2015 Western Conference Playoffs First Round
San Antonio 105, Los Angeles Clippers 114
Series tied 2-2
In a season when the team was never fully able to get a strong foothold nor overwhelming momentum, it’s only fitting that this first round series against the Clippers would go the same. So, a mere 40 hours after the Spurs once again looked like the unstoppable machine, they turned in a completely average performance.
Average can get it done on many nights in the NBA, and to be fair, the Spurs’ “average” is the envy of many teams in the league. But in the playoffs and against a hungry team with superstar talent and desperate motivation, average is a sure-fire path to a loss.
The Clippers played fantastic basketball. They played with an urgency and ruthlessness that reflected how important the game was to them. Whatever you think of Paul and Griffin as players on and off the court, there is no doubting their heart and their skill. Much like Game 1, they were the best players on the floor.
The Spurs played with less urgency, with a lack of focus and and inattention to detail that is not the hallmark of this team (but not surprising to anybody who has watched all 86 games this season). They were particularly unfocused on the defensive end, where rotations were a split second late (in the playoffs, it’s all about lost splits of seconds) leading to just open enough shots, blown assignments, dumb fouls, and play calls were either not seen or totally ignored.
(Darren Abate / Associated Press)
Pop screamed for intentional fouls on several occasions, and the team missed most of them. Whatever you think of the strategy, it’s not like the Spurs to not follow a game plan.
I actually thought the game got away from San Antonio at the end of the 3rd quarter after they started hacking Jordan. Doc pulled him, which is a win for the Spurs. But then the Spurs committed 3 (unintentional) fouls on Paul 50-90 feet away from the basket while in the bonus. Paul hit all 6, and the Spurs finished the quarter down 5. While they only lost one point in the quarter, they had a real chance to take a 4-8 point lead into the 4th; instead, they entered it in a deficit.
(Darren Abate / Associated Press)
So what do we know, four games into this series?
We know the Spurs at their best can blow the Clippers out, and the Clippers at their best can handily beat the Spurs, but the Spurs will most likely stay in contact.
We know that the Spurs are having too many off shooting nights. In Game 4 they missed 10 free throws and 19 three-pointers. The offense is predicated on long-distance shooting and enough of them going in so as to loosen up the defense and stretch it to its breaking point. This can’t happen shooting an embarrassing 24%.
We know that Chris Paul and Blake Griffin are probably the two best overall players in the series, but that the Spurs can win when they limit one of them. When they don’t limit either, the Clippers will win.
We know that Kawhi Leonard is the Spurs best player and our best chance of winning this series. We didn’t hear from him enough in Game 4. I don’t know if that is him needing to be more assertive, the coaches needing to call his number more, or the rest of the team needing to go to him. He had a very good game and the Clippers have no answer for him. This is why we need even more for him. It’s a lot to ask of the young man, but he has a strong history of coming through for the team.
We know that the Spurs have the better bench on paper, but that it’s not necessarily playing out that way on the court. If Austin Rivers and Jamal Crawford go off, the Clippers will win. You can weather one bench guy having a great game, but not two. This becomes especially apparent when Manu and Marco are too up and down to be reliable.
We know that Danny Green and Tiago Splitter have teetered all series on “borderline train wreck” and “out and out full train wreck”. When 2 of your 5 starters are giving this little, it becomes quite hard to win. Both offer the most value on defense, where they’ve been OK but not great. Green was pretty poor on defense in Game 4, I thought. But they both have to give something on offense, and right now they’re both hurting the O. Green can’t make a shot, seems to have forgotten how to dribble, and can’t pass it to an open teammate 5 feet away. Tiago is so rattled by Jordan around the rim that I don’t think he could make a layup with a cardboard cut-out of him in the paint.
We know that Parker is probably not 100%, probably better than 50%, but is a wild card from night to night. His competitive fire is there, but at what cost? He is not moving the ball and seems to be taking it personally going at Paul. He’s attacking and finishing well at the rim, but I don’t know if that’s the best consistent strategy to beat the Clippers over 48 minutes.
We know that Mills is our best performing PG right now, but that he can’t run the offense like Parker, so needs to play on the floor with Manu to have a slasher and creator. This means Manu needs to be more in control and less turnover-prone. Does Manu have this in him for two more games?
We know that the Spurs need to win another road game to get out of this series.
We know the Clippers aren’t going to just fade away.
We know that Game 5 is going to be a dogfight, won or lost in the trenches, in the execution, and in the passion.
What don’t we know?
Which Spurs team will show up Tuesday night in L.A.? Seems like the question we’ve been asking all season.
Go Spurs Go.
