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NBA Finals 2013, Heat vs. Spurs Game 3: LeBron James stifled

2013-06-12T12:00:07Z

To say LeBron James struggled in Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Tuesday night doesn't do justice to what took place on the floor over those 48 minutes. The world's indisputable best player struggled with every aspect of his game, and it raises the question:

How did the San Antonio Spurs manage to slow him down?

More: Visit Hot Hot Hoops for additional Heat coverage Visit Pounding the Rock for additional Spurs coverage

"We've done a great job helping each other on team defense," San Antonio Spurs guard Danny Green said after the game. "But obviously we know what kind of player LeBron is. We know he's not at his best right now. He missed a lot of shots he normally makes. We're sure in Game 4 he's going to come out a lot different."

The strange stat line for James begins with just 15 points on 7-of-21 shooting from the field while going just 1-of-5 from the three-point line. Incredibly, he didn't get to the free throw line all night, the first such instance since December 2009.

What will he need to do to be better in Game 4?

"I got to be better," James remarked after the game. "If I'm better, we're better. I'm putting it on my shoulders."

That's the kind of statement that causes one to think that San Antonio might have awakened a sleeping giant in James. But for a player who shot 57 percent during the regular season, to turn in a 33 percent performance on the game's greatest stage will make some eyes pop.

The Spurs stifled James defensively and bothered him throughout the night, taking him out of his comfort zone by challenging him inside. Every time he got the ball in the post, San Antonio keyed in on him and forced the ball out of his hands. When he did shoot, his looks were especially bad and of the low-percentage variety:

(Via NBA.com/stats)

James was 2-of-14 from outside the paint. None of his other looks came easily as he the Spurs were flawless in their rotations and contested nearly everything. Despite all of that, his teammates aren't worried about his ability to bounce back and become himself again.

"He'll make the adjustment and he'll be his normal great self," added Dwyane Wade.

Danny Green, who finished with a game-high 27 points for the Spurs, may have given James and the Heat some bulletin board material with a parting shot:

It's not just us stopping LeBron," he said. "He's kind of stopped himself out there and we're getting a little lucky."

(All quotes via NBA live streaming)

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• Spurs crush Heat: Who needs the Big 3? | GIFs

• Spurs fans troll Heat with "Seven Nation Army"

• Ziller: LeBron is the evolutionary Bird

• Is Jason Kidd the next Nets coach?

• NBA mock draft: Best-case scenarios | Scouting reports | Big Board

• Julius Erving and the loss of innocence.

NBA Finals 2013, Heat vs. Spurs Game 3: San Antonio crushes Miami in historic 113-77 win

2013-06-12T03:37:32Z

The San Antonio Spurs started the second half dominating on both ends of the floor and never looked back as they prevailed over the Miami Heat, 113-77, in Game 3 of the NBA Finals at AT&T Center on Tuesday night.

The Spurs couldn't miss on what was a magical evening in San Antonio. They shared the ball with ease and executed flawlessly throughout the game to give themselves high-percentage looks throughout the night.

Danny Green continued his incredible run through the postseason and finished with 27 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the field to lead all scorers. Gary Neal added 24 points off the bench and made things relatively easy for the Spurs' stars as they got plenty of rest.

Kawhi Leonard (14 points, 12 rebounds) and Tim Duncan (12 points, 14 rebounds) each notched double-doubles as the Spurs totaled 29 assists on 43 field goals and turned the ball over just 13 times.

For the Heat, San Antonio's aggressive defense stifled LeBron James and held him to just 15 points and 11 rebounds on 7-of-21 shooting. Dwyane Wade finished with 16 points and five assists. Chris Bosh was just 4-of-10 from the field and finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Mike Miller's outstanding 5-for-5 three-point performance got lost in the fray by the Spurs' performance.

The first half was an effective chess match that saw each team counter the other's best shot. For the Spurs, it was stellar defense on Wade and James that forced them out of easy looks inside. They rotated and put several bodies on James down low and forced him to kick the ball out to the outside. Miller kept them in the game and hit three of his long-range looks in the first 24 minutes.

