After a decade-long wait for an appearance in the NBA Finals and a franchise-record six seasons out of the playoffs, the Purple and Gold are again on the verge of sitting on the NBA throne.
The Heat, meanwhile, face a nigh-on impossible task. In the history of the NBA Finals, 35 teams have held a 3-1 lead in the series and 34 have gone on to lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
Here’s all you need to know ahead of Game 5.
Tip-off time—Game 5 of the NBA Finals begins at 9 p. m. ET on Friday, October 9 at the AdventHealth Arena at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida. TV channel—ABC. Live stream—ABC’s digital platforms, the ABC Sports website, watchESPN, YouTube TV and fuboTV and SlingTV. Odds—The Lakers are 7. 5-point favorites with William Hill and are 9/10 to cover the spread, while the Heat are 53/20 underdogs and the over/under line for total points scored is set at 218. 5.
Upon arriving in Los Angeles in the summer of 2018, LeBron James vowed to restore the Lakers to the top of the NBA world. Just over two years later, James is one win away from delivering on that promise and securing the Lakers’ 17th, as well as his fourth personal, NBA title, which will in all likelihood be followed by him lifting the NBA Finals MVP award for the fourth time in his career.
The Lakers arrived into the Finals as the second-largest favorite in almost two decades and have lived up to expectations so far, with their three wins coming by a margin of 11.3 points.
James has averaged 27.7 points, 8.5 assists and 11 rebounds through the first four games of the NBA Finals, while Anthony Davis averaged 25.7 points, 6.5 assists and 9.2 rebounds.
The Lakers All-Star duo have proved a conundrum impossible to solve for the Heat and bar a minor blip in Game 3 when they came unstuck against a monumental performance from Jimmy Butler, the Lakers have looked in total control throughout the series.
In the history of the NBA Finals only once in 35 occasions has a team come back from 3-1 to win the series and the title, the James-inspired Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016.
Unfortunately for Miami, however, a repeat of that scenario appears unlikely particularly as James is 3-0 in the NBA Finals in games with a chance to clinch the series and in Game 5 he could become the first player in NBA history with four wins without a loss in that scenario.
The Heat may have to make history, but Jimmy Butler insisted he and his teammates remained confident.
“I don’t think that it should [change],” Butler told ESPN after Game 4 when asked whether the Heat will change their approach.
“We’re so comfortable with who we are and how we play that that’s what we’re going to go out there and do. And we’re going to live with the end result.
“Obviously, we want it to be a win, but we just got to lock in on us knowing that we can control a lot of these things, but our confidence ain’t going nowhere. It’s going to stay high. I’m going to make sure that it stays high because it’s going to have to be at an all-time high to get this next win.”
If Miami is to keep the series alive, Butler will have a major role to play. The five-time All-Star became only the third player in NBA Finals history to compile a 40-game triple-double.
In Game 4, he finished with 22 points, nine assists and 10 rebounds and averages 27.5 points, 10 assists and 7.8 rebounds in the Finals so far.
