Quick Facts with The U: NBA Finals

1) In the past three NBA Finals, the team to lose Game 1, has gone onto win the series.

• 2013: Spurs 92 - Heat 88 (Heat 4-3)
• 2012: Thunder 105 - Heat 94 (Heat 4-1)
• 2011: Heat 92 - Mavericks 84 (Mavericks 4-2)
  
  

2) Last night's Game 1 of the NBA Finals, at AT&T Center, a high temperature was registered at 90-degrees. In Game 5 of the 1984 Finals, the Boston Garden registered a temperature of 97-degrees, without the Garden providing any air conditioning. The Boston Celtics would go on to beat the LA Lakers 121 - 103. Until the 2014 Finals change, it was the last time the higher seed played at home in the NBA Finals. The Finals would change to a (2-3-2) format from 1985-2013.

2) The last team to be swept in the NBA were the 2007 Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs loss the series 4-0 to the San Antonio Spurs.

3) Tim Duncan won his first NBA Finals in 1999. If he goes onto win this series, it'd be the second longest span between championships for one player in NBA history. Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would have a longer span (17-years). Abdul-Jabbar won his first title in 1971 and his last in 1988.

4) Before the "Big Three" era in Miami, coach Eric Spoelstra and the Heat finished third in the Southeast Division both years. The Heat combined 90-74 those two seasons and were eliminated in the first-round of the playoffs each year. Since the "Big Three," the Heat have finished first in the Southeast Division four straight times, going a combined 224-88 with four straight trips to the Finals.



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