Exactly 362 days after that devastating lost in the crucial Game 6 to Miami Heat, the San Antonio Spurs came back and finally nailed the title. The perfect way to win the title when you outscored the two-time defending champions 70 points in the five games played in this series. A Spurs team that showcases extraordinary courage and strong determination to mentally recover from that heart-breaking loss. The same team that was minutes away from the title did the exact thing all over again – training camp, gym sessions, 82 regular season games, highly competitive playoff games, NBA finals, and finally reached where they should belong a year ago.
Just in case you are wondering, I’m not a Spurs fan. But as somebody who loves watching basketball, this group of players and coaches bring the game back to its basics. In an era where basketball teams built their roster around their star players, the Spurs did the opposite – withholding their philosophy of team basketball, focusing on the development players, and building a pool of strong bench players. In an era where people are debating is LeBron or Jordan or even Kobe is the best basketball player ever to play the game, the Spurs players held their trust on each other by passing the ball and make sure the best player have the best shot to score the points.
Imagine yourself playing a chess match. To be a chess master, you have to have a number of moves to win a chess match. Each piece on the chess board has its moves and advantages that can post significant threat to the opponent. Obviously on a chess board, the Queen is the most powerful of all. Then you have other pieces like Tower, Bishops and Hoses that gives you other options to attack the opponent. For most basketball teams, there will be that only one or two individuals that coordinates the team’s offense and trying to distribute the ball. It’s like having a strong Queen and one or two more pieces like a Tower and a Bishop that threatens their opponents. The Spurs differs from these teams. They are a team that has multiple source of scoring points.
Coach Greg Popovich (Spurs coach) has a number of options to make changes to deal with specific opponents. He has the luxury to alter his starting line-up depends on the opponents. In the NBA finals against Miami Heat, he make a line-up change – inserting a power forward into the game replacing a center to give the team more flexibility in passing the ball more effectively and playing with more aggressiveness. For the players, it doesn’t matter whether you are a one-dimensional player or an all-rounder in the team, you will still be able to contribute to the team as long as you put in effort.
Players like Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are good ball handler that has the ability to distribute the ball effectively and make good runs to attack the basket. Finals MVP – Kawhi Leonard, an aggressive defender who did an impressive job guarding LeBron James in the final is able to score offensively by driving to the rim or taking mid-range shots. Patty Mills and Danny Green are players that thrive at shooting outer range 3 points shot. Tim Duncan gives you the physical presence in the low post area by grabbing rebounds and scoring using the board. Boris Diaw, a power forward is able to give you the creativity in offense that normal players in the league with the same position don’t provide. Tiago Splitter, the tallest guy on the team gives you his height advantage that is useful on both ends of the floor. Of course, everything starts with good coaching by the Spurs coaching team.
A balanced team is not just about the position each player is holding. This is also a team consist of players from different ages. You have Duncan, a 38 years old player that has already won 4 NBA titles being the experienced guy, providing the required stability and influence to the team. Young guys like Leonard (23 years old) and Green (27 years old) that has the athleticism and energy to give the team that extra push in crucial moments. Another thing that makes this team so special is that it resembles talented players from different parts of the world - Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Australia, France, Italy, and of course America itself.
Here are some statistics to the success of this team. In the regular season, the San Antonio Spurs averages 25.2 assists per game (the highest in the league), proving this team’s ability of sharing the basketball. The team was also superb on both ends of the floor. Defensively, Spurs allowed 97.6 points per game, recorded the 6th best record in terms of points allowed per game. In their offense, Spurs averages 105.4 points per game, the 6th best record in scoring points.
The outcome of this year’s NBA finals is probably what most basketball fans had wished for. When we are in the middle of celebration for their victory and sweet revenge, let us think and analyze what this team has inspired us not just in basketball alone and also in other sports. This is a team that brings back the fundamentals of sports. It’s not about efforts from a few individuals but rather from every individual in the team. The impact of a great organization has on the court. It’s also not just about great team work or ball sharing, it’s also about how effective tactics and well-planned strategies are able to play an important role in achieving success when so much in basketball are relying on individual effort nowadays. The Spurs has its own unique way in securing their fifth title in franchise history that is not seen regularly in basketball teams nowadays and that’s the Spurs way.
P/s: This article was actually composed a day after the NBA finals. But I was late to realize I haven't post it here.
By,
Zhe Xu
17th June 2014
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