Sept de moins
2026 NBA Finals, Game 1
Still D.R.E. - On June 2nd, 1991, Michael Jordan lost the first NBA Finals game of his career at home. Magic Johnson and the more experienced Los Angeles Lakers defeated Jordan and his Chicago Bulls 93-91 at Chicago Stadium. His Airness scored 13 points in this fourth quarter to erase a seven point deficit to start the frame and take a small lead down the stretch only to blow it in the final moments. The narrative in the media after that game was the Bulls were too overwhelmed by basketball’s biggest stage and experience was going to win out. Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls did not blink and proceeded to win the next four games straight to capture the 1990-91 NBA Championship, their first of six titles. 35 years and one day later, Victor Wembanyama lost the first NBA Finals game of his career at home. Jalen Brunson and the more experienced New York Knicks defeated Wemby and his San Antonio Spurs 105-95 at Frost Bank Center. The Alien scored 11 points in the fourth quarter to erase an eight point deficit with six minutes left in the frame and take a small lead down the stretch only to blow it in the final moments. The narrative in the media after this game will be the Spurs are too overwhelmed by basketball’s biggest stage and experience is going to win out. Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs will not blink and god help every single overconfident spoiled obnoxious rich Knicks fan who is buying up tickets in San Antonio as well as the ones who are spending even more money to secure tickets inside of Madison Square Garden. I’m really going to enjoy watching Victor Wembanyama watching Knicks fans watching history repeat itself.
* * *
While it is obviously disappointing to drop Game 1 of the 2026 NBA Finals at home (and have a blemish now in what was previously a 6-0 record in opening games of NBA Finals series in franchise history), my confidence is still unwavering that we will win this series. Nothing about what happened on Wednesday night set off any alarm bells for me that the Knickerbockers are the better team. Everything that contributed to us taking an L is correctable. Let’s start with the fact we shot 32-89 from the field (36%). New York is a solid defensive ball club but our horrid shooting night was much more about us than it was about them. Our offense was generating all kinds of good looks the entire night, we were just missing them. Case in point, we underperformed our expected effective field goal percentage by 10.1%, our worst such underperformance of the playoffs and second-worst of the entire season. The play that epitomized our inability to knock down good looks in a nutshell was De’Aaron Fox missing a nine-foot pull up in the paint (a shot he makes in his sleep) after getting himself wide open off the two-man pick and roll game with Wemby down two points with 1:31 left to play in the fourth quarter. This missed opportunity to put the pressure back on New York to regain another lead was the most costly of numerous examples of us just missing good shots we normally make. I chalk this up to “first NBA Finals game ever” jitters affecting multiple players throughout the night. That being said, Fox going 3-13 (0-4 from deep) was unquestionably one of most glaring correctable components of our Game 1 performance and that needs to be fixed immediately. I have complete confidence that it will be fixed immediately and he will silence the naysayers once again in Game 2. He’s a gamer. Every time the chirping has started this postseason he’s had response to silence the noise because that’s what gamers do. Also, I don’t think it’s mentioned enough how commendable it is that De’Aaron has continued to grind these games out one after another without ever once using his high ankle sprain as an excuse in the games like Wednesday night where he hasn’t played up to his normal standards. He just puts his head down and goes back to work the next game. Last time I checked, we have been eliminated from the 2026 playoffs exactly zero times due to our veteran star struggled in a close out game while attempting to perform on one leg. De’Aaron Fox will be ready tonight. He’s gonna ball out in Game 2.