In the third quarter, the defensive domination and flawless execution continued as San Antonio held the Heat to just 19 points and forced seven turnovers that resulted in six easy points and helped extend the lead to as much as 21 points.

The fourth quarter was a proverbial victory lap for San Antonio. The Spurs got the opportunity to rest a hobbled Tony Parker for the final 12 minutes while Green and Neal personally dissected Miami's defense from the outside. Midway through the fourth quarter, Miami threw up the white flag and sat their starters as the Spurs continued to crush their spirits.

It was the third largest margin of victory in NBA Finals history. The Spurs's 16 three-pointers set a record for the most in a finals contest. Miami is 5-0 after losses in the NBA Playoffs -- all of those wins coming by double figures.

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• Spurs crush Heat: Who needs the Big 3? | GIFs

• Spurs fans troll Heat with "Seven Nation Army"

• Ziller: LeBron is the evolutionary Bird

• Is Jason Kidd the next Nets coach?

• NBA mock draft: Best-case scenarios | Scouting reports | Big Board

• Julius Erving and the loss of innocence.

Heat vs. Spurs score update, NBA Finals Game 3: Gary Neal's buzzer-beater extends San Antonio 1st half lead, 50-44

2013-06-12T02:20:26Z

Gary Neal hit a clutch three-pointer from the wing as time expired in the first half to give the San Antonio Spurs a 50-44 lead over the Miami Heat in Game 3 of the NBA Finals at AT&T Center on Tuesday night.

Tony Parker also connected on a three-pointer one play earlier to help the Spurs finished the half on a 6-0 run to steal the momentum going into the tunnel.

More: Visit Hot Hot Hoops for additional Heat coverage Visit Pounding the Rock for additional Spurs coverage

The Spurs kept LeBron James and Dwyane Wade out of the paint and forced them into taking perimeter jump shots while taking away their lanes. The game plan was clear from the onset, and it proved to be effective in giving San Antonio the lead at the half. Mike Miller was 3-for-3 and knocked down two of his attempts in the second quarter to keep the game relatively close.

Tim Duncan continued to showcase his timeless talent as he led the way for the Spurs with 10 points and seven rebounds. Tony Parker initiated the offense and found his teammates early and often and totaled seven assists while scoring six points. The Spurs had 13 assists on 19 baskets.

San Antonio shot a blazing 61 percent in the first quarter, including 2-of-3 from the three-point line. Duncan got off to a hot start, scoring six points on 3-of-6 from the field in 11 minutes. They jumped out to a four-point lead in the first 12 minutes,which could have been larger if they had not committed four turnovers and allowed Miami to score four points off those giveaways.

James was relatively quiet early as he got a feel for the game. Obviously, he can do whatever he wants on a basketball court, and he's letting the game come to him to decide whether he'll serve as a primary scorer or facilitator. Miami shot 43 percent from the field, but the encouraging sign for them through the first quarter was the fact that they only committed two turnovers and managed to match the Spurs in rebounding as both teams had eight apiece.

The second quarter began with the heat going nearly four minutes without a score and featured a lengthy Spurs' run that saw them jump out to a lead as large as eight, but Miami went on a 12-1 run to tie the game at 44 points apiece before Parker's three-pointer extended the lead back to three.

SB Nation's own Rodger Sherman explored three good questions worth revisiting in this Game 3 preview:

The Big 1, the Big 2, or the Big 3?

Yes, LeBron is LeBron, but the other two players of Miami's star trio have to play well for the team to find success at AT&T Center. Wade started off with eight points to lead all scorers in the fist quarter, while Bosh struggled to a 1-for-5 start and totaled just three points in the first frame while committing two turnovers during that same stretch.

So far, it's been the Big 2, and that means that if Bosh isn't going to step up and get himself going with easy looks inside, then it will put more pressure on the perimeter players to hit open shots.

Will Danny Green come back to Earth?

