Western Conference Finals Preview

The San Antonio Spurs are on fire. They have won a franchise record 18 consecutive games heading into the Western Conference Finals. The Spurs are the closest thing to flawless the NBA has seen in quite some time. 


The Oklahoma City Thunder are far from inferior. The Thunder have only lost 1 game in the playoffs thus far and are lead by the most dynamic duo the NBA has to offer in Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. This makes two consecutive Conference Finals for the Thunder who feel they have unfinished business. 


"It's going to be a mental challenge for us," Westbrook said when talking about the Spurs. "They haven't lost in a while and we've got to be prepared to play." 


The Thunder will stroll into San Antonio Sunday evening looking to spoil the year long rodeo that has been the Spurs season. This will be a battle of old and new. Experienced against unfamiliar. Seasoned versus fresh. The Spurs won 2 out of 3 in the regular season against the Thunder including a 114-105 win at Chesapeake Energy Arena in March. 


The matchup that sticks out to me is in the backcourt between Tony Parker and Russell Westbrook. Parker went off for 42 points in a win over the Thunder during the regular season and is averaging 19.1 PPG and 7 assists in the postseason thus far. 


Russell Westbrook is no slouch either. He has scored at least 20 points in all, but two of the Thunder's playoff games including a 37 point performance against the Lakers in Game 4. Westbrook is triple-double threat on any given night.


Tony Parker is one of the best facilitators in the game and is underrated as a defender as well. He lacks size in the matchup with Westbrook, but I don't see that as too much of a problem. Both players like to slash into the lane and look for an opening or kick it out to a shooter for a bucket. 


What makes these players so difficult to guard is the supporting casts around each of them. With Harden and Durant threatening to score at any moment for the Thunder, Westbrook often finds himself a little more open than most would think. Same goes for Tony Parker. With Duncan and Ginobili looming, defenses tend to back up when Parker drives to the rim, almost anticipating a pass rather than a score. 


Each team has been excellent all season long. This will be one of the better series we have seen as fans in a long time. I just think that the Spurs ability to play in multiple paces will be the difference. They can run with teams at any point and just as easily slow it down into a half court battle. The home court advantage for San Antonio will be big as well. They out played the Thunder in April to obtain the top seed, and I think it will be a big factor in the outcome of this series. 


I find it hard to believe that Kevin Durant will come of short of the NBA Finals for a second consecutive season, but I just don't see any way that the Spurs are going home without a ring. They are 10-12 deep on their bench, and have a 36-year old Tim Duncan who is playing with more energy than we have seen in a long time. I originally picked the Thunder to represent the West in the NBA Finals, but like I said, San Antonio is simply stupendous. 


--GM