In a game that we lost by 10 but led 95-94 with 2:16 seconds remaining, we gave up 10 offensive rebounds for 23 second-chance points. In fact, on the very next play after Wemby sank a free throw to to give us that 95-94 lead, the Knicks looked discombobulated by our lockdown defense and OG Anunoby was forced to settle for a deep three but we neglected to box out Jalen Brunson who tipped it to Mikal Bridges and then drifted to the corner where Bridges gave it right back to him for a wide-open dagger corner three. That was a needless second-chance opportunity we gave New York’s best player and he capitalized on it to swing the momentum for the last time in the game. We didn’t score again after that. Giving up too many second-chance points in the first five games almost cost us the last series. But in Game 6 & 7 with our backs up against the wall facing elimination, we dug in with our attention to detail and had the discipline to correct that correctable which ultimately played a huge role in us outlasting the champs. The “playing in the NBA Finals for the first time” jitters will be gone tonight. We understand the urgency of every game from here on out so I expect us to play with the discipline to correct that correctable for Game 2 and for the rest of the series. Speaking of something we regressed on in Game 1 of the Finals, an important correctable we can also look to our experience playing OKC for lessons moving forward is we cannot turn the ball over five more times than our opponent again in this series like we did on Wednesday when we lost that battle 13-8. We gave the ‘Bockers five extra possessions and lost by ten. (Damn straight I just gave the Knickerbockers a sardonic nickname, we’ve got to deal with these pestiferous interlopers for another two weeks, after all.) Failing to protect the basketball is a correctable we have corrected more and more the deeper we have gotten into each series. Once again, with the stakes of ever game so heightened in the Finals, I fully expect that timeline to get sped up for Game 2 and for the turnover issue to get corrected this night and stay corrected for the duration. Speaking of turnovers, we obviously still need to talk about Victor’s performance. He had six of them, including one in the guts of the game that all but assured our fate. The play was a microcosm of Wemby’s frantic, sped-up night. There’s no question that the “playing in my first Finals game” jitters affected him more than anyone else on our team. Given that he’s the greatest player in the world, that’s recipe for disaster and it certainly was one. It jumped out of the television screen how amped up The Alien was to showcase his talent for the first time on basketball’s biggest stage and seeing him make so many “I want it so bad” mistakes was adorable but Vic had his worst (full) game of the playoffs and that is the number one correctable that needs to be corrected moving forward. The WCF MVP had decent top line stats with his 26 points, 12 rebounds, three blocks, two assists, and a steal but he shot an abysmal 6-21 from the field including only 2-9 from deep. Combine the terrible shooting with the aforementioned six turnovers and it all adds up to the type of performance where you’ve gift-wrapped Finals victory for your inferior opponent on your own home floor. Based on what I saw from the ‘Bockers on Wednesday night, they are going to need three more performances like that from the best player in the series to have any chance of raising a banner in October. Unfortunately for them, they’re not going to get any more. You can take it to the bank that that correctable is getting corrected. Every single time this postseason that Victor has failed to live up to expectations for a game, he has responded with the fury of a thousand suns. I expect tonight to be no different. I expect The Alien to put on such a dominant performance in Game 2 that it will demoralize a team that had been on a 12-game winning streak to the point that they forget how it will ever be possible to win against him again. I’m so excited to watch the alien abduction tonight of all of the momentum New York has been riding for these past twelve playoff games.
To end on a positive Game 1 performance note, Dylan Harper was the player of the game. Our 20-year-old prodigy rookie guard became the youngest player in history to score in double-figures in the NBA Finals. Dylan had 16 points, eight rebounds, one assist, and one steal in his Finals debut. His electric performance was reminiscent of Magic Johnson’s 16 point, 10 assist and nine rebound performance as a 20-year-old rookie against the Philadelphia 76ers in his debut during the 1980 NBA Finals. Harper may very well have pushed his rebound and assist stats closer to equaling Johnson’s had he played more minutes but San Antonio Spurs coach Mitch Johnson only played Dylan 28 minutes (and had him on the bench with the game in the balance during crunch time) whereas Magic played 40 minutes in his debut in 1980. Mitch’s rationale for keeping his highest performing player of the game on the bench to close was that it had nothing to do with not trusting Dylan in that spot but rather he just felt good about sticking with the group who had walked down the ‘Bockers from eight behind in the fourth to take that one point lead with two and a half minutes left. Who’s to say if having Harper on the floor down the stretch could have changed anything about giving up the offensive rebound and Brunson three that flipped the lead and the momentum for the final time but either way, I have a sneaking suspicion that Coach Johnson will have Dylan Harper in the closing group if/when we have another clutch game down the stretch in these Finals. With all of the formalities out of the way, I’m filled with nothing but excitement to watch Game 2 tonight and confidence that we will win it handedly. Just like Wemby, I’m not worried in the slightest about Wednesday’s setback. Despite us giving that one away in the end + having to deal with the annoyance of the six to eight percent penetration of the New York fans (especially the celebrity ones) celebrating in the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio (our house), there is so much still to remember and celebrate about the pageantry of Game 1 and the accomplishment of having this next generation of Spurs players take that stage for the first time. Fear and anxiety will not be part of the equation for me while watching Game 2 tonight. Also like Victor, I have visualized us rolling this inferior opponent tonight and that’s exactly what I expect to happen. I do not harbor the slightest bit of concern that this good (but not great) New York squad is going to not only ride a six-week hot streak to the Eastern Conference championship but is also going to ride it to snatch away from the #BlackAndSilver what we have earned by defeating the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder eight out of twelve times this season including a Game 7 in the Western Conference Finals on the road in their building—the right to call ourselves the best team in the league at the end of the season. The absurdity of considering the scenario where the 2025-26 San Antonio Spurs slay the dragon that was the OKC juggernaut, the dynasty in the making, the team that prognosticators were saying as recently as December could set a new NBA record for most wins in a season this year only to then blow the championship round against the Knickerbockers (of all teams) provides me complete inoculation from the cognitive state of uncertainty otherwise know as doubt. As Benjamin Franklin said, “When in doubt, don’t.” Indeed, doubt will find no safe harbor in my living room or in my mind tonight while I’m enjoying watching my favorite team in any sport perform in my favorite sporting even around in my favorite city in the world. Just like Victor Wembanyama, I am a rock.
