NBA Finals: Review and Grades For Game 3
After a disappointing 19-point blowout loss in Game 2, the San Antonio Spurs responded emphatically in Game 3 with a dominant 113-77 demolition of the Miami Heat in the 2013 NBA Finals. On the back of a record-setting shooting performance and a lock-down defensive display, the Spurs asserted themselves to a 2-1 series lead and looked sensational in their first game on their home court in weeks.
The Spurs started the game strong with Tim Duncan showing aggressiveness on both ends of the floor, demanding the ball in the paint and locking down the inside defensively. While LeBron James played the role of the facilitator early on, Dwyane Wade was taking the lead role for Miami as they fell to a 24-20 deficit after the first quarter.
Despite a slow start to the second quarter from the Spurs and a 10-0 run for Miami, the Heat were still unable to capitalize as the Spurs’ outside shooting and controlling defense kept them in front. San Antonio would take a 50-44 lead into the half thanks to an explosive 14 first-half points off the bench from Gary Neal and a 10-point, seven-rebound effort from Duncan.
The Spurs then turned it on in the second half and the Heat simply could not keep up as San Antonio displayed exceptional ball movement, speed and shooting offensively while they stuck to their game plan defensively, causing James and Wade to struggle. The Spurs were giving both of the Heat’s stars plenty of room offensively daring them to take the outside jump shot while the entire team worked to keep them out of the lane. On the other end the Spurs caught fire from deep with Neal, Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard nailing shot after shot from downtown. With three minutes to go in the third the lead had ballooned to 21 points, LeBron would quickly score nine himself to bring the lead back to 15 going into the fourth and it appeared we may have a game on our hands.
Instead, the Spurs once again switched gears and the hot shooting continued. They locked down the Heat defensively while it rained a continuous barrage of three pointers to quickly extend the lead. By midway through the fourth quarter, the Spurs had blown out the lead to more than 30 points on the back of an NBA record 16 made 3-pointers. The benches were emptied with more than five minutes to spare and even the Spurs’ reserves managed to extend the lead out to an embarrassing 36 points before the game ended. We have now seen in back-to-back games just how little momentum means from one game to another with teams of this caliber, with both responding emphatically to a previous loss with a blowout win. Other than a concern over Tony Parker‘s hamstring, the Spurs were as close to perfection as you will see in Game 3 and having two more games to play in San Antonio will see their confidence at sky-high levels.
It will take far more assertiveness from league MVP LeBron James and some drastic coaching adjustments from Erik Spoelstra for the Heat to again turn the tide of the finals series in Game 4.
Danny Green was sensational in Game 3 of the 2013 NBA Finals. (Photo: Mark Runyon, Basketball Schedule).
San Antonio Spurs – Overall Grade: A
The Spurs played damned near close to perfect in Game 3 and responded emphatically to their big loss in Miami, blowing the Heat away by 36 points. Their offense was outstanding, setting an NBA Finals record for 3-pointers made and scoring 113 points on the usually strong Miami defense. Meanwhile on the other end, they contained the Heat’s stars, kept the paint locked down defensively and held Miami to a meager 77 points. The Spurs looked outstanding in nearly every facet of the game, moving the ball, in transition and especially on the boards where they outrebounded Miami 52-36. All of this without getting a big game from any of their usual stars.
Tony Parker, PG– Grade: C+
Parker had a solid first half, playing the role of the facilitator and he recorded eight assists in just 27 minutes of play. He left the game with six minutes remaining in the third quarter due to a hamstring complaint and luckily was not needed for the rest of the game. Hopefully there will be no lingering issues with Parker’s injury and we will see the former Finals MVP able to play his regular minutes for the rest of the series.
Danny Green, SG – Grade: A
Danny Green continued his phenomenal shooting display in the NBA Finals with an incredible 27-point outing in Game 3 including an absurd 7-from-9 from 3-point range. Green and Gary Neal were instrumental in the Spurs’ record 3-point shooting night and completely blowing the Heat out of the game in the second half. Green currently has 56 points in the series, the most of any player in the 2013 NBA Finals through three games.
Kawhi Leonard, SF – Grade: A
Kawhi Leonard has become one of the league’s rising young stars and he again showed the full extent of his skills in Game 3. Not only did Leonard continue his stellar defensive play on LeBron James, who scored just 15 points, he was rebounding relentlessly and continues to knock down open looks. Leonard’s defense was a huge turning point in the second half where he came up with a number of steals in succession to ignite the fast break and allow the Spurs to quickly pull away from the Heat. He finished the game with four steals to go with his 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Tim Duncan, PF – Grade: B+
Tim Duncan immediately asserted himself into Game 3 after personally taking responsibility for a “terrible” showing in Game 2. Duncan was aggressive offensively, demanding the ball in the paint and looking for his own shot, while he continued his lock down defense inside on the other end. His consistent play helped the Spurs retain the lead while it was tight in the first half, while he took a back seat to the outside shooters in the second half who put the game away. Duncan finished with a 12-point, 14-rebound double-double in just 28 minutes.
