Ginobelli is SA's greatest strength and weakness

[TitleMaster]

If Ginobelli's hot then SA beats almost anyone in a playoff series. It's clear, he's the alpha male scorer/defender on a fine team. On the other hand, if he's slightly injured or having a B-game, then it's a toss up whether or not SA advances a round.

I think in comparison, the Celts have no single weakness, besides everyone being injured at one time. Thus, if KG plays his routine D and doesn't score (like his former self) and Shaq/KP does paint patrol and then either Paul, RA, or Rondo does some scoring, then the Cs can advance any round, since all members have an even scoring load for the squad.

[Roy H.]

I'm not sure if there's much evidence to support this.  For instance, this year when Manu scores in single digits, the Spurs are 3-0, beating three good teams in the Lakers, Thunder, and Hornets.  They're 7-1 when he scores 14 or less.  Of the Spurs 6 losses, 3 have come with Manu scoring 23+.

I think the Spurs have several guys who can chip in.  Parker can carry them, Duncan can, even Blair and Jefferson can have big games.  They're much too good of a team to be as one-dimensional as you're suggesting.

[pearljammer10]

Never underestimate one of the games most clutch players and best power forwards of all time... Tim Duncan.

[TitleMaster]

They're much too good of a team to be as one-dimensional as you're suggesting.

Spurs are a very balanced squad and due to their great coach, are able to generally beat many teams during the regular season, much like the Celtics. During playoffs, however, the Spurs have often failed due to a nagging Ginobilli injury.

In contrast, even in losing Perks, we still almost beat the Lakers by 4 free throws. And Pierce wasn't exactly having an A game series. I'd even argue that losing both Powe and KG in '09, killed our defense more than anything else. If KG were at ~80% in '09 and Powe at ~70%, we probably could have repeated as champions.

Thus, I look for a healthy MG and if he's healthy come playoff time, then I think SA's got the best chance to advance this year.