Stephen Curry and Harrison Barnes ended Golden State’s title drought in 2015. (GETTY IMAGES)

There are 30 teams in the NBA, but realistically speaking there are only a handful of teams capable of hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy.

If you’re a fan of the Sixers, Kings, Lakers, Nuggets, Nets and Hornets, it’s probably safe to book that reservation to Las Vegas or the Caribbean in June.

Sure there are plenty of contenders for the championship, such as the Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, Atlanta Hawks and Chicago Bulls. But these teams have major questions that’ll ultimately lead to their downfall during the knockout stages.

The Rockets are a wonderful offensive team, but can they make enough stops on the defensive end when it counts? The Grizzlies are a fantastic defensive team, but can they score enough points? The Hawks have a well-balanced team, but do they have that superstar to close out games? The Bulls have all the pieces to win in the playoffs, but can Rose stay injury free?

OneManFastbreak.net examines the five teams, in no particular order, with the best shot at winning the 2015-16 NBA championship.

Cleveland Cavaliers — LeBron James came within two games of ending Cleveland’s decades-long title drought. LeBron posted historic numbers during the NBA Finals, but even his superhuman effort wasn’t enough to beat the Golden State Warriors. LeBron is more than capable of lifting a team to the Finals, especially in the weak Eastern Conference, but he needs help to finish the job. The Cavaliers have the roster to compete for a title. The only roadblock at this point is health. Kevin Love missed nearly the entire playoffs because of shoulder injury, and the Finals might have had a different result had Kyrie Irving not gotten hurt on a freak knee-on-knee collision with Klay Thompson. Love appears to be healthy, while Irving is on schedule to return in January (or sooner). The Cavs have one goal in mind and that’s win a title, and Las Vegas oddsmakers love the Cavs this season. Anything less than The Chip would be a major disappointment.

Golden State Warriors — The Warriors had one of the greatest seasons in NBA history. They finished the 2014-15 regular season with the best record. Stephen Curry was named the league MVP. And the Dubs capped off their storybook season by capturing the franchise’s first NBA title since 1975. Steve Kerr made this coaching gig look real easy by expertly navigating his team through the playoffs without a hitch in his rookie season. His second season, however, if off to a rough beginning. Kerr has taken a leave of absence after undergoing back surgery during the summer.

Steve Kerr won a title in his first season as coach. (GETTY IMAGES)

Luke Walton takes over as the interim coach, and he’ll be tasked with the keeping the ship on course until Kerr returns. Walton shouldn’t have too much to worry about because the Warriors still have the best roster in basketball. Curry and Thompson are now walking around with championship swagger, and Draymond Green is $82 million rich after inking a five-year deal. Until someone knocks them out, the Warriors are wearing the championship belts and the road to the title goes through the Bay Area.

San Antonio Spurs — Gregg Popovich and R.C. Buford pulled off the biggest stunner during the offseason when they acquired the top prize in the free-agent market. LaMarcus Aldridge’s arrival in San Antonio opens up two avenues. The Spurs hop back on the fast lane to the NBA Finals and it also sets them up nicely in the future when Tim Duncan decides to hang up the sneakers for good. Duncan turns 40 next April, but he doesn’t look like a guy who is ready to dip into his retirement savings. The Big Fundamental signed a two-year extension for a modest $10.4 million. That’s quite a major discount for a first-ballot Hall of Famer and arguably one of the 10 greatest players in the history of basketball. It just shows Duncan’s commitment to winning. He may not be the player he was 10 years ago, but he’s still a very effective player on both ends and remains the heart and soul of the Spurs.

Oklahoma City Thunder — If there is anyone who has something to prove this season it’s Kevin Durant. After playing in a career-low 27 games in 2014-15, the man with the Twitter handle @kdtrey5 is on a mission to show the world he’s back to reclaim his most valuable player status. Durant’s return only bolsters an already formidable Thunder lineup. KD and Russell Westbrook form the best 1-2 scoring punch in the league, two unstoppable scoring champs who can take over a game at any moment. The challenge for first-year coach Billy Donovan is to find a way to unload some of the burden off KD and Westbrook, something former coach Scott Brooks wasn’t able to do. Donovan, an accomplished college coach, made two smart moves after his hiring. He brought in Maurice Cheeks and Monty Williams as assistant coaches, and he’ll lean on those two as he adjusts to the rigors of an 82-game NBA schedule. The Thunder’s title hopes largely depend on how quickly Donovan can convince Durant and Westbrook to buy into his program.

