The Spurs took over in the third quarter, outscoring them 26-8 in it. It was led by a 24-0 run that shocked the Clippers, handing them their third straight loss in the series.
The Spurs now lead the series, 3-0. They haven't lost a game in more than a month. If a team with a 24-point commanding lead can't stop them, who can?
"We didn't plan on being down that much," says Tim Duncan on the comeback. "We stuck with it."
Duncan isn't getting any younger and at 36 years old, getting a fifth ring would definitely mean something. Duncan shows he's hungry and he continues to do his same old thing he's done for his whole career. In Saturday's win, he had 19 points and 13 rebounds.
It's been a different kind of a year for the future Hall-of-Famer. He still has Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, along with head coach Greg Popovich, but there are younger pieces to help them out.
The Spurs showed aging last year when they lost as the first seed to the eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies, led by Zach Randolph. Memphis didn't even have Rudy Gay either at that time.
This year, it's different.
San Antonio now has guys like Kawhi Leonard helping out at small forward, along with a helpful acquisition in Boris Diaw. On the bench, they have a three-point scoring option in Matt Bonner. Not only that, but there's also Gary Neal, Tiago Splitter, and Stephen Jackson. DeJuan Blair has also been a big factor off the bench.
With that, the Spurs have shown they are a dangerous team this year.
In 2007, when the Spurs swept LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, it was pretty much expected. The Cavs had no pieces to compete with such an experienced and talented team like San Antonio.
If James can make it to the Finals again this year, he may face the same fate he had done so five years ago. Let's face it: looking at the Spurs right now and the Heat -- even with Chris Bosh --, if these two were to meet in the Finals, the Spurs would just pick this team apart.
They are too experienced and just too smart. That is what is making them so dangerous right now.
Right now at this point, it appears no one can stop them unless if the Los Angeles Lakers or Oklahoma City Thunder have some tricks up their sleeve.
With how they're playing, they are clearly the team to beat.
Josh Dhani is the founder of FootBasket. He also contributes at Hoops Authority and Eight Points Nine Seconds. You can read more about him at his website. Follow him on Twitter @joshdhani.
