Storyline: The Spurs were extremely active this offseason with huge signings and contract extensions, but does that make them the favorites to win it all next season? They are certainly willing to take on the challenge.
Throughout this NBA offseason there have been a bevy of free agent signings and trades with billions of dollars being spent this summer. Free agency can often be a time where teams can reverse their fortunes with one swift signing.
Unfortunately, this offseason, it seems like the rich have only gotten richer. The Los Angeles Clippers, appearing to be on the verge of their first conference finals appearance, significantly addressed their one major weakness: their bench. According to Hoops Stats, the Clippers bench ranked 29th in scoring last season, a score that should greatly improve with the offseason additions of Lance Stephenson, Josh Smith, and Wesley Johnson. The Houston Rockets on the other hand, fresh off their first conference finals appearance in 20 years, added a high-caliber point guard to their rotation by trading for Ty Lawson. The backcourt tandem of Ty Lawson and Patrick Beverley offers a rare combination of elite offense and defense at the point guard position. The Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers, last year’s finals teams, managed to resign their star players in order to remain in contention.
Courtesy: CBS Sports
However, the biggest winners of the offseason, by a landslide, are the San Antonio Spurs. They locked up their young nucleus for the future with the resigning of Danny Green and the max contract extension of Kawhi Leonard. They added veteran power forward David West to their bench on a ridiculous veteran’s minimum contract. Finally, they added salt to the wound for the rest of the NBA by reeling in the biggest fish in free agency, star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge.
A team that appeared to be a legitimate title contender without adding anyone new just got even better. Despite their sixth place standing or first round exit last season, the Spurs were still an elite, top 5 team last season. According to ESPN, they ranked third in point differential last season without LaMarcus Aldridge. With this in mind, they must be the unquestioned title favorites then, shouldn’t they?
Courtesy – SI.com
Well, first and foremost, we have to consider the reigning champions, the Golden State Warriors. Not only are they coming off a historical season, but they will always be the champions until they’re defeated. However, despite keeping an identical championship core, it seems rather unlikely that the Golden State Warriors will achieve similar success.
Last season was a perfect storm of injuries and opportunity for the Warriors. Their small ball and three-point shooting offense won’t be as potent as teams will have much more film to study to prepare their defenses. They’ll also be a part of an ultra-competitive western conference, consisting of a healthy Thunder team and revamped versions of the Spurs, Rockets, and Clippers.
The Spurs also happen to be the Warriors’ kryptonite. Over the last 2 seasons, the Spurs have gone 6-1 against the Warriors being the only team in the league to beat them more than once last season. Part of what makes the Warriors so difficult to stop is that most NBA defenses cannot manage to slow down both Curry and Klay Thompson. The Spurs are one of the few teams capable of doing so because they have two elite wing defenders in Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green. Curry and Thompson are 2 of the 5 most efficient pick and roll shooters making Golden State so lethal offensively.
Kawhi Leonard, however, allowed the fewest points when defending pick and roll ball handlers. Also, with the addition of LaMarcus Aldridge strengthening their offense and by having the defensive capability to stop Golden State’s star perimeter players, San Antonio should usurp the Warriors role as title favorites.
Does being better than Golden State mean they’re better than the rest of the NBA? Essentially, yes, because the Spurs are better than every other team considered a contender. They’re superior to the Rockets because, similar to Golden State, they have the perimeter defense to stop James Harden. The Rockets go as James Harden goes. As Basketball Reference notes, the Rockets’ offensive rating plummeted by nearly 14 points when James Harden went off the court. Again, Ty Lawson should help with that, but even then, the Spurs frontcourt of LaMarcus Aldridge and Tim Duncan have much greater offensive and defensive versatility than Dwight Howard and Terrence Jones.
The Los Angeles Clippers, on the other hand, have a starting five that could compete with the Spurs. However, they lack depth, and even with their offseason additions, it’s inconceivable that they’d be able to compete with a Spurs bench that’s been consistently ranked at the top of the league. Thus, that only leaves the Oklahoma City Thunder, who seem to pose the
Courtesy: Sports Illustrated
greatest threat to the Spurs. It wasn’t too long ago that the Thunder defeated the Spurs in the western conference finals using their speed and athleticism. They boast two of the top ten talents in the world in Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant along with an elite rim protector in Serge Ibaka. Despite their impressive array of talent on the offensive end, their defensive struggles ultimately set them apart from the Spurs.
LaMarcus Aldridge’s incorporation within the pass-happy Spurs offense will be seamless and be as dominant as the Thunder’s. However, the Thunder have never been known to be an elite defensive team, something that’ll render heavily as Enes Kanter figures to be a relatively high usage player. Kanter has always been a negative contributor on defense and will get exposed in the pick and rolls and post ups involving Aldridge.
That leaves the Cavaliers–the only team preventing the Spurs from being called definitive title favorites. The Cavaliers are a worthy challenger, posting the best record in the NBA after the All-Star break. They have offensive and defensive playmakers along with some guy named LeBron James. In truth, the Spurs create more matchup problems than the Cavs do. Tony Parker may be past his prime, but can still go toe-to-toe with Kyrie Irving. Kawhi Leonard is as close to a LeBron stopper as there ever will be. The Spurs’ frontcourt is superior without question, as is their bench. Also we’re still not sure how Kevin love will fit in or how he will fare in meaningful postseason games. That effectively knocks out the Cavs as well. Well, there you have it, the Spurs are indeed the title favorites following their offseason acquisitions.
This does not mean the Spurs are guaranteed a title. A lot can change throughout the course of a long and grinding NBA season. However, for the time being, the Spurs’ combination of offensive potency, defensive prowess, and team chemistry, which cannot be replicated by any other team in the league, should make them the favorites to win it all next year.