打纸老虎
Too amped from the lights
Gleaming brighter than ever
Time to settle in
And play the game the right way
For our rightful crown awaits
Written June 2026 in Aurora, CO
Featured Image Source: NBA.com
Headline Image Source: Sports Illustrated
B&S 20/20: The Hillary Step
1999 NBA Finals, Game 1
Get Ready for This - Throughout my childhood growing up in Central Texas, I had regularly dreamed about this moment. As far as moments go for a city and its fans, this one was huge and luckily, the city of San Antonio had a building huge enough in its own right to handle it. 39,514 success-starved, exuberant Spurs fans packed themselves into the Alamodome on June 16th, 1999 to be a part of history. Unfortunately, as many times as I had imagined participating in this historic event throughout my childhood, I was not one of them. While I had just completed my sophomore year in college at Trinity University in San Antonio, after the Spring semester I accepted a summer job back in Austin and I was working a demanding schedule that did not afford me the time off to make it back to San Antonio to take part in my beloved Spurs historic moment. If my memory serves me correctly, I watched history unfold in a pool hall with some work friends in Austin. Even though I wasn't there in person, it was still surreal seeing my Spurs, perennial regular season overachievers and playoff underachievers, host the first game in the NBA's showcase event of the post-Chicago Bulls dynasty. (More on that later.) When Spurs legend George Gervin strolled to center court to toss up the ceremonial jump ball that commemorated the Spurs being the first former ABA club to reach such a milestone, it started setting in for me that my childhood dream was becoming a reality. The San Antonio Spurs were finally about to play in the NBA Finals.
Going into the series, we were heavily favored over our opponents, the New York Knicks. Because of the lockout-shortened season, the Knicks came into the playoffs with a more talented roster than their seed (eighth) reflected. They were able to use that talent to become the first 8-seed in league history to advance to the NBA Finals, dispatching the higher-seeded Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks, and Indiana Pacers to grab the Eastern Conference crown. Nonetheless, with franchise cornerstone Patrick Ewing sidelined due to injury for the series, the Knicks entered the series as one of the biggest underdogs in Finals history. It didn't help the Knicks title hopes that not only were they facing the 1-seed from the West but the Spurs were marching into the Finals boasting a 10-game playoff winning streak (our last loss against the Timberwolves in Game 2 of the first round). Despite the long odds, New York came out sharp in the first quarter taking an early 27-21 lead after one. The Knicks were led to the early lead by Allan Houston draining midrange jumpers and Latrell Spreewell making aggressive moves into the paint. Not to be overshadowed, Tim Duncan hit the first shot of the series, a signature bank shot from the elbow and established himself early as the best player in the series. By the second quarter, San Antonio had settled into form taking an eight-point lead (45-37) into the locker room. The second half was more of the same of what the Spurs showed in the second quarter, playing the Knicks even in the third and then outscoring them 18-14 in a defensive masterpiece of a fourth quarter. The outcome of the contest was never really in doubt in the second half. When the dust settled, the Spurs were leading their first-ever NBA Finals one game to none with a commanding 89-77 victory. Another thing was clear one game into the series. A player had emerged to grab the best basketball player in the world title that had been vacated by Michael Jordan at the beginning of the calendar year. And that player's debut on the NBA Finals stage demonstrated a similar dominance to His Airness' debut.
