San Antonio has never repeated as NBA champ. In order to do so, they must do something else they have never done in franchise history -- come back from a 3-1 deficit.
I just read an article written by Gregg Doyel (CBSSports.com National Columnist) about how the Western Conference finals are over. I disagree. Doyel says "...after the Lakers' 93-91 victory on Tuesday night for a 3-1 series lead, you know darn well this thing is over. Even you Spurs fans. You know it, and you know you know it".
Not so fast.
As great as the Lakers have looked and how much they have dominated in wins over the Spurs. I have to wonder how someone can so confidently say the Spurs have no chance at winning three straight.
Yea, it's not going to be easy to win at Staples Center twice in three games. Yea, you might be able to contain Kobe for one or two games, but not likely three. Yea, statistics, percentages and history all say that San Antonio shouldn't waste our time and should just give up.
But this isn't your make-shift NBA franchise that made a trade within the last nine months to get to this point. We are talking about Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs. Although age is setting in, experienced has been gained throughout the years and now more than ever it will be put to the test. If the Spurs want to go down as one of the best franchises in NBA history -- a 3-1 WCF comeback would certainly help do that.
Although the media (ABC/ESPN/TNT) wants to see LA vs BOS and every NBA ref (Joey Crawford) is ready to be done with the Spurs -- it's not over yet.
A correct call at the end of game four could have turned a 3-1 series into 2-2 -- and we'd all have a different opinion. There is no question that had the Spurs won game four, they'd be in the driver's seat. San Antonio has captured 10 of its last 11 Game 5s in the playoffs.
So, how can San Antonio win three straight?
Tim Duncan needs to play like the best player in the NBA. Playing exceptional on the defensive side of the ball is key. Duncan must not get into foul trouble in order to be effective and aggressive whenever he is on the court (they might need all 48 minutes from him).
Tony Parker needs to get into the lane and create. The Spurs will not win game five let alone the series if Parker doesn't get his points. The biggest weakness that the Lakers is defending guard penetration -- Parker must exploit this.
Manu Ginobili must repeat his game three performance in games five, six and seven. The Spurs were able to roll to an easy victory on the shoulders of Ginobili during his 30 point outburst. Ginobili's scoring average in the Spurs three losses in this series: 8 points. He must have a strong offensive showing.
Robert Horry has yet to score in this series. If the Spurs hope to return to the NBA finals, they need to get some magic going from big shot Bob.
Bruce Bowen is known for his lock-down defensive game, but has been playing great on offense this series. Bowen needs to let other guys play O and focus on containing Kobe.
In all seriousness, San Antonio will need to get help from everybody to have a chance, not just the main guys (Kurt Thomas, Michael Finley, Brent Barry, Ime Udoka, Fabricio Oberto). The one thing that the Spurs do have is experience, world championship experience. And now after the blown call in game four, they have motivation.
Mark my words: The Spurs aren't done.
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