NBA Handicapping Predictions – Spurs vs Thunder
Oklahoma City stormed (pun intended) to a massive Game Three win on Thursday night. It was a must win game for the Thunder, and they clearly had gotten the message.
NBA Basketball Matchup: #1 San Antonio Spurs (2-1) vs. #2 Oklahoma City Thunder (1-2)
Western Conference Finals
Date/Time: June 2, 8:30 PM EST on TNT
NBA Gambling Odds from Bovada
NBA Betting Favorite: Thunder -3.5
Over/Under: 202.5
The win was huge, but Game Four is now just as big.
You can expect the Spurs to tighten things up and play much better basketball in this one.
Will it be enough against the young and energized Thunder?
San Antonio has struggled with turnovers in this series, and that was a major problem in Game Three. The Spurs turned it over 21 times in their 102-82 loss Thursday night. Oklahoma City coughed it up just 7 times, and that was the real difference in Game Three.
Tim Duncan had a great series against the Clippers, but he is struggling with his shot against Oklahoma City. Manu Ginobili had his best two games of the season in Games One and Two, but he disappeared in Game Three.
Right now, Tony Parker is the guy that really sets the tone for the Spurs, and he needs to keep being aggressive on offense. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Oklahoma City took it to the Spurs in Game three. The Thunder weren’t passive at all, and their defense was terrific all game long. In the first couple games of the series the Spurs had a big quarter, but the Thunder shut them down beautifully in Game Three.
San Antonio had to work extremely hard for everything. The Thunder racked up 23 assists in Game Three.
It was the best ball movement I’ve seen out of the Thunder so far in the postseason. Thabo Sefolosha scored 19 points and proved to be the best defensive player on the floor on Thursday night.
Sefolosha had an amazing 6 steals, and he guarded nearly every Spurs player at some point in the game.
Oklahoma City must feed off its terrific crowd again in Game Four. The Spurs understand the importance of this game, and I don’t think they will give it up 21 times again. Look for a game that goes down to the final shot here.
Free NBA Pick: Spurs +3.5
