NBA PLAYOFFS WEEKEND PREVIEW: Article Courtesy of Ted Sevranksy, A Professional Sports Handicapper at Touthouse.com – Click Here to Purchase Ted’s Expert NBA Betting Picks

Detroit @ Orlando (Magic -5, O/U 187)
The biggest storyline for Game 4 of the Pistons-Magic series concerns the injury to Detroit point guard Chauncey Billups. Billups went down with a strained right hamstring early in the first quarter of Game 3 and didn’t return. The Magic took immediate advantage of his absence, going on an 18-4 run to take an 18 point lead that they would never relinquish.

Reports on Friday indicate that Billups is expected to suit up and play for the Pistons on Saturday, but his effectiveness is another matter entirely. Head coach Flip Saunders: “I’m concerned because (Billups is) our quarterback; he runs our team. You saw our first two games. He’s been a huge part of why we’ve been successful—that matchup has been huge for us.”

Without Billups to defend, Orlando point guard Jameer Nelson enjoyed one of his best games of the postseason, spurring the Magic offense to 111 points on 53% shooting. Billups backup, rookie Rodney Stuckey, had a decent offensive game, but he was able to keep Nelson out of the paint, driving and dishing to open teammates.

The Magic had lost nine straight in the playoffs against the Pistons prior to Wednesday’s victory. Orlando center Dwight Howard: “It felt real good, finally getting a chance to beat those guys. The main thing is we played the way we know how to play—run and try to cut the turnovers down. We can beat anybody.”

Boston @ Cleveland (Cavs -1.5, O/U 176)
The Boston Celtics were the best team in the NBA during the regular season in large part due to their defense. The numbers don’t lie. The Celtics ranked #1 in the NBA in defensive field goal percentage allowed by a wide margin, holding foes to 42% shooting for the season – far better than the defensive minded Spurs, Pistons and Rockets.

Boston was equally adept at shutting down opposing teams from the perimeter, holding foes to a 31.6 shooting percentage from beyond the arc, also best in the NBA by a wide margin. Kevin Garnett won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award in a landslide vote, and KG’s defensive intensity has certainly carried over to his teammates. When a team doesn’t give up fast break baskets, perimeter jumpers or points in the paint out of halfcourt sets, it makes them a very difficult team to beat.

Cleveland found that out the hard way in Games 1 and 2. The Cavs scored only 72 points in the first game of this series, held to 31% shooting. In Game 2, they improved: 73 total points scored on 36% shooting. The Cavs didn’t hit much from the perimeter, just 6-31 from three point range. And most important of all, Cleveland’s ‘Big One’ (in sharp contrast to the Celtics ‘Big Three’) was completely stymied by the Celtics defensive approach, hitting just 8 of his 42 shot attempts in the first two games of the series, while committing 17 turnovers.

We’ve seen one team after the next return home facing an 0-2 deficit and respond with their best game of the series: San Antonio, Utah and Orlando already here in Round 2; Toronto, Dallas and Atlanta in the first round. The Celtics are 0-3 SU and ATS in their three previous road games here in the playoffs, losing all three games at Atlanta by a combined 42.5 points against the spread.

New Orleans @ San Antonio (Spurs -6, O/U 186)
The Spurs completely changed their gameplan against the Hornets for Game 3 after losing the first two games of the series in blowout fashion at New Orleans. San Antonio head coach Greg Popovich changed his defensive gameplan, putting shutdown defender Bruce Bowen on Peja Stojakovic instead of Chris Paul. The result: Paul had another huge game — 35 points, nine assists – but the contributions of the Hornets supporting cast were minimized.

At the offensive end, Popovich started Manu Ginobili, who normally comes off the bench. He also instructed Tony Parker to be more aggressive in transition, taking the ball to the basket with authority. The result? 62 points and 17 assists for the duo, by far their best games of the series.

Popovich: “We made shots, and we made better decisions. They only had [six] points off turnovers instead of the 22 they’ve been averaging. We had 28 assists, which is great, so if you can get 28 assists and not make turnovers, that makes your offense look a whole hell of a lot better…..I probably got [Parker] all screwed up [in Games 1 and 2] trying to get him to make perfect decisions. We know he’s better when he’s aggressive and trying to score. That’s the approach he took.”

