Sure, in Game 4, the Rockets may have gone small anyway just to change things up and that would have eaten into Nene's minutes, but not having him available at all is a very big issue.
With the series now going back to San Antonio all tied up at two games a piece, Game 5 has become crucial in deciding who will eventually win the series.
From James Harden on down, the Rockets emphasized the importance of having a pedal-to-the-medal mentality from here on out.
Back-court duo Bradley Beal (29 points) and John Wall (27 points, 12 assists) outplayed their opposites, with Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley mustering just 24 points and six assists between them.
Oh yeah, they made more shots. Kawhi Leonard can not be expected to guard every shooter and provide a majority of the Spurs offense, so the rest of the team will need to communicate in order to slow down the Rockets.
The Spurs managed two runs in the second to draw close, using a 15-4 burst paced by Leonard and Pau Gasol to cut the margin to 41-37 at the 6:41 mark.
Even with a heavy heart and completely abnormal emotional circumstances, Beverley was able to go out and give the Rockets a "normal" Pat Beverley game - 10 points, 6 assists, a few offensive rebounds, great defense. They were a plus 36 on points from three range, the Spurs only hit seven.
"I've been playing for 15 years at that kind of level and that kind of intensity because I take care of myself", he said.
The Rockets are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 Conference Semifinals games, 4-12 ATS in their last 16 games playing on 1 days rest and 5-13 ATS in their last 18 games overall.
Hernandez lawyer asks court to erase conviction
Prosecutors have argued that dismissing his murder conviction would reward his decision to take his own life. In a suicide note Hernandez left for his fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez, he wrote, " You're rich ".
Ariza on Houston's role players stepping up on Sunday night: "In our offense, we need everybody to be aggressive".
Teammate and good friend Ryan Anderson, who dealt with the suicide of his girlfriend, reality TV star Gia Allemand, in 2013, spoke about Beverley's perseverance.
While Spurs fans love to see Tony Parker on the court there comes a time to be realistic. But Anderson said that the Spurs' defensive strategy, with guard Danny Green on him, should open spacing valuable in the Rockets offense.
Reserve guard Jonathon Simmons tallied a team-high 17 points for the Spurs in Game 4 while forwards Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge scored 16 apiece and reserve guard Patty Mills added 10 points for San Antonio, which never led in the game.
22 points on 6/9 3PT shooting. I'm going to keep my faith and, of course, I'm going to be there for my family. You just have to try to control the ball more, control the drives to the basket, have weakside rotation. "But you know, anyone who has had grandparents, mothers, whatever to have them taken away from you is super, super hard". I need 3s to live.
He could just move Montrezl Harrell into the rotation, as he did when Nene or Clint Capela were unavailable in the regular season.
"He's a big part of what we do", Harden said. "(He's) one of the leaders of our team. D'Antoni opted to pull Anderson from the starting lineup in the second half, replacing him with Eric Gordon to go with a three-guard look.
The Houston Rockets announced Monday that reserve center Nene will miss the remainder of the National Basketball Association playoffs with a torn left adductor.
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