2012 NBA Finals
Updated: 12/11/2025, 5:24:46 PM Wikipedia source
The 2012 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2011–12 season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. In this best-of-seven series, the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat defeated the Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder in five games, winning their second championship in franchise history. The Heat's LeBron James, who was named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the season, was voted the NBA Finals MVP, after averaging 28.6 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 7.4 assists. The series started on June 12, and concluded on June 21. This marked Oklahoma City's first NBA Finals appearance since their relocation from Seattle, and their only one until 2025. The win by the Heat earned James his first championship.
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Tables
| Oklahoma City Thunder (Western Conference champion) | Miami Heat (Eastern Conference champion) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Conference#TeamWLPCTGBGP1c-San Antonio Spurs *5016.758–662y-Oklahoma City Thunder *4719.7123.0663y-Los Angeles Lakers *4125.6219.0664x-Memphis Grizzlies4125.6219.0665x-Los Angeles Clippers4026.60610.0666x-Denver Nuggets3828.57612.0667x-Dallas Mavericks3630.54514.0668x-Utah Jazz3630.54514.0669Houston Rockets3432.51516.06610Phoenix Suns3333.50017.06611Portland Trail Blazers2838.42422.06612Minnesota Timberwolves2640.39424.06613Golden State Warriors2343.34827.06614Sacramento Kings2244.33328.06615New Orleans Hornets2145.31829.0662nd seed in the West, 3rd best league record
| Regular season | Eastern Conference#TeamWLPCTGBGP1z-Chicago Bulls5016.758–662y-Miami Heat *4620.6974.0663x-Indiana Pacers *4224.6368.0664y-Boston Celtics3927.59111.0665x-Atlanta Hawks4026.60610.0666x-Orlando Magic3729.56113.0667x-New York Knicks3630.54514.0668x-Philadelphia 76ers3531.53015.0669Milwaukee Bucks3135.47019.06610Detroit Pistons2541.37925.06611Toronto Raptors2343.34827.06612New Jersey Nets2244.33328.06613Cleveland Cavaliers2145.31829.06614Washington Wizards2046.30330.06615Charlotte Bobcats759.10643.0662nd seed in the East, 4th best league record
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| Defeated the 7th seeded Dallas Mavericks, 4–0 | First round | Defeated the 7th seeded New York Knicks, 4–1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defeated the 3rd seeded Los Angeles Lakers, 4–1 | Conference semifinals | Defeated the 3rd seeded Indiana Pacers, 4–2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defeated the 1st seeded San Antonio Spurs, 4–2 | Conference finals | Defeated the 4th seeded Boston Celtics, 4–3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Conference | ||||||
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | c-San Antonio Spurs * | 50 | 16 | 758 | – | 66 |
| 2 | y-Oklahoma City Thunder * | 47 | 19 | 712 | 3.0 | 66 |
| 3 | y-Los Angeles Lakers * | 41 | 25 | 621 | 9.0 | 66 |
| 4 | x-Memphis Grizzlies | 41 | 25 | 621 | 9.0 | 66 |
| 5 | x-Los Angeles Clippers | 40 | 26 | 606 | 10.0 | 66 |
| 6 | x-Denver Nuggets | 38 | 28 | 576 | 12.0 | 66 |
| 7 | x-Dallas Mavericks | 36 | 30 | 545 | 14.0 | 66 |
| 8 | x-Utah Jazz | 36 | 30 | 545 | 14.0 | 66 |
| 9 | Houston Rockets | 34 | 32 | 515 | 16.0 | 66 |
| 10 | Phoenix Suns | 33 | 33 | 500 | 17.0 | 66 |
| 11 | Portland Trail Blazers | 28 | 38 | 424 | 22.0 | 66 |
| 12 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 26 | 40 | 394 | 24.0 | 66 |
| 13 | Golden State Warriors | 23 | 43 | 348 | 27.0 | 66 |
| 14 | Sacramento Kings | 22 | 44 | 333 | 28.0 | 66 |
| 15 | New Orleans Hornets | 21 | 45 | 318 | 29.0 | 66 |
| Eastern Conference | ||||||
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | z-Chicago Bulls | 50 | 16 | 758 | – | 66 |
| 2 | y-Miami Heat * | 46 | 20 | 697 | 4.0 | 66 |
