As many commentators have noted,
last night’s Game Three was a remarkable display of offensive basketball.
In the first half, Miami shot
56% from the floor, plus 50% from three (making 7 threes), for an effective
shooting percentage of 66% (because, you know, threes are worth more than twos).
The result of that shooting display by the home squad: The Heat down 21
points.
Claremont All-American Chris
Greene was nice enough to send the half-time stat sheet from inside the
American Airlines Arena, knowing it would get him a shout out in this fake blog
for Game Three. Note the Spurs effective shooting percentage: 86%,
plus 14 free throws. Put another way: 71 points on 33 shots.
At one point, the Spurs were 19 for 21, including 6 threes – effective shooting
percentage of over 100%. As Popovich said after the game: Crazy.
You may wonder why this edition
is entitled “Go Clock Go”. That was an expression we used when we
had a decent but not overpowering lead late in the game. At those
moments, the faster the clock runs, the better for the team in the lead.
Last night, the Spurs were so dominant early that I began the Go Clock Go chant
halfway through the second quarter.
The other thing I remembered
last night is how nerve-wracking it is to have an early big lead early.
While getting blown out early isn’t pleasant for the team on the receiving end,
it also gives that team so much more time to fight back. Which also
caused me to write the following on my notes just after I began the Go Clock Go
chant: “ If the Spurs blow this lead, they will not win this series.”
As we all know, the Spurs did
not blow the lead, and the series goes on. But you know what: They
thought about it.
Miami went on a 6 – 0 run in the
first 46 seconds of the third quarter, cutting the lead to 15. I know, 15
sounds like a big lead, but not when it was 21 46 seconds earlier. And it
got worse. After futzing around for much of the third quarter (the Spurs
scored 15 in the entire quarter after scoring 71 in the first half), Miami cut
the lead to only seven (7) points with two minutes left in the
quarter. In what might have been the most important shot of the game,
Marco Belinelli (who did not play a second in the first half) drilled a three.
It was the only shot he made all night. The lead was back to
ten, and all right-thinking basketball fans breathed a sigh of relief.
In the fourth quarter, the lead never
dropped below ten, largely because the Heat stopped scoring – they scored only
17 in the fourth. Ultimately, the clock did its job, Go Clock Go worked,
and the game ended. Of course, many of the hardy Heat fans had bailed out
long before, as is their custom.
Other thoughts (or stolen
stats):
1.
Miami has turned the ball over on 19.9 percent of its possessions in this
series, a number that would have been the worst in the league for the
season. And San Antonio is not traditionally a team that forces turnovers.
2.
Kawhi Leonard had not broken double figures in points in either of the
first two games. Last night, he broke double figures in the first 4
minutes.
3.
In the prior series, the Thunder offense often devolved into 4 guys watch
Kevin Durant or Russell Westbrook go one on one. While the Heat offense
generally does a good job moving players and the ball, they have also fallen
into the habit of watching Lebron or Wade go one on one – especially when
Lebron gets hot, as he did in Game Two, but did not repeat last night.
4.
After Game Two, I
said that one reason for the Spurs to be confident about Game Three was that
Lebron was unlikely to repeat his shooting performance that won Game Two:
“Another reason for some
level of confidence: Lebron shot 11
times in the second half, all from distance. He made 5 of 8 “long 2s”,
all well-defended, several with the shot clock winding down. During the
season, he shot 38% on long 2s. He went 3 for 3 from three. During
the season, he did not shoot 100% from three.”
The same analysis applies
to the Heat for Game Four. Since no one in the history of NBA playoff
basketball has had an offensive half like the Spurs did in Game Three, it is
highly unlikely that the Spurs will do it again on Thursday. Which
is why the Heat, not the Spurs, are 5 point favorites for Game Four.
That being said, that
first half was something basketball fans will talk about for a long time.
Some people with much more skill than me made some great little montages of
various plays. I have borrowed one of them that was especially
creative. Note that all 5 Spurs touch the ball, with 6 passes, all
perfect, and two guys cutting at the end, leading to an off-hand lay-up by my
favorite player. This only takes 60 seconds – go ahead, live it up, and watch:
.
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