5 Biggest Adjustments San Antonio Spurs Must Make in Home Stretch of 2014-15
The San Antonio Spurs have a few adjustments to make during the final stretch of the 2014-15 campaign in preparation for the upcoming postseason.
As the All-Star break concludes, Gregg Popovich's team holds a 34-19 record and the No. 7 spot in the Western Conference with 29 contests remaining.
Considering the Spurs possess a 5.5-game advantage over the eighth-seeded Phoenix Suns, the defending champions aren't in danger of missing the playoffs.
But San Antonio sits a mere two games behind the Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets for third place, and the necessary changes will help the Spurs creep toward earning at least one postseason series at home.
Decide on Point Guard Minutes Distribution
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Tony Parker's minutes stabilized recently, averaging a healthy 29.7 per showing since Jan. 23. During that time, however, the player receiving the majority of action as his backup was unsettled.
Patty Mills logged more than 15 minutes in five games and fewer than 15 four times, while Cory Joseph recorded the converse output—four and five, respectively.
Depending on the situation, Pop can insert the point guard who best fits the need, a luxury most franchises don't hold. Mills has the potential to provide a serious offensive spark with long-range shooting, and Joseph contributes stout defense.
But before the postseason begins, San Antonio needs to figure out its go-to rotation and allow that lineup to develop its collective rapport. The Spurs cannot afford to enter the playoffs as a team that merely reacts to what's happening on the floor.
Making in-game adjustments is undoubtedly a key to postseason success, but San Antonio being unable to employ its normal units would likely be a death sentence to dreams of a repeat title.
Win in the West
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Though the Eastern Conference may provide a respite for some clubs before the regular season ends, it doesn't for the Spurs, who will oppose five of the East's top six franchises.
Consequently, San Antonio must overcome the 19 in-conference games remaining to rise in the standings, particularly when it closes the year with seven straight conference outings.
But to this point, the Spurs have compiled an 18-14 mark against the West, tied with the Dallas Mavericks for the No. 7 winning percentage.
Yes, San Antonio was without Parker, Kawhi Leonard or both stars for 20 consecutive games in December and January. The absences were a critical reason the team trudged to a 9-11 record during that time, certainly affecting that mediocre clip.
Now completely healthy, however, the Spurs have little room for excusable error in conference play. But with matchups against every Western team, except the Los Angeles Lakers, consistently winning won't be an easy task to accomplish.
Control the Pace, Find the Production
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Without question, the Spurs have struggled to score at times; Their per-game average has dropped from 105.4 to 100.7, and a slower offensive pace hasn't helped.
San Antonio's ranked in the league's top 10 throughout each of the last three seasons, but it's fallen to 19th this year, per Basketball-Reference.com. This campaign also marks the first time the Spurs' pace has been below the league average since 2009-10.
The difference is clearly seen in the leading four-man units from 2013-14. Parker, Danny Green, Leonard and Tim Duncan recorded 510 minutes and a team-high plus-155 rating at a 94.9 pace. The foursome of Mills, Manu Ginobili, Marco Belinelli and Boris Diaw logged 245 minutes and was plus-115 (second-best) at 96.7.
But in 2014-15, the former lineup has tallied 410 minutes and a team-leading plus-55 at a 91.9 offensive pace. Thanks to various injuries, though, the latter group has only registered just 40.6 minutes, carrying a plus-two mark at a blistering 101.7.
Championship form suggests San Antonio needs its core of starters to play marginally faster, while its reserves stop pressing so hard offensively. The balance is delicate, but more minutes together in a daily rotation should help fix the issue.
Make Late Free Throws
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The acronym "YGTMYFT" has been a stalwart on Twitter throughout Spurs' games this season. After all, every writer, fan, coach and player can agree, "You got to make your free throws."
But San Antonio has encountered a problem in clutch situations: Free throws aren't getting buried when they matter the most.
As a team, the Spurs have only knocked down 69.6 percent from the charity stripe in five-point games with five minutes or less remaining on the clock, per NBA.com.
What's more, only the Detroit Pistons are worse in the category. What's worse, San Antonio lost to the Pistons 105-104 on Jan. 6 because it clanged six free throws during the final two minutes of that clash.
The Spurs' schedule isn't getting any easier anytime soon, so contested finishes are to be expected down the stretch. But if they want to hold onto a few victories against tough competition, YGTMYFT.
Flip the Mental Switch
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The topic has remained a hot one throughout the 2014-15 campaign: The Spurs simply don't have the memory of coming so close in the previous NBA Finals to motivate a run into the postseason.
Frankly, San Antonio has performed terribly in four games, and Popovich lashed out following each one.
According to Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News, those blunders occurred on Dec. 3 (Brooklyn Nets), Dec. 12 (Lakers), Dec. 25 (Oklahoma City Thunder) and Jan. 22 (Chicago Bulls), and Boris Diaw agreed with his coach's post-Chicago statements.
"After such an uninspiring showing, Diaw was not surprised to hear his coach's scathing critique.
"Yeah, because it's true," Diaw said. "We've got to find a way to play harder and be more competitive if we're going to turn it around, especially when it happens time after time."
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This year, as annoyingly cliche as it may be, San Antonio's drive to reach another—its third consecutive—Finals must come from within. Western Conference opponents have not and will not lie down in the presence of the defending champions.
Without adjustments, the Spurs will likely stumble out of the postseason. However, a few necessary changes would be predominant factors in a sixth banner being raised into the AT&T Center rafters.
Unless otherwise noted, stats are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and are accurate as of Feb. 18.
Follow Bleacher Report NBA writer David Kenyon on Twitter: @Kenyon19_BR.
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