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Spurs vs. Thunder: Time for history to repeat itself
Published: 5/25/2012 6:28 PM
Last Modified: 5/25/2012 6:28 PM

In June 2003, a friend of mine called and said he had an extra ticket to the second game of the NBA Finals if I could get away.

A few days later, I was headed down Interstate 10 to watch San Antonio face the New Jersey Nets.

The Spurs, four years removed from their first championship in franchise history, trailed big, fought back late, but eventually dropped an 87-85 decision to the Nets.

San Antonio, it seemed, was in trouble. Turns out, the Spurs weren't. They went on to win three of the next four games and the franchise's second championship.

And despite the retirement of center David Robinson after the season, the core of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili went on to win NBA titles in 2005 and 2007 as well.

Fast forward three more seasons, and the Spurs were in trouble again. San Antonio posted the best record in the Western Conference, but looked old and broken down in a six-game loss to No. 8 seed Memphis in the first round of the playoffs.

San Antonio hadn't been to a Western Conference final since 2008, and it has headed in the wrong direction. The core was old, the role players were lacking and the championship window had closed.

But once again, the Spurs weren't really in trouble at all.

Even with the NBA's condensed strike-season schedule this season, the Spurs earned another No. 1 seed in the West. Duncan has been resurgent, nearly matching his career scoring average in the last five games. And the Spurs have been unbeatable in the playoffs, carrying an 18-game winning streak into Sunday's Western Conference finals opener against Oklahoma City.

The Thunder are definitely talented and have survived every test this postseason. Kevin Durant is a truly special player -- don't get me started on the 2007 Durant-Greg Oden draft debate.

But something makes me think OKC's propensity for allowing second-chance baskets and going through scoring droughts will be too much to overcome against the Spurs.

I'm thinking San Antonio in six games. But I'm almost never right when it comes to the Spurs.

Reader Comments

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Gailmail (9 months ago)

The Spurs history of overcoming? What about the Thunder, the 4th quarter team. I say the Thunder in 7.

52favoriteteacher (9 months ago)

The Thunder will roll.

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Tulsa World Sports Editor Michael Peters has nearly 20 years of daily newspaper experience. A 1993 graduate of Texas A&M, he worked at papers in Bryan-College Station, Texas, Beaumont, Texas, and Galveston, Texas, before joining the Houston Chronicle as High School Sports Editor in 2008. While in Houston, he coordinated coverage of the 2008 Texas Class 5A state football championships and the 2011 NCAA Men's Final Four.

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