Spurs' Key to Winning the Finals

[Marcus Bryant]

Spurs hold a significant edge in offensive execution entering the 2007 NBA Finals with the 2nd best shooting offense in the NBA this season. As always, the Spurs were near the top of the league (4th) in FG% allowed. The Cavs also had a good defensive performance this season, ranking 8th in FG%. Their weakness has been that they are not a great shooting team, ranking 24th overall. They've overcome this somewhat with being the 2nd best rebounding team in the league and the best offensive rebounding team. This has helped them to have the 9th most FG attempts of any team in the NBA (the Spurs were 27th).

One only needs to go back as far as the WCF to see what happens when the Spurs manage to neutralize their opponent's strength on the glass, as they outrebounded the Jazz in 3 (all wins) of the series' 5 games. The Jazz ranked 3rd in the league in offensive rebounding and 7th overall. They also ranked 3rd in own FG% and 11th in FG% allowed. If the Spurs are able to negate the Cavs' strength on the glass, the Finals will be rather short.

[FuzzyLumpkins]

I think as long as were hitting our 3s at a decent clip well be fine. If they pack the lane like everyone else does well see a ton of open shots.

After our performance rebounding against Utah im not too worried about that and the free pass to the rim that Eastern Conference teams enjoy isnt going to happen either.

[Marcus Bryant]

I think as long as were hitting our 3s at a decent clip well be fine. If they pack the lane like everyone else does well see a ton of open shots.

After our performance rebounding against Utah im not too worried about that and the free pass to the rim that Eastern Conference teams enjoy isnt going to happen either.

The Cavs will have to be able to defend the paint against the league's best low post scoring threat while being able to close out on the perimeter. The Cavs might be able to pull this off as they were 1st in the league in 3 point FG% allowed (Spurs were 2nd).

Of course, the Spurs were 4th in the league in own 3 point FG% while the Cavs were 18th.

[FuzzyLumpkins]

The Cavs will have to be able to defend the paint against the league's best low post scoring threat while being able to close out on the perimeter. The Cavs might be able to pull this off as they were 1st in the league in 3 point FG% allowed (Spurs were 2nd).

Of course, the Spurs were 4th in the league in own 3 point FG% while the Cavs were 18th.

good stuff youre going off on these team stat rankings brah.

All i know is that were not going to have to give Gibson 10 open shots a game and that we are not going to have to mindlessly double team LeBron to keep him from open lanes to the basket.

[medstudent]

which means, they suck, we're good. let lebron get his, and we get 4

[Marcus Bryant]

Back to rebounding, the Spurs' relative success against the Jazz on the glass shouldn't have come as a total surprise given that they were 4th in the league in offensive rebounds allowed and 4th in defensive rebounds. Cleveland was 2nd and 6th, respectively.

All in all, the picture looks pretty good for this year's version of the Spurs heading into the Finals. But what matters is what happens on the court starting this Thursday night.

[BeerIsGood!]

The Cavs will have to be able to defend the paint against the league's best low post scoring threat while being able to close out on the perimeter. The Cavs might be able to pull this off as they were 1st in the league in 3 point FG% allowed (Spurs were 2nd).

Of course, the Spurs were 4th in the league in own 3 point FG% while the Cavs were 18th.

If Duncan gets going in the paint and the Cavs are forced to double Pop will have Bowen in the corner, Ginobili or Finley on the wing, and Horry on the other win or corner to give TD room to operate and 3 legitimate 3 pt shooters/ playmakers (a great one in Manu) with which to pass out of the double. Add Parker floating around and his nice J and great penetration ability and the Cavs will either stop doubling TD and let him tear them from the inside or double and have their defense break down under penetration or shooting.

[FuzzyLumpkins]

which means, they suck, we're good. let lebron get his, and we get 4

No, that would be a summation of the Cavs-Wizards first round matchup.

[Marcus Bryant]

If Duncan gets going in the paint and the Cavs are forced to double Pop will have Bowen in the corner, Ginobili or Finley on the wing, and Horry on the other win or corner to give TD room to operate and 3 legitimate 3 pt shooters/ playmakers (a great one in Manu) with which to pass out of the double. Add Parker floating around and his nice J and great penetration ability and the Cavs will either stop doubling TD and let him tear them from the inside or double and have their defense break down under penetration or shooting.

This is where the Spurs' transition game should pay dividends. The Spurs should be able to control the tempo somewhat and be less predictable with their sets. I have a feeling the Cavs' defense is a little weaker when it comes to defending breaks and when their halfcourt defense is not set.

