San Antonio Spurs: Looking At The Home Stretch
By Simon Shortt
The San Antonio Spurs currently sit in second place of the Western Conference. Over their final games they will look to finish strong going in to the playoffs.
The San Antonio Spurs won their first game back from the All-Star break, defeating the Los Angeles Clippers, 105-97. With 25 games left in the season (as of Sunday morning) the Spurs look to be in good shape when it comes to home court advantage in round one of the playoffs.
They would love to hold on to a top-two seed for home-court advantage in the second round as well, but with the Houston Rockets only a few games back San Antonio will have to remain sharp the rest of the way.
What’s The Schedule Look Like?
Of the Spurs’ remaining 25 games, 18 are at home. They have four back-to-backs, three of which include a home game then a short trip to close by three teams, two of which are division rivals: Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks.
The fourth back-to-back includes two home games. In fact, they only play on the road for consecutive games once, and that isn’t until the final two games of the season. Overall the scheduling of the end of the season is in San Antonio’s favor, which is key for a team featuring multiple seasoned veterans.
Who Do They Play?
A team can’t have an easy schedule in terms of both travel and opponents can they? Fourteen of their next 25 games are against teams currently in the playoff picture. This includes games against Houston, the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
On two occasions they have three games in a row against some of the league’s best when they play the Thunder (away), Warriors (home) and Atlanta Hawks (home) in early March, then the Cavs (home), Warriors (home) and Thunder (away) at the end of March. So while their traveling will be light, the focus it will take to play these teams will be taxing.
How They Need To Finish
Many believe the Spurs will finish second in the West. But with Houston just 3.5 games back the team will need to continue its success to make that a reality. The Rockets have a similar situation in their remaining games with a lot of them being at home but against multiple playoff teams (including their next seven games which will feature the Clippers, Spurs and Cavaliers).
The Spurs would keep their pace if they won 19 of these final 25 games. And although this is a tall order against tough competition, it is a realistic goal. At minimum the team should go 16-9 in their final games for another 60-win season. An extra game or two should give them some breathing room to lock up the 2-seed.
Next: 2017 NBA Trade Deadline: Grades For All 30 Teams
The San Antonio Spurs have had another remarkable year thus far, but they can’t ease up yet. They will need to remain healthy and play great basketball to secure home-court through the first two rounds of the playoffs. This final stretch begins Sunday afternoon, when the Spurs face the Los Angeles Lakers.