tmtcsc
06-06-2014, 05:11 PM
Many of the pundits today have been discussing whether or not Lebron James's cramping issues was the reason the Heat lost last night. The truth is, no one can say for sure. What is certain is that the Spurs closed the game strong and put on an amazing shooting display in the 4th quarter to win. The only person to miss a FG attempt was Tony Parker. I think he missed a couple of layups.
Skip Bayless and SAS (Not credible analysts by any means) argued whether the lack of AC was the reason Miami lost. Smith said it was "Absolutely the reason Miami lost!". How he can predict the future is beyond me. If you look at the stats, the Spurs won just about every major category. They had a better FG% & 3FG%, out-rebounded Miami by 10, outscored them at the FT Line, had more assists and blocked shots. The only thing Miami did better than the Spurs was take care of the ball - and that was not a huge disparity. (18 TO's to the Spurs' 23).
In short, had the Spurs taken care of the ball, they probably wouldn't have needed a freakishly great 4th quarter or gotten any benefit from James' absence to do so. We dodged a bullet and got the win with no apologies necessary. A win is a win.
Miami's defense was very disruptive and caused San Antonio to make uncharacteristic and sloppy turnovers. The Heat are capable of repeating their defensive tenacity and the Spurs will need to be ready for it. Committing 23 turnovers usually means you lose - as does committing 18. Anyhoo - the Spurs got a brutal reminder of what Miami does well and survived with the "W". That was a huge win. I expect the Spurs to come out better prepared and take Game 2. Split Games 3 & 4 and finish in 5.
Skip Bayless and SAS (Not credible analysts by any means) argued whether the lack of AC was the reason Miami lost. Smith said it was "Absolutely the reason Miami lost!". How he can predict the future is beyond me. If you look at the stats, the Spurs won just about every major category. They had a better FG% & 3FG%, out-rebounded Miami by 10, outscored them at the FT Line, had more assists and blocked shots. The only thing Miami did better than the Spurs was take care of the ball - and that was not a huge disparity. (18 TO's to the Spurs' 23).
In short, had the Spurs taken care of the ball, they probably wouldn't have needed a freakishly great 4th quarter or gotten any benefit from James' absence to do so. We dodged a bullet and got the win with no apologies necessary. A win is a win.
Miami's defense was very disruptive and caused San Antonio to make uncharacteristic and sloppy turnovers. The Heat are capable of repeating their defensive tenacity and the Spurs will need to be ready for it. Committing 23 turnovers usually means you lose - as does committing 18. Anyhoo - the Spurs got a brutal reminder of what Miami does well and survived with the "W". That was a huge win. I expect the Spurs to come out better prepared and take Game 2. Split Games 3 & 4 and finish in 5.