Stephen Jackson should have driven to the lane with 18 seconds and Ginobli on his left shoulder. Sure Duncan was IN the lane, but he could have gotten a closer look or dished instead of shooting a jumper. Then Pollard is going back on D and lets Ginobli drive up his back and then fouls out. The last 2 mins was the demise.
Spurs showed why they are the NBA champs. With 2 minutes left they were trailing by 7, but they made some big plays down the stretch. Ginobili made some clutch plays down the stretch, too. I needed Indiana to win this game for me, but they let me down.
Wow, when Indy were winning by 7, I was like Ah, its gonna be over, but Manu Ginobli made clutch shots..
Coach Pop used the exact same strategy he used against the Mavs earlier this year. His team has to play D while the other team gets the last shot. Instead of putting all of his best defenders on the floor, he puts out the bait. Brent Barry, probably the worst on-ball defender in the league goes out for the last posession. Poppovich didn't want Dirk to beat him in Dallas, he didn't want Peja or Jackson beating him in Indy. Putting Barry in the game makes him the instant option. Whoever Barry goes in to guard, his man drives right by him, and what do you know, Timmy is there to help out. Fred Jones and Devin Harris both took the bait, and both lost in the end. One reason why Pop could easily be the best coach in the NBA. The guy knows how to think two moves ahead.
