Thursday, December 30th, 2010...10:09 pm
San Antonio Spurs 99, Dallas Mavericks 93: No Dirk for Dallas, but it counts just the same in the standings
AMERICAN AIRLINES CENTER — Gary Neal is becoming a name that teams, fans and media members are having to remember. The face? Well, that takes some time.
In the visitor’s locker room after the San Antonio Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night at the American Airlines Center, there was a small scrum gathered around Neal. This is becoming a frequent occurrence in the Spurs locker room, so I hung back, as there’s only so many times I can ask him about his exploits from the 3-point arc.
Another media member leans over to me and asks, “Who is that guy?”
Politely, I give him the name of the guy who just scored 21 points off the bench for the Spurs.
“Oh, that’s Gary Neal!” the man says. And he’s off, taking his rightful place in the front of the media scrum.
Though unrecognizable to some, Neal continues to make the Spurs front office look like a group of geniuses. The 25-year-old “rookie” is averaging 8.1 points per game off the bench for the Spurs this season.
“When we needed it, he stepped up and hit the shots,” Spurs guard George Hill said after the game. “Our whole team was looking for him and he made the shots.”
Neal finished the game against Dallas shooting 6-10 from the floor and 5-8 from the 3-point line.
“Gary has been important to us all year long coming off the bench, scoring [and] playing hard,” Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich said after the game.
George Hill also had a solid game offensively for the Spurs. He finished with 12 points on 5-8 shooting and six rebounds, but his aggressiveness in the second quarter helped the Spurs jump out to a 16-point lead under four minutes into the period. The Spurs only held a two point lead to begin the quarter.
Hill was aggressive attacking the basket off the pick-and-roll and the threat of him hitting 3-pointers in transition opened up at least one pull-up 3-pointer for Manu Ginobili.
“I think George, he has some moments where he’s not as aggressive as we’d like him to be, [but] he’s starting to understand that’s what we want from him all the time and he’s getting better and better at it,” Coach Pop said.
Also of note from the Spurs’ win over Dallas, was the performance put on by Tim Duncan. TD put up just two points and four rebounds in San Antonio’s win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night, but proved that he can still produce.
Duncan finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes on Thursday night (Including 7-7 from the free throw line. Rejoice!). And every time the Spurs needed to get the game back in control or reset a series of bad offense, they went to #21 down low.
When it was pointed out that it’s nice to know that Tim Duncan can still bring it when need be, Tony Parker made it plain and simple for all to understand.
“We know that,” he said.
97 Comments
December 30th, 2010 at 10:29 pm
Nice game overall! Even though there was no splitter!
December 30th, 2010 at 10:32 pm
Nice write-up and a great game. Good to see Timmy be solid again, and the contributions from Neal and G-Hill are getting very consistent!
December 30th, 2010 at 10:33 pm
Our backcourt is one of the best I’ve seen in my 18+ years of watching basketball. Parker didn’t shoot well and made terrible decisions on numerous occasions. Manu didn’t shoot that well either but came through in other ways. The night belonged to Gary Neal and George Hill. You could tell Neal was feeling good when he took his first 3 shots. It was just falling for him tonight. Hill’s defense was very good and IMO, had a good deal to do with Terry’s shooting woes. As a side note, while Hill is no Bowen, I don’t believe its a coincidence that both Kobe and Terry struggle on back to back nights playing against Hill. He really is as close to a shut down defender as the league has.
This wasn’t a nice game. The Spurs settled for FAR too many long jumpers AGAIN and they didn’t play great defense for the entire game. However, with Dirk out of the game, you would almost expect a scrappy, uneven game from the Mavs. A win is a win against an arch-rival. Next up is the Thunder. I expect us to win this game since they don’t play much defense.
December 30th, 2010 at 10:35 pm
Great game to watch-back & forth, high intensity, a lot of hustle. The Spurs, however displayed low basketball IQ during the second half. Too much help gambling on defense- ducking below screens, trying to help out too much instead of being committed to guarding players one-on-one. And on offense-Tony and Manu reverted back to 2002 with bad decisions and even worse moves. I know the Mav defense was stiffleling half-court offense, but our veteran backcourt was very careless with their possessions, enabling Dallas to remain close. Butler played lights out- if he had a little help from Jason Terry, baskeball fans everywhere would be roasting the Spurs now. But SA prevails-28-4 for 2010! Bring on the New Year and the next 50 games!
December 30th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Just curious to see if barkley ate his words about the spurs tonight. Last week during the TNT Thursday game, he was very confident in his claim that the spurs were not only behind several other teams in the west, but that they weren’t even the best team in Texas. If anyone knows what sir Charles said tonight, I would love to hear about it.
December 30th, 2010 at 10:41 pm
I agree-Hill and Neal are contributing and it can only add to the entire teams’ confidence in these guys, esp Neal. It’s still strange for me to see the Spurs be so well rounded on offense now. The nice thing to see is that their defense is starting to come around as this season goes on. Just need to stay healthy…just need to stay healthy…just need…
December 30th, 2010 at 10:46 pm
28-4 is a hell of a way to start a season…….
Would like to say that the Spurs have to find a better balance of Jump shots to points in the paint…… Timmy was awesome tonight and SA needs to continue getting him involved early just in case we shoot like we did tonight - he can carry us for a time. Would have loved to see this as a blow out and got Splitter some minutes - and Blair/Bonner were both Non-factors again today. All the more reason why the SA Needs the home court advantage……
December 30th, 2010 at 10:47 pm
@ Jacob-
No, he did not- in fact, he again emphasized that “Dallas is the best team in Texas.” He did give kudos to Gary Neal. But this is going to be the Chuckster’s mantra for the rest of the season. He feels the Mavericks, with the addition of Butler, Stephenson and Chandler makes them “tough” now-they will be the team to challenge the Lakers for the west title.
December 30th, 2010 at 10:56 pm
@Jacob-Barkley stuck by his word. Apparently, “depending on the match-up” Chuck also thinks the Spurs might not get out of the first round! Kenny gave him crap about it, but CB stands by his claim that the Mavs are better. That’s a whole other argument. Total non-sense. DorieStreet: Yea, I saw that sub-par, high-risk play in the 2nd half from SA. I was hoping they would rip that game wide open, instead of allowing the Mavs any hope at all. Oh well, I’ll take a nit-picky win over a played-our-butts off loss.
December 30th, 2010 at 10:58 pm
I’m sure that Chuckles Barkley will point out the obvious—the Mavrecks were Dirkless. Macht’s nicht!
December 30th, 2010 at 11:02 pm
Allow me to correct my mistake-that’s DeShawn Stevenson, their new starting SG. Curious to why Coach Carlisle did play him more. One more point to make: In the earlier game (Knicks-Magic) TNT analyst (& ex-Spur) Steve Kerr was conversing with Marv Albert about Dwight Howard being called out by the officials about exceeding 10-second limit at the free throw line. Kerr mentioned Tim Duncan’s career -long struggles at the line, and added ” One year Tim shot 80% from the line one year; he did it by just stepping to the line, taking 2 bounces, then shooting it immediately.” What did we see in the game? TD stepped up to the line, a couple of bounces, then he shoots. Result - 7 for 7 !!!
December 30th, 2010 at 11:42 pm
I wonder what would have happened if Anderson never got injured. Would Neal have advanced this quickly? Or was this a blessing for Neal. Will be interesting how the bench rounds out once he is back.
It was nice to see that RJ, who was having his worst game was able to bounce back and contribute. Scored some good baskets and played some solid D after coming back in.
December 30th, 2010 at 11:43 pm
If Coach Pops was a wicked man, the game could have been labelled “Tempt and Torment”. Spurs build a 1 point lead midway thru the second quarter, to showcase the superiority of Spurs over Mavs. Then, just before a Mavs team without their leading light would throw in the towel and say “Aw Shucks, how can we win this match against the fleet footed Spurs, let’s go back home”, the Spurs gave back almost the entire lead, before a couple of quick baskets in the last minute of the Ist half, kept a healthy gap.
Come second half, the Spurs steadily keep building pressure, leading to a double digit. With less than a minute to go, Spurs up 10 points - one would say game, set and match point?, No. Suddenly, JT scores twice from the 3 points land, lo behold the lead shrinks to 5 points with less than 25 seconds to play. Spurs, further tempt the luckless Mavs with a shaky pass to MG, who with ice running thru his veins, knocks down the two free throws, lead back to 7. Mavs miss a thre and game over. Spurs kept the Mavs hunting through out the match, just giving them enough of a look to make them think that a win was a possibility before closing out the match. Watching from the sideline, the torementor in chief, the wicked man, with a toothy grin Coach Pops. Alas, this was hardly the case, right thru the match, Mavs found ways and means to come back at the Spurs, making it increasingly uncomfortable for Spurs fans.
