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#3 Three-point shooting
The San Antonio Spurs did not really follow the three-point shooting path that most teams have adopted in the NBA. While it is one thing not to play towards the three-point line, it is different not to hit timely three-pointers.
The Spurs attempted the least three-pointers per game in the entire NBA, at 28.4 per game. Consequently, the Spurs were also last in three-pointers made, at 9.9 per game.
The real issue came from the San Antonio Spurs only hitting 35% of their three-pointers (24th in the NBA).
To top it all up, the San Antonio Spurs allowed their rivals the eighth-highest 3P percentage of the 2020-21 campaign at 37.7%.
#2 The defensive end was an issue for the Spurs
Defensively, the San Antonio Spurs struggled to be consistent, and the team allowed the 12th-most points per game to rivals (112.8). However, their middle-of-the-pack pace helped in that regard.
In terms of Defensive Rating and taking into account a minimum of 100 possessions for each team, the stats were exactly the same. The Spurs were 17th in Defensive Rating with 112.8 points allowed per 100 possessions.
The Spurs were in the bottom 10 in field-goal percentage and 3P percentage allowed to rivals and were also 20th in turnovers forced.
#1 The San Antonio Spurs' offense was not elite
While the San Antonio Spurs' defense was not exactly a shut-down unit, the Spurs' offense was arguably the main reason behind the team's losing record from the 2020-21 campaign.
The Spurs were 21st in Offensive Rating throughout the entire 2020-21 NBA season. The team scored 111 points per 100 possessions, which gave them a negative Net Rating at -1.7 (21st among the 30 NBA teams).
The team's offense was led by DeMar DeRozan, who averaged a decent 21.6 points per game with a 49/25/88 shooting split. DeRozan's own game is based away from the three-point line, and that might have had a lot to do with the Spurs' inefficiencies in offense.
Even though they shot the three-ball poorly, another issue was that the San Antonio Spurs were only 24th in two-point percentage (51.4%).
Also read: Ranking the top 5 NBA Finals from the 21st century
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