[peskypesky]

It amazes me that anyone thinks the Spurs might have trouble beating a team led by Lebron James. Hell, the Spurs have beaten a team led by Kobe Bryant AND Shaquille O'Neal.

[BeerIsGood!]

Here were the Spurs numbers for the 2nd game of the season meeting:

Cleveland
Name Min FG 3Pt FT Off Reb Ast TO Stl Blk PF Pts
L. James 41 14-26 1-2 6-11 1 10 4 2 1 1 3 35
D. Gooden 29 3-6 0-0 3-3 2 9 1 1 2 1 3 9
Z. Ilgauskas 27 4-9 0-0 2-5 2 11 1 1 0 1 6 10
L. Hughes 38 6-15 1-4 5-6 0 4 2 4 2 0 5 18
E. Snow 24 0-3 0-0 0-0 0 2 6 1 0 0 3 0
D. Marshall 18 3-6 2-3 0-2 0 3 0 0 1 1 2 8
A. Varejao 18 1-2 0-0 1-2 1 5 2 2 0 1 3 3
D. Wesley 13 1-3 0-0 1-1 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 3
S. Pollard 1 0-2 0-0 0-0 2 2 0 0 0 0 2 0
S. Pavlovic 1 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
D. Jones 16 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2
S. Brown DNP - Coach's Decision
D. Gibson DNP - Coach's Decision
I. Newble DNP - Coach's Decision

Totals 226 33-74 4-9 18-30 8 49 16 11 6 5 29 88
Percentages: .446 .444 .600 Team Rebounds: 7

San Antonio
Name Min FG 3Pt FT Off Reb Ast TO Stl Blk PF Pts
B. Bowen 37 1-5 0-0 0-0 0 1 3 0 1 0 2 2
T. Duncan 38 8-14 0-0 9-19 1 12 5 5 0 1 3 25
F. Oberto 19 2-2 0-0 0-0 2 6 0 0 0 0 4 4
M. Ginobili 30 5-11 3-7 1-3 0 4 1 3 0 1 3 14
T. Parker 35 8-16 0-0 5-8 0 5 5 3 0 0 0 21
M. Finley 18 1-7 1-3 1-2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 4
F. Elson 14 2-3 0-0 0-0 0 2 0 0 0 0 4 4
B. Udrih 12 2-7 1-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 5
R. Horry 19 0-4 0-3 0-0 2 8 0 1 0 0 5 0
B. Barry 11

Beno with 12 minutes, Barry 11 and the Spurs were 18-34 from the line. Looks like a getting warm game and letdown game that came the next night following the big opening night win over the Mavs in Dallas.





Game in January - this game was the 2nd loss in a 6 game span in which the Spurs went 2-4. This also included losses to Minn and Milwaukee.

L. James 40 7-17 0-1 5-11 0 5 5 3 2 0 1 19
D. Gooden 23 4-8 0-0 2-2 1 4 0 1 1 0 2 10
Z. Ilgauskas 28 4-13 0-0 0-0 5 13 0 2 0 3 3 8
L. Hughes 36 6-12 4-6 2-4 1 5 5 4 3 0 3 18
E. Snow 32 0-3 0-0 1-2 0 4 3 1 4 0 0 1
A. Varejao 26 2-5 0-0 4-4 4 7 1 0 2 0 5 8
D. Gibson 5 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 3
D. Marshall 17 1-8 1-6 0-0 0 5 0 2 0 3 3 3
S. Pavlovic 8 0-3 0-1 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
D. Jones 21 2-5 1-3 6-9 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 11
D. Wesley DNP - Coach's Decision
S. Pollard DNP - Coach's Decision
I. Newble DNP - Coach's Decision
S. Brown


San Antonio
Name Min FG 3Pt FT Off Reb Ast TO Stl Blk PF Pts
B. Bowen 33 0-6 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 1 1 0 4 0
R. Horry 24 2-5 1-2 0-0 2 7 1 0 1 0 2 5
T. Duncan 37 6-15 0-0 6-8 2 15 2 4 0 2 2 18
M. Ginobili 28 1-8 0-5 4-5 0 6 3 3 0 1 3 6
T. Parker 36 11-18 0-1 4-4 1 3 3 6 2 1 2 26
M. Bonner 23 2-4 2-3 2-2 1 3 0 0 1 0 4 8
B. Barry 24 1-4 1-3 1-1 0 3 3 2 1 0 4 4
B. Udrih 13 1-3 0-1 0-0 1 1 1 1 1 0 2 2
F. Oberto 10 2-7 0-0 0-0 2 5 0 0 0 0 1 4

Bonner 23 min, Barry 24 min, Udrih 13 min.

