(Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images North America)
San Antonio Spurs (20-5) at Golden State Warriors (14-12)
Tipoff: Thursday, December 19, 2013, 7:30PM PST
Location: ORACLE Arena, Oakland, CA
TV: CSN Bay Area / TNT | Radio: KNBR 680 AM
Livetweet: @LetsGoWarriors (by @goldenstatenz)
The Golden State Warriors will face the San Antonio Spurs in Oakland for the first time since their epic playoff series in the 2013 Western Conference Semifinals. As usual, the Spurs are having a fantastic season and currently have the third best record in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. Although the Warriors have been struggling recently, they started to play their true brand of basketball in Tuesday’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans. A big reason for this re-emergence into relevance is because of the return of Andre Iguodala.
Iguodala surprised many Warriors fans by returning to the court on Tuesday after missing 12 games with a strained hamstring. He only had two points and two assists in 17 minutes, but his presence completely changed how the Warriors’ played.
Iguodala provides the Warriors with another ball handler who can run the offense, which allows Stephen Curry to play off the ball. His defense also greatly impacts the Warriors’ defense as a team, and he pushes the Warriors to play at a faster tempo, which leads to better basketball.
[SEE RELATED POST: The Projection Of Andre Iguodala Into Scottie Pippen: Maybe In A Parallel Universe?]Several other players had fantastic games against the Pelicans, partially because of Iguodala’s presence on the court. Curry had 28 points and 12 assists, Klay Thompson had 16 points and 6 assists, and David Lee had 21 points and 17 rebounds.
The win against the Pelicans was a significant one not just because of Iguodala’s return, but also because it marked the fifth game in a row that the Warriors have had at least 50 total rebounds. This ties their longest streak of this sort since 1989. The Warriors hope to continue this streak against the Spurs tonight. Both Lee and Andrew Bogut have been monsters on the glass, and with Iguodala back from injury, he’s sure to be a force on the glass as well.
Anyone who has followed the NBA knows that the Spurs have been the most consistent team in the NBA for the past 15-20 years. They’re one of the classiest, most respected franchises in all of sports, and that’s largely due to their two future Hall-of-Famers, Tim Duncan and Head Coach Gregg Popovich.
Duncan is the best power forward to ever play in the NBA and is “Mr. Fundamental.” Popovich has greatly impacted the game of basketball because of his focus on efficiency and execution.
“They’ve got a great coach, an all-time great coach, and a bunch of guys that are gonna be in the Hall of Fame. They know how to play. It’s business as usual. They find ways to win ballgames, and they don’t make mistakes,” Mark Jackson spoke yesterday after practice about how classy the Spurs organization is.
These two people have been the faces of the Spurs, but Tony Parker is also one of the leaders of this Spurs team. Luckily for the Warriors, Parker will not be playing in tonight’s game, because he is out with a right shin contusion. Thompson must be relieved to not have to guard the crafty, dynamic Parker, but, according to Marreese Speights, the Warriors will still have their hands full.
“It’s going to impact the game a lot,” said Speights of the injury, “We’re all NBA players, so they’ve got somebody that’s going to come from the bench and take his spot and come out and do the same, or even bring more energy than he does.”
The Warriors won’t have to worry about containing Parker, but they will still have to deal with Duncan, Kawhi Leonard, and Danny Green. Leonard is an extremely underrated player, who contributes in so many different ways. He has a very high basketball IQ, and he truly is an all-around player who competes every night.
The Spurs are the third best three-point shooting team in the NBA, as they shoot 39.9 percent from three as a team. This impressive stat is largely due to Green’s and former Warrior Marco Belinelli’s shooting. Green is shooting 40.9 percent from the three, and Belinelli is shooting a ridiculous 53.5 percent, which leads the NBA. The Warriors are currently the second best three-point shooting team in the NBA, as they shoot 41 percent, so hopefully they can contain the Spurs’ three-point shooting and drain some threes themselves.
[NOTE: Poor Man’s Commish contributed to this report.]Follow @MaggiePilloton
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