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I think they could. It wouldn't be ideal but it certainly is possible - if they're healthy.
As I said about a week ago, I think the Spurs can win up to two road games in a series against any team with the exception of the Thunder. But it's one thing to do that once or maybe even twice and another entirely to have to do it four times, which is obviously a very real possibility at this point.
The '95 Rockets are the only team to ever pull it off, but a mid season trade for Drexler obviously changed the complexion of their team. Granted, the fact that they're the only team to pull it off speaks more to the fact that teams in this position are obviously not true contenders, but nonetheless, it's a daunting task.
Last edited by TD 21; 12-21-2014 at 08:16 PM. Reason: I messed this up. It was supposed to be a poll. Anyway, just say both, one of (specify which) or neither.
I think they could. It wouldn't be ideal but it certainly is possible - if they're healthy.
They could, they likely wouldn't, tbh.
And that's if we're all going to be 100% healthy, including Patty.
If they're 100% healthy and clicking, yes. They could actually end up with HCA in the finals anyway considering how the Bulls/Cavs have looked at times. The top 6-8 teams in the West could have better records than anyone in the EC.
Yes, but also, barring more unexpected injuries, I think the Spurs will finish in the top 4...
I dunno about the Thunder, tbh... I'm not sold they're making the playoffs yet.
I couldn't believe how many doubted them in the first place. It was stupid then, but it's flat out insane now.
Durant was back for 7 games then injured his surgically-repaired foot. Westchimp is also a ticking time bomb with that knee and style of play. I expect them to make the playoffs, but either/both going down with another serious injury wouldn't surprise me either.
I think they'll finish in the 3-6 seed range. And knowing the importance of matchups in the W, it's far from a guarantee that the top 4 seeds will advance into the 2nd round.
It has nothing to do with "doubting" their talent level... they're just getting hurt a lot, and that actually works like a chain reaction for them, because now that KD is out, WB has to carry a bigger load, which in turn makes him more prone to get hurt again.
If those two have to miss two or three more weeks at the wrong moment, they could easily be out of the race.
Along those same lines, I'm worried a little about Timmy. He had to do the heavy lifting with Splitter out, now these rash of injuries have meant big minutes. I'm glad Pop rests him, regular season losses be damned.
It depends, those of you who were able to watch all the playoff games back in the then - What was the Rockets compe ion like in comparison to what the Spurs or Thunder would have to face this season in that scenario?
I followed the Spurs that season, but I never had access to watching any of the games or any of the other teams back then. Did the Rockets get lucky? Did Phoenix choke?
Yeah, obviously, that also has to do with the Spurs starting the season on generally a good note, but OKC didn't have that luxury...
I can't fault Scotty for playing KD & WB heavily, they really started the season pretty badly.
Tim's the only guy that should be getting rested. Manu, I think, still should have played most games early in the season and then start getting rested later in the season. He doesn't have to carry the same load as Tim. He's not a starter and he also doesn't have to anchor the defense going up against the other team's best bigs all game while taking a pounding down low in the paint.
So yeah, Tim IMO should have been the only one to have rest days scheduled for him early in the season.
There's also this little nugget of info that maybe we shouldn't gloss over in this regard: '95 Hakeem was one of the greatest players of all-time and '14-'15 TD can only dream of playing at that level let alone anyone else on this team.
Last edited by SpurPadre; 12-21-2014 at 09:57 PM.
I think the Spurs are a better overall team though if fully healthy. I assume that is why no one has really brought up that point. I don't think they need anyone to play at that Hakeem level if they play at their optimum team level.
Seriously though, those that watched games in that run, how was the overall compe ion level compared to what the West has now, and did Phoenix choke being up 3-1 (I think they were up 3-1)? Weren't the Rockets also down in another series?
The doubts were based on an assumption that Durant would be out longer.
I think they could. OKC protects home court very well (though, they may have some help *cough* referees) the '14 Grizzlies, '12 Grizzlies & '11 Mavs are the only teams to beat the Thunder twice in OKC during the postseason.
The Warriors also have a great home court advantage but we should be able to take a game on their home floor provided we win all 3 in S.A.
we can beat Portland, Houston, Dallas, Memphis, L.A.C twice on the road in a 7 game series.
As for the East. The Bulls would be the only team I'd really worry about. Cleveland's defense is in the 20's over the past 5 or so seasons, i think the worst defense to make the Finals was the Heat from last season (11th) and we saw what happened to them. I think match up well with both teams.
I'd worry more about the grind of a long playoff run with more travel.
