Welcome to the 2017 NBA Live League Finals!  Two great teams are meeting in the finals, Leeroy and the San Antonio Spurs, and Dunadan and the New York Knicks.  This is a rematch of the first NLL Finals ever played when the Spurs defeated the Knicks 4-3.  Things have changed quite a lot since then, the Spurs still had Tim Duncan, and the Knicks starting center was Shawn Bradley!  This year, the Spurs have another dominant generational big man in Anthony Davis, alongside The Process; Joel Embiid.  The Knicks look like the epitome of a super team with 4 all-stars in the starting lineup. 

This year, the teams have met twice, and split the series.  The only game that Embiid played in the Spurs won, and the other game was a 1-point victory on a Kyrie Irving 3 with no time left.  These teams are equally matched, and it will be interesting to see what type of strings each GM will pull throughout the series.  Leeroy has tended to set it and forget it, with the exception of the series against the Timberwolves where he changed his lineup a couple of times.  Tim has moved multiple different guys through the small forward position, and it looks like Joe Ingles will get the start in game 1.

Let’s look at the starting lineups for both teams.  Star power everywhere!

Center – Dwight Howard vs Joel Embiid

There aren’t many matchups that Dwight doesn’t win, but this is one of them.  Embiid when healthy is one of the top centers in the league.  Embiid is a much better scorer, and has a slight height advantage over Dwight.  Dwight is the better rebounder and defender, but not by much.  This is actually the most exciting matchup to me.  The youth versus the veteran.  Embiid has the slight advantage, but only since he’s healthy.  Advantage:  Spurs

Power Forward – Anthony Davis vs Paul Millsap

Another exciting matchup, but Davis is going to be just too much for Paul here.  Davis is the focal point on offense and his defense might stifle Millsap.  The key for New York is that Millsap might be able to get Davis into some foul trouble.  This is really going to hurt the Spurs if Davis has to sit on the bench longer with some foul issues.  If anyone can give AD some trouble, it will be Paul, but that is doubtful.  Advantage:  Spurs

Small Forward – Mo Harkless vs Joe Ingles

We lose some of the star power here, but both guys are good at what they do.  Harkless is a better defender, but worse 3-point shooter.  Ingles is a better 3-point shooter, but a little worse defender.  These guys are likely going to average about 8 points a game and cancel each other out.  Advantage -Nobody

Shooting Guard – James Harden vs Courtney Lee

Harden hasn’t been playing well in the playoffs, but he is still over 20 a game, while Lee is under 10.  This isn’t even a contest, Harden at times can be the best player on the floor, and Lee is tasked with just slowing him down.  Where James will really hurt you is that he’s a great distributor too.  He gets everyone involved and takes a lot of pressure off of Kyrie to be a playmaker.  Lee is a good defender, but he’s got his hands full here.  Advantage:  Knicks

Point Guard – Kyrie Irving vs Mike Conley

Kyrie is the Knicks best player, and he can do everything as evidenced by his triple-double in the ECF.  He’s going to have to earn it though as Conley is one of the top point guards in the league.  Conley doesn’t score a lot, but he’s not asked too because Davis burdens that.  Conley distributes, plays great defense, and hits big shots when needed.  I am excited to see this matchup and see if Conley can slow Kyrie down at all.  Advantage: Knicks

Bench

The Knicks bench has been hit or miss this year in the playoffs.  Zach Randolph can destroy you and Lance Stephenson has been a nice surprise playmaker for them.  Patty Mills could play well, but they play Harden as the backup point guard, so Mills doesn’t see a lot of time.  For the Spurs, they have a ton of horses.  Heck, they have CJ Miles, a deadeye 3-point shooter who doesn’t even see time.  David West and Alan Williams could start on most teams, as could Patrick Beverley and Will Barton.  Trey Lyles killed the Timberwolves as the starting PF in the playoffs earlier, so he can score too.  If I’m judging benches, I love the Spurs bench, however they must produce.  The Knicks have a lot of firepower in the starting lineup, and the Spurs bench needs to take advantage of their matchup.  Advantage:  Spurs

The Knicks have so many stars, and after having watched them play and interview GM Dunadan, they have what it takes to win it all.  They are built to win now with a lot of aging veterans on the team.  This group knows it’s now or possibly never with Paul Millsap testing free agent waters this offseason.  The Knicks will do their best to convince him to stay, and winning a championship would go a long way towards that.  Both of these teams have a ton of salary tied up into their players, and spending their way to a championship appears to be working. 

The Spurs have great depth and a bright future with their young frontcourt only ages 23 and 24.  The real question will be if Embiid will be around for the long haul, or if he is another Greg Oden.  Leeroy has been patient for years with Anthony Davis underperforming.  This year he finally lived up to his potential and just won DPOY!  All cards on the table, I didn’t vote for him, but that’s because he’s going to be my MVP.  I just felt two different guys should get the awards, spread the love around!  I do think he is the best player in the NLL right now, and he will be back here for years in the future. 

What can each team to do win?

In order for the Knicks to win, Kyrie and Harden must be spectacular.  This is the big advantage the Knicks have, and they need to put it on the Spurs backcourt.  Getting into the paint and getting the Spurs bigs in foul trouble could be key for the series. 

For the Spurs, Embiid needs to step up and play better than he did in the WCF.  He didn’t shoot the ball well, and only scored 14 points a game.  He wasn’t asked to do more as the team didn’t struggle with the Kings very much.  We all know Davis is going to get his, that’s not the issue.  Will the other Twin Tower live up to the hype?

Who's going to win?

I have a conflict here, my brain tells me one thing while my heart tells me the other.  I am rooting for Leeroy and the Spurs to win.  They beat me earlier, so I want to see them win.  I also appreciate how patient Leeroy has been with this team.  He could have moved Davis multiple times when he was underperforming, but he never did.  He had some good offers for Embiid come in this season, but he stuck by him.  He made it through two 7 game series without Embiid to get here.  I want the Spurs to win.  My brain tells me this may not be so.  Tim has assembled what might be a starting all-star team.  He's beaten 3 great teams in Brooklyn, Milwaukee and Cleveland.  I don’t see any way that Kyrie can really be stopped.  If he doesn’t get redemption against the Spurs this year, he might not have another chance for years.  I hope this goes to 7 games for all of us.  Good Luck to both GMs, and let’s have an exciting series!