Spurs' rapid Blazers elimination provided sneaky advantage nobody's talking about

Knocking out an opponent early in a playoff series isn't just about a team flexing its dominance, but it also gives a major advantage going into the next round: rest. And the Spurs need a lot of that right now.

Of course, this group was dominant throughout the regular season and into the playoffs, but let's be honest, they had a ton of bumps and bruises. Wemby missed a stretch of games, as did Dylan Harper, Devin Vassell, and more. Additionally, while they took care of Portland in five games, that was still a tough, hard-nosed group that gave their best effort.

So getting some time to recover over the next few days heightens San Antonio's chances of a dominant start early in Round 2. And we all know, in the playoffs, a hot start in a series goes a long way.

San Antonio's rest puts Dylan Harper in a better position

While Dylan Harper had some amazing moments in the first round, he's nursing a thumb injury that's been bothering him since the end of the year. The ailment forced him to leave the Spurs' regular-season finale against the Nuggets early. Now, he did play well against Portland, but the issue did show up in spurts.

For example, there were a few nights where he didn't shoot the three-ball well or take any at all, for that matter. He went 0-2 in Games 1 and 4 and didn't attempt one in Game 2. Now, his overall percentage from downtown did balance out to 50%, but the thumb did seem to hinder him a bit.

His shooting was a massive difference maker in the back half of the season for the Spurs and will be a swing factor moving forward. Rehabbing this injury will be imperative to fully unlocking this aspect of his game.

This stretch of days ahead of Round 2 will give him much-needed rest and extended time to recover from this issue so he's well-prepped to continue his impressive play into the remainder of the postseason.

The Timberwolves have a serious issue against the Spurs

The Spurs are set to face the Timberwolves in the second round. That Minnesota team put together an impressive Game 6 victory to close out the Nuggets while missing several key players, including Anthony Edwards.

But unfortunately for Minnesota, their health issues will carry into their matchup against the Spurs. Edwards will miss at least the first few games, and Donte DiVincenzo won't be available at all due to his season ending achilles injury. Ayo Dosunmu is also nursing a calf injury.

Those health issues give the Spurs an edge to start the second round, and when this team smells blood in the water, they're going in full throttle. We saw it in Game 5 of the Trail Blazers series. It was an elimination game at home, so they were aggressive from the get-go, setting a tone that lingered through the rest of the night and kept Portland behind.

San Antonio is dangerous, and they've proven themselves against contenders all season long. The rest benefit is yet another tool they can add to their already well-equipped utility belt. They'll need every advantage they can get to win a full 16 playoff games.

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