Back on February, San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker torched Thunder guard Russell Westbrook.
It’s been three months since then and not much has changed. On Tuesday night, Parker scored 34 points by either zipping by Westbrook to get to the basket or by using screens to get open jumpers.
By the end of the night, it was too much for both Westbrook and the Thunder as the Spurs took a commanding 2-0 Western Conference Finals series lead.
Kawhi Leonard chipped in with a double double and Tim Duncan added 11 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and four blocked shots.
In Retrospect
Paul Garcia might just be clairvoyant. He was right on with his preview of Game 2.
I think that if the Spurs can make their necessary adjustments after watching film and working on their mistakes in game one, they should be able to protect home court. I expect that the Thunder will once again come out with a ton of energy. The Spurs will have to match their energy and make sure to take care of the ball from the get-go. So long as the Spurs take care of the ball, move it, and execute in the pick-and-roll, I don’t see how the Thunder can completely stop their offense.
I see the Spurs taking care of the ball early and building a 10-12 point lead with a big run early in the first half. I also think Green and Bonner will both find their rhythm and contribute offensively. I think the Thunder will make a run in the second half and narrow the margin to about five points, but the Spurs’ depth will once again shine in the fourth quarter, and I predict the Spurs will win by nine to 12-points at the end of the night.
Quoteable
“It’s great and it is a great run, but we are only worried about the next two wins in this series. That is all that matters at this point and if that makes it 22 in a row, that would be great. These next two wins are the most important things to us right now.” – Tim Duncan
By the numbers
20 – Manu Ginobili’s points in 25 minutes
42 – Spurs three-point shooting percentage
2 of 11 – Derek Fisher’s accuracy from the field
20 – Consecutive wins for the Spurs.
Rookie Watch
Kawhi Leonard bounced back from a tough offensive game in Game 1 by being the Spurs’ third-leading scorer last night. He finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots.
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