Henry Abbott, Kevin Arnovitz, and numerous other TrueHoop Network writers are at the MIT Sloan Sports Conference. While there, Sebastian Pruiti of NetsAreScorching and NBA Playbook reported on a paper presented by John Huizinga, a professor of business at the University of Chicago (via TrueHoop):
Is blocking a lay-up more valuable than blocking a jump-shot?  Mr. [...]

San Antonio began the fourth quarter of this afternoon’s game against Phoenix with a three point lead. Over the next 12 minutes, the Spurs did not make too many defensive stops; Amare Stoudemire, Steve Nash, and Jason Richardson all scored with ease. Luckily the Suns aren’t exactly known for their lockdown defense either, and the [...]

When a team is playing well, it typically moves from lesser to greater certainty as the season progresses. All the big questions that lead the season find a satisfactory resolution in a sharp player rotation, efficient scoring, and a defense that can, at least, get the necessary stops that winning requires. Those things come together, [...]

Wayne Winston, who served as a statistical consultant to the Dallas Mavericks for the last nine years, and is the author of Mathletics, was kind enough to explore a handful of Spurs-related questions with me. Over the next few days I’ll put up a series of short posts detailing the more salient moments of our [...]

Leaving the All-Star weekend, perhaps no theme encapsulated the Spurs more perfectly nor enemy loomed so big–well, maybe the Laker’s frontline–as time.
And not just time, as in the amount of time left in their stars’ careers, but timing. Timing is everything.

Yesterday’s All-Star game featured nine new participants. That’s good for the league. The Spurs sent one man, who was, of course, not new to the festivities. I wonder, when will the Spurs next send a new participant to the All-Star game? Someone not named Tim Duncan, Tony Parker or Manu Ginobili.

Over at NBA Playbook, Sebastian Pruiti has a tidy little breakdown of a pick & roll play the Spurs ran early in the first quarter of Monday night’s game. Gregg Popovich places Antonio McDyess in the high post and Tim Duncan on the block.

Last week we ran a series of features exploring three options for the Spurs: Make no move; make a minor roster move; and make a major roster move. There was supposed to be one more- a post arguing that we should make moves focused on future seasons- that for various reasons was never published. After [...]

The good folks at Elias Sports Burea are in the business of providing perspective. According to Elias, the Spurs are 3-9 against teams with a .600 or better record. The only Western Conference teams that are worse than the Spurs against said opponents are the Warriors, Timberwolves, Clippers and Kings. League-wide, teams beat .600 teams [...]

For the first time this season, the Spurs look like a team that can consistently beat quality opponents.  Last night’s advanced box score tells the story in numbers, but the game also gave rise to a few developing trends. I’d like to use this recap to highlight this game’s place in that context.

J.D. Salinger is dead. And his passing has me thinking of Tim Duncan.

Tony Parker left the game in the third quarter after rolling his Plantar Fasciitis-stricken left ankle during a layup. Tim Duncan corralled 27 rebounds, breaking a career single game record. The Spurs beat a +.500 team, a frustratingly elusive achievement this season.
In other words, what would normally be a workmanlike affair against a team that [...]

Spurs fans may feel they have enough worries halfway through this thus far disappointing season. But if there was a call for a new sense of urgency from the Spurs before, ESPN’s Chris Broussard reminded us last night of a much larger problem looming on the horizon.

It is widely acknowledged that Gregg Popovich and the Spurs run one of the more extensive and complicated systems in the NBA. While over the summer the coaching staff made a decision to cut the playbook in half to speed up the learning curve of it’s overhauled roster, it’s safe to say at least one [...]

With around 7 minutes left in the 3rd quarter, the Spurs found themselves ahead by 12. The previous play had featured a nice back-to-the-basket move by DeJuan Blair, and after Peja Stojakovic dribbled into a 16-foot spin-around fadeaway miss (not the shot the Hornets want Peja taking), Duncan secured the rebound and San Antonio was [...]