I think the Thunder can beat any team without home court but probably not 4 teams. The Spurs could still have home court for the 1st round. OKC would almost certainly finish at least 8th.
I followed the rockets really closely during that run. I had cousins who lived in Houston who would brag non stop about the rockets so I was rooting hard for them to fail that year. The 3 teams the Rockets played in the playoffs that year in the West were heavyweights but they also lucked out that these teams had chokers as their stars. In round 1 they played a Jazz team that had won 60 games with a prime Malone and Stockton. That series went the distance at 5 games back then when there was the best of 5. I remember Olaujuwon having to have ridiculous games of scoring 30 or more just to get the wins. There was one game where him and Drexler scored 40 points a piece to force a game 5. Game 5 was hotly contested from the start and was close but in the 4th quarter Olaujuwon proved to be too much and the Jazz ended up losing by a few points.
The next round they played a Suns team that was lead by a prime Barkley, KJ,Majerle that had won 59 games that year. The suns dominated the Rockets at the start of the series by winning the first two games by big margins. The Suns ended up going up 3-1 and it looked like the series would be over in 5 games. The Suns had a chance in game 5 to take out the Rockets at the end of the game but Barkley missed 2 freethrows and the game ended up going to OT with the Rockets prevailing. The Rockets then won that game and ended up winning game 6 fairly easily. Game 7 was close and again the Suns choked at the freethrow line. KJ was fouled with 20 seconds left in the game with the Suns being down by only 1 point but he could only hit 1 out of 2 freethrows. The game was tied with the Rockets having possession which lead to Mario Elie hitting a game winning 3 and the Rockets advance. In every game in the series the Rockets won Olaujuwon had to get around 30-10 to get the wins.
The next round the rockets played the spurs who won 63 games that year. Game 1 pretty much won that series for the Rockets in which Rodman left Horry open to hit the game winning 3.
The first 2 rounds was the key for the Rockets and it took dominate games from Olaujuwon along with some miracle shots and some choking from the opposition for the Rockets to prevail. Even in the WCF they needed the Horry shot to take out the Spurs.
Right now you want to work towards being the best team you can be, and that's difficult when you have crucial players hurt. But hopefully we can get all players healthy at some point and start building towards that.
Last season we saw the ceiling for this team is really high. There's no guarantee they'll reach that peak at the right time again, just like there's no guarantee they'll win another championship. But the potential is certainly there, we'll see if we can stay healthy for some time and are able to put things together.
The silver lining from the losses and the No 7 position in the West is that there arent' any structural weaknesses in the Spurs' play or system or even squad. They are still Top 4 in defense and are steadily improving in offense (near Top 10 after starting way low early in the season). Pop & co continue to see the larger picture as they refuse to play their veterans unless necessary. The two 3OT losses were unfortunate but the Spurs' SRS/ SOS records show it is trending decently.
I expect a major boost up in Feb/March when the Spurs get their full complement of their roster. Should finish somewhere in Top 4/5 in the West eventually.
Thanks a lot for this awesome rundown.
I didn't have access to the games to follow them that closely. I tried to follow the Spurs games as best I could. I remember the first game of the Spurs series really costing them. As flawed as that Spurs team was, they still could had their chances.
I am more worried about team health, especially Duncan's than anything else. If you lose just get blown out like last year, do not drag it to a triple OT! Also we must make sure we play the scrub teams perfectly. Losses against Nets/Jazz/Lakers really hurt, we were supposed to win these games and rest the starters against the good teams.
Thunder making the playoffs is not a lock by any means. Durant re-injured his foot, Westbrook is carrying extra load and his style of play may eventually lead him to a Derrick Rose type of injury. I can't think of anyone play with that much athleticism and sustain it for many years.
There is a lot of wear and tear on the Spurs team from three straight deep playoff runs and back-to-back NBA finals. The basketball god already gave us the sweetest le ever, I am just hoping we can get healthy by the playoffs and go out with our full roster, even that is not a given so I am just enjoying what may be the final season of Duncan / Ginobili.
The expectation of this forum is way too high. Have you not heard a candle that burns bright, burns out quickly? I felt Duncan/Ginobili used all of their life force in the last two season to get us the fifth ring. At some point they will run out of gas, no matter how much Pop protect them. Yet when the game is tight, we are still relying on these two for the go-to plays. They pulled a miracle against OKC in game 6. I really don't expect them to do it again.
I agree they definitely had their chances in that series. I really do believe if Rodman didn't go crazy they could have won the series.
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