Spurs of the Moment

After Going 8-0 in the playoffs, the Spurs faced the up and coming OKC team. This team was obviously young, lacked a true lowpost presence, and was beatable ( Spurs won season series 2-1). The Spurs jumped out to a 2-0 series lead, but this time it was slightly different. In the first 2 games of the last few series the Spurs manhandled their opponent. In game one verses the Thunder, the Spurs were knocked back in the first 3 quarters, until the offense of Ginobili and the defense of Stephen Jackson bailed them out for a late victory. In game two, the Spurs returned the favor and got out to a convincing lead. The Thunder never gave up and fought back only to lose by 9. The end of game 2 spelled possible trouble for the rest of the series. After defensive adjustments by the Thunder and poorly timed meltdowns from Spur role players the Thunder won four games straight and ended the Spurs season and advanced to the NBA Finals.

All in all a very succesfull season for the Spurs. The young guns contributed much more than expected and gave the Spurs a reason to believe in the future. With Tim Duncan’s hefty contract coming off the books and a good chance he’ll resign for significantly cheaper, the Spurs have an opportunity to pick up better, mentally tougher role players to replace some of the ones that didnt fair well.

Tim Duncan -  17 pts  9.8 rbs  2.3 blks

The numbers look good, but the reality is that Duncan got those numbers by playing more minutes than he usually does. The lowpost defense of Kendrick Perkins and shotblocking ability of Serge Ibaka had Duncan playing indecisive and at times soft. Kevin Garnett of the Celtics shoots jumpers without hesitation, for a while Duncan did just that. In the WCF, Duncan hesitated and was unsure of what he wanted to do. Eventually Duncan ran out of gas (most notably in the second half of game 6).

Kawhi Leonard – 8.8 pts 7.3 rbs

Leonard did pretty much everything you can ask from a rookie, especially in this series. He did his best to defend Kevin Durant. He played a lot of power forward next to Duncan at center but still held his own on the boards. More amazing is the circumstances he did it in. During this series, lineup changes were made because most of the role players couldn’t handle the pressure that OKC was throwing at them, which lead to DNP-CD’s and limited minutes for them. Because of this, Leonards minutes were increased (41 minutes in game 6 / 30 min avg for series) and he performed well.

Boris Diaw – 5.8 pts 4.8 rbs

Diaw didnt really do anything negative in the series, he also didnt do much positive as well. Basically he didnt do much of anything. His basketball IQ and passing really didnt lead to much production; some games he rebounded well, others he didn’t. He wasn’t running around making poor plays, but he wasn’t a difference maker and simply ate up minutes this series.

Tony Parker – 21.5 pts 6.3 ast

Parker against Westbrook was a key to the Spurs winning this series. Westbrook at times forces the issue and forgets about his teammates (Durant in particular). If Parker simply ran the show and didnt make it a one on one game I figured the Spurs would be poised to win. In games 1-2 and 6 Parker went after Westbrook, the problem was that more than half the role players that Parker had at his disposal during the regular season went missing in action. Parker had to work a lot harder in the latter part of the series and although he had a sensational first half in game 6 (21 pts 10 ast/ finished with 29 pts/12 ast) he along with the remaining Spurs got tired and worn down by the athletic Thunder.

Manu Ginobili 18.5 pts  3.3 ast 3.8 rbs

After coming off the bench for most of the season and playoffs, Ginobili – being one of the few Spurs that had heart – started game 5 of the series. Manu immediately had an impact and poured in 34 pts, but it wasn’t enough for the Spurs to win the pivotal game 5. In game 6 Ginobili played more minutes than he was used to and didnt have alot to give en route to a 107-99 loss to the Thunder. While his scoring in the series was up and down, Ginobili did what he could in other areas of the game as usual. However, like many of the Spurs ballhandlers/playmakers the length and athleticism of the Thunder forced him into  ill-advised turnovers.

