Monday, May 3rd, 2010...9:14 am
Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns look to make the San Antonio Spurs a rival at last
“For you, the day Bison graced your village was the most important day of your life. But for me…it was Tuesday.”
—Street Fighter: The Movie
And so renews the most heated one-sided matchup in recent NBA history. The San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns are an interesting story to tell, depending on who tells it. You see, in Phoenix the ghosts of Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich haunt the desert nights, riding in every spring to torment the locals.
In Phoenix, those hated men in black are the source of a thousand wrongs upon which vengeance is sworn. For the Phoenix Suns and their fans every significant moment of their playoff lives inevitably leads back to the San Antonio Spurs.
Bruce Bowen’s greatest hits. The bloody nose. Robert Horry checking Steve Nash into the scorer’s table. And just to be a little more villainous, the Tim Duncan three-pointer. Each of these moments, and so many more, are ingrained into the hearts and memories of every single Phoenix Suns fan.
For the San Antonio Spurs…it was just Tuesday.
The Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs? Now that’s a rivalry. Each team has eliminated the other, and each has played the game on the grandest possible stage. For the past decade, the Suns have been just some random team. Having exorcised a few playoff demons by eliminating one of their two bitter rivals, the Spurs move west along I-10 hoping to face the second.
In the interim, the most important question is whether the Phoenix Suns will again be merely a playoff speed bump, or will they rise up and finally be the rivals they and their fan base fancy themselves?
Having returned to their “seven seconds or less” ways under head coach Alvin Gentry, the Phoenix Suns seem to have finally settled on an appropriate balance of offense and defense (apparently with an assist from Jason Terry). The San Antonio Spurs, meanwhile, have opened up and diversified their offensive attack.
Tim Duncan’s forays into the post now buttress the offense created by the three-headed backcourt of Manu Ginobili, George Hill and Tony Parker, rather than creating them. The defense has slipped some. And while stylistically the two teams remain different, they are no longer on completely opposite sides of the spectrum. But does that mean the gap has closed?
Point Guard: MVP vs. MIP, George Hill hopes to contain Steve Nash
In Dallas, the Spurs faced a franchise player in Dirk Nowitzki who was brilliant offensively but lacked any defensive chops. Unfortunately between Antonio McDyess, DeJuan Blair and Matt Bonner,San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich did not have very many options to exploit this fact.
Steve Nash has no such luck. With Popovich tightening the backcourt rotation to various combinations of Manu Ginobili, George Hill and Tony Parker, there is no Bruce Bowen to hide Nash’s defensive liabilities on anymore. But if the Suns are to choose, Nash on Ginobili would be a nightmare and history shows that giving him prolonged minutes on Tony Parker is a bad idea.
Chances are Alvin Gentry starts with Nash on George Hill, who was key in closing out the Mavericks but still relies primarily on spot up jumpers and transition baskets for offense. And score Hill must, because Steve Nash is not Jason Kidd.
There will be no shutting down the two-time MVP. The most Hill can hope to do is offset his production. In the past, Popovich’s final gambit was to put Bruce Bowen on Nash for each of the closing acts. For all his defensive strengths, perhaps the most underrated was Bowen’s ability to fight through screens. Because of this, the Suns struggled to generate mismatches as the Spurs rarely had to switch. Will Hill be able to recreate this, or will we see him left on Amare while Duncan or McDyess are left at Nash’s mercy?
It might be odd to call Nash a good athlete, but his athleticism is underrated because he is not what we would consider explosive. Instead his game has a certain level of fluidity and dexterity that few athletes can compare to. It will be important for Hill and the Spurs to force Nash to initiate the offense from a stop, where his lack of explosion can be a weakness. Fighting through screens would also help, as a help defender taking one step too many in the wrong direction generally leads to a Stoudemire dunk.
Shooting Guard: The Argentinian vs. the Acrobat, with no Raja Bell, who stops Ginobili
Jason Richardson is a newer addition to the Spurs-Suns history but has already been introduced to the so-called curse of the Spurs, having blown a wide open dunk to cost the Suns a game. A game that, without a victory, leaves the Spurs playing the Lakers in the first round.
Richardson came up big in the first round, averaging 23.5 ppg on 53 percent shooting, hitting over 50 percent from the three-point line. Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith once called Richardson the most “unathletic athlete” in the NBA, which is an appropriate description because while he is a great leaper, he does not move well laterally or change directions smoothly. It will be interesting to see how Richardson responds when the Spurs chase him off the three-point line while denying those straight lines towards the rim.