Los Angeles Clippers — The Clips went from title contender to borderline playoff team then back to being title contenders in one bizarre week in early July. The DeAndre Jordan drama that unfolded during the free-agency period was something straight out of an episode of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” Once the L.A. smog cleared up, Jordan remained a Clipper and the Dallas Mavericks must have felt like a jilted GF. With Jordan back in the fold, the Clippers have what it takes to compete for a championship. They also added big-game performer Paul Pierce to help fix some of the problems that has plagued the team the last two postseasons, such as blowing leads in the fourth quarter. The window of opportunity for Chris Paul is closing fast. It’s now or never for the All-Star point guard, who has never reached the conference finals in his career. CP3 and the Clips hope to put up a real banner at Staples Center instead of those ridiculous giant selfies.

Gregg Popovich and the Spurs were eliminated by the Clippers in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. (GETTY IMAGES)

Ask any basketball reporter and they will tell you their two greatest fears are being denied a free pregame meal and interviewing Gregg Popovich.

Popovich is undeniably one of the greatest coaches in NBA history. He helped build a model franchise in San Antonio, and he’ll likely find himself in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame some day.

Sure, he can be surly with the media because, let’s face it, winning five championships affords him that luxury.

Pop can play the role of Tywin Lannister better than anyone in the league. One bad question and you’re quickly sent to the chopping block. Just ask poor TNT sideline reporter Jaime Maggio when she had the unenviable task of trying to get more than five words out of the San Antonio Spurs coach.

In their in-game interviews, Maggio seemed like she couldn’t wait to get it over with as much as Pop.

Pop likes to poke the media for bad questions, and the media — for whatever reason — doesn’t poke him back even when Pop makes bad coaching decisions.

Pop isn’t immune to questionable moves. Remember Game 6 in the 2013 NBA Finals when he inexplicably took out Tim Duncan late in the game that allowed Chris Bosh to grab an offensive rebound and flip the ball to Ray Allen for a game-tying 3-pointer. The Heat went on to win Game 6 and eventually Game 7 to win back-to-back titles.

The poor-coaching bug hit Pop again in this year’s playoffs when he made several head-scratchers in the first-round series with the L.A. Clippers.

Let’s start with the hack-a-DeAndre-Jordan strategy.

It’s not a bad strategy to deploy, and it’s a momentum killer — we get it. But you can’t overuse it. It’s a get-out-of-jail card, which can only be good one time. Pop called for the hack-a-Jordan so many times TNT analyst Reggie Miller started shortening it to “hacka.”

Pop has repeatedly said he doesn’t like using the strategy, but it’s allowed in the rules so he’ll take full advantage until someone in the league decides to amend it. You can make a case either way whether the strategy works or not. Proponents say it works because you’re putting a sub-50 percent free throw shooter at the line and you remove the threat of the 3-point shot, especially when you’re ahead. However, opponents say the fouling strategy puts teams in the bonus a lot quicker, making it tougher to play defense without fouling. And it also stymies your own flow on offense.

What Pop and the Spurs coaching staff fell asleep on was the poor decision to use some of Tim Duncan’s fouls on hack-a-Jordan. Duncan is the most valuable Spur, so you don’t want to waste his fouls on silly fouls. But yet there was Duncan, hugging Jordan time after time, putting him in foul trouble in at least three of the seven games in the series. Why not send Matt Bonner or Aron Baynes to commit hack-a-Jordan?

Speaking of Baynes, Popovich’s decision to assign him to Clippers All-Star forward Blake Griffin in Game 1 led to a Clipper blowout. Griffin dunked on Baynes so hard twice the Spurs backup center lost an “r” in his first name. Baynes never saw Griffin again for the rest of the series.

But Popovich saved his most egregious error in the final moments of Game 7 when he chose to have Danny Green guard Chris Paul instead of Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard. As it played out, Paul beat Green going to his right and banked in the game-winning shot with one second left to eliminate the Spurs in the playoffs.

Green is a capable defender, and he’s had some success against CP3. But when you have the best one-on-one defender in the NBA, don’t you want to stick him on Chris Paul? Would love to find an answer from Pop, but the media is too scared to ask him that question.

Joel Huerto is editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

LeBron James and Blake Griffin could meet in the 2014 NBA Finals. (GETTY IMAGES)

It’s not hard to figure out who the NBA is pulling for in the 2014 playoffs. All you need is take one look at the TV schedule and you’ll find the answer.

ABC showcased the Clippers-Warriors opening game on Saturday, and Game 1 of the Heat-Bobcats matchup on Sunday. It’s a clear indication the league considers the Clippers and Heat as the two sexiest teams in the postseason, and potential showdown in the NBA Finals could generate major buzz.

