The Denver Nuggets, who will be making their first appearance in the NBA Finals, were installed as -360 favorites over the Miami Heat by Caesars Sportsbook on Monday night.Denver also opened as an 8-point home favorite in Game 1 on Thursday, with an over/under of 219.The Heat are only the second 8-seed to capture a conference championship, and just the…

BOSTON -- Jimmy Butler called his shot.A year to the day after Butler vowed to get the Miami Heat over the hump following a hard-fought Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics in the 2022 Eastern Conference finals, he made good on his promise.Miami joined the 1999 New York Knicks as the second No. 8 seed to make the NBA…

BOSTON -- Ten years ago, after a historically painful Game 6 loss to the Miami Heat that cost them a championship after an incomprehensible Ray Allen shot, the battle-tested San Antonio Spurs were shell-shocked.Victory party canceled, Hall of Fame coach Gregg Popovich famously took the team to an Italian restaurant , gave them wine and went player-to-player, trying to coax…

DENVER -- With a week off since they last played, the Denver Nuggets are thrilled that their long wait to find out who they play in the NBA Finals ends Monday night."It's definitely been a long wait," forward Michael Porter Jr. said after Nuggets practice Monday. "It seems like we haven't played a game in forever, so we just been…