Golden State Rolls Into Town

Good News:  The Spurs have won 20 consecutive home games in a row against the GS Warriors.

Bad News:  The Spurs have little (if any) room for error down this stretch run. 

 At a time in the season where the Spurs are used to coasting, or at least gliding, into one of the top three spots in the West, this year’s playoff push looks to be anything but easy.  The Spurs finish with 6 of their last 8 contests against teams with winning records.  In that mix, the Utah Jazz pop up twice, along with a home visit from the Suns and a swing out to the Staples Center for Kobe (and possibly Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol) and the Lakers.  Not an easy task, especially considering the Spurs are in a virtual dead heat for first, and only a game and a half separates them and the 6th seed Rockets. 

 However, if the 20-game home winning streak doesn’t sit well with you, there’s a likely reason for that–the Spurs haven’t beaten the Warriors this year.  Most recently, they lost a barn burner in OT in January, and before that, without Tim Duncan (remember that monster game that Matt Bonner had?), in December.  The Warriors come in having split their last 10 contests.  The last time they won more consecutive games?  March 7th to the 12th.  It’s certainly been a while.

Some Things To Pay Attention To:

*First of all, everything.  This is a possible playoff match-up, and given the shame Don Nelson bestowed upon the Mavs last year, Spurs fans better hope their team takes heed to the potential danger the Warriors present in a playoff series.

*Michael Finley.  Dude has been scorching as of late.  After going through a horrendous stretch of failing to score in double figures in 10 of 12 games, Fin-dog has gone nuts over the last four contests (19.5 ppg on 69% shooting).  Maybe it’s the impending return of Brent Barry (he’s done light work outs and shooting drills, nothing too serious as of yet), or maybe it’s the simple fact that he was embarrassed by how old he looked.

*Quietly, if there’s such a thing for him, Baron Davis is putting up one of the best (if not, the best) seasons of his entire career. The former UCLA Bruin is pouring in over 22 points per, 2nd in his career.  Assists hover near 8, and more importantly, turnovers haven’t been this low over a full season since his sophomore year.  However, above all, the oft-injured PG has played in 73 games.  For those of you counting, that’s by far the most since he played all 82 the first three years of his career.