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For me this list could've been shrunk to one thing: Tony Parker. If TP is right he can beat the Lakers by himself. If he's not right, Spurs are screwed anyway.
10. Don't Let Nash Hide
It sounds like Steve Nash is going to try to give it go. He's admittedly unsure of his health after sitting out the last three-plus weeks with various injuries. The Spurs need to force him to exert as much energy as possible. Defensively, that means pressuring Nash fullcourt. Offensively, the Spurs can't let Nash stand around away from the ball. Whoever he's defending needs to be heavily involved in the offence.
9. Frustrate Howard
Dwight Howard can be a great player at times. But he's also emotionally combustible. Hard fouls can cause him to lose his cool. Hack-a-Howard can cause him to seethe. Physical, timely double-teams can frustrate him. By mucking up his rhythm, the Spurs can possibly take him out of what he wants to do.
8. Limit Turnovers
The Spurs were below average this season in terms of taking care of the basketball. However, the Lakers are the second worst team in basketball at forcing turnovers. They are so focused at avoiding fouls that they rarely go for steals -- and they don't even block as many shots as you'd expect from a team with their size. Basically, L.A. will let you play a clean game. The Spurs need to take advantage of that and not commit unforced turnovers.
7. Pick-and-Roll Execution
The Lakers are big in the middle -- but lack mobility. Their point guards, whether Nash or Steve Blake, are poor on-ball defenders. Their help-defense is undisciplined -- to put it kindly. Add it up and L.A. is ripe for being picked-and-rolled to death. When the Spurs have had success against the Lakers in the last few seasons, it's been largely due to pick-and-roll execution. In this series, the Spurs offense should consider a pick-and-roll as the preferred outcome of just about every possession.
6. Three-Point Land
The three-point line will be important on both ends of the court. On offense, the Spurs need to take advantage of the Lakers iffy ability to limit open shots from downtown. On defense, San Antonio needs to get ready to defend the three. The Lakers aren't great percentage-wise from deep but Mike D'Antoni's team is never bashful. Additionally, three-point defense has been a litmus test for how well the Spurs are playing. When they are struggling, their ability to defend the three-point line is one of the first things to go by the wayside.
5. Foul Trouble
The Spurs need to go into this series understanding that the Lakers will shoot more free throws. It's an inevitable fact. The Lakers rarely foul and they get to the line as much as any team outside of OKC. Add in Hack-a-Howard and there's no way the Spurs will shoot more free throws. That, alone, is survivable. But the Spurs need to keep the fouls off of Tim Duncan and Tiago Splitter as much as possible. Without the services of Boris Diaw, if either gets in foul trouble, the result could get ugly.
4. Defensive Rebounding
The Spurs are a very good defensive rebounding team. But defensive rebounding remains a worrisome aspect against the Lakers. Why? Their size and newfound style of play. Without Kobe Bryant, the Lakers will pound it into the middle even more -- which will make it even more difficult for the Spurs to rebound. Additionally, neither Matt Bonner nor DeJuan Blair can be counted on to rebound consistently against the Lakers. Thus, San Antonio needs to send all five players to the defensive glass. The Spurs can't allow the Lakers to play volleyball above the rim on offense.
3. Game 1
It sounds like a simplistic key but Game 1 in this series is way more important than a typical series opener. The Spurs have been circling the drain as of late. A Game 1 win can right the ship and restore confidence that has been shaken as of late. Conversely, a Game 1 loss would not only empower the Lakers, it could cause a complete and utter meltdown for the Spurs. Given the fact that L.A. has only beaten one winning team on the road since the All-Star break, the Spurs can't afford to let the Lakers land the first punch.
2. Speed
The faster, the better. The Spurs need to run, run, run and run some more. To win, the Lakers will need to slow the pace and let their bigmen dominate the action. By running, the Spurs can accomplish a number of objectives: 1) They can take advantage of their depth 2) They will get more scoring opportunities without their bigs waiting in the lane 3) They will force the Lakers perimeter players to carry more of the load. In the regular season, the Lakers actually played at a slightly faster pace than the Spurs -- so there's a chance they could make the mistake of trying to run with San Antonio.
1. Health
This is undoubtedly the biggest key of the series. Specifically, the health of Tony Parker will probably determine who wins this series. But Parker isn't the only one. Manu Ginobili needs to stay healthy -- even if his minutes will be limited. The rest of the gimpy players (which includes pretty much everyone at this point) need to stay upright.
For me this list could've been shrunk to one thing: Tony Parker. If TP is right he can beat the Lakers by himself. If he's not right, Spurs are screwed anyway.
1- Health
2- Bigs play like bigs
3- 3pt D
Great read. Pick and Roll is definitely the lifeline.
Oh, the irony of needed to play faster than a Mike D'Antoni team...
(although it sounds like Kobe is going to be doing most of the coaching)
thanks timvp
really pumped for this, got all my laker buddies comin over tomorrow to catch the game. that said, we better win or i'm going to eating crow from the whole gang
Show up. Lakers suck.
there are only 2 keys. the left ball and the right ball. ing show some ing balls, cojones, testicles
Tony Parker
Who Wants It, Wins
Lakers in 4
I don't buy the health stuff anymore. These guys have had lots and lots of rest of late and feel great. I won't expect anything less than a great effort by Parker and Ginobili today.
Nice write up, hopefully the Spurs can get their fast break game going...and not have Green leading that fast break
And not only healthy, but healthy enough to play as they need to play. Just being on the court has proven to be insufficient. Look at how long it took Tim to become effective again after his last injury - people on this forum were starting to panic about him and he looked like he was hurting the team more than helping at some point -- and the same with Tony most recently.
Excellent breakdown TimMVP.
I agree with you that health is the biggest factor. If Parker and Ginobili are banged up, it gives the Lakers at least a punchers chance.
If Tony Parker is healthy and playing like Tony Parker, my beloved Lakers could have a problem.
Either way, Spurs at 5.5 to 1 to win the series seems inflated.
Dwight Howard could go a long way towards regaining respect around the league if he can lead the Lakers to a shocking series upset. That said, for us the keys will be White Mamba, Pau and Jamison.
Unleash the Red Mamba
For what? Not the team you want to play him against! It is also the playoffs so........
Do the Spurs have a championship switch in 2013? We're about to find out.
Paul Garcia PS @24writer 2m “If the situation arises where we needed him, we know he’ll be ready.”-Coach Pop on Tracy McGrady #Spurs #Lakers
Parker is the key to pick&roll success, 3-point looks for the role players and speeding up the game, tbh..if he plays at the level he did in the 1st half of the season, Spurs easily win this series..
Duncan's jump shot is a key factor, as well..Howard has returned to form defensively, he's the best defensive player in the NBA(and it may not even be close when he's playing at peak level), but the Spurs could take him out of the paint if Tim is making his jump shots..if Howard is allowed to sag off, the Spurs offense will be in trouble..
The Art of War theories. lol I hope so.
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