timvp
04-16-2009, 07:35 AM
http://spurstalk.com/box1apr15.jpg
http://spurstalk.com/box2apr15.jpg
The 2008-09 regular season for the Spurs was a journey that featured many close games and a number of memorable shots. It's only fitting that the last contest of the season ended in spectacular fashion.
With the Spurs down by three points against the Hornets and under ten seconds remaining, the Spurs ran a play that got Michael Finley a look from downtown with David West running at him. As time expired, Finley's shot went through the net and the game was sent into overtime. Once in the extra stanza, Tim Duncan stepped it up and the Spurs were able to cap their season with a 105-98 overtime victory to finish the year with a 54-28 record.
The Hornets deserve a lot of credit. They played extremely well and almost won the game even though they rested Tyson Chandler in the second half. West and Chris Paul were amazing and New Orleans illustrated why they are a seventh seed capable of making noise in the playoffs.
The victory, combined with the Mavericks beating the Rockets, allowed the Spurs to win the division and get the third seed in the Western Conference. They will now face the Mavs in the first round of the playoffs. If Finley's shot would have rimmed out, the Spurs would have been the fifth seed and heading to Portland for the opening round.
Overall, the Spurs were fortunate to escape with a victory. It wasn't pretty and it certainly wasn't championship basketball but let's hope the win gives the Spurs enough momentum to go into the first round confident in their capabilities.
-For much of the game, Tim Duncan was good -- but not great. He seemed to be moving well enough but his impact on the game wasn't overwhelming. However, things changed in the overtime. With three minutes to go and the Spurs trailing by a point, Duncan simply took over. He controlled the game on both ends of the court and put an exclamation point on his dominance by hitting a vintage fadeaway hook from deep along the baseline. With the playoffs now upon the Spurs, it will be extremely interesting to see how high Duncan is capable of elevating his game.
-Tony Parker had another good game. He had a few questionable decisions along the way but his production was obviously vital in the Spurs being able to secure the victory. Defensively, I liked the job he did on Paul. On offense, Parker did a good job attacking while also mixing in a number of quality passes. For the season, Parker ended up averaging 22.0 points and 6.9 assists per game while shooting 50.6% from the floor. He also finished 8th in the NBA in PER at 23.47.
-Michael Finley was the hero once again. Not only did he hit that three-pointer but he also had a jumper with about 45 seconds to go in the game to trim the lead to three-points. All in all, it was just another very solid game from Finley. He's playing good basketball at the moment in all phases of the sport. His shooting hasn't always been on but he's defending, hustling and making smart plays. Like it or not, Finley's heading into the playoffs with big role and for the Spurs to have a chance, he has to deliver.
-The player who authored the pass to Finley was Roger Mason, Jr. The play was designed for Mason to get a look but the secondary play was for Finley and Mason made the right read and a good pass. Other than that pass, it was a rough outing for Mason. He didn't shoot well and he struggled as the backup point guard. The silver lining continues to be the fact that Mason has made noticeable strides defensively over the last month to the point that he hasn't been a liability on that end as of late.
-The first basket of the game for the Spurs was a Matt Bonner three-pointer. Bonner went on to hit only two of his next seven shots, although one of his hoops was a key field goal with three minutes remaining in the game. Defensively, he didn't help out very much at all. He gave good effort on the boards but the results were again lacking. Going up against the Mavs, the Spurs need Bonner to play at a much higher level than we've seen out of him for the last few weeks.
-Ime Udoka came off the bench to play 38 minutes. After an off shooting night against the Warriors, it was good to see Udoka bounce back with a much better performance. He knocked down a couple of threes, rebounded well, defended well and even threw down an impressive reverse dunk in the overtime period. It was doubly impressive considering it was the first dunk of his life. Going forward, Udoka seems to have won a key role in Pop's rotation. If he can shoot it straight, he has a chance to really help out.
-I wasn't too impressed with the play from Kurt Thomas. He has been great in the second half of the season but he had his second straight forgettable performance. His defense wasn't as good as usual and he didn't pull down a defensive board in his 17 minutes of work. The matchup against Dallas doesn't seem to be a good one for Thomas on paper. Hopefully he can surprise.
-Drew Gooden once again produced in limited minutes. He was even more aggressive than usual with the ball. However, all things considered, Gooden was actually doing more bad than good on the night. His defense, especially in the pick-and-roll, was iffy. He wasn't much of a presence on the boards. Offensively, Gooden scored but he also stagnated the offense. Pop has his work cut out for him in trying to put Gooden in situations in which he can help the Spurs in the playoffs. But Gooden has definitely shown enough promise to warrant minutes from here on out.
-Bruce Bowen did a decent job in his ten minutes on the court. He had the task of trying to slow down Paul a lot of the time and did commendable work. With the Hornets sagging into the paint, per usual, Pop went with more offense in place of Bowen. Against the Mavs, there are a number of players who could draw Bowen's attention. It will be interesting to see how much time he will play now that it's either put up or shut up.
-George Hill got some first half action but he wasn't able to continue the progress he showed against the Warriors. He made a few defensive mistakes and missed the one shot he attempted.
-Pop did a good enough job. I liked the play he drew up for Mason and Finley. It was a new look we hadn't seen yet this season. Regarding his rotation, it was somewhat surprising that he leaned on Udoka so much. And if Finley doesn't hit that shot, the Spurs have would have gone down with Duncan only playing 29 minutes. But now Pop's preseason tinkering is over and it's time to show his cards. In Game 1 against the Mavs, I don't think anyone on earth has a clue what Pop is going to do. Well, hopefully Pop knows.
