And the difference is...

Big Shot Bob. Or maybe it's just Jacque Vaughn. And I'm that sure coaching and experience might have a little something to do with it. Horry used to drive me nuts when he'd drain those dagger threes against teams I was rooting for, but now they've just become a familiar fourth quarter ritual. Yet Vaughn's quiet six points and a nifty assist in a mere eight minutes of PT might also be thought of as the margin of victory...and in many ways represent a much better measure of the real difference between the Spurs and the Nuggets.

Alan Iverson, Carmelo Anthony, and Marcus Camby are three guys around which any coach would be delighted to build a squad. And George Karl has guys who can play around them too: Nene Hilario, Eduardo Najera, J.R. Smith and even little Steve Blake all have game...and I suppose even Linas Kleiza has enough talent to get him a green card. But that's it. The Nuggets rotation goes eight deep...and the shallow end of the bench is hardly deep enough to moisten the heel of a cowboy boot.

The Spurs, on the other hand, have ten solid players who can all contribute on both ends of the floor. It's not just Tim Duncan and Tony Parker; guys like Horry, Bruce Bowen and Manu Ginobili are all superb ballers in their own right, while Brent Barry and Michael Finley are both first round picks who would be starting on a lot of teams, and even the Green Card contingent (Francisco Elson and Fabricio Oberto) play with a lot of spirit and intensity to match their size. I would love to watch a half court pick-up game between Nene, Najera, and Kleiza vs Elson, Oberto, and Ginobili. Although I'm not sure anyone on the planet can really guard Manu one-on-one.

Anyway, great game last night and I FINALLY had a chance to watch from the opening tip to the final buzzer. And in the end, it wasn't so much Bob Horry's final trey as it was better execution and defense by the Spurs when it counted. And yes, the Nuggets will be back. What doesn't kill them only makes them stronger.