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2020 NBA Finals schedule and what you need to know

September 30, 2020 at 7:59 p.m. EDT
The Los Angeles Lakers will represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat will open Wednesday after the conference finals wrapped this weekend.

The short two-day break between the conference finals and Finals reflects the NBA’s accelerated schedule inside its bubble, the restricted campus the league created at Disney World to more safely hold games during the novel coronavirus pandemic. Since the NBA restarted play in July, there have been no positive coronavirus cases inside the bubble.

Commissioner Adam Silver told CNN last week that the league was remaining cautious until its stay in Florida was complete.

“I think my favorite emoji has become the fingers crossed one,” Silver said. “There’s always a possibility that infection could intrude on our campus. So far, we’ve been very successful.”

Schedule | Leaders

What is new about the Finals format this year?

The NBA typically employs a 2-2-1-1-1 best-of-seven Finals format, granting the team with the better regular season record the advantage of playing the first two games at home, as well as Game 5 and Game 7. This year, all seven games will be played at a neutral side: AdventHealth Arena near Orlando.

During a usual season, the Finals open on a Thursday and cover up to 17 days, with plenty of off days included to allow for cross-country travel. This year, the Finals will open on a Wednesday and cover up to 14 days. The final day of the NBA bubble will be no later than Oct. 13.

Where will games be played?

AdventHealth Arena sits on the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Disney World. The multipurpose arena had a capacity of 8,000 fans before the pandemic, but it has been retrofitted for NBA bubble games. With the help of massive video boards, new camera angles and high-tech microphones, the league has turned its court into a made-for-television stage.

All attendees with full access to the arena had to undergo an extended quarantine procedure upon arrival at Disney World, participate in daily health screenings and receive coronavirus tests.

Will there be fans?

As with every NBA bubble game that has been held since July, no tickets to the NBA Finals will be made available to the general public. Besides the players, coaches and referees, only a few hundred people attend each game. That group includes the scoring table staff, ballboys, arena staffers, cleaning crews, medical staffers and a small group of media members. Family members of players and coaches have also joined the bubble in recent weeks.

What else will look different?

The NBA has sought to give teams some element of home-court advantage by customizing the public address announcer, sound effects and music at AdventHealth Arena to favor the designated home team. For example, when the Lakers host Game 1 of the Finals on Wednesday, the sounds and musical selections will mimic what they are used to at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Additionally, the video boards behind the team’s benches will be mostly filled with real-time video of virtual Lakers fans watching from home.

Fans who haven’t watched any of the NBA’s restart will also notice that there are strict coronavirus protocols in place. All attendees besides the players, coaches and referees must wear masks in the arena, and the team bench areas are composed of socially distanced chairs for each player.

How did the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat reach the Finals?

The Lakers entered the playoffs as the Western Conference’s top seed with a 52-19 record. They then posted a 12-3 run in the playoffs by winning each of their three playoff series in five games, knocking out the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets. Thanks largely to LeBron James, who is playing in his ninth Finals in the past 10 years, the Lakers will enter the series as heavy favorites.

The Heat finished the regular season as the Eastern Conference’s No. 5 seed with a record of 44-29. It compiled a 12-3 record in the playoffs by sweeping the Indiana Pacers in the first round, upsetting the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in five games in the second round and outlasting the Boston Celtics in six games in the conference finals. Miami will be viewed as the underdog entering the series because its main pieces lack Finals experience.

Who are the key players to watch?

The Lakers’ success has been driven by the all-star duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and an excellent defense. James and Davis were selected to the all-NBA first team, and they have dominated opponents with their versatility and chemistry throughout their stay in the bubble. Los Angeles’s X-factor is its three-point shooting: guards Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Danny Green will need to contribute from outside to offset Miami’s perimeter attack.

The Heat uses a balanced offensive approach predicated on hard-working play. Thanks to scrappy all-stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, the Heat matches up fairly well with James and Davis. Miami’s X-factor will continue to be Tyler Herro, who provided key scoring off the bench in the conference finals. Forward Andre Iguodala, who won two championships with the Golden State Warriors, will also be called upon to help defend James.

What is the Finals’ top story line?

This series will revolve around LeBron James. The 35-year-old forward is seeking his fourth title and is trying to lead a third franchise to a championship. And James will be leading the Lakers, whom he joined in 2018, against one of his former teams.

From 2010 to 2014, James led Miami to four consecutive Finals appearances and back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013. The Heat has not been back to the Finals since James returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers as a free agent in 2014. James proceeded to guide Cleveland to four straight Finals appearances, including the 2016 title.

Schedule

Game 1: Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 9 p.m. ET | Heat at Lakers

Game 2: Friday, Oct. 2 at 9 p.m. ET: Heat at Lakers

Game 3: Sunday, Oct. 4 at 7:30 p.m. ET | Lakers at Heat

Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 6 at 9 p.m. ET | Lakers at Heat

Game 5*: Friday, Oct. 9 at 9 p.m. ET | Heat at Lakers

Game 6*: Sunday, Oct. 11 at 7:30 p.m. ET | Lakers at Heat

Game 7*: Tuesday, Oct. 13 at 9 p.m. ET | Heat at Lakers

All games will be held at AdventHealth Arena and will be televised on ABC.

* If necessary