NBA finals Game 3: Denver Nuggets v Miami Heat – live | NBA finals

Chris Paul

Meanwhile, NBA news doesn’t stop just because it’s the finals. Earlier today came reports that the Phoenix Suns are considering moving on from Chris Paul’s current contract.

Initial reports suggested that it would be a straight-up waiving, but the Athletic’s Shams Charania suggests that the Suns could trade the HOF point guard, stretch his contract to reduce his salary cap hit or waive and re-sign him (assuming he passes through waivers). If he is on the move, expect contenders to seek the veteran’s services if the price is right.

Preamble

Hello, first of all, I hope that any readers who happen to be affected by the North American wildfires and the rapidly spreading smoke are safe and doing okay. While the NBA finals will be unaffected, the wildfire smoke is wreaking havoc around the sports world.

Now, let us turn to the task at hand. There is good news for those of us who love drama: the NBA finals look like an actual series! After the Denver Nuggets dismantled the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the NBA finals, there was a sense that this would end up being one of these brief, unmemorable series.

Well, as has been happening all postseason long, the Heat defied expectations. With their 111-108 win, they became the first team to beat the Nuggets at home in the playoffs. Now, the series has traveled back to Miami tied 1-1, with the Nuggets suddenly playing without home-court advantage.

So, what are we to expect now? Well, it depends on whether the Nuggets make an adjustment to the Heat’s Game 2 adjustment. On Sunday, the Heat’s defense forced Nikola Jokić to become a scorer to disrupt the type of team basketball that has been the key to Denver’s success all season long. Now, it only barely worked: Jokić torched Miami for 41 points and the team was a made three-pointer away from forcing overtime. Still, the Heat came away with the W.

So, as it usually does, Game 3 is going to tell us a lot about both teams and the state of the series. If you want to comment on the finals or the state of the basketball world in general, this is the perfect opportunity, so send us your thoughts or questions either via email (to hunter.felt.freelance@theguardian.com or tweet them (to @HunterFelt) and we’ll incorporate them throughout today’s blog.

It’s Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the Denver Nuggets and the Miami Heat at American Airl- er, uh, Kaseya Center! Opening tip will happen at some indeterminate time after 8:30 pm EST, but we’ll be back with opening lineups, predictions and other updates before then.

How to watch the NBA finals

Hunter will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s some off-day string ahead of tonight’s Game 3.