On the other side of the bracket from the Golden State Warriors, a tough series between the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder will decide who the Warriors have to take down to make it to the Finals for the second straight year. The Spurs this year have been historically good defensively, boasting an all-time net rating of 11.8.
They smothered teams all year, a morphing mass of switches, directionally forced-drive defense, and on-ball harassment. They looked like the easy pick for the Conference Finals against the Warriors.
Now, the Thunder have pushed them to the brink of a six-game elimination on the back of solid performances from Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, as well as key contributions from guys like Enes Kanter.