On June 2nd, 1991, after years of Eastern Conference playoff disappointment, Michael Jordan finally had his first opportunity to showcase his talents in the NBA's premier showcase, the NBA Finals. His Airness did not disappoint that night putting up a jaw-dropping 36 points (14-24 shooting), 12 assists, eight rebounds, and three steals in a hard-fought two point defeat for his Chicago Bulls against Magic Johnson and the Los Angeles Lakers (93-91). Jordan's Bulls would go on to win the next four straight and his first championship, followed by five more chips over the next seven seasons. Fast forward to the end of the decade and the title of best basketball player alive was up for grabs following Jordan's retirement on January 13th, 1999.
In a similar demonstration of dominance on basketball's biggest stage to the player from whom he was snatching the mantle, Tim Duncan produced an epic NBA Finals debut. En route to earning player of the game honors, Timmy had 33 points (13-21 shooting), 13 rebounds, two assists, two steals, and two blocks. It seems weird in retrospect given that Michael Jordan's NBA career began in 1984 and Tim Duncan's ended in 2016 that these two "Finals debut" performances were a mere eight years apart.Another key performer in the Game 1 victory was David Robinson. After 10 years of playoff disappointment as the Spurs "number one" option, the Admiral graciously accepted a new role in the lockout shortened 1999 season as the team's second option and defensive anchor. It paid off in a big way because not only was this game Tim Duncan's NBA Finals debut, but it was also Big Dave's NBA Finals debut as well. While not the legendary Finals debut of his younger teammates, Robinson had a fantastic all-around game with 13 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, three steals, and three blocks. By the way, the Twin Towers combined five blocks in Game 1 does not do justice to how dominant the tandem was on the defensive end. They were dominant on that end of the court, disrupting numerous other shots while leading the way in limiting the Knicks to 31-81 from the field (.383) and only 77 total points.Finally, journeyman Jaren Jackson gets an honorable mention for his 17 point (6-13 shooting), two rebound, two assist, one steal performance. Jaren proved to be an important offensive spark plug off of the bench, hitting timely jumpers including an improbable, off-balance triple in the corner.
After the game, I remember leaving the pool hall in Austin beaming with confidence and bouncing off of the walls with anticipation. My long suffering, underdog, small market San Antonio Spurs were just three wins away from an NBA Championship. I remember being all smiles as I drove home to get some sleep that night after the game. I couldn't wait to see what would happen 48 hours later in Game 2. Friday night couldn't get here fast enough.
Featured Image Source: RantSports
Headline Image Source: Yahoo Sports on Pinterest
Cinco Triunfos
2017 NBA Western Conference Semifinals, Game 2
Rocket Man - And I think it's going to be a long, long time till touchdown brings me around again to find I'm not the man they think I am at home. I mean, come on. This is insanity. Kahwi Leonard just obliterated James Harden and in so doing...the way the "experts" framed this year's NBA MVP race. You need to take your "best two-way player in the game but..." ball and go home. Kawhi is the best player in the game, no qualifiers needed. Not only is he the current best player in basketball, he's playing at an historic level. How often have you seen a player guard the best offensive weapon in basketball for an entire playoff game, hold said best offensive weapon in basketball to 13 points (3-17 shooting from the field and 0-5 from the field with two turnovers while checking him as the primary defender) while getting seven rebounds, three steals and a block, and then on the other end of the floor score 34 points (13-16 from the field, 3-4 from range, 5-5 from the line) and dish out eight assists? The answer is not very often at all. I can only think of four other wing players in the history of the game that were/are capable of having a playoff game that ridiculous. Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James. That's the list. For what it's worth, the last time a player had at least 30 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds while shooting at least 80 percent from the the field in a playoff game was Michael Jordan in Game 2 of the 1991 NBA Finals. Considering that MJ is the GOAT, this tidbit isn't surprising but gives historical context to make Kawhi's game last night all the more impressive. To be clear, I'm not really sure that Larry, Kobe, or LeBron have ever had a playoff game as dominant on both sides of the ball as Leonard did last night, that's just the list of players who had/have the ability to potentially be that dominant on both ends of the court. All of this is to say that Kawhi Leonard has elevated himself into rarified air. Because we have the best player in basketball and because we got back to playing loose, unselfish, joyful team basketball, the San Antonio Spurs returned the favor and blew out the Houston Rockets 121-96 last night at the AT&T Center to knot our Western Conference Semifinal series at 1-1. Kawhi was prodigious, marvelous, superhuman but all things considered, the player of the game is Tony Parker. Tony had 18 points (8-13 from the field, 2-2 from range) and four assists. Unfortunately, it's no secret why I chose Tony for player of the game on a night that Kawhi Leonard put together one of the greatest two-way performances in NBA history. The longest-tenured Spur and the four-time NBA champion deserves the honor because his 2016-17 season is suddenly over.
