Spurs were older than the Heat last year

[J Shuttlesworth]

the stats prove the spurs went crazy offensively ONLY against the Heat - the Spurs ORtg against the Heat was significantly higher than everyone else:

vs. MIA: 120.8
vs. OKC: 114.4
vs. POR: 113.1
vs. DAL: 113.1


clearly the normal range for the Spurs ORtg is 113-114.

Probably due to the fact that the Heat didn't have a paint presence with someone like Ibaka, or Lopez... and also the fact that the Heat were on their 4th straight finals with a lot of old role players.

I also think Popovich saved his best sets for the finals

[3ball]

Probably due to the fact that the Heat didn't have a paint presence with someone like Ibaka, or Lopez...

Dallas didn't have a paint presence either, and they did phenomenal compared to the Heat, so the paint presence isn't the reason.

and also the fact that the Heat were on their 4th straight finals with a lot of old role players.

It makes no sense to blame the worst loss in history on role players - the top contributors matter much more, and the Heat's top contributors were much younger than the Spurs.

I also think Popovich saved his best sets for the finals

Here's something that we don't need to "think" about, because we know - the ORtg numbers show a clear anomaly.

The most logical explanation for the anomaly would be the same thing that fans, media, and other players were saying at the time it was happening: the Heat defense gave up... the eye test was quite convincing of this, the Heat body language was obvious, and everyone watching agreed that the Heat had quit.

But the only motivation a team ever has for giving up on defense is when they feel their offense can't keep up - this is intuitive... so why was the Heat offense so much worse than the Spurs?... Simple - the Spurs employed a superior brand of offense.... vastly superior.... the Heat's offense was suboptimal and stagnant in comparison, and when it couldn't keep up, the defense had the motivation it needed to give up..

Based on the anomaly in the ORtg numbers, the other Spurs opponents felt their offense could keep up a little better or longer, so they didn't feel the need to quit on defense as easily.
.

[ninephive]

Wasn't Kawhi the leading scorer in the finals?

And the Spurs had tons of young role players, where the Heat had old role players

What was the average age of each team? That's the best way to determine

BTW, people blame the loss on the fact that the Spurs were a better team, not old age.

No, it was Parker then Leonard then Duncan.

[BuffaloBill]

Has nothing to do with age. The Heat would only have 1 ring in the past 4 years if it weren't for now 39 year old Ray Allen

[Hey Yo]

Has nothing to do with age. The Heat would only have 1 ring in the past 4 years if it weren't for now 39 year old Ray Allen

Or if the Spurs didn't blow a 13pt lead late in the 3rd or blow a 5pt lead with 28 seconds left.

[Bandito]

Because Lebron sucks? Is that what Op wants to hear? I dont get it...

[Bandito]

Or if the Spurs didn't blow a 13pt lead late in the 3rd or blow a 5pt lead with 28 seconds left.

Nah it was because of Ray Allen and Bosh's contributions.

[ArbitraryWater]

Or if the Spurs didn't blow a 13pt lead late in the 3rd or blow a 5pt lead with 28 seconds left.

Helluva choke... all those missed FT's, giving up rebounds, etc. coupled with Allen's shot...

People still try to discredit a legitimate ring

[Hey Yo]

Helluva choke... all those missed FT's, giving up rebounds, etc. coupled with Allen's shot...

People still try to discredit a legitimate ring

Yep

Ray's shot is quick to be pointed out, yet the Spurs not capitalizing and blowing big leads is never pointed out.

They lost that game more than Ray tied it.

[meat]

Parker and Duncan were the Spurs top 2 scorers and they were 31 and 37 years old... the Spurs foruth-leading scorer was 36 (Manu).

So the Heat's loss can't be blamed on age... Does that mean the Heat loss is blamed on the 17 more playoff games they played over a 4-year period (2011-2014) than the Spurs?
.

Yes. The three more hours of basketball a year for four years is
the reason they lost. Brilliant observation.

[StephHamann]

Probably due to the fact that the Heat didn't have a paint presence with someone like Ibaka, or Lopez... and also the fact that the Heat were on their 4th straight finals with a lot of old role players.

I also think Popovich saved his best sets for the finals

They didn't have paint presence like Dalembert and Dejuan Blair

[navy]

They didn't have paint presence like Dalembert and Dejuan Blair

Bosh is a pretty bad paint defender maybe even worse than those two, and the Heat defensive relies on the team trapping and moving rapidly so the Spurs quick passing led them a crazy amount of easy buckets. Add that in with them shooting 53% on contested shots or something like that and you got a blowout. Game 1 was close until Lebron went out with cramps. Game 2 the Heat won. Game 3,4,5 were bad. Heat have the 25th worst defense this year and were dead last for a lot of the season so it's pretty obvious Spolestra needs to adjust and create some new defensive schemes.

[La Frescobaldi]

Dallas didn't have a paint presence either, and they did phenomenal compared to the Heat, so the paint presence isn't the reason.



It makes no sense to blame the worst loss in history on role players - the top contributors matter much more, and the Heat's top contributors were much younger than the Spurs.



Here's something that we don't need to "think" about, because we know - the ORtg numbers show a clear anomaly.

The most logical explanation for the anomaly would be the same thing that fans, media, and other players were saying at the time it was happening: the Heat defense gave up... the eye test was quite convincing of this, the Heat body language was obvious, and everyone watching agreed that the Heat had quit.

But the only motivation a team ever has for giving up on defense is when they feel their offense can't keep up - this is intuitive... so why was the Heat offense so much worse than the Spurs?... Simple - the Spurs employed a superior brand of offense.... vastly superior.... the Heat's offense was suboptimal and stagnant in comparison, and when it couldn't keep up, the defense had the motivation it needed to give up..

Based on the anomaly in the ORtg numbers, the other Spurs opponents felt their offense could keep up a little better or longer, so they didn't feel the need to quit on defense as easily.
.

ABSURD.

[3ball]

[3ball]

ABSURD

what other reason does a defense have for giving up, other than realizing their offense can't keep up?

that's the only reason a defense quits - a team's defense would not quit if they felt the offense COULD keep up... only if they see that it can't, like the Heat in the 2014 Finals.