MIAMI – The stat gets thrown around in every playoff series, that Game 1 winners ultimately prevail in a best-of-seven matchup an overwhelming majority of the time.
It gets debunked regularly by the Miami Heat.
Since LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh teamed up in Miami, the Heat have dropped Game 1's on four occasions, the most recent being Thursday night's 92-88 against San Antonio to open this year's NBA Finals.
After each of their most recent three Game 1 losses, the Heat not only won the series — but did it every time in five games, including last year's finals.
Continuing that trend won't be easy. The last time the Spurs won Game 1 of any playoff matchup on the road and failed to prevail in that series was 1978.
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