San Antonio Spurs

AT&T CENTER -- Whether looking at a series as a whole, or individual games, the objective in the playoffs remains the same. Make a run, build a lead, and then protect that lead with everything you have. Through three quarters the San Antonio Spurs appeared to pick up where they left off in Game 1, combining a dominant defensive performance with a precision offense directed by the brilliant play of point guard Tony Parker. For a brief moment in the third quarter, Parker was at the height of his powers, getting into the middle of the Grizzlies defense and reading their schemes and rotations at an elite level. When Parker wasn’t finding Tiago Splitter at the rim for a layup or dunk, he was kicking out passes to Danny Green or Kawhi Leonard for open three-pointers. Parker scored four points and eight of his career-high 18 assists in a third quarter that saw the Spurs build an 18-point lead. “He was unbelievable. He started very well,” Manu Ginobili said. “It was a game where he wasn’t particularly good with his shot. He always found somebody, he was very explosive. He kind of ran out of juice a little bit at the end, but he was the Tony Parker that we need and know.” It almost wasn’t enough. “Sometimes your worst nightmare is a big lead, and it’s tough to keep leads often times,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We were fortunate in Game 1 to be able to do it., and tonight we weren’t. They’re a heck of a basketball team and they’re not going to give in.” The Memphis Grizzlies had every reason to give in after the first half. Both teams came out dragging the other’s offense through the mud in a first quarter that ended in a 15-13 Spurs lead. Both teams are elite defensively, but only the Spurs have enough shooting to generate offense consistently. Midway through the second quarter Manu Ginobili, drifting towards the baseline, dropped a pinpoint behind the back pass to Tim Duncan, who found Danny Green open in the corner for a three-pointer. After a defensive stop on the other end, Ginobili found Kawhi Leonard in the same corner for a transition three and the Spurs opened up a 41-30 lead. The Grizzlies would be held scoreless over the next 4:44 until Jerryd Bayless connected on a single free throw with 0.5 seconds remaining in the half. The Spurs defensive intensity was punctuated by a last minute stand in which the Grizzlies missed five point-blank shots at the rim, with the Spurs blocking three of those attempts (two from Duncan, one from Leonard). “The whole series is kind of about that, what’s going to happen in the paint,” Duncan said. “Their physicality on the boards, their ability to get to that offensive glass and score points in that situation.” For most of his 31 minutes on the floor Duncan was able to neutralize the Grizzlies interior game. But two quick fouls in the third quarter (his third and fourth) and another one early in the fourth quarter (fifth foul) limited Duncan to just under nine minutes in the third and fourth quarters while the Grizzlies shot 10-14 from the free throw line. Without Duncan’s defense, and with the Grizzlies scoring at the line, the Spurs transition and early offense opportunities dried up and the Grizzlies defense sunk in. An exhausted Tony Parker shot 2-8 from the field with no assists in the fourth quarter, and the Spurs compounded offensive woes with poor decisions and fouls. Theatrical as Tony Allen was in drawing a flagrant foul on Manu Ginobili, it was a decision that Ginobili never should have put the referees in a decision to make. The Spurs made poor passes, and ill-timed fouls. It wasn’t enough for Memphis to lock in on defense, the Spurs would have to help them out, and they did. Down four, the flagrant foul gave the Grizzlies two free throws. Then Mike Conley tied the game. As the game we

With two more wins in the Western Conference Finals, our San Antonio Spurs will return to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2007. Of course, that was the case just one year ago. Didn't exactly pan out that time. But the good news: the Memphis Grizzlies don't have one of the NBA's best bailout artists in Kevin Durant. Nor do they have three of the ten best players in the league, as was the case with OKC's Durant, Westbrook, and the Ayatollah. The better news? This team of ours, with its playoff-hardened, Larry-tested veterans and hungry young guys, remembers what happened last year better than any of us. The Spurs are famous for pounding the rock, as each of us can attest. But the Jacob Riis quote which summarizes the Spurs' philosophy goes hand-in-hand with another piece of wisdom handed down through the ages: Fall seven times, stand up eight. The Popovich-era Spurs have been blessed with some phenomenal talent over the years. This is not unique to the Spurs, though - the Lakers had two short list greats playing together for eight years in Shaq and Kobe. And for the past six seasons, Kobe has been paired with a Hall-of-Famer in Pau Gasol. (Pau's no Shaq, but who wouldn't love to have him?) The Boston Celtics were led by a trio of HOFers in Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen from 2008 to 2012. John Stockton and Karl Malone played together for fifty-one seasons. (Go on, look it up) Talent alone doesn't explain what's happened in San Antonio recently. In almost any other organization, the diminishing returns from the 2009 and 2010 seasons would have been enough impetus to blow the whole thing up. Just 50 wins? Haven't won a second round game since 2008? It's not enough. The Lakers are too big. The Nuggets, Hornets, and Thunder are all young and coming up. We gotta rebuild. We gotta retool. Ginobili's an old 33. Duncan's good years are behind him. We could get a lot of trade value for Parker. And for the panicky sports fan, it makes sense. The Spurs were 14-18 in three playoff seasons since winning the 2007 title. Everyone KNOWS that, at some point, you have to cut the old guys loose and start over. Fortunately for those of us who scream at the TV, who own a Ginobili jersey, who stay up way too late after playoff games (as I am doing now), the Spurs have too much sense and patience to think that way. Fall seven times, stand up eight. The Spurs bounced back from 50-32 in 2010 to 61-21 in 2011. But when they were humbled by the eighth-seeded Grizzlies in the first round, the 61-win season seemed like so much fool's gold. The years really showed against a youthful, aggressive, physical team. There were no Bobcats or Wizards on the playoff schedule, no gassed opponents playing their fourth game in five nights. This older, offensive-oriented team was ill-equipped to withstand the playoff grind. Their playoff record since 2007: 16-22. So how did they bounce back? By ripping off 60 wins out of 80 regular season and playoff games, that's how. The old, tired graybeards in Silver and Black reached the NBA playoff pole position ahead of younger competitors in a compressed, accelerated lockout schedule. But the elephant in the room, failure to return to the Biggest Stage, reared its ugly head in the form of a three-headed monster from Oklahoma City. But this is how it goes, isn't it? A longtime contender gets older and remains dangerous, but can't ever recapture their championship form, right? It happened to them all - Bird's Celtics, Magic's Lakers, Dr. J's/Moses' 76ers, Isiah's Pistons - they were all overrun by younger contenders and went out with a whimper rather than a bang. Since the Big Three became the Big Three in 2003, they have won three championships. They have also fallen short of the title seven times: 2004, 2006, 2008-12. But this is a team and organization with will and pride. Though they have fallen seven times, today they stand for an eighth. And with two more wins against the Memphis Grizzlies, they wi

The Spurs defeat the Grizzlies 93-89 in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals.

May 21, 2013; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs cheerleaders perform in game two of the Western Conference finals of the 2013 NBA Playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies at AT First it was the “screaming lady” taking center stage in the Golden State Warriors series and now San Antonio now has another star on their hands after their thrilling overtime win in game two against the Memphis Grizzlies. In the video below, you can hear clearly the fan shouting as the Spurs take the victory.