The San Antonio Spurs were able to shake off the rust without a hitch in their relatively easy 108-92 win over the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinals matchup.
They were better in virtually all facets of the game.
San Antonio shot better (48.8 percent to 44.6 percent), rebounded better (47 to 34) and took care of the ball better (15 turnovers to 18 turnovers).
The veteran experience of the Spurs was on full display, as was the incredible advantage Gregg Popovich and Co. hold in the coaching department. The ball movement, spacing and decision-making on offense should be sent to high school players across the country. It was a clinic.
Rust? Not with a team like this.
The Spurs have clearly been the better team in all five of their playoff games thus far, with no signs of slowing down any time soon.
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Video Highlights
What a surprise, Blake Griffin had a sweet dunk. This second quarter alley-oop from Chris Paul was perfectly set up by a lightning-fast spin from Griffin.
Speaking of Griffin, he can steal the ball too.
He snatched the ball from Tony Parker, gave it up and was rewarded with a present for his hustle in the form of a nasty two-handed slam.
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Twitter Reaction
The third quarter is what really blew this game wide open. An eight-point halftime lead ballooned to a 15-point cushion entering the fourth. Despite LA hitting numerous prayers from downtown (thanks Caron Butler), the Spurs seemingly had an answer each and every time.
ESPN?s J.A. Adonde believes Coach Popovich couldn?t ask for anything more:
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Griffin was severely overmatched by Tim Duncan, and it has become a startling trend for the high-flyer, as Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post reminds us:
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The difference in play between the two conferences has been incredible. The Western Conference provides us with points, the Eastern Conference provides us with ugly...errr?defense. Robert Littal of reminds us of the huge disparity over at Black Sports Online:
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Griffin has caught plenty of heat recently for his flopping, and when he tried it against Duncan, the veteran could only laugh at the young gun, according to the Bill Walton parody account:
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This Spurs team is for real, and if you still aren?t taking them seriously, Michael Lee of the Washington Post believes you better readjust your thinking:
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Grades for Key Clippers Players
Caron Butler: A-
How can you not love this guy?
Despite suffering a major hand injury against Memphis, Butler decided to skip surgery and gut it out. He drilled three three-pointers in the third to keep his team afloat when the Clippers offense became incredibly stagnant.
Butler scored 10 of the team's 23 third-quarter points to at least keep them breathing heading into the fourth. Butler finished with 15.
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Eric Bledsoe: A
Scoring 21 off the bench (in 27 minutes no less) automatically lands you on the list. He had great energy and hustle all game long.
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Blake Griffin: D+
This game perfectly summed up the young Griffin.
He had exciting dunks but was schooled by Mr. Duncan far more often than not, finishing with 15 points (on 17 shots) and nine rebounds. The team was outscored by 21 when he was on the floor.
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Chris Paul: D
He was forcing the issue once the Spurs decided to double him, and the end result was a very un-CP3-like 3-of-13 shooting performance. He finished with six points and five turnovers.
He clearly isn?t 100 percent.
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Grades for Key Spurs Players
Tim Duncan: A
The Big Fundamental reminded us all why he is one of the 10 greatest players in league history on this night. He mentally ran circles against the inexperienced Clippers.
His 26 points and 10 rebounds don?t even do justice to how dominant he was.
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Manu Ginobili: B+
Typical Manu game.
He scored 22 points while going 3-of-8 from three-point land. He also had three rebounds and three assists. Duncan is the most important part of this team, but Ginobili isn?t too far behind.
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Tony Parker: C
He only shot 1-of-9 from the field for seven points and turned the ball over four times, but he did register 11 assists while playing sharp defense on Chris Paul.
The Spurs won comfortably with a ?C? game from Parker?bad news for the rest of the remaining playoff teams.
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Deciding Factor: Rebounding
You can?t let a deep and balanced team like the Spurs out-rebound you 47 to 34. LA's Reggie Evans only played eight minutes. That needs to change in Game 2.
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Game MVP: Tim Duncan
This is one incredible player.
Duncan dictated everything the Clippers did in the paint, made every incredible outlet pass, and the Spurs were plus-26 when he was on the floor.
He showed what playoff basketball is all about, and hopefully Griffin took notes. The difference between the two was night and day in the series opener.
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What?s Next
The Clippers will have 48 hours to figure out a way to stop the high-powered Spurs offense, as Game 2 in San Antonio will be played Thursday night at 9:30 p.m. ET.
It?s not time to panic in LA, but some major adjustments by Vinny Del Negro and the team need to be made in a hurry. ??
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