For Game 4, we have to wonder if San Antonio is going to be capable of playing as well as they did in their last outing. Manu Ginobili, following Thursday’s win: “Tonight was like a Game 7 for us.” We’ve already seen the Hornets bounce back from a bad road loss in Game 3 of their series against Dallas with a resounding Game 4 victory. And let’s not forget that the Hornets were one of the strongest teams in the NBA on the road this season, 25-16 ATS, including a 24 point blowout over the Spurs in San Antonio back in January.

LA Lakers @ Utah (Jazz -5, O/U 210.5)
The Lakers are a tough team to bet against as underdogs in Game 4. LA is 6-1 SU and ATS here in the playoffs. They were one of the four teams to beat the Jazz in Salt Lake City during the regular season; the only team to do it after the All Star break. The Lakers were the single best road team in the NBA against the spread during the regular season, and they won and covered both first round games at Denver. To top it off, LA is on a 13-3 ATS run as underdogs of six points or less, consistently cashing in this role.

But Utah is not an easy team to fade here either. The Jazz were an NBA best 37-4 at Energy Solutions Arena during the regular season, and they beat the Rockets twice on this floor in their first round series. Utah has legitimate matchup edges over the Lake-show in the paint – they’ll continue to win the battle of the boards, and get easy second chance opportunities off the offensive glass, just as they have in the first three games of this series. Carlos Boozer was able to avoid foul trouble in the Jazz Game 3 victory, pacing the team with 27 points and 20 boards, while maintaining a physical presence in the paint that LA simply doesn’t have without the injured Andrew Bynum.

Here are some pertinent quotes following the Jazz Game 3 win. Jazz point guard Deron Williams: “It was just a solid game for us tonight. We pushed the ball in transition and got some easy things going. Guys were hitting shots and our confidence kept carrying over.” NBA MVP Kobe Bryant, following the loss: “We clawed back but you can’t turn the ball over so many times. We had a lot of open looks and you can sustain a game like that if you don’t turn the ball over.” Kobe’s teammate, Lamar Odom: “This team is good enough for us to lose to and we have to understand that and play our best game at all times. We could have lost to anyone playing like that.” Lakers coach Phil Jackson: “I told the guys they made a good comeback but they just couldn’t make the plays at the end.”

CLICK HERE FOR MORE NBA PLAYOFFS PICKS

Free NBA Pick: San Antonio Spurs -6.5 (-110)
Thu May 8 ’08 9:35p – Click Here for NBA Odds
The New Orleans Hornets have dominated the San Antonio Spurs the first two games of this series, especially in the second half, but we think it will be a different story here in San Antonio.

NBA teams returning home for Game 3 down 0-2 have been a great bet this season, continuing a long-standing pattern in this league. Besides, the Spurs are 37-7 straight up at home this year while winning by an average of +9.1 points. Worse teams than San Antonio have risen from the deck to win Game 3 in this circumstance, so there is no reason to believe the Spurs can’t win by double-digits here.

Now this is in no way a slight toward the Hornets, who have already proven this post-season that they are for real. However, remember that their only playoff loss so far came in Game 3 at Dallas when up 2-0, the identical circumstances as these. The difference though is that the Spurs are a tougher opponent than the Mavericks.

Thus, look for a similar result here as the San Antonio handily closes the series gap to 2-1.

NBA Free Pick: Spurs -6.5 – Courtesy of LT Profits

Free NBA Betting Pick: Detroit Pistons @ Orlando Magic u186.5 (-110)
Wed May 7 ’08 8:05p – Click Here for Current Betting Odds
The Detroit Pistons and the Orlando Magic went Over in Game 2 of this series, but we expect tonight’s contest to more closely resemble the pace of Game 1, which the Pistons won 91-72.

The thing is, the score may be reversed this time around, as this looks like a perfect spot for the Pistons to come up flat. Truth be told, Detroit did not play particularly well in Game 2 before rallying late, and if you recall their first round series vs. Philadelphia, they lost Game 3 on the road 95-75, and that was with the series tied 1-1. Now that they are up 2-0, this team that has the annoying habit of playing down to the competition until they need to flip the switch really has no incentive to give an all-out effort tonight.

Now the Magic are capable of lighting up the scoreboard, but they have yet to score more than 103 points vs. the Detroit defense this year, and they have come nowhere close to that the first two games. Thus, if the Pistons fail to reach 85 points, which we honestly feel is a very strong possibility tonight, it would be difficult for this game to go Over the total.

Believe it or not, the Under is 25-19, 56.8 percent in all Magic home games this year despite all of their firepower, and we look for that pattern to continue tonight.

