This was not an epic meltdown by Spurs

[tmtcsc]

The only thing that might save it from being an epic meltdown is GS's offensive firepower. Make no mistake though, someone allowed Curry to go off by not playing the proper D on him. No excuses. Blowing a 23 point lead in 19 or so minutes, is blowing a 23 point lead. Complete meltdown and loss of composure.

[bic50]

The only thing that might save it from being an epic meltdown is GS's offensive firepower. Make no mistake though, someone allowed Curry to go off by not playing the proper D on him. No excuses. Blowing a 23 point lead in 19 or so minutes, is blowing a 23 point lead. Complete meltdown and loss of composure.

19 minutes is a long time to hold off a team like the warriors when your best player who was having a great game goes down.

[Amuseddaysleeper]

The lead also shrunk to 14 at one point, so it's not like GS didn't show signs of breaking out early.

Truth be told, Spurs lost by 1 point (Patty could have made the 2nd FT if he wanted). It would be foolish to think a small change here or there couldn't have made up that difference, and KL isn't a small change so sure, as I've said, I think we win if KL doesn't go out, but do you think the Spurs can bury GS by 25 a game to give KL bench time if needed? I don't. Imagine the game was closer going into the 3rd. We lose by 21pts. Obviously the score determines the action, so you cannot just insert a scenario and keep the outcome the same, but what other option do we have?

I expected the game to be close even when we were up 25 or so, by the end. I said so in multiple threads. That was before KL went down. After KL went down, I knew we were hosed. I was actually surprised the Spurs fought as well as they did in the 4th, despite the lapses.

These are some fair points, tbh.


It's also the biggest reason why I can't see how this can be the most painful loss since 6. Even if the Spurs had taken game 1, they need to play out of their minds just to have a good lead while GS only needs two players to show up (Curry, Durant) to win. Kawhi alone isn't going to beat GS 4 times out of 7. Winning Game 1 makes this a 5-6 game series instead of 4-5, even though yes losing that game 1 was a bummer.

[testies]

When we were up double digits and trading 3s, Gasol was just gifting Curry 3 after 3.

[lebomb]

Contrary to popular narrative there and here, Kawhi's injury wasn't the turning point. The worm was making it's way back around. That long lucky 3 by LMA was right at the beginning of the end.

You cannot expect to beat a team of all stars with rookies, role guys and old guys. It's too Hollywood to think otherwise. 2014 ain't walkin' through that door.

STFU, you never know what you are talking about. Well, except that Harden is the worlds biggest choker.

[DaBears]

As a Spurs fan or player, while I hate to lose, I would take comfort in knowing that it wasn't till the KL went done that things go to !@@#!. There is no doubt in my mind that had KL been in the game we would have Cruised at a "W"... So with that being said I as a fan am on the fence on if I'd like to see 'Klaw' out there in game2.. I would reluctantly would say let him rest the ankle and get those 6 days off, and let the team try to scrape out a W on LMA shoulders. What do you all think?

[coachmac87]

If you're shocked that the Warriors overcame a 23 point lead in about 20min you haven't watched them enough tbh. They've been going up on people by 20pts in ONE QUARTER all postseason and it's gotten praise throughout the media..

The only thing shocking about yesterday is how the Spurs were absolutely DOMINATING the Warriors and were taking major control of this series..Anybody with a basketball brain knew GSW wasn't going to win if Kawhi didn't get hurt...

And to All the idiots who keep bringing up the Rockets game/series or Spurs record without Kawhi can please STFU. Totally different cir stances and you cannot compare the two...plus if my heart dropped when I saw Kawhi got hurt I can't imagine the players..

It's unfortunate it had to happen this way....Spurs really had a chance of shocking the world and really helping the direction of the league.

[Horse]

Kawhi Leonard MVP just that simple. They made few runs and we answered every one of them till he got hurt.

[Horse]

1. and 2. are absolutely true and hence why they were heavy underdogs even with a healthy Kawhi. Even if Kawhi was healthy and they steal game 1, it's hard to imagine doing this again 3 times against GSW.

