NBA Playoffs 2013: What Grizzlies and Pacers Must Do to Bounce Back

The Memphis Grizzlies and Indiana Pacers find themselves on the wrong end of their respective matchups in the NBA conference finals.

The Grizzlies are trailing the San Antonio Spurs, 2-0, in the Western Conference finals. The Pacers lost a heartbreaker to the Miami Heat in Game 1.

Both teams are similar in that they are aggressive, defensive-minded squads. But they both face similar challenges in the conference finals.

Here is what the Grizzlies and Pacers must do to narrow the gap.

Memphis Grizzlies (Down 2-0 to San Antonio Spurs)

Minus a peculiar fourth quarter by the Spurs in Game 2, they've shot much better than the Grizzlies in this series, which backs up their regular-season numbers against Memphis.

The Grizzlies shot 44 percent against San Antonio in the regular season, while the Spurs shot 48 percent against Memphis. In this series, San Antonio is shooting 48 percent, while the Grizzlies are shooting 38 percent.

You could say Memphis needs to do a better job of getting to the free-throw line, but, then again, they are shooting 70 percent from the charity stripe in the playoffs.

You would have to think those percentages would go up a little bit, based on the law of averages, but the bigger concern is simply finding a way to stop the Spurs offense.

The worst part is, it seems like there is always someone new stepping up for the Spurs. Tony Parker and Tim Duncan combined to shoot 12-of-34 from the floor in Game 2, but San Antonio still found ways to score, led by a combined five three-pointers by the young Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green.

Memphis' biggest advantage is rebounding. The rebounding differential between the two teams has actually grown in the playoffs, as the Grizzlies are averaging eight rebounds per game more than the Spurs in this series. A big reason they were able to take the Spurs into overtime in Game 2 was because of their work on the glass. They ended up with 19 offensive rebounds in the 93-89 overtime loss.

But we saw in Game 2 that rebounding can only get you so far. The Grizzlies have yet to find a way to put the ball in the hoop, or stop San Antonio, and that's scary considering they are one of the better defensive teams in the NBA.

Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph have to keep plugging away on offense for Memphis.

Indiana Pacers (Down 1-0 to Miami Heat)

Don't give LeBron James an open lane to the hoop with seconds left.

The End.

But seriously, all kidding aside, while the Pacers did enough to put themselves in position to win in Game 1, there were obviously some areas in need of improvement.

Indiana's troubles taking care of the ball came to the forefront on Wednesday. The Pacers shot a respectable 45 percent against the Heat, but they committed 20 turnovers, which Miami happily turned into 22 points.

But, while that has been something the Pacers have struggled with all season (ranked 22nd in turnovers per game during the regular season), I was a bit surprised by the rebounding differential on Wednesday.

Yes, the Pacers out-rebounded the Heat in Game 1, 43-38, but they averaged seven rebounds per game more against Miami during the regular season. LeBron was, well, LeBron, but the aging Udonis Haslem picked up seven boards himself (four offensive). Meanwhile, David West managed just five rebounds.

Indiana needs to pick it up on the glass to have a chance in this series. The Pacers played stingy defense on Wednesday, but Miami still ended up shooting 48 percent from the floor. Indiana's offense simply can't keep up with Miami's unit.