NBA Free Pick: Pistons, Orlando Magic Under 186.5 – Selection Courtesy of LT Profits

Free NBA Playoff Pick: Cleveland Cavaliers +9.5 (-110)
Tue May 6 ’08 8:05p – Click Here for NBA Odds
Let us preface our analysis of this game by saying that we expect the Boston Celtics to win this series vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers fairly easily. That said, we do expect the Cavaliers to stay inside this big number in Game 1.

Cleveland actually covered three of the four meetings with the Celtics this season with the home team winning outright on every occasion, including nice cover here in Boston in a narrow 92-87 loss the last time these teams met. As usual, LeBron James led the way with 26 points in that game, and he scored over 30 points in each of the first three games. Thus, the stiff Boston defense has had as much trouble covering him as the rest of the NBA, and he is certainly capable of single-handedly keeping the Cavs in this game.

Now granted, the Celtics blew away the upstart Atlanta Hawks in all four home games in the first round, winning those contests by an average of +25.3 points. However the Cavaliers represent a step up in class and Cleveland definitely has a huge post-season experience edge over Atlanta, so they should not be intimidated by playing in this building. Remember also that Cleveland won two games on the road in the Washington series, including the decisive Game 6.

Look for the Cavaliers to hang within single-digits to the very end here.

NBA Free Pick: Cavaliers +9.5 – Click Here to Buy LT Profits NBA Playoff Picks

NBA Playoffs Free Pick: Orlando Magic +6.0 (-110)
Mon May 5 ’08 7:05p – Click Here for NBA Odds
While we have little doubt that the Detroit Pistons are better than the Orlando Magic, the Pistons have the annoying habit of taking some nights off while the Magic will be in desperation mode tonight.

Several Pistons players have said publicly that they get “bored” very often and they like to play down to the ability of the opposition. They have been getting away with this for several years because they have so much talent that they have indeed been able to flip the switch when they have wanted too, and we saw more evidence of this in the Philadelphia series before their wake-up call at halftime of Game 4.

They were down 0-1 in that series, and now that they are actually up 1-0 in this one, we strongly suspect that they will be less than motivated tonight. Besides, this has been a visitors’ series anyway, with the road team going 15-6-3 against the spread in the last 14 meetings, even with Detroit’s home cover in Game 1.

The Magic have been one of the better road teams in the NBA this season, going 28-16 both straight up and ATS away from home. They did win quite handily in their last regular season appearance here in Detroit 103-85 in February, so they have already proven they could compete in this building when Detroit does not bring their “A” game.

We look for another such occurrence tonight, and we would not be shocked if Orlando evens this series with an outright upset.

NBA Free Pick: Magic +6 – Courtesy of LT Profits – Click Here to Buy Expert Playoff Picks

Ted Sevransky is Professional Sports Handicapper at Touthouse.com – Click Here to Purchase His Betting Advice

Orlando @ Detroit
The Magic went 27-14 SU on the road this year, the second best road record in the entire NBA. They covered the spread at a 66% clip on the highway, finishing the regular season as the second best ATS team in the league. They proved their ability to win tight games in pressure packed situations in hostile environments, outscoring Toronto 12-2 down the stretch of their crucial Game 4 win against the Raptors. And, with all apologies to LeBron James, Tim Duncan and Kobe Bryant, Orlando’s Dwight Howard has arguably been the single most unstoppable force so far in the postseason. The Magic blew out the Pistons in their most recent meeting at Detroit, a 103-85 domination right after the All Star break, and the road team has covered the spread at a 15-5-3 clip over the last 23 meetings between these two teams. Orlando is also the more rested squad – Detroit played on Thursday, needing six games to close out the 76ers, while the Magic eliminated Toronto in five games, resting since their clincher on Monday. But the playoff tested Pistons swept this same Orlando team out of the playoffs last year. And, when it comes to playoff level defensive intensity, the Pistons enjoy an enormous edge, holding defensive matchup advantages at nearly every position.

New Orleans @ San Antonio
It’s hard to assess which team holds the most value here, as both of these squads have been making piles of money for those who supported them. The defending champs have now won four of their last five road games in the postseason and nine of their last twelve on the highway dating back to last season. In fact, San Antonio is now 19-5 SU, 16-6-2 ATS in their last 24 playoff games, the single most undervalued team in the postseason betting marketplace. But no NBA team has been more undervalued than the New Orleans Hornets in 2008. Byron Scott’s squad is 21-7 ATS in their last 28 home games; 41-20-1 ATS in their last 62 games overall, an extended run of pointspread excellence. The two teams split their four regular season meetings, with each team winning and covering once at home and once on their opponent’s home floor. Even the series price tells us to expect an extremely competitive series of games, with lower seeded San Antonio only the slightest of favorites at -130.