| 3 | x-Indiana Pacers * | 42 | 24 | 636 | 8.0 | 66 |
| 4 | y-Boston Celtics | 39 | 27 | 591 | 11.0 | 66 |
| 5 | x-Atlanta Hawks | 40 | 26 | 606 | 10.0 | 66 |
| 6 | x-Orlando Magic | 37 | 29 | 561 | 13.0 | 66 |
| 7 | x-New York Knicks | 36 | 30 | 545 | 14.0 | 66 |
| 8 | x-Philadelphia 76ers | 35 | 31 | 530 | 15.0 | 66 |
| 9 | Milwaukee Bucks | 31 | 35 | 470 | 19.0 | 66 |
| 10 | Detroit Pistons | 25 | 41 | 379 | 25.0 | 66 |
| 11 | Toronto Raptors | 23 | 43 | 348 | 27.0 | 66 |
| 12 | New Jersey Nets | 22 | 44 | 333 | 28.0 | 66 |
| 13 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 21 | 45 | 318 | 29.0 | 66 |
| 14 | Washington Wizards | 20 | 46 | 303 | 30.0 | 66 |
| 15 | Charlotte Bobcats | 7 | 59 | 106 | 43.0 | 66 |
| Game | Date | Road team | Result | Home team |
| Game 1 | June 12 | Miami Heat | 94–105 (0–1) | Oklahoma City Thunder |
| Game 2 | June 14 | Miami Heat | 100–96 (1–1) | Oklahoma City Thunder |
| Game 3 | June 17 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 85–91 (1–2) | Miami Heat |
| Game 4 | June 19 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 98–104 (1–3) | Miami Heat |
| Game 5 | June 21 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 106–121 (1–4) | Miami Heat |
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| Joel Anthony | 1 | 0 | 2.1 | 000 | 000 | 000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Shane Battier | 5 | 5 | 37.5 | 613 | 577 | 714 | 3.4 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 11.6 |
| Chris Bosh | 5 | 4 | 36.6 | 452 | 400 | 882 | 9.4 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 14.6 |
| Mario Chalmers | 5 | 5 | 36.5 | 442 | 348 | 857 | 2.6 | 4.0 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 10.4 |
| Norris Cole | 4 | 0 | 11.0 | 333 | 429 | 000 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.3 |
| Terrel Harris | 1 | 0 | 3.0 | 000 | 000 | 750 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.0 |
| Udonis Haslem | 5 | 1 | 16.3 | 400 | 000 | 833 | 4.4 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 2.6 |
| Juwan Howard | 1 | 0 | 3.0 | 000 | 000 | 000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| LeBron James | 5 | 5 | 44.1 | 472 | 188 | 826 | 10.2 | 7.4 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 28.6 |
| James Jones | 4 | 0 | 10.7 | 500 | 400 | 1.000 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 2.8 |
| Mike Miller | 5 | 0 | 8.9 | 563 | 636 | 1.000 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 6.2 |
| Ronny Turiaf | 1 | 0 | 3.0 | 000 | 000 | 000 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Dwyane Wade | 5 | 5 | 40.6 | 435 | 400 | 775 | 6.0 | 5.2 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 22.6 |
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| Cole Aldrich | 1 | 0 | 4.7 | 1.000 | 000 | 000 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| Nick Collison | 5 | 0 | 16.6 | 600 | 000 | 000 | 4.6 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 3.6 |
| Daequan Cook | 3 | 0 | 3.5 | 333 | 000 | 000 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 |
| Kevin Durant | 5 | 5 | 42.6 | 548 | 394 | 839 | 6.0 | 2.2 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 30.6 |
| Derek Fisher | 5 | 0 | 25.6 | 423 | 357 | 1.000 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 5.6 |
| James Harden | 5 | 0 | 32.8 | 375 | 318 | 792 | 4.8 | 3.6 | 1.2 | 0.0 | 12.4 |
| Lazar Hayward | 1 | 0 | 4.7 | 500 | 000 | 000 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| Serge Ibaka | 5 | 5 | 26.3 | 424 | 000 | 636 | 5.2 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 2.0 | 7.0 |
| Royal Ivey | 1 | 0 | 3.0 | 1.000 | 1.000 | 000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6.0 |
| Kendrick Perkins | 5 | 5 | 23.2 | 429 | 000 | 750 | 6.8 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 4.8 |
| Thabo Sefolosha | 5 | 5 | 25.9 | 296 | 182 | 833 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 4.6 |
