Rummpd
05-20-2013, 12:26 PM
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/conversations/_/id/9290180/2013-nba-playoffs-predicting-west-finals-memphis-grizzlies-san-antonio-spurs
Sure odds would be even higher if he figured in first game to predict rest:
No matter the answer to that question, a healthy Spurs team is clearly the best opponent Memphis has faced to date.
After stumbling early in the series with Golden State, San Antonio controlled the last four games with a typical Spurs brand of basketball. They benefited from Splitter ramping up his minutes as he got over a sprained ankle suffered in the opening round against the Los Angeles Lakers, culminating in Splitter scoring 14 points in Game 6 and finishing the game instead of Duncan.
San Antonio is 15-2 when Splitter plays at least 30 minutes, and his improvement is the biggest reason this series is different than the Grizzlies' 2011 upset, when they dominated the paint.
The path to victory for Memphis looks a lot like the early part of the Warriors series and last season's Western Conference finals. If the Grizzlies' paint defense enables them to contain Parker while still staying home on shooters, it could neutralize the Spurs' role players and cause their offensive attack to sputter.
But Memphis had its own difficulty scoring against Oklahoma City, which the Grizzlies were able to overcome on the strength of their defense. I don't think they'll quite have the same luxury in the series.
San Antonio in 7.
Projection: San Antonio wins 71.1 percent of the time.
By the way he has Miami and the Pacers about a tossup but favoring Heat but not as much as Spurs over over-matched [IMO] Grizz
Sure odds would be even higher if he figured in first game to predict rest:
No matter the answer to that question, a healthy Spurs team is clearly the best opponent Memphis has faced to date.
After stumbling early in the series with Golden State, San Antonio controlled the last four games with a typical Spurs brand of basketball. They benefited from Splitter ramping up his minutes as he got over a sprained ankle suffered in the opening round against the Los Angeles Lakers, culminating in Splitter scoring 14 points in Game 6 and finishing the game instead of Duncan.
San Antonio is 15-2 when Splitter plays at least 30 minutes, and his improvement is the biggest reason this series is different than the Grizzlies' 2011 upset, when they dominated the paint.
The path to victory for Memphis looks a lot like the early part of the Warriors series and last season's Western Conference finals. If the Grizzlies' paint defense enables them to contain Parker while still staying home on shooters, it could neutralize the Spurs' role players and cause their offensive attack to sputter.
But Memphis had its own difficulty scoring against Oklahoma City, which the Grizzlies were able to overcome on the strength of their defense. I don't think they'll quite have the same luxury in the series.
San Antonio in 7.
Projection: San Antonio wins 71.1 percent of the time.
By the way he has Miami and the Pacers about a tossup but favoring Heat but not as much as Spurs over over-matched [IMO] Grizz