Heat seeks alternative to alternating wins and losses in NBA Finals

SAN ANTONIO — Four NBA Finals games, three blowouts, two re-energized Miami stars and one acerbic San Antonio coach.

Other than that, these Finals are as hard to pin down as any, the loser continually coming back to win the next game by a double-digit margin and throwing open the latest case of “Team A Is in a Gigantic Heap of Trouble,” followed up the next game by “Team B Is in a Gigantic Heap of Trouble.”

It’s the series nobody can figure out, and it’s splendid that way. No one has a clue who will win the tiebreaking Game 5 Sunday in San Antonio before the series shifts back to Miami for good.

Amid the hypotheses and injury reports came at least one truism Saturday, courtesy of Spurs forward Tim Duncan.

“It is a must win,” he said. “Huge pressure if we have to go back there and try to win two.”

Despite the resurgence of Dwyane Wade (32 points, six steals in Game 4) and the bounce-back effort of LeBron James (33 points), the basketball trends favor San Antonio.

The Spurs haven’t lost two in a row in almost two months, dropping a pair to Golden State and Minnesota to end the regular season. They’ve since gone 14-4.

Plus, Miami hasn’t won two consecutive games in almost four weeks, a strange sequence for a team that won 27 in a row earlier this season.

Setting aside Duncan’s must-win analysis, it’s often tough to decipher the Spurs.

Coach Gregg Popovich was his usual tight-lipped self Saturday, even surly as he fenced with reporters like only Phil Jackson could do before leaving the league two years ago.

Asked whether he would consider a lineup change for Game 5, Popovich said, “I’d hate to be trite and say anything is possible. Your question demands my triteness.”

After a query about Tony Parker’s sore right hamstring and Manu Ginobili’s struggles this series: “I’m not worried about anything that you just mentioned.”

And in the super-condensed category, was he surprised Miami started Mike Miller in Game 4? “No.”

Finally, he interrupted a reporter who tried to ask how the NBA had evolved since Duncan and David Robinson won San Antonio’s first championship in 1999.

“You’re not serious. You want me to talk about the state of the NBA?” Popovich said derisively.

When the reporter continued, Popovich interrupted again. “I only care about what’s going on right now in this series. I’m not concerned about trends in the NBA,” he said.

His Q&A; session ended after that.

It’s pretty obvious what the Spurs must do — get more from Manu Ginobili (7.5-point average, 34.5% shooting in the Finals) and commit fewer turnovers (18 in their Game 4 loss, 16 in their Game 2 loss).

The Miami side offered some analysis, including a mild rebuke when reminded of the Heat’s recent inability to win consecutive games.

“It’s not as if we have never won two in a row,” Coach Erik Spoelstra said.

And this from the relatively entertaining Wade: “No excuse why. It just hasn’t happened. But if we don’t do two, we won’t win a championship. I wasn’t that smart in school but I do know that. The numbers don’t add up.”

Miami’s strategy is simple — get the same production from Wade, James and Chris Bosh that led to the easy Game 4 victory, the trio combining for 85 points, 30 rebounds, 10 steals, nine assists and five blocked shots with only two turnovers. Oh, and they shot 58%.

“It’s been a while since we all had performances like that,” Wade said.

If it happens again, Miami, not San Antonio, will win Game 5.

“I think we’re well overdue when it’s time for us to win consecutive games,” James said. “I think we’re at 11 or 12 straight consecutive win-loss, win-loss, win-loss. I think it’s time. Enough is enough for our team.”

Etc.

Parker said his strained right hamstring felt better and he hoped to be 100% for Game 5. . . . Duncan, getting in touch with his inner Popovich, was asked to recall his thoughts when Miami’s Big Three formed two summers ago: “No.”

mike.bresnahan@latimes.com

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