* * *
Man. This really, really, really sucks. I can't remember ever feeling like this the day after a Spurs playoff win. Sure, there was the time - prior to the 2000 playoffs - the Spurs announced that Tim Duncan was unavailable for the first round with a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee. That sucked. It robbed us of a legitimate chance to defend our first title and allowed a talented Shaq-Kobe Lakers team an easier path to reach the NBA Finals and learn how to become champions themselves (without Duncan, the Spurs lost 3-1 to the fifth-seeded Phoenix Suns in the first round as the four-seed). There was also the time - prior to the 2009 playoffs - the team announced that Manu Ginobili was out for the playoffs with a fracture in his right distal fibula. This also sucked and, once again, an easier path was cleared for a Kobe Bryant-led Lakers team to get back to the NBA Finals and win another title (without Manu, the Spurs lost 4-1 to the sixth-seeded Dallas Mavericks in the first round as a four-seed). But, as unfortunate and costly as both of those injuries were, at least they happened prior to the playoffs where we had time to process them and reassess our expectations. I don't ever remember the Spurs losing a superstar player to injury in the middle of a deep playoff run much less on the night of an exhilarating rivalry win. I don't remember, because it hasn't happened (at least not since I started watching religiously in 1989-90, David Robinson's rookie season). Perhaps because for three decades straight we'd been blessed with the good fortune to not lose a superstar player mid-playoffs, I started off this process in denial. Last night, after the game, even though it looked bad...I was still hoping for the best. I kept telling myself, Kevin Durant's injury this season was originally feared to be worse than it ended up being. Also, just the other day - in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals series between the Boston and Washington - Wizards forward Markieff Morris went down with what was thought to be a devastating ankle sprain only to return in Game 2 and have his best game of these playoffs. Or did he? I won't lie, I went to bed mildly optimistic that we might be able to get our future Hall of Fame point guard back at some point in this series or at least at some point in this playoff run. Sadly, this morning around 10:00 am (MDT), I was reminded that The Nile is a river in Egypt. In other words, my worst fears were confirmed when the Spurs released the following statement...
I never even consider that this could happen to Tony. In his exemplary 16-year NBA career, TP has never missed a playoff game. Lamentably, tomorrow night will be the first one ever. The last time the San Antonio Spurs played a playoff game without Tony Parker was on May 2nd, 2000 (more than 17 years ago) in the aforementioned series against Phoenix that Tim Duncan missed due to injury. Since then, Tony Parker has played in 221 playoff games (most among active players, fifth-most all-time). He is ninth all-time in playoff points and fifth all-time in playoff assists. He joins long-time playoff rival LeBron James as the only two players in NBA history with more than 4,000 playoff points and 1,000 playoff assists. TP also holds the NBA record for most playoff games won by teammates with two of his. (I'm sure you can guess which two.) Tony Parker and Tim Duncan had the NBA record for most playoff wins by teammates with 131 wins. That is until, in some sort of ironic Big Three stroke of poetic symmetry, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili tied that record with last night's win. Man. This really, really, really sucks. I feel awful. I'm not sure if I felt worse on Tuesday after getting blown out at home by 27 points or today after returning the favor and blowing out the Rockets by 25. I think I feel worse today. I don't know what else to say about it except get well soon, Tony. May the fourth be with you.
