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In a grim article, Buck Harvey quotes a former NBA coach’s game two suggestion:

He recommends to Popovich what most recommend today. At best, use Matt Bonner in a Steve Kerr role; bring him off the bench to shoot a couple of threes in short stretches. Otherwise alternate Drew Gooden and Kurt Thomas, and bang Dirk Nowitzki. That’s been the best way to play Nowitzki. Another thing: Make Nowitzki play defense.

Prior to game one, I had hoped the Spurs would employ this very strategy:

But returning to the question of guarding Nowitzki, there is one more option at the Spurs disposal: attack him on offense. The last time these two teams played one another in the postseason, the Spurs were more limited in terms of frontcourt scoring options. In this series, Hasselhoff can’t vacation while guarding Nazr Mohammed or Rasho Nesterovic. The Spurs should run their offense at Dirk Nowitzki whenever he draws Tim Duncan or Drew Gooden…

Drew Gooden played only 18 minutes on Saturday. I’d like to see that number creep closer to 30. Although it has already been forgotten, the Spurs had the Mavericks beat in the first half of game one. In the second quarter, Dirk Nowitzki drew his 3rd foul with 8:27 remaining. He hit Gooden’s arm on an elbow jumper. By constantly attacking Nowizki, the Spurs have an opportunity to force him onto the bench or into soft, avoid-the-foul defense. Just as importantly, giving Drew Gooden a mandate to attack Nowitzki whenever they match-up is giving Gooden a mandate to score. The Spurs need his scoring. This is the first step. But the Spurs were not beat by Dirk Nowitzki; they were beat by J.J. Barea. In Sunday’s Daily Dime I recapped the game with this simple observation

If the playoffs are about adjustments, Rick Carlisle deserves the game ball for Game 1. To start the second half, Carlisle benched Antoine Wright in favor of J.J. Barea. Barea finished the game with 13 points and a game-high plus/minus of plus-17. During a crucial five-minute stretch in the fourth quarter, Barea assisted or scored on 12 of 16 Dallas points. And those other four points? They were Erick Dampier tips off missed J.J. Barea layups. Barea’s penetration won the game for the Mavericks.

The key to this series is slowing the attack of Dallas’ backcourt. My conviction on this point rose to new levels on Saturday. Barea’s strong play sounded one alarm, and Tim Duncan’s legs sounded another. Tim Duncan’s statline looks fine and all, notching 27 points and 9 boards. But he looked a step slow to me, which we should expect from a man nursing injury. That coach quoted above sees it the same way, “Tim Duncan scored Saturday night, but he’s not right. He couldn’t defend the rim, and he couldn’t take Erick Dampier off the dribble.” Unfortunate, but true. What does this have to do with Dallas’ backcourt?

If Tim Duncan is not able to rotate and protect with his usual First Team All-NBA defense, the Spurs are in trouble. The little guys need to help their all-world big by clamping down on the perimeter. And Gregg Popovich needs to give Tim Duncan support by swallowing his vet-first prerogatives and playing George Hill. Our readers may think I’m beating a dead horse, but I’ll remind you that Pop made the same mistake in 2006. Back then, he inexplicably favored Nick No Longer Quick Van Exel over Beno Udrih. That decision was death.

In a post from earlier this morning, LJ Ellis takes the same tact. In addition to Hill’s defense, Ellis says Hill is an obvious game two adjustment because of his rebounding ability and the rest he would provide Tony Parker. Parker will have to shoulder the scoring burden this postseason, so saving him for the 4th quarter only makes sense. There is also the issue of providing the young point guard with valuable training. Give the kid playoff minutes. Let him develop.

This last observation is informed by an assumption that I want to take up. Some Spurs fans-I’m writing in generalities here-would rather the Spurs exit the postseason quickly-with dignity, but quickly. This sentiment is motivated by a few overlapping concerns. One view sees a quick out as a clear signal to management that it’s time for a massive overhaul. Another view wants to see Duncan and Parker (who has committed to the French National Team and will have long summers going forward) get an early break for once. Tim Duncan could use the rest, they say. The last sentiment, which is more related to Ellis’ point, is that the Spurs are not winning a championship this season. The best they can hope for is to lay foundation for next season. Giving George Hill minutes is a good step in that direction.

I’m not in the camp that would prefer the Spurs to lose posthaste. For one, I understand that Peter Holt has short pockets, is in a small market, and could use the playoff revenue. Those are three large dots. Connect away. I’m also not convinced all hope is lost. Other teams can succumb to injuries too. The Spurs could finally catch that late season fire which eluded them this year. But more than these things, there is the question of achievement. If the Spurs can push this injury-riddled squad deep into the postseason, I’ll tout each advance in the throes of a proud delirium. It’s not the same as winning a championship, but a “Do you remember when…” postseason push will punctuate Spurs history with the same lively bar stool banter that trophies provide.

But I do agree that giving Hill and Gooden minutes makes sense in terms of the next championship, which could come in 09/10. In this case, these decisions are supported by the needs of present circumstance. Drew Gooden would trouble Dirk Nowitzki and provide scoring. George Hill would pester the penetration of Dallas’ guards.

We’ll see. I once heard a man say that there is sometimes a deeper right than being right. Maybe Pop believes this too. The right thing is to play Drew Gooden and George Hill. But perhaps Pop knows more than we do, and there is a deeper right in letting his veteran officers go down with the ship. Robert Horry’s last game with the Spurs was an unhappy one. He left the floor, after the final game of his NBA career, in another unwinnable without Ginobili series, without having broke a sweat. He deserved better. Maybe Pop doesn’t want to send this season’s Horrys off in the same way.