2007 NBA playoffs
 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | April 21–June 14, 2007 |
| Season | 2006–07 |
| Teams | 16 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | San Antonio Spurs (4th title) |
| Runners-up | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| Semifinalists | |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Scoring leader(s) | LeBron James (Cavaliers) (501) |
| Awards | |
| MVP | Tony Parker (Spurs) |
The 2007 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2006–07 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeating the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers 4 games to 0 in the NBA Finals. Tony Parker was named NBA Finals MVP, making him the second Spur after Tim Duncan and the first European–born player to receive the award.
The Miami Heat were the defending champions, but lost to the Chicago Bulls in the first round by a sweep.
Overview
[edit]The Dallas Mavericks entered their seventh consecutive postseason. In addition, the Mavericks started the playoffs with a league best 67–15 regular season record, the best in franchise history. The Mavericks also became the first team since 2000 to finish the regular season with 65+ wins. Their in-state rivals, the San Antonio Spurs, entered their tenth consecutive postseason.
The defending champion Miami Heat entered the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. Despite winning their third consecutive Southeast Division title, the Heat opened the playoffs on the road against the Chicago Bulls (thanks to the Bulls’ 49–33 record versus the Heat's 44–38 record), marking the second consecutive postseason that a division winner opened the playoffs on the road. This was also Pat Riley's final NBA playoff appearance as a head coach, as the Heat would miss the playoffs the following season.
The Houston Rockets returned to the playoffs after a one-season absence, and opened the playoffs at home for the first time since 1997. This would also be Jeff Van Gundy's last postseason appearance as a head coach. Their first round opponent, the Northwest Division leading Utah Jazz made the playoffs for the first time since 2003. Like the Heat, the Jazz opened their postseason on the road.
The New Jersey Nets and the Detroit Pistons entered their sixth consecutive postseason.
The Denver Nuggets entered their fourth consecutive postseason.
The Washington Wizards, Chicago Bulls, and Phoenix Suns entered their third consecutive postseason.
The Los Angeles Lakers entered their second consecutive postseason.
The Golden State Warriors made the NBA Playoffs for the first time since 1994 NBA playoffs.
The Toronto Raptors made the playoffs for the first time since 2002 and earned home-court advantage for the first time in franchise history.
The Orlando Magic made the playoffs for the first time since 2003.
The Indiana Pacers missed the playoffs for the first time since 1997, while the Sacramento Kings missed the playoffs for the first time since 1998. This also marked the first of sixteen consecutive postseasons not to feature the Sacramento Kings.
First Round
[edit]The Nets–Raptors series was notable for Nets guard Vince Carter facing his former team, the Toronto Raptors. His New Jersey Nets won the series in six games, giving the Raptors their second consecutive first round exit. The Nets would not win another playoff series until 2014 as the Brooklyn Nets, which was also against the Raptors.
With their first round sweep of the Orlando Magic, the Detroit Pistons swept a playoff series for the first time since 1990. It was also the Pistons’ first sweep of a best of seven series since the 1989 NBA Finals.
With their first round sweep of the defending champion Miami Heat, the Chicago Bulls won their first playoff series since 1998 and swept a best of seven series for the first time since 1996. As of 2024, this was the Bulls’ most recent playoff sweep. With the loss, the Heat became the first defending champion in 50 seasons to be swept in the first round. In addition, the Heat were swept in a postseason series for the first time since 2001.
For the second consecutive postseason, the Phoenix Suns defeated the Los Angeles Lakers. The Suns would not win another playoff series against the Lakers until 2021.
With their shocking first round upset over the Dallas Mavericks, The Golden State Warriors became the third eighth seed to beat a top seed and the first team to do so since the first round was extended to a best of seven in 2003. The Warriors were also the first eighth seed to eliminate a top seed since the 1999 New York Knicks’ Cinderella run to the Finals. With the loss, the Dallas Mavericks earned the dubious distinction of becoming the first (and currently only) .800+ regular season team to lose in the first round. With the win, the Golden State Warriors also won their first playoff series since 1991. For Warriors head coach Don Nelson, he became the only head coach to win three playoff series as either a seventh or eighth seed, having also achieved the feat in 1989 and 1991.
With their first round series losses, the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks became the first NBA Finals pair to lose in the first round in the following year's playoffs. They also share the dubious distinction of being the second and third top seeds, respectively, to lose to an eighth seed in the first round in the NBA Playoffs.
The Jazz–Rockets series marked the eighth straight postseason in which at least one Game 7 was played. The Utah Jazz won over the Houston Rockets, giving the Jazz their first playoff series win since 2000 and the Rockets their fifth consecutive first round exit. This also marked the sole Game 7 of this season's playoffs.
