2012

Miami leveled the series in Oklahoma City with a performance that demonstrated the Big Three's collective capability — LeBron's 32 points leading a balanced effort in which both Wade and Bosh contributed efficiently. The Heat's defensive adjustment — focusing on taking the middle away from Westbrook and forcing Durant into more difficult shot positions — reduced Oklahoma City's offensive flow from the Game 1 pace. LeBron's control of the game's tempo in the fourth quarter was the key variable: he scored 8 of his 32 in the final period and made the defensive rotations that kept the Thunder from converting any late run. Miami won by 4 in a building that had just witnessed what appeared to be the Thunder's series.

Miami's home court did exactly what home courts do in championship series — it amplified the Heat's defensive intensity and created the energy that the Big Three needed to produce a focused, coherent team performance against a young Thunder team that had not experienced a Finals environment in front of a hostile crowd. LeBron's 29 points, 14 rebounds, and 5 assists across 45 minutes was the most complete game of the series — offense, rebounding, defense, and the sixth sense for the right play at the right moment that defines his game at its highest. The Heat led at halftime and held the lead throughout the second half, turning a series they had trailed into a 2–1 advantage.

One win from a championship, Miami played with the controlled aggression of a team that had been in this position before and understood precisely what winning required. LeBron's 26 points were his lowest of the series but his efficiency — 12-of-21 from the field — was the reflection of a player taking exactly the shots his positioning earned rather than hunting numbers. Wade added 20 points and Bosh, increasingly confident with each game, contributed 16 points and 8 rebounds. Oklahoma City's youth showed in the fourth quarter: two consecutive scoring droughts during Miami runs that built leads the Thunder couldn't close. The Heat were three quarters away from a championship at the start of the fourth period.

The championship-clinching game came in Oklahoma City — on the Thunder's home floor, in front of their first Finals crowd, against a young team that had given Miami the most competitive five-game series of the postseason. LeBron James played the championship-closing game with 26 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists — a triple-double that rendered the box score almost inadequate for what it captured. Wade added 23. Bosh was excellent. The final score was 121–106, and the outcome felt decisive rather than surprising: the Heat had been the better team in four of the five games, and in the one game Oklahoma City had won, the margin reflected youth and home court more than genuine superiority. LeBron James, nine years after being drafted by Cleveland, held the Larry O'Brien Trophy in his hands for the first time.