After two lackluster games to begin the Western Conference Semifinals, the San Antonio Spurs bounced back in Game 3 to earn a commanding 102-92 win at the Golden State Warriors. With the win, San Antonio moves ahead in the NBA playoff series by a count of 2-1.
Tony Parker led the charge against the Warriors, scoring 32 points on 13-of-23 shooting from the field. Tim Duncan complemented him with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Kawhi Leonard came up with 15 points and nine boards.
This was a pleasant change of pace for San Antonio, as the Warriors received praise as the superior team in this series. Even as San Antonio escaped in double overtime during Game 1, they trailed for a majority of that contest, and Golden State won Game 2.
This may sound like a result of momentum, but the Spurs put forth an effort that was reminiscent of their previous four title runs under Gregg Popovich. They weathered the storm every time Golden State went on a run and used their balance to maintain their control.
Entering Game 3, the Golden State Warriors had been led by an unstoppable force in the form of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Thompson was coming off of a game in which he dropped 34 points and 14 rebounds, while Curry has been, arguably, the best player of the postseason.
Prior to this game, Curry had been averaging 26.5 points and 8.9 rebounds on a slash line of .463/.431/.906. Curry managed to post 16 points and eight assists in Game 3, but did so while shooting 5-of-17 from the field and 3-of-9 from beyond the arc.
Green has long been a respected commodity due to his defensive prowess, but this takes it to a new level. Curry has been nothing short of unstoppable, but Green's combination of length and quickness seems to have him stumped.
The Golden State Warriors won Game 2 by a score of 100-91, which had many believing they were bound for the Western Conference Finals. The truth of the matter is, the Warriors' win wasn't quite as momentous as we'd believed.
The Spurs tallied 48 points to the Warriors' 38 during the second half of Game 2, but it was too little, too late. That momentum appears to have carried over into Game 3, which has us wondering if we're perceiving this correctly.
The Warriors may be garnering the headlines, but the Spurs are the superior team in this series. They finished with 11 more regular-season wins, boast a core that has won three NBA championships together and play under a Hall of Fame head coach.
The Spurs came out aggressively, taking it to the Warriors and forcing them to match shots. This may seem like a task Golden State would be up to, but here's the fact we've overlooked.
They may not have a star shooter, but San Antonio has enough depth to move the ball around the perimeter and find the open man. More importantly, they have three potential Hall of Fame players and another as their head coach.
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