Conference Semifinals
[edit]With the Heat and Mavericks eliminated in the first round, the Western Conference Semifinals series between the Phoenix Suns and San Antonio Spurs was considered “the real finals” as both teams had better records than the other remaining teams in the playoffs (thanks to the Suns’ 61–21 record and the Spurs’ 58–24 record, respectively).
The Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls met in the postseason for the first time since 1991, renewing the Bulls–Pistons rivalry.
Game 4 of the Suns–Spurs series was extremely notable thanks to Robert Horry's body-check on Steve Nash. Moments after his flagrant foul, Horry threw an elbow at Raja Bell's head. Horry was ejected and then suspended for two games. In addition, Amar’e Stoudemire and Boris Diaw were suspended, one game each, for leaving the bench during the altercation.
With their Western Conference Semifinals victory, the San Antonio Spurs won their third consecutive playoff series against the Phoenix Suns.
With their Western Conference Semifinals win over the Golden State Warriors, the Utah Jazz made the conference finals for the first time since 1998 (when they last made the NBA Finals). As of 2024, however, this was the most recent time the Jazz advanced past the Conference Semifinals. The Warriors themselves would not advance past the Conference Semifinals until 2015.
With their Eastern Conference Semifinals win against the New Jersey Nets, the Cleveland Cavaliers made their first Conference Finals appearance since 1992. In addition, Game 6 of the Cavaliers–Nets series was the final NBA Playoff game ever played in New Jersey, as well as the last NBA Playoff game ever played at Continental Airlines Arena. The Nets would not return to the playoffs until 2013 as the Brooklyn Nets.
With their Eastern Conference Semifinals victory over the Chicago Bulls, the Detroit Pistons made their fifth consecutive Eastern Conference Finals appearance. The Bulls, on the other hand, would not make the Eastern Conference Finals until 2011.
Conference Finals
[edit]Despite trailing 2–0 to the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers won the series in six games to make their first ever NBA Finals appearance. Game 5 of the Pistons-Cavaliers series was extremely notable thanks to LeBron James scoring the Cavaliers’ final 25 points in a double-overtime thriller.
With their Western Conference Finals win over the Utah Jazz, the San Antonio Spurs made their fourth NBA Finals appearance, and their third of the 2000s decade.
NBA Finals
[edit]The 2007 NBA Finals was significant due to it being the finals debut for LeBron James. He would not return to the Finals until 2011 (as a member of the Miami Heat). Due to LeBron's inexperience versus the seasoned San Antonio Spurs, this season's NBA Finals produced the lowest ratings of any NBA Finals until 2020.
The San Antonio Spurs won their fourth NBA Championship with a four-game sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers, the first finals sweep since 2002. The Spurs also became the second team to win three titles in the 2000s decade (the other being the Los Angeles Lakers, who won three straight titles from 2000 to 2002).
Tony Parker is the first European Player to win NBA Finals MVP, and the second member of the San Antonio Spurs to do so, the other being Tim Duncan.
After this series, the Spurs would not reach the NBA Finals until 2013 while the Cavaliers would not return until 2015.
Seeding
[edit]The playoffs are conducted in 4 rounds of the best-of-7 series. The 3 division winners in each conference, along with the 5 best non-division winners, qualify for the playoffs. The division winners and top second-place team are seeded 1–4 based on record, with the remaining non-division winners are seeded 5–8 on record.
Until 2006, the division champions were guaranteed no worse than the third seed, while the non-division winners could do no better than the fourth seed regardless of record. This was the source of controversy in the 2006 NBA playoffs when the 63-win Spurs and 60-win Dallas Mavericks — the teams with the second-best and third-best records in the entire league—met in the conference semifinals. In response, the NBA changed the seeding system so that the teams with the two best records in the conference are guaranteed the top two seeds even if the second-best team isn't a division champion. Meanwhile, the division champions are guaranteed no worse than the fourth seed. This ensures that the teams with the two best records in the conference cannot meet until the conference finals at the earliest.[1]
Playoff qualifying
[edit]Eastern Conference
[edit]The following teams clinched a playoff berth in the East:
- Detroit Pistons (53–29, clinched Central division, best regular season record in Eastern Conference, and home court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (50–32)
- Toronto Raptors (47–35, clinched Atlantic division)
- Miami Heat (44–38, clinched Southeast division)
- Chicago Bulls (49–33)
- New Jersey Nets (41–41; 4–0 head-to-head vs. WSH)
- Washington Wizards (41–41, 0–4 head-to-head vs. NJ)
- Orlando Magic (40–42)
Western Conference
[edit]The following teams clinched a playoff berth in the West:
- Dallas Mavericks (67–15, clinched Southwest division, best regular season record, and home court advantage throughout the playoffs)
- Phoenix Suns (61–21, clinched Pacific division)
- San Antonio Spurs (58–24)
- Utah Jazz (51–31, clinched Northwest division)
- Houston Rockets (52–30)
- Denver Nuggets (45–37)
- Los Angeles Lakers (42–40, 4–0 head-to-head vs. Golden State)
- Golden State Warriors (42–40, 0–4 head-to-head vs. LA Lakers)
Bracket
[edit]This is the bracket for the 2007 NBA Playoffs. Teams in italics had home court advantage. Teams in bold advanced to the next round. Numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's original seeding in their respective conferences. Numbers to the right of each team indicate the number of games the team won in that round. The division champions possess an asterisk (*).
