Fansided

Who can crash the playoff field in the NBA’s 22-team restart?

By Bryan Toporek

CJ McCollum, #3, Damian Lillard, #0, Carmelo Anthony, #00, Portland Trail Blazers, (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
CJ McCollum, #3, Damian Lillard, #0, Carmelo Anthony, #00, Portland Trail Blazers, (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JANUARY 08: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the San Antonio Spurs celebrates with LaMarcus Aldridge #12 and Dejounte Murray #5 during the game against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on January 08, 2020 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JANUARY 08: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the San Antonio Spurs celebrates with LaMarcus Aldridge #12 and Dejounte Murray #5 during the game against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on January 08, 2020 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

3. San Antonio Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs’ 22-year playoff streak is still alive… for now.

The Spurs currently have their worst winning percentage (.429) since the 1996-97 season, when Gregg Popovich took over as head coach after 18 games. They’re stuck with a mishmash of win-now veterans (DeMar DeRozan, LaMarcus Aldridge, Rudy Gay and Patty Mills) and intriguing young prospects (Dejounte Murray, Derrick White, Lonnie Walker IV, Jakob Poeltl), and they appeared all season to be heading toward an inevitable rebuild.

But with Popovich at the helm, can anyone rule out the Spurs banding together and overcoming the difficult circumstances that await every team in Orlando?

Four of the Spurs’ last five wins before the season shut down came against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Utah Jazz, Orlando Magic and Dallas Mavericks, all of whom will join them at Walt Disney World. While the Kings (19-15) and Suns (19-18) feasted against sub.-500 teams but struggled against better squads, the Spurs were better than either against teams .500 or above (11-19) but weren’t as consistent against lesser squads (16-17).

Other than Popovich, there isn’t much reason to believe the Spurs can overtake the Kings, Pelicans and Trail Blazers and force a play-in tournament against the Grizzlies. Despite ranking seventh in 3-point percentage (.371), they’re 26th in 3-point makes (10.7) and 28th in 3-point attempts (28.7) per game. They’re tied for the league’s 25th-ranked defense, ahead of only the Blazers and Wizards among teams heading to Orlando.

The Pop factor looms large, though, especially as every team will be forced to adjust to fanless games at a neutral site. If he can work his coaching magic and get the Spurs to acclimate to their new surroundings more quickly than other teams, they could earn their 23rd straight playoff berth.

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