The Oklahoma City Thunder grabbed the elusive win on the road in game five of the Western Conference Finals last night. OKC rolled to a 108-103 triumph over the Spurs and will take a 3-2 lead back home for game six on Wednesday night.
The Spurs made a pre-game adjustment that inserted Manu Ginobili in the starting lineup in place of Guard Danny Green. The shift was effective early. The move made it so Thunder Point Guard Russell Westbrook would have to defend Ginobili right from the tip. This allowed Spurs Point Guard Tony Parker to be sharp from the start. Parker, during games three and four in OKC was a non-factor due in large part because of the defensive showing of Thunder Guard Thabo Sefolosha.
Starting Ginobili in game five was a good way for Coach Popovich to mix it up early. Despite, Parker's 20 point night, he was still held to 4 assist. It took a little while for OKC to adjust to the change, but they figured it out soon enough.
Thunder Forward Kevin Durant showed flashes of brilliance throughout the entire bout dropping 27 points against the Spurs. In fact many players displayed brilliant play in last nights contest.
Spurs Forward Manu Ginobili had a monster game scoring 34 points on 11-21 shooting and the "Big Fundamental" Tim Duncan got going late to reel the Thunder back-in before OKC made a final push to seal the deal. Duncan ended the night with 18 points and 12 rebounds; his third double-double of the series.
In a game that featured early foul calls and a technical; it seemed like the officiating would take center stage. It was quickly overshadowed by the play of both teams. This series has been unbelievable to witness and in a way we are watching a young OKC team begin to take a championship step forward.
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As game five played out and the Thunder were overcoming everything the veteran Spurs were throwing at them; comparisons began to be drawn to the 1990-1991 Chicago Bulls.
The then "Baby Bulls" had been knocking at the door of the Eastern Conference Finals for two seasons prior to the '90-'91 season, but could not take down the "Bad Boy" Detroit Pistons. That changed during the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals. Michael Jordan, the leagues scoring champ that season, lead a hungry young Bulls team into the conference finals on mission. The '91 Bulls would take down the "bad boys" of the East in a 4-0 sweep. The Detroit Pistons wouldn't be heard from again until the early 2000's.
The Bulls had established themselves, but like the path the Thunder have taken, it took suffering in defeat. The Bulls would go on to dominate the LA Lakers in five games during the '91 Finals and the rest is history.
The comparisons between the '91 Bulls and '12 Thunder are fair ones, but they are a little premature. First, the Thunder have yet to topple the Spurs and it won't be easy doing so. Second, the Thunder have to win a championship now if they do knock out San Antonio. Just reaching the Finals this year shouldn't warrant comparisons to the '91 Bulls.
From the outside looking in, these two teams are indeed somewhat comparable. The Thunder are still a young team and they are lead by the leagues regular season scoring champ in Kevin Durant. OKC has tasted defeat in postseasons past. Three years ago they lost to the Lakers in round one and last season got taken out late in the Western Conference Finals by the Dallas Mavericks. The Thunder have risen a little faster then MJ's Bulls did, but their leaders and past defeats in the playoffs are eerily similar.
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The OKC Thunder are right on the cusp. They have the four time Champion Spurs searching for answers and gasping for air on the verge of elimination. OKC has the Spurs on a new kind of streak, a three game losing streak. Impressive considering the Spurs were up 2-0 at one point in this series and riding a 10 game playoff winning streak.
Both clubs are playing impressive basketball. The Spurs will be difficult to close out even though they will be the road team for game six. OKC's crowd will be fired up and if their team can shut the door on a proud Spurs club; the comparisons to the '91 Bulls will draw heavier on the minds of pro basketball fans everywhere.
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