duncan228
10-01-2008, 01:47 PM
Hoopsworld justification: This is full of quotes from Media Day if anyone missed them.
Spurs Still Believe (http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=10143)
By: Yannis Koutroupis
The Los Angeles Lakers are the team to beat this year. After them, it's the New Orleans Hornets, Houston Rockets, Utah Jazz, and you have to consider the Portland Trail Blazers a dark horse because of all the talent they have. That's the majority consensus on how the Western Conference will shake out this year. After winning a title in 2007 and advancing to the Western Conference Finals in 2008 the San Antonio Spurs are viewed by many as a team whose championship days have come to an end - at least for now.
The Spurs couldn't concern themselves less with thoughts like that. All they are worried about right now is improving as a basketball team. They know what it's like to win a championship.
"Even in the championship years we had no clue we were going to be the last team standing. It's the same boring philosophy in the sense that we want to be as good as we can possibly be come April. Things may work out or they may not, but we want to give us the best opportunity we can," explained coach Gregg Popovich.
The NBA community may not be high on what the Spurs accomplished this offseason, but within the organization there is definitely a lot of confidence in the team they currently have assembled. One of the biggest additions is Roger Mason, coming to San Antonio from Washington with a lot of expectations in year one.
"Roger is somebody who has been in our gym before in years past. It hasn't worked out timing or contractual wise, but we felt he was someone we needed in the program. We talked to Corey Maggette and after he made his decision to go to Golden State Roger was the top guy on our list. Hopefully he can do some of the things we need done on the perimeter like Brent Barry did for us in the past few years. He's a versatile guy that can play a couple positions and is tough minded on the defensive end. He's got to play a big role for us with or without Manu. He's going to be important to us," said Popovich.
Mason could potentially be the answer to a lot of the Spurs' woes, and he's coming into camp with the mindset to be the difference maker this team needs.
"I think I can be an X-Factor. Everyone talks about Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker. I want to fit in, but I want to make a difference. I think I'm at a point in my career where I'm growing up. Last year gave me a chance, but I'm hungry and I want to prove myself to the rest of the league and win a championship," stated Mason, who also said that he's never worked harder in his career than he did this offseason.
Another key move this offseason for the Spurs was re-signing veteran big man Kurt Thomas. Thomas was acquired in a deadline deal last February with Seattle and will be getting his first full training camp under his belt with the Spurs.
"He didn't get that benefit last year, although he caught on very quickly. It'll be better for him to understand exactly what we're doing," said Popovich, whose excitement over having Kurt Thomas was shared by Tim Duncan.
"He was great last year and I know he's going to bring the same thing to the table," said Duncan. "To have him on a night to night basis so he can know what to expect coming in, he's going to have half a year under his belt. He knows what pop expects from him and knows how to play with some players. He'll be great for us. You'll never know his true impact by the box score, but you can feel it out there on the floor. He takes a lot off of my shoulders. He's a good defender and a smart player, his intelligence with the game is something that is underrated."
Coach Popovich was equally enthused with the re-signing of Michael Finley. With Manu Ginobili out and Brent Barry going to Houston the Spurs would have lacked a true shooting guard with any knowledge of the system if Finley would have decided to retire. Finley is still capable of helping the team, although at this point in his career his impact may be felt the most off the court.
"It was very important to keep Mike. With Robert not coming back and Brent going to Houston losing Michael would have really been a depreciation of corporate dollars, if you will. His leadership is paramount to our success. He's really respected in the locker room. We were really happy when he decided to stay. His role will be the same. We want him to shoot the basketball, knock it down, and keep being the teammate and leader he has been," said Coach Popovich.
Even with a lot of the talk about a new season and the offseason singings, the big topic remains Manu Ginobili and how his absence will affect the team in the early going. It could cause the Spurs to fall behind early in the home court race, and Tim Duncan recognizes that.
"It's going to be tough," admitted Duncan. "He brings a different aspect to the team. Without him in the playoffs we struggled at times. We're going to have to work around that. Luckily enough it's not the playoffs, which is a completely different animal altogether. We'll figure it out."
Considering this franchise's track record it's hard not to place faith in Tim Duncan's optimism. No team has been better over the past ten years. They are still capable of accomplishing what they've already done three times this decade, although the task has never been as difficult as it's going to be this year. It's early, though, and Duncan pretty much summed it up perfectly:
"Nobody's played a game, nobody's done anything. People will be surprises this year. Teams will step up that you'll never see coming. Some teams will implode, you never know. We have a proven system and we like our chances."
