Season 48, Game 01
San Antonio 101, Dallas 100
1-0

The Spurs began the night receiving rings in fond memory of their historic Finals victory; they ended the night barely staving off nightmares of how that run was almost derailed before it even began.

The Mavs were in town to kick off the season on Championship Ring night, and the game played out like Game 8 of their first round series from last playoffs. The Mavs were in control early; the Spurs shook off the cobwebs and played great in the second half, seemingly taking control midway through the fourth; only for the Mavs to stage a furious comeback and almost win the game at the buzzer. The Spurs did just enough to win the game, and considering the opponent and the circumstances, the win is a great win.

I have this fear that last season was the pinnacle of this new brand of Spurs’ team ball, that the team will suffer some sort of basketball amnesia, and all of those extra passes will disappear, the cuts will stop, the ball will stop moving, and the Spurs will return from whence they came, the land of ‘boring’. Even if it results in no more titles, I want to watch this current brand of basketball for as long as I possibly can.

The good news: the team seems as committed as ever to playing that brand of whole team basketball. The bad news: oh man, did they look rusty. Which is to be expected, of course. They looked like their bodies weren’t quite caught up to their minds, playing off muscle memory, only the memory is quicker and stronger than the muscle. Passes were just a bit off, cuts were late or clogged or miscued. It’s okay; the body will catch up to the mind. They also appeared to be trying a bit too hard, sometimes giving up open shots to keep passing, and cutting and passing themselves into tricky situations, rather than out of them. Again, better this than the alternative. We’ve got plenty of time to get back in rhythm.

To the Mavs credit, their defense looked really good, and they definitely had many of the Spurs’ pet moves and pet passes sniffed out and scouted well. It also doesn’t help to be missing your budding star SF, your rock solid starting C (and pick and roll dynamo), and your spark plug off the bench. Leonard, Splitter, and Mills are not “the” Big 3, but their sum total of importance isn’t too far behind that of the real Big 3. So winning with the roster available against a Mavs’ lineup that in ways reads more like a fantasy team than a real team was impressive.

AP Photo/Eric Gay

The game played out as so many Spurs games have in the past: the Big 3 taking turns dominating. Manu was a tear in the second half, particularly in sparking the turnaround in the 3rd quarter. Tony was solid throughout, and a surprising 4 for 4 from 3. (If he’s developed into a reliable 3-point shooter, his game will reach even new heights.) And Tim was just a rock-solid manning the middle on both ends of the floor as usual. Tim Duncan is almost 40, by the way.

What was most impressive to me was how well the rest of the squad played without any one player really having a stand out game. Danny Green played great, and seems to be brimming with confidence in his shot. He also seems to have been given more ball-handling duties by the coaching staff. Marco also looked great, as he often does when his shot is falling. But he had some nifty drives, as well. Baynes acquitted himself well as the 4th big off the bench. and Joseph still brought ferocious defense in backing up Parker, but with a much more full and confident offensive game. (If there is any silver lining to Mills being out, it’s a chance for Joseph to develop into a good to very good NBA player.)

Of course, there were plenty of miscues, turnovers, too many offensive rebounds given up, too many quick Mavs guards wreaking havoc, and the game was much too close at the end. But it served as a potent reminder of how razor thin the line between winning and losing is. And, adding up all of those tiny margins, how miraculous it is to win the title.

The Spurs have their rings because they beat Miami, but also because they almost lost to Dallas. Game 1 of the season was a celebration and a reminder, and a chance to honor the old season while kicking off the new.

The Spurs play the Suns in Phoenix on Friday night.