The Bench

Stephen Jackson – 11.8 pts 61% 3pt fg

It had been a decent run in the playoffs for Jack, but when the chips were down he rose to the occasion. In game 1 Kevin Durant needed to be held in check and thats exactly what Jackson did. On the defensive end he got “Nasty” with Durant and hit a momentum shifting three pointer and helped the Spurs win game 1. In game 6 he showed true grit. With the Spurs bench cut in half due too poor play, Jackson logged big minutes and produced 5/6 from behind the arc and refused to go down without a fight. He jawed with TNT analyst and Thunder assistant coach Mo Cheeks, and gave it his all. It’s no secret why the Spurs traded for him.

Gary Neal – 6.5 pts 48% 3pt fg

Neal, battling illness for the latter part of the series, did what he could. He shot well, but the athletic Westbrook and the veteran Derek Fisher got the best of him. Going forward, hopefully his ballhandling and defense will improve next season.

The Spurs bench had been so dominant in the regular season and playoffs, which helped to keep the big 3′s minutes down.  Tiago Splitter struggled with his free throws and overall play. Dejuan Blair could barely get playing time, and all this left too much on Duncan’s plate. Most notable however, was the decline of Danny Green and Matt Bonner. Green is a streaky shooter, but he was also hesitant and unsure of himself. His minutes were starting to dwindle after game 2 and by game 5 he was out of the starting lineup seeing spot minutes off the bench. His defense wasn’t bad, but his indecisive play on offense cost him. As for Matt Bonner who was key in this series because of his ability to draw out the Thunder’s big men once again came up short in pressure situations. For Matt Bonner its been four straight years of solid regular season play and in those same four seasons, terrible outings in the playoffs. Pop usually allows Bonner to work himself out of funks, but this time he pulled the string. Bonner played 2 minutes in game 4, 50 seconds in game 5 and was benched in game 6. The Spurs may try to part ways with the red rocket for a more reliable playoff shooter.

It was a succesful season, but the Spurs have many big decisions to make. It starts with who to keep and who to get rid of. Duncan will most likely resign for cheaper allowing the Spurs to get a quality playoff performer. Is there another draft day trade in the works for San Antonio? Will Danny Green be resigned? Will Matt Bonner be dealt? Time will tell.

Sweeping the Jazz is one thing, but playing the Clippers who have big guys that are more athletic and a point guard who is arguably the best in the league is a different story altogether. The combination of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan had the Los Angeles Clippers dubbed “LOB CITY”. The Spurs with their own combination of fundamentals, experience and execution had them dubbed “unbeatable” by many in the national media. It was simply a matter of Skills over Hops in the Spurs 4-game sweep of the Clippers.

Tim Duncan -  21 pts / 9.2 rbs

Step through, upfake, reverse pivot, turnaround jumper and last but not least the bank shot. Tim Duncan told Blake Griffin to take a seat, because class was in session. Duncan did good work on the boards and made sure to take away the easy buckets that Griffin and Jordan get off of Cp3′s penetration. But offensively was where Duncan did most of his damage. All the athleticism of Griffin and Jordan had no chance to match the Fundamentals and skill of the greatest power forward ever.

Kawhi Leonard 10 pts 6.6 rbs 2 stls

Leonard shined in this series more so than the last. Given the assignment to guard an ailing Caron Butler worked to his advantage. He did a decent job there, but defending Chris Paul was where Leonard showed promise of being an outstanding defensive player. Cp3 and all his dribbles couldn’t shake the 6-7 Leonard. In addition to his defense his shooting from 3-pt range continues to be vital to the Spurs success.

Boris Diaw 7.5 pts 6.2 rbs

In the very first game of the series, Diaw outmuscled the big men of the Clippers to a game high 12 rbs. For the rest of the series Diaw played smart and grounded “Air Griffin”.

Tony Parker 17.3 pts 7.8 ast

Playing against Chris Paul has always inspired Parker to raise his game. In his second series against Chris Paul, Parker went after him from the tip and either outscored or handed out more assists than Paul. In game 1 he  struggled scoring but still handed out 11 ast. In the pivotal game 3 with it being nip tuck in the first 2 quarters(Spurs down by 24) Parker helped the Spurs win with a 23 pt/10 ast effort .

Danny Green 12.2pts 4rbs

Being 1 of 3 players that had the assignment of guarding the elusive Chris Paul, Green along with Leonard and Parker, shut down the penetration of Paul and contested every shot. Like Leonard, Green lit it up from 3-pt range shooting over 40%.