Manu Ginobili will be key in this series and will likely see Grant Hill and Jared Dudley on him throughout the series. With all due respect, if Ginobili is right following his broken nose, there has not been a better player since March and neither should be able to guard them. Dallas began to load up their defense to stop his penetration, leaving role players like McDyess or Hill free to do their damage. With Ginobili it becomes pick your poison, and he supplies all different kinds.
Small Forward: Richard Jefferson squares off against Grant Hill, the Suns medical staff.
Because games with the Phoenix Suns tend to become fast paced, something the Spurs have even had trouble containing in the past, this series should play right into Richard Jefferson’s hands. Breathtaking straight line speed and an explosive leaper, Jefferson struggles in the half court pick and roll sets the Spurs like to run, though he was much improved in the Dallas series. Look for Jefferson to get involved early before giving way to the Spurs three-guard lineup.
The other Hill, Grant, has been taped together by the Suns medical staff and provides the Suns with another facilitator on the court. While a good midrange shooter, Hill does not possess great range on his jump shot. And so when paired with Jarron Collins in the starting lineup, the Spurs have far fewer distances to rotate out to.
Power Forward: From Nowitzki to Stoudemire, no rest for Antonio McDyess
With each passing series pundits claim this will be the year Stoudemire replaces Duncan as the preeminent “power forward” in the Western Conference. And with Duncan on the wrong side of 30, if they say it enough eventually they will be right. But is this the year?
It’s a difficult comparison because the two will rarely, if ever, guard each other. Instead Stoudemire will have to be concerned with Antonio McDyess, who can still hit the offensive boards, make midrange jumpers and move his feet.
Amare Stoudemire has been a matchup nightmare of the Spurs because they stubbornly leave him with single coverage for most of the game. In the past, that’s meant Fabricio Oberto or Matt Bonner seeing extended minutes on him, but McDyess offers a far better defender.
But as easy as it is to focus on the offensive strengths here, the key is defense. As much as he has been able to get his points against the Spurs, he has offset his production with horrible defense. For all the blame Suns fans heaped on Steve Kerr for trading Shawn Marion, it was just as much Stoudemire’s fault.
Had he shown even the slightest inclination to be a defensive anchor, the Suns would not have had to traded for Shaq. Which is a shame, because all the physical tools are there. For all the criticism Nash receives for his defense, guarding the pick and roll is all about the help defenders and Stoudemire does his MVP point guard no favors.
Center: Tim Duncan vs. the poor man’s version of Erik Dampier
Until the return of Robin Lopez, and unless he returns at full strength, Tim Duncan will find himself on Jarron Collins with bouts of Channing Frye mixed in. Offensively it will be interesting to see if the Suns send double teams because in the past Duncan has shredded them to pieces. Collins provides everything that Dampier does (namely a large body to absorb fouls), only worse. And as Dirk Nowitzki said, it’s hard to beat the Spurs when they do not have to worry about your center position.
Bench: Tony Parker vs. the Legion of Suns
The Phoenix Suns might actually have the deeper bench in this series, rolling out Jared Dudley, Goran Dragic, Channing Frye and Leandro Barbosa. But the Spurs have the best player, Tony Parker. With Dudley and Hill expected to see most of their time on Ginobili, Parker should find favorable matchups all series. The key to containing Parker then will be how Stoudemire hedges the pick and roll, something that has never been favorable for the Suns.
Bonner offers the same game as Channing Frye, but for some reason is criticized twice as much for his poor defense. Something to watch will be the minutes of DeJuan Blair, as the Suns lack the quality size Dallas had and he could easily be given more burn in the series.
The Prediction
This is the most complete Suns team the San Antonio Spurs have ever faced, though injuries (Nash, Lopez) might play a part. But the formula for success has always been in the Spurs big three and until someone beats them healthy (or until they meet the Lakers) they have to be favored.
Spurs in six. The non-rivalry continues.