| First Round | Conference Semifinals | Conference Finals | NBA Finals | ||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit* | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E8 | Orlando | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit* | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E5 | Chicago | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| E4 | Miami* | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| E5 | Chicago | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit* | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E3 | Toronto* | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| E6 | New Jersey | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E6 | New Jersey | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E7 | Washington | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| W3 | San Antonio | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Dallas* | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| W8 | Golden State | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W8 | Golden State | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Utah* | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Utah* | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W5 | Houston | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Utah* | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| Western Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | San Antonio | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W3 | San Antonio | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W6 | Denver | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| W3 | San Antonio | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Phoenix* | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Phoenix* | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W7 | LA Lakers | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
- * Division winner
- Bold Series winner
- Italic Team with home-court advantage
Notes
[edit]- Houston and Chicago had home court advantage in the first round despite being lower seeds. Both teams had better regular season records than their opponents, but did not have the best record of the non-division-champion playoff teams in their respective conferences.
First round
[edit]Eastern Conference first round
[edit](1) Detroit Pistons vs. (8) Orlando Magic
[edit]April 21 7:00 pm |
| Orlando Magic 92, Detroit Pistons 100 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 16–28, 27–23, 24–30, 25–19 | ||
| Pts: Hedo Türkoğlu 17 Rebs: Dwight Howard 19 Asts: Grant Hill 5 |
Pts: Hamilton, Billups 22 each Rebs: Antonio McDyess 9 Asts: Chauncey Billups 11 | |
| Detroit leads series, 1–0 | ||
The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan Attendance: 22,076 Referees: Bob Delaney, Joe Forte, David Jones |
April 23 7:00 pm |
| Orlando Magic 90, Detroit Pistons 98 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 22–28, 22–19, 15–24, 31–27 | ||
| Pts: Hedo Türkoğlu 22 Rebs: Dwight Howard 11 Asts: Hill, Arroyo 4 each |
Pts: Richard Hamilton 22 Rebs: Rasheed Wallace 11 Asts: Chauncey Billups 8 | |
| Detroit leads series, 2–0 | ||
The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan Attendance: 22,076 Referees: Tim Donaghy, Eddie Rush, Greg Willard |
April 26 8:00 pm |
| Detroit Pistons 93, Orlando Magic 77 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 23–23, 25–19, 23–19, 22–16 | ||
| Pts: Tayshaun Prince 23 Rebs: Antonio McDyess 11 Asts: Tayshaun Prince 5 |
Pts: Jameer Nelson 27 Rebs: Dwight Howard 12 Asts: Nelson, Türkoğlu 4 each | |
| Detroit leads series, 3–0 | ||
April 28 3:00 pm |
| Detroit Pistons 97, Orlando Magic 93 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 22–25, 25–21, 26–21, 24–26 | ||
| Pts: Chauncey Billups 25 Rebs: Chris Webber 10 Asts: Chauncey Billups 6 |
Pts: Dwight Howard 29 Rebs: Dwight Howard 17 Asts: Hedo Türkoğlu 5 | |
| Detroit wins series, 4–0 | ||
Amway Arena, Orlando, Florida Attendance: 17,451 Referees: Tony Brothers, Monty McCutchen, Bennett Salvatore |
| Detroit won 4–0 in the regular-season series |
|---|
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with each team winning one series apiece.
| Tied 1–1 in all-time playoff series |
|---|
The Orlando Magic's first playoff trip in 4 seasons was short lived as the top ranked Detroit Pistons dispatched the upstart Magic in 4 games. The Pistons recorded their first series sweep since sweeping Indiana in the first round of the 1990 NBA playoffs. The series was also the first time Orlando forward Grant Hill had appeared in the postseason since leaving Detroit after the 2000 season.