Tiago Splitter, C – Grade: C+
While the outside shooters took over the game and the score sheet, Tiago Splitter continues to make a solid contribution and helped Tim Duncan lock down the paint against the Miami offense. Splitter played just 23 minutes, contributed eight points and five rebounds and did exactly what was required of him while other players put up gaudy numbers.
Gary Neal, SG – Grade: A+
Manu Ginobili, SG – Grade: B
Cory Joseph, PG – Grade: C
The Spurs bench made a huge impact on the back of an offensive explosion from guard Gary Neal. Neal came in and provided an instant spark for the Spurs with 14 first-half points including a deep buzzer-beater to close out the half. Neal continued his hot shooting in the second half and finished with 24 points, four rebounds and three assists and was 6-for-10 from deep.
Manu Ginobili also rebounded well from a horror game in Miami, playing the role of a facilitator off the bench for the Spurs in the absence of Tony Parker. Ginobili scored seven points while dishing out six assists. The rest of the Spurs bench was strong as they not only closed out the game, but increased the lead down the stretch as the two teams’ benches battled it out.
LeBron James failed to assert himself as the Heat were blown out by the Spurs in Game 3 of the NBA Finals. Photo Credit: Keith Allison, Flickr.com
Miami Heat – Overall Grade: D
The Heat managed to keep the game relatively close in the first half but really never looked like troubling the Spurs in Game 3. LeBron James again played the facilitator role early as Dwyane Wade seemed to take control of the offense, two of their starters were held scoreless and no Miami player scored more than 20 points. The Heat were blown away in the second half, they could not defend the Spurs’ 3-point shooters and were struggling to find any consistent offense. They were dominated in the rebounding battle and put up just 77 points on .408 shooting. The Heat will need to improve in every facet to turn it around in Game 4.
Mario Chalmers, PG – Grade: D-
After leading the Heat in scoring in their Game 3 victory, Mario Chalmers had a disasterous Game 4, failing to register on the score sheet and battling foul trouble early. Chalmers played just 20 minutes, had twice as many turnovers (four) as assists (two) and failed to hit a shot in five attempts. While he was not alone in his struggles, Chalmers is a key role player for the Heat and was completely missing in Game 3.
Dwyane Wade, SG – C+
Dwyane Wade was aggressive early on in Game 3, he was looking for his own shot and shouldering much of the offensive load in the first quarter. He had 12 points and five assists in the first half as the Heat managed to keep the game close. Wade again had a very poor performance in the second half as the Spurs ran away with the game. Wade finished with 16 points, five assists and four steals.
LeBron James, SF – C–
League MVP LeBron James has yet to score 20 points in any of the 2013 NBA Finals games and was held to just 15 points in the blowout Game 3 loss. If it was not for a quick nine-point spurt in 90 seconds to end the third quarter, the media would be blowing up about one of the most disappointing performances in Finals history. James was passive to start the game, acting as a facilitator and not asserting himself offensively. He had just four points at the half and was taken out of his game by the impressive San Antonio defense. James shot 7-for-21 from the field, did not take a single free throw and was a team low minus-32 in plus/minus rating. The 11 rebounds James pulled down were the lone bright spot in an otherwise disastrous game and we wait for him to really put his impression on this finals series.
Udonis Haslem, PF – Grade: D
Udonis Haslem was a complete non-factor in Game 3, playing just 10 minutes and failing to score a single point. The Heat have played a lot more small ball this series than they did against the Pacers and Haslem is seeing his minutes diminish as a result. Even in his limited time he failed to make any impact on the game as the Spurs’ big men controlled the paint.
Chris Bosh, C – Grade: B
Lost in the disappointing result of Game 3 will be that Chris Bosh actually had himself a solid all-around game despite the team’s struggles. He had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds while he battled in the paint against San Antonio’s big men. Bosh also contributed defensively with three blocks and shared the ball well with four assists. While he could not slow down the juggernaut that was the Spurs in Game 3, Miami fans will be hoping Bosh can keep up his play while the rest of the team improves.
Mike Miller, SF – Grade: A-
Norris Cole, PG – Grade: B-
Ray Allen, SG – Grade: C
Mike Miller came in early and his sharp shooting from 3-point range kept the Heat in the game. Miller scored 15 points on perfect 5-of-5 shooting from deep and while he played 22 minutes in the blowout loss, he was just minus-3 in plus/minus rating. Norris Cole worked hard as usual but failed to make a big impact on the game with eight points, while Ray Allen and the rest of the Heat bench failed to make any real impact as the Spurs ran away with the game.