A match which Coach Pops labelled a lose-lose, without Nowtiziki, had other ramifications for the Spurs. A match which could go a long way in getting the home court advantage in the play offs, build a cushion over other teams in the division. That was what realy mattered for the Spurs.
As a Spurholic, it also is the memory one needs to take getting into 2011, the best record in the NBA.
December 30th, 2010 at 11:44 pm
error, read a 16 point lead
December 31st, 2010 at 1:26 am
A game they should have won and they did. Plain and simple. I love how they were all up in Terry’s grill. Just like they did in the playoffs last season. Thats the key to beating the Mavs. you cant let Terry go off.
Chuck aint the only one who thinks the Mavs are better. A lot of people do. they keep saying the same thing, that its because of there size. Just because your big doesnt mean youre better. Chandler aint nothing special. Ghill blew by him twice.
Also, the Mavs always play good during the regular season. They always get 50 wins. I dont know why people talk about them like they are ion some magical run. They always choke in the playoffs.
December 31st, 2010 at 2:17 am
It sucks when even a good portion of the Spurs’ own fans question the team’s “realness.” but whatever…
When the cliche of the post season slowing down happens, I guess thats when the Spurs will lean on TD (TD = Tim Duncan. 29MPG, 13.3 PPG, 9.4 RPG, 3.2 APG, 1.9 BPG… and Per 36? why you buggin???? 16.6PPG, 11.7RPG, 4.0APG, 2.4BPG) and he’ll prove all his detractors wrong… and when the Spurs don’t let the speed of the game slow down in the post season, I guess thats when everyone will stop using “common wisdom” bullshi..
Spurs are #2 in point diff.
Spurs are #5 in FG%.
Spurs are #1 in 3PT % (with the closest “contender:” The Heat @ #7)
Spurs are #3 in APG (Boston @ #1, Dallas @ #5 and LA @ #9)
Spurs are #12 in BPG (with the closest “contenders” @: Miami @ 9 and LA @ 15)
Spurs are #5 in SPG (with the closest “contenders” @: Boston @ 6 and LA @ 9)
Spurs are 28 and 4… I’m just sayin… REAL.
December 31st, 2010 at 3:42 am
@ Dorie
I disagree. This was not a fun game to watch. The Lakers game was fun to watch as we thoroughly handed their asses to them and made Kobe cry. This game, we merely won. We did not dominate. We did not play great defense, as you yourself point out, and were careless with the ball.
While I enjoy the W and the second BEST. START. EVER. in league history, I did not enjoy this game.
@everyone
Why am I “nitpicking”?
Because I remember a time when late in the 4th, I had this magical feeling that the Spurs would preserve their lead or overcome any deficit. I knew that the ball would go to Duncan in the post and you can go ahead and count 2 pts on the board. I knew with certainty that Manu would come up with some crazy play to make my heart stop and tie the game. I knew that the ball would go to Horry, or Bowen, or Kerr, or Barry out on the arc and they would save the day. I knew that the defense would stop the other team some way, somehow and was ready at any moment to jump out of my seat and jump up and down in front of the television. No matter how impossible it seemed (like when we were down in the New Orleans series), those teams made me believe in and expect miracles.
Do you remember those times? Because I sure haven’t had that feeling in ages. Now I sit on my hands, anticipating a let down as much as a barely-victory.
Maybe it’s been so long that some of you have forgotten what it feels like to EXPECT a W rather than to HOPE for one, to expect our team to dominate rather than merely eke out a win. How else could you say something as ridiculous as “a win is still a win.”
No it’s not. I’m sorry, you’re wrong.
If the Spurs organization believed any W is good enough, I guarantee you there would not be as many banners hanging from the rafters today. If you truly believe that a win without exhibiting elite defense is good enough for this team and for Popovich, then you don’t really expect this team to bring home the championship.
Until I get that magical feeling back, I will not be satisfied.
Getting a holiday gift from your parents is alright. Believing your gift came from Santa is magical and priceless. Yeah, 28 -4 is impressive. But I don’t want to be impressed, I want to believe.
December 31st, 2010 at 4:35 am
I’m not sure why so many are down about this game.
Spurs beat perhaps the second best team in the league (On The Road), maintain the best record in the league, advance to 3 and a half games ahead of that opponent, and all I’ve seen so far is criticism?
Wow.
Kudos to the Spurs for playing GREAT against a Really Good Team.
December 31st, 2010 at 5:33 am
@NYC
I don’t know what team you’ve been watching but there hasn’t been but maybe one game this year that I thought we might lose. Spurs have one of the highest margins of victory at +8.28 just above Boston and below miami.
December 31st, 2010 at 5:47 am
Charles Barkley’s statement that the Mavs will go further in the playofffs because they do not have a big man to help Timmy shows me that he missed the DBlair’s heart and tenacity in the dismantling of the LA Fakers. For him to say that the Spurs are overrated carries about as much weight as anyone believing Barkley has his job because of his broadcasting skills!
December 31st, 2010 at 6:33 am
28-4 has made a believer out of me! They have been dominating this year, just like bigtee34 said with the +8.28 scoring margin. Even in the close games, the Spurs have been clutch down the stretch to pull it off. Last year’s team was not capable of doing that. It’s pretty damn magical that Duncan is playing decreased minutes, and we won 28 games. Neal is for real, Hill and Jefferson have been amazing. I don’t remember how many times last year we were getting blown out and had to shut it down in the 4th. I have confidence and faith in these guys. I can’t wait until we get Anderson back and he’s 100%. Go Spurs Go!!
December 31st, 2010 at 6:39 am
@ Jacob
Barkley still calls the Spurs the second best team in Texas, but every analyst at TNT will take the Spurs over the Mavs in a series. It got pretty annoying listen to how the Spurs were the healthiest team in the league. What about James Anderson?
December 31st, 2010 at 6:54 am
good win!
CB?who cares?so many CBs out there ,we always dont get the credit we deserve,it does not a matter to me,reclaim the title that matters!
December 31st, 2010 at 7:09 am
This was good win against a very well motivated, well known foe. Spurs have pulled off these kind of wins over the last few years when they’ve been down a star. Under those lights this was a good win. Mavs are a strong team even with out Dirk on the floor.
Charles moment of the night was his empty “shout out” to Rick Adelman where he forgot Adelman’s name! Those 4 guys (mostly 3 as Webber is forgettable…hell, that far left chair is usually taken by a forgettable soul) are quite funny together. It’s usually good TV especially because Charles is willing to poke fun at himself and others.
Go Spur Go!
December 31st, 2010 at 7:21 am
@ Flavor
“It sucks when even a good portion of the Spurs’ own fans question the team’s “realness.” but whatever.”
IT’s because we are SPURS fans and not SUNS fans…. since when did we struggle to keep a short handed team down……… we used to struggle scoring at times - but made the other team crawl on glass to get buckets…..And that’s what many people are waiting to see again…..
@NYC
“How else could you say something as ridiculous as “a win is still a win.””
+5
It’s as if 75% of this board either just became Spurs fans or have a long term memory problem…….There’s a reason we ALWAYS handles the Mavs and Suns and all other HIGH-POWERED O’s in the league……. We could DEFEND……. And now that we have all but given up on that and half of the Fans are like OK, cool - I never liked playing D in the 1st place or something……The only thing that you can hang your hat on is DEFENSE and REBOUNDING. Shots don’t always fall - like last night when Tony/Manu/RJ all shot poorly. I would hate to get into a playoff series and have as many missed shots as we had tonight. So we have to start controlling what we can, and defense and rebounding are those 2 things!
December 31st, 2010 at 7:26 am
@NYC, so you don’t believe the Spurs ar for real but you do believe Santa is??
Maybe I don’t understand your logic.
Go Spurs Go!!
December 31st, 2010 at 7:30 am
The Spurs, as a team, never listened or cared about what the media has to say so why would anybody believe a drunk CB? He, along with all the other doubters, will be eating crow soon enough.
Go Spurs Go!!
December 31st, 2010 at 7:59 am
I think the team is still adjusting to its transition from a slow-it-down-grind-it-out team to a potent offensive squad. Thus our inconsistency to defend like the way we’re used to seeing the typical Spurs lock down defense. With all these in consideration, I think we can gauge the Lakers games as a good model for our defense. It’s hard to balance a consistent offense and defense for an 82 game. I remember last year, the Lakers’ offense in the regular season was not that impressive the whole season, their defense, however, is what carried them-through the playoffs.