Spurs Still Believe (http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=10143)
By: Yannis Koutroupis
The Los Angeles Lakers are the team to beat this year. After them, it's the New Orleans Hornets, Houston Rockets, Utah Jazz, and you have to consider the Portland Trail Blazers a dark horse because of all the talent they have. That's the majority consensus on how the Western Conference will shake out this year. After winning a title in 2007 and advancing to the Western Conference Finals in 2008 the San Antonio Spurs are viewed by many as a team whose championship days have come to an end - at least for now.
The Spurs couldn't concern themselves less with thoughts like that. All they are worried about right now is improving as a basketball team. They know what it's like to win a championship.
"Even in the championship years we had no clue we were going to be the last team standing. It's the same boring philosophy in the sense that we want to be as good as we can possibly be come April. Things may work out or they may not, but we want to give us the best opportunity we can," explained coach Gregg Popovich.
The NBA community may not be high on what the Spurs accomplished this offseason, but within the organization there is definitely a lot of confidence in the team they currently have assembled. One of the biggest additions is Roger Mason, coming to San Antonio from Washington with a lot of expectations in year one.
"Roger is somebody who has been in our gym before in years past. It hasn't worked out timing or contractual wise, but we felt he was someone we needed in the program. We talked to Corey Maggette and after he made his decision to go to Golden State Roger was the top guy on our list. Hopefully he can do some of the things we need done on the perimeter like Brent Barry did for us in the past few years. He's a versatile guy that can play a couple positions and is tough minded on the defensive end. He's got to play a big role for us with or without Manu. He's going to be important to us," said Popovich.
Mason could potentially be the answer to a lot of the Spurs' woes, and he's coming into camp with the mindset to be the difference maker this team needs.
"I think I can be an X-Factor. Everyone talks about Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker. I want to fit in, but I want to make a difference. I think I'm at a point in my career where I'm growing up. Last year gave me a chance, but I'm hungry and I want to prove myself to the rest of the league and win a championship," stated Mason, who also said that he's never worked harder in his career than he did this offseason.
Another key move this offseason for the Spurs was re-signing veteran big man Kurt Thomas. Thomas was acquired in a deadline deal last February with Seattle and will be getting his first full training camp under his belt with the Spurs.
"He didn't get that benefit last year, although he caught on very quickly. It'll be better for him to understand exactly what we're doing," said Popovich, whose excitement over having Kurt Thomas was shared by Tim Duncan.
"He was great last year and I know he's going to bring the same thing to the table," said Duncan. "To have him on a night to night basis so he can know what to expect coming in, he's going to have half a year under his belt. He knows what pop expects from him and knows how to play with some players. He'll be great for us. You'll never know his true impact by the box score, but you can feel it out there on the floor. He takes a lot off of my shoulders. He's a good defender and a smart player, his intelligence with the game is something that is underrated."
Coach Popovich was equally enthused with the re-signing of Michael Finley. With Manu Ginobili out and Brent Barry going to Houston the Spurs would have lacked a true shooting guard with any knowledge of the system if Finley would have decided to retire. Finley is still capable of helping the team, although at this point in his career his impact may be felt the most off the court.
"It was very important to keep Mike. With Robert not coming back and Brent going to Houston losing Michael would have really been a depreciation of corporate dollars, if you will. His leadership is paramount to our success. He's really respected in the locker room. We were really happy when he decided to stay. His role will be the same. We want him to shoot the basketball, knock it down, and keep being the teammate and leader he has been," said Coach Popovich.
Even with a lot of the talk about a new season and the offseason singings, the big topic remains Manu Ginobili and how his absence will affect the team in the early going. It could cause the Spurs to fall behind early in the home court race, and Tim Duncan recognizes that.
"It's going to be tough," admitted Duncan. "He brings a different aspect to the team. Without him in the playoffs we struggled at times. We're going to have to work around that. Luckily enough it's not the playoffs, which is a completely different animal altogether. We'll figure it out."
Considering this franchise's track record it's hard not to place faith in Tim Duncan's optimism. No team has been better over the past ten years. They are still capable of accomplishing what they've already done three times this decade, although the task has never been as difficult as it's going to be this year. It's early, though, and Duncan pretty much summed it up perfectly:
"Nobody's played a game, nobody's done anything. People will be surprises this year. Teams will step up that you'll never see coming. Some teams will implode, you never know. We have a proven system and we like our chances."