David Thorpe’s secret: Crush one quarter

And Golden State’s offense is better than Houston’s

By David Thorpe

This might sound surprising, but for years I’ve had this conviction that an amazing way to win an NBA game is to have one quarter, any quarter, where you blow them out. My philosophy: Do everything possible to win a quarter, big—and don’t give up big quarters.

It might sound obvious or silly, but I’ll tell you what: I’ve tracked this and it works. Twenty-two times this postseason, teams have won at least one quarter by 10 or more points in a game and not lost any of the other three quarters by more than 9. They have won every time. Yep: Win a quarter by double figures; don’t lose one by those numbers; and you win.

Should that be a big part of any playoff team’s strategy? I believe so. How can that play out? If a team is in position to win a quarter by 10 or more, whether it’s got the chance to go up 20 early in a quarter or 10 late, a coach should make the necessary moves for that to happen. Maybe let a star or a starter extend his rotation minutes. Try calling a timeou…