Spurs’ Ettore Messina: ‘The underdog has nothing to lose’

In their first-round series against the Warriors, the Spurs have navigated unfamiliar territory: one of the NBA's most revered franchises is big underdogs. Not that interim head coach Ettore Messina is complaining, of course. "I kind of like it," Messina said before Game 5 on Tuesday night. "When you're expected to win or favored to win, it's always more complicated." After snapping its streak of consecutive 50-win seasons at 18, San Antonio was forced to settle for the Western Conference's No. 7 seed and a first-round matchup with Golden State.