(2) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (7) Washington Wizards
[edit]April 22 12:30 pm |
| Washington Wizards 82, Cleveland Cavaliers 97 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 20–27, 21–21, 26–26, 15–23 | ||
| Pts: Antawn Jamison 28 Rebs: Antawn Jamison 14 Asts: Antonio Daniels 11 |
Pts: Larry Hughes 27 Rebs: Anderson Varejão 10 Asts: LeBron James 7 | |
| Cleveland leads series, 1–0 | ||
Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio Attendance: 20,562 Referees: Joe DeRosa, Luis Grillo, Tom Washington |
April 25 8:00 pm |
| Washington Wizards 102, Cleveland Cavaliers 109 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 23–23, 25–28, 15–24, 39–34 | ||
| Pts: Antawn Jamison 31 Rebs: Antawn Jamison 10 Asts: Antonio Daniels 11 |
Pts: LeBron James 27 Rebs: Drew Gooden 14 Asts: LeBron James 7 | |
| Cleveland leads series, 2–0 | ||
Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio Attendance: 20,562 Referees: Bernie Fryer, Derek Richardson, Greg Willard |
April 28 5:30 pm |
| Cleveland Cavaliers 98, Washington Wizards 92 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 26–22, 35–22, 16–31, 21–17 | ||
| Pts: LeBron James 30 Rebs: Drew Gooden 12 Asts: LeBron James 9 |
Pts: Antawn Jamison 38 Rebs: Antawn Jamison 11 Asts: Antonio Daniels 13 | |
| Cleveland leads series, 3–0 | ||
Verizon Center, Washington, D.C. Attendance: 20,173 Referees: Steve Javie, Courtney Kirkland, Jack Nies |
April 30 7:00 pm |
| Cleveland Cavaliers 97, Washington Wizards 90 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 22–23, 22–24, 22–20, 31–23 | ||
| Pts: LeBron James 31 Rebs: Zydrunas Ilgauskas 19 Asts: LeBron James 7 |
Pts: Antawn Jamison 31 Rebs: Antonio Daniels 6 Asts: Antonio Daniels 12 | |
| Cleveland wins series, 4–0 | ||
Verizon Center, Washington, D.C. Attendance: 20,173 Referees: Sean Corbin, Joe Forte, Bennett Salvatore |
| Cleveland won 2–1 in the regular-season series |
|---|
This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Cavaliers winning two of the first three meetings.
| Cleveland leads 2–1 in all-time playoff series |
|---|
A rematch of the previous year's first round series was spoiled when Wizards stars Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler were both forced out of the playoffs due to injuries received in the later parts of the regular season. Without Arenas and Butler, the Wizards were unable to stop LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers from sweeping them out of the playoffs. It was Cleveland's first playoff sweep in franchise history.
(3) Toronto Raptors vs. (6) New Jersey Nets
[edit]April 21 12:30 pm |
| New Jersey Nets 96, Toronto Raptors 91 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 23–22, 28–19, 27–24, 18–26 | ||
| Pts: Richard Jefferson 28 Rebs: Jason Kidd 10 Asts: Jason Kidd 15 |
Pts: Chris Bosh 22 Rebs: Radoslav Nesterović 10 Asts: José Calderón 8 | |
| New Jersey leads series, 1–0 | ||
Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario Attendance: 20,330 Referees: Steve Javie, Scott Wall, Greg Willard |
April 24 7:00 pm |
| New Jersey Nets 83, Toronto Raptors 89 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 12–14, 24–19, 27–25, 20–31 | ||
| Pts: Vince Carter 19 Rebs: Carter, Kidd 11 each Asts: Jason Kidd 7 |
Pts: Anthony Parker 26 Rebs: Chris Bosh 13 Asts: T. J. Ford 6 | |
| Series tied, 1–1 | ||
Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario Attendance: 20,239 Referees: Tony Brothers, Joe DeRosa, Scott Foster |
April 27 7:00 pm |
| Toronto Raptors 89, New Jersey Nets 102 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 19–31, 20–27, 29–21, 21–23 | ||
| Pts: T. J. Ford 27 Rebs: Chris Bosh 11 Asts: T. J. Ford 8 |
Pts: Vince Carter 37 Rebs: Jason Kidd 16 Asts: Jason Kidd 19 | |
| New Jersey leads series, 2–1 | ||
Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey Attendance: 17,147 Referees: Bernie Fryer, Tom Washington, Mark Wunderlich |
April 29 7:30 pm |
