quote:
The implications of tonight's game are massive. It is nearly impossible for the Spurs to escape the 6 hole & get home court in round 1 without a win in Houston. The Rockets will be a much tougher out in the Toyota Center than here.
But if SA does complete the back to back sweep, the Spurs could end up as high as 2 in the west if the winner of Grizz @Clips takes a loss.
The road to the WCF becomes MUCH more manageable with a win tonight. I will say it: if the Spur win tonight, they will win championship six in June.
Ehh getting HCA would be nice but I'm not sure it's as big a deal as you are making it out to be. People let that last game against GS cloud there mind a little but they are still a very scary team who are very capable of knocking the Spurs out of the playoffs. More capable then any other team in the West at the moment. Spurs could end up 5 with HCA against POR but run into GS second round, and I'm still not sure I would prefer that compared to some of the other scenarios.
Finishing top 2-3 would obviously be preferred but I still would rather avoid Houston round 1, even after last games beat down. I feel they match up the best and I fear that either one of Kawhi/Green will constantly be in foul trouble. Also a tough first round opponent for Tiago if he's still not 100%. So I'm not sure finishing 3 and getting Houston first round is that much better than finish 6 and drawing Memphis first round. I just don't think Memphis can play with the Spurs and I think they would be the easiest first round matchup after Portland/Dallas.
The 2 seed is definitely preferred but the Spurs need the Grizz and Clippers to both lose a game as well as win out and don't overlook the last game of the season @New Orleans for the Spurs. That could be a very tough game with huge implications for New Orleans as well. Spurs are still a longshot to finish 2 IMO.