duncan228
04-17-2009, 10:52 PM
Gooden's wings could give Spurs flight (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Goodens_wings_could_give_Spurs_flight.html)
Mike Finger
This is how you know Drew Gooden is serious about becoming a real Spur: he is not afraid of contact.
“You've got to draw blood,” Gooden says. “It's a ceremonial thing.”
But this is why you doubt him: he apparently has never met his head coach. When talking Friday about his offensive repertoire, the Spurs' boisterous power forward described a freedom that suggested he either hallucinated through his first discussion with Gregg Popovich or has spent the past six weeks avoiding him altogether.
“Coach Pop lets me spread my wings,” Gooden says.
Under normal circumstances, that sentence would sound ludicrous. Popovich hasn't cleared any flying object for takeoff since his days at Air Force, and even back then he presumably encouraged his fellow airmen to pass twice and clear out for Timmy before they made any sudden moves.
But thanks to the fragility of an Argentine ankle and the porousness of a once-airtight defense, these aren't normal circumstances. So maybe Gooden really is speaking about Popovich when he explains how his new coach is encouraging him to extend his feathers, shoot and create. And maybe Popovich's most loyal disciple, Tim Duncan, really is complimenting his new teammate when he points out Gooden occasionally focuses on something other than shutting down his opponent.
“He's very offensive-minded,” Duncan says, “and that's something we needed.”
Now, it seems, more than ever. Sure, if the Spurs have any hope of making an extended run this postseason they'll have to do it with defense, just like they always have. But this group isn't going to suffocate opposing offenses like it used to. To win games against the Mavericks, and against anyone else if they make it past the first round, the Spurs will need about 95 points a night to do it. And even if Tony Parker gets his 30 and Duncan gets his 25, there's still plenty left over.
With one-third of the Big Three stuck in a sports coat for the duration of the postseason, the Spurs need someone to come off the bench and provide some scoring punch. Instead of a slender, balding, acrobatic magician, they'll have to settle for a burly, head-shaven bruiser with a jump shot, one who's played in 67 fewer playoff games than Manu Ginobili and never won a gold medal or an NBA championship.
In fact, 19 games into a Spurs career that began when Sacramento waived him and allowed him to sign with his sixth team in seven NBA seasons, Gooden admits there are still times when Popovich or Parker will call a play he's never heard of.
But he's already drawn blood, and he's spreading his wings. And when he was asked if he might be the key to making up for the loss of Ginobili and his 15.5 points per game, Gooden's answer is telling.
“You don't have to score all 16,” he says. “Maybe you score eight, and then take eight away on defense.”
And this is how you know he might be a real Spur after all.
Mike Finger
This is how you know Drew Gooden is serious about becoming a real Spur: he is not afraid of contact.
“You've got to draw blood,” Gooden says. “It's a ceremonial thing.”
But this is why you doubt him: he apparently has never met his head coach. When talking Friday about his offensive repertoire, the Spurs' boisterous power forward described a freedom that suggested he either hallucinated through his first discussion with Gregg Popovich or has spent the past six weeks avoiding him altogether.
“Coach Pop lets me spread my wings,” Gooden says.
Under normal circumstances, that sentence would sound ludicrous. Popovich hasn't cleared any flying object for takeoff since his days at Air Force, and even back then he presumably encouraged his fellow airmen to pass twice and clear out for Timmy before they made any sudden moves.
But thanks to the fragility of an Argentine ankle and the porousness of a once-airtight defense, these aren't normal circumstances. So maybe Gooden really is speaking about Popovich when he explains how his new coach is encouraging him to extend his feathers, shoot and create. And maybe Popovich's most loyal disciple, Tim Duncan, really is complimenting his new teammate when he points out Gooden occasionally focuses on something other than shutting down his opponent.
“He's very offensive-minded,” Duncan says, “and that's something we needed.”
Now, it seems, more than ever. Sure, if the Spurs have any hope of making an extended run this postseason they'll have to do it with defense, just like they always have. But this group isn't going to suffocate opposing offenses like it used to. To win games against the Mavericks, and against anyone else if they make it past the first round, the Spurs will need about 95 points a night to do it. And even if Tony Parker gets his 30 and Duncan gets his 25, there's still plenty left over.
With one-third of the Big Three stuck in a sports coat for the duration of the postseason, the Spurs need someone to come off the bench and provide some scoring punch. Instead of a slender, balding, acrobatic magician, they'll have to settle for a burly, head-shaven bruiser with a jump shot, one who's played in 67 fewer playoff games than Manu Ginobili and never won a gold medal or an NBA championship.
In fact, 19 games into a Spurs career that began when Sacramento waived him and allowed him to sign with his sixth team in seven NBA seasons, Gooden admits there are still times when Popovich or Parker will call a play he's never heard of.
But he's already drawn blood, and he's spreading his wings. And when he was asked if he might be the key to making up for the loss of Ginobili and his 15.5 points per game, Gooden's answer is telling.
“You don't have to score all 16,” he says. “Maybe you score eight, and then take eight away on defense.”
And this is how you know he might be a real Spur after all.