Here are the 5 talking points from Game 3 of the 2013 NBA Finals:
DE-FENSE
The Spurs started the game with some tremendous defending in the paint. Miami were struggling to penetrate the ‘D’ and were forced to take mid-range jumpers. They obviously had a plan to keep LeBron James quiet, as they doubled up on him whenever he received the ball. He was given absolutely no space whatsoever and poor shot selection meant it was up to Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade to deliver. And they failed, as both shot well below 50% – not the best way to show up in a crucial game in the Finals. It was almost pitiful to see that the Heat had a few air-balls as well!
The Spurs were very smooth in their defensive transitions and double teams and that proved to be crucial in this Game 3 contest.
Grabbing the boards!
Defensive rebounds are well and good, they’re almost a given in every game. But collecting offensive rebounds is the key to second chance points and this was where the Spurs dominated the game. They out-rebounded the Heat at the offensive end 19-9. Tim Duncan led the charge with 7 offensive rebounds and 14 overall; and the veteran big man had only played about half the game. Bosh and James were in double figures for rebounds mainly because of their contributions at the defensive end. Overall, the Spurs had 52 rebounds whereas the Heat could only muster 36.
The Young Big-3 (pun intended for 3!)
Since they were playing away from home, Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra had come up with a plan to stop Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili on the court. Stifle them at the back court and ensure Duncan isn’t allowed to play iso at the post. It worked as Parker and Ginobili could only manage 6 and 7 points respectively. What Spoelstra did not account for however, was the young brigade of Kawhi Leonard, Daniel Green and Gary Neal.
Leonard had a superb all-round game with 14 points, 12 rebounds and 4 steals (2 of which came when he was guarding James). Neal led the Spurs’ charge in the second and third quarter with 24 points in the game, including a half time buzzer beating 3-pointer that set up the blazing run in the third quarter, and also brought the San Antonio crowd to their feet
But the man of the night was definitely Danny Green, who scored a game-high 27 points. After his 5/5 3-pointers in Game 2 were overlooked because of the Miami dominated victory, he carried his form into game 3 and sank shot after shot from beyond the arc and finished with seven 3-pointers. He timed his runs perfectly to get into position and when the ball reached him, there was absolutely no hesitation to shoot, prompting Gregg Popovich to say “He’s a pretty confident young man right now.”
Together, the three of them scored 15 of the Spurs’ 16 3-pointers – which is also an NBA Finals record! They also combined for 51 points to lead the Spurs over Heat.
LeBron James – MVP goes MIA
The old joke went, “LeBron doesn’t have a fourth quarter.” Well, in this game, he was invisible in the first three. The Spurs didn’t give him an inch. And while in the first 2 games, he was always looking for the open man, totaling 17 assists, he only managed 5 assists in Game 3. He looked a shadow of the man who dominated Game 1 with a triple-double. Even Tracy McGrady who played half a quarter had 3 assists.
Missed shots, a couple of turnovers and frustrated gestures at the referees for not calling fouls were what characterised his game for the night. Except for a brief period at the end of the third quarter where he seemed to have found his confidence and cut the Spurs’ lead to 15 points, there was nothing else noteworthy from the regular season MVP.
LeBron failed to score 20 for the third straight game.
What next for the Heat?
The Heat were the favourites as they came into this series with people tipping their ferocious pace to dominate the aged Spurs. Popovich has managed to counter that with big game experience combined with young talent. Erik Spoelstra cut a helpless figure on the bench as he watched the Spurs sink 3-pointers at will, using the same move of having Tiago Splitter set up a screen at the top of the arc more than once. If the Heat are to come back into this series, Spoelstra will have to out-think Coach Pop at every turn.
“We got what we deserved, I didn’t even recognize the team that was out there tonight.” – Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra
This was Duncan, Parker and Ginobili’s 100th post-season win together (just 10 short of the Lakers record). They will be looking to win their first title since 2007. With the next two games also at San Antonio, the Spurs are in the driving seat to win their fifth NBA title. Only time will tell if James and Wade will have their say in the coming days.
Stats from NBA.com
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