Easy. Blazers just got run off the floor by the Spurs machine and couldn't pick up the pieces in the second half. That's okay. They are the best team in the NBA and will probably win the title.
Exhaustion probably played a part. Pop is the master at keeping his players rested during the season so they're fresh at playoff time. We however are the complete opposite. And it showed. That said, even fresh we still don't win. San Antonio played on another level. It was a great learning experience for the Blazers, and one every championship team goes through.
The Spurs played us like they'd just spent seven games scouting our system... Which was true because they'd just played Dallas. I know Stotts does have original thoughts, but it's still based on Dallas's book, which Pop had just solved.
SA is a much better team than we are. They have a gazillion more playoff experience than us as well. We lost because they were better, and that's what happens in a series. Charlotte beat us by 40, but if we played them in a series we probably would have won in no more than 5. Almost every single time the best team wins a series. If to teams are evenly mathced, it can go either way, (Portland vs Houston total points 667-665)
