Great post and point. Game 2 was very much in doubt until like the final minute, actually. The DVD made it seem like the Spurs had any easy time after game 1 (like the Nuggets series in the later championship years), but that wasn't at all true. The game was close the whole game, and then the Suns actually began to pull away early in the 4th quarter. Spurs were down 8 points with about half of the 4th quarter left. I remember where I was at the time -- nervously pacing around the kitchen alone, 9 years old, moping about how sad it was that David's career was about to end in such humiliating fashion.
After a timeout, the Spurs and Suns exchanged empty trips. Then, Danny Ferry (who was inserted because of no Willis and hobbled David, as you said) made a corner three off a fluke broken play, with TD drawing a loose ball foul under the rim. TD converted the free throw for the 4-point play, cutting the lead to 4. We got a few more stops in a row, then TD made another basket and set of free throws to tie the game. Amare and Tim traded baskets for the next couple minutes of game time, and TP (IIRC) split a pair of free throws. We were clinging to a 1 point lead with about a minute and a half to play, with the Suns on the brink of a commanding lead which would have surely given them the greatest series upset ever (at the time). On the ensuing Spurs possession, I think it was TP who drove to the rim and dished it out to the right elbow to the rookie, Manu Ginobili (I still didn't really trust him much at the time) who stepped up with the shot clock about to expire and nailed the extremely clutch 3-pointer which extended the lead to four points -- this, to me, may have been the single most important shot in that championship run (along with Horry's miss) because it finally allowed to Spurs to believe they could beat the dreaded Suns. The Suns still had chances at the end of that game but came up short -- and the Spurs were able to split the series at home.
Even after Game 2, the Suns were far from done. After a well-played wire to wire victory in game 3, it seemed like the Spurs were about to cruise to a five-game series win after largely dominating in game 4. In fact, the Spurs led by 17 points early in the 4th quarter of that game, and the Suns' Cinderella goose seemed cooked. We even led by 14 about midway through the 4th. I was in the kitchen, this time watching with my grandmother. A couple timeouts happened, and for some reason the Spurs started missing shot after shot. TD was being doubled every possession and the shooters could not break the lid on the basket. The Suns capitalized seemingly every time down in the last few minutes of the game, alternating free throws (some questionable calls), Starbury/Amare tough shots at the rim, and jump shots from guys like Hardaway and young Joe Johnson. Somehow, the Suns tied the game with about half a minute to play, the Spurs turned it over near the rim but got back on defense, the Suns came back, Hardaway had the ball and penetrated to the rim with just a few seconds left, dished it out to the big stiff Jake Voskuhl (who?) for a mid-range jumper, and he made it (WTF?) -- to put the Suns up by 2 with almost no time left, and TD missed a desperation chance at the other end. I could not believe it! The Suns had tied the series 2-2, and I was once again genuinely worried that the Spurs' season and David's career would end it bitter disappointment as per par.
Fortunately, we played well in game 5 at home (though the Suns cut that lead from 25 to 7 in the 4th, they couldn't complete the rally) and won a hard-fought game 6. Still that was an extremely hard fought series and championship run. Many things had to fall in place for that undertalented lone-wolf led team (TD) to win it all. All season long that team was notorious for blowing enormous leads and this was magnified in the playoffs. Fortunately, we were able to send off the Admiral to the grey havens instead of drowning him.
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