Who wouldn’t want to see the Heat and the Clippers? The Heat are the two-time NBA champs and they have the best player in the world in LeBron James. And If Dwyane Wade’s knees are right, Miami has two of the most dynamic players in the league.

The Clippers don’t have history on their side but, between Chris Paul’s State Farm commercials and Blake Griffin’s Kia Optima and GameFly ads, they lead the league in most air times off the court.

And that whole Lob City thing isn’t too bad to watch either.

The league won’t admit it but it would be a major blow to Commissioner Adam Silver’s gut if the Heat don’t make The Finals.

No disrespect to the Indiana Pacers, who are a good team but not box office, the Eastern Conference playoffs are far more interesting with the Heat in it. Let’s not even waste time talking about the early rounds of the East playoffs because Miami is booked for the conference finals.

It would be a shame if Miami and Indiana didn’t play each other in the conference finals, but LeBron and Co. could care less who they play. The goal is to reach The Finals for the fourth consecutive year. Ratings would take a nosedive if the Heat are not playing in June.

Silver would prefer not to explain the NHL-type ratings should The Finals include the Pacers and the Spurs, or Pacers and Clippers, or Pacers and Thunder.

Unfortunately for the new commish, the Spurs will have a major say in the whole playoff picture. San Antonio should get by Dallas in the first round and should beat the upstart Blazers in the semifinals. Tim Duncan and Co. will most likely avoid their playoff nemesis in Oklahoma City because the Clippers — assuming they take care of business against the Warriors, which won’t be easy — will knock off the Thunder, setting up a Spurs-Clippers Western Conference finals.

The playoffs are all about matchups and the Clippers do not match up well with the Spurs, who have owned the Clips going all the way back to their San Diego roots.

The Clippers under Doc Rivers are a far better team than they were last year, but they’re still not in the Spurs’ class in terms of defense and discipline.

The Spurs have proven during the course of the regular season that they’ve rebounded from last year’s stunning loss in The Finals and are ready to retake the throne from King James.

For the first time in 16 years, Kobe Bryant won’t be playing on Christmas Day. (GETTY IMAGES)

This wasn’t how the NBA schedule-makers envisioned Christmas Day.

When they pitted the Lakers and Heat, they had visions of LeBron James going head-to-head with Kobe Bryant at Staples Center. Instead, they’ll likely get LeBron versus. . . . Wesley Johnson?

When they pitted the Bulls and the Nets, they had visions of Derrick Rose crossing over Deron Williams at Barclays Center. Instead, they’ll settle for Williams versus. . . . D.J. Augustin?

When they pitted the Spurs and the Rockets, they had visions of James Harden pulling the Euro step on Euro step king Manu Ginobili. Instead, Ginobili could be Eurostepping . . . Francisco Garcia?

And when pitted the Thunder against the Knicks, they had visions of a scoring duel between Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony. Instead, the crowd at Madison Square Garden could see Durant versus . . . Iman Shumpert?

Bah, hambug!

Unfortunately for the league, injuries are playing tricks on them. The injury bug bit Rose (torn meniscus, out for the season) and Kobe (knee fracture, out six weeks) hard, while Harden and Anthony are game-time decisions because of  sprained ankles. That’s two former league MVPs definitely out, and possibly the reigning scoring champion and former sixth man of the year missing from the NBA Christmas showcase.

The Knicks star left Monday night’s win against the Orlando Magic, and Mike Woodson told ESPN radio that the team will closely monitor his status.

“We got to weigh it out,” Woodson said. “He came in and got treatment today and he’ll get treatment through probably the evening and then tomorrow when he wakes up and comes in we’ll have to assess it at that time.”

The Lakers may have the worst luck when it comes to injuries. Aside from Kobe’s broken bone in his kneecap, Steve Nash has only appeared in a handful of games due to nerve damage to his neck. His two backups, Steve Blake and Jordan Farmar, are also out. Blake is dealing with a torn ligament in his elbow, while Farmar has a bad hamstring.

Mike D’Antoni is so fed up with the injuries he told Lakers Nation to follow another ballclub. He later apologized for that temporary lapse in judgment.

The sprained ankle monster nearly swallowed LeBron. But league honchos David Stern and Adam Silver can rest easy because The King isn’t expected to miss the Heat’s game in L.A. If LeBron were to miss the Christmas Day game, the NBA might was well cancel the rest of the schedule.

