Spring Break
Spurs versus Lakers is a true contrast of styles
THE THROWBACK
Ian Ross
Spartan Daily Sports Editor
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Between them, the Spurs and Lakers have won the last five NBA Championships, with the Spurs' two titles in 1999 and 2003, sandwiching the three titles the Lakers won from 2000-02.
The only team to defeat the Lakers in a postseason series since 1998 is the Spurs and, likewise, the only team to eliminate the Spurs since 1998 is the Lakers.
So, when pundits say the NBA title is being decided as we speak, there are a lot of reasons to believe them. The Spurs grabbed a 2-0 advantage in the series winning 95-85 Wednesday night, behind 30 points from point guard Tony Parker.
While these teams have enjoyed plenty of success the past five seasons, you can't find two teams taking more different paths to success than this year's Spurs and Lakers.
For anyone who grew up playing sports, several sports clichés have been drilled into our minds from a young age.
Defense wins championships, fundamentals are everything and team chemistry is crucial to success.
The Spurs embody all of these qualities. The Lakers ... well, let's just say team chemistry isn't their strength.
If all of these things that coaches have preached for so many years are true, the Spurs will annihilate the Lakers en route to their second consecutive title.
Defensively, the Spurs have been among the toughest NBA teams to score against since star power forward Tim Duncan came into the league in 1997.
This season, the Spurs finished tied for first place defensively with the Detroit Pistons, giving up an average of only 84.3 points per game. During the first five games of the playoffs, the Spurs have lowered that number to just 82.4 points per game.
By contrast, the Lakers gave up an average of 94.3 points per game during the regular season.
In game one of this series, the Spurs put the clamps on the Lakers' offense in the fourth quarter, outscoring them 23-5 during the game-deciding stretch.
If defense wins championships, the Spurs have to be considered the odds-on-favorites.
Fundamentality, the Spurs hold the edge over the Lakers as well. Duncan's footwork in the paint is so good and his bank shot so true that he has been dubbed "the big fundamental."
While the Lakers as a team have solid fundamentals, star shooting guard Kobe Bryant often takes to wheeling and dealing, dribbling too much on the perimeter and taking ill-advised shots.
This series will likely come down to the most fundamental play in basketball - the free throw.
The two dominant big men in the series, Duncan and Lakers' center Shaquille O'Neal, are both suspect from the free-throw line to say the least.
For Duncan, free-throw shooting is his one weakness. He is shooting only 56.4 percent from the line in the playoffs
Shaq's free-throw percentage is even worse - plummeting to just 28.1 percent during the playoffs so far.
Finally, there's the team chemistry factor.
During the first game of the series, ABC commentators compared the Spurs to the good ship lollipop, while comparing the Lakers to the titanic, one of the biggest disasters of the past 100 years.
The Lakers have had chemistry problems for several years now. Shaq and Kobe reportedly don't get along and point guard Gary Payton is unhappy with head coach Phil Jackson's triangle offense.
Duncan and the Spurs appear to be model citizens by all accounts. You never hear negative things about them in the press and they play as a cohesive unit on both ends of the court.
They have also ripped off 17 consecutive wins - a streak that dates back to a March 25 victory over the Pistons. Earlier in the season, the Spurs won 17-of-18 games from Dec. 5 to Jan. 10. Chemistry and confidence are not issues for this team.
Despite the fact that the Spurs have assembled the ideal team, fan reaction to their style of play has typically been apathetic.
They play workmanlike defense and, with the exceptions of Parker and shooting guard Manu Ginobili, are usually vanilla on offense.
Meanwhile, the Lakers suck in the media and the fans like a black hole.
You can't avoid the Lakers' media soap opera. The headlines scream about different problem every other week.
Shaq hates Kobe. Kobe hates Shaq. Kobe's back in court again. "The Glove" is unhappy and wants more playing time.
I'm waiting for DeVean George and Kareem Rush to start stealing headlines in the playoffs.
America loves a good scandal. We love controversy and many of us love the bright lights and media glare that the two biggest cities in the country - New York and Los Angeles - attract every single season.
The NBA needs teams like the Lakers to keep casual fans interested but the league also needs teams like the Spurs to showcase the championship traits that high-school and Little League coaches look for.
So, while many fans ignore the Spurs because they are "boring," I enjoy watching Parker break ankles and make spectacular passes. I enjoy watching Duncan hit bank shots while the rest of the league doesn't even try to.
I enjoy watching a team with one star and four role players dismantle a team with four stars and one role player.
From a talent standpoint alone, the Lakers should coast to an NBA title this season. However, defense, chemistry and fundamentals have won out to this point.
San Antonio seems poised to win their third title in six years to match the Lakers' total.
Perhaps all those high school coaches knew what they were talking about.
Ian Ross is the Spartan Daily sports editor.
"The Throwback" appears every other Friday.
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