Tony Parker had 17 points and 5 assists in the first quarter as San Antonio took an 18 point lead. Durant provided the Thunder with a momentum swinging jolt by knocking down a buzzer beating, contested 3-pointer at the end of the half to cut the Spurs' lead to 18. The Thunder dominated the second half, outscoring the Spurs 59-36 and playing frenetic defense. OKC refused to back down or accept that it would have to return to San Antonio for a game 7.
With the win the Thunder moved one step closer to completing the journey from NBA doormat to champion. General manager Sam Presti deserves much credit for building a team that has become the envy of most of the league. After drafting Durant 2nd overall in the 2007 NBA draft, and selecting Westbrook 4th overall in 2008, the Thunder began the 2008-09 season, the franchise's first in Oklahoma City, with a 3-29 record. From that point on the team has rapidly progressed into a title contender and one of the league's most respected organizations. The Thunder made the playoffs the following year before bowing out to the Lakers in the first round, reached the Conference Finals last season where the team was defeated by the Mavericks, and now has earned the right to play on basketball's biggest stage, the NBA finals. Kevin Durant's selflessness and unique nature for a superstar has allowed the Thunder to blossom into an NBA title contender well ahead of schedule, despite being such a young team. Durant and Westbrook are only 23 years old and James Harden and Serge Ibaka are each 22, yet the team plays with maturity and a singleminded pursuit of victory. Because Durant values winning much more highly than individual accolades and statistics, his teammates love and respect him, and have adopted his team first mindset. Oklahoma City has put together a special group of elite young talents who play together unselfishly, and has finally broken through to what the organization hopes will be the first of many trips to the NBA finals.
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