NBA Playoffs: 3 keys for Thunder to win series vs. Spurs

Force the Spurs out of their comfort zone with defense

One of the biggest surprises in this series so far is just how much the Thunder’s defense has improved since they lost Game 1 124-92. In Game 4, OKC held the Spurs to 97 points, a measly 12 assists and only 16 fourth quarter points, and restricted them a 39.8 percent shooting percentage in Game 5.

Head coach Billy Donovan deserves an awful lot of credit for the way he has his guys playing collectively on defense. They are forcing the Spurs to play too many non-penetrating passes around perimeter and forcing them into tough isolation plays. Tony Parker can’t always create a nifty layup on drives to the basket, Kawhi Leonard is getting isolated off the dribble and funneled into help defenders more than the Spurs would like, and LaMarcus Aldridge is being pushed into tougher, fadeaway jumpers rather than short range hook shots he wants.

After Aldridge dominated with 79 points over the first two games, his 6-of-21 shooting in Game 5 (36.7 percent over the last three games) was an excellent indication of how the Thunder have been keeping him away from his preferred spots.

Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman reported some of Danny Green’s comments the Thunder’s defensive preparation, which really highlight just how difficult things have been for the Spurs’ fluid, controlling offense.

Green’s words reveal how well the Thunder are communicating on defense — they know exactly which rotations and positions can force the Spurs into bad shots, and they’re executing. It’s hard not to give OKC some serious credit at that end of the floor.

In fact, as much as he’s criticized, even Enes Kanter has been solid defensively, playing physical in one-on-one situations in the low post, holding his man out of the paint and jabbing his arms around to poke the ball loose whenever possible. He’s by no means an All-Defensive player, and he can still be toyed with on pick-and-rolls, but as long as he can do his part, control the offensive glass and score like usual, he can keep receiving plenty of minutes when they matter most.

On top of that, with every Thunder player helping on the boards, they out-rebounded the Spurs 54-36 in Game 5, a performance highlighted by Russell Westbrook’s 11-rebound effort. When you combine that with the kind of defense they played, maybe we shouldn’t be so surprised the Spurs are heading to OKC for a must-win Game 6.

Next: Utilize Steven Adams and his pick-and-roll