Entering the 2023 NBA Finals against the Denver Nuggets, the Miami Heat once again find themselves in a situation where they’re major underdogs on paper.
That’s nothing new for them. So far in the 2023 NBA Playoffs, they’ve eliminated three teams that were seeded higher than them.
Now, they’re dealing with perhaps their toughest task yet. The way one NBA executive sees it, Miami needs to be a “team of destiny” in order to beat Denver.
“Now if you say, ‘How can Miami win?’ I think Miami only wins because it’s their time,” the executive told The Athletic. “They are playing their very best basketball at the exact right time. How do they win? They have to be a team of destiny. Miami’s got to have that hope that they’re just that good right now.”
The executive thinks the Nuggets will ultimately win the series in six games.
In many ways, the Heat have had the look of a team of destiny this postseason. After being minutes away from elimination in the play-in tournament, the squad has completely turned a corner and pulled off multiple historic upsets.
The Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics, considered by many to be the two best teams in the Eastern Conference before the playoffs started, both saw their seasons come to an end at the hands of a Heat team that won just 44 games in the regular season. The New York Knicks, one of the peskiest teams in the NBA this year, couldn’t keep up with Miami either.
For all of those reasons, some fans are starting to believe that the Heat can never be counted out against any opponent.
The Nuggets are now the only team standing in the way of a fourth NBA title for the Heat organization. The 2023 NBA Finals will get underway on Thursday in Denver as the Heat will look to steal home-court advantage away from the Nuggets in Game 1 — something Miami has done in every single one of its playoff series this year.
Miami doesn’t need any extra motivation to finish the job and win it all, but the team is probably aware of the fact that Denver is a big favorite in the series. That could serve as bulletin board material for the Heat, which is just another reason why they can’t be taken lightly.
