Monday, August 17th, 2009...5:55 pm
Leaner, Quicker, Stronger
Mike Monroe reports that Roger Mason Jr. dropped his body fat percentage this summer in an effort to become “more active.” (I know, I’m late to the Monroe article.)
Johnny Ludden tells us that Tim Duncan is down to 240.
The arrival of skinny Timmy and a slim Mase raises my curiosity, but in a way you might not expect. I’m not thinking about either of them zipping to the hoop on a back cut.
The Spurs offseason transformation produced a more athletic roster, albeit one full of ambitious outsiders such as Marcus Haislip, Marcus Williams, Ian Mahinmi and Malik Hairston-guys who still must prove they belong in the NBA. But all things considered, team speed is on the come up. Even the Spurs’ newest late career reclamation project, Antonio McDyess, is capable of getting up and down the floor with a reasonably swift foot.
Offseason acquisitions Richard Jefferson and Antonio McDyess improve team scoring. In terms of career averages, they bring 30 points a night. We know, however, that the Spurs won’t average 127 points per game. Nevertheless, the Spurs hope to edge their per game average up from 97. But they’re not going to touch the Lakers gaudy 106.9 points per game. I’ll be happy if they creep into triple digits.
Their task is to keep the Lakers from scoring 107 on them. Enter the Spurs’ new gazelles.
This takes us back to leaner, quicker, stronger. The stronger in this case is a stronger defense. The players are leaner and quicker.
The prospect of Parker pushing an honest three man break (as opposed to his one man whirling dervish routine) is exciting to me, but not as much as the possibility of the team’s defense returning to form. A lighter Duncan, a quicker Mason Jr., athletic options in Richard Jefferson, George Hill, and Marcus Haislip, could signal a livelier, pestering team defense. Quintessentially disciplined, but swarmingly so.
The Spurs were one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA at the start of last season. Uncharacteristically dreadful. They crawled back to respectability by season’s end, but never to a place of dominance. Let’s hope the new personnel helps the Spurs return to their familiar spot atop the defensive efficiency rankings.
19 Comments
August 17th, 2009 at 6:12 pm
Tim,
I thought you’ve read about the article about Mason, I’ve posted it in the comments section of your recent article The Love for Combo Guards ….
I think, with this team as much as we improve on offense… We’d still play great D. specialy if Hairston, Haislip’s and Ian’s game translates into the NBA level… They are the guys, I think would make us better on defense…. about Duncan I saw This link with his picture it says he looks like Kevin durant only boring….
Hope TD gets back stronger than ever…
August 17th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Robby,
No, I missed it somehow.
August 17th, 2009 at 6:41 pm
the spurs defensive philosophy in the past focused on forcing teams into poor offensive possessions. my hope this year is to return to that mindset, but with the new acquisitions we may be able to force more turnovers than ever, leading to easy buckets.
a leaner, quicker, more active team can help achieve this end.
August 17th, 2009 at 6:51 pm
Nice to see the Spurs getting more athletic to match up with a leaner, meaner Western Conference. I love Pop’s humble statements about being able to contend with the squad they’ve put together this offseason, too.
Class act team, and here’s to hoping they can stay injury free throughout the year.
August 18th, 2009 at 5:45 am
Mahinmi will stay with the NT for the two upcoming games and possibly Eurobasket (if France clinches the last spot). Johan Petro (ex-Nugget) has been cut because of defensive deficiencies.
The report in french sport newspaper L’Equipe quotes Coach Vincent Collet saying that Ian was integrated only two weeks ago, because the Spurs had not made him available sooner. He will play behind starter Ronny Turiaf (GSW) and ahead of “offensive joker” (I think this translation is inaccurate but it’s also funny) C Ali Traore (ASVEL from the French League and Euroleague). His defensive qualities earned him this spot on the NT’s roster.
It’s the same old song for Petro who has great physical tools for a center but no desire to bang in the post and rebound effectively. After 4 years in the nba, the guy is still waiting for some team to pick him up now that is rookie contract expired. As much as I enjoy Ian’s comeback, it’s kind of sad that Petro could’nt even hold off a player that has been injured the whole season basically.
August 18th, 2009 at 6:08 am
I hope Duncan’s loss of weight will make him a little more agile than he was last season, and I hope he’s done a good job of strengthening his leg muscles. But either way, the Spurs are going to be a lot better defensively and offensively, maybe not immediately, but as the season progresses everything should be in place before the playoffs start.
And I’m excited to see what Hairston, Haislip, Ratliff, and Mahinmi can bring to the team defense and offense
August 18th, 2009 at 6:59 am
It looks like the Spurs want to go back to the running mode of old when both Duncan and Robinson could easily be the first up the floor and first back on defense, it stifled so many break opportunities when the breakaway man runs headfirst into a 7 foot shot-blocker. I remember under Avery Johnson, Spurs may not have been the fastest offense, but they did run pretty well.
August 18th, 2009 at 7:32 am
What’s the latest on Jack McClinton? Do the Spurs cut him loose, or assign him to Austin?