Moreover, almost everyone from the team is playing a different role from their previous roles last year, hence, even Timmy! I think what we need to have is an offensive and defensive identity. We can look at our start as good, in terms of our offensive identity, and, as we see it in some spurts and in some major stretches in games, we are slowly having our defensive identity. Apparently, we are stuck with our current lineup, which doesn’t boast of a Bowen-type caliber of a defender, so, from that too, we are tweaking our own defensive system, although Timmy is still the catalyst, we are still lacking a unique wing defender, and right now, Manu, Hill and Rj are the ones who carry that load defensively. So from a one man lock down defender (Bowen), we are approaching it with a committee of defenders.
I think in essence, we still have 50+ games to have that defensive identity, and hope for the best that we will play our best basketball come April and May-and hopefully, June. I think what most of us fans don’t appreciate is the blessings we have as Spurs fans. Last year we really don’t have it, right now, we have the best record in the league, and we are still a step or two behind from our usual lock down defense, it’s really a concern, and I’m sure, Pop and the coaching staff are working on this issue. Btw, it’s my first time to post here, although I’m an avid reader for quite some time now. And Happy New Year from Manila, Philippines!
December 31st, 2010 at 8:17 am
Ugh. Up here in BigD, the Mavs faithful are all spouting the “Well if Dirk had played, we’d have won by 16″ crap. Ugh.Ugh.Ugh.
So pathetic and predictable.
There’s at least one guy on the radio saying “it doesn’t matter, a win is a win”, but he’s stuck with an MFFL (Mavs Fan For Life) and another Cuban-butt-kisser.
It’ll be more interesting to listen to the 2pm show when the Mavs PBP guy has his show. He’s usually pretty solid and insightful w/o being a butt-kisser. I like him, it’s unfortunate he works for Cuban.
December 31st, 2010 at 8:17 am
Did anybody notice that the lead slowly disappeared and the tempo slowed when Duncan came back into the game after the big lead by the reserves? And how the Blair wish project was ineffective? No Splitter sighting what a shame? At this rate he’s not playing in the playoffs. Blair is your go to guy at center. Good luck. Wow all that time invested in Blair up to now and still he hasn’t grown an inch. I just don’t see it. Your depending on high % shooting run and gun fast break games against opponents on a nitely basis and not addressing the big center position to help you on defending the rim? Oh my that will come back to haunt you in the playoffs. McDyess (and Splitter if they would let him play) are the only ones I trust other than Duncan to help on defending the rim. Bonner and Blair are no way going to help you there in the play offs. They only reason Bonner is on the court is becasue he’s made more 3′s this season as opposed to last, but still hasn’t improved his defensive game. Really and Blair? All I can say about him is that it favors him when they run and gun but if the pace slows down Blair is dead meat to the opposing bigs. Don’t use the Bynum excuse he is fat right now and just came off an injury. He will be the player like last season come play off time that’s why we need too address the that center spot that Pop is in denial about. Please enough already with the Blair wish project it won’t help you against Boston, LA, Orlando, Mavs with Dirk, etc. What are you going to do? Throw McDyess and Bonner at them while Splitter and Blair is on the bench? Right. Its all good right now but people I want to win in the playoffs. They better shoot 60% or better in the play offs.
December 31st, 2010 at 8:34 am
“Neal continues to make the Spurs front office look like a group of geniuses.”
“Look like a group of geniuses?” What an understatement. I mean, haven’t the scouts and executives done enough?
Also, I read somewhere that the Spurs are the most efficient in management. Wow, right?
December 31st, 2010 at 9:08 am
Spurs easily the best team in the NBA. Funny how people keep coming up with excuses for our record. The season is a long season and all teams go through injuries. We have already lost anderson for an extended time. Wake up people. Spurs are the best team hands down. I find it funny that people think we have to measure ourselves up to other teams when in actuality its other teams using us as the measuring sticks. Phil Jackson and staff said so just this week. Go Spurs Go!!
December 31st, 2010 at 9:09 am
It was a good win.
We need to work on attacking zone defenses. It was scary to watch Tony and co. lock up in the first 15 sec of a zone defense sequence.
McDyess pick and rolls were awesome to watch and good to see a formidable 2nd unit.
Cannot wait for Anderson to come back, He will shore up the RJ coldstart. Hopefully Splitter too will come along in the new year as an option as the scouting reports start to pile up on Neal and Bonner.
December 31st, 2010 at 9:20 am
A win IS a win. Wins are not just accidents. Good teams find ways to win against bad teams and against good teams and against teams without their best players. Really good teams find ways to win sometimes despite themselves. Way too many guys are trying to find some sign that we are ready to win the playoffs. It’s impossible to do in December. It makes no sense to discount wins or inflate losses in Dec. It makes even less sense to criticise wins. There is almost nothing the Spurs can do to improve their record. It’s pretty rare (even for the Spurs) when you have hit the ceiling of what you can do at this point in the season. Are you guys frustrated that the Spurs aren’t 33-0? You’re stealing you’re own pleasure at watching you’re favorite team win.
I saw a team that played sloppy, but did a great job hustling. Also, really liked the ball movement. I never really thought we might lose b/c the Spurs were getting such wide open shots. It was frustrating to see them miss many of them, but especially in the second half, the Spurs body language looked fresh and confident. They never looked like they were just cashing it in. And TD had some great post moves tonight.
btw, the Spurs rely on good shooting percentage not just bc they haveto, but bc it’s a strength. It makes sense to play to your strengths. Didn’t anybody else notice that the ball movement by the Spurs sometimes left the Mavs looking dizzy. Many times, the Spurs backcourt took wide open threes not only bc they had to, but bc there wasn’t anybody within 10 ft of them. It’s a set shot. It’s not a weakness that the Spurs rely on it. It’s a testament to the system and the basketball IQ of the Spurs players. From what I was watching the Spurs didn’t slow down when Tim came back in the game. They started giving him the ball b/c that’s what was available and b/c he was embarassing the guys who were defending him.
December 31st, 2010 at 9:22 am
In summary, Spurs win 99-93. Yay! Enjoy it.
December 31st, 2010 at 9:41 am
Well said, irongiantkc! Good summary, too. I absolutely LOVE the versatility of this team!
I _would_ like to see Splitter start getting more burn, but who doesn’t?
December 31st, 2010 at 9:46 am
i like this win. a whole lot. we managed to beat a great defensive squad (and losing dirk didn’t exactly hurt their defense) on a night when richard jefferson was a ghost and manu was chucking ill-advised threes for much of the night. just look at the +/- for the bench! gary neal +17, george hill +20, antonio mcdyess +21. the spurs BENCH beat up the mavs. there is NO WAY this could be a bad thing.
maybe when dirk comes back we’ll have to let tim play an actual 36 minutes…
December 31st, 2010 at 10:31 am
I think GREGO makes a great point! Can yall imagine if James Anderson had never gotten hurt? We might not even be seeing Gary Neal play this much. I know James is a 3 and Gary is a combo guard but you know Pop plays small ball.
I heard on ticket 760 that James is back in the gym shooting right now. Let’s hope his conditioning can come around and he will resume being a major contributor!
December 31st, 2010 at 10:37 am
Anytime a team is without its star player, its just gonna be human nature to come out and play sloppy and not give your best effort. But the game still has to be played. Even if Dirk does play, the Mavs offense becomes completely different and we still have a chance to win. We missed a bunch of wide open shots that our shooters(Hill and Bonner last night) usually make. In fact us missing shots kept us in the game.
I think thats its wonderful that we’re not playing our best D, but yet we still have a 28-4 record. Thats the difference between the Spurs and the Mavs. The Mavs always hit their ceiling early and do well in the regular season, only to disappear in the playoffs. The Spurs always play their best ball going into the playoffs when it counts. Yes, our D needs to improve, and when it does, this team is going to be tough to beat.
December 31st, 2010 at 11:09 am
@NYC
That sounds like a personal problem bro. A self deprecating mentality. There is NOT ONE SINGLE GAME i fear we are going to lose this season. We have had the miracle come backs already. Where have you been all season long? Did you not witness us some storming back against Minnesota twice? Were you asleep when Manu hit the game winners in back to back games? Have you forgotten the big shots by Manu in the early portion of the season? Were you away on a trip when we avenged EVERY loss? I understand what you want as a fan. Let’s get some of these bum teams out of here by the 3rd. I get it, and I agree. But if you have missed magical occurrences this season it’s not due to lack of magical moments. It’s lack of vision on your part.
