NBA Playoffs 2014: San Antonio Spurs vs. Dallas Mavericks series preview
Although many expected the San Antonio Spurs (62-20) to take a step back after a grueling season that saw them lose to the Miami Heat in seven games in the NBA Finals, they finished with the league’s best record.
After a year out of the postseason, the Dallas Mavericks (49-33) added Monta Ellis and Jose Calderon, among others, and are back in the playoffs.
Series Schedule:
Game 1 in San Antonio: Sunday, April 20, 1 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 2 in San Antonio: Wednesday, April 23, 8 p.m. ET, NBATV
Game 3 in Dallas: Saturday, April 26, 4:30 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 4 in Dallas: Monday, April 28, 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 5 in San Antonio: Wednesday, April 30
Game 6 in Dallas: Friday, May 2
Game 7 in San Antonio: Sunday, May 4
Season Series: Spurs won 4-0
| San Antonio Spurs | Dallas Mavericks |
| Tiago Splitter | Samuel Dalembert |
| Tim Duncan | Dirk Nowitzki |
| Kawhi Leonard | Shawn Marion |
| Danny Green | Monta Ellis |
| Tony Parker | Jose Calderon |
| San Antonio Spurs | Dallas Mavericks | |
| Pace | 97.07 | 95.74 |
| Offensive Rating | 108.2 | 109.0 |
| Defensive Rating | 100.1 | 105.9 |
The Spurs are considered a heavy favorite in the series and despite the Mavericks’ improvement, they should be. The Spurs did not play one player over 30 minutes per game and seemed to adequately rest their starters throughout the season, meaning they should be fresh. With Ellis and Dirk Nowitzki, the Mavericks can score on just about everyone, but they likely will have trouble making stops in this series. Perhaps most importantly, it is going to be a lot of fun to see Nowitzki and Tim Duncan got at it one more time.