2014 NBA Portland Trail Blazers vs San Antonio Spurs Series Odds, Picks and Predictions

2014 NBA Portland Trail Blazers vs San Antonio Spurs Series Odds, Picks and Predictions: It will be a battle of youth versus experience when the fifth-seeded Portland Trail Blazers face the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs meet in the Western Conference semifinals. Led by rising stars like LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard, Portland ousted the Houston Rockets in the first round in six high-scoring games. San Antonio on the other hand needed seven games to dispatch the Dallas Mavericks, but the experience of Tony Parker, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili eventually won out. Portland and San Antonio split their four regular season meetings, and their semifinal series begins Tuesday in San Antonio.

While Lillard’s game-winning, buzzer-beating 3-pointer in Game 6 ultimately sent the Trail Blazers to the second round, it was the combined efforts of Lillard and Aldridge that fueled the victory. Aldridge averaged 29.8 points, 11.2 rebounds and 2.7 blocks while Lillard averaged 25.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.7 assists. The dynamic inside/outside scoring combo helped Portland average 111.6 points per game in the series.

Not surprisingly, San Antonio’s first-round victory was fueled by Duncan, Parker and Ginobili. Parker averaged 19.9 points, Duncan averaged 17.3 points and Ginobili averaged 17.7 points, and all three players outperformed their regular-season numbers. The unsung hero of the first round was center Tiago Splitter, who bounced back from a disappointing to regular season to average 10.7 points and 9.0 rebounds. Overall, the same depth that allowed San Antonio to rank sixth in scoring and in points allowed during the year was evident as the Spurs held off a very determined Dallas team.

The Trail Blazers Win If:

If Portland is going to win the series, the Trail Blazers need big performances from both Lillard and Aldridge. Not only do both players have to continue to be forces on the offensive end, but they also have to set the tone on the defensive end. Lillard in particular will play a big role, and if he is able to keep Parker out of the lane, it will go a long way to helping the Trail Blazers disrupt San Antonio’s normally-efficient offense. Of course, Lillard and Aldridge won’t be able to do it alone, and if Portland is going to get by a deep Spurs’ team, role players like Nicolas Batum, Wesley Matthews and Mo Williams will have to take turns chipping in. If Portland’s two stars can outplay Duncan and Parker and the Trail Blazers can match San Antonio’s effort on defense, they can pull off the upset.

The Spurs Win If:

For the Spurs to continue their playoff run, they will have to take advantage of their balance on both sides of the court to force the Trail Blazers to play defense and execute in half court settings. Portland has shown all year that it can score plenty of points, and given their youth and athleticism, an up-tempo pace plays right to the Trail Blazers’ strengths. However, the Spurs are one of the more efficient offensive teams in the NBA, and they need to take advantage of their ability to generate points in a half-court setting in order to control the pace of the series. If San Antonio can make Portland have to score a bulk of its points against a set defense, the Spurs are going to be in the driver’s seat. If this series comes down to which team can make more plays on both the offensive and defensive end, the Spurs’ balance and depth will win out.

Bottom Line:

While Portland’s lack of playoff experience certainly didn’t slow the Trail Blazers down in the first round, things won’t be as easy against the Spurs. Unlike Houston’s core that was making its first trip to the postseason together, San Antonio’s roster is probably the most playoff tested as any in the NBA, and the Spurs’ current core has been through plenty of postseason battles together. Equally as important, San Antonio will actually test Portland on both ends of the court, which means the Trail Blazers will have to do more than simply out-gun their opponent with their offense if they want to win this series. Stopping opposing offenses has been an issue for Portland all year, and while it wasn’t a problem against an equally-awful Houston defense, it will be end of being the difference against the Spurs. It’s not time for a changing of the guard just yet.

Prediction: San Antonio Spurs Win in 5 Games

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