Both games LBJ played over 40 minutes and his team squeaked out wins against the Spurs who were in typical early season form. The Cavs did play solid defense and harass the Spurs which means this series may be somewhat low scoring, but the Spurs definitely didn't play the type of ball or lineup rotations that they are now. That is why the regular season games, especially early season ones, don't count much when judging the Spurs. The Spurs aren't the 2007 Mavs who put the pedal to the metal all year long, the Spurs played odd lineups and were trying to find the rotation that would be best in the PO through this time of year. On the flip side, Gibson was a rookie early in the season and didn't get the burn that he will in this series. He could be a factor here, but he may see reduced minutes in this series since he had a hard time matching up with the Spurs. It'll be interesting to see what Brown and Pop do that will be different considering the platform this time around.

[Marcus Bryant]

I guess Pop could give Beno and Bonner minutes to make those games from half a year ago mean something.

[ArgSpursFan]

James getting 40 and 41 in the reg season aint something to worry about at all,coze we all know that the spurs wont let that happen in the finals
Spurs @finals>>>>>>spurs @reg season.

[el scorcho]

Here were the Spurs numbers for the 2nd game of the season meeting:

Cleveland
Name Min FG 3Pt FT Off Reb Ast TO Stl Blk PF Pts
L. James 41 14-26 1-2 6-11 1 10 4 2 1 1 3 35
D. Gooden 29 3-6 0-0 3-3 2 9 1 1 2 1 3 9
Z. Ilgauskas 27 4-9 0-0 2-5 2 11 1 1 0 1 6 10
L. Hughes 38 6-15 1-4 5-6 0 4 2 4 2 0 5 18
E. Snow 24 0-3 0-0 0-0 0 2 6 1 0 0 3 0
D. Marshall 18 3-6 2-3 0-2 0 3 0 0 1 1 2 8
A. Varejao 18 1-2 0-0 1-2 1 5 2 2 0 1 3 3
D. Wesley 13 1-3 0-0 1-1 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 3
S. Pollard 1 0-2 0-0 0-0 2 2 0 0 0 0 2 0
S. Pavlovic 1 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
D. Jones 16 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2
S. Brown DNP - Coach's Decision
D. Gibson DNP - Coach's Decision
I. Newble DNP - Coach's Decision

Totals 226 33-74 4-9 18-30 8 49 16 11 6 5 29 88
Percentages: .446 .444 .600 Team Rebounds: 7

San Antonio
Name Min FG 3Pt FT Off Reb Ast TO Stl Blk PF Pts
B. Bowen 37 1-5 0-0 0-0 0 1 3 0 1 0 2 2
T. Duncan 38 8-14 0-0 9-19 1 12 5 5 0 1 3 25
F. Oberto 19 2-2 0-0 0-0 2 6 0 0 0 0 4 4
M. Ginobili 30 5-11 3-7 1-3 0 4 1 3 0 1 3 14
T. Parker 35 8-16 0-0 5-8 0 5 5 3 0 0 0 21
M. Finley 18 1-7 1-3 1-2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 4
F. Elson 14 2-3 0-0 0-0 0 2 0 0 0 0 4 4
B. Udrih 12 2-7 1-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 5
R. Horry 19 0-4 0-3 0-0 2 8 0 1 0 0 5 0
B. Barry 11

Beno with 12 minutes, Barry 11 and the Spurs were 18-34 from the line. Looks like a getting warm game and letdown game that came the next night following the big opening night win over the Mavs in Dallas.





Game in January - this game was the 2nd loss in a 6 game span in which the Spurs went 2-4. This also included losses to Minn and Milwaukee.

