http://www.sbnation.com/2015/4/20/8455455/clippers-spurs-2015-final-score-game-1-nba-playoffs Blake Griffin and the Los Angeles Clippers showed the rest of the league their top gear Sunday in a 107-92 Game 1 beatdown of the San Antonio Spurs. The defending champions looked totally overwhelmed throughout the second half and now trail L.A. in the first-round series, 1-0. Considered the best opening matchup of the playoffs this year, Game 1 between the Clippers and Spurs wasn't the close battle we expected. Both teams entered the game piping hot, but now San Antonio will go searching for some answers after getting dunked out of the building Sunday.
Resting the players during the season really helped. Obviously we have to see how the rest of the series plays out. HCA is worth about ~7 points, according to oddsmakers. The Spurs would have only lost by 8 if the game were played in San Antonio. That's what Pops has to overcome.
If given a choice between a total of 7 points in one seven game series and not derailing Derrick Rose's should-be-hall-of-fame career I'd go with the latter.
As this season has proved, minutes limitation had no effect on the Bulls getting hurt. If anything, we had more players miss 15+ games with the limits than in any season I can remember. It hasn't seemed to have hurt the Spurs either. How quickly we forget that Pippen and Jordan finished games like these. Nobody complained about PJax risking their hall of fame careers.
Spurs had been playing Damn good ball as well. I was going to watch that game but something else got in the way.
No sane person would disagree. Of course, the value of the minutes limitations can't be known with certainty. Those who think they know are simply grabbing at straws in an attempt to feather their agendas. It's OK to admit you don't know.
What we do know is with limits, injuries occurred worse than in previous seasons. 3 starters and our 6th man missed 15+ games each. Quibble if I'm off by one or two for one of them. We also know Thibs won 48 games with worse talent and only 2 more with what looks like much better talent on paper. You'd think we'd be able to win 55 or 60.
If any team can come back after getting raped in Game 1, it's San Antonio. I still think Pop will figure it out in time.
