Is Manu finally starting to play like he used to?

[Illusionarist]

Well, Manu had 2 wonderful games in a row. He has increased significantly his points and steals. And he is playing wisely. He is starting to remind me last year's Manu.:flag::lobt2:

[angelbelow]

Yes!

[m33p0]

not yet but he's getting there.

[sonic21]

Manu had 2 wonderful games in a row.

:lol

[T Park]

No, I don't see him moving freely enough yet like he used to.

Either hes being conservative, or the ankle is doing that, both, or maybe he just wont get it back.

[sassystriker]

I definitely hope so. I'm freakin' anxious to see him play like his Manu Ginobili!

[m33p0]

anyway, we'll know he's back when he buries a mavs team with a dunk then follows it up by beating a jazz team and destroys a cavs team that took the eventual champs to 7 games.

[InK]

He seems to be moving a bit better, compared to a few weeks ago. So ye, id have to say yes, he is starting to look like the good old Manu.

[Austin_Toros]

he might not be the manu of old but recently he has been very helpful to the team. no doubt.

[mrspurs]

he might not be the manu of old but recently he has been very helpful to the team. no doubt.

Agreed.

[TDMVPDPOY]

if he keeps this up? we might have ourselves a trade bait :D:D

hey its business

[mrspurs]

Manu for Camby? hahahaha

[dbestpro]

I would say his game is right where it needs to be if he would just stop trying to make the perfect pass. It seems he makes a geat pass about 1 out of every 4 times and throws it away the other 3.

[boutons_]

That drive along the baseline and reverse layup says he's not crippled.

Consciously or not, he's probably still playing cautiously. As long as he helps more than he doesn't, OK.

[Rogue]

he still needs to prove it with his third great game in a row.
and we are gonna expect his fourth wonderful game after his third one, and the fifth after the fourth... ... till he helps spurs win the championship again.

[kace]

i don't know if manu is still able to become hot and unstoppable in a whole game or even in a whole quarter like he used to. he seems on the way to get back to it though.

but lately, he has been very useful for the team. Very very solid games with a lot of intensity and not much mistakes. solid scoring, decent defense in a team who struggled at it and not too much hurry to make decisions, good decision making.

Manu at this level, as a "super role player", behind tim and tony is really valuable for the team. if he's able to take fire as in the past, even better.

[TDMVPDPOY]

trade him now while he has 2 good ankles

[DarrinS]

Anyone who says "yes" needs to dust off their 2003 or 2005 Spurs championship DVD's.

[Sissiborgo]

not yet but he's getting there.

That's right..

[Kent_in_Atlanta]

Well, Manu had 2 wonderful games in a row. He has increased significantly his points and steals. And he is playing wisely. He is starting to remind me last year's Manu.:flag::lobt2:

What do you mean... finally starting to play like he used to.

Let me remind folks that it's only been a few weeks since his return from ankle surgery. He is at the point in his season that most players are at just before breaking camp for the first game of the season.

I think those that have been impatient with him haven't been thinking it through.

[Kent_in_Atlanta]

That drive along the baseline and reverse layup says he's not crippled.

Consciously or not, he's probably still playing cautiously. As long as he helps more than he doesn't, OK.

GREAT! Let him play cautiously. The Spurs have enough weapons on this team that they don't need him to be a star player... until the playoffs. If he can take it easy and save himself for the second season, I say FANTASTIC!

But as the season rolls along, we'll see more and more of the Manu we've grown accustom to. Again, consider how long it's been since his return, and the fact that he didn't have a training camp this year like everyone else.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

He definitely does not look the same to me.

[2centsworth]

wake me up when he is unstoppable to the rim. So far he's just another jump shooter.

[DAF86]

wake me up when he is unstoppable to the rim. So far he's just another jump shooter.

Since 2006 he hasn't been unstoppable to the rim, so I don't think he'll be that kind of player again. But last year he had his best season (stats wise) hitting jumpers, attacking the rim when needed and playing smart, if he can get back to that form I'll be more than OK with him.

