Orlando, Sep 30 (IANS) Former NBA player Muggsy Bogues is backing LA Lakers to beat Miami Heat and win the 2020 NBA Finals to be played on Wednesday.
“They are a Championship pedigree organisation and they have LeBron (James) with AD (Anthony Davis) on his side so their (Lakers’) chances are high. Miami will give them a fight, but I can’t see them overcoming the Lakers,” Bogues said while speaking to Indian media as per an NBA release.
Bogues, though, doesn’t entirely discount the Heat and feels they have the right ammunition going into the Finals. “I can’t believe Miami only lost three games (in Playoffs). This is mind boggling. They’ve got a plan,” he said. “Miami is hungry, the two young kids (Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro) know to shoot and there is Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler.”
He reserved special praise for Butler, calling him a people’s star. “Everybody loves the tenacity he brings, the relentlessness he brings. He has given a lot of trouble to LeBron throughout his career and he’s not going to stop now,” remarked Bogues. The former player also pointed that veteran Andre Iguodala also brings championship experience to the Heat. The 2015 NBA Finals MVP will be playing in his sixth consecutive NBA Finals, the previous five tickets he got with the Golden State Warriors.
At 5 ft 3 in, Bogues has the distinction of being the shortest player to play in the NBA but that never bothered him. He was drafted 12th overall by the Washington Bullets in 1987, a team which had the then tallest NBA player Manute Bol (7’7″). But Bogues wouldn’t let his size define his legacy.
“I just happened to be small but I knew how to run my team. I knew how to make the guys around me better, at the same time I knew how to score as well. These elements allowed me to play at the highest level,” explained Bogues who played for Charlotte Hornets for nine years and holds the franchise records for assists (5,557) and steals (1,067) till date.
–IANS
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