NBA Playoffs: Spurs Are Still Champs
May 16th, 2008 at 9:44 amBy Chris
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
After facing watching them face their first elimination game in over a season, we learned something about the San Antonio Spurs — they aren’t giving up their World Championship designation without a fight. In a series where the home team has had the undisputed upper-hand, the Spurs held serve in what could be their last home game of the 2007-08 NBA season.
Now we head back to New Orleans for Game 7, and if you’ve been watching, you already know how much each team has struggled on their away trips. Home team victories in the Spurs/Hornets series have been so lopsided, the average margin of victory is 13.5 points. Can we expect more of the same on Monday (MONDAY? The NBA is making fans wait until MONDAY to see this series decided? WTH kind of schedule is that?) or will the Spurs be the first road team to break through, keeping their hard-earned “World Champions” designation alive?
While continuing their successful defense of their title and keeping their season alive for one more game, the Spurs were being led by Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili who had posted scoring totals of 20 and 25 points, respectively. Duncan also finished with 15 rebounds and 2 blocked shots.
As for the Hornets, they might want to inquire about the whereabouts of Peja Stojakovic. After jumping out of the gates with 9 quick points, the Hornets gunner finished with only 13, meaning he only scored 4 points after the 6:40 mark of the first quarter. If the Hornets really expect to end the Spurs’ reign as World Champs, they are going to need a little more from their designated shooter.
OK, let’s talk about scheduling and the NBA Playoffs: why do Spurs and Hornets (and potentially the Lakers/Jazz — played tonight) series have to wait until Monday to play their Game 7? If the Cavaliers can’t hold off Boston tonight, the two teams will play again on Sunday. Why do the Western Conference teams have this longer-than-usual wait to deal with?
Granted, the delay benefits the Hornets because of issues with David West’s back but that wasn’t part of the equation when these schedules were made. Is there something wrong with Saturday night for the Spurs/Hornets and Sunday for Jazz/Lakers (provided it’s necessary)? What the hell good does it do having TWO Western Conference Game 7s on the same night?
Are we going for the late-game-followed-by-an-even-later-game presentation or did the NBA simply favor the Western side of their league when they were making these schedules up? Whatever the case, it’s a bad idea and doesn’t help a league that’s trying to shed the perception of showing favoritism.
May 16th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
I don’t know about favoritism but it is damn annoying to wait so long.
i commented about it in my liveblog
May 16th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
The delay, whether it’s favoritism or just bad planning, is stupid.
If Boston and Cleveland go to a Game 7, they will have played both a Game 6 and 7 before the Spurs and Hornets (and the Lakers and Jazz, potentially) play the final game of their respective series.
Is this even remotely fair?
May 16th, 2008 at 2:01 pm
Nope it’s garbage and I don’t know how the NBA justifies itself.