The San Antonio Spurs are lost. Their will is broken, their vaunted offense has withered and died, and the three-star core that has brought so much success to the Spurs franchise just isn’t producing at an acceptable level.
Or, more accurately, the Memphis Grizzlies have erased the Spurs. They’ve broken San Antonio’s will, and smothered the Spurs’ vaunted offense with a hyperactive defense. The three-star core that has brought so much success to the Spurs franchise has been shackled, while the best players in this series have worn three shades of blue.
Regardless of which perspective you prefer, the facts remain the same: The Memphis Grizzlies demolished the San Antonio Spurs in the second half in Game 4, and rode out their momentum to a 104-86 win and a decisive 3-1 series lead.
Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol made some remarkable plays on both ends of the court, but scored just 20 combined points and grabbed 18 combined rebounds. This wasn’t merely a case of of that tandem working over San Antonio’s bigs, but instead a comprehensive dominance by the Grizzlies from top to bottom. Gasol made Tim Duncan a non-factor. Darrell Arthur came in off the bench to provide some great two-way production in the second half. Mike Conley finished with just 6-of-15 shooting from the field, but ran the offense expertly and hit some key baskets. O.J. Mayo and Tony Allen D-ed up and made smart cuts. The Grizz just worked and worked and worked, and countered each of San Antonio’s runs with a relentless commitment to forcing turnovers and moving within the offense. By the end of the game, the Spurs had turned the ball over on nearly one-fifth of their possessions, and the Grizz had scored at a rate of 119.5 points per 100 possessions. Memphis topped the No. 1 seed with a bullet, an exclamation point, and just about every emphatic accessory one could possibly think of.
What’s worse: the Spurs had the best production out of their bench in this series, as George Hill, Tiago Splitter, and Gary Neal contributed 31 points between the three of them. Most of Neal’s production came after the game had already been decided, but Splitter’s near double-double and Hill’s contributions were no mirage; San Antonio had two solid bench contributors scoring efficiently, but just didn’t have the bulk production necessary from the starters, nor anything resembling an effective defense.
One need only to watch the third quarter for a full sampling of the Grizzlies’ authority. The Spurs shot 6-of-15 from the field and 1-of-4 from three-point range. They attempted just two free throws, and turned the ball over seven times. Meanwhile, the Grizz rattled off punishing 14-0 and 10-2 runs to open and close the quarter, and finished with 30 in the frame overall. Five of Memphis’ players scored five or more points in the third, and the team’s six assists in those 12 minutes doesn’t even do justice to the quality of their teamwork. The Grizz are clicking, and with each interior pass, well-timed rotation, and quality shot attempt, San Antonio’s existence dwindles away.
Who knows what will become of San Antonio next season and beyond, but this year’s team is in the ground, awaiting only the closure of a proper burial. This isn’t another premature eulogy, the kind to which the Spurs are no stranger; San Antonio is done. Cast a cold eye on life, on death, on Spurs. Horseman, pass by.
