Bet on the NBA Playoffs– Spurs Clicking At The Right Time

One of the best playoff confrontations in recent years is renewed in 2010, as the San Antonio Spurs lock horns with the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference semifinals. 

• NBA Western Conference Semifinal Series
• Series Begins Monday, May 3rd – 10:40 PM ET
• U.S. Airways Center – Phoenix, AZ
• Broadcast: TNT

San Antonio Spurs @ Phoenix Suns

NBA Playoff Betting Spread: Suns -145

What The Spurs Must Do To Win 

After dispatching the second-seeded Dallas Mavericks in six games, the Spurs no longer look or feel like a No. 7 seed. Now that they’re facing the Phoenix Suns, a team they’ve owned in recent playoff battles (2005, 2007, 2008), it’s the Spurs who find themselves as the favorite.

This means they merely need to play up to their capabilities, not beyond them. Tim Duncan should dominate in the low post, since the Suns – a franchise that has never had a high-quality center at the peak of his powers – won’t be able to offer a vigorous challenge near the rim.

Guards Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili should be able to drive to the basket and carve up the Suns’ defense as well. George Hill – who came up huge in the Dallas series – must continue to knock down jump shots to keep Phoenix honest.

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None of these things will require San Antonio to overextend itself. Coach Gregg Popovich simply needs to get solid, workmanlike efforts throughout his roster… which is exactly what he received against Dallas. There’s no need for the Spurs to make things more complicated than they need to be.

What The Suns Must Do To Win 

Coach Alvin Gentry is the man who needs a plan in this best-of-seven showcase. The Suns have never had an answer for Tim Duncan, and they don’t figure to in this series, either. The most reasonable path to victory for Phoenix cannot exist near the basket; the Spurs will win that skirmish, and the Suns must simply perform damage control within five feet of the rim.

The logic of basketball is simple: If you’re not a superior rebounding team or an imposing defensive team, you need to make shots. That way, rebounding becomes less of a factor and your defensive liabilities can be minimized.

If the Suns can take away the three-point shot from Ginobili and Hill while making a lot of threes themselves, they’ll have a chance. With shooters like Channing Frye and Jared Dudley supporting Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire, and Jason Richardson, Phoenix can put five legitimate scoring threats on the floor.

Defense might win championships, but the Suns must score big to win this series. Phoenix must find ways to push the tempo and get enough possessions. By reaching 110 points per game, Phoenix will force the Spurs to shoot at a very high percentage.

Outlook & Pick 

San Antonio beat Phoenix in five games in the 2005 Western Conference Finals. The Spurs won the West semis in six games in 2007, and they prevailed over the Suns in five in the 2008 first round.

This matchup always works in the Spurs’ favor, and with guys like George Hill and Antonio McDyess supporting the Big Three (Duncan, Ginobili and Parker), there’s no reason to think that this always-entertaining clash will acquire a different trajectory or end result. San Antonio looks like the one team that can deny the Los Angeles Lakers a return trip to the NBA Finals.

Phoenix’s lack of a big-time center will once again loom large in the playoffs.

NBA Playoff Betting Pick: Spurs Win In 6 >> SIGN UP NOW