72 Comments
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:18 am
I really think one matchup that will be crucial to the series is Nash against Jefferson. I suspect the Suns will put Nash on Jefferson as opposed to Parker, Hill, or Ginobili. If Jefferson can make Nash pay and/or get him in foul trouble it would be huge! If Nash can’t guard Jefferson effectively who will he guard?
http://www.operaforthemasses.com/2010/05/nba-semi-playoff-predictions.html
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:34 am
im a big fan of this article. well written. david g, i dont think nash will defend rj. it would be nice to see that and let rj operate in the post all game but the suns won’t do that. george hill will have to be big for us again this series. nash will get in foul trouble guarding him, hill is too explosive for him. with every game hill is gaining more and more confidence. the key is stopping the 3s. the last games ive seen with the spurs and suns has been the inability to stop nash from finding that open person on our late rotations. should be a great series, GO SPURS GO!
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:40 am
Nice piece and your full prediction at the end is spot-on. One thing I’ve never understodd is the crying about Nash’s bloody nose. His team was trailing in the final minute when he went out. It is foolish to assume that his prescence would’ve guaranteed a Suns score much less that they would’ve stopped the Spurs again with him on the floor. Too many ifs and hopes. Even better is that it was Nash’s fault since he reached in on Tony, no surprise since he’s been unable to guard Tony.
Game 1 is huge for PHX. A loss tonight and it’s the same-old story: Spurs win game 1 in the desert. I’m sure if the Suns win we’ll be overwhelmed with “this year is different” stories, much like Dallas couldn’t be beaten after their game 1 win, but if we come out and take them down tonight it will be over in 6 and perhaps 5. Helping out PHX tonight is Bennett Salvatore, fresh from his game 1 sabatoge of the Spurs in Dallas. Even the league knows the Suns need some assistance.
Go Spurs Go!
May 3rd, 2010 at 10:09 am
bonner offers much less than channing frye. if you dont believe me just look at the numbers. also frye is much more likely to deliver a big performance
May 3rd, 2010 at 10:14 am
While I agree they don’t have anyone to guard Duncan, we don’t have anything to guard Amare. With Collins in, I love our chances. We can definitely crush any Suns team when Collins is in, but when Frye comes in off the bench what then?
Who guards whom? Does Duncan guard Amare or Frye? Do we want Bonner guarding Amare in that scenario? I’m a little worried for this series. I’m just as worried playing the Suns as I was the Mavs. It’s only my fan side saying that the Spurs win in 6, but I have no idea whether or not we will.
There’s some great competition in the playoffs this year. Each of the teams left have the ability to win, while none have been head and shoulders above the others.
Go Spurs!
May 3rd, 2010 at 10:16 am
Totally agree with the premise, it’s not a rivalry until the other team beats you.
The difference in the series is the same difference every time we have met the Suns: at the end of the game who makes the plays to win?
The answer: the Spurs
I think most of the games will be close, but besides Steve Nash, no one else (for PHX) has me shaking in my booties in crunch time.
May 3rd, 2010 at 11:05 am
Nothing I see let’s me think the Suns will take this. Given a healthy series, Spurs take the series in 6, and I think Game 1 tonight belongs to them to start things off right.
May 3rd, 2010 at 11:21 am
I think it’s hilarious that Street Fighter: The Movie was quoted in a Spurs blog
May 3rd, 2010 at 11:33 am
You forget we have beat the suns with Amare getting his points. Make him work for it and shut everyone else down we win.
May 3rd, 2010 at 11:41 am
Eric-I had the same thought. Good quote and all, fit in well with the premise, but…Street Fighter?
Gotta love a little variety, eh?
May 3rd, 2010 at 11:44 am
In similar news, A&M still considers UT a rival.
May 3rd, 2010 at 11:49 am
Steve Nash teams have only won 8 of 31 playoff games against the Spurs, which is pretty shocking. Somehow we always take them down.
I don’t think putting Nash on Jefferson is an answer for them; Jefferson can overwhelm Nash down low, and it forces another mismatch. I think they have to live with Nash on Hill for this series. We will lose the advantage that came from Bowen guarding Nash, but will gain the advantage from Nash having to guard a more complete weapon offensively.
Which seems fine to me, but I don’t like anything that upsets the balance we have established in smacking them around so often.
Everytime we have played them, I have been fearful and then surprised at how calmly they have been sent packing. I am still in the fearful phase now….
May 3rd, 2010 at 12:11 pm
I understand that this Phoenix team is deeper and tougher than the Phoenix teams we’ve met in the playoffs lately, but I just don’t see how this series will be terribly competitive. They don’t have a perimeter stopper anymore now that Bell is gone. It wouldn’t shock me if we got 60+ PPG from our guards alone this series. My call is Spurs in 5.