December 31st, 2010 at 11:17 am
@ NYC
For the first time in 3 seasons, I’m back to expecting the Spurs to win. Everytime we lose, it blows my mind. I have no doubt that we will win every game we play. I think a lot of people are thinking the same as I am.
Have you not seen Ginobili win games Horry style this year? He only did it twice in a row.
You’ve lost that lovin’ feelin’, but you’ll get it back.
December 31st, 2010 at 11:27 am
Right on, Bankshot21! I am cherishing and loving this team and their resiliency! “Just win, baby!”, as someone once said.
December 31st, 2010 at 11:41 am
I think the team is still adjusting to its transition from a slow-it-down-grind-it-out team to a potent offensive squad. Thus our inconsistency to defend like the way we’re used to seeing the typical Spurs lock down defense. With all these in consideration, I think we can gauge the Lakers game as a good model for our defense. It’s hard to balance a consistent offense and defense for an 82 game. I remember last year, the Lakers’ offense in the regular season was not that impressive the whole season, their defense, however, is what carried them-through the playoffs.
Moreover, almost everyone from the team is playing a different role from their previous roles last year, hence, even Timmy! I think what we need to have is an offensive and defensive identity. We can look at our start as good, in terms of our offensive identity, and, as we see it in some spurts and in some major stretches in games, we are slowly having our defensive identity. Apparently, we are stuck with our current lineup, which doesn’t boast of a Bowen-type caliber of a defender, so, from that too, we are tweaking our own defensive system, although Timmy is still the catalyst, we are still lacking a unique wing defender, and right now, Manu, Hill and Rj are the ones who carry that load defensively. So from a one man lock down defender (Bowen), we are approaching it with a committee of defenders.
I think, in essence, we still have 50+ games to have that defensive identity, and hope for the best that we will play our best basketball come April and May-and hopefully, June. I think what most of us fans don’t appreciate is the blessings we have as Spurs fans. Last year we really don’t have it, right now, we have the best record in the league, and we are still a step or two behind from our usual lock down defense, it’s really a concern, and I’m sure, Pop and the coaching staff are working on this issue. Btw, it’s my first time to post here, although I’m an avid reader for quite some time now. And Happy New Year from Manila, Philippines!
December 31st, 2010 at 11:42 am
Gonna be nice to get James back. He was shooting 50% from three and hopefully will get a lot of playing time behind Jefferson. Really could have used him last night during those early stretches where Jefferson was just useless.
December 31st, 2010 at 11:46 am
28-4 is great, I like it, I am happy.
We got some separation in the standings and now is time to put Splitter in the starting linup and buckle up defence for deep playoff run. I am telling you guys, Tiago just need playing time and some touches on the block, he can score and defend. Dejuan Blaire needs to go back to the bench where he will be more productive. It’s a win-win for everybody and there is zero risk in this experiment.
December 31st, 2010 at 12:30 pm
@manufan: yea i agree that Splitter does need some constant flow of minutes to get him up to speed. I mean the guy is obviously a high IQ type player, but it’s gotta be super tough not getting consistency in minutes, when it’s your first year in the league. On another note, I have hard time seeing how this team loses even 15 games (barring injuries, of course). We need to secure that HCA throughout the playoffs, now we just gotta get some more separation from Dallas and Boston.
December 31st, 2010 at 1:16 pm
@bentley - I’m with you. We aren’t at our best defensively but we are winning games. It’s quite remarkable. Winning games against teams that are supposedly trap games, winning games against teams missing starters, winning games against teams with winning records, winning, winning, winning! Sometimes I feel Pop struggles against teams without all their chess pieces. This year the coaching staff and the players have exceeded all of my expectations and the defense is still a work in progress. Loving every minute of it!
December 31st, 2010 at 1:17 pm
Good game last night…would still love to see Splitter be productive in a game…I love Dejuan “Da Bear” Blair, but I think he needs to play at the power forward. He is better suited for that positition. The Mavs scare easily and their front court is no court and no suprise in the win. Defense could’ve been a little sharper and the attack on the Mavs bigs could’ve been more aggressive but good game overall.
December 31st, 2010 at 1:21 pm
i like pop’s post game quote. something to the effect of ” we didn’t learn anything about our team. didn’t improve as a group, that’s for sure”. i wouldn’t be suprised if a win against kobe’s “off night”, and the dirk-less mavs is enough to earn a top spot in the ESPN power rankings. pointless as they are. i don’t know why after all these years of annoynace at the anti-spurs media, i still get bothered by it. GO TIAGO!
December 31st, 2010 at 1:43 pm
@Titletown……Man what do you want? I’ve never seen such a Curmudgeon of a fan. You should live under a bridge. This team has doen everything you can possible ask. They’re NOT the ’99-03-05-07 Spurs, get over it and TRY to enjoy the fact that the Spurs are the best team in the league. Your complaining about defense but I noticed the last 2 games the Fakers and Mavs have both struggled to score. It’s December dude, the 2nd half defense WILL be better than the 1st half defense. The Spurs have the best record on the league…..they’ve won on the road, they’ve beaten over .500 teams, playoff teams, over .500 playoff teams on the road….accept it! Timmy has accepted the new Spurs, why haven’t you???
December 31st, 2010 at 1:59 pm
28-4 means we only have to go 22-28 in our last 50 games to hit Bill Simmons’ “retro” preview (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmonsnfl2010/week11picks/part2&sportCat=nba).
Not sure we can do it…
December 31st, 2010 at 2:46 pm
@ manufan-
3 1/2 games up is not a ‘cushion’. There are 50- FIFTY- games left to play. I mentioned in pre-game post about wanting the Spurs to avoid a scoring drought and lo- right on que in the 2nd qtr it reared its ugly head again. - TD = Best EVER , Dec 31st 7:21am :…we used to struggle at times scoring at times- but made the other team crawl on glass to get buckets….” . In the 2nd qtr we had the Mavs crawling- only 9 points scored in the first 7 minutes while we had 21- 50-36. Dallas then scored 10 pts. in the remaining 5 minutes of the 2nd qtr. - one basket per minute-not bad defense. The Spurs however, went scoreless. The uptempo attack should keep up but not in quick 3′s by EVERYBODY- someone on our team needs to attack the rim and draw fouls & FTs. This is when Tony & Manu failed us, and how George saved us in the 4th by driving to the basket. Of course we need to improve defending shooters and rebounding, but that’s hard to do if all of the bigs are sitting (Tim/Blair/Splitter). I don’t see as many games as you guys locally, it’s hard to determine if this is the regular rotation, or adjusting to a particular opponent. I will sum up this historic start and end the year saying the Spurs creating this fantastic record not by knocking out opponents in the 1st and 2nd rounds, but grinding out decisions when it came to crunchtime. AULD LANG SYNE Y’all!!!
December 31st, 2010 at 3:11 pm
Although not fantastic and with no true LOCKDOWN defender (although GHill3….) but the TEAM D has been passable, the defference being this yr over the last couple is if the D lets us down we have the weapons to score enough points to win. All this and our 2 s top picked rookies JAnderson and TSplitter haven’t really hit stride
GO SPURS GO!!!!
December 31st, 2010 at 3:11 pm
IT seems that some are upset that the Spurs didnt win by 30 points. Thats the beauty of it. They could have won by 30 if they really wanted to. But why expend all that energy on a team that is not at full strength? They basically went through the motions and executed. Yes they had turnovers but the game was never in doubt. Did you see Manu’s face? He was totally care free. He was chewing god knows what knowing he could get whatever he wanted. But again why bother? Just get the win and go home.
December 31st, 2010 at 3:57 pm
Don’t understand the whiners about last night’s win over the Mavs either. If anyone noticed, the Mavs were playing a pretty thick zone defense the entire game last night — busting through was like trying to get through a thicket of cactus — and as much as it’s preferable to see the Spurs going through their usual layup drills on the way to victory, it’s not like the other team was making it easy.
All things considered, our team did fantastic, since the only real way to loosen up a zone is make some shots over it, which the Mavs invited them to do. Now teams will think twice about that…
Go, Spurs!
