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2013 NBA Playoffs Game of the Day: San Antonio Spurs at Memphis Grizzlies

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May 25, 2013

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Today’s Games (All times are Eastern):

 

Time (ET) Visitor Home Prediction
9:00 PM San Antonio Spurs Memphis Grizzlies Grizzlies

The Memphis Grizzlies will try to extend their postseason home winning streak to six games when they host the San Antonio Spurs in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals. The Grizzlies, who are down to the Spurs two games to none, really need a win tonight if they want to give themselves a legitimate chance at making a comeback in this series.

Memphis came back from a 2-0 deficit against the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. For the Grizzlies to have a chance at mounting a similar comeback against San Antonio in the conference finals, they must win tonight. Memphis, who is undefeated at home during these playoffs, can get right back into this series with a home win tonight. A loss, however, would practically seal the Grizzlies’ fate. No team in NBA history has ever recovered from a 3-0 deficit to win a seven-game series.

In last year’s playoffs, the Spurs took a 2-0 series lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference finals only to have the wheels fall off completely. San Antonio lost the next four games and dropped the series 4-2. That is a fate that the Spurs hope to avoid in this season’s conference finals.

With a 2-0 series lead, San Antonio can practically make the ultimate result of the 2013 Western Conference Finals a foregone conclusion with a win tonight. However, if Memphis can continue winning at the FedExForum and remain undefeated at home during the postseason, the Grizzlies would get themselves right back into this series.

After tonight’s Game 3, the 2013 Western Conference Finals will be practically over or just beginning.

Yesterday’s Results:

 

Visitor Home Prediction Result
Indiana Pacers 97 Miami Heat 93 Heat Pacers

Random NBA Fan’s Record in Yesterday’s Games: 0-1
Random NBA Fan’s Record for the Playoffs: 47-24

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2013 NBA Playoffs Game of the Day: Indiana Pacers at Miami Heat

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May 24, 2013

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Today’s Games (All times are Eastern):

 

Time (ET) Visitor Home Prediction
8:30 PM Indiana Pacers Miami Heat Heat

LeBron James scored on a driving layup as time expired to give the Miami Heat a hard-fought 103-102 overtime victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday night. James finished the contest with a triple-double (30 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds) and the Heat needed every bit of his Herculean effort—and an overtime—to get over the hump. If Game 1 is any indication of how competitive and hotly contested this series will be, this series will likely be an epic battle that will be remembered for years to come.

Although it will be tough for tonight’s Game 2 to live up to the thrill and drama of Game 1’s buzzer-beater, there is no doubt that both teams can play better. Game 1 was exciting and dramatic from start to finish because neither team could ever build a cushion larger than seven points, but it was also fraught with turnovers (20 for Indiana and 21 for Miami). The multiple miscues combined with the 58 personal fouls that were called on the two teams led to a choppy and somewhat disjointed game.

If the Heat and Pacers cut down on the turnovers, Game 2 will likely be played a little more fluidly. But no matter how fluid Game 2 may be it is highly unlikely that any player will put up as perfect a stat line as Chris “Birdman” Andersen did in Game 1. Andersen, who made all seven of his field-goal attempts and both of his free throws, finished Game 1 with 16 points, five rebounds, three blocks and a steal. A single turnover was the only blemish on his stat line.

Although they lost a great opportunity to snatch home-court advantage from Miami in the final 2.2 seconds of Game 1, the Pacers still have a chance to earn an all-important 1-1 split before heading home to Indiana for Game 3. Despite losing Game 1, the Pacers have to come into Game 2 feeling confident that they can indeed earn that split.

The Pacers fought and battled the defending NBA champions until the bitter end and were just 2.2 seconds—and a LeBron James layup—away from victory. Besides, had it not been for LeBron James’ Herculean effort and a nearly perfect 18 minutes from the “Birdman,” the Pacers know that the final result could have gone in their favor. And that knowledge will give Indiana confidence heading into Game 2.

But confidence alone will not be enough for the Pacers to get a win tonight. Execution and poise will be the key. Both teams will play better than they played in Game 1, and the team that protects the ball, executes efficiently and maintains its composure will walk away with the victory.

Wednesday’s Results:

 

Visitor Home Prediction Result
Indiana Pacers 102 Miami Heat 103 Heat Heat

Random NBA Fan’s Record in Wednesday’s Games: 1-0
Random NBA Fan’s Record for the Playoffs: 47-23

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2013 NBA Playoffs Game of the Day: Indiana Pacers at Miami Heat

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May 22, 2013

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Today’s Games (All times are Eastern):

 

Time (ET) Visitor Home Prediction
8:30 PM Indiana Pacers Miami Heat Heat

The Miami Heat will host Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals for the second consecutive season when the Indiana Pacers visit South Beach in today’s NBA Playoff Game of the Day. This will be a defensive battle and the team that can find a way to break through and score on a somewhat consistent basis will have a distinct advantage.

During the regular season, Indiana had the league’s most efficient defense (96.6 points per 100 possessions) while limiting opponents to 90.7 points per game on 42.0 percent shooting from the field. If Indiana hopes to have any success in this series, they will have to be solid and consistent on the defensive end of the floor possession after possession. Defense and rebounding will be the key to this series for the Pacers. Indiana, who outrebounded the Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks by 9.8 boards per game in the first two rounds, will have to continue to own the glass to have a chance in this series. This is particularly true given the efficient manner in which the Heat have gone about their business this postseason.

