Written by Rodger Sherman at SBNation.com
Monday night’s Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals between the Thunder and Spurs was one of the best games of the NBA Playoffs. Both teams played spectacular, exciting basketball, a neck-and-neck affair filled with brilliant play for 47 minutes and 47 seconds.
And then came the game’s final 13 seconds. It’s hard to describe those 13 seconds without acknowledging the massive failures by all parties involved. Both teams made stupid plays. Both teams had a clear-cut path to victory, and both teams squandered their chance in outrageous fashion. Worse, both teams committed multiple infractions, and the third team on the court — the referees — stood silently as basketball calamity unfolded.
The Thunder won, 98-97, and Spurs fans probably feel cheated. But San Antonio committed uncalled violations just like Oklahoma City, and still had the chance to win in the game’s closing seconds. They have themselves to blame as much as any refs or opposing cheaters.
Let’s recap the bounty of failure in the final seconds of Spurs-Thunder:
Failure 1: Billy Donovan lets Dion Waiters make a critical inbounds pass
Oklahoma City found itself with the lead with 13 seconds remaining. They should seal this win easily. They have Kevin Durant, a 6’10 guy who happens to be one of the NBA’s best free throw shooters. They also have Russell Westbrook, who can jump high enough to snag even the most errant inbounds pass, and Serge Ibaka, a big man who is perfectly fine at hitting free throws. They just needed somebody to cleanly inbound the ball, preferably somebody who’s good at passing and makes smart decisions.
For some reason, the person they chose for this role was Dion Waiters. Dion Waiters, for passing and decision-making.
For all the jokes at his expense, Waiters has developed into a somewhat useful player on one of the NBA’s best teams. But he’s a certified space cadet whose most famous NBA trait is appearing visibly upset or bored when teammates don’t pass him the ball. I can’t really fathom why OKC decided to gamble a critical playoff game on his ability to pass the ball.
Failure 2: Manu Ginobili crosses the out-of-bounds line and it wasn’t called
Ginobili was assigned to guard Waiters on the inbounds pass. A lot of times teams use their tallest player or highest leaper for this role, so a 38-year-old whose ups were never his talent is an interesting call. But Ginobili is wily and has a knack for gaming situations like this, timing jump balls to steal them from taller players and sneaking his way into loose balls.
But this time, he crossed a line — literally.
To continue reading this article, click here.