L. James 40 7-17 0-1 5-11 0 5 5 3 2 0 1 19
D. Gooden 23 4-8 0-0 2-2 1 4 0 1 1 0 2 10
Z. Ilgauskas 28 4-13 0-0 0-0 5 13 0 2 0 3 3 8
L. Hughes 36 6-12 4-6 2-4 1 5 5 4 3 0 3 18
E. Snow 32 0-3 0-0 1-2 0 4 3 1 4 0 0 1
A. Varejao 26 2-5 0-0 4-4 4 7 1 0 2 0 5 8
D. Gibson 5 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 3
D. Marshall 17 1-8 1-6 0-0 0 5 0 2 0 3 3 3
S. Pavlovic 8 0-3 0-1 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
D. Jones 21 2-5 1-3 6-9 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 11
D. Wesley DNP - Coach's Decision
S. Pollard DNP - Coach's Decision
I. Newble DNP - Coach's Decision
S. Brown


San Antonio
Name Min FG 3Pt FT Off Reb Ast TO Stl Blk PF Pts
B. Bowen 33 0-6 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 1 1 0 4 0
R. Horry 24 2-5 1-2 0-0 2 7 1 0 1 0 2 5
T. Duncan 37 6-15 0-0 6-8 2 15 2 4 0 2 2 18
M. Ginobili 28 1-8 0-5 4-5 0 6 3 3 0 1 3 6
T. Parker 36 11-18 0-1 4-4 1 3 3 6 2 1 2 26
M. Bonner 23 2-4 2-3 2-2 1 3 0 0 1 0 4 8
B. Barry 24 1-4 1-3 1-1 0 3 3 2 1 0 4 4
B. Udrih 13 1-3 0-1 0-0 1 1 1 1 1 0 2 2
F. Oberto 10 2-7 0-0 0-0 2 5 0 0 0 0 1 4

Bonner 23 min, Barry 24 min, Udrih 13 min.

Both games LBJ played over 40 minutes and his team squeaked out wins against the Spurs who were in typical early season form. The Cavs did play solid defense and harass the Spurs which means this series may be somewhat low scoring, but the Spurs definitely didn't play the type of ball or lineup rotations that they are now. That is why the regular season games, especially early season ones, don't count much when judging the Spurs. The Spurs aren't the 2007 Mavs who put the pedal to the metal all year long, the Spurs played odd lineups and were trying to find the rotation that would be best in the PO through this time of year. On the flip side, Gibson was a rookie early in the season and didn't get the burn that he will in this series. He could be a factor here, but he may see reduced minutes in this series since he had a hard time matching up with the Spurs. It'll be interesting to see what Brown and Pop do that will be different considering the platform this time around.


That works both ways. Early in the season Mike Brown was still trying to find his rotations and figure out what worked for him. I mean come on in both of those games we gave Eric Snow and Damon Jones major minutes. Gibson didn't even play in one, granted he was a rookie, and Sasha only got 1 minute in the first and 8 in the second. Its a whole different lineup now. I "kind of" agree you can't base "everything" on the regular season but you can't simply imply that only the spurs made tremendous strides since those games and its the same old Cavs team from January that you'll be playing. I believe the correct answer is "both" teams are now playing at a high level and no one can predict what will happen in this series. It will be exciting.

[L.I.T]

Spurs are going to be attacking the rim. The stats indicate that the Cavs blocked 4.3 shots per game during the regular season; during the playoffs they are worse, averaging 3.62 per game. They don't have an intimidating shot blocker to deter players at the rim.

[Bruno]

Spurs are going to be attacking the rim. The stats indicate that the Cavs blocked 4.3 shots per game during the regular season; during the playoffs they are worse, averaging 3.62 per game. They don't have an intimidating shot blocker to deter players at the rim.

Agree.

Another stat to prove that point :

Spurs defensive eFG% is .472
Cavs defensive eFG% is .480

Spurs defensive eFG% against jumpshoot is .427
Cavs defensive eFG% against jumpshoot is .409

Spurs defensive eFG% against layups and dunks is .560
Cavs defensive eFG% against layups and dunks is .626

[Mr. Body]

The Cavs' recourse to layups and dunks are flops and drawing charges. Must beware.

[Rummpd]

Show up and play their game. Cleveland does not even belong in the discussion of elite teams.

[hater]

key #1: "not choke"

they accomplish this and it's over in 5 at most

[ArgSpursFan]

Defense.

[FromWayDowntown]

I think maintaining some degree of control over the defensive glass is crucial for the Spurs, particularly early in the series. As the Cavs send their bigs to the offensive boards, the Spurs can get transition opportunities with numbers by simply being strong on the defensive glass and pushing the ball after the rebound, particularly when Ilgauskas is on the floor. I can't see that Z has the speed to get up and down with Duncan, Oberto, and/or Elson. It seems to me that if the Spurs can control the defensive glass early in the series, it puts the Cavs in a predicament about whether to continue to crash the boards and give up break opportunities or to focus on getting back in transition and foregoing their usual feast of 2nd chance points. Even if the affect on the Cavs' decision-making isn't that pronounced, controlling the defensive glass with gang rebounding will aid the Spurs significantly.