May 3rd, 2010 at 12:38 pm
I never thought anyone would quote that STREET FIGHTER movie. I loved it.
All I am going to say is I feel good about this series. I feel a lot better than I did before the DALLAS series. IT’s going to be tough, but I love their chances.
ALso, This is the best SUNS TEAM????
What about the team that had NASH/AMARE/DIAW/BELL/and JOE JOHNSON!!!!!!!!
THis team couldn’t get it done. I’m really tired of people blaming the loss on Horry’s hip check, which led to AMARE getting suspended. Did everyone forget how the the SUNS had home court and lost game 1????
Everyone says this is a “new” SUNS team but I honestly don’t see it.
May 3rd, 2010 at 12:39 pm
It gonna be close, that i know. Amare is going to kill us, but just like against the mavs, if we let amare do the scorin and shut the other teammates then we are good to go. Watch out for Jared Dudley, he gonna kill us at the 3 point line. If Manu and parker play great then we win in 6.
May 3rd, 2010 at 12:43 pm
Curtis and VP point to the major issue in this matchup; how the Suns close out play off games. Nash and Amare fade against tough, engrained competitors. Whether it’s Kobe/Lakers or Duncan/Spurs it’s the same outcome.
I’ll put more emphasis on Amare for this. His penchant for trying to “take over games” in the play off’s is selfish and disruptive. How someone with his immense physical gifts does not average at least 3 more rebounds a game and 1 more block a game is beyond me.
Jordan, no one can profess the ability to foresee the future…but we can rely on history to see forward. Given Nash and Amare’s lack of success in the play off’s it is easy to be against them.
It also seems that national media has turned the Suns into this year’s darling pick team.
May 3rd, 2010 at 12:48 pm
“While a good midrange shooter, Hill does not possess great range on his jump shot.”
http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=336
Hmm… 44% from deep seems pretty darn good to me!
Since you seem to love math so much, take a look at Matt Bonner’s season numbers
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=1996
How does 5 percent difference sound -PLUS or MINUS, of course!
streetfighter sucks.
May 3rd, 2010 at 1:00 pm
@Stats-in-heaven, you’d be absolutely right and I’d have jumped on this too, except for one thing: The guy took all of 80 attempts all season. Follow your link and then look up the number of attempts for each of his teammates. You cannot space the floor with three-pointers you don’t take.
He’s 0-4 from behind the line in the playoffs by the way.
May 3rd, 2010 at 1:12 pm
well then, by all accounts, he’s due!
Want another stat? Bonner’s averaging a whopping 3 boards this post-season… Maybe he’ll be the key in tracking down some of those errant Hill-bombs… I wonder if 48MOH gives Red Rocket’s hotel keys out in exchange for this ‘journalism’. Maybe he really plays bigger when it counts?
May 3rd, 2010 at 1:20 pm
http://www.hardwoodparoxysm.com/2010/04/30/nba-hd-offensive-orientation-and-re-estimating-orr/
May 3rd, 2010 at 1:51 pm
As much as we have dominated this matchup, it is not just Tuesday. Everytime we play the Suns, I clear my schedule, because we are going to get their best shot and they ours, the Suns to redeem themselves, and the Spurs because they smell blood in the waters. It is unique, and doesn’t have the deep-rooted resentment of being knocked out from the Spurs end, but lets not kid ourselves: This is more than Tuesday, or even Monday.
May 3rd, 2010 at 2:00 pm
@juniorizzie - The Suns never had Diaw, Bell, and Johnson at the same time. Diaw and Bell came in the year Johnson left.
The original Suns team of the Nash/Stoudamire era was Nash/Johnson/Richardson/Marion/Stoudamire with basically Voskuhl and Barbosa off the bench. That was the year a Mav broke Joe Johnson’s face.
The next iteration was Nash/Bell/Richardson/Marion/Stoudamire - though Stoudamire fractured his knee and missed the entire season, so really it was Nash/Bell/Diaw/Marion/Kurt Thomas (Richardson was also injured I believe). This was the year the Mavericks beat them.
May 3rd, 2010 at 2:28 pm
The Spurs have always had the Suns’ number. That will come into play if the Suns lose game one, or even if they fall behind but double digits.
