Scal, great writeup, one of your best. The Die Hard reference was great but also ominous for Spurs backers. Why? Because the roles could be easily be reversed. The Spurs could be Hans Gruber (having used up all of their 9 lives) and the Clippers could be John McClane (putting the final nail in their coffin). Oh, and the movie takes place in LA, with the hometown heros (even if McClane is a NY cop) defeating the international bad guys (i.e., the Spurs).
Frankly, I'm not betting this game because I have a very strong rooting interest. I want to see the Clippers tear the heart out of this spurs team and hold it up for everyone to see. I want to see them drive a stake through their heart and kill them, once and for all. This team, and their megalomaniac of a coach, have driven me to the point of insanity this year. They have been the epitome of a jekyll and hyde team and I'm through with them. Let's count all the ways they've choked away home court by losing games they had no business losing:
1) Losing to the Knicks on the road.
2) Losing to the Cavs at home. Up by 10 with 2 to play
3) Losing to the putrid Mavs at Dallas, near the end of the season.
4) Losing the the Pelicans in the final game of the season.
5) Losing to the Clippers in games 4 and 6 at home.
And yes, they have also been equally resilient, but when you are given so many chances to close the deal and you don't, there is something wrong with you. Exactly what that is, I don't know, but this team is no longer trustworthy.
I said in my game 6 write-up that the Spurs could not afford the give the Clippers a shot at redemption (at home) and I'm sticking by it. Pop has turned into a madman with his hack-a-Jordan and it backfired once and almost twice (game 2). His calling his team soft is an act of desperation because (as you put it) coaches don't resort to that unless their team got destroyed by an opponent. He is trying to get that extra juice out of his guys because he will need all the juice he can get to beat a team whose starters (overall) are much better and younger than his.
Finally, the NBA is all about star power and I have not seen one commercial with Duncan, Manu or Parker on TV during the playoffs. The Clippers are the sexier team and I pray to god that the refs put a giant shaft up Pop's arse during this game. And since you started your writeup with an analogy from a film, let me end mine on that note. In Unforgiven, there is great scene where the young gunslinger tries to justify has act of murder by telling William Munny (played by Eastwood) that the bad guys had it coming to them. To which Munny replies by saying, "We all have it coming kid." Well, the Spurs, the old gunslingers from the West, also have it coming to them.
Oh god, let it be tonight!
appreciate venez 
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