The Bench

Manu Ginobili 14.2 pts 4.5 ast

After going through a slump in the first round, Ginobili appeared to be closer to his normal self. With a 22 pt outburst in the first game Ginobili was able to get back on track offensively leading to him scoring in double figures in all 4 games. Not to be ignored was his playmaking (4.5 ast). With the Clippers quick guards hounding backup point guard Gary Neal  at times,  Ginobili quarterbacked the Spurs 2nd unit.

Tiago Splitter  7.2 pts  84% fg

After having solid outings in games 3 and 4 of the first round, Splitter took on a new challenge of banging with physical LA. Splitter held his own. While his shooting percentage from the free throw line has to improve for him to be a valuable asset in the fourth quarter of games, Splitter’s field goal percentage was an incredible 84%; This showed his basketball IQ. Being able to shoot such a high percentage against some of the most physical and athletic big men in the business is a credit to his craftiness around the basket.

Gary Neal 8.2 pts  47% 3pt fg

Neal was harrassed at times by the quick backcourt of the Clippers, but managed to put up points. Neal shot a good percent from deep and made timely baskets. He’s having trouble on the defensive end, but hopefully being matched up with Derek Fisher in then next round will be a reasonable defensive assignment for him.

Stephen Jackson and Matt Bonner found themselves riding the pine for a nice portion of the series. Both had their moments; Jackson did well in game 4 by making plays for others off the dribble and Bonner has sprinkled in a few buckets. The increased production of both Kawhi Leonard and Boris Diaw took the majority of minutes available next to Duncan in the frontcourt. The Thunder team is deep and has shotblockers, so expect to see Bonner play more of a role in drawing out the bigs (especially Ibaka). As for Jackson, his length along Leonard’s will be very important in containing Durant.

AT&T Center

Spurs vs Thunder

Tim Duncan F Serge Ibaka

Kawhi Leonard F Kevin Durant

Boris Diaw C Kendrick Perkins

The Thunder and the Spurs are pretty evenly matched, however the Spurs have a lowpost presence and multiple scorers and shotmakers. The experience factor and the their ability to “easily” score in the halfcourt will give them the winning edge.

Around this time a year ago the Spurs were swallowing an embarrasing first round exit at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies. Getting beat in the first round is definitely demoralizing when you factor having the best record in the Western Conference and obvious championship aspirations to go with it. Many were wondering if this was the last run for the Big 3. Would Parker be traded? Was Duncan too old? Was Ginobili too fragile? Would the Spurs as a whole survive a fast-paced 66 game season?

Those questions were quickly answered, especially after the All Star break. Tony Parker was not traded and he masterfully ran the show for the Spurs en route to a league leading offense (2nd in points and among top 5 in offensive effeciency). Tim Duncan took a few sips from the fountain of youth and played solid in the second half of the season. Manu Ginobili, although hurt during the regular season, went into the playoffs rested and got through the first round healthy for the first time since the Spurs’ 2007 playoff run. And the team as whole. with key additions and youth, once again obtained the best record in the West.

The STARTERS

Tim Duncan – 14.3 pts 8.8 rbs 1.7 blks in 30 mins a game

Remember that song by Cher, “If I could turn back time”? It seems Tim Duncan looked in the closet and pulled out the 2005 version of himself. The jumper, the drive and the moves on the block have been pretty consistent. But the defense is what’s been outstanding; holding Al Jefferson (in some ways a younger version of himself) has been impressive. Contesting shots, bodying him up on the block and not biting on fakes has made Tim Duncan a monster on defense.

Kawhi Leonard 7 pts 3.3 rbs 40% from 3 pt range in 20 mins a game

I expected Leonard to get a few starts in the regular season but getting minutes in the playoffs would be hard to come by. I was wrong and Kawhi started the second half of the season on into the playoffs. Offensively, game two was his best outing when he scored 17 points. Defensively he has been matched up against Josh Howard most of the time. How did he fair? He held the one time All Star to under 4 points and 29% shooting from the field for the series.