On a much, much, much smaller scope, J.J. Redick will miss the Clippers-Warriors matchup. Had to throw that in there to keep the theme going. Good news is, the Splash Brothers, Chris and Cliff Paul, Blake Griffin and the Griffin Force are all healthy so the nightcap could live up to the hype.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

Spurs guard Tony Parker picks up the scoring slack with the absence of Tim Duncan. (GETTY IMAGES)

If Friday night’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the visiting San Antonio Spurs was a heavyweight boxing championship fight, the fans would have been clamoring for a refund. Kobe Bryant is still rehabbing from a torn Achilles tendon he sustained last season and Tim Duncan missed the game because of a chest contusion.

Tony Parker made 12 of 18 shots from the field and scored a game-high 24 points to lead San Antonio (2-1) to a 91-85 over L.A. (1-2). Parker also dished out six assists, grabbed four rebounds and turned the ball over only once.

“We’re motivated,” Parker told ESPN after the game when asked about the Spurs being without Duncan. “We don’t give up games.”

With the game tied at 80 and a little over two minutes left in the game, the Spurs closed out the game by going on an 11-5 run (Manu Ginobili scored four points, including a pair of free throws with four seconds left) to close it out.

“We let this one get away from us,” Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni said. “I thought this was one we could have got, especially without Duncan. It was set up for us. We didn’t do it. You need to start defending your turf, then learn how to win on the road.”

The Lakers were stagnant on offense and a lot of that had to do with the Spurs’ intense and tough defense. L.A. made just 30 of 82 field goals (36.6%) and seemed to live and die by the 3-pointer. They made just eight of 27 from behind the arc (29.6%) and Steve Blake was the main culprit. He converted just two of his nine 3-pointers, but dished nine assists.

Pau Gasol had a strong game, scoring a season-high 20 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Jodie Meeks continued his strong play with 14 points. Nick Young scored just six points and may need to be looking over his shoulder if Meeks continues to play well. Wesley Johnson scored 12 points and played well defensively, with two blocks and one steal.

Ginobili added 20 points off the bench, Kawhi Leonard chipped in with 15 points and Boris Diaw scored 14 points to give the Spurs four starters in double figures.

Darren Jacks is a regular contributor to OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @djroxalot.

Tim Duncan drives past Chris Bosh. (GETTY IMAGES)

You can see the disappointment in Tim Duncan’s face. You can hear the frustration in Manu Ginobili’s voice.

When members of the 2012-13 San Antonio Spurs look back at this season they will play the “what if” game. What if we made our free throws down the stretch? What if we grabbed two more defensive rebounds? What if we didn’t turn the ball over in the final minute of the game? What if … what if … what if …

One free throw. One rebound. One turnover. That’s how close the Spurs were from winning their fifth NBA championship as a franchise. These proud Spurs — a collection of discarded players who complemented three Hall-of-Famers — left Miami’s American Airlines Arena hanging their heads and staring down on the floor filled with championship confetti after the Heat celebrated a 4-3 series win in the NBA Finals to defend their crown.

The Spurs gave everything they had in Game 7 but just couldn’t overcome LeBron James’ 37 points and their execution failed them down the stretch. And when their valiant fight fell just short, losing 95-88 in Game 7, they couldn’t stop thinking about the title they gave away two nights earlier.

”Being so close and feeling that you are about to grab that trophy and then seeing it vanish is very hard,” Ginobili said. ”I think that if we would’ve lost both games like this, I would be a little more up. But it’s a tough feeling.”

The Spurs had two chances in Miami to win one game, and they failed both times in spectacular fashion.

Ginobili points to the Spurs’ Game 6 meltdown as the dagger in their hearts.

The Spurs had a five-point lead with 28 seconds left and found a way to lose in overtime. The play that will stick with Ginobili and the rest of the Spurs forever is the unfortunate bounce at end of regulation when Chris Bosh grabbed LeBron James’ missed 3-point shot and flipped the ball to Ray Allen who buried the game-tying 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds left.

If the Spurs grab that rebound, they win the title. If Allen misses that 3-pointer, the Spurs win the title.

”It’s such a fine line between celebrating and having a great summer with now feeling like crap and just so disappointed,” Ginobili said.

Speaking of “feeling like crap,” Duncan was almost inconsolable after Game 7. The greatest power forward in NBA history came up small with under a minute left to play in final game of the series when his short, running jump hook over Shane Battier bounced out and his tip-in missed as well. The normally stoic Duncan ran down the court disgusted, slapping the floor with his right hand. During a timeout, Duncan had a towel over his head and was so upset with himself he couldn’t figure out whether to throw the towel or bite it.