Also the Spurs just beat the Mavs, whom were a tough opponent. That has to be a great confidence builder for them. Whereas the Suns beat an injury depleted Portland team. No Oden, no Pryzbilla (sp?) , and Roy coming back from and injury in the middle of the series. That was a gimme series and lets not kid ourselves, Andre Miller is no Tony Parker or Manu Ginobili. I don’t expect Grant Hill to phase either of them a bit.
May 3rd, 2010 at 3:06 pm
If I may quote another movie, Happy Gilmore, “Happy learned to putt, uh oh!” The Suns were undeniably the most talented team offensively without a doubt and no one can argue against that. Now that they have put attention on their defense, there is no amount of flopping (Ginosebleed) or whining (Duncan’t) to stop them from moving past this temporary road block. Suns have improved the major weakness, what has San Antonio done…added a clueless roleplayer and an even more questionable veteran? Blair and Hill won’t be enough to help “Nosebleed” carry the team to 4 wins. Suns in 7. Go PHX!!!!
May 3rd, 2010 at 3:11 pm
Well said duaneofly
Add this to a list of reasons why the Suns are going to be the media’s darling pick in the second round.
I’ve now read that Andre Miller comparison to Manu about three times. Grant Hill is a strong competitor, but to compare Andre and Manu as similar is a far stretch.
Kudos regarding the Portland/Mavs comparison’s.
May 3rd, 2010 at 3:25 pm
There are several keys to this series that we spent 6 games practicing up on:
1. Game flow: This is even more key to the Suns than with the Mavs. If we can slow this team down (just slow them not stop them) then our chances radically increase.
2. Force the role players to step up. Stat and Nash will be good, just like Dirk, but what about Richardson, Hill, Barbosa, Dudley? We can dismantle a two headed monster, but we will have much more trouble with a three or four headed beast.
3. Turnovers: Lets hope we don’t have anymore 19 TO games. Turnovers=fastbreaks=faster tempo=Spurs loss.
The more some things change, the more they stay the same. Just like 5 years ago, Phoenix still has problems with fast PGs and excellent bigs.
While I agree that this version of the Suns is probably the best one yet, we have to realize that there is much more parity in the Western Conference. A number of WC teams in the past 4-5 years have vastly improved, including Spurs and Suns. Sure our defense has slipped, but with Hill, Blair, McDyess, and Jefferson, the Spurs have an upgraded supporting cast.
Lastly, I wasn’t too impressed with the Suns in their last series. As previously mentioned numerous times, Portland was the WC gimp going into the postseason. I have no doubt that the Spurs would have possibly even swept them. The series winning move for Phoenix was switching Grant Hill onto the “legendary” Andre Miller whose hardly a swift of foot PG. I can assure everyone that such a move will not pay the same dividends against a healthy Parker and his Sith apprentice George Hill.
May 3rd, 2010 at 3:55 pm
I would try to limit Tims Minutes this series.
Run with PHO.
Hill Parker Manu and Blair are great going up and down. Bonner would look better as well since he sucks balls at anything half court.
Player to watch. Richard Jefferson. I think that if we RUN with the Suns we will see Jefferson have a large impact. Playing small and running would give Tim some rest and benefit our Gs
May 3rd, 2010 at 4:42 pm
I read this somewhere… but yeah… Spurs have been the hammer… and the Suns been the nail… Lets hope that we are the Hammer once more.
May 3rd, 2010 at 5:40 pm
Hope to see Parker run the floor here…
but more seriously, The Spurs will beat any team this year.
May 3rd, 2010 at 5:42 pm
Duncan will be a nightmare for the Suns. Other than an injured Loez, all the Suns have in the frontcourt is Amare.
Hopefully Spurs go at Amare from tipoff. Once we get Amare on the bench in foul trouble, Duncan and Blair should be able to make some noise in the paint.
RJ is still the key and will be in each series. Our Big 4, (Yes, I have added G. Hill to the mix) along with an effective RJ will beat Phoenix. As long as the Spurs continue to defend.
Hope to see Hairston in combat gear tonight as well. He could play well on any given night against this team.
Spurs could actually go to the finals this year….Unbelieveable! I for one am guilty of doubting them. I did not think it could be done with this roster…
My hat goes off to the mighty warriors in Silver and Black. One thing is for sure, there is absolutely no quit, NONE, in Ginnobli, Duncan, and Parker.
And No sir-ee-bob,
That does not include Popovich.
