Spurs Adjustments Too Much For Heat
Added on Jun 17, 2013 by Scott in
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The San Antonio Spurs do a lot of things well, but under the direction of head coach Gregg Popovich, no team adjusts on the fly better. It took guts and confidence to insert Manu Ginobili into the starting lineup for Game 5. The veteran sixth man had been struggling mightily, averaging a paltry 7.5 points in the first four games of the Finals. However, his 24 points and 10 assists proved to be the difference in San Antonio being one win away from a fifth championship.
As good as the Spurs are playing, not having Ginobili’s clutch playmaking and shooting at their disposal has been problematic. Lucky for them, Danny Green has been on a tear, hitting a Finals record 25 three-pointers. Tony Parker and Tim Duncan have been solid, but Green is putting together an MVP worthy performance.
In addition to Ginobili’s surprise appearance as a starter, Popovich shifted Boris Diaw to shadow LeBron James in the second half. Diaw took away James’ driving lanes and held the four-time MVP to 1-8 from the field. Guarding James is a tall order, but thus far the Spurs have done a reasonably good job.
Meanwhile, Mike Miller, who Erik Spoelstra moved to the starting five in Game 4, posted his second straight scoreless outing. In 46 minutes, Miller has attempted only two shots in two starts after knocking down five threes in mop-up duty of Game 3′s lopsided defeat.
The Heat are getting a consistent effort from Chris Bosh, and Ray Allen has raised his level of play. That said, their defense, especially on the perimeter, has been sorely lacking in the last two losses. They can ill afford to allow Green open looks and must be better at preventing Parker from attacking the rim.
San Antonio can smell another title. With both Ginobili and Duncan nearing the end of their careers, getting this close again is unlikely. Now it’s Miami’s turn to respond. LeBron and Wade and the rest return home with a clear objective: win two games. Easier said than done.