But I think for sure they win this game with Kawhi and they played exactly how they needed to from an 'upset' perspective. The only slim chance of winning this series was if Kawhi absolutely carried this team offensively while the supporting cast provided some type of disruption to the GSW offense.

Doing what? The huge lead was due to the advantages we've had before the season even started. Owning the boards their lack of rim protection great D. All of this is sustainable. That being said we shouldn't have lost but Kawhi was certainly the turning point.

[DMC]

Kawhi isn't just "one guy" he's the Spurs best player and was having great game.

Same concept as Russ in OKC. If the team cannot withstand some time with the star off the floor, especially a 23pt lead in the middle of the 3rd quarter, then the team is doomed because the Star cannot play 48 minutes a night.

[DMC]

STFU, you never know what you are talking about. Well, except that Harden is the worlds biggest choker.

I was also right about Westbrook. He's a loser, you said so yourself.

Warriors outscored the Spurs by 11 in both the 3rd and 4th quarters. They did not do any better in the 4th than in the 3rd and KL was on the floor for half of the 3rd.

The cute narrative now is that the Spurs were poised to upset the Warriors before KL went down. One game is not an upset in a 7 game series. GS came out rusty as you'd expect them to with such a long layover, but they recovered when I figured they would. Win or lose the 1st, the Spurs didn't show enough heart with KL out to make me think they could defeat the Warriors in a 7 game series. It doesn't mean they cannot still win, they absolutely can, but I wouldn't drive to Vegas to bet on it.

[therealtruth]

The Spurs need to attack Curry. Force him to play defense. Then he won't have the legs to hit all those shots. Start Murray/Simmons/Ginobili to make it happen.

[cjw]

Warriors outscored the Spurs by 11 in both the 3rd and 4th quarters. They did not do any better in the 4th than in the 3rd and KL was on the floor for half of the 3rd.

The Spurs were up more than 20 when Kawhi went down so actually extended their halftime lead despite some hot shooting. Because they were outscored by the same amount both quarters does not mean the lead was slipping away before he went down a second time.

But who lets reality get in the way of facts that seem to create a narrative.

[DMC]

The Spurs were up more than 20 when Kawhi went down so actually extended their halftime lead despite some hot shooting. Because they were outscored by the same amount both quarters does not mean the lead was slipping away before he went down a second time.

But who lets reality get in the way of facts that seem to create a narrative.

"Some hot shooting"..

Ergo different than the 1st quarter. At one point the Warriors outscored the Spurs by 10 points while KL was on the floor. We got most of that back, but there were runs and the 11pt difference in the 3rd came as a result of turnovers and missed defensive rotations.

So what's your point? I said the Spurs probably win that game if KL stays in, but if we lose 23 points just because KL is out, and lose a 23pt lead in about the same time it took to build it, how good are we?

I don't pretend Kawhi can carry this team to victory in this series, acting alone. If the rest of the team is -2 and KL is +23, that's not a good thing.

[cjw]

I don't pretend Kawhi can carry this team to victory in this series, acting alone. If the rest of the team is -2 and KL is +23, that's not a good thing.

Kawhi was +21 so Spurs were -23 with him off the floor. You take the best player off any team - especially one that lost one of its other primary playmakers - and that's expected. Offense becomes stagnant and GSW feeds off of misses, and you're now down your best defender and Green can only be put on one other guy. Maybe not that sort of meltdown (25 point swing in basically a quarter and change but close down stretch). It's a team game and Kawhi makes everyone else significantly better. It's totally possible for him to push the Spurs to the brink of competing with the Warriors. Without him, put all your money on GSW.

Agree with you that part of the early lead was the Warriors being rusty, while Spurs were more in rythym. On the flip side, only two days of rest vs. a week hurt them down the stretch, especially as minutes were extended with Kawhi out.

