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- The 2020
NBA Finals began on September 30 between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat. - The competition use a best of seven format, so the Lakers or Heat will need to win four games to claim the 2019-20 NBA Championship.
- You can watch the NBA Finals live on the ABC network, or stream the games on ABC.com and the ABC app with an authenticated pay-TV provider.
After a series of eight play-in games and three rounds of playoffs, the Los Angeles and Miami Heat will compete in the 2020 NBA Finals.
Lakers All-NBA forwards Lebron James and Anthony Davis are competing to win an NBA championship in their first season as teammates after the Lakers traded for Davis last summer. The Heat arrived in the NBA bubble with a new identity after finishing fifth in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, eliminating the top-ranked Milwaukee Bucks and regular season MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo to reach the Eastern Conference finals.
The 2019-20 NBA season resumed in Orlando with 22 teams back in July. The coronavirus pandemic brought the NBA to a sudden halt on March 11 when Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19. At the time, teams were more than 60 games into the 82-game season and preparing for the playoffs.
Four months later, hundreds of NBA players, coaches, and staff quarantined themselves at the ESPN Wide World of
James earned his 10th NBA Finals appearance with a Lakers victory in the Conference Finals over the upstart Denver Nuggets led by Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. A Heat defense anchored by star center Bam Adabayo helped Miami stop a Boston Celtics squad led by young wings Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in the Eastern Conference Finals.
As of August 19, the NBA reported that none of the 341 players in the NBA Restart "bubble" had tested positive for coronavirus. However, ongoing family concerns, injuries, and logistical issues led to some players leaving the quarantined site. As teams were eliminated from the playoffs, the NBA allowed the remaining players and staff members to bring family members into the bubble.
How to watch the NBA Finals
The NBA Finals began September 30 and each game in the series will air on ABC via cable or an over-the-air antenna. You can also stream the games live via ABC.com, the ABC app, or the ESPN app if you have an authenticated pay-TV account.
Live TV streaming services with access to ABC, like Hulu, FuboTV, AT&T TV, and YouTubeTV, will also stream the games. Of those platforms, Hulu + Live TV is the most affordable at $54.99 a month. New subscribers can receive a free one-week trail.
The NBA Finals use a best of seven format, so the Lakers or Heat will need to win four games to claim the 2019-20 NBA Championship.
Here's a full schedule for the 2020 NBA Finals:
- Game one, Wednesday, 9/30: Los Angeles Lakers 116 — Miami Heat 98
- Game two, Friday, 10/2, 9 p.m. ET on ABC
- Game three, Sunday 10/4, 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC
- Game four, Tuesday 10/6, 9 p.m. ET on ABC
- Game five, Friday 10/9, 9 p.m. ET on ABC
- Game six, Sunday 10/11, 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC
- Game seven, Tuesday 10/13, 9 p.m. ET on ABC