The Spurs are back in the win column again, just in time for a visit from the NBA\u2019s best team (by record), fresh off of their 40th win of the season.<\/p>\n
The Spurs have had the Thunder\u2019s number for most of the season, with a 3-1 record against them, but the Thunder finally flipped the tables in the last contest with a 21-point win, and I expect they\u2019ll be out to avenge both their record against San Antonio and the once-building sentiment that they\u2019re in the reigning champs\u2019 collective heads.<\/p>\n
The book is out on how the Spurs can defeat OKC. They must deny penetration and interior scoring, refrain from giving the Thunder any breathing room beyond the arc, and avoid getting sloppy against the team that leads the NBA in points off turnovers.<\/p>\n
Rebounding (4th) will assist in denying the Thunder extra possessions and keeping them from getting easy points from an offense that\u2019s spent most of the season in the top 10 for points scored in the paint.<\/p>\n
While the Thunder are near the top of the league in Effective Field Goal Percentage (4th) and True Shooting Percentage (3rd), a vulnerability has been exposed by the Spurs in their long-distance shooting.<\/p>\n
Oklahoma City sits in the middle of the pack in both three-point percentage (15th) and three-pointers made (15th), and their offense simply does not move anywhere near as fluidly when they\u2019re having difficultly inside.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s possible that this is related to a shortage of distributors, but whether it\u2019s a personnel issue or their ball-movement\u2019s Achilles heel is a matter of debate. That they\u2019re 18th in assists, 28th in assist percentage, and 18th in assist ratio is not. Something goes amiss when they\u2019re denied the interior, suggesting their offense is riding a fine line between team-play and heliocentric distribution.<\/p>\n
Offensively, the Spurs will need to push the pace at every opportunity, exercise patience in picking the stingy Thunder defense apart, and make the paint their home. The Thunder are tops in the league in fast break defense and denying points in the paint, but the speed of San Antonio\u2019s guards and Wemby\u2019s length have positioned them as one of the few teams that can create advantages in those areas.<\/p>\n
And, of course, the Spurs will need their long-distance shooters to be firing on all cylinders. A lot of San Antonio\u2019s games have gone as their three-point shooting has gone, and that\u2019s led to a bit of scuffling over the last month.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s very unlikely they\u2019ll taste victory if that goes poorly against the Thunder, unless they can return the favor defensively. That could be a lofty challenge with perimeter-defending maestro Stephon Castle out for the night.<\/p>\n
Still, this Spurs team has proven that the Thunder are not some unbeatable juggernaut, and they seem to play them with maximum focus, confidence, and drive. Their playbook against the Thunder has given other teams ideas, and OKC is coming into this one at 6-4 over the last ten games (identical to the Spurs), so don\u2019t be surprised if they come away with another victory against a Thunder team that refuses to acknowledge how good they actually are.<\/p>\n
Now, if we could only get them to play this way against everyone!<\/p>\n