December 31st, 2010 at 4:13 pm
@Manufan and Hemisfair89
Yes I agree with you both. We got some separation in the standings against those team behind us? Good point and not a bad idea integrating Tiago Splitter now but I think still early and he’s not fully 100% yet? Bringing him slowly but surely is a good thing until he fully recover from injury. He understand that his Coaches and Teammates support and there for him and Mr. Anderson. Very much they’re both getting advices and encouragements while on the bench and learn more about the game? Both players Defenses must show and we must have when it comes on play off time when every game counts even in a limited minutes but their commitments on playing Defense? It’s good for our Team. Both players can score as well, just a matter of time when both are fully integrated. Still early of the season and plenty of time to learn, improve, and gel. I can’t wait until the play off comes? We’ve lots of Weapon and I like the early success we’re having for the Season? Duncan in the post, Screen/Pick and Roll, our guards toughness and willing to challenge the opponents bigs, fast breaks, and 3 points shooting? One of those area will be noted but Duncan in the post must surely have it when play off comes and Duncan will be there. Health is the Key, stay Humble and Hungry as well. Wish you all and to your respectively families as well to have a Safer, Healthy, Peaceful, and Happy New Year!!! Win or Lose Keep Pounding The Rock San Antonio Spurs and Give Every Team We Face Against Next Year a 48 minutes of Hell Team Defense!!!
December 31st, 2010 at 4:26 pm
@ every fan of the Forum
The SPURS are great but we didn’t invent or re-invent Basketball….. the Reason NYC, Hobson13, td4life, I, and so many others are not satisfied is because of just that…. We didn’t create or invent basketball or the “7 seconds or less Offense”, and there have been many teams in history who have played this style. So if it has never worked for ALL the other teams that have tried it and were better at it than we are……. How are we gonna be any different?
We need to stop shooting so many 3′s and get some easy buckets in the paint. We need to find some consistency for our Big’s. This means a few more touches for Timmy, DJB, and Splitter in the post to try and get them going. Especially for DBJ/Splitter. If we want them to defend with a ton of energy then you have to feed them a bone from from time to time. There will still be plenty of shots for our guards and our Bigs will get more involved on the Defensive end.
December 31st, 2010 at 4:46 pm
amen.
December 31st, 2010 at 5:06 pm
@TD = BEST EVER
The Spurs have been successful with their style of play so far this season, and you’re saying they should change that all of a sudden? Correct me if I’m wrong, but 3pt shooting has always been one of the core aspects of this team that won 4 championships, and there really isn’t any reliable big to feed down low for consistent offence this season (a banged-up rookie and an undersized sophomore just aren’t that consistent). Yes they still have Tim Duncan, who can still be dominant in the low post when he wants to, but why would he over-exert himself when others around him can score instead? Coach Pop is trying his best to minimise TD’s PT so his body can be fresh & well rested come playoffs. That’s why asking Duncan to do more on offence is just a bad idea IMO.
December 31st, 2010 at 5:18 pm
I’m not sure if having Anderson out has been a blessing for Neal or not: if he was hitting these shots all the time he’d still be getting the extra minutes.
I think the Anderson kid also has a lot of upside, and he was also hitting big, non-rookie like shots. I look forward to seeing him back in black.
December 31st, 2010 at 5:32 pm
@ Ian
I’m not saying blow up anything or do anything rash. But to give those big men a look or two in the post early can carry them the entire game and make them more likely to get a big block or steal or Rebound.
Look @ The Warriors, Suns and Knicks and other teams that play that crazy uptempo style. The reason why we have ALWAYS beat them is because we got EASIER shots than they did. That’s why we beat the Mavs last year. We can get easier shots in the half-court game and were more committed on the D. Last night the Mavs got alot more easy shots than we did and we bailed ourselves out by heaving up 3′s and a Big 3rd qt from Timmy.
Basketball is all about getting into a rhythm - And on Offense that means getting the ball in YOUR scoring position. Even if you don’t shot it you fell apart of the game and apart of the flow. Our Postmen don’t always appear to be apart of the flow. And that affects our Defense.
December 31st, 2010 at 5:42 pm
@TD=B.E.
No we did not invent the game, but we have reinvented ourselves and it is with this you are having issue. I absolutely love TD’s game. It is like Beethoven or Mozart to my ears or Picasso to my eyes. He’s no longer getting super star calls. He’s not as strong as he once was with the weight loss. His limited athleticism is even more limited than it’s ever been and I’d STILL like to see him get the rock every trip down the floor, but those days are long gone bro. We are not just a 3pt shooting team. We are a drive 1st and if the defense closes in and prevents the easy duece you kick it out team. We are an occasionally throw it in to the big fella’s and if we get doubled kick it out team. Our offense is predicated on getting the easiest shot possible. With sharp shooters planted along the arc it may seem as though we are a bit 3 happy but this isn’t the case. This team is the real deal. More complete than our previous banner raising teams. 48 minutes of defensive hell is a bit more rare these days but I’ll take those 12 minutes of hell we’ve been dishing out to teams in 4th quarters. After what Phoenix did to us everyone cried for reinforcements from 3 and when the team does that and become the best in the league in that area you guys complain. This is an evolving league. And in today’s league we are 28-4 and every one of the 4 teams that have beaten us we have already beat. I like us in 7 games against anyone. I’m curious about a healthy Boston team. People forget the year they won we were right there. We blew 20pt leads twice and Manu just simply wasn’t Manu and we were coming off of a hard fought 7 game series against the real mvp that year Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets. Had the ball made a few different bounces we’d probably be pushing for a sixth title. It’s SOOOOOOO nice being a Spurs fan. 28-4 and we want more. I love it!
December 31st, 2010 at 5:43 pm
I think Pop is blowing smoke up people’s asses (in particular, Rick Carlisle) when he says he got nothing out of this game. First, Timmeh showed he can still bring it against an elite defender. Tyson C is considered one of the best big defenders in the league. TD scored on him at will in the third quarter. Second, we also saw that George Hill can give Jason T fits. Dallas cannot win without major contributions from Terry, with our without Dirk in the game. Third, RJ, although his shot sucked, played very good D against Butler. Most of Butler’s points were against other defenders, and when the Spurs needed to shut him down in the fourth, RJ did so. They need significant production from Butler and they won’t get it with RJ playing D like that. Lastly, Gary Neal is the real deal. Imagine other teams having to decide who to close out on or foul when the game is on the line and we have BOTH Neal and Manu waiting to stick the dagger. What other team has two flat out, ice-in-the-veins assassins like we do? Pop learned alot. He just doesn’t want anyone else to know what it was.
December 31st, 2010 at 5:50 pm
Also @ Ian
“but why would he over-exert himself when others around him can score instead? Coach Pop is trying his best to minimise TD’s PT so his body can be fresh & well rested come playoffs. That’s why asking Duncan to do more on offence is just a bad idea IMO.”
If he plays 28 minutes and shoots 5 shots or plays 28 min and shoots 11 shots he isn’t going to be any more or less fresh. Offense is the easy part - Its defending, rebounding, and setting screens that’s hard. Haven’t you even noticed how much energy you seem to have when ever you have the ball?
December 31st, 2010 at 6:12 pm
@ agutierrez
Great comments and insight. Yes, the dallas game helped us glean alot of things. With or without Dirk, its a december game and I’m glad we got the W while learning quite abit about ourselves. So glad Pop is saving TD, Dyess for the playoffs. With Dyess and so many guards who could bother Dirk from getting the ball - im very confident of our abilities to guard Dirk in the postseason. (Dirk historically struggles against shorter guys like Stephen jackson who can use their center of gravity to deter Dirk from getting position).
December 31st, 2010 at 6:24 pm
@ TD = best ever
I think by the playoffs, TD and Dyess and Splitter will play more minutes and get more touches when appropriate. Our D should also have improved quite a bit by then. That is Pop’s plan. He said something along the lines of, “I’m not sure if we can get where to what I think they need to be” - which im sure he refers to Defense.
With regards to the Suns, Knicks, and Warriors - i know the entire spurs organization is aware of the importance of Defense. In fact, it still the number one thing preached. The difference is they realize that they don’t have the same players anymore (younger TD, Bruce) and the rules have changed. Their strengths now lie in drive and kick penetration, some TD postplay, and fastbreak points as Bankshot21 correctly pointed out. That said we, the Spurs, haven’t lost focus on being the best defensive team we can be. And I think thats no. 1 that separates us from the Suns, Warriors, and to a large extent this year’s Knicks team (i haven’t watched them much at all but they seem to play some D as of late). Our defense is much better than what I’ve seen these teams do. E.g. Dyess shutting Dirk down in the playoffs, Hill, the game against the Lakers, 12 minutes of hell etc.