[2centsworth]

Since 2006 he hasn't been unstoppable to the rim, so I don't think he'll be that kind of player again. But last year he had his best season (stats wise) hitting jumpers, attacking the rim when needed and playing smart, if he can get back to that form I'll be more than OK with him.

we'll have to disagree when it started. I think it started after game 1 against phoenix in last years playoffs.

without being able to attack the basket and finish or get fouled in crucial situations he's worth a whole lot less to the team.

[DAF86]

we'll have to disagree when it started. I think it started after game 1 against phoenix in last years playoffs.

without being able to attack the basket and finish or get fouled in crucial situations he's worth a whole lot less to the team.

To me that game was one of the games where he most attacked the rim last year. Do you remember the 2nd OT? He went to the basket possesion after possesion.

[Amuseddaysleeper]

I have 100% faith that Manu will return to pre surgery Manu.

[hater]

anyway, we'll know he's back when he buries a mavs team with a dunk then follows it up by beating a jazz team and destroys a cavs team that took the eventual champs to 7 games.

the Atlanta Hawks took the eventual champs to 7 games. :rolleyes

last year Manu was already hurt. I would love to see the 2005 Manu or flashes of that instead

[Spurs Brazil]

Since 2006 he hasn't been unstoppable to the rim, so I don't think he'll be that kind of player again. But last year he had his best season (stats wise) hitting jumpers, attacking the rim when needed and playing smart, if he can get back to that form I'll be more than OK with him.

Agree, Manu is still very good attacking the rim but not GREAT like 05 but his J is much more consistent

[superbigtime]

I think Manu isn't there yet. I agree that the '07 Manu was a slight step down from the '06 Manu as far as athleticism and getting to the rim are concerned (that is, before ankle problems at end of last season). I'm still concerned about his errant passes. Last night against Phila he did look pretty good. There was one play that looked like he might coulda dunked (don't remember which quarter, etc), but instead went with a finger roll. I want to see more driving and less jump shooting. When I see a dunk or two, I will be closer to thinking he really is back. But until then he's not yet the awesome badass Manu of old.

I'm really glad Spurs got Mason.

[xtremesteven33]

Manu is getting back in shape. Its showing. Last night i especially saw it.

[de Soto]

Hopefully Manu is just pacing himself. The current level of performance will simply not do come playoff time.

[weebo]

Manu is too wise a player to never be "not good". Whether he is fully there or not is still up to debate. However, with more playing time he will only get stronger and better.

Let's not forget he didn't play much basketball since the Olympics and given that he is playing in the NBA (where the talent level is 10x better than anywhere else in the world!) we won't see the "real" Manu until the all-star break.

[2centsworth]

Agree, Manu is still very good attacking the rim but not GREAT like 05 but his J is much more consistent

he attacks ok, but doesn't finish.

[InK]

Hopefully Manu is just pacing himself. The current level of performance will simply not do come playoff time.

Cmon Manu was camping the 3-pt line two-three weeks ago and back, whenever he moved to attack the rim, and it didnt happen often, he looked like a complete bust. Last few games you could notice another gear was added, improvement is noticable. Having faith in Manu under those circumstances shouldnt be that difficult of a job.

[InK]

he attacks ok, but doesn't finish.

Thats just semantics, what we were missing before was far more crucial then the lack of finishing. We all know the guy can finish, the problem was can he start. He seems to be getting there now. Smart money on Manu now for sure.

[AFBlue]

Truth be told, I'm not sure it's best for the Spurs (long-term) if Manu is back to "his old self". Playing with reckless abandon is great and all, but it leaves him very vulnerable to injury.

Besides, he has improved the rest of his perimeter game, so he doesn't have to relentlessly attack the rim. Even though '03 and '05 Manu was entertaining as hell to watch, I actually think he's become a much more effective player in the last couple years.

I still love to see him drive the lane and surprise everone with a throwdown, but I certainly don't mind spot up threes or step-back 20ft jumpers...as long as he hits them with regularity.

