It’s safe to say that the San Antonio Spurs are in hole no one expected them to be in prior to the start of the playoffs. After cruising in their first round against the Memphis Grizzlies and winning Game 1 against the Oklahoma City Thunder by more than 30 points, several experts were claiming them to be all but set in the Western Conference Finals.
Well, not so fast. After that impressive win in Game 1 against Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and co., the Spurs have lost three of the next four and they’re suddenly down 2-3 in the Western Conference Semifinals with Game 6 set to take place in the Chesapeake Energy Arena where the Thunder went 32-9 during the regular season.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OW0d6pmfIVE&w=854&h=480
Gregg Popovich and his boys have their backs against the wall, as they need two straight wins to advance to the next round of the postseason. It certainly looks like a hard thing to do considering how good the Thunder has looked over the past week, but it’s not impossible.
Here are three things the Spurs need to do if they want to reach the next round of the NBA Playoffs:
Crash the boards
The Spurs have struggled to rebound against the Thunder, and until they showed an improvement in that department, it will be tough for them to turn things around. During Oklahoma’s 95-91 win on Game 5, they won the rebound battle 63-44, including a 15-10 edge on the offensive glass. The winning team has led in the rebounds in each of the first five games, so the Spurs need to do a better job on the boards if they want to have a chance to force a decisive Game 7.
Tim Duncan and Tony Parker need to step it up
Aside Games 3 and 4 (where Parker scored 19 and 22 points, respectively) the veteran duo has been a non-factor in these series. Duncan is averaging 3.4 points and 3.2 rebounds during the past gives games and he’s looked outmatched by Serge Ibaka and Steven Adams in the paint, to the point where Pop has prefered to use Boris Diaw on long stretches of the game. Parker’s numbers look a bit better, but if we remove the two games where he scored 15+ points, he averages 6.0 points. The French star also average 6.2 assists throughout the entire series, an area where San Antonio could use an improvement, too.
Find a way to contain Russell Westbrook
This is clearly easier said than done, but San Antonio needs to find a way to stop Westbrook. Kevin Durant will always find a way to score, but the fact that Kawhi Leonard is guarding him will always make things tougher for the former MVP. Westbrook, however, is a whole different story. Westbrook averages 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 10.2 assists during these series, and he came one assist shy of a triple-double during Game 5. He has been the Thunder’s best player against San Antonio, and if the Spurs can’t handle him, then they’ll have a hard time extending these series for one more game.
Of course, the San Antonio Spurs might do all these things, and they could still be eliminated. But a marked improvement in the three aforementioned areas will only increase San Antonio’s chances to extend series to a pivotal Game 7 that would be played in front of their fans at AT&T Center.