| Russell Westbrook | 5 | 5 | 42.3 | 433 | 136 | 824 | 6.4 | 6.6 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 27.0 |
| Game | Ratings(households) | Share(households) | American audience(in millions) |
| 1 | 9.9 | 16 | 16.195 |
| 2 | 10.4 | 18 | 16.670 |
| 3 | 8.8 | 15 | 15.549 |
| 4 | 10.5 | 17 | 17.455 |
| 5 | 10.9 | 18 | 18.461 |
References
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- NBA.comhttps://www.nba.com/news/history-top-moments-lebron-james-first-championship-2012
- Sporting Newshttp://aol.sportingnews.com/nba/story/2012-06-10/miami-heat-nba-finals-lebron-james-dwyane-wade-okc-thunder-celtics
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- "Miami Heat's Road to the 2012 NBA Finals: Fan's Take"https://sports.yahoo.com/news/miami-heat-road-2012-nba-finals-fans-061300646--nba.html
- "Shane Battier to sign with Heat"https://www.espn.com/nba/truehoop/miamiheat/story/_/id/7330117/memphis-grizzlies-shane-battier-plans-sign-miami-heat
- "Eddy Curry signs with Miami Heat"https://www.espn.com/nba/truehoop/miamiheat/story/_/id/7339013/slimmed-eddy-curry-signs-hopes-career-revival-miami-heat
- "Ronny Turiaf signs with Heat"https://www.espn.com/nba/truehoop/miamiheat/story/_/id/7718396/miami-heat-bolster-depth-sign-veteran-big-man-ronny-turiaf
- "The rise and fall of rookie Norris Cole"https://www.espn.com/blog/truehoop/miamiheat/post/_/id/13310/the-rise-and-fall-of-rookie-norris-cole
- "Oklahoma City Thunder's Road to the 2012 NBA Finals: Fan's Take"https://sports.yahoo.com/news/oklahoma-city-thunder-road-2012-nba-finals-fans-153800334--nba.html
- The Oklahomanhttp://newsok.com/article/3685491
- Forbeshttps://www.forbes.com/sites/maurybrown/2012/06/02/bizball-nba-releases-2012-nba-finals-schedule/
- "Kevin Durant, Thunder pull away from Heat, win Game 1"https://web.archive.org/web/20120613043533/http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=320612025
- "NBA Finals Heat-Thunder Game 2 Video: The controversial ending to a classic Game 2"https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba-finals-heat-thunder-game-2-video-the-controversial-ending-to-a-classic-game-2
- "LeBron James, Heat hold off Thunder, knot NBA Finals at 1–1"https://web.archive.org/web/20120615080404/http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=320614025
- "LeBron James leads way with 29 points, 14 boards as Heat go up 2–1"https://web.archive.org/web/20120619210232/http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=320617014
- "Heat overcome Russell Westbrook's 43 points, take 3–1 Finals lead"https://web.archive.org/web/20120622040630/http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=320619014
- "LeBron James, Heat dominate Thunder to win NBA championship"https://web.archive.org/web/20120622051101/http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=320621014
- "NBA Finals Tip Off Tuesday on ABC & ESPN Radio"https://web.archive.org/web/20120614013610/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/06/10/nba-finals-tip-off-tuesday-on-abc-espn-radio/137421/
- "TV Ratings Broadcast Top 25: NBA Finals Top Week 39 Viewing"https://web.archive.org/web/20120624093446/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/06/19/tv-ratings-broadcast-top-25-nba-finals-top-week-39-viewing/138649/
- "TV Ratings Broadcast Top 25: NBA Finals Top Week 40 Viewing"https://web.archive.org/web/20120701021306/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/06/26/tv-ratings-broadcast-top-25-nba-finals-top-week-40-viewing/139226/
- ESPN.comhttps://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/8562868/oklahoma-city-thunder-trade-james-harden-houston-rockets
- ESPN.comhttps://www.espn.com/nba/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/9214995/russell-westbrook-oklahoma-city-thunder-knee-surgery
- NBAhttps://www.nba.com/news/10-best-games-of-last-25-years-nba