August 18th, 2009 at 8:54 am
For players who played in at least 41 games, Manu is 12th in steals per 48 minutes. If Manu just played in 30 more games (74 total), we would have had ~35-45 more steals on the season. As a team last season we were dead last in steals. I think getting Manu back creating turnovers on the defensive end will lead to some fast break opportunities. Yes, Manu, turns the ball over more than Hill, Mason, or Finley, but usually our transition D is better than our opponent’s.
August 18th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
People need to stop automatically deferring to the Lakers on every point, as if it’s a natural impulse at this point. Why exactly couldn’t this Spurs team, at least theoretically, approach the Lakers’ “gaudy” (I don’t see how 106.9 is gaudy, it’s not like they’re one of five teams all time to reach the mark) mark?
I assume the Spurs’ pace will be quicker than it’s been in years, which leads to more possessions, and with the amount of firepower, and depth this team now possesses there’s no reason they couldn’t approach that number.
Also, as you touched on Tim, they’ll be more people out on the break with Parker, which means we should see more easy transition baskets/overall attack-the-rim-assault’s (even in the half court) than we’ve seen in recent memory. You can still stress defense while dropping well over 100 a night.
August 18th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
People need to stop automatically deferring to the Lakers on every point, as if it’s a natural impulse at this point. Why exactly couldn’t this Spurs team, at least theoretically, approach the Lakers’ “gaudy” (I don’t see how 106.9 is gaudy, it’s not like they’re one of five teams all time to reach the mark) mark?
I assume the Spurs’ pace will be quicker than it’s been in years, which leads to more possessions, and with the amount of firepower, and depth this team now possesses there’s no reason they couldn’t approach that number.
Also, as you touched on Tim, they’ll be more people out on the break with Parker, which means we should see more easy transition baskets/overall attack-the-rim-assault’s (even in the half court) than we’ve seen in recent memory.
You can still stress defense while dropping well over 100 a night. That’s what’s great about this team, at least on paper, is they no longer should be forced into playing one style in order to be successful, they should be able to win in a number of ways.
August 18th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
Rye,
A quick response as to why I referred to the Lakers’ scoring as gaudy. First, it ranked third in the league last season. Only Phoenix and Golden State scored more points per game, and they’re full court teams. L.A. can get out on the break, but they’re primarily a half court squad (triangle/Kobe screen and rolls). Last season’s point differential between the Spurs and Lakers was considerable. 10 points is an ocean wide. Second, the Lakers defensive was extremely efficient. If they’re already playing great defense, then 107 is like a club to the head. Third, the Spurs have never averaged 100 points per game under Popovich. I thought I was saying something bold by suggesting they could flirt with triple digits. In that respect, 107 is gaudy. Hope that helps you to at least see where I was coming from.
I’ve not researched this question, but I’d love to know what the biggest scoring leap (in consecutive seasons, same coach) is in NBA history. I’d be surprised if it were more than a few points. 4?
August 18th, 2009 at 4:25 pm
I have no problem with anyone referring to the Lakers’ as a great team, in any way whatsoever. They ARE the champions. Last year they were the WC champions. The Lakers are most definitely the team to beat and it will stay that way until they get knocked out of the playoffs again.
Don’t get me wrong, I know we have the ability to beat the Lakers and win the title this year and possibly for the next several years.
However since we all used the phrase “The Spurs are the team to beat” after our championships, than we have to give the same respect to each and every other team.
August 18th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
Agree with Duane,
The Lakers are still the team to beat, and should be given that respect because they are the defending champs…
But I’d say this, if we can stay healthy and all these new additions (RJ, Dice, Blair, Haislip and Ratliff)snug into their roles right… We have a GREAT chance of winning the title this upcoming season…
August 18th, 2009 at 7:39 pm
To all fellow Spurs Fans here’s a Good read about Tim Duncan Check it out!
August 21st, 2009 at 10:59 pm
I like this Spurs team this year because Tim Duncan can pace himself during the regular season. If he does, I honestly believe he will put the team on his back during the playoffs and win his 5th title. There were a few years in the early 2000′s in which I don’t think Duncan understood his ability/responsibility. Now that we are getting nearer to the end, I see an acceptance from Duncan that he is better than everyone and that it is his job to go win a game/playoff series/title.
August 21st, 2009 at 11:30 pm
Jeff,
In past, duncan has been “pacing” himself during the regular season with some help from Coach Pop (watching his minutes as the season progresses)…
But as it is right now, Duncan might have more time pacing or probably resting more in second sets of back to backs making him fresher come playoff time.
Ability and responsibility wise, I think Duncan knows this all along (that is why the Spurs won 4 titles with him as the Top Dog, we could also argue that during his era, the Spurs could have atleast won 2 more rings [if not for Fisher' s 0.4 and Dirk's lucky shot in '06 after being fouled by Manu])…
and actually he is great at handling responsibilities, but this year it is more of a ‘Hunger’ for him so to speak because he knows his chance of getting another title is in ‘short term’.
Winning a championship is not his sole responsibility, he needs the whole team to be healthy (specialy, TP, Manu, RJ and Dice) and hopes that the new additions fit in nicely to our system. Hopefully they can get it done again this upcoming season for title #5.
September 9th, 2009 at 4:30 pm
The more weight Timmy sheds, the less stress on his knees. Maybe it’ll make a difference over 82+ games.
September 9th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
Vaughn,
That’s the hope.
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