Heat's Chris Bosh: 'We're going to win' Game 5 vs. Spurs

Author:
Ben Golliver
Publish date:
Jun 15, 2014

The Heat's Chris Bosh tends to be one of the more measured, pensive players in the NBA. (Greg Nelson/SI)

SAN ANTONIO -- Even with Las Vegas setting the Spurs as strong six-point favorites to win Game 5 to close out the Finals, one Heat star is convinced Miami will live to see another day.

Coming off back-to-back blowout losses at the American Airlines Arena in Games 3 and 4, Chris Bosh has been Miami's most confident player publicly. After his All-Star teammates and coach took a softer tone during their Saturday press conferences, Bosh predicted at shootaround on Sunday that the Heat will extend the series by beating the Spurs in Game 5.

"We're not going down, we're going to win this game tonight," Bosh said. "We're going to come, prepare like we need to do. Plain and simple, we're going to win this game."

Asked if Bosh was guaranteeing a victory, he opted not to put a stamp on his statement, but he certainly didn't backpedal either.

"I don't care about guarantees, we're just going to win the game," he said. "Take it like you want it."

GOLLIVER: Game 5 has inevitable feel to it

LeBron James adopted a "Why not us?" approach on Saturday, referencing the fact that teams holding 3-1 leads in the Finals, like the Spurs currently do, are 31-0 in NBA history. Bosh said he was aware of those numbers, and noted that the Heat haven't faced such a postseason deficit during the "Big 3" era.

"Everybody comes to you with statistics and numbers and stuff like that," Bosh said. "We're in a situation we've never been in before. There is more desperation in everything. We don't have time for mistakes or anything. We have to be perfect tonight."

File Bosh's statements under the power of positive thinking. After hitting the game-sealing three-pointer in Game 2, Bosh was held to just nine points and three rebounds in Game 3 and 12 points and four rebounds in Game 4.

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San Antonio is 10-2 in these playoffs at the AT&T Center, winning those games by an average of 14.1 points. However, Miami did score a 98-96 victory in Game 2 in San Antonio, with Bosh posting 18 points, three rebounds and two assists.

"Tonight is all we have," Bosh said. "We're just really looking forward to getting out there and competing. Playing like we know how to play. I don't think we've done that that much this series."

The last time the back-to-back champion Heat lost a seven-game playoff series was the 2011 Finals to the Mavericks, who prevailed in six games.

Hat Tip: NBA.com's Hang Time Blog