The Miami Heat clinched back-to-back titles with a 95-88 win over San Antonio in Game 7 of the NBA Finals on Thursday, relying heavily on another superb performance from LeBron James to shake off the stubborn Spurs.
Winning the title they needed to validate the best season in franchise history — and the three-superstar system they used to build it — the Heat won the second straight thriller in the NBA’s first championship series to go a Game 7 since 2010.
“It took everything we had as a team,” Dwyane Wade said. “Credit to the San Antonio Spurs, they’re an unbelievable team, an unbelievable franchise. This is the hardest series we ever had to play. But we’re a resilient team and we did whatever it took.”
Two nights after saving the Heat in a Game 6 when the Heat looked finished, James continued his unparalleled run through the basketball world, with two titles and an Olympic gold medal in 12 months.
“I work on my game a lot, throughout the off-season,” said James, who was MVP for the second straight finals. “I put a lot of work into it and to be able to come out here and (have) the results happen out on the floor is the ultimate.”
He made five 3-pointers, defended Tony Parker when he had to, and did everything else that could ever be expected from the best player in the game.
The Heat became the NBA’s first repeat champions since the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009-10.