Atlanta @ Boston
If the old adage about a playoff series not really beginning until the road team wins a game is true, this playoff series hasn’t begun yet. Obviously, that’s not the case, as the single biggest favorite in the first round is the only first round series to reach a Game 7. That’s great for TV ratings, bad for the Celtics. Boston was an 80-1 favorite prior to the start of the series; higher than that following their first two blowout wins at home. And despite being unable to win a game in Atlanta, the Celtics are still prohibitive favorites to win Game 7 – they’ve dominated all three previous home games, winning by an average margin of 22 points per game, covering the spread in all three tries. That being said, the Celtics can’t be comfortable with any lead, having blown double digit leads twice in the last three games; losers of three of the last four in the series. And the upstart Hawks have no pressure here since nobody expects them to win – all the pressure to succeed is on the home team with the best regular season record in the league. But let’s not forget how one sided all three previous games at Boston have been in this series – the Celtics outscored the Hawks in every single quarter of those contests!

Utah @ Los Angeles
The Jazz have less than 48 hours of turnaround time following their Game 6 victory over Houston to get prepared for the Lakers. That stands in sharp contrast with LA, the only team to pull off a first round sweep, winning and covering the spread in all four games against the Nuggets, then enjoying the benefits of a full five day layoff. The Lakers won and covered the spread in three of the four regular season meetings between these two teams, earning double digit victories in both home games against the Jazz: 119-109 and 123-109, each game flying Over the total. Don’t put too much emphasis on those regular season games, however – three of the four meetings between the two teams came in the first two months of the season, when Utah was playing mediocre basketball, going 16-16 SU in their first 32 games of the season, before the trade for key reserve Kyle Korver seemed to spark their season. LA was a sub .500 team against the spread at home this year, while Utah’s road struggles have been well documented: 17-24 ATS on the highway during the regular season, although they did win and cover two out of three at Houston in the first round.

NBA Playoff Pick: Houston Rockets @ Utah Jazz u180.0 (-110)
Fri May 2 ’08 10:35p – Click Here for NBA Odds
The Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets have gone Under in four of the first five games of this series, and we expect a carbon copy tonight.

In fact, besides Houston’s 94-92 win in the only Over in Game 3, none of the four Unders have exceeded 175 total points scored, with those contests averaging just a combined 170.3 points. Then again, low scoring games are nothing new for the Rockets, as the Under is now 50-36-1, 58.1 percent in all Houston games this season combining regular season and playoffs.

Now the Jazz obviously prefer a faster pace as they are averaging 105.1 points per game for the year. However, they have not been able to solve this Houston defense this series, as the 93 points they scored in Game 1 is still their highest output so far. In fact, going back even further, the Under is 11-5 in the last 16 head-to-head meetings between these teams here in Utah.

Now the Jazz are not nearly as bad as they looked in their 94-69 loss at Houston in Game 5, but they may still be hard-pressed to score much more than 90 points here. Since we still feel that Utah will win this game, this means that we do not expect more than 175 total points at the most.

NBA Free Pick: Rockets, Jazz Under 180 – Click Here to Buy LT Profits Expert Picks

INSANE 17-2 NBA Totals Run
TOTAL OF THE WEEK THURS
DO NOT Miss Teddy’s HUGE 5* Total on Detroit vs Philadelphia Thurs – $35»
Teddy has won 7 of last 12 and 24 of his last 37 NBA Cards, making dime bettors $40k his last 44 days and up big profit his last 3 months of NBA Betting. He is also on a 19-10, 24-13 and 32-14 NBA Run, his Totals are 17-2 his last 19 and Teddy has dominated his last 100 NBA Bets. Releasing more analysis on his plays than ANY other expert, Teddy offers the public every insight and edge into the games.
Get the rest of Teddy Covers’ NBA Playoff for a low price of – $330»

BIG 54-27 NBA Totals Streak
Rose is on an 9-3 NBA Run and has 1 HUGE 5* NBA Total Best Bet – $30»
Mike Rose is storming into the playoffs, leading all NBA Experts and making his Dime Bettors $30,000 on the season. In all his NBA Bets he is on an 9-3, 30-18 and 66-44 Run and Mike has won 5 of his last 7 NBA Cards, 34 of his last 54 NBA Cards. He Totals are insane, sitting on a 7-4, 45-23 and 61-35 Totals Run and he is 60% and up 55 Units on the Season. This is Mike’s 2nd straight season making Big NBA profit and watch out for a huge NBA Playoffs.
Get the rest of Mike Rose’ NBA Playoff for a low price of – $330»

