 out of the first 41:30 – collecting just 15 seconds of rest over three-and-a-half quarters. He left the floor with 31 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two blocks. The rest of his team had combined for just 41 points.

Miami couldn’t have asked for much more from James in this one, and in many ways he was the only Heat player who showed up on Sunday.

That left him feeling like this as the reality of his championship run coming to an end set in:

[GIF courtesy @patrickklepek]

The controversy

If there was a controversy in this game, it was Erik Spoelstra electing to start Ray Allen over Mario Chalmers, who had been struggling in the Finals, to say the least. Benching Chalmers in itself wasn’t all that controversial - he was averaging 4.7 points on 37 percent shooting over his last 13 games - but the point guard didn't check in until the 5:01 mark of the third quarter, and considering it could have been the soon-to-be free agent’s last game with the Heat, it’s certainly a talking point.

How the Spurs won

When they dug early deficits earlier in series, Erik Spoelstra could often be heard telling his team that they don’t need a home run play, but rather just consistently good basketball to get back into it. Well on Sunday, it was the Spurs who went down early - 22-6 - and they responded with a 39-15 run. That kind of run, followed by said consistent basketball, will work you out of any deficit.

San Antonio continued to move the ball beautifully, recording 25 assists on 37 made field goals while only committing eight turnovers, and they held the Heat to just 40 percent shooting on the other end. As mentioned, Ginobili and the Spurs’ bench changed the game, outscoring Miami’s bench, 47-24. To give you an idea of how incredibly deep the Spurs are, and how un-reliant they are on just one or two players, Tony Parker didn't score his first basket until the 15.6 second mark of the third quarter, after he had missed his first 10 shots. San Antonio was up 19 at the time, regardless.

Other than James, the other 12 Heat players who played combined for just 56 points on 37 percent shooting, with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh combining for 24 points on 10-of-26 shooting. Here's how that looks in GIF form:

The takeaway

The easiest takeaway from this game and this series in general is that the Spurs were the vastly superior team and the true class of the NBA this season, as they outscored the two-time defending champs by 74 points over five games in The Finals and won an NBA record 12 postseason games by 15 points or more.

Speaking of the Spurs’ playoff run…

Given how much trouble the eighth-seeded Mavericks gave the Spurs in the first round and how good teams like the Thunder, Clippers, Rockets, Trail Blazers, Grizzlies and Warriors are, San Antonio’s domination of Miami also reminded us how much better the Western Conference is compared to the East right now.

Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich continued - and possibly finished - writing their legendary legacies, Kawhi Leonard proved himself a legitimate star on the biggest stage, the Spurs added another chapter to their history of excellence, and the Heat’s Big Three of James, Wade and Bosh walked off the floor into a summer of uncertainty and an off-season of questions.

Stray thoughts

1. A lot of people are going to make this about the Heat's failings, about a third Finals loss affecting LeBron James' legacy, and about how this will impact The Big Three's decisions this summer, but that's not the story here. James averaged 28.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals in the series, the Heat should be lauded for winning back-to-back championships and getting to four straight Finals, and the Spurs should be celebrated for simply being the best team in basketball again this season. LeBron and the Heat lost to that superior team, but it shouldn't diminish what they've accomplished over the last four years.

In addition, given the current state of the East, staying in Miami probably still gives James and co. the best chance of at least getting back to the Finals.

2. It will be a forgotten sequence in the grand scheme of San Antonio's dominant five-game victory, but I can't help but think back to the end of the third quarter in Game 3. With the series tied 1-1, the Heat had cut a 25-point deficit down to seven and the Miami crowd was rocking with the fourth quarter looming. But the Spurs regained a double-digit lead and control of the game on a couple of big buckets from Marco Belinelli and Boris Diaw, of all people. If that's not perfectly Spurs-ian, I don't know what is.

3. There is perhaps no better way to sum up the consistent excellence of the Spurs than Kawhi Leonard becoming the youngest Finals MVP since Tim Duncan. It's kind of like how the Spurs broke the record for biggest single season turnaround in Duncan's rookie year after the original record was held by the Spurs, in David Robinson's rookie season.

On a final Leonard note for now, this is your reminder that the Spurs can extend him before October 31 or have him become a restricted free agent in 2015. I think it's safe to say he'll be paid handsomely this off-season to remain in San Antonio.

4. Considering how little emotion fans and media get out of Gregg Popovich throughout the grind of an NBA season, this footage of Pop soaking in championship No. 5 was an awesome sight to behold:

 [GIF courtesy @_MarcusD_]

5. You know it's a beat down when legendary WWE commentator Jim Ross chimes in like this:

6. The 2013-14 season was a memorable one, but fans already have reason to anticipate what should be a fascinating 2014 off-season. Next week's Draft is one of the most promising in years, which means Summer League will actually be worth watching, July's free agency could involve names like James, Wade, Bosh and Anthony, among others, and Kevin Love represents one of the biggest trade chips in modern NBA history.

For the 29 other franchises that want to be where the Spurs are - and the Spurs themselves - the 2014-15 season starts now. And that's awesome for NBA fans who can't get enough.

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