“For me, no. Game 7, missing a layup to tie the game,” Duncan said in his postgame press conference. “Making a bad decision down the stretch. Just unable to stop Dwyane [Wade] and LeBron [James]. Probably, for me, Game 7 is always going to haunt me.”

 Hard to fault Duncan for the loss because up to that point he was authoring a MVP-type performance. His 24 points and 12 rebounds were a huge reason the Spurs were even close to the Heat in Game 7.

”To be at this point with this team in this situation, where people every year continue to count us out, is a great accomplishment,” said Duncan, his voice quivering in a rare show of emotion. ”To be in a game 7 or be in a game 6 and up one with two chances to win an NBA championship, that’s tough to swallow.”

Duncan wasn’t alone in terms of coming up empty when it mattered most. Ginobili was both brilliant and awful in Game 7 with his 18 points and four turnovers — all in the fourth quarter. His final turnover with 21 seconds left in the game basically sealed the deal for Miami.

Parker, who had been spectacular through the first five games of the series, was a no-show in games 6 and 7. Parker struggled with just 10 points on 3-for-12 shooting and was benched late in the game. He won’t use his bad hamstring as an excuse, but it was clear he wasn’t the same player after suffering the injury.

Once again, the Spurs will face proclamations of their demise this offseason. Only this time, it may be harder to hold those off.

Duncan is 37, but coming off an All-NBA First Team season and a vintage performance in the finals. The 31-year-old Parker is nearing his apex after one of his finest seasons. But Ginobili will turn 36 next month and will be a free agent, perhaps marking the end of the three-person core that helped put the Alamo City on the NBA map, and keep it there for 10 years.

”I couldn’t love our guys more,” said Gregg Popovich, who also faces a decision this summer if he wants to return as coach. ”What they accomplished this year was something nobody ever expected. They showed a lot of mental toughness and a lot of good play to get where they got. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

The questions begin now. Will Ginobili return? Can Duncan keep turning back the clock? And does the 64-year-old Popovich have another year left in him?

Parker chafed when asked if he thought this was the last run with this group. ”I can’t believe you’re asking that question,” he said. ”It’s been five, six years you saying we’re too old, so I’m not going to answer that.”

The Heat and Spurs battle in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. (GETTY IMAGES)

Game 7. NBA Finals. There’s nothing better in the sport of basketball. It’s a winner-take-all contest to decide which team takes home the Larry O’Brien trophy. The Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs are arguably the two best teams in the NBA the last three seasons and we finally get to see both in The Finals with so much at stake.

The Spurs are gunning for their fifth title in franchise history, and Tim Duncan looks to move up in the ladder of greatest players in history. Win or lose Duncan’s legacy is secure, but it would be a huge notch on his Hall-of-Fame belt if he can beat LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in a playoff series.

LeBron says he’s not too concerned about his legacy at this stage of his career because his book is still being written. However, another devastating loss in The Finals — his third in four trips — would be a huge blow to King James’ resume.

OneManFastBreak.net posts live updates in Game 7 of the NBA Finals:

FIRST QUARTER

As expected after a grueling 53 minutes of gut-wrenching and fatiguing action in Game 6, both teams were a bit raggedy early on. A lot missed shots and a lot of shaky passes. Kawhi Leonard looks to be the freshes guy on the floor. He’s active on both ends and rebounding like a madman. Must be good to be 21. Tim Duncan continues to abuse Chris Bosh in the post. Duncan can see the finish line and he’s gonna do whatever it takes to get ring No. 5. Shane Battier picks the perfect time to bust out of his shooting slump by knocking down two treys to give Miami a two-point lead, 18-16.

SECOND QUARTER

Spurs continue to dare LeBron to take the 3-point shot, and he steps into two good looks and knock both down. LeBron is making 29% of his 3-point shooters in these playoffs and the Spurs will gladly give up a a few to prevent James from driving to the basket. Bosh picks up his third foul, sending him to the bench. This is actually a good thing for Miami because Birdman Andersen is playing with more energy and giving the Spurs fits on the glass. Dwyane Wade gets going late, knocking down midrange jumpers and hitting a jump hook over Danny Green. Wade’s little burst and his late jumper from the wing gives a Heat a two-point lead heading into the locker room, 46-44.