I'm not sure the Spurs will ever see "the old Manu", but he looks like he's got his legs back and should be as effective or more effective over the longhaul. That's good considering the Spurs will have him for the next couple years and likely a couple beyond that.

[DAF86]

Hopefully Manu is just pacing himself. The current level of performance will simply not do come playoff time.

I think there's no doubt that Manu isn't going all out (his fg attemps per game speak for themselves: 10 fg/a for a star shooting guard is quite few) but I also think that is ridiculous to expect him to get back at 2005 level. When the important time comes I think he'll be somewhere between the level of the 2007 playoffs and last year's regular season.

[Brazil]

When the important time comes I think he'll be somewhere between the level of the 2007 playoffs and last year's regular season.

The last year's regular season Manu would be a HUGE good news for SA !!

[2centsworth]

Truth be told, I'm not sure it's best for the Spurs (long-term) if Manu is back to "his old self". Playing with reckless abandon is great and all, but it leaves him very vulnerable to injury.

Besides, he has improved the rest of his perimeter game, so he doesn't have to relentlessly attack the rim. Even though '03 and '05 Manu was entertaining as hell to watch, I actually think he's become a much more effective player in the last couple years.

I can't disagree with you more. Pre-Manu and Tony all the spurs had were a bunch of jump shooters. Manu and Tony's ability to tear people up going to the rim is a huge reason why the spurs have 4 championships. pure jump shooters are a dime a dozen.



I still love to see him drive the lane and surprise everone with a throwdown, but I certainly don't mind spot up threes or step-back 20ft jumpers...as long as he hits them with regularity. losing basketball IMO.



I'm not sure the Spurs will ever see "the old Manu", but he looks like he's got his legs back and should be as effective or more effective over the longhaul. That's good considering the Spurs will have him for the next couple years and likely a couple beyond that.

Old Manu makes spurs mighty tough to beat.

[2centsworth]

Thats just semantics, what we were missing before was far more crucial then the lack of finishing. We all know the guy can finish, the problem was can he start. He seems to be getting there now. Smart money on Manu now for sure.

i have no idea what that means.

[Brazil]

I can't disagree with you more. Pre-Manu and Tony all the spurs had were a bunch of jump shooters. Manu and Tony's ability to tear people up going to the rim is a huge reason why the spurs have 4 championships. pure jump shooters are a dime a dozen.

+1

[jalberto]

Ginobili closer to feeling like himself (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Ginobili_slowly_moving_closer_to_feeling_like_hims elf.html)


Express-News

MIAMI — Manu Ginobili dribbled to his left, turned a corner and, shifting into another gear, sped headlong toward the paint. He got within eight feet of the basket when Philadelphia's Andre Iguodala appeared in front of him, an unavoidable obstacle to a layup.

Braking on a dime, Ginobili leaned in, drew contact from Iguodala and, almost as an afterthought on his way to the ground, lofted the ball at the basket.

Swish. And a foul.

That play, late in the first quarter of the Spurs' victory over the 76ers on Saturday, was the kind Ginobili has made hundreds of times in his basketball life. Which is what made it such an important signpost in his ongoing recovery from offseason ankle surgery.

“There have been a couple of possessions where I felt like it was me again,” Ginobili said. “I haven't felt like that for a whole game yet. I'm working on it, trying to get that back.”

As the Spurs head to Miami tonight to put their slim lead in the Southwest Division on the line, Ginobili is feeling better than he has all season. He is coming off a 21-point outing against the Sixers that matched his season high, a performance that included a handful of acrobatic clutch baskets that could only be described as Ginobili-esque.

And yet, he says he still isn't feeling quite like himself.

In 21 games since making his injury-belated season debut, Ginobili is averaging 14.6 points. Most teams would love to get that kind of production out of a sixth man, but that number represents a drop of more than five points from Ginobili's career high average of 19.9 last season.

He has been tentative at times, hurried at others, and has lacked his trademark explosion to the rim.

