Spurs dismantle the Rockets to win series 4-2: 3 takeaways from Game 6

The San Antonio Spurs rolled through the Rockets in Game 6 to advance to the Western Conference Finals against the Golden State Warriors.

Pick your Game 6 hot take:

• The Spurs are better without Kawhi Leonard
• James Harden is your “MVP”?
• You can’t win with Moreyball
• Welcome back mid-range and post-ups

None of the above are necessarily true, though believe basketball Twitter will be discussing all of them in detail. The truth is the Spurs still need Leonard, the MVP award is given out in the regular season and one series between clashing offensive philosophies doesn’t negate the value of the loser.

Yet, in Game 6, even without their best player, the Spurs were still the Spurs — a team chest-deep in culture and discipline and teamwork and ball movement and defense. The Spurs’ ability to not foul James Harden on drives, coupled with a frenetic dedication to attacking the 3-point-line, limited the potency of the Rockets offense; Houston scored 75 points and lost by 39.

There’s no shame in losing to a franchise as celebrated and as consistent as the Spurs — though people will criticize Harden’s performance. He deserves it for Game 6, scoring only 10 points, while turning the ball over six times. He was passive and lacked energy. Some may even say he quit.

But the Rockets’ early exit shouldn’t cloud the fact Harden and coach Mike D’Antoni helped revive a team that’s been inside the system for only one season. The Rockets more than made up for their abysmal 2015-16 season.

Here are three takeaways from Game 6 that propelled the Spurs to the Western Conference Finals.

Takeaways

Dejounte Murray and Jonathon Simmons are “Spurs” players: The Spurs have a reputation for taking what is seemingly marginal talent and turning it into good to great contributions. Leonard, Tony Parker, Danny Green, Manu Ginobili and approximately 30 others during the time of Gregg Popovich are a testament to the Spurs’ ability to culture talent from the most unorthodox of places. Add Murray and Simmons to that list.

Murray was the 29th pick in the 2016 draft; Simmons once paid $150 to get a D-League tryout. Both received significant minutes due to injuries to Leonard and Parker. With the opportunity, the pair combined for 29 points on 13-of-22 shooting in Game 6. They attacked closeouts, constantly contesting shots, blocking drives and even executing a little rim protection.

Simmons was a nightmare on Harden, and was part of the reason why the Rockets’ best player attempted two shots in the first half, including zero in the first quarter. Murray showed poise as a rookie thrust into a starting spot in the second round of the playoffs and only got more comfortable as the games went on. He even outscored Harden in Game 6.

(Here’s a funny, yet ridiculous stat: In Game 6, the pair had a net rating of plus-118.3 in 13 minutes. That’s not a typo.)

Of course the Spurs still need Leonard if they have any hopes to win the championship, but the Spurs have done it again.

LaMarcus Aldridge had his best game as a Spur: Aldridge had a great Game 3. But without Leonard in Game 6, the Spurs needed Aldridge to step up and be the focal point of the offense. He answered by shooting 8-of-12 in the first half. He attempted 26 shots, his highest total this postseason. He finished with 34 points and 12 rebounds.

Unlike earlier games in the series, where Aldridge would take three or four dribbles before shooting a fall-away, in Game 6 he faced up and simply shot over smaller guys. He got into a rhythm early. Dare I say it was Aldridge’s best postseason performance since Game 1 against Houston in 2014?

The Spurs played the perfect Spurs game: Take your pick of what the Spurs did the best tonight:

• On offense, the Spurs scored 119.1 points per 100 possessions.
• On defense, the Spurs gave up 81.5 points per 100 possessions, for a net rating of plus-37.6. Again, that’s not a typo.
• The Spurs held the pace to 93.86 possessions.
• The Rockets made nine twos for the entire game.
• The Spurs had 62 points in the paint.
• The Spurs had 32 assists to only seven turnovers.

Next: The 20 different emotions of Gregg Popovich

The Spurs rode their most complete game into the Western Conference Finals against the Warriors. While many think, myself included, the Warriors won’t lose four times in seven games against any opponent, the Spurs’ ability to make the final four in the first season since losing the franchise’s best player has them operating on house money. Bravo, Spurs.