Thunder vs. Spurs: 3 Factors to San Antonio Regaining Control of Series

With the Spurs-Thunder series currently tied at two games apiece for the time being, the Spurs have dropped two straight and look for answers heading into Game 5.  While the game is in progress, no matter what the outcome is, they look to regain steady control of the series.

There are many ways that the Spurs can take the series back and send a veteran San Antonio team to the NBA Finals and win their fourth NBA title in the last 10 seasons.

I will go over the main factors that the Spurs need to take into consideration if they want to account for almost half of the NBA championships of the past decade.

Contain Kevin Durant

Let's face it, at age 23, Durant is probably the most dominant young scorer in the league.  He showed his scoring prowess at the end of Game 4 when he racked up 16 points for the Thunder late in the fourth quarter, and was the reason that the Thunder hung on to win the game.  He finished with 36 points, eight assists and six boards.

If the Spurs want to regain the control they had for the first two games in the series that allowed them to take a 2-0 series lead, they need to slow down the multi-talented scorer.

Durant is averaging 29 points per game in the Western Conference finals, and with the help of Sixth Man of the Year James Harden and center Serge Ibaka, they have regained control of the series momentum.

To slow down Durant, Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard need to step up defensively on him.  There really is no player on the Spurs that can match up effectively with Durant.  Then again, there really isn't anyone in the league that can effectively match up with the lanky Durant.

They can't stop Durant, but they can try to slow him down.

Don't Rely on Jump Shots

The Spurs have a guy that goes by the name Tony Parker, and yeah, he's pretty good at getting to the hole.  He is one of the best assist-men in the league and has moves that can leave any defense baffled.

With that said, he needs to do what he does best and get to the lane and either draw a foul, dish the ball to an open guy or finish at the rim.

Don't get me wrong, San Antonio has great shooters in Ginobili, Diaw and Green, but they can't make all of their shots.  They can't even be taking that many every game if San Antonio wants to win.  The only jumpers that they should take are open looks that Duncan or Parker create when they draw in the defense.

The Spurs are a tough team to beat when they get the ball inside and feed Duncan.  He is a huge threat down low with a feather-touch around the rim.  The Spurs need to look to get him the ball more and take fewer jump shots if they want to regain any momentum that they have lost in the series. 

Look for them to play complete team basketball from here on out under Gregg Popovich.

Play San Antonio Basketball

The definition of San Antonio basketball is the process of playing near-perfect, sound hoops.  They have been known to lull their opponents to sleep with their solid fundamental play, but so far this series they have only done that half the time.

They had 20 straight wins and were undefeated in the playoffs until their Game 3 loss to the Thunder.  They held control of the series and needed just one win on the road in either Game 3 or 4 to seemingly lock up the series.  They failed to do so.

They finished the regular season with the best record in the NBA at 50-16 and were second in the league in scoring at 103.7 points per game.  They are one of the most sound NBA teams since the breakup of the Detroit Pistons in 2008.  Both teams were eerily similar in the ways that they played solid offense with gritty defense and not one true superstar, unless you still count Tim Duncan as a superstar.

The series is basically a men vs. boys series in literal terms.  The Spurs are a veteran team of experienced players and the Thunder are an up-and-coming team with some of the best young players in the league.  The Spurs need to win this series because this may be their last year of Western Conference dominance, because the Thunder are so young and are taking the league by storm.

This could be the Spurs last chance for a while.