The top priorities for the Thunder will be playing a clean game on offense by limiting turnovers, then getting back in transition and stopping the ball.
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Mills is averaging 23 percent shooting in this series, and the Spurs would be insane to keep him in the offseason. “We’ve got two shots”.
The Thunder trimmed San Antonio’s lead to 98-96 on a floater by Dion Waiters with 4.5 seconds remaining, but Leonard made two free throws with 2.7 seconds remaining.
To the surprise of many who have seen the Thunder botch games during the fourth quarter, it was OKC who set the tone in the final frame when a nifty step-back 3-pointer by Russell Westbrook gave the Thunder a four point lead and capped off an 8-to-0 OKC run. The Spurs should look to get Cory Joseph back or add someone like Jeremy Lin to the mix, because Mills isn’t performing at a high level anymore.
Raptors at Heat, Game 3, 5 p.m. ET, ESPN (series tied 1-1): The Raptors will look to take the momentum from their Game 2 win down South to regain control of the series.
The Cavaliers continued their 3-point onslaught, sending Atlanta into a tizzy, in their 121-109 Game 3 win Friday. According to the latest National Basketball Association rumors, Durant has hinted that he could be considering the San Antonio Spurs as a possible destination next season. Meanwhile, Durant had 26 points but shot efficiently at 10-of-18 shots. His shooting percentage took a dip in Game 3, when he hit only 8 of 21 shots.
Game four will tip-off at 7 PM on Sunday.
Not unrelated, the game followed another familiar theme as the Thunder collapsed down the stretch. That’s forced the Spurs to rely more on isolations and post-ups for Leonard and Aldridge, which isn’t necessarily their game. While the first 42 minutes of the game, Leonard and Aldridge keeping up with Westbrook and Durant was enough. “They go down, we know he’s going to be extra aggressive, so we just make sure that everybody’s paying attention to weak side defense. They have great players, but they also have a great coach to put them in position to utilize all their strength as individuals and make it come together as a team”, Durant told the San Antonio-Express News.
Taken at face value, Kevin Durant was just complimenting veteran forward David West for his decision to value professional goals over financial ones by joining the Spurs.
The building grew deafening when the Thunder cut the lead to 61-60 with less than five minutes to go in the third quarter.
If the Spurs are to beat the Thunder in Oklahoma they are going to need to play as if it was a final because the Thunder have won eight of nine at home this postseason. They will now head into Game 4 in what is essentially a must-win game at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Before the series started, it seemed that the narrative would be the Thunder’s star power vs. the Spurs’ teamwork.
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In Game 1, Aldridge’s teammates made 33 of 61 shots (.541).