Boris Diaw 5.5 pts 4.8 rbs 60% fg in 24 mins a game

Diaw was definitely a “forgotten man” as the great Marv Albert would say. Cast away in Charlotte and not getting along with the coach, his contract was bought out. With a little coaxing from his best bud Tony Parker he signed with the Spurs and worked his way into the starting lineup. Diaw although not very tall has the “girth” to defend post players and has Lamar Odom like skills on offense. He layed low in this series by simply playing solid and effecient. He shot well, defended well, and currently for the playoffs is the Spurs 2nd best rebounder after 4 games.

Tony Parker 21.3 pts 6.5 ast 50% fg in 33 mins a game

Parker was by far the driving force in the first two games. After being outplayed by Mike Conley last season, Parker took on a bigger challenge in Devin harris. Harris, although having trouble adjusting to the flex offense in Utah, is still as quick (maybe slightly quicker) than Parker and has at times gotten the best of parker on the court. Parker torched Harris and also held him to 13 pts and under 4 ast a game. Harris also shot a poor 40% from the field. Stopping Parker’s penetration was impossible in the first two games and as for the games in Utah, Parker made jumpshots and key plays when needed.

Danny Green 8.5 pts 4 rbs 1 blk in 25 mins a game

Danny Green was another surprise starter going into the playoffs. Offensively, Green did a decent job of scoring by hitting a few open 3s and making plays off the dribble. Defensively, Green did his best Bowen impression and was a pest to Utah’s 3rd leading scorer Gordon Hayward. He held Hayward to 7 points shooting only 18% from the field. The Bowen effect was definitely in play; Hayward is probably still having nightmares about being defended by Green.

The BENCH

Stephen Jackson 10 pts 3.8 rbs 53% from 3 pt range in 25 mins a game

The Prodigal son returned. Whenever you trade a guy who goes into hiding during crunchtime (Jefferson) for a guy who says “I still make love to pressure” and is familiar with Spurs basketball, your in pretty good shape. During the playoffs Jackson stepped up his game defensively by defending Paul Millsap when the Jazz went with their big frontline, and offensively by going 31% from the 3 pt range in the regular season to 53% in the playoffs.

Tiago Splitter 8 pts 3.7 rbs in 15 mins game

The injury bug bit Tiago Splitter a bit and he had to miss game two because of a bruised hand. However, Splitter came back strong in games 3 & 4 scoring ten points in each game. Splitter’s length gives Coach Popovich a reliable back up to Duncan and the option of running the twin tower lineup that fans have been begging for.

Manu Ginobili 8.5 pts 3.5 rbs 4.5 ast in 25 mins a game

Ginobili for a while couldnt throw a beach ball in the ocean, but it really didn’t matter because games 1 & 2 were blowouts. In game 4 Ginobili got on track by pouring in a series high 17 points and hitting a couple of 3s in the process. But game 3 was really where Ginobili showed his value. His shot still wasn’t falling but Ginobili stayed relevant and active by handing out ten assists with only one turnover off the bench.

Gary Neal / Matt Bonner / Dejuan Blair

All three helped the cause, Neal and Bonner by shooting over 50% from 3 pt range and Blair by filling in for the injured Tiago Splitter in game 2 where he recorded 10 pts & 7 rbs. Bonner really battled defending the physical frontline of  the Jazz while still hitting a solid percent (50%) from 3. Neal being thrust into the backup point guard role has done a decent job of running the team and has contributed offensively like expected (8.3 pts 56% 3 pt fg). Blair is the surprise, after lossing his starting job and place in the rotation Blair came in with a mature, professional attitude and took care of business whenever his number was called. The Spurs bench as a whole dominated the Jazz. Lets hope the that continues on to the next round.

The Playoffs are under way and the Spurs are set to tip off Game One today against the Memphis Grizzlies. I expect nothing short of total domination from San Antonio. Manu Ginobili may be playing in game one afterall, so that should just solidify things for the Spurs.

I am a little late in doing this, but I’m going to post a quick list of playoff predictions, complete with Spurs bias:

Round One:

San Antonio over Memphis
Portland over Dallas
LA over New Orleans
Oklahoma City over Denver

New York over Boston
Miami over Philadelphia
Orlando over Atlanta
Chicago over Indiana

Conference Semis:

San Antonio over Oklahoma City
LA over Portland

New York over Miami
Chicago over Orlando

Conference Finals:

San Antonio over LA
Chicago over New York

Finals:

San Antonio over Chicago

Something like that anyway… I am not as confident in some of these picks as I’d like to be, but I am confident in the Spurs.