THIRD QUARTER

Danny Green misses eight straight shots and throws the ball away on a fastbreak. The hottest guy in The Finals has turned ice cold and looks very shaky. Even if the Spurs win the championship Green lost his opportunity to win the MVP. Mike Miller also is cold from the outside and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra may have to turn to Battier, who is 3-for-3 at this point. Tony Parker doesn’t have his legs yet. He’s only 3-for-8 from the field and the hamstring could be tightening up. LeBron makes his fifth 3-point shot of the game, making the Spurs pay and giving the Heat a five-point lead. That lead lastly just seconds after Leonard and Boris Diaw make back-to-back baskets and Duncan scores inside. No matter how much James pushes the Heat, the Spurs just keeps coming. Leonard already had double-digit rebounds and his activity on both ends is keeping the Spurs in the game. It’s the individual brilliance of LeBron vs. the team execution of the Spurs. This sets up a classic fourth quarter. Big-game Mario Chalmers’ buzzer beater gives the Heat a one-point lead, 72-71.

FOURTH QUARTER

Battier kicks off the quarter with a corner three. His fifth of the game without a miss. Spoelstra decides to play Wade and James to start the quarter instead of sitting one of them. Rolling the dice both would have enough to finish the game. Bosh has been a complete no-show and remains scoreless. Spo rolling with Birdman instead of Bosh. With seven minutes left, Heat clinging to a four-point lead and a clear path foul has been reversed. Big break for the Spurs. Manu Ginobili costs Spurs two possessions with two unforced turnovers. The pressure is mounting for the Spurs. Wade and James both bury midrange jumpers to put the Heat ahead by six. Spurs can’t afford to fall behind further, so Gregg Popovich smartly calls timeout with five minutes to go. Bosh picks up his fifth foul and Duncan’s bank shot. His free throw makes it 88-85 with 3:06 remaining in the season. Duncan showing his grit and heart, pushing his 37-year-old body to the finish line. Leonard’s 3-point cuts the Heat lead to 90-88 with under two minutes to play. Leonard has come up huge in Game 7 and has been the Spurs best player along with Duncan. Both teams showing a lot of mental toughness, pushing through fatigue and the enormous moment of Game 7. Spurs had two chances to tie or take the lead late but Leonard misses a three and Duncan’s running hook in the paint over Battier bounces out and misses the tip-in as well. As he ran down the court Duncan pounds the floor in disgust. He knew he missed a golden opportunity. Heat holds 90-88 lead with 39 seconds left. During timeout Spo calls for James and Chalmers pick-and-roll — their best play of the series — and it results in a great look for James and he knocks down a clutch basket. Heat up 92-88 with 27 seconds left. Pop’s turn to draw up a winning play. Inexplicably, Pop sits Parker for the next possession and puts the ball in the hands of Ginobili, who lets him down by throwing the ball right to James. That’s why you never leave your feet on a pass. Fundamental basketball. Why would Pop not have Parker in for that play? That’s a head-scratcher. Spurs don’t score another point. Miami Heat repeat as NBA champs with a 95-88 victory.

The final day of the NBA season came down to two plays involving the two best players in the series. Duncan missed a short, point-blank shot in the paint while LeBron buries a midrange jumper from the wing for a four-point swing. The series was that close. Two superstars had their hands on the ball with the game on the line. One missed. One made it. LeBron James takes home his second consecutive Finals MVP and validates his standing as the best player in the world.

Ray Allen’s 3-point shot from the corner with 5.2 seconds left sends the game into overtime.

Ray Allen expects to make every shot. That’s the mentality of one of the greatest 3-point shooters in NBA history.

When Allen got the ball with seven seconds left and Miami down by three to San Antonio in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, the basketball gods must have been smiling on the Heat because they couldn’t have picked a better player to take the most important shot of the season.

”If there’s one guy that you want the ball to be swung to on a situation like that it’s Walter Ray Allen,” Heat forward Shane Battier said. ”After years of doing that to us, it was great to be on the right side of that for once.”

After LeBron James missed his 3-point shot, Chris Bosh grabbed the rebound and quickly kicked the ball out to Allen. He calmly backed up behind the line and confidently swished the game-tying, season-saving trey with 5.2 seconds left, sending the game into overtime.

“When I saw [Chris Bosh] get the ball, I just backpedaled right to the 3-point line and I was hoping I was where I needed to be,” Allen said. “But I wasn’t quite sure where I need to be, but just from years of shooting I got to my spot.”

Allen’s shot didn’t win the game but it will go down in Finals history as one of the greatest. It certainly gave the Heat a second life and, at the same time, sucked the life out of the Spurs — who held a five-point lead with 28 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Miami went on to win in overtime 103-100 to set up a monumental Game 7.

