default-cbs-image

SAN ANTONIO -- There is so much that went wrong for the Spurs in their 126-99 loss to the Rockets in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinals matchup, you want to throw the whole thing out. It's like finding out that not only are those carrots stale and the onions overripe, but the cream for the soup has gone sour and the broth is expired. The whole thing was bad, throw out the batch, don't focus on it. 

But if you want the thing you need to watch from this series going forward that's tactically debatable, that is going to be a fascinating chess match battle in this series, it's this: the Spurs want to play two bigs against the Rockets, and in Game 1, Houston annihilated them specifically on that front. 

It was exacerbated specifically by the nightmarish play of LaMarcus Aldridge. Aldridge missed bunnies and jumpers. He dropped the ball constantly, and lost it when he tried to make a move. Ryan Anderson, a defensive weak point on Houston, worked him:

This led to a negative feedback loop for San Antonio:

  1. Spurs bigs miss shots vs. smaller opponents.
  2. Rockets grab rebound with smaller lineups.
  3. Rockets run on slow-footed, two-big lineup.
  4. Rockets get transition 3-pointer or layup.

"We played big all year long against Houston," Gregg Popovich said after the game. "But if you're going to miss shots, or take quick shots, ill-advised or contested shots, quickly in the shot clock, if you're making them all it's no problem. But when you get back in transition with the two bigs, that is a problem. And that showed very quickly in the first quarter."

This is the crucial element: the Spurs' defense looks horrific, especially with those big lineups. Aldridge and David Lee had a 145 defensive rating, which is basically akin to the energy generated from an atomic split, but the bigger problem was their offense, opening up those opportunities. The bigs were so slow that when Houston pushed, which they did on every possession, their defense was scrambled, giving up transition 3-point opportunities. 

Aldridge has Anderson on him again here, doesn't take him, and the Rockets run after a miss, transition 3:

San Antonio has to make buckets to force the Rockets to take the ball out of the basket and get set up, especially with two bigs on the floor. They can't cover enough ground with those slow mobile lineups to survive otherwise. 

Curiously, Popovich didn't go this best defensive big man, Dewayne Dedmon, until the third quarter. Dedmon tried to infuse toughness, but wound up in two very non-Spurs-ian altercations and was eventually ejected. But Dedmon may have to play sooner in this series. 

The big question, looming, though, is whether the two-big lineups can be effective at all, and how long it will take San Antonio to adjust if they can't be. Popovich is not a speed-chess player in playoff series. He is careful and considerate when it comes to moving away from strategies that have gotten them where they are. It's unlikely there will be dramatic changes after Game 1. Changes, to be sure, but first in how they approach the game, not the lineups themselves. Overreactions can get you into just as much trouble as waiting too long in a series. 

Playing Kawhi Leonard at four in a small-ball lineup seems tempting. It puts more wings on the floor to guard shooters. Outside of Leonard and Danny Green, San Antonio's best players don't come from the wings. The Spurs need offense, and those bigs represent their best chance. Aldridge has to make shots, and he almost certainly will play better in Game 2 because it is impossible for him to play worse. But things like this are an issue, where the Rockets ran him through multiple pick-and-pops. This is with Kawhi hounding Harden, and the Rockets still get the shot they want because of Harden's patience. 

There's so much the Spurs need to address after Game 1 it's hard to know where to start. Mindset and intensity probably have to be step one, but this series is going to be decided by whether or not Popovich's insistence on punishing Houston with two bigs can translate into success or not. Because after Game 1, the Rockets know the Spurs will bleed, and they know those bigs can't keep up if they run.

Popovich faces a test of philosophies headed into a must-win Game 2 Wednesday.