Danny Green has been the Spurs' X factor in the first two games and he's picking up right where he left of. Going back to Game 2, he's been an unstoppable force from beyond the arc, going 10-for-16 in his first NBA Finals. He's doing it when his team needs him, as he gave the Spurs valuable momentum in the first half on Sunday before hitting another one to extend the lead to six at the 6:45 mark.

If Duncan and Parker can play up to their capabilities, they will no doubt have a real chance at winning the game if Green continues his other-worldly shooting exploits.

Who wins the turnover battle?

So far, the Heat have won the battle of giveaways with six to the Spurs' eight, but they're losing the proverbial war as they haven't capitalized by turning those into high-percentage transition baskets. Take that away from Miami, and they lose something that they normally do as well as any team in the NBA.

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Karl Malone leaves Michael Jordan off his all-time starting five

2013-06-05T02:06:31Z

Karl Malone doesn't think that Michael Jordan deserves to be on the NBA's all-time starting five, despite the Bulls' legend being the near unanimous pick for most people's greatest player of all-time.

More: Check out further reaction to this story at SLC Dunk

The Mailman joined "The Dan Patrick Show" on Tuesday to talk all things NBA when the topic of who to start an all-time greatest team with came up. Malone, who notably played in Jordan's shadow for the majority of his career, curiously named Oscar Robertson, John Stockton, LeBron James, Scottie Pippen and Bill Russell as his go-to squad while leaving No. 23 off of it.

The strangest part of his argument is that he named another member of the famous Chicago Bulls' teams from the '80s and '90s not named Michael Jordan. He went on to say that his reasoning for naming Pippen as opposed to Jordan was that the former was putting up team-highs in nearly every category before Jordan arrived.

It's flawed logic at best, because Jordan led the team in those same statistics when both were the best two players in red and black for a number of years.

But more than that, there has to be some animosity on the part of Malone for Jordan being almost single-handedly responsible for leaving his career devoid of an NBA title. The Bulls defeated Malone's Jazz in consecutive NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998.

That has to sting to this day, and as evidenced by his ludicrous slight, it clearly does.

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• Flannery: The Heat as we knew them | Ziller: Dynasties are supposed to be hard

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Pacers vs. Heat Game 5, NBA Playoffs 2013: Time, TV schedule and more

2013-05-30T21:30:06Z

The Miami Heat will have home-court advantage once again after falling to the Indiana Pacers in Game 4. What will now be a de facto three-game series is set to begin on Thursday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.

More: Pacers fans should head over to Indy Cornrows Heat fans should check out Hot Hot Hoops

As with any game featuring the reigning MVP, all eyes will be on LeBron James, who will look to lead his hungry squad to a commanding 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Pacers did their job and made things difficult for the defending champs, who shot just 39 percent from the field in Game 4.

At home, however, it could be a different story for Miami. The Heat went 37-4 at home during the regular season and averaged seven more points per game than they did on the road (106.4 vs. 99.4 ppg). They remained relatively stable on the defensive end, as well.

Game Info: Thursday, May 30, 8:30 p.m. ET | National television: TNT | Odds according to OddsShark: Miami -7.5

Here are three questions that will go a long way towards determining what happens in Game 5:

1. Did the Pacers awaken a sleeping giant?

In Game 4, defense was the name of the game for the Pacers, who found ways to slow down the world's best player. Team defense and physical play didn't necessarily stop LeBron, but it slowed him down just enough. That let the Pacers take advantage of their superior size and force Miami out of the paint to take more contested jumpers.

That could serve as either a blueprint for success or, worse for the Pacers, cause James to turn his game up another notch. It's hard to argue that the Pacers could improve much after holding him to just 1-of-6 shooting in the post. He finished Game 4 with 24 points on 8-of-18 shooting, but his fourth-quarter performance before he fouled out suggested that he had a short memory.

In the final frame, he scored eight points on 3-of-5 shooting from the field. He picked things up on the other end of the floor as well, with one block and one steal. If he can build on that momentum early on in Game 5, it could be a long night for Indy.