Entertaining regular season. Now the real games begin.
Believe.
http://spurstalk.com/box2apr15.jpg
The 2008-09 regular season for the Spurs was a journey that featured many close games and a number of memorable shots. It's only fitting that the last contest of the season ended in spectacular fashion.
With the Spurs down by three points against the Hornets and under ten seconds remaining, the Spurs ran a play that got Michael Finley a look from downtown with David West running at him. As time expired, Finley's shot went through the net and the game was sent into overtime. Once in the extra stanza, Tim Duncan stepped it up and the Spurs were able to cap their season with a 105-98 overtime victory to finish the year with a 54-28 record.
The Hornets deserve a lot of credit. They played extremely well and almost won the game even though they rested Tyson Chandler in the second half. West and Chris Paul were amazing and New Orleans illustrated why they are a seventh seed capable of making noise in the playoffs.
The victory, combined with the Mavericks beating the Rockets, allowed the Spurs to win the division and get the third seed in the Western Conference. They will now face the Mavs in the first round of the playoffs. If Finley's shot would have rimmed out, the Spurs would have been the fifth seed and heading to Portland for the opening round.
Overall, the Spurs were fortunate to escape with a victory. It wasn't pretty and it certainly wasn't championship basketball but let's hope the win gives the Spurs enough momentum to go into the first round confident in their capabilities.
-For much of the game, Tim Duncan was good -- but not great. He seemed to be moving well enough but his impact on the game wasn't overwhelming. However, things changed in the overtime. With three minutes to go and the Spurs trailing by a point, Duncan simply took over. He controlled the game on both ends of the court and put an exclamation point on his dominance by hitting a vintage fadeaway hook from deep along the baseline. With the playoffs now upon the Spurs, it will be extremely interesting to see how high Duncan is capable of elevating his game.
-Tony Parker had another good game. He had a few questionable decisions along the way but his production was obviously vital in the Spurs being able to secure the victory. Defensively, I liked the job he did on Paul. On offense, Parker did a good job attacking while also mixing in a number of quality passes. For the season, Parker ended up averaging 22.0 points and 6.9 assists per game while shooting 50.6% from the floor. He also finished 8th in the NBA in PER at 23.47.
-Michael Finley was the hero once again. Not only did he hit that three-pointer but he also had a jumper with about 45 seconds to go in the game to trim the lead to three-points. All in all, it was just another very solid game from Finley. He's playing good basketball at the moment in all phases of the sport. His shooting hasn't always been on but he's defending, hustling and making smart plays. Like it or not, Finley's heading into the playoffs with big role and for the Spurs to have a chance, he has to deliver.
-The player who authored the pass to Finley was Roger Mason, Jr. The play was designed for Mason to get a look but the secondary play was for Finley and Mason made the right read and a good pass. Other than that pass, it was a rough outing for Mason. He didn't shoot well and he struggled as the backup point guard. The silver lining continues to be the fact that Mason has made noticeable strides defensively over the last month to the point that he hasn't been a liability on that end as of late.
-The first basket of the game for the Spurs was a Matt Bonner three-pointer. Bonner went on to hit only two of his next seven shots, although one of his hoops was a key field goal with three minutes remaining in the game. Defensively, he didn't help out very much at all. He gave good effort on the boards but the results were again lacking. Going up against the Mavs, the Spurs need Bonner to play at a much higher level than we've seen out of him for the last few weeks.
-Ime Udoka came off the bench to play 38 minutes. After an off shooting night against the Warriors, it was good to see Udoka bounce back with a much better performance. He knocked down a couple of threes, rebounded well, defended well and even threw down an impressive reverse dunk in the overtime period. It was doubly impressive considering it was the first dunk of his life. Going forward, Udoka seems to have won a key role in Pop's rotation. If he can shoot it straight, he has a chance to really help out.
-I wasn't too impressed with the play from Kurt Thomas. He has been great in the second half of the season but he had his second straight forgettable performance. His defense wasn't as good as usual and he didn't pull down a defensive board in his 17 minutes of work. The matchup against Dallas doesn't seem to be a good one for Thomas on paper. Hopefully he can surprise.
-Drew Gooden once again produced in limited minutes. He was even more aggressive than usual with the ball. However, all things considered, Gooden was actually doing more bad than good on the night. His defense, especially in the pick-and-roll, was iffy. He wasn't much of a presence on the boards. Offensively, Gooden scored but he also stagnated the offense. Pop has his work cut out for him in trying to put Gooden in situations in which he can help the Spurs in the playoffs. But Gooden has definitely shown enough promise to warrant minutes from here on out.
-Bruce Bowen did a decent job in his ten minutes on the court. He had the task of trying to slow down Paul a lot of the time and did commendable work. With the Hornets sagging into the paint, per usual, Pop went with more offense in place of Bowen. Against the Mavs, there are a number of players who could draw Bowen's attention. It will be interesting to see how much time he will play now that it's either put up or shut up.
-George Hill got some first half action but he wasn't able to continue the progress he showed against the Warriors. He made a few defensive mistakes and missed the one shot he attempted.
-Pop did a good enough job. I liked the play he drew up for Mason and Finley. It was a new look we hadn't seen yet this season. Regarding his rotation, it was somewhat surprising that he leaned on Udoka so much. And if Finley doesn't hit that shot, the Spurs have would have gone down with Duncan only playing 29 minutes. But now Pop's preseason tinkering is over and it's time to show his cards. In Game 1 against the Mavs, I don't think anyone on earth has a clue what Pop is going to do. Well, hopefully Pop knows.
Entertaining regular season. Now the real games begin.
Believe.