His conditioning still isn't quite there, as evidenced by the burn in his legs in the fourth quarter. His timing is a bit off, a fact of which he is reminded each time he rifles a pass into the third row.

“I'm not playing like last year,” Ginobili said. “I'm not shooting as well. I'm not going to the rim as hard. I don't know if it is mental or physical or what, but there are some things in my game I am just not feeling yet.”

All of this, of course, is to be expected. It is part of the recovery process.

Ginobili opted for surgery after aggravating a pre-existing condition, diagnosed as a posterior impingement of his left ankle, at the Beijing Olympics in September. It would be nearly three months before he'd so much as practice competitively again.

Basketball, it seems, is nothing like riding a bike.

“He was out for quite a while,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “He's going to try too hard sometimes, and sometimes he'll back off and think too much. It will take a while for him to get comfortable again, and just play without thinking.”

Tony Parker, the Spurs point guard and once upon a time Ginobili's bum ankle brother, can't begin to fathom the frustration his teammate has been through.

Parker's return from a moderately sprained right ankle — suffered on Nov. 7, coincidentally in a home loss to the same Miami team the Spurs face tonight — was relatively quick and thorough.

He was the Spurs' leading scorer the night he went down, and after missing nine games, he remains their leading scorer at 21.5 points per contest. At times over the past few weeks, Parker has been the Spurs' best player.

But Parker's ailment was merely a sprained ankle, the kind of thing that happens once a week in the NBA. Ginobili's injury required surgery, and that is a whole different recovery ballgame.

All Parker knows is that he has yet to see the real Ginobili this season.

“He definitely doesn't look 100 percent,” Parker said.

Popovich agrees.

“I'd say he's about 90 percent,” Popovich said.

Another thing Parker and his coach agree upon: If the Spurs hope to return the NBA mountaintop, Ginobili's full recovery will be priority No. 1 over the next 31/2 months.

“If we want any shot — any shot — to win the championship,” Parker said, “we need Manu to be Manu.”

The good news for the Spurs is that Ginobili can see himself coming right around the corner. All it takes is time.

“I'm not worried,” Ginobili said. “We have a pretty good record, and that's the most important thing. My thing is going to come sooner or later.”

[timvp]

Few points . . .

1. I don't think it's 100% that Ginobili will return to his form last year. Anytime an athlete has surgery on a joint, there's a chance that there won't be a full recovery. I think Ginobili will can return to near his peak form but it's far from sure. If he doesn't, that probably ends the chances for this year's team.

2. The take that Ginobili is "saving himself for the playoffs" is ludicrous. Ginobili is playing as hard as he can. He's not the type of player who takes his effort up another level in the playoffs.

3.
he attacks ok, but doesn't finish.

Finishing hasn't been the problem. In fact, his finishing at the rim has been very good.

Ginobili's FG% at the Rim
2008-09: 64.7%
2007-08: 58.1%
2006-07: 57.6%
2005-06: 53.7%
2004-05: 57.3%

Even during Ginobili's magical 2005 playoff run, he was at 60.6% at the rim. So this season, Ginobili is better than ever finishing at the rim -- which is a good sign for his recovery.

He just needs to get his explosion back so that he can get into the paint more often. Once he does that, the rest of his game will fall into place. He'll get more free throw attempts due to driving more and the threat of his drive will give him more open looks on three-pointers.

Not being able to finish at the rim was his problem last year in the playoffs when he connected on 50.7% of his shots at the rim. Thankfully that part of his game has been fixed.

[kace]

He is coming off a 21-point outing against the Sixers that matched his season high

he scored 27 against Atlanta....

[DAF86]

2. The take that Ginobili is "saving himself for the playoffs" is ludicrous. Ginobili is playing as hard as he can.

I wouldn't say that is so ludicrous to think that, when you hear him say things like: "I'm taking it easy" or "I'm pacing myself" every now and then.


He's not the type of player who takes his effort up another level in the playoffs.

He's known for raising his game when it matters most. In fact he's averaged more points in the PO than in the RS in every single season in the NBA except for the last one and we all know that there's a reason for that.