2. Will Roy Hibbert repeat his dominant performance?

The Pacers' big man is the ideal counter to what the Heat do well. Where Miami has a speed advantage and is outstanding in transition, the Pacers slow the game down and can play through their man in the middle.

That's their identity, and their trust in Roy Hibbert resulted in an outstanding performance from the former Georgetown star. He totaled 23 points and 12 rebounds on Tuesday night.

3. Can both teams tune out the officials?

The officiating was the story of Game 4, and that's a bad sign considering how good a series this has been. The fact that James, a player notoriously good at staying out of foul trouble, collected four personal fouls in the fourth quarter alone says a lot about the inconsistency in that area.

Joey Crawford was unusually bad, even for him, and cost fans a finish for the ages. But the two teams that had to suffer the effects of his blatantly bad game were the Heat and the Pacers. Will there be any more signature moments ruined by the boys in grey?

Let's hope not.

More from SB Nation:

• Ziller: Miami's defensive failure | Flannery: The Pacers grow up

• LeBron and West: The rare double flop | #Lookit

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• Spencer Hall: A weekend in Memphis

• How the Mavs can learn from the Spurs

• NBA mock draft 2013: Going away from the consensus | SB Nation's Big Board

NBA Playoffs 2013 schedule: Can the Pacers find the winning formula on the road again?

2013-05-30T18:00:06Z

The Indiana Pacers will have a tough task on the road as they prepare to take on the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena on Thursday night with the series knotted up, 2-2.

More: Pacers fans should head over to Indy Cornrows | Heat fans should check out Hot Hot Hoops

In Game 4, the Pacers reclaimed their identity as a defensive-minded team. They held the defending champs to just 39 percent from the field and 35 percent from the three-point line.

More importantly, they keyed in on stopping LeBron James and had success in doing so. They held the reigning MVP to just 1-for-6 in the post, where he destroyed the Pacers in Game 3. He finished with 24 points on 8-of-18 from the field on Tuesday, and added six rebounds and five assists, but the way the Pacers defended him became the story of the evening.

But don't think for a second that it hurt the Heat's confidence going into an all-important Game 5.

"We don't need confidence to go into any game," James said following Game 4. "We're a confident bunch. We're excited to get the opportunity to go back to our home and play Game 5."

The Pacers, on the other hand, have to feel good about the way they were able to score against Miami's normally stout defense and should have plenty of confidence of their own. While the officiating drew a lot of criticism around media circles, they still put the game away in the fourth quarter with a 15-3 run.

On the road at Miami, they will likely have to stave off even more effort from the Heat, who are playing with desperation and the knowledge that no situation in a de facto three-game series is safe. But history shows that the fact that the home team will be running off adrenaline alone doesn't mean they will have a clear path to a series win.

Last year, the Boston Celtics defeated the Heat in Game 5, before James went into hero mode and willed his team to a Game 6 road win before they went on to close out the series in seven games. For that reason, head coach Erik Spoelstra has them focused and armed with the knowledge that they have to play desperately every game.

"Our guys have respect for the other team in that locker room," Spoelstra said. "We know nothing is earned easy in this series. We've got to work for it. Being home doesn't guarantee anything."

One thing that came too easily were the second-chance opportunities of the Pacers. They scored 19 second-chance points and out-rebounded the Heat, 49-30. Miami is dealing with a distinct disadvantage inside and will have to find out how to mitigate the effects of big man Roy Hibbert, who pounds the glass and bothers shots underneath.

Another budding star, Paul George, will have to pick things up offensively to lift the Pacers past the Heat. He'll have the impossible task of guarding James and being the catalyst on the other end of the floor. The good news for the Pacers is that they found a way to win when he struggled.

In South Beach, though, it figures to be a different story. As the George goes, so do the Pacers.

