YES PEOPLE………… The Western Conference Finals are here and MY TEAM is in it…..#THUNDERSTORM. This would be no easy task because the Spurs are here too. For the Spurs it was a regular season of flying under the radar, getting no respect, people saying their to old, etc. However one of the least talked about trades that came out of this season transformed the Spurs into a real deal contender with depth at every position. I mean really Stephen “YOUR FAVORITE GANGMEMBER” Jackson was back on the squad and the last time he was they won a chip. In the post season the Spurs are undefeated winning 18 straight games in blow-out fashion, so it’s gonna be a fight. For the Thunder the regular season saw the young boyz get bizzy and prove that they were for real , that Westbrook has grown as a scoring PG , the emergence of James Harden (Trina welcome to the team…….#dntjudgeme) and KD putting everyone on notice that he’s more than a scoring champ. The Thunder was the popular pick to get to this level ……so as one of my ol heads used to say around the way “Ain’t no sense in delaying it ……let’s get to playing it”.
Game 1: The Thunder got off to a good start with some early transition buckets that had me saying …YES this is how we need to play. The Spurs would settle in especially when Manu came in the game and went crazy hitting tough shot after tough shot ending the first quarter on a buzzer beating fade – away three pointer giving the Spurs a 5 point lead. The second quarter would see D-Fish stepped up for the Thunder scoring timely buckets helping the team secure a slim lead at the half. Now the second half would see the Thunder continue to build on their lead , but not enough to blow the game open and a game the Spurs can keep close is a game your in danger of losing. An 18 -3 run would put the Spurs up 6 points late in the fourth and the combination of Manu and Parker would push them to the 101 -98 victory
Game2: The Spurs would get off to the fast start lead by Tony Parker pushing the pace and making bucket after bucket in the paint. The Spurs would hold a double digit lead for most of the first half. The second half would be more of the same early as the Spurs continued to push the pace and the lead going up by as much as 22 points late in the 3rd quarter. Watching this I said how the Thunder respond will show if they are really ready for this stage or their still to young. To their credit the young boys showed great fight but the experience of the Spurs was too much on this night as they wrapped up the 120 -111 victory and a commanding 2 – 0 series lead. Ok from a fan’s perspective I said “Damn we down 2-0 but we could have had one of these games…. we’ll play better at home”. At least I hoped or could the Spurs really be this good?
Games 3 & 4: Home Sweet Home ….. seemed to be all we needed as the Thunder had control of both games throughout. The formula seemed to be let’s see what happens when we push the pace and keep Tony Parker out of the paint. Both games saw great performances by the Thunder’s big three of Durant , Harden & Westbrook , but it was the other performances by Tabo , Perk , D-Fish and my main mannnnnnnnn (Ahmad Rashad Voice) Serge I-BLOCK-A as he turned in a 11 -11 perfect performance in game four. So now the series is tied at 2 games a piece and both teams did what they were supposed to do take care of home. Somebody gotta win on the road right?
Game 5: The Spurs decide to switch things up coming into this game starting Manu in place of third year swing-man Danny Green. Great move by coach Pop know how important Game 5 is in a series like this. Early his decision would pay off as Manu again went crazy giving the Spurs all they needed in the first half. OKC had a sub of their own as Dequan Cook stepped up to make some big shots pushing the team to a halftime lead 53 – 44. In the third quarter it was more of Manu being Manu……Sidenote: Manu is not only a definite first ballot Hall Of Famer, but dude is top 5 illest two guards ever! as he kept the Spurs hanging around. The Thunder would answer the Spurs run with a run of there own as the entered the fourth quarter up by 9 points. Tony and Tim would make more plays down the stretch to get the Spurs right there , but the Thunder were able to hold on and get the 108 -103 victory. With the series now 3 – 2 and the Thunder going home for a close out you had to expect they would play well, but be weary the Spurs aint just gonna lay down…..there too good for that.
Game 6: This could be it……….. and for Thunder fans we couldn’t afford to go back to San Antonio for a game 7. This game would show what we have learned in this post season so far. For the Spurs a win would not only save the season but swing momentum back in there favor. The Spurs would start the game strong with Stephen “GANGMEMBER” Jackson leading the way hitting from downtown no matter what the Thunder did. Had me looking at the game like dude that told on Nas & DMX in Belly …… I DON’T LIKE THAT ISH …..PAWS ON THAT BANANA THOUGH (belly pic) The Spurs would build an 18 point lead during the game , but you could tell the Thunder were gonna keep fighting. They answered the bell……..fighting there way back into the game and a late lead capping a great series winning four games in a row to reach the 2011 NBA FINALS with the 107 -99 victory. You want to talk about growth San Antonio coach Greg Popovich said it best for OKC to get to this point they had to beat the 2010 champs in the Mavs , Kobe & Metta and finally the Spurs which represents 10 out of the last 13 NBA Champs. Hey we may be on our way……….. at the end of the game in my opinion this years MVP KD did what he always does after games…..hugged his Mom and told his team let’s get ready for a Championship
So who is it gonna be LBJ and Miami Vice (C’mon Son y’all know they be wearing some crazy outfits) or the Fossil Fuel C’s (Say what you want but KG seems to have hit that hot tub time machine). Either way it’s gonna be a great finals and I can’t wait …………………… THUNDERSTORM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Til next time people ……Be Easy ….. You’ve just read the Rucker Report
