The San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder will open their 2014 Western Conference Finals series on Monday at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas.
The top-seeded Spurs will look to make a return trip to the NBA Finals after losing to the Miami Heat last season, but the Thunder are poised to dethrone the reigning Western Conference champions.
The Thunder swept the Spurs in their four regular-season meetings this season, but newly-crowned Most Valuable Player, Kevin Durant, said that they are not taking any chances against the veteran-laden squad.
Durant said that while the Spurs are bannered by ageing stars - Tim Duncan (38), Manu Ginobili (36), Tony Parker (32) - they remain a dangerous team because of their chemistry and Gregg Popovich's expertise.
"Their system, they plug guys in and out," Durant said. "They always stick to their same system. They get guys who fit. And they've got a great coach who gets those guys prepared."
Durant is tipped to have a big series again as he is averaging 31.4 points and 9.5 rebounds, while his main sidekick, Russell Westbrook, who averaged 26.6 points to go along with 8.4 assists and 8.0 rebounds in the first two rounds, is expected to give the Spurs headaches.
However, Durant and Westbrook will have heavier loads on their shoulders as reports indicated that Serge Ibaka might miss the entire series, probably the entire playoffs, due to a calf injury.
Ibaka, who averaged 12.2 points to go along with 7.3 rebounds and 2.2 blocks in 13 playoff games, will be a huge loss for the Thunder, but the Spurs are actually unsure whether or not reports about Ibaka's absence are true.
"I don't really believe it," Parker said. "I'll believe when I see tomorrow he is not on the court. It's hard to believe. We'll see."
But even if Ibaka misses the series, Ginobili said that there is no room for complacency for the Spurs, considering the fact that they were swept by the Thunder during the regular season.
"You never get overconfident in that situation, especially against a team that we haven't beat this year," Ginobili said. "We know how talented they are. They can really score in bunches. Very athletic, strong, play good defense. So, no, we're not going to get overconfident for sure."