May 3rd, 2010 at 5:51 pm
The only reason I would be concerned with Nash covering RJ is because Nash will get a ton of charging calls on RJ. The refs love Nash and he loves to flop. RJ is not very crafty or agile, as opposed to athletic. He gets a head of steam going and Nash is going to go flying unto the floor. The refs ALWAYS give Nash that call.
May 3rd, 2010 at 5:55 pm
Go Spurs Go!!
May 3rd, 2010 at 6:24 pm
agutierrez, refs like to call stoudemire too
May 3rd, 2010 at 6:49 pm
Gary - yes I think TP can breakout here.
HOG- I would like to see as many subs play as we can. Everyone looks better running the layup drill.
I think the key to this series is to use our bench as much as possible.
We will need well rested stars, and reserves who have seen playoff action against the Lakers in the WCFs
Like a rhinestone cowboy motherfuckers.
May 3rd, 2010 at 6:49 pm
GO SPURS GO !!!!
May 3rd, 2010 at 7:10 pm
I have NO idea what the Spurs are doing at the start of this game?! Not going to Duncan on the low block early & often, and settling for jump shots. You’ve got be kidding me! We continue along in this vein and we lose this game. Down 16-7 through 1st 5:30. Pretty dumb! It’s still early, but let’s get it together, soon.
May 3rd, 2010 at 7:21 pm
BALLHOG
May 3rd, 2010 at 5:42 pm
“Spurs could actually go to the finals this year….Unbelieveable! I for one am guilty of doubting them. I did not think it could be done with this roster…”
And so what’s your explanation for the team’s success, with “this roster”? I’m sure it couldn’t have anything to do with Pop. Must be the inferior competition, or something……
May 3rd, 2010 at 7:22 pm
Not a good sign. Mason’s in the game!
May 3rd, 2010 at 7:23 pm
The Suns have lost many memorable series against other teams (Celtics, Bulls, Rockets, and Lakers), but all the beatdowns by San Antonio have stung the most. If Phoenix either remains healthy OR gets Lopez back, they will return the favor this year, and finally close the window of opportunity for Duncan et al. Go Suns.
May 3rd, 2010 at 7:33 pm
Tempo battle lost in the first quarter. Not a good.
May 3rd, 2010 at 7:50 pm
TD has lost it…
Bonner should never see the floor.. STILL
Parker looks good.
We just need to ATTACK the rim. Limit the Js, get layups or foul shots.
May 3rd, 2010 at 7:57 pm
Matt Bonner Under 30% three point shooting in playoffs for career.
There should be a side note beside the percentage though. According to JIM HENDERSON only the makes should count…..
May 3rd, 2010 at 8:07 pm
Only down by 10 with so many things not going our way is game
May 3rd, 2010 at 8:28 pm
let’s fight fire with fire
May 3rd, 2010 at 8:49 pm
I would start keith bogans next game instead of jefferson just to piss him off
May 3rd, 2010 at 8:59 pm
Is Pop conceding a 10 point game at the start of the 4th??
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:00 pm
Popovich threw in the towel to start the 4th qtr! How do I know? Roger Mason was on the floor!!! Talk about quit on the team. I’ll bet Duncan doesn’t play in the 4th qtr.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:02 pm
Seems like the big advantage we had last series in our tight, dependable rotation is taken away by this pace! Mason sucks. I wish he didn’t, but he does.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:04 pm
For the 150th time out of a timeout Popovich runs a play to get Mason an uncontested corner 3 and for the 150th time this season Mason missed it!!
You can’t play Mason and expect to win basketball games!! It can’t be done!
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:04 pm
Mason…why…for the love of sensible shoes why put him on the court…he can’t shoot…he can’t shoot…
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:05 pm
Channing frye just owned tim on D
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:14 pm
Bogans with the most unbelievable draw of a charge haha
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:17 pm
Ok i give in…wtf is pop doing.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:17 pm
Mason with 3:38 left entering the game down 5 pts, are you kidding me?!?!?!?! With Jefferson on the bench??
WHY is Popovich being an idiot?
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:18 pm
Here comes Roger!
Kill me now…
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:18 pm
I have been with you all season long Pop…I am getting ready to put on the life jacket and abandon ship right now however…
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:20 pm
Pop realized his mistake, called timeout, and put Jefferson in.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:23 pm
He must be reading 48minutesofhell on his Iphone.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:25 pm
Too much McDyess/Bonner again.
We need to play small. Insert running bigs and Gs.
