The NBA Finals are finally set.
The Milwaukee Bucks will take on the Phoenix Suns in this year’s Finals matchup.
This was definitely a matchup that nobody could foresee when the season began.
However, we are here now and a new champion will be crowned.
Last season was odd as a global pandemic shut down the world.
The NBA concluded their season in the bubble, where the Los Angeles Lakers won the title.
The circumstances were odd, but the champion wasn’t in question.
They were one of the favorites since the season started and they were led by two superstars in LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
This season is very different.
It still had to deal with the ramifications of COVID, but also several injuries.
This Finals matchup just does not seem like the two right teams are there.
We might have to put an asterisk on these Finals.
Injuries All-Around
Injuries have plagued this season all year long.
We saw the Denver Nuggets lose Jamal Murray with a torn ACL.
The Golden State Warriors lost Klay Thompson before the season even began.
The Brooklyn Nets big three played less than 20 games together.
Then the playoffs started and the injuries became piling up even more.
All these NBA stars have missed game time due to injuries suffered during these playoffs 🙏 pic.twitter.com/cSseSSOc1a
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 30, 2021
Several key players missed significant time throughout the postseason.
Teams like the Lakers and Nets faced big injuries that derailed any championship aspirations.
Injuries are common in basketball, but this seemed different.
Almost every game, we saw a star go down.
Even the Bucks are dealing with Giannis Antetokounmpo potentially being out for some time during the Finals.
Too many injuries have happened to credit the two teams in the Finals for beating the best of the best to get there.
In each series for the two conference winners, they faced a team battling injuries.
We Know Who Should Be In The Finals
This season was all about parity.
However, once the seeds were set, we knew who were the favorites.
Unfortunately, those injures got in the way.
The Lakers were on their way to beat the Suns in the first round.
That was until the Davis went down for the rest of the series.
The same can be said about the Nets.
They lost Harden within the first minute of their series against the Bucks.
Kyrie Irving suffered the same fate in Game 3.
Harden came back, but was not even close to 100 percent.
Kevin Durant still almost willed his team to advance the Bucks.
The Suns made the Western Conference Finals to take on the Los Angeles Clippers.
However, Kawhi Leonard didn’t play a single game in that series.
Clippers star Kawhi Leonard is out for Game 6 against the Suns, team says. Ivica Zubac is listed as questionable with a right knee MCL sprain after missing Game 5. Serge Ibaka (back surgery) remains out.
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) June 30, 2021
This series went to six games with the Clippers playing very good throughout the series.
Leonard would have been able to help them when they had scoring droughts.
He would have been just as important on the defensive end as well.
Three teams that were probably the best teams in the league this season had to deal with injuries that hindered them too much.
The NBA Finals do not have the right teams competing for the title this season.
NEXT: 3 Things Trae Young Proved To NBA Fans This Postseason
What arrogance, dealing with injuries is part of the game. If you choose to put all of your money in two or three players instead of building deep, you’re risking injuries taking out a big chunk of the team. Case and point, your precious Lakers. Plus it doesn’t help having a “leader” who walks out on the team with time on the clock when things aren’t going his way.