Nate Robinson takes a bad, rushed three pointer (no surprise here) and is a shot that the Heat would be willing to live with.  Notice that Boozer is already starting to move into a more active rebounding position whereas Bosh’s positioning is pretty bad.  The chance that the rebound would careen off along the baseline is small, so Bosh’s intuitive positioning on the play (and even more, his inactivity in moving to a better rebounding position) does not make that much sense.

Here’s one reason why the Heat struggle to rebound, and also why they will struggle against bigger, physical opponents.  Boozer is simply stronger than Chris Bosh: Bosh has two arms on Boozer and Boozer is pushing back with only one arm — and is still winning the positioning battle.

Boozer can hold his own with one arm, so when he gets two arms active and free it is basically game over for Bosh.  You can see Boozer’s superior leverage and the fact that Bosh is being forced backwards (and basically underneath and behind the basket).  The other thing is that Miami is not crashing the glass at all.   Miami’s complacency on the boards is worrisome.

Boozer has clearly established superior position, and finally Battier, James, and Allen have started to provide some rebounding support for Bosh.  The Bulls have almost conceded the rebound so it is absurd that the Bulls actually got this rebound, I mean, Hinrich has already started to jog back to play defense. (Yes, I understand that the Bulls got lucky with the direction of the rebound, but Boozer should have never should have even had a play on the ball considering there are four Heat players in the paint and two Bulls players.)

Another reason why the Heat have trouble rebounding: other than LeBron James and Chris Anderson, there are not a ton of great leapers on the Heat.  Wade has lost his explosiveness and Bosh is not an aerial threat at all.  You can see Shane Battier start going up for this rebound about five feet away from the ball — Battier and Bosh simply lack the jumping ability to challenge a superior rebounder who has excellent position.

Boozer, buoyed by his excellent position and the fact that Battier cannot jump, gets to the rebound first (notice how Luol Deng and Nate Robinson are completely out of the shot now).

To make it worse, Battier falls, giving Boozer an unobstructed lane to the basket.  If Battier had not fallen, at least he would have been able to contest the shot and make it more difficult for Boozer.

Not only are the Heat less athletic than a lot of teams in the NBA, they lack strength inside.  In fact, their most athletic players tend to be perimeter players and have less opportunity to help with rebounding.  This, along with a lack of willingness to box out, are probably the main reasons why the Heat are last in the league in rebounding.

Jun 11, 2012; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder small forward Kevin Durant lines up for a drill with Thunder guard James Harden (13) and Thunder guard Daequan Cook (14) during practice before game one of the 2012 NBA finals against the Miami Heat at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

At this time around last year Miami marched into the NBA finals, against the Dallas Mavericks, as overwhelming favorites. They had beaten Philadelphia, Boston and Chicago, winning all series in 5 games. Most predicted an easy victory for Miami, and it looked like that would be the case when James and Wade were celebrating on the court as the Heat held a 2-1 lead in the series. Three games later Miami’s dream of another championship had to be postponed at least another year.

This year has been different in so many ways. Miami walk into the finals, considered by many, as slight underdogs. Having battled through a young Indiana team in the 2nd round, and a tough conference finals against the Boston Celtics, the Heat faced several roadblocks to reach the finals.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have home court advantage, and the series will start in Oklahoma. The finals format is 2-3-2, which means that Miami will play 3 straight at home (if needed) after the first 2 games in Oklahoma.

Keys to the game

June 4, 2012; San Antonio, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guards Russell Westbrook (0) and James Harden (13) talk against the San Antonio Spurs during the first half in game five of the Western Conference finals of the 2012 NBA playoffs at the AT

Game 1 is always a kind of a “feeler” game for both teams. Both OKC and Miami faced very different teams in the conference finals, and it will be interesting to see as to who is able to set the tone from the start, and adjust to the higher pace.

After losing the first two games to the Spurs in the western conference finals, OKC have been nothing short of spectacular, winning 4 games in a row. They did this against a team that, seemingly, had no weaknesses and that most people started crowning as champions after the first two games. The Spurs were exposed and obliterated by the young legs of OKC, and they will be looking to carry that momentum into the finals.

June 9, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) stares at NBA official Mike Callahan (left) during the fourth quarter in game seven of the 2012 NBA Eastern Conference finals at the American Airlines Arena. The Heat defeated the Celtics 101-88. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Miami were in a very similar situation. They had lost at home and went down 3-2 in the eastern conference finals against Boston, and the it looked like the Heat were going to have an early exit in this year’s playoffs. After several spectacular performances by James, Miami went on to win at Boston and at home to make the finals. Both teams battled adversity in these playoffs and that is why this series won’t be over until it’s over. Both teams have come back in games where they trailed by double digits, and it will be a marvellous sight to see these two resilient teams go at each other.

Jun 06, 2012; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; A general view during the first half of the game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs in game six of the Western Conference finals of the 2012 NBA playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-US PRESSWIRE

OKC are undefeated at home in this postseason, and it will be very tough for Miami  to steal this one, who are usually mediocre away from South Beach. Miami’s biggest advantage is experience, as they were all right here last year. This will be LeBron’s 3rd finals, and as we know, Wade already won a ring in 2006. As much as Durant & Co. have grown, it will be interesting to see how they tackle the nerves in their first finals together.

Jun 11, 2012; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Miami Heat center Chris Bosh (1) during practice before game one of the 2012 NBA finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

OKC undoubtedly have a great advantage in the paint when Bosh is on the bench. If Erik Spoelstra decides to let Bosh come off the bench, OKC should be able to get off to a good start, and look to get the ball into the paint. Both OKC and Miami have had several rocky starts in games, during this postseason, so the start off the game could very well be very indicative of the final result.

Chris Bosh has played well in the last two games, and is coming off a great game 7. Look for him to get involved as early as possible to take the pressure of LeBron and Wade.