The Suns, Warriors, Knicks teams too don’t have the talent that we have in terms of breaking down the defense (Manu, Tony, Hill, Neal etc. versus primarily Nash, Monta ellis/Curry). They also don’t have as much overall talent, and unique blend of talents. This team is the real deal - a strong team first philosophy.
December 31st, 2010 at 8:11 pm
everyone is saying “our defense will come”… and that’s a comforting thought, but Boston and Miami don’t seem to be have been talking the talk w/o backing it up in December… we show flashes, yes, but I worry that the identity of the team is being formed here… when we get into a jam, the thinking is about shooting our way out, more than clamping down. I do think this is the best-coached team in the league, and they execute well after the halves and time-outs, but there is some level of instinct that takes over, if you’ve won all year long with a certain style, you’re gonna turn to it in close playoff games as well, because that’s where your experience and confidence is… right now, our bigs are out of the loop, and Tiago is looking to be an after thought, while Blair continues to be what he is, nothing more or less… and, as a result, our defense is mid-pack.
Most of the posters here aren’t saying that the play that got us this great start is the game that will get us through the playoffs, rather these fans are just assumming that a needed change will come late in the season… which just seems like so much speculation to me. Pairs of Splitter, McD, and Tim for sustained stretches, say in the second quarter, say against the Wolves, the Bucks, etc, if not the Mavs, or the Lakers, would go a long way to showing that they are developing that style as well, so all these new guys will know what the hell is going on when the time comes.
December 31st, 2010 at 8:16 pm
TD = BEST EVER
December 31st, 2010 at 4:26 pm
“We didn’t create or invent basketball or the “7 seconds or less Offense”, and there have been many teams in history who have played this style. So if it has never worked for ALL the other teams that have tried it and were better at it than we are……. How are we gonna be any different?”
You bring up some interesting points. After watching the Spurs for the first 30+ games of the season, it’s apparent that we are going to win a pile of regular season games and look set to capture the top seed in the West. However, the Suns have also done this in the past and what happened to them in the playoffs? Sure we have Duncan as opposed to Amare, but this isn’t a 25 yr old Tim. He can carry us for a number of postseason games, but he can’t carry us throughout the entire playoffs.
We must do two things if we really wish to compete for a title. 1) Continue to develop on the defensive end. 2) START developing Splitter by playing him more minutes. We can’t expect Kobe to shoot the lakers out of all 7 games in the postseason. He will eventually figure out that we can’t guard BOTH Bynum and Gasol with only Duncan. Neither can we expect Dirk to miss all 7 games in the postseason due to injury (or have Jason Terry go 3-16 every game). We can’t fall into the trap of believing just because we are winning regular season games that we will continue this streak in the postseason when teams have time to prepare for our weaknesses.
December 31st, 2010 at 11:07 pm
I just don’t seem to understand why some fans here compare our offense with the Suns and Warriors’. I had watched almost every game this season, and I’m pretty sure that our offense isn’t like the “7 seconds” Suns in the D’Antoni era. Our offense has variations from guard plays to kick outs and steady diets of P&R. What changed drastically, however, is how we approach offense, for example, when TD got a rebound, he did not wait the guards to pick the ball up, now, he look straight up to our court, knowing that our guards are sprinting down the floor. The philosophy behind this is that for our team to have easy buckets, knowing that we have (I think) guards that can finish in fast breaks.
Another thing is our offense now is guard-generated. Manu, TP, and Hill, on their best can break defenses which creates opportunities, either for themselves, or for others, such as kick outs to our shooters. This offense, however, is not simply saying that our guards is our priority, our guards creates our offense, but the key is how we share the ball, I think, Boston and Jazz are the only teams who comes close to our motion offense. It’s like looking it in a new perspective, from our Duncan-reliant offense, that is, TD creates the shots for our team, when he’s doubled, he can kick it out. Now, however, our guards create our offense, hence TP’s assists were up. This brings me to my next point: with this offense, we have multiple players who can contribute. Unlike last year, with Mason and Bogans, Neal and Bonner has a much higher % in making their shots because their shots are part of our offense, have someone notice Neal when he said that one of their focus in their shoot around is their set shots, I’m thinking those were the 3′s his hitting thus far.
Lastly, it seems that we have a different approach with our offensive execution in the second half of games. We always (most of the time) hit the corner offensively in the 3rd quarter, and slows it down in the 4th. Our offense has become methodical in the 4th, that’s why it’s hard to play against us, because from the 1st three quarters, it looks like we run, then in the 4th we slows down our pace, it’s hard to defend that kind of offense, because you don’t know what we’re going to do. Thus I think we’re a hard team to prepare and scout. I say this because last year, Phoenix, really got us, they knew what our plays were, they knew that if they can trap Manu with double teams side by side, he can give up the ball and disrupt our offense, this year is different, we can attack from different angels. Part of Pop’s plan, I think is our offense to be unpredictable. With these, I believe that this offense is very different from the run and gun teams, and this is the Spurs offensive juggernaut.
December 31st, 2010 at 11:52 pm
@ED, What the f*%k are you talking about! I got your Curmudgeon. Enjoy your stupid record see if this run and gun offense with a 5ft center is going to win you a championship come play off time. Boy you’ll be thinking about what I’ve said if they havnt shored up the center spot by then. There are other posts here if you bother reading saying the same shit in many ways.. I don’t focus on the record as much as I do on the state of this team being completely and I stress completely prepared come play offs.
January 1st, 2011 at 12:04 am
@ED, What the f*%k are you talking about! I got your Curmudgeon. Enjoy your stupid record see if this run and gun offense with a 5ft center is going to win you a championship come play off time. Boy you’ll be thinking about what I’ve said if they havnt shored up the center spot by then. There are other posts here if you bother reading saying the same shit in many ways.. I don’t focus on the record as much as I do on the state of this team being completely prepared come play offs.
January 1st, 2011 at 12:07 am
@ed, How’s the rent there?
January 1st, 2011 at 12:08 am
How’s the rent there?
January 1st, 2011 at 12:10 am
@ ed, Directed to you. How’s the rent there?
January 1st, 2011 at 12:38 am
Fred
December 31st, 2010 at 11:07 pm
“Our offense has variations from guard plays to kick outs and steady diets of P&R.”
The Suns did everything you just mentioned. We are concerned because a fast paced offense generally does not translate well in the postseason. What happens to our offense when the game slows down or when our threes aren’t falling? What happens when the Lakers figure out not to have Kobe attempt 27 highly contested shots and instead simply pound it into Gasol and Bynum like they did against the Celtics last June?
Teams need strong post play in May and June to keep winning and many aren’t convinced that Duncan is enough to beat Gasol, Bynum, Oden, and the other bigs we will face. This is why the development of Splitter and Blair is so vital. Faced paced offenses are fun, but we need more than that to win against the big teams unless we think Duncan can revert to MVP Tim.
January 1st, 2011 at 1:15 am
@ Hobson
Good point there, bro. However, I will nuance my post. The variations I’m saying is that we’re not solely relying on TD’s low post game anymore. We can, if we want to go to Timmy, as we have seen last night in the 3rd quarter, when Timmy got 3 consecutive plays on the block. What I’m saying, in a larger context is that we have the luxury on attacking on different angels not just a one-dimensional attack that comes from Timmy in the post. As I have observed, this remodeled offense still has Timmy’s low post in it, but we are emphasizing too on quick outlet passes, motion offense and good good ball rotation, having those kinds of play does not erase Timmy’s value in our offensive attack.
Remember last year in the early part of the regular season, Timmy carried us, and then slowly faded in the last stretch of the long season grind (maybe Manu’s resurgence has to do with it). Nevertheless, this team is much capable of competing offensively that the previous Spurs teams that we had (maybe caused by Timmy’s slow decline due to age and wear and tear). What I’m saying is that we are a much complete team on offense, as seen in our offensive production. I believe in basketball there has to be a balance too. And our offense right now points to that balance, although, as of the moment we see less touches from our big men, I believe as the season winds down we will see Timmy’s resurgence again (e.i., Dallas series last season).
Remember last year’s finals? Majority of Boston’s offense came from their guards and wing players, KG has touches, but his real value came from defense and rebounding, they did not lost because of lack of inside scoring, it was due to their rebounding and inside defense. What we are seeing right now with the Spurs with small ball will vary on our opponent. We played the Lakers with a conventional line up of forward and center playing alongside, rather than a small forward (RJ) playing the 4 spot. I think defense is a much bigger concern right now than offense.