BOB’S HUGE 16-5 NBA Run
Swept 11 of his last 15 NBA Cards – Det/Philly Side Winner Thurs – $35»
Bob Akmens is smoking hot right now, SWEEPING 11 of his last 16 cards and winning 18 of his last 26 days of NBA betting. He is also on a 16-5 and 22-10 NBA Run, an 9-5 and 29-19 Totals Run and a 10-2 and 23-9 sides streak. Folks, we just watched him run hot for 4 months of CBB and this NBA run is early.
Get the Rest of Bob Akmens’ NBA Season for a VERY LOW Price of – $299»

Free NBA Playoff Pick: Detroit Pistons -5.0 (-110)
Thu May 1 ’08 8:00p – Click Here for NBA Playoff Betting Odds
The Detroit Pistons have brought their “A” game vs. the Philadelphia 76ers since the second half of Game 4, and we look for them to wrap things up vs. the pesky Sixers with a handy win tonight. The Pistons overcame a 10-point halftime deficit here in Philadelphia by outscoring the 76ers 57-38 in the second half of Game 4, and they followed that up with a 17-point home win in Game 5. Detroit has a huge advantage in playoff experience here and they have won many road playoff games in the past, so look for their smothering defense to propel them to the next round here. The Sixers took Detroit by surprise in Game 1 and again in the first game in Philadelphia, but even with those two victories, they are still only averaging 87.6 points per game in this series. Furthermore, their scoring output has decreased as the Pistons have turned up the Heat, as they scored a series-low 81 points on Tuesday. Philadelphia may be hard-pressed to reach just 80 points tonight, paving the way for a Pistons matchup with the Orlando Magic in the Conference Semifinals.NBA Free Pick: Pistons -5 – Click Here to Buy LT Profits Expert NBA Basketball Picks

Free NBA Pick: Detroit Pistons -5.5
Thu May 1 ’08 8:00p
The Pistons faced two closeout situations on the road in the playoffs last year. In the first round, they swept the Magic out of the playoffs, winning Game 4 on the road. In the second round, after failing to sweep Chicago after taking a 3-0 series lead, letting the Bulls get back into it with a Game 4 win and a Game 5 upset in Detroit, the Pistons went back to Chi-town and beat up the Bulls in Game 6, again winning their closeout game on the highway.

In ’06, Detroit closed out on the road in their first round series against Milwaukee, notching a ten point win at the Bradley Center. They also won a crucial Game 6 at Cleveland after trailing that series 3-2. In ’05, after losing a home game and one at Indiana, the Pistons finished the series with three straight wins, including a Game 6 closeout at Indy. After trailing the Heat in the second round by a 3-2 margin, they won the last two in the series, including a closeout Game 7 win on the road at Miami. In the Finals, trailing 3-2, they won Game 6 at San Antonio and nearly pulled off the Game 7 road upset in Larry Brown’s last game with the team. I think you get my point. The veteran Pistons, with essentially the same cast of characters as they’ve had in each of those previous playoff series, have repeatedly and consistently closed out series in Game 6 on the highway. When Detroit is clicking, their defense is championship caliber. They don’t give up open looks on the perimeter. They don’t give up anything in the paint, and don’t allow opposing point guards to drive and dish to open shooters. They dominate the defensive glass and don’t allow second chance opportunities. They don’t give up easy buckets in transition.

Offensively, when the Pistons are clicking, their ball movement is phenomenal, as is their balance, with everybody chipping in. Flip Saunders has painstakingly developed a tremendous bench throughout the season, and you don’t see any significant drop-off on either end of the court with the reserves in action. Put it all together and we can expect Detroit to close out this series in pointspread covering fashion tonight. Take the Pistons. - Courtesy of Ted Sevransky – Visit Touthouse.com to Buy Teddy Cover’s Expert Picks

Article Courtesy of Fairway Jay – Click Here to Buy His Expert Sports Betting Predictions

We cashed a ‘tap-in’ winner Saturday on the Nuggets/LA Lakers game ‘under’ the total of 230, as the Lakers embarrassed the Nuggets in Denver 102-84. That runs our playoff record to 4-2 and a 10-3 run overall including the last week of the NBA regular season. With over 60% success this season in the NBA, we’ll look for more ‘green’ today with some solid playoff situations. And with games 5-6-7 in some remaining series in round 1, we’ll have additional positive profiles that have proven profitable in the NBA playoffs.  Once we get to round 2 in the Western Conference with some of these ‘Class A’ match-ups, we’ll ‘shoot’ for even more ‘green’ with our proven profitable playoff plays.