Ian/Blair/Temple/Hairston… We cant control the tempo
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:33 pm
I hate to sound angry and I know full well Mason sucked and Bonner was terrible.
But Blair & Hairston is great, Ian is flat out not.
You cannot play Ian in this series he is so horrible on rotations etc, this is the worst time to take a gamble on the defensive end.
That said, i’d rather see Ian on the court than Mason.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:33 pm
Sigh…i’m off to kick someones dog.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:41 pm
I think the Spurs best unit was Parker, Ginobili, Jefferson, Duncan, and McDyess. That unit was went from 10+ down to up 3. It doesn’t make sense why that unit didn’t play more.
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:47 pm
Serious question: Does anyone remember the last time Mason made a shot in?
May 3rd, 2010 at 9:50 pm
If Duncan is not going to score in the post, in the halfcourt offense, the Spurs are toast. Duncan was atrocious guarded by Collins and Frye and he scored what 2 baskets? I know for a fact that 6 of his baskets came via pick and roll and running the break. Duncan has got to step it up or the Spurs are done.
Also in NO game this year have the Spurs held the Suns under 110 pts. The Spurs need to be more effective offensively.
May 3rd, 2010 at 10:17 pm
G1 not totally undeservedly lost!!
Parker, Ginobili, Jefferson, Duncan, and McDyess. Our best unit and Bogans in the 4th!!
Pop came, saw ,understood and we are stealing G2
But we have just have to get more consequently effective in our offense to surely beat them and win this series.
May 3rd, 2010 at 10:18 pm
“does anyone remember the last time Mason made a shot”
I was just thinking that myself Andrew - the guy is done, cooked. Get him back to the D League.
May 3rd, 2010 at 10:34 pm
so spurs are going to sweep the suns now (or win 4 of next 5) after losing game 1? the suns won despite playing 5 on 6 (the refs being the spurs 6th player on the court as usual). now anyone watching game one knows what the suns are up aganist, and i can honestly say the only thing i was surprised at was not all the terrible calls by the pop puppets aka the refs, it was how poorly the spurs shot the ball and how much they didn’t seem to care. they looked listless. even the expected complaining to the officials was less vehement that what we are used to. popavich barley showed any type of emotion. he should join the world series of poker, seriously, nobody would ever know what cards he had. maybe he just picked up a bad burrito from one of the local taco peddleing street vendors that the good sheriff over here missed, and was just trying to hold it all in both figurativly, and literaly. and you all in sa must really be bored with only the spurs in town to watch/ cheer for. now tell me, do you guys ever get tired of the silver and black whining to the refs, or is that your favorite part of the show?
May 3rd, 2010 at 10:44 pm
Lose tempo battle, shoot 22% from three, RJ AND Hill in single digits, in Phoenix, and 9 out of 10 times you’ll lose. Need to regroup and take game two, just like we did in Dallas.
Must come out more aggressive & intense at both ends, crash the boards (get Blair more burn inside the paint), SLOW the pace down, and DO NOT PLAY Mason, at ALL.
May 4th, 2010 at 3:13 am
I would have loved to see them post Blair up considering how little post D they had to offer, really not happy on seeing any Romaju at all.
May 4th, 2010 at 9:03 am
good lord! great street fighter quote!!! you guys are awsome.
how about this one
“I AM THE POSTMAN, AND YOUR ASS IS OVERDUE!!!”
“GET OUT FROM BEHIND THE CURTAIN, WIZZARD!”
keep in mind these quotes must be said with a poor belgian accent
May 4th, 2010 at 2:49 pm
wow welcome to the big leauges san antonio. someone should give the geriatric spurs some viagra so maybe they can get up next game and actually play. the only time they even had a chance was when the suns got complacent and bored cause they had such a nice lead. popovich looks like he has aids. ginoblis nose almost poked me in the eye through the tv and Tim duncan is the missing link , one of his parents was definently a monkey. Amare played like shit and still got point and rebouns even though he played with a lack of energy. the spurs will only beat the suns if the suns beat themselves by not showing up and playing their best basketball. the other x factor is the referees who love to suck the spurs off especially in san antonio. In the end the spurs are the most boring team in the NBA and it makes for way better basketball if the suns move on. I cant wait for the suns to wrap this series up so we can beat the lakers in the western conference finals.
May 4th, 2010 at 9:30 pm
lol, god he was to acting what Matt Bonner is to Dunks.
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