On the surface, it appears to be a task the Thunder will most likely fall short of; however, if the Spurs series taught us anything, it’s that the games must still be played regardless of widespread beliefs and early predictions.
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For much of the season, the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs seemingly were on a collision course.
The Thunder led by 27 points midway through the third quarter before the Spurs chipped away at that lead, but never really put it in any danger, falling down 113-99 in the end. The Thunder beat the Spurs in large part on the strength of terrific performances from younger players like Steven Adams and Dion Waiters, who made athletic plays to assist superstars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. “I think, just throughout the season, we were still learning who we were as a team”.
After trailing by 28 points, the Spurs cut the lead to 15 points with less than seven minutes in the game. “There’s only one team that is happy at the end of the year and everybody else at some point is sad, but you get over it”. We knew what we had to do to win the series. “We all enjoy playing with each other”. LaMarcus Aldridge added 18 points and 14 rebounds. The other Oklahoma City players combined to shoot 47.6 percent from the field in the series against San Antonio. San Antonio lost just once at home during the regular season, but the Thunder beat the Spurs twice in San Antonio during the series.
Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs with 22 points.
“We knew that they were going to be dominant on the boards and be good down low”, Aldridge said.
“We weren’t in this position for nothing”, Durant said. The league’s coach of the year figured there might be a transition period as everybody got comfortable again.
Tim Duncan is about to shoot his free throws during game six of their match-up against the OKC Thunder. He was much better than we could have ever hoped or expected given the length of time that he was out, Kerr said.
When the teams finally met, four months into the season, the Spurs ruled, holding the Warriors to 79 points. Westbrook missed a layup, and Leonard dribbled the ball upcourt with all the momentum on San Antonio’s side. What I’m trying to say is: if you’re a Spurs fan, relax.
Tristan Thompson, F, Cleveland Cavaliers: Thompson has seen just eight games of action as the Cavs are steamrolling the competition in the Eastern Conference playoffs. That’s not a problem for the Thunder, who can run and play at the Warriors pace and keep up in the scoring column. That’s how good the Warriors have been all season long: if everyone’s healthy, even if their superstars are off night, you can not do much against them.
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Even if no one else on the Thunder show up – a real possibility – these two are good enough to win a game or two. “No, I’m not going to tell you”.