“It’s gonna be a shot that I’ll remember for a long time,” said Allen, who holds the NBA record for most 3-pointers made in a career. “There’s a lot of shots that I’ve made in my career,” Allen said. ”But this will go, you know, high up in the ranks, because of the situation. Just from the way that last minute and a half unfolded it wasn’t looking good for us.”

The Spurs have to be kicking themselves after Tuesday night. They had the championship in the bag if they just made one more free throw and grabbed one more rebound. But, as Allen said, luck was shining on the Heat’s side.

“Bad. Very bad,” said Spurs guard Manu Ginobili, who had a rough shooting game and had eight turnovers. ”It’s a tough moment. We were a few seconds away from winning the championship and we let it go.”

Allen said the shot itself wasn’t all that difficult because he had done it a thousand times during games and in practice.

“It’s tough but believe it or not I work on it quite often,” he said. “I try to put my body in peculiar situations coming from different parts on the floor, different angles. It wasn’t unfamiliar to me. When it went in I was ecstatic, but at the same time I was expecting to make it.”

Erik Spoelstra deserves credit for Miami’s success. (GETTY IMAGES)

Gregg Popovich is old enough to be Erik Spoelstra’s dad. If the 2013 NBA Finals came down to experience and guile, Popovich would win hands down if you put a wager on basketball. You can bet US fans will pick Pop in a heartbeat.

Popovich, 64, is the Garry Kasparov of coaches. He may be old but has never lost a championship match. He has coached in more than 1,300 games won more than 900. Meanwhile, the 42-year-old Spoelstra — who has 260 wins in his NBA coaching career — is the young master who, even though he has a title under his belt, still feels like he has to prove himself on the big stage.

So, having said that, when Spoelstra threw the first haymaker of The Finals, Popovich surprisingly flinched.

After watching his team get demolished by 36 points in Game 3, Spo felt he needed a game-changer to re-ignite his team and cool down the red-hot Spurs. He started sharpshooter Mike Miller in Game 4 instead of defensive-minded forward Udonis Haslem, and benched center Chris “Birdman” Andersen in favor of forward Shane Battier.

The adjustments were made out of necessity, Spoelstra said. The Heat had been struggling to unlock the Spurs zone defense, so by having Miller in the starting lineup the floor is spread and allows LeBron James and Dwyane Wade more room to operate in the paint. And having Battier in the mix makes the Heat quicker and more sound on their defensive rotations, which is crucial in stopping the Spurs’ ball movement.

The Heat have been playing “small ball” all season, so the move was not completely out of character for them. However, it forced the Spurs to make a decision: stay big or go small? We got the answer 47 seconds into Game 4.

Tim Duncan was matched up with Chris Bosh, Kawhi Leonard was on James, Tony Parker on Mario Chalmers, and Danny Green on Miller. That left 6-10 center Tiago Splitter on Wade. ABC TV analyst Jeff Van Gundy immediately pointed out this mismatch and said Wade should feel disrespected by having Splitter on him. “He should be thinking ‘I’m gonna score 40,’ ” Van Gundy said.

On Miami’s first possession, Wade threw Splitter off balance with a hard pump fake and drew a two-shot foul. Pop had seen enough. He summoned Gary Neal off the bench and in for Splitter at the 11:13 mark of the first quarter. Miller didn’t score a point in Game 4, but his mere presence to start the game shook up the series and got the Heat into their comfort zone.

“We just think it’s important for us right now. That’s why I did it,” said Spoelstra, who doesn’t get enough recognition for being one of the best coaches in the game.

“The score didn’t indicate on how we want to play. We were down 10, but the most important thing was getting to our game, and this matchup was the best decision for it. It allows us to get to a game where we’re familiar with and confident with.”

Spo doesn’t like to call his recent adjustment as part of a chess match between himself and Grandmaster Pop. Instead, he referred to it as a trigger to “competitive skirmishes.”

“It’s part of playoff basketball,” Spoelstra said. “The most important thing is to understand you’re not playing chess. It’s a basketball game. Can you win the competitive skirmishes in the game? That’s the most important thing for us. But you do have to make adjustments. Playing against the same team and playing the same way won’t always work.”

Spo’s bold move fueled an unusually shaky reaction from the normally unflappable Popovich. He went away from the Spurs big lineup the rest of the game and even inserted out-of-shape and little-used forward Boris Diaw in the starting lineup in the second half of Game 4. And to make matters worse, Pop had Diaw guard Wade. No wonder Wade scored 32 points and shot 14-for-25 from the field.