There's no question this is a devastating blow to our title hopes but if there is any team that is equipped to carry the "next man up" mantra all the way into June it's a Gregg Popovich coached team. I still feel very confident that we can win this series with our in-state rival and even re-steal our home court advantage back tomorrow night. The Olajuwon-esque dismantling of the likely NBA MVP that Kawhi Leonard put together against James Harden last night cannot be understated. It was the type of undressing that can get in the receiver's head and ruin him psychologically for the rest of a series. I'm not predicting this will trigger a psychological meltdown from The Bearded One, but it's not outside the realm of possibility. Playoff series are about imposing will more than anything else. Last night, Kawhi reached a level of dominance that very few players reach. The type of dominance to conduct the game like classical music, orchestrating the movements of a superstar opponent in order to reduce that opponent into an operatic prop. Being that dominant is psychological warfare. Once it's in the opponent's head that you have that type of control over the game, their talent becomes meaningless. Of course, barring The Klaw already having a firm grip on James Harden's soul, we still have every reason to fear Houston that we did two days ago (plus the added one of losing a former NBA Finals MVP for the rest of the series). The Rockets are extremely dangerous and I have no doubt that they have the ability to bounce right back tomorrow night. That being said, with Kawhi looking more and more like Michael Jordan with every single passing game, I still like our chances to take care of the Rockets and I still believe we have a puncher's chance to win the title. By the way, Tony's injury may hurt my heart but it doesn't hurt my memory. Don't get it twisted. I can still remember two nights ago when Rockets fans were convinced they had already left the #BlackAndSilver for dead on the side of the road. You remember, right, H-Town? You were riding that bandwagon hard in order to try to keep pace with the hype because you thought your team was barreling down the highway in the Ferrari that is Mike D'Antoni's offensive system in search of the outer limits of seven seconds or less basketball nirvana. Two days ago, you were thinking...next stop, Western Conference Finals. I know you remember. Well, as painful of a night as last night was for the city of San Antonio, it was also a reminder to the city of Houston to stay in your lane.We have Kawhi Leonard and you don't. Guess who's back.
Featured Image Source: Wikimedia Commons
Headline Image Source: Pounding the Rock
Ten Down
2013 NBA Western Conference Finals, Game 2
Even Flow (Once It Hits Your Lips) - And the Tony goes to...Tony Allen hit the floor, holding his head, writhing in pain. If you had missed the play and you had just seen the aftermath you would have thought that Manu Ginobili had grabbed Allen out of mid air, body slammed him to the ground, bent down and karate chopped him in the head, and then spit in his face for good measure. Sources tell me that after watching the latest incarnation of the business of basketball receiving official protection against the manifestation of spirited competition, a portal through which gladiators used to be willing to sacrifice a limb in order to earn the distinguished honor of a trip to the NBA Finals, Bill Laimbeer immediately changed the channel to WWE Royal Rumble in an effort to find more authentic programming. Faking an injury that did not occur to bate the refs into a flagrant foul is not in the character of champions. Only Tony Allen knows for sure how far he pushed that acting performance, but the fact that three Memphis-based personal injury lawyers have already solicited Allen for an endorsement deal since Tuesday night doesn't bode well for his credibility.
The player of the game was Tim Duncan. He saved the Spurs from the type of catastrophe that derailed the 2004, 2006, and 2008 title contending Spurs by dominating the overtime period. Had San Antonio lost Game 2 because Memphis was able to outplay us from opening tip to final buzzer, it would not have been the end of the world. We could have regrouped, looked at film, and come back with a focused performance in Game 3 like we did against Golden State under the same circumstances. However, had San Antonio lost Game 2 because of the shenanigans of Tony Allen and the apparent passion for Broadway theater that Bill Spooner, Scott Foster, and Bill Kennedy hold in common, that could have proven disastrous. The Memphis Grizzlies made it quite clear in their fourth quarter comeback Tuesday night that they are a tough minded, determined basketball team. They are good enough to win this series. Had the Spurs allowed a game to slip through our fingers that, by all intents and purposes, we had in the bag because of a couple of freak plays in the final minutes; there is no guarantee that we would have had the ability to refocus from that disappointment to win three out of the next five games. Don't get me wrong, I know we could have. But I'm extremely thankful that we don't have to put that scenario to the test. Thankfully instead, the #BlackAndSilver defeated the Memphis Grizzlies 93-89 in overtime on Tuesday which puts us in the same scenario as last year. The Spurs are up 2-0 in the Western Conference Finals with a chance for redemption. Second chances serve as spectacular opportunities. They are the purest type of opportunity; the kind that comes to those who are willing to put in the work to overcome adversity. You can't fake your way to the promised land. The Spurs face the ultimate opportunity to body slam the adversity they experienced last year and punch their ticket to the NBA Finals this holiday weekend in Memphis, Tennessee. They won't punch that ticket through their ability to sell fouls. They won't punch that ticket through their ability to make shots. They will punch that ticket by having an insurmountable desire to win. And they will punch that ticket with their hustle and flow.
Featured Image Source: Script Supervisor CEO
Headline Image Source: Polygon