[jwplayer lGiyxNGP]
The 2020 NBA Finals are finally here after a long season suspension due to the global coronavirus pandemic and it will now be played inside a bubble in Orlando. It’s a shame that the home crowds for the Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Lakers will not be allowed to see it in person.
As for fans of the Philadelphia 76ers, they are in a tough spot. The Sixers just finished up a disappointing 2019-20 season as they were bounced in Round 1 of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. So, that leaves the question of why fans should watch the Finals since their team is out of it and they just finished up a tough season on the floor.
One reason is that it features former Philadelphia closer, Jimmy Butler who continues to be a great story for the Heat after the Sixers let him slip away in the offseason of 2019. Fans who are sore at the front office for letting him go would want to watch Butler continue to prove how much of a winning player he is and see what he can do in a Finals setting.
On the flip side, fans are sore at Butler for leaving for Miami will want to see him fall and be able to at least say “well, at least he didn’t win the title”. Which in then means fans will be rooting for Lakers star LeBron James who supposedly had an interest in heading to Philadelphia in the 2018 offseason before choosing the Lakers in free agency.
“If you want to win, you are going to have to go through a LeBron James led team.”
– Jimmy Butler
(via @NBATV)pic.twitter.com/4WlfxqPESA
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 28, 2020
Another reason for watching the Finals is that the Heat also feature a former fan favorite in Andre Iguodala who played eight seasons for the Sixers making an All-Star appearance in 2012. Fans of nostalgia will have some fun rooting for him to succeed as he appears in his sixth straight Finals.
Finally, there is the group of basketball fans who just hate James. There is always a section of NBA fans who just hate James for continuing to have success in this league. Whether it’s because they do not like the comparisons to Michael Jordan or they do not like the fact that he is threatening him for the “best player in the history of the NBA” title, some fans just root for him to fail.
For Sixers fans, this may not be who they want to see in the Finals, but as basketball fans as well, this has the potential to be an entertaining series to end a long and eventful 2019-20 NBA season. [lawrence-related id=37959,37843,37953]