Well today is the day. LA Lakers vs Boston Celtics.. again. Call me crazy, but I am going to go out on a limb and make predictions one more time this season. I nailed the first round, and most of the Western Conference. However, my underestimation of the Boston Celtics pretty much ruined my bracket. I say no more! This time I am going to call it and get it right, so here goes.

Backcourt:
Kobe Bryant is among the best players in the NBA ever, and Ray Allen is among the best shooters in the NBA ever. They seem to share a mutual dislike for eachother dating back to Ray Allen’s days in Seattle, if not further. Kobe will be forced to run around and defend him all series or try to shut down Rajon Rondo instead. Rondo is making a case for himself being considered the best point guard in the league. The only problem is that he is banged up and the Celtics need him to run the show or they will be in trouble. They got a lift from Nate Robinson in Game 6 against Orlando, but that can’t be expected to work all series against LA. Derek Fisher is the weakest link here for either team, but that isn’t saying much as he is not a very mistake prone player and has a knack for hitting a timely shot or two in crunch time.

Frontcourt:
Lamar Odom and Ron Artest will be bothersome to say the least. Paul Pierce had his way with the Lakers pre-Ariza/Artest era, but it’s a different situation now. If Pierce can get going at all in this series it will help to keep Artest less active on offense, but the jury is out on how effective either can be against each other. KG has obviously lost a step since the Celtics won in 2008, but he has learned to adjust quite well. I’m sure it helps when you have a decent supporting cast around you. The question is how they will contain Pau Gasol. Presumably, Kendrick Perkins will do the honors of guarding Gasol most of the time, and that would be fine but there is one worrisome factor here. Perkins is one tech short of a one game suspension. Can he keep under control enough to not get T’d up or ejected? Then there’s Bynum who is still having problems with his knee. How effective can he be? I’m guessing not as effective as Rasheed Wallace - and that’s not saying much.

Bench:
Both teams have decent benches that can give them a boost when needed. Odom may start with Bynum having issues with the knee, but the Lakers also have Farmar, Shannon Brown, and Adam Morrison (just kidding). The Celtics can lean on Tony Allen sometimes (of course that could mean a timely five points or untimely five turnovers), and Nate Robinson in the backcourt, with Rasheed and Glen Davis in the frontcourt.

Coach:
Then there’s the Phil Jackson factor. Phil is a far better coach than Rivers, but Doc has surprised me lately. He is doing all the right things and navigated the Eastern Conference with relative ease.

In the end, I think the Celtics have the edge. They beat Orlando and Cleveland without home court so I don’t see why they couldn’t beat LA in a series format that arguably favors the road team. My prediction: Celtics in 6

Here’s an interesting article about why the Spurs are better off with RJ than their original goal of Vince Carter. From retaining the draft rights to Tiago Splitter, the salaries, and Vince’s epic choke at the free throw line this past week, it looks like the Spurs got the better deal with Jefferson. Honestly, that’s not saying a lot about RJ so much as it’s an indictment of Vince Carter’s overall uselessness.

In other news, it appears that Spurs assistant coach, Mike Budenholzer, is one of the candidates on the Cavaliers wish-list to fill their recent head coach vacancy. Mike Brown was fired earlier this week after being thoroughly out-coached by Doc Rivers. Actually, I think Brown out-coached himself more than anything with silly lineups that failed to address their matchup issues with Boston. Either way, Budenholzer is a worthy candidate, and while I don’t like to see competent people leave the Spurs, I don’t want to see them get held back either. I think it comes down to how much the Spurs want to keep him for when Popovich decides to step down.

Tonight Boston will have the chance to close out their series against the Magic in Orlando. I think the Magic threw their best punch and it was barely enough. They can’t be riding too high after that victory and the Celtics will most likely finish them off. Phoenix also won last night and evened their series with the Lakers. They’ll head back to LA for game five and hopefully be able to keep that zone defense working.