[ClingingMars]

APPROPRIATE FEAR

-Mars

[Bruno]

The Cavs' recourse to layups and dunks are flops and drawing charges. Must beware.

:nope
offensive fouls drawn during the 06-07 regular seaosn :
San Antonio 181
Cleveland 197

[BreezeHillBill]

I fear for Manu taking Lebron's charges when he drives the rim starting outside the 3-point arc like a runaway freight train. Will take muchos cojones.

[BWJACKETS]

James getting 40 and 41 in the reg season aint something to worry about at all,coze we all know that the spurs wont let that happen in the finals
Spurs @finals>>>>>>spurs @reg season.

That is a huge excuse, you are trying to excuse yourself from the losses during the regular season but by dismissing them completely you are basically saying "Yes, I am overconfident." The fact of the matter is, Cavs are 3-1 vs. SA w/ Mike Brown as our coach, it isn't a fluke, he knows your system and I'm sure it is on the minds of the Spurs coaches and players (unless they too are overconfident), Cavs will make this an ugly series for Lebron to take over, which he will.

[BWJACKETS]

I think maintaining some degree of control over the defensive glass is crucial for the Spurs, particularly early in the series. As the Cavs send their bigs to the offensive boards, the Spurs can get transition opportunities with numbers by simply being strong on the defensive glass and pushing the ball after the rebound, particularly when Ilgauskas is on the floor. I can't see that Z has the speed to get up and down with Duncan, Oberto, and/or Elson. It seems to me that if the Spurs can control the defensive glass early in the series, it puts the Cavs in a predicament about whether to continue to crash the boards and give up break opportunities or to focus on getting back in transition and foregoing their usual feast of 2nd chance points. Even if the affect on the Cavs' decision-making isn't that pronounced, controlling the defensive glass with gang rebounding will aid the Spurs significantly.

I didn't even have to read your entire post, here is my response: In all likelihood, CLE will probably be even or have a slight advantage on the defensive boards, however offensive rebounds will be big advantage for Cleveland, the Cavs IMO are better offensive rebounding than they are defensive, Duncan must be a monster on the boards, which he is capable of, but Cleveland has a definitive size advantage across the board on the Spurs beside Duncan.

[FromWayDowntown]

I didn't even have to read your entire post, here is my response: In all likelihood, CLE will probably be even or have a slight advantage on the defensive boards, however offensive rebounds will be big advantage for Cleveland, the Cavs IMO are better offensive rebounding than they are defensive, Duncan must be a monster on the boards, which he is capable of, but Cleveland has a definitive size advantage across the board on the Spurs beside Duncan.

You should have read my post -- my point was that if the Spurs control their own defensive glass (that is, keep Cleveland from rolling up a big advantage in offensive rebounds) they are going to be a long way towards winning this series.

You're obviously arguing that the Spurs won't be able to do that -- but you might want to check in with Jazz fans about that issue.

[MadDog73]

I didn't even have to read your entire post, here is my response: In all likelihood, CLE will probably be even or have a slight advantage on the defensive boards, however offensive rebounds will be big advantage for Cleveland, the Cavs IMO are better offensive rebounding than they are defensive, Duncan must be a monster on the boards, which he is capable of, but Cleveland has a definitive size advantage across the board on the Spurs beside Duncan.

Jazz were better rebounders than Spurs...

that worked out well for them.

[SpurOutofTownFan]

I believe the whole thing is going to be decided by Parker and Ginobili penetrations. Cavs don't have anyone to stop them on a consistent basis. I foresee Cavs throwing different people at Parker every night. I don't think they have anyone to stop Ginobili. Jazz had the same problem. They may put LBJ on Ginobili for a quarter or so since he is capable of defending him due to his size but I think Ginobili will make him pay for that. I really believe Cavs don't have any way to stop them, period. There's no player in that roster with that set of skills.

[Solid D]

Hey Marcus. Glad to see you combined your other threads into this one. You did that, right? :smokin

The Cavs are playing excellent defense. I would not take Cleveland lightly. The Spurs lose some of their offensive efficiency with teams that junk-it-up. The Cavaliers have a chance...especially with LeBron James.