Miami’s defense has been absolutely stellar during the playoffs. The Heat, who have not surrendered 100 points to a single postseason opponent, are leading the NBA in defensive efficiency (93.4 points per 100 possessions), opponent points per game (84.7), and opponent field goal percentage (40.9 percent) heading into these conference finals.

In addition to being the top defensive team during the playoffs, the Heat have been super-efficient on the offensive side of the ball. En route to an 8-1 playoff record, Miami has scored an incredible 109.1 points per 100 possessions and 1.36 points per shot while averaging 98.6 points per game on 49.1 percent shooting.

The Heat were incredibly efficient against the Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls in the first two rounds of the playoffs. If Miami plays with that type of efficiency—particularly offensively—against the Indiana Pacers, the Heat will have a very good chance of making their third consecutive NBA Finals appearance.

Yesterday’s Results:

 

Visitor Home Prediction Result
Memphis Grizzlies 89 San Antonio Spurs 93 Grizzlies Spurs

Random NBA Fan’s Record in Yesterday’s Games: 0-1
Random NBA Fan’s Record for the Playoffs: 46-23

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2013 NBA Playoffs Game of the Day: Memphis Grizzlies at San Antonio Spurs

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May 21, 2013

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Today’s Games (All times are Eastern):

 

Time (ET) Visitor Home Prediction
9:00 PM Memphis Grizzlies San Antonio Spurs Grizzlies

After being demolished 105-83 by the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals, the Memphis Grizzlies will try to rebound in Game 2. If the Grizzlies can recover from that Game 1 debacle and win Game 2, they will earn an all-important split on the road and snatch home-court advantage from the Spurs.

The Grizzlies will have to shore up their defense, particularly around the three-point line, if they hope to head home to Memphis with a 1-1 split. Memphis allowed San Antonio to hit a franchise playoff-record 14 three-pointers in Game 1. The 42 points that the Spurs scored behind the three-point arc represent 40% of San Antonio’s Game 1 offense. With San Antonio getting so many wide-open three-point attempts, one would think that the Grizzlies probably did a decent job of defending the paint. However, looking at the shot chart, one would find that the Spurs made a host of shots right at the front of the rim en route to their 30 points in the paint.

Although Memphis failed to adequately protect either the paint or the three-point arc, the Grizzlies did do a decent job of defending San Antonio’s mid-range jumpers. The bulk of the Spurs’ misses came from between six and 20 feet from the rim. The Grizzlies have been one of the best defensive teams in the NBA all season long and I fully expect their defense to have a much greater presence in Game 2 than it did in Game 1.

San Antonio got—and converted—so many wide-open three-point opportunities because of its excellent ball movement. The Spurs had 28 assists on 40 made field goals and all 14 of their three-point baskets were assisted.

Defensively, San Antonio’s bigs did a great job of neutralizing Memphis’ big men. Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph combined to make just eight of their 24 field goal attempts (33.3 percent), and the Spurs limited the duo to a combined total of just 17 points and 14 rebounds.

If San Antonio can find—and make—open shots and neutralize the effectiveness of Gasol and Randolph like they did in Game 1 tonight, the Spurs will give themselves a great chance to take a 2-0 series lead.

Sunday’s Results:

 

Visitor Home Prediction Result
Memphis Grizzlies 83 San Antonio Spurs 105 Grizzlies Spurs

Random NBA Fan’s Record in Sunday’s Games: 0-1
Random NBA Fan’s Record for the Playoffs: 46-22

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2013 NBA Playoffs Game of the Day: Memphis Grizzlies at San Antonio Spurs

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May 19, 2013

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Today’s Games (All times are Eastern):

 

Time (ET) Visitor Home Prediction
3:30 PM Memphis Grizzlies San Antonio Spurs Grizzlies

Today’s NBA Playoff Game of the Day will showcase two Southwest Division rivals when the Memphis Grizzlies visit the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. Two years ago, these teams met in the first round and Memphis defeated San Antonio to become just the second number eight seed to upset a number one seed in a seven-game series. The Grizzlies earned their first playoff win in franchise history in Game 1 of that series.

This afternoon, Memphis, who will be making its first conference finals appearance, will match up against a Spurs team that will be making its eighth trip to the Western Conference finals in the last 16 seasons. And just as they did two years ago, the Grizzlies will be looking to steal home-court advantage from San Antonio. Since that Game 1 win in the first round of the playoffs two seasons ago, Memphis has lost six straight to the Spurs in San Antonio. The sooner the Grizzlies can put an end to their losing streak in San Antonio, the better their chances of having success in this series.

The Spurs, who will be making their second consecutive appearance in the Western Conference finals, can advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2007 by simply protecting their home court. A task they could not complete in last year’s Western Conference finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Southwest Division will represent the Western Conference in this year’s NBA Finals. Whether it will be the Spurs, who have been there and done that, or the Grizzlies, who are looking to extend the best playoff run in franchise history, remains to be seen.

Yesterday’s Results:

 

Visitor Home Prediction Result
Indiana Pacers 106 New York Knicks 99 Pacers Pacers

Random NBA Fan’s Record in Yesterday’s Games: 1-0
Random NBA Fan’s Record for the Playoffs: 46-21

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