Miami Heat vs Denver Nuggets odds, regular season results, rosters, and more for the 2023 NBA Finals
The 2023 NBA Finals will feature the eighth-seeded Miami Heat and the top-seeded Denver Nuggets as they lock horns for the Larry O'Brien trophy.
The Heat will hope to land their first championship after 10 years and fourth in franchise history, while this is the Nuggets' first shot at title success.
The Heat have played out an underdog story for the ages in these playoffs. They went 1-1 in the play-in tournament and qualified as the eighth seed behind a fourth-quarter comeback win over the Chicago Bulls.
Miami went up against the regular season's best record holders in the first round, the Milwaukee Bucks. Against all odds, they beat Giannis Antetokoumpo and co. in just five games, off a heroic effort from Jimmy Butler. The Heat then faced the New York Knicks, who they took care of in six games.
The Miami Heat beat the odds on the favorites to win the title, the Boston Celtics, in the conference finals. They nearly blew a 3-0 lead as Boston forced a Game 7 at home, but the Heat took care of business with a 103-84 win in the series decider at the TD Garden.
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The Heat runs the East!!! 🙌🏻 🔥
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Meanwhile, the Denver Nuggets are coming off a clinical run in the Western Conference. They beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games in the opening round, followed by a six-game series win over the Phoenix Suns in the conference semis, and then a series sweep over LeBron James' LA Lakers.
The Nuggets have lived up to the billing as the top seed. Denver is inarguably the best team in the playoffs so far and will hope to continue their dominance against the Heat.
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The Nuggets sweep the Lakers and will play their first Finals in franchise history!! 😱 ⛏️ 🟣🟡
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Miami Heat vs. Denver Nuggets odds for the 2023 NBA Finals
The Denver Nuggets open as the heavy favorites to win the 2023 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. According to Action Network, the oddsmakers have the Nuggets at -400 to win the series and the Heat at +300.
The series spread for the Nuggets is -2.5, priced at +120, while the Heat's spread is +2.5, priced at -145. Miami's -1.5 series spread is priced at +500, while Denver's +1.5 spread would cost -800.
The series game prices are +500 for a four-game series, +200 for a five-game series, +225 for a six-game and seven game-series.
Heat vs Nuggets regular season head-to-head
The Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets faced off twice in the regular season. The Nuggets swept the regular season series, winning the first game at home 124-119 behind a Nikola Jokic triple-double and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's 20-point game on 100% shooting on December 30th, 2022.
Jokic tallied 19 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists in that contest. Tyler Herro, who could be out until Game 3 of the Finals, was the Heat's top scorer in that game. He scored 26 points, grabbed 10 boards and dished five assists, shooting 50.0%.
The Nuggets scripted a 112-108 comeback win on the road on February 13th, 2023, against the Heat. Miami took a nine-point advantage in the first quarter but couldn't hold onto it. Jokic and Butler both grabbed near-triple doubles in that contest.
Jokic scored a game-high 27 points, with 12 rebounds and eight assists, shooting 12-of-14. Butler, meanwhile, had 24 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, shooting 8-18. That loss was the Heat's sixth consecutive loss to the Nuggets in the last three seasons.
Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets' rosters for the 2023 NBA Finals
Click here to read Action Network's odds line for the 2023 NBA Finals.
Also read: NBA Finals 2023 teams, full dates, venues, head-to-head and more