Even though San Antonio and Dallas played one another just last week, that game is already ancient history. The Spurs were without Tim Duncan and Tony Parker in their first go-round with the Mavs, and Richard Jefferson led the team with 29 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. With Parker and Duncan back in the [...]
I plan a long series of posts considering the Spurs roster, with consideration toward individual players and larger roster issues. At points, these posts might overlap with thoughts on the upcoming draft (forthcoming shortly). But they will be tagged differently. I wasn’t sure where to start with my offseason analysis, but Pop’s DNP of Drew [...]
It wasn’t that long ago. May 22, 2006. The Spurs were facing an elimination game against the Mavericks. Game 7. Western Conference Semifinals. You remember it, I’m sure. They lost. Tonight the Mavericks have the Spurs on the brink of elimination once again. The national press, with a few exceptions here and there, are writing [...]
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 [...]
Spurs.com has video of Pop saying that there will adjustments tonight, J.J. Barea burned them, and the Spurs need to rebound. LatinD, PtR: Tony’s The Man right now, and while he wasn’t chopped liver, we really need him to play at a higher level. Grand Prince Rob Mahoney, Two Man Game: I will say this: [...]
One of the most important coaching decisions facing Popovich this series is whether or not to play small. Coach Popovich was forced to play small in ’06 because the Mavericks were too fast for that season’s Spurs roster. If you remember, Avery Johnson had Devin Harris, Jason Terry and Josh Howard running down the Spurs’ [...]
In a recent comment thread, NickyDubs asked, “So I don’t recall what we tried earlier in the season, but who do you think we’ll send at Dirk?” The short answer is Matt Bonner and Ime Udoka, but that doesn’t say much. The Spurs have some personnel problems, one of which has been there since preseason. [...]
Mike Finger, Express News columnist and Ian Curtis dead ringer, has written a worthwhile article about Drew Gooden’s possible impact this postseason. Gooden, we’re told, has been given wings to fly in the offense-Pop wants him score. Towards the end of the article, Finger asks how the Spurs are going to make up for the [...]
Indulge me for a minute. It was a good night. The Spurs beat the Jazz, and I’ll get to that in a moment. That was encouraging. But there was encouragement to be found in Austin, as well. Malik Hairston was with the team, and he scored 41 in a come from behind victory against the [...]
Last night’s victory over the Thunder felt like a return home after a long stay away. The Spurs won their 50th game of the season for the 10th consecutive season. And the Spurs beat a fearsome opponent by playing great defense for the final 3 quarters. It was without Manu Ginobili, but it felt like [...]
As one wit put it, watching the Spurs close out this season is a like watching a helicopter land sideways. Touchdown is imminent, but it might get messy. The Spurs are hobbled by injury. They’ve given away games to the Thunder and Celtics. In each case, the game was lost by uncharacteristically bad execution down [...]
The Spurs had no business winning last night’s game. The loss was deserved. The Lakers buried the Spurs in the first quarter, outscoring the home team 35 -17 and crushing them on the glass. In the opening quarter alone, the Lakers grabbed 4 offensive rebounds. Of those 4, 3 boards led to immediate baskets. And [...]
In an article dated for today, Mike Monroe tells us that Drew Gooden is “ready to find a home.” Quoting from the column: “R.C. kind of made this thing happen,” Gooden said. “When he learned about me having a possible buyout from Sacramento, he was the first one on it. That kind of lets you [...]
Armed with a style known as much for its rabbit trails and obscure rock references as its well-reasoned points, Kelly Dwyer is one of the NBA’s most inimitable writers. He’s also one of its best. It’s not just that he watches an ungodly amount of games. It’s that few writers are so consistently insightful. He [...]
In the Express-News this morning, Mike Monroe brought up Drew Gooden’s time with the Cavs as a reason he might be easily integrated into the Spurs system: Popovich did a masterful job of dodging questions calculated to make him tip his hand about his team’s interest in Gooden, who played in Cleveland for coach Mike [...]