| Toronto Raptors 81, New Jersey Nets 102 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 15–32, 22–24, 19–30, 25–16 | ||
| Pts: Andrea Bargnani 16 Rebs: Chris Bosh 10 Asts: T. J. Ford 5 |
Pts: Vince Carter 27 Rebs: Jason Kidd 8 Asts: Jason Kidd 13 | |
| New Jersey leads series, 3–1 | ||
Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey Attendance: 20,032 Referees: Dick Bavetta, David Jones, Ken Mauer |
May 1 7:00 pm |
| New Jersey Nets 96, Toronto Raptors 98 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 13–33, 29–26, 25–20, 29–19 | ||
| Pts: Vince Carter 30 Rebs: Mikki Moore 10 Asts: Jason Kidd 10 |
Pts: José Calderón 25 Rebs: Joey Graham 10 Asts: José Calderón 8 | |
| New Jersey leads series, 3–2 | ||
Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario Attendance: 20,511 Referees: Mike Callahan, Bob Delaney, Monty McCutchen |
ESPN |
May 4 8:00 pm |
| Toronto Raptors 97, New Jersey Nets 98 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 21–21, 25–22, 22–32, 29–23 | ||
| Pts: Chris Bosh 23 Rebs: Morris Peterson 8 Asts: Chris Bosh 9 |
Pts: Richard Jefferson 24 Rebs: Kidd, Moore 8 each Asts: Jason Kidd 15 | |
| New Jersey wins series, 4–2 | ||
Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey Attendance: 17,242 Referees: Jim Clark, Dan Crawford, Tim Donaghy |
| Tied 2–2 in the regular-season series |
|---|
This was the first playoff meeting between the Nets and the Raptors.[4]
The Nets won the first round of the 2007 NBA Playoffs in their sixth straight appearance in the NBA Playoffs. The series was the only one in the Eastern Conference first round not to result in a sweep.
The series was notable for pitting ex-Raptor Vince Carter, who was traded to the Nets in 2004 after an acrimonious split, against his former team. So great was the Toronto crowd's disdain for Carter, that he was booed every time he touched the ball. The Nets took home court advantage in Game 1, holding off a late Raptors rally in the fourth quarter. The Raptors pulled away in Game 2 and tied the series at 1. When the series shifted to New Jersey, the Nets took charge of the series, winning Games 3 and 4 in routs. New Jersey had a chance to win the series in Game 5 in Toronto, but the Raptors took a 20-point lead after one quarter. Still, New Jersey managed to chip away, and had a chance to win it, but Boštjan Nachbar's 3 missed at the buzzer. Needing to win in New Jersey to force a Game 7, Toronto held a one-point lead with under a minute to play in Game 6, but Richard Jefferson hit a layup with 8 seconds left. Toronto attempted to try for the game-winning shot, but Jefferson intercepted the pass to seal the series for the Nets.
(4) Miami Heat vs. (5) Chicago Bulls
[edit]April 21 2:00 pm |
| Miami Heat 91, Chicago Bulls 96 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 28–27, 18–22, 16–23, 29–24 | ||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 21 Rebs: O'Neal, Haslem 6 each Asts: five players 3 each |
Pts: Luol Deng 33 Rebs: Ben Wallace 14 Asts: Ben Gordon 11 | |
| Chicago leads series, 1–0 | ||
United Center, Chicago, Illinois Attendance: 22,183 Referees: Monty McCutchen, Eddie Rush, Michael Smith |
April 24 7:00 pm |
| Miami Heat 89, Chicago Bulls 107 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 21–31, 31–24, 19–30, 18–22 | ||
| Pts: Dwyane Wade 21 Rebs: O'Neal, Posey 8 each Asts: Dwyane Wade 7 |
Pts: Ben Gordon 27 Rebs: Ben Gordon 7 Asts: Kirk Hinrich 8 | |
| Chicago leads series, 2–0 | ||
United Center, Chicago, Illinois Attendance: 23,097 Referees: Luis Grillo, Steve Javie, Ken Mauer |
April 27 8:00 pm |
| Chicago Bulls 104, Miami Heat 96 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 29–23, 16–29, 27–24, 32–20 | ||
| Pts: Ben Gordon 27 Rebs: Luol Deng 11 Asts: Kirk Hinrich 6 |
Pts: Dwyane Wade 28 Rebs: Shaquille O'Neal 13 Asts: Dwyane Wade 5 | |
| Chicago leads series, 3–0 | ||
ABC |
April 29 1:00 pm |
| Chicago Bulls 92, Miami Heat 79 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 23–28, 21–20, 24–16, 24–15 | ||
| Pts: Ben Gordon 24 | ||