Quotes via the NBA's live press conference stream

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• Ziller: Miami's defensive failure | Flannery: The Pacers grow up

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Karl Malone to work with Jazz big men part-time next season

2013-05-30T14:00:07Z

Karl Malone will come out of retirement and join the Utah Jazz in a coaching capacity, the Hall-of-Famer told Jazz Radio on Wednesday.

Malone, the NBA's second all-time leading scorer, will join the staff and work specifically with the team's big men in hopes of passing along some of his extensive knowledge of the nuances of the NBA game. Jazz CEO Greg Miller told Malone that his involvement would be a catalyst to help them win more games.

More: Jazz blog SLC Dunk reacts

The Jazz ranked 13th in the NBA in scoring with 98.0 points per game in 2012-13, but struggled defensively to stop opponents, allowing 98.1 points per contest. They were 22nd in defensive rebounding, which should be an area of development that Malone would be especially good at reinforcing.

Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson are both free agents, but if they return, both are young players who would likely see a big return on time spent with Malone. Such a high-profile coach could also be reason to entice both key players to stay in Utah rather than test the waters elsewhere.

Enes Kanter is signed next season and could be the biggest beneficiary of Malone's tutelage. In 70 games, he started just two while averaging 7.2 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. At just 21 years old, he has a lot of room for growth.

Though his official title with the team is not yet known, his participation may just make the entire Jazz organization stronger.

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• Ziller: Miami's defensive failure | Flannery: The Pacers grow up

• LeBron and West: The rare double flop | #Lookit

• The Ballad of Tiago Splitter

• Spencer Hall: A weekend in Memphis

• How the Mavs can learn from the Spurs

• NBA mock draft 2013: Going away from the consensus | SB Nation's Big Board

NBA Playoffs 2013: Pacers won Game 4 because they know who they are

2013-05-29T12:30:05Z

The Indiana Pacers know who they are as a team, and sticking to that mindset has carried them to within two games of uprooting the Miami Heat as NBA champions after a 99-92 win on Tuesday night.

For more on the Pacers' win, visit Indy Cornrows

It wasn't by accident that coach Frank Vogel mentioned in the pregame huddle that his squad was the best defensive team in the league. The Pacers finished second in points per game allowed (90.7) and first in points per 100 possessions (99.8).

In Game 3, they got away from that identity and gave up far too many easy baskets, but Game 4 was their opportunity to regain their form, and they seized it.

Indiana's calling card is team defense. When arguably their best on-ball defender in Paul George struggled to stay on the floor with early foul trouble, they limited LeBron James' impact by consistently putting bodies on him and contesting every shot.

At 265 pounds, James is a handful for any small forward, but George has shown he can defend James as well as anyone one-on-one. Unfortunately for Indiana, he picked up three quick fouls and got out of rhythm, but his teammates picked him up by sharing the load and finding different ways to contain James and force his teammates to beat them.

Enter Lance Stephenson, who drew praise from his coach and his teammates after stepping in more-than-capably for George when he left during those key stretches.

After scoring at will in the post in Game 3, James was just 1-for-6 inside on Tuesday. The Pacers didn't have to reinvent the wheel in order to figure out how to stop him, they only had to get back to what vaulted them to the NBA's final four in the first place.

"I think our identity, our style of play is something I've tried to implement," Vogel said. "They've embraced it and run with it. ... They love that style of play, and it's just grown and grown since then. It's manifested itself in mental toughness as well, not just physical toughness, as we saw in the resolve tonight."

Continuing to play attentive defense, crowding James, and taking away extra possessions by winning the battle of the boards is going to be Indy's shot at postseason glory. In Game 4, the Pacers pounded the glass and outrebounded the Heat by a margin of 49-30. Not coincidentally, they scored 19 second-chance points.

Most importantly, they bothered James.

"As a team, they keyed in on me," James said. "Especially in the low post. For me, I've seen every defense, I've seen every individual. I was able to get it going a little bit in the second half, playing mostly with foul trouble."

The Pacers will go as far as they're able to slow down the best player on the planet. If they stick to what got them this far, then they have a legitimate shot at moving on to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals.

(Quotes via NBA live streaming)