Basketball Daily Dose: Dose: Spurs Send Statement

LaMarcus Aldridge, Kawhi Leonard and the San Antonio Spurs sent a clear and emphatic Game 1 statement: The rest of the NBA is on notice.

San Antonio’s ability to evolve is a key ingredient in their recipe for excellence, and Leonard’s transformation as a player serves as an appropriate example. Now paired alongside Aldridge—who enjoyed dream evening with 38 points, six rebounds and two blocks on an incendiary 18-of-23 shooting—Leonard, Aldridge and Co. are well positioned and well prepared to enjoy sustained success in the post-Tim Duncan era and beyond. But before that potentially happens, this team wants to send TD off in proper fashion.

Oklahoma City @ San Antonio: Spurs 124, Thunder 92

Studs: LaMarcus Aldridge, Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green

Duds: Enes Kanter

Injuries: N/A

It’s rare that a playoff game is over after a single quarter, but that’s exactly what happened in San Antonio on Saturday. With a 43-20 lead after one, there was no looking back as the Spurs built a 33-point cushion by halftime. Carving up Oklahoma City like a Thanksgiving turkey, Leonard required just 21.5 minutes to pop off for 25 points, five rebounds and five assists on a ridiculous 10-of-13 from the field.

The Deciding Factor: Leonard and Aldridge combined to shoot 28-of-36 (77.8%) for 63 points on a night Russell Westbrook (5-of-19 FGs) and Kevin Durant (6-of-15 FGs) managed to connect on just 11-of-34 shots (32.4%) to score 30 points. Oklahoma City came in at a respectable enough 41.2% overall, but a white-hot San Antonio squad hit 60.7% of their attempts.

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I’m not sure where this version of Danny Green has been all season—and his disgruntled fantasy owners are rolling their eyes reading this sentence—but this was the type of line (18 points, five triples, three blocks, 6-of-7 FGs) that made him such a coveted asset before the campaign started. He’s going to be tough to trust as a DFS deploy because Green has exhibited no consistency of any kind this season, so that’s something to keep in mind if you’re considering rolling the dice.

Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili shall be known as the OG Big Three, but there’s nothing large or of the grandest stature when talking about their current fantasy contributions. Parker handed out 12 assists to go without anything else, Duncan had eight points, two rebounds and two assists while Manu Ginobili had a quick six-point, five-assists performance in his brief 11 minutes on the court.

The best Spurs news of the night? We got a Boban Marjanovic sighting, and he made every second count with four points, five rebounds, two assists and two blocks in his eight minutes.

There isn’t much to say about what the Thunder (didn’t) do in this one. Durant turned in a respectable 16/8/6 line, but Russell Westbrook had more shots (19) than points scored (14) and was constantly frustrated by a defense that was ready for him. If we want to take some kind of silver lining out of this game, Serge Ibaka showed some nice offensive touch with 19 points and three triples on 8-of-15 from the floor, but he’s going to need to be a bigger factor on the glass (two rebounds in Game 1) if the Thunder are going to have any kind of real chance in this series. San Antonio was also able to keep Enes Kanter in check, limiting the $70-plus million man to six points and four rebounds in his 18.5 minutes of action.

OKC is going to try to flush this one and move on, but the Spurs—led by Leonard and Aldridge—may already have their number.

News & Notes

New Lakers coach Luke Walton, who has agreed to a reported five-year, $25 million deal with Los Angeles, said that he would not run the triangle offense. Instead, he’ll utilize a similar to setup to what he’s done with Golden State.
Stephen Curry is not expected to play in (at least) either of Golden State’s first two games vs. Portland. For what it’s worth, Curry hasn’t even been on the court since sustaining the injury in Game 4 vs. Houston.
Nicolas Batum (left foot strain) is being listed as questionable for Sunday’s decisive Game 7. The versatile 27-year-old stands to get paid in unrestricted free agency.
Josh Richardson, who sustained a left shoulder injury in the closing moments of Friday’s Game 6, was diagnosed with a stress reaction, leaving his Game 7 status up in the air.
Marc Gasol’s (foot) rehab is on schedule, but it’s unclear what that means with the Grizzlies being “extremely cautious.”
DeMarcus Cousins revealed that his feet bother him more with every passing season, but hopefully the platelet therapy will allow for some relief and improvement. It’s a situation to monitor this summer.
Paul Pierce is on the fence about retirement, but it sounds like Pablo Prigioni, AKA Priggy Smalls, has already made up his mind.