First off, here are the Spurs.com top 10 highlights of the season. Some good stuff for any NBA fan, not to mention Spurs fans.

Also, Coach Popovich’s mailbag has a few interesting bits of information in it. He chimes in a little on the Tony Parker trade rumors, DeJuan Blair’s shooting, and Tiago Splitter.

Now as for the Conference Finals, well I say it’s about time these games weren’t grossly one-sided. Orlando finally showed a pulse last night winning in OT…  in Boston no less. I wouldn’t be surprised if they can pull out one more and send this series back to Boston again. Of course, I also wouldn’t be surprised if the Celtics went to Orlando and smashed the Magic by 30 points. It’s kind of a weird place we’re in with expectations right now.

Phoenix also showed a little heart against LA. The difference here is that the Suns haven’t lost any home games and didn’t take four games to show up. I still hold out hope for Phoenix even though I know they are out-matched. Andrew Bynum’s knee issues certainly don’t hurt Phoenix’s cause right now.

In other news, LeBron is still being expected to go to pretty much any team in the NBA. It seems like everyone has a case for why he would go to one team or another. I personally think it comes down to Cleveland, New York, Chicago, and Miami – in that order. Dallas and the Clippers will try and keep hope alive but I just don’t see it.

So the NBA draft lottery was held last night before the tip-off of the Celtics-Magic game, and the Wizards won the first overall pick. So now the Wizards are faced with several different decisions: A) Draft Evan Turner instead of the projected and consensus #1 pick, John Wall, B) Draft Wall and send Arenas packing, or C) Draft Wall and keep Arenas and see how that pans out. They could even trade the pick, although I think that it’s unlikely. I find it funny since Arenas is the one who basically derailed the Wizards last season with his firearm shenanigans, yet the team chose to keep him and move damn near everyone else. Perhaps it’s because they still believe in him, but I think they just know that they won’t get near the value they want by dumping him, assuming anyone would trade for his ginormous contract and questionable judgement. At any rate, now they are faced with the prospect of having two point guards and trying to make it work, trading the pick, trading Arenas (good luck with that), or drafting Turner. It’ sounds messed up, but then again, that’s not really a very bad problem to have.

So after the draft lottery we got to watch Orlando squander home-court advantage by losing again to the Celtics. Let me just say this: I stand corrected. Boston is legit and Rondo is THE reason I am watching this series. Rondo looks like he is 12, but that’s a bad man and he should be counted among the NBA’s top point guards more often than he is. Nash, Deron, CP3, Kidd, Rose… those guys always get the love, but Rondo has the ring and is well on his way to another one. The Celtics are primed to get back to the top and duel the Lakers, showing that the only reason LA won last year was thanks to KG’s injury derailing Boston’s season. I’d buy that. Orlando meanwhile… what can I say? It’s hard to win it all when your best player shoots free throws like a drunken Shaq, Rashard Lewis is giving you like five points a game, and Vince Carter looks like he is preparing excuses like when he slipped and then laid there for ten minutes writhing as if he’d been shot.

I don’t care who wins tho, just so long as it isn’t the Lakers, and right now I think that Boston is the team to beat them.

It all started with Phil Jackson playing his little mind games with the media, the public, the refs, and the opposition. Jackson accused Nash of travelling … frequently. However, Nash decided to take a little jab of his own by stating:

“It’s news to me. I’m fortunate. I don’t know if I’ve been called for a carry yet,” he said after the Suns practiced Saturday, then he added straight-faced: “I’ve never heard anyone accuse me of carrying it. I mean, the best coach in the league Gregg Popovich [of San Antonio] didn’t have a problem with it last week.”

Now I can’t say for sure if he meant it or was just trying to get under Phil’s skin, but it’s certainly debatable anyway. Now I am adding this as a 5th reason I want the Suns to beat LA.

In other news, Roger Mason just had hand surgery. I’m not exactly too concerned with this since I am betting he won’t be a Spur next season anyway.

As if the Spurs being ousted by the Suns wasn’t bad enough. My Playoff Predictions went from perfect to utterly ruined in Round Two as the Cavs choked against the Celtics in what could be LeBron’s last championship run in Cleveland.

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