San Antonio Spurs: Takeaways From Win Over Cavaliers

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The San Antonio Spurs picked up a big road win against the Cleveland Cavaliers on national television Wednesday night. The Spurs keep showing that they are among the league’s best at finishing games, as they did against the Clippers and Hawks. Another lineup change, another win for the Spurs. Below are the biggest takeaways from a terrific win for the Spurs.
–Boris Diaw Was The Best Spurs Player
The San Antonio Spurs did another lineup change, as they started Boris Diaw. The move wasn’t expected, as he was put on the floor to help defend star Kevin Love. Diaw outplayed Love and was the best Spur on the floor. He finished with 19 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds. Diaw looked like the player that was getting triple doubles on the Suns earlier in his career.
–Tim Duncan Was Solid for the Spurs
Let’s get the bad out of the way, Tim Duncan had 6 turnovers and shot 7-17 from the field today. Yes, Anderson Varejao went for 23 points and 11 rebounds, but that wasn’t all Duncan’s fault. Many of Varejao’s baskets were a product of him getting easy layups and beating the Spurs players up the floor. Duncan went for 19 points and 10 rebounds.
-Defending Three Point Shot
As I mentioned in my “keys to the San Antonio Spurs winning” article earlier, I mentioned that the Spurs must defend the three point shot to beat Cleveland and they did. The Cavaliers did hit 7 of 18 threes, but never got in a rhythm like they did in recent games against Atlanta and New Orleans.
-San Antonio Spurs Defense on LeBron James
Kawhi Leonard made his mark in the NBA Finals last season as he defended LeBron James tremendously. The trend continued on Wednesday, as James had one of his quietest games of the season. He went for 15 points (6-17 fg) and 9 assists. The defense the San Antonio Spurs played on James, showed at the end, where he turned it over twice in the final minute.
The San Antonio Spurs next game is on Friday, November 21st against the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center. The game is at 8:00 p.m. (ET).
Next: Post Game Grade: San Antonio Spurs at Cleveland Cavaliers