[tholdren]

Best players on the court went down..what do you expect?

pros to sustain a 20 pt lead

[gospursgojas]

pros to sustain a 20 pt lead

"Pros" vs Mega Super Team Ultra 3000

[FkLA]

I think he'll be utilized more in the Finals. Try to use North of the border thinking.

And that'll put him on Kawhi's level? You're a stubborn fat .

[diego]

I was also right about Westbrook. He's a loser, you said so yourself.

Warriors outscored the Spurs by 11 in both the 3rd and 4th quarters. They did not do any better in the 4th than in the 3rd and KL was on the floor for half of the 3rd.

The cute narrative now is that the Spurs were poised to upset the Warriors before KL went down. One game is not an upset in a 7 game series. GS came out rusty as you'd expect them to with such a long layover, but they recovered when I figured they would. Win or lose the 1st, the Spurs didn't show enough heart with KL out to make me think they could defeat the Warriors in a 7 game series. It doesn't mean they cannot still win, they absolutely can, but I wouldn't drive to Vegas to bet on it.

evidently they did not show enough heart because they lost. But that doesnt mean they didnt show any. In fact i think they showed quite a lot. They did score 49 points without their best player. They got shredded and out super starred on the other end. There were instances where they could have hustled/executed a little better and that might have been enough, and excellence demands you take care of what you control and not what you dont- but reality is even with their 2 mvps the warriors needed plenty of home cooking to get a 1 point win against a kawhi-less spurs team that had an open shot to tie at the end. They were damn close, kawhi is just too big a piece for the rest to cover, but if he were healthy there was a decent chance to win the series.

[therealtruth]

If they prevented Curry from getting all those 3's in the 3rd they could have probably held on the lead.

[DMC]

evidently they did not show enough heart because they lost. But that doesnt mean they didnt show any. In fact i think they showed quite a lot. They did score 49 points without their best player. They got shredded and out super starred on the other end. There were instances where they could have hustled/executed a little better and that might have been enough, and excellence demands you take care of what you control and not what you dont- but reality is even with their 2 mvps the warriors needed plenty of home cooking to get a 1 point win against a kawhi-less spurs team that had an open shot to tie at the end. They were damn close, kawhi is just too big a piece for the rest to cover, but if he were healthy there was a decent chance to win the series.

Vegas doesn't think so. It's just wishful thinking to think that because the opponent came out rusty that somehow the series is going to go that way. It's not going to go that way. The Spurs didn't sweep Memphis or Houston. In fact I think they struggled with both teams. That was with their point guard. Golden State hasn't really struggled at all because even if one of their best shooters is struggling their other best shooter is better than any of ours.

[DMC]

If they prevented Curry from getting all those 3's in the 3rd they could have probably held on the lead.

Well if it was that easy for the Spurs bench to hold Steph Curry down, he wouldn't be a back-to-back MVP for damn sure.

[DMC]

And that'll put him on Kawhi's level? You're a stubborn fat .

How good of a scorer is Kawhi right now? Exactly you idiot. If you don't get to play that role you don't get those numbers.

[DMC]

Kawhi was +21 so Spurs were -23 with him off the floor. You take the best player off any team - especially one that lost one of its other primary playmakers - and that's expected. Offense becomes stagnant and GSW feeds off of misses, and you're now down your best defender and Green can only be put on one other guy. Maybe not that sort of meltdown (25 point swing in basically a quarter and change but close down stretch). It's a team game and Kawhi makes everyone else significantly better. It's totally possible for him to push the Spurs to the brink of competing with the Warriors. Without him, put all your money on GSW.

Agree with you that part of the early lead was the Warriors being rusty, while Spurs were more in rythym. On the flip side, only two days of rest vs. a week hurt them down the stretch, especially as minutes were extended with Kawhi out.

Well since the game started off 0-0 and ended and basically a two-point loss then the rest of the Spurs could only be minus two. At one point they were also + 23. Oddly enough they were +39 with him off the floor in Houston.

[FkLA]

"How can this idiot not realize that Klay is just saving his offensive magic for June?! He's still a much better offensive player than Kawhi!"