The Miami Heat and Memphis Grizzlies advanced last night to the Conference Finals. The Indiana Pacers and San Antonio Spurs hope to do the same as they can add to their 3-game series leads with another victory tonight. Doing so would put an end to the second round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs and open the door to two heavily contested affairs.
But that all depends on the hearts and gameplans of the Golden State Warriors and New York Knicks. Both teams lost rather convincingly the last time on the mat, and were unable to hold off impressive games by the opposing point guards.
In Indiana, George Hill had one of the best games of his career. He shot 64% from the field and marked 26 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds and 1 steal for the night. He did turn the ball over 4 times, but Indiana as a team was able to keep their turnover numbers relatively low (12), which was one of SJN’s keys for them winning this series.
Tony Parker was just as impressive and unstoppable against Golden State. In addition to 25 points, he posted 10 assists, 2 rebounds, and a steal. It also seems that the Spurs feed off his efficiency, and he was plenty of that, shooting 56% for the game. Stephen Curry has been drooled over by sports analysts in this series―and mostly for good reason―but Parker is quietly and gradually becoming the defining point guard of these semifinals.
These are their numbers for the series (courtesy of NBA.com):
Stephen Curry
22.6 PPG, 7.0 APG, 3.2 RPG, 1.2 STLPG & 3.4 TOPG; 41.0 FG%, 37.0 3FG%, 82.0 FT%*
Tony Parker
24.4 PPG, 5.8 APG, 5.0 RPG, 0.8 STLPG & 2.4 TOPG; 47.0 FG%, 38.0 3FG%, 75.0 FT%*
*Note: shooting percentages are rounded up.
If this trend continues, the Warriors have many months of fishing ahead.
Both San Antonio and Indiana have done a great job of outplaying the opposing teams’ best offensive options. The Knicks and the Warriors are hot-shooting teams that were expected to give anyone fits in these playoffs. But, for the most part, San Antonio and Indiana have been able to contain them with prolonged pressure. They understand that with teams like New York and Golden State, you’re going to give up good games no matter what you do, but if you crowd them enough, they’ll crumble over time.
Just look at Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith. Their shooting percentages rise in one game, then fall dramatically in the next. In J.R.’s case, they fall from low to extremely low.
Carmelo Anthony
Game 1: 10/28 (35.7 FG%) Game 2: 13/26 (50.0 FG%) Game 3: 6/16: (37.5 FG%) Game 4: 9/23 (39.1 FG%)
J.R. Smith
Game 1: 4/15 (26.7 FG%) Game 2: 3/15 (20.0 FG%) Game 3: 4/12: (33.3 FG%) Game 4: 7/22 (31.8 FG%)
The ebb-and-flow of both players’ efficiency is no accident. They’re being bothered by the good defensive scheming of the Pacers. Without both of them operating at maximum efficiency, the Knicks have a long summer awaiting them.
So will the second round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs end tonight? Or, will the Knicks and Golden State hold on to their lifelines?
The info says that the Conference Semifinals end here, and both New York and Golden State are ousted.
