2019 NBA Finals
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| Dates | May 30 – June 13 | |||||||||
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| MVP | Kawhi Leonard (Toronto Raptors) | |||||||||
| Eastern finals | Raptors defeated Bucks, 4–2 | |||||||||
| Western finals | Warriors defeated Trail Blazers, 4–0 | |||||||||
The 2019 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2018–19 season and conclusion of the season's playoffs. In the best-of-seven playoff series, the Eastern Conference champion Toronto Raptors defeated the two-time defending NBA champion and Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors in six games to win their first NBA championship as well as the first win by an NBA team based outside the United States. Kawhi Leonard was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the second time in his career, becoming the first player to be named the Finals MVP while playing for both conferences.[1]
The series began on May 30 and ended on June 13. This was the first NBA Finals appearance for the Raptors, and the league's first finals with games played outside of the United States.[2] The Raptors were granted home-court advantage for finishing the regular season with one more win (58–24) than the Warriors (57–25), marking the first time in their five consecutive Finals appearances that the Warriors opened the series on the road.[3][4] This was also the first Finals since 2010 not to feature LeBron James, who played in the past eight Finals with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat.[5] This is the most recent Finals featuring the defending champions.
The Raptors opened the series with a Game 1 victory, before the Warriors came back to tie the series heading to their home court. There, the Raptors took a commanding 3–1 lead by winning the next two games on the road, but the Warriors, despite losing Kevin Durant to injury, held off a chance for the Raptors to win the title at home, thus sending the series to a Game 6 in the Oracle Arena for the last time. There, Klay Thompson would suffer an ACL tear, and the Raptors went on to win 114–110, denying the Warriors a bid for a three-peat.
- ^ "Kawhi Leonard joins elite company in winning Finals MVP". NBA.com. June 13, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ^ "How long has it been since each team last made The Finals?". NBA.com. May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
cacciola_05202019was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Schuhmann, John (May 29, 2019). "Road Warriors: For first time in five Finals, Golden State opens title series on road". NBA.com. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
- ^ Paine, Neil (May 29, 2019). "This Is The First NBA Finals In 9 Years Without LeBron. (A Lot Has Changed.)". FiveThirtyEight.com. Retrieved May 30, 2019.