January 1st, 2011 at 1:31 am
@titletown…I seriously doubt you are a spurs fan…I would hazzard to guess you are a lakers fan. If i’m mistaken, I don’t appologise, rather, I ask you to redirect your hating to other parts of your life other than this blog. How on Earth can you be pissed at the team this year? Its a rhetorical question bud, no response required.
January 1st, 2011 at 2:21 am
@ Hobson13 and Fred
Last year’s suns almost went to game 7 if that Artest rebound and put back didn’t go in for them.
I can see the concern that our Spurs this year is very similar to the run and gun, three point shooting Suns. There are important differences.
One. The Suns have Nash and the emergence of Dragic to break down the defense and create for others. Dragic actually isn’t that good at least last year in creating for others. For us, we have Tony, Manu, Hill, and Neal in our team first philosophy.
Secondly, the suns have Amare and we have TD. TD is much greater in defense and rebounding.
Third, as I pointed earlier, our team culture places a much higher emphasis on defense than the Suns ever had.
Fourth, we ARE developing Splitter. I was one of those who advocated early on in the posts why we aren’t playing splitter. I became convinced that because of the length of the spanish league’s season, and the amount of basketball he’s played this year (world championships) and his injury that he needs rest. I see Splitter as a lottery pick type of player and thought he should get the amount of time that a lottery pick gets, even in a team like the Spurs. My view has changed. He is developing in practice time, with the coaching stuff, with TD/Dyess etc., and in limited minutes for now. IF he doesn’t get more time towards the end of the season - there is a greater need for concern. BUT historically, the Spurs have never failed to get better by the end of the season. The Spurs have always been a better second half team because they work hard towards getting better. This includes season where it seems unlikely for the Spurs to improve as well. 2008 for the “old” spurs to beat the hornets. Last year, for them to beat the 2nd seeded Mavericks.
The Spurs know offensively they are great. They also know that in the past they beat these offensively great but weak defensive teams. They know defense wins championships and they need to, and will, have to improve their defense and interior play. And win or lose, we will stand by this team because this team is our team and they work hard. If they don’t win, which may not happen, it won’t be because of a lack of heart and effort.
January 1st, 2011 at 2:28 am
Neal … I think it’s less about knowing those guys (everyone who has scouts in Europe must have known him) than trusting them to be able to play in the NBA. Which is what seperates the Spurs from others. There are more Americans in Europe that can add a Neal-like contribution or even more. Keith Langford and Bo McCalebb are next. Dramatically improved their decision making and pick and roll game.
January 1st, 2011 at 2:52 am
Defensive Stats of certain teams this season:
LA: 2nd in RPG ……….@ 44.58 ( DIFF: +3.12)
Miami: 7th in PRG …..@ 42.82 (DIFF: +2.76)
SA: 8th in RPG ………..@ 42.63 (DIFF: +1.29)
ORL: 10th in RPG ……..@ 42.27 (DIFF: +3.57)
DLS: 13th in RPG …….@ 41.87 (DIFF: +0.32)
BSTN: 27th in RPG ….@ 39.32 (DIFF: +1.29)
Miami: 9th in BPG @ 5.50 (DIFF: +3.00)
SA: 12th in BPG …..@ 5.09 (DIFF: +0.12)
LA: 16th in BPG …..@ 4.88 (DIFF: -0.12)
DLS: 19th in BPG …@ 4.52 (DIFF: +0.87)
ORL: 23rd in BPG ..@ 4.42 (DIFF: +0.36)
BSTN: 26th in BPG @ 4.26 (DIFF: +0.39)
SA: 5th in SPG ……..@ 8.41 (DIFF: +1.78)
BSTN: 6th in SPG …@ 8.23 (DIFF: +1.26)
LA: 9th in SPG ……..@ 7.85 (DIFF: +0.18)
DLS: 15th in SPG ….@ 7.29 (DIFF: 0.00)
Miami: 25th in SPG @ 6.68 (DIFF: +0.21)
ORL: 28th in SPG …@ 6.24 (DIFF: -1.15)
In PPG DIFF SA is ranked #2 @ +8.28. #1 in 3PT%, and #4 in APG…
Out of the above 6 teams San Antonio is ranked in the top 3 in each category in the defensive stats. I think simply looking @ OPP FG% and saying based on that alone, San Antonio is not a good defensive squad is a very one dimensional view…
The term, “need to get a stop,” used when a team is scoring baskets on your’s, means to not allow the other team to score… Not only by playing good man on man defense and hounding a player so that you diminish his FG%, but in other “hustle” ways such as the above stats…
January 1st, 2011 at 3:00 am
Also…
In the games San Antonio has won, it seems as if when needed, they’ve been able to get those “stops.” As the season moves along, I see the Spurs starting to learn each other much better and figuring our their rotations on defense. As they each become more in “tune” wich each other’s games, they’ll know where their team mates are going to be moving on d. If they can focus their efforts for a full 48 minutes, then I think they will be able to lower that OPP FG% towards the end of the season… But for now, the game plan is simple: PROGRESS!
January 1st, 2011 at 4:22 am
crap… 28-4 and all you guys wanna do is piss on it
hell people!!!
there is not one team in the league that doesnt wish they were 28-4
there arent any fans of those teams who wish they werent 28-4
yet most of these posts are criticizing this or that @ my beloved(win or lose) spurs
28-4 man o man i for one am lovin it
i dont care if we beat the mavs w/out dirk by 1 point or 20 points we still won the game nor do i care if or what other fans think or say everyone seems to have just given the title to miami
well ok whatever, i know when the playoffs start
barring some major injury the SPURS will be there to give it their all and win or lose they are still
MY FAVORITE TEAM
GO SPURS GO
January 1st, 2011 at 4:27 am
one more thing,,,
coach pop knows better than all of us
just what this team is made of
28-4 and he knows it
January 1st, 2011 at 5:17 am
For those worried about the Spurs defense in this game…look at the box score.
Despite Kidd’s triple double…15 attempts/12 points.
Stevenson…3 A’s / 3 points
Marion…7 A’s / 10 points
Terry…16 A’s / 8 points
Cardinal…5 A’s / 9 points (3 of those were 3 point attempts)
Chandler…4 A’s / 8 points. (perhaps Mavs should have thrown in the block more? Or perhaps the Spurs post defense against him was too good to get it to Chandler)
Oh…and the big Mahinmi that some wish were still here….DNP coaches decision. Same as Haywood.
All in all…pretty fine defense if you ask me.
Spurs offense? Considering the Mavericks are a much improved defensive team, they did a good job of keeping the Spurs at bay. However, this game said a lot about the depth this team has in the O department as it was one of it’s all around weakest offensive performances of the year yet they still won.
Imagine that. The Spurs don’t have a top offensive game and win against a really good team on the road. Could it have been the defense that helped win this game?
But I regress…perhaps numbers do lie and the Spurs have no answer to defending really good teams.
January 1st, 2011 at 7:33 am
@ Fred
“Remember last year’s finals? Majority of Boston’s offense came from their guards and wing players, KG has touches, but his real value came from defense and rebounding, they did not lost because of lack of inside scoring, it was due to their rebounding and inside defense.”
At this point of his career KG is a much better 15-20ft jump shooter than post up player. So he can and did get plenty of looks right where he wanted and needed them.
@ Flavor
@ your “Defensive Stats of certain teams this season:” Post.
The only defensive stats that actually mean anything are RPG, opponents PPG, and opponents FG%. So basically are you contesting shots and can you keep the other team off the glass and secure the defensive rebound. Everything else u mentioned can and is Very misleading.
@ r.l.manuel
“one more thing,,,
coach pop knows better than all of us
just what this team is made of
28-4 and he knows it”
Then by your logic POP also knew that the 2008 and 2009 team weren’t good enough to hack it and did nothing to correct the problem? If he knows what we are made of then we should have MORE titles!
Let me finish with this. There is nothing wrong with early and easy offense. If one of our smalls has a layup or easy floater in the lane then take it. But I have no idea why we would want o live with early 3 point attempts. Those are never easy and usually lead to poor transition Defense. Which if you combine with our lack of talent on the Def. end, since Bowen and Horry retired, is just puzzling. We run plenty of plays in the half court for our guards. PLENTY, just watch the games and look for the Indy G curl screen into the lane play or the TP back door cut play or the RJ oop play. Hell even the Bonner needs to get a 3 pointer off play where he flashes to the corner. If they can run plays for them(which generally means that this is half-court offense, not fast break) then run a few for the big men to keep them involved and hustling on D.
