The San Antonio Spurs emerged from the Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder with newfound confidence. Beating the defending champions on the road in game 7 will do that.
It also gives them a potential blueprint to stop the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals. The Knicks, like the Thunder, are led by a point guard known for his shiftiness and scoring ability.
Slowing down Jalen Brunson will be key to San Antonio's success, and they may use a similar approach to how they defended Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Spurs can thank the Thunder for blueprint to stop Knicks
It took some trial and error for the Spurs to find a strategy that worked against the MVP. Initially, they had Victor Wembanyama guard a perimeter player such as Alex Caruso. However, Caruso's hot shooting made it harder to use that strategy.
Instead, the Spurs chose to have Wembanyama guard Isaiah Hartenstein and have Wemby help off him. Whenever Gilgeous-Alexander attempted to attack the basket, Wemby would slide over to the strong side and wall off the paint, preventing him from driving.
That forced Gilgeous-Alexander to take contested jumpers or pass, and the Spurs were able to close out on open shooters. Better yet, Wembanyama prevented shooters from putting the ball on the floor and attacking closeouts. That strategy worked against the Thunder, and it could work against the Knicks.
The Spurs may be able to slow down the Knicks' vaunted offense
The Knicks have shot lights out from outside in the playoffs thus far, with players such as Landry Shamet shooting the leather off the ball. Hopefully, San Antonio can skip the trial and error of double-teaming Brunson and leaving shooters wide open.
Instead, they can go right to the aforementioned strategy first used against Gilgeous-Alexander.
It's also worth noting that Brunson is four inches shorter than Gilgeous-Alexander, making it harder for him to see the same angles. Brunson is the better passer of the two but the height difference may play a factor.
Especially on defense for both Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns. Brunson may get attacked defensively by the Spurs' guards, while Towns will likely be involved in defending plenty of pick-and-roll actions.
Going at those two on defense could make them less effective on offense, which would play right into San Antonio's hand.