When Popovich was asked what adjustments he’ll make for the next game he told Palm Beach Post writer Ethan Skolnick, “I hate to be trite, anything is possible. But your question demands my triteness.”

The chess match continues.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

Manu Ginobili is a three-time NBA champion. (GETTY IMAGES)

When Manu Ginobili ever decides to retire from the NBA, he’ll go down in basketball history as one of the greatest to play the game. He’s a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer who belongs on the Mt. Rushmore of international players who changed the NBA landscape, a short list that includes Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol, and Tony Parker.

Ginobili is arguably one of the most popular players in the world, and only Pope Francis is more popular in his native country of Argentina. And even that is debatable.

But even the pope has some bad days, and Ginobili is a bit out of sync in the 2013 NBA Finals.

After a 13-point performance in Game 1, Ginobili has scored just 17 points in the last three games. He was 2-for-6 (five points) in Game 2, 3-for-7 (seven points) in Game 3, and 1-for-5 (five points) in Game 4. He also hasn’t hit a 3-point shot since Game 2.

So what’s wrong with Ginobili?

“If I knew I would have fixed it by now,” said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.

Ginobili credits the Miami Heat’s aggressive defense as part of the reason for his struggles, but age and playoff mileage may be creeping up on him, too.

“Father Time is on his back,” TNT and NBA TV analyst Charles Barkley said. “He’s not even looking at the basket. I’ve never seen my man that passive.”

What makes Ginobili so special is his ability to create something out of nothing. He is a master of improvisation. It’s a unique skill only a handful of players in the NBA possess. He has shown flashes of it in the 2013 playoffs.

He did it earlier in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Golden State Warriors, a game that could go down as one of the greatest playoff games in NBA history. Basketball superfan Jimmy Goldstein tweeted: “I have attended more than 4000 NBA games, but I just witnessed one of the greatest games that I have ever seen. #Spurs.”

Ginobili’s clutch 3-pointer from the wing with 1.2 seconds left in double overtime lifted the Spurs to a thrilling 129-127 victory over the Warriors despite 44 points from NBA phenom Stephen Curry.

Prior to his winning play, Ginobili had been 4-for-19 from the field and badly missed his last two 3-pointers. But his confidence never wavered. He’s stubborn enough to think that he can make a play no matter how poorly he’s playing. All the great closers possess this skill. Kobe Bryant has it and Michael Jordan had it.

The game-winning shot came 43.7 seconds after Ginobili took an ill-advised 3 that appeared to cost the Spurs the game.

”I went from wanting to trade him on the spot to wanting to cook breakfast for him tomorrow morning,” Popovich said. ”That’s the truth. When I talk to him and say, ‘Manu,’ he goes, ‘This is what I do.’ That’s what he’s going to tell me. I stopped coaching him a long time ago.”

Popovich doesn’t need to give a rah-rah speech to make the man who introduced the Euro Step to the NBA understand that he needs to play better. Ginobili is a proud individual with a heart of champion, and he always seems to find a way to impact the game.

“I wish I could score more. But it’s not happening. If the shot is not falling, I’ve got to be sharp feeding the bigs and finding the shooters. I don’t have to force the issue,” said Ginobili, who is in the final year of his contract and turns 36 this July. Even though he’d like to play one or two more years, this could be his last ride.

“All season long I kind of knew that I was going to play one or two more years,” he said. “But when you are 36 — I’m going to be 36 pretty soon — everything is a day-by-day basis. Once the season finishes and I see how I feel, I can’t imagine me not playing at least one more year here, but time will tell. We’ll see.”

Tony Parker and Tim Duncan know how important Ginobili is to their title hopes and they’re not about to give up on the man who helped them win championships in 2003, 2005, and 2007.

“He’s very angry at himself, very frustrated with himself,” Duncan said of Ginobili, who joined the Spurs in 2002 after a very successful run with Italian League power Kinder Bologna where he won the Euroleague title in 2001 and named MVP. Prior to Ginobili’s arrival in San Antonio, the Spurs had been bounced out of the playoffs by the L.A. Lakers in 2001 and 2002.

“I have a lot of confidence in Manu,” Parker said. “He came through for us all of these years. I have faith that he’ll have a big game. I trust him because I’ve been playing with him for a long time.”

Make no mistake about it, the Spurs will only go as far as Ginobili takes them. Duncan may be the heart and soul of the Spurs and Parker may be the team’s MVP, but Ginobili is the spark that ignites them to great heights. His value to the team can’t be measured by mere statistics. He is the ultimate X-factor that you can’t account for.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.