And POP not playing Splitter is just him being Stubborn as a mule right now…… Either that or he really thinks Splitter can hack it - none of this scared of getting hurt crap…… How many European players are in the NBA now and are just fine.
January 1st, 2011 at 9:22 am
Regan-
“we ARE developing Splitter.” Uh, that’s another DNP in the last game… we are developing Blair (if you want to know what a developing a player looks like) and, in that game he got benched because it wasn’t working and the game was too close.
Has anybody noticed that we don’t mess Anderson too much. On this roster he is our b/u SF, but Manu, Hill, and Neal are such a formidable 3 guard combination that our backup SF position is largely irrelevent. Other 3 guard combos work well too, and in a true small ball lineup RJ is an effective #4… however, that is the proof that we are NOT developing Tiago Splitter. Aside from shaving Bonner’s unexpected rise in minutes, which admittedly, he has largely earned, giving Tiago regular minutes in interior dominant lineups is something we just aren’t seeing, haven’t seen, and can’t really say that we will see.
We beat a dallas team w/o their leading MVP candidate and only allstar… a win we needed for various reasons, yet was a close game. We beat an LA team, in a game in which Phil was either experimenting or proving a point, and has gone on to start Bynum and see him play very, very well. Nice on the ledger, but hardly statement games for SA.
January 1st, 2011 at 9:39 am
Flavor-
Nice use of selective stats. Stats may not tell the whole story, given that the Spurs are improving. But rather than progress, I see streakiness as a trend all season long, and stats do measure the overall trend. That said, I think we are improving and will improve. But, make no mistake, significant improvement is needed.
Dallas’s defense may not be able to stop our offense, but it will look differently when they are energized through good offense, and clutch offense at that, of their own… still it may not be enough. But take a look at Miami and Boston. And tell us how we will stop a healthy LA team that plays to their strengths instead of to Kobe’s ego (which must be done as Barkley, Steve Smith, and C-Webb have all stated… because it’s so obvious that even I figured that out all by myself.)
Regular season records guarantee nothing as we all know. Elite defense coincides with championships as we all know, and is always rated by metrics you failed to report.
January 1st, 2011 at 10:03 am
@ TD = Best EVER
I agree with you that we really need to develop a constant offensive thrust in the post. But, as we have seen right now, the team is best built with Manu and TP as our catalysts. This is the only year since our last championship that Manu and TP are playing not hobbled by injuries or coming from injuries. And we have all seen the results. The team has accepted this transition, even Timmy. Timmy still gets his touches, albeit limited. I think at this point of the year, I’m glad that Timmy is playing limited minutes and touches. This points that we don’t need to rely heavily on Timmy’s post game just to squeeze a win. I’m happy that Timmy, for most part of 4th quarters he was on the bench. Timmy still plays an integral part within this newly defined offense that the Spurs are running, what change, however, is that he is not the focal point of this offense. Which I think is good for our team, this could also limit Tim’s wear and tear. And, if low post scoring is important, we also have to integrate Rj more in our offense. What we need is a little tweaking of our offense, to accommodate our big men, but it’s just part of a larger whole.
I think we have to remember that for the last 3 seasons, one or two of our big 3 were injured or coming from injuries. Now we see a healthy and fully rested big 3, and the results are seen in our standing. I think Pop has learned a lot with the Phoenix series last season. He knew that he cannot just rely on Timmy on the post or Manu’s slashing ability. But he needs a Team that can score on any given night. The Suns’ bench killed us last year. That’s the big difference. And for people who are saying that run and gun teams are not meant for the post season, look at the Suns last year. They held their own with the Lakers. But what separates us from Phoenix is our emphasis on defense. If we can score at this pace and rate in the post season, and our defense hit its stride. We’re hard to beat.
January 1st, 2011 at 10:49 am
How are the stats misleading? I didn’t make them up…
@ TD = Best Ever
RPG, OPP FG%, and OPP PPG, are the only stats that matters??? what proof do you have of this claim?
January 1st, 2011 at 11:25 am
Flavor-
“what proof do you have of this claim?”
Would YOU like to offer data showing a relevant correlation between shot-blocking, steals, and championships?
The Spurs have consistently measured as a mid-pack defensive team all season long… the history regarding how this correlates to championships is forboding. On the season, only the lakers, who are better offensively, are worse than the Spurs defensively among the 6 contenders. Those same Lakers who are much different team when Kobe isn’t trying to re-establish himself as an MVP, but are the dominant inside team that has won the west 3 years and counting, in contrast to our own standings leader who has yet to prove much of anything in the playoffs as currently constructed.
January 1st, 2011 at 11:29 am
Last season everyone was saying “our defense will come” and it never came. So don’t tell me it is to early to plug in Splitter into the starting linup. He will at least alter shots, if not blocking them. He knows how to position himself and take charge if needed. And dont give me the crap about “it’s taking time to learn Spurs sistem”. Go back and watch the games and tell me how often Tiago was missing rotations and defensive asingments. Guy is smart and he just needs playing time and some offensive touches to get his confidence going.
January 1st, 2011 at 11:35 am
@ Flavor
1 mistake I made - it’s not RPG - faster paced teams may get more boards because they take more shots. It’s Rebounding Differential. And good Defensive teams are positive in the stat usually.
“How are the stats misleading? I didn’t make them up…”
Not as in you made the up, but more that they don’t tell you who the better Defensive teams are.
For example NY and Memphis lead the league in blocks and steals respectfully. And neither one are in the TOP 10 on Defense.
“RPG, OPP FG%, and OPP PPG, are the only stats that matters??? what proof do you have of this claim?”
Just watch basketball and listen to the analysis. Boston and Miami are 2 the top and Points per game against. OPP FG% and Rebounding Differential and 2 stats that usually lead to your Opp PPG. If you hold teams in the low 40% range and are positive in rebounding margin(not allowing 2nd chance points) then you are going to hold opponents to low scoring totals. And that’s what defense boils down to(how many points you give up a game).
January 1st, 2011 at 11:43 am
Also just to add - Golden State and Washington are 2nd and 3rd in Steals. They reach in and gamble in the passing lanes a lot… Not exactly sound defensive principles.
January 1st, 2011 at 1:21 pm
@Titledouche….tell me, does posting the same ignorant thing 2 or 3 times somehow make the post less ignorant? I wonder why your so mad? Did I dare “question your fan-dom?” Awwwww, too bad. I said what I believe, deal with it and stop crying ’cause someone dared call you out.
January 1st, 2011 at 1:28 pm
I’ve seen several posts about the Spurs Offense comparing it to the Suns, Knicks, etc. Look the Spurs offense is not on par with those teams from the standpoint of mindless hoisting up of whatever shot you can get as fast as you can get it. Compared to past SPURS teams it may look like a track meet but, like everything with Pop, it’s well-thought out and measured. Further, the Spurs defense may not be up to Spurs standards of the past but it’s LIGHT YEARS ahead of any of these other run ‘n gun teams and absolutely can stiffen in the 4th qrtr. Teams like the Suns, for example, may play decent “D” occasionally but when the game is on the line revert back to who they really are…a bad defense. They’re giving up a fe more points but scoring way more too.
January 1st, 2011 at 4:58 pm
TD=B.E.
Who led the league in Opp PPG last season? Charlotte Bobcats! Where did the Lakers finish? 9th! The Lakers did finish slightly ahead of the Bobcats for FG % in 5th place, the Celtics coming in 9th. The Lakers had 175 more total rebounds than their opponents last season, the Spurs outrebounded their opponents by 267 and the Grizzlies by 310.
Based on just better statistics, this season the Bucks, the Bobcats, the 76ers, etc. all look like they’re better defensive teams than the Spurs. I don’t expect any of those teams to go further in the playoffs than the Spurs. When it comes right down to it, whoever wins the last game wins it all regardless of the stats.
January 1st, 2011 at 6:07 pm
The Spurs have always been a 3PT threat type of team they just chose to go inside to Duncan because it made more sense against those teams that couldn’t stop him ie Suns, Mavs, and Nuggets… It seems to me that there are 5 or 6 TRUE Spurs fans on this blog… to all you negative, undercover LA fans… keep that sh*t off the Spurs website… I can tell just by the comments how many of you have ACTUALLY seen all 32 games… and just to name a few its not tdlife, TD=Best Ever, MANUFAN or titletown…If you don’t have League Pass if your not in SA and you posting comments only on occasions that they play on national television… your not a true fan… no matter what you think or say SA is going to prove CBarkley and all you other non-believers wrong… Keep your negativity to yourself you self absorbed idiots…
Go SpUr$ gO
Leave a Reply