No. 2 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 7 Spurs
NBA First-Round Playoff Series
Game 1: Saturday, 2 p.m., Oakland, Calif.
Game 2: Monday, 9:30 p.m., Oakland
Game 3: Thursday, April 19, 8:30 p.m., AT&T Center
Game 4: Sunday, April 22, 2:30 p.m., AT&T Center
*Game 5: Tuesday, April 24, Time TBD, Oakland
*Game 6: Thursday, April 26, Time TBD, AT&T Center
*Game 7: Saturday, April 28, Time TBD, Oakland
*If necessary
The NBA playoffs tip off Saturday, but for all intents and purposes, the San Antonio Spurs have been in postseason mode since a 109-93 road loss to Houston on March 12 dropped them to 10th in the Western Conference standings.
The Silver and Black ripped off six consecutive victories, all at home, to get back in playoff contention.
But then they lost back-to-back road games before rebounding with two consecutive wins at home. The roller coaster ride continued until the final buzzer of the regular season. The Spurs went 5-4 in their last nine games, with all of their losses coming on the road.
In the end, San Antonio clinched a playoff spot in its next-to-last game. The Spurs were sixth in the West going into their season finale at New Orleans on Wednesday, but a 24-point loss to the Pelicans dropped them to the No. 7 seed and a matchup with No. 2 Golden State.
"We made it to the playoffs, but I don't think we're satisfied with just making it to the playoffs," point guard Dejounte Murray said. "We've been fighting and fighting to get to the playoffs, and it's such a blessing to be in the playoffs once again. Every year is a new year and we're locked in."
The Spurs-Warriors first-round series starts Saturday at 2 p.m. in Oakland, Calif., which has been the home of the NBA champion two of the past three seasons. Golden State swept the Silver and Black in the Western Conference finals last year.
San Antonio led the series opener by 23 in the third quarter before All-NBA forward Kawhi Leonard reinjured an ankle as he shot a three-pointer from the corner, just a few steps from the Spurs' bench. Leonard crumbled to the floor and recoiled in pain after a controversial close-out by Warriors center Zaza Pachulia, who contested the shot.
Leonard had to leave the game and was sidelined for the remainder of the series. Things haven't been the same for Leonard and the Silver and Black since then.
Struggling to overcome an unrelated quad injury, Leonard was limited to nine games this season and hasn't played since Jan. 13. The Spurs have ruled him out of Saturday's game.
Golden State All-NBA guard Stephen Curry, who has been sidelined since spraining a knee March 23, is expected to miss the first round of the playoffs. The Warriors struggled in the homestretch without Curry, losing 10 of their last 17 games.
All-NBA forward Kevin Durant and All-Star guard Klay Thompson also missed time with injuries, but they returned to the lineup before the end of the season and are good to go for the playoffs.
In the playoffs for the 21st consecutive season, the Spurs made it clear Friday that they're focused on looking ahead, not backward.
All-Star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who has carried the Silver and Black on both ends of the court this season, had a tough time against the Warriors after Leonard went down last year. He struggled against Golden State's blitzing, double-teaming defense, and was not much of a factor in the last three games of the series.
But this season has been markedly different for Aldridge, who averaged 23.1 points and 8.5 rebounds in 75 games. Aldridge was blunt Friday when he was asked to reflect on the turnaround.
"Nope, I have no need to reflect," he said. "It's a new year. This team has fought and put ourselves in a position to be here. Last year is last year. I didn't worry about what happened last year. I got better in this system. Everyone got better, so it was a whole new year."
Aldridge expressed confidence that he and the Spurs will do a better job of handling Golden State's double-team defense.
"We're not going to be surprised by it this time," Aldridge said. "Just go play. I've been doubled my whole career so it's not like I haven't, but it just came out of nowhere [last year]. I've been doubled a lot this year. It's a different year for us. We have film from last year to look at, so it won't be as surprising this year."
Veteran guard Manu Ginobili said that it will be critical for the Spurs to make it difficult for the Warriors to double Aldridge.
"He's the focus for them, for us," Ginobili said. "We know who we are and we need him. We need him to score because if not, we struggle. We've got to try to find ways to give him the ball in a good situation, not close to the three-point line with three seconds to go. Put him in a good spot."
With the Warriors expected to double Aldridge, a big key for the Silver and Black will be to make the Warriors pay by spreading the floor and moving the ball.
"We've got to be smart and quick to get to our positions and make quick decisions, and try to be as effective as we can," Ginobili said. "We know that they're not going to blitz [Aldridge] the whole game, but we've got to be smart that when they do, we get in position.
"It's going to be tough. We all know that. But hopefully, we are attentive enough and we have a good night shooting, too."
Golden State won the season series against the Spurs 3-1, winning the first three games before the Silver and Black won the last meeting in San Antonio on March 23. The Warriors played without Curry, Durant, and Thompson, all of whom were injured.
Limiting turnovers is important in any game, but it's critical against a Warriors team that often breaks games open by scoring in transition.
"They feed off that, because a bad turnover, even offensive rebounds for them, turns into open threes," Ginobili said. "And that's something you don't want to give them, Taking care of the ball and taking good shots is very, very important."
