The San Antonio Spurs took a 1-0 series lead with a dominant 108-92 win at home in Game 1. Thursday these two teams will face off in San Antonio for Game 2 of the best of seven series. Tip-off is scheduled for 9:30 EST and will be televised nationally on ESPN. As awful as the Los Angeles Clippers played in Game 1, they can steal the home court advantage with a win in Game 2. If the Spurs are able to take a 2-0 series lead, I think San Antonio will go on to win the series
Oddsmakers don't like the Clippers chances of get the series even at 1-1. San Antonio is favored by 11-points over the Clippers with the total set at 194 points. Make sure you stay up to date with the series by clicking here.
Los Angeles
There's no doubt the Clippers were feeling the effects of their long seven game series with the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 1, but I also think this is a particularly difficult matchup for LA. San Antonio is great at taking the opposing teams strengths. San Antonio did not permit the Clippers to run the pick and roll and really limited their fast break opportunities.
The Clippers are going to have to make some big adjustments in Game 2, but what it actually boils down to is the play of Chris Paul. In Game 1, Paul was held to just six points on 3 of 13 shooting. While he finished the game with 10 assists, if he's not scoring 20 points a game, the Clippers are not going to beat the Spurs. Especially if San Antonio continues to take away the pick and roll.
Blake Griffin finished with 15 points and 9 rebounds, but was limited to just 28 minutes. It looked like the knee wasn't bothering him early on, however it appeared to be taking its toll over the course of the game. Griffin connected just 7 of 17 from the field and San Antonio is essentially daring him to shoot from 10-15 feet out.
There were a couple positives to take away from Game 1. Caron Butler was an offensive factor with 15 points and Eric Bledsoe and Nick Young contributed 36 points off the bench. Bledsoe had a team-high 23 points on 10 of 16 shooting. The sole issue with that is the Clippers still lost the game by 16-points.
San Antonio
The Spurs have to be pleased with how things went in Game 1, but head coach Greg Poppovich knows his team can play far better. San Antonio turned the ball over 18 times, well above their season average of slightly under 12 a game. A lot of that probably had to do with the long lay off between series. Expect this team to take a lot better care of the ball as the series goes on.
Offensively the Spurs were extremely sharp in the opener. San Antonio was on fire from behind the arc, connecting on 13 of 25 (52%) behind the 3-point line. While it's unlikely the Spurs will be able to keep up that pace, it's an area where they figure to continue to have success. The Spurs got a wide-open look whenever they wanted.
Tim Duncan had no problems against the Clippers defense with 26 points on 12 of 20 shooting. Duncan also had 10 rebounds 2 steals and 2 blocks. Manu Ginobili put in 22 points off the bench, while Daniel Green and Kawhi Leonard combined for 31 points thanks largely to 6 of 9 shooting from behind the arc. What's scary if you are a Clippers fan, is Tony Parker had just seven points on 1 of 9 shooting. Parker did help out with a game-high 11 assists.
Oddsmakers don't like the Clippers chances of get the series even at 1-1. San Antonio is favored by 11-points over the Clippers with the total set at 194 points. Make sure you stay up to date with the series by clicking here.
Los Angeles
There's no doubt the Clippers were feeling the effects of their long seven game series with the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 1, but I also think this is a particularly difficult matchup for LA. San Antonio is great at taking the opposing teams strengths. San Antonio did not permit the Clippers to run the pick and roll and really limited their fast break opportunities.
The Clippers are going to have to make some big adjustments in Game 2, but what it actually boils down to is the play of Chris Paul. In Game 1, Paul was held to just six points on 3 of 13 shooting. While he finished the game with 10 assists, if he's not scoring 20 points a game, the Clippers are not going to beat the Spurs. Especially if San Antonio continues to take away the pick and roll.
Blake Griffin finished with 15 points and 9 rebounds, but was limited to just 28 minutes. It looked like the knee wasn't bothering him early on, however it appeared to be taking its toll over the course of the game. Griffin connected just 7 of 17 from the field and San Antonio is essentially daring him to shoot from 10-15 feet out.
There were a couple positives to take away from Game 1. Caron Butler was an offensive factor with 15 points and Eric Bledsoe and Nick Young contributed 36 points off the bench. Bledsoe had a team-high 23 points on 10 of 16 shooting. The sole issue with that is the Clippers still lost the game by 16-points.
San Antonio
The Spurs have to be pleased with how things went in Game 1, but head coach Greg Poppovich knows his team can play far better. San Antonio turned the ball over 18 times, well above their season average of slightly under 12 a game. A lot of that probably had to do with the long lay off between series. Expect this team to take a lot better care of the ball as the series goes on.
Offensively the Spurs were extremely sharp in the opener. San Antonio was on fire from behind the arc, connecting on 13 of 25 (52%) behind the 3-point line. While it's unlikely the Spurs will be able to keep up that pace, it's an area where they figure to continue to have success. The Spurs got a wide-open look whenever they wanted.
Tim Duncan had no problems against the Clippers defense with 26 points on 12 of 20 shooting. Duncan also had 10 rebounds 2 steals and 2 blocks. Manu Ginobili put in 22 points off the bench, while Daniel Green and Kawhi Leonard combined for 31 points thanks largely to 6 of 9 shooting from behind the arc. What's scary if you are a Clippers fan, is Tony Parker had just seven points on 1 of 9 shooting. Parker did help out with a game-high 11 assists.
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