With a 3-0 series lead, the Lakers can sweep Denver out of the playoffs and get the rumblings rolling in Denver for even more coach Karl questioning. Hardly an inspired effort from the Nuggets on their home floor after trailing the series 2-0. And the post-game comments really showed Denver’s frustration. “We quit,” Carmelo Anthony said. “Everybody, from the coaches to the players. And I said it. And I’m not pointing the fingers at anybody because we all sucked. I didn’t play worth a damn tonight.” Anthony continued, “These last three games, we haven’t just been losing, we’ve been getting the (expletive) beat out of us.” Allan Iverson played just one minute in the fourth quarter and was personally insulted and ‘shocked’ at coach Karl’s decision. “I’ve been in a lot of playoff series,” Iverson said, “and I don’t think I’ve ever been this frustrated.”

From a historical perspective, don’t expect Denver to turn it around in an elimination Game 4. NBA playoff teams that lead a series 3-0 are a profitable play in Game 4, getting the money at approx. a 60% clip. Also, these games have gone ‘over’ the total at a profitable rate since 2003 when a team leads a series 3-0. When the team leading the series 3-0 is a home favorite or a road ‘Dog, we have an even stronger situation to support with the road underdog proving to be especially profitable when going for the series sweep. Yes, that situation pops today on the San Antonio Spurs +4 at Phoenix.

Recent 3-0 series situations showed the Detroit Pistons up 3-0 at Orlando in last years opening round, and the Pistons won Game 4 by a 97-93 score but just failed to cover as 4.5 favorites. The next series, Detroit led Chicago 3-0, but were beaten badly in Game 4 at Chicago as a 3-point favorite. Notice the line adjustment in both situations last year with Detroit leading 3-0. The Pistons were a 2.5 favorite in Game 3 at Orlando and won/covered. Then the Pistons were pushed to a 4.5 favorite and won but just failed to cover. In Game 3 at Chicago and leading the series 2-0, Detroit was a 2.5 underdog and won outright, but then became a 3-point favorite and lost big in Game 4, and then lost again as an 8-point home favorite in Game 5. However, remember that Chicago was up 3-0 in their opening series last year against the defending NBA Champs Miami Heat. In Game 4 at Miami, the Bulls eliminated the Heat 92-79 as a 4.5 underdog. The LA Lakers have gone from a 1-point underdog in game 3 to a 4.5 favorite in game 4. I won’t be ‘laying it’ with the Lakers and the line move, but I cannot support the Nuggets who hardly appear ready to rally.

Many people including myself thought the Spurs – Suns series would be one of the best of the first round. Instead, Phoenix is ‘soul-searching’ and trying to find an answer for San Antonio’s pick-and-roll set. With Tony Parker piling up a career-high 41 points in game 3 and ‘chippin-in’ 12 assists, it appears the Suns have nobody capable of slowing him down after using Steve Nash, Boris Diaw and Grant Hill on him during game 3. Hill is doubtful for game 4 with abdominal and groin injuries, although he fought through them to play in games 2 and 3.

While I’m not convinced that San Antonio will make it back to the NBA Finals, it’s hard to argue with their performance against Phoenix and the psychological edge they now hold. Phoenix looked so solid in game 1, but couldn’t close the deal before losing in double OT and now must be wondering what it will take to beat the defending champs. San Antonio was an ordinary offensive team this season, and that’s being kind. The Spurs averaged just 95 ppg, no. 28 in the league. Yet San Antonio shot 56% and scored 115 points on the road against a top team in Phoenix with the Suns desperate and seemingly in a spot where their intensity would be the greatest facing a Spurs team that was just 3-11 SU on the road against West playoff teams. Phoenix shot a league-best 50% on their home floor this season, and while they hit 49% in game 3, their defense never showed. Phoenix has allowed the Spurs to score over 100 points and shoot better than 48% in all three contests. With Phoenix unable to deliver or recover during game 3 in desperation mode, it will come as no surprise if the ‘Sun’ doesn’t shine today and the Spurs sweep the series.