NBA: 2011/12 Conference Finals.
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NBA: IF the oustanding shooter and defender Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs is really NBA-old, and if the Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich is indeed an example of the basketball leader who’s been many times through the mill, then the Spurs/Oklahoma City Thunder NBA-Western Conference battles that continue this week will be a test between an older generation of greats and the young and upcoming greats of the Thunder that are Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Thunder head coach, Scott Brooks. Also, the battles between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat for an NBA-Eastern Conference title that kicked in yesterday will compete some already crowned NBA existing greats, that is, possibly the NBA’s best shooter, Ray Allen (Boston) versus the year’s MVP and super shooter, LeBron James (Miami).
In addition, viewers will be watching a team that boasts a super star but stresses teamwork over star-power and spreads the opportunities for netting baskets (the Spurs), versus a team that relies more on the prowess of its two stars for its field goal + three pointer completions (Durant and Westbrook). In front of viewers, then, will be the ongoing controversy as to which kind of “rostering for the win” is best, hardwood equality (teamwork), or star-power, or the ability to maintain both for switchbacks among the two strategies? Similarly, the Celtics/Heat contests will have something to say about the extended star-power triumvirate that is Chris Bosh, James and Dwyane Wade along with Miami’s above the margin but not best of all reserves, vs. a franchise of players of greater experience over the years and of a strong bench for that very reason (Boston).
Surely this, strategies will be tested during the remaining NBA conference games, influencing how the East/West finals will be adjusted to by the conference winners. Moreover, the conference games will affect how NBA teams will adjust for the next NBA regular season. Clear, of course, will be something that has been noted during NBA conference and national championship games for several years, that you can’t get the ring without being nearest to execution of a perfect D, of a defense that keeps the opposition’s planned plays from completion and enemy shooters from shooting well, which means lots of successful blocking and numerous defense rebounds; and, you can’t score enough points without numerous defense rebounds enabling turnovers and fast breaks, or without offense rebounds and their chances for follow-on points; and, an offense had better minimize failed free-throws.
Yes, speed can beat height and power in basketball if the height and power of the opposition comes from players lacking the endurance to stay sharp in a fourth quarter, a more likely happening during the regular season but rare against NBA teams capable of reaching the post-season.
Noted from a Los Angeles Lakers win against the Denver Nuggets this post-season is that a quick change in style of offense can trigger confusion within an opposition’s defense, example: defenders thinking that a super shooter being double-teamed will keep trying to net the ball anyway and waste shots and time, but the star shooter then passes the ball superbly to men least likely to shoot from the corners, who score. Or, you decide not to double-team the super star so you can double-up on the opposing seven-footers and prevent rebounds. In effect, you allow the star to shoot, thinking he’ll finish with, at best, 27 points. Instead, he scores 38 in addition to passing well to his big guys, who, to be stopped from shooting, risks fouls, those enemy free-throw points adding up.
The NBA conference title outcomes will remain hard to predict until after three games each, and then prediction still won’t be easy. Both series could go to seven games each, yet the slightest new chinks in the armor of either team could cause one or the other to lose four straight, or fade away at 4-1. Among vulnerabilities, the Celtics will play hard but they can be accident-prone during make or break competitions (too late now for rehab). And, the Heat needs each of its three stars to be revved and ready at the same dynamic level for either to play well off of the other (when one slackens, the others tend to fall back some).
Of merit is that neither team in this year’s conference finals is without the variables that make for a championship season. Without question, watching the four franchises will be clear observation of NBA play at its very best.
END/ml
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