If we Play Dallas in the Playoffs, we're screwed

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Sorry I was on the road all week for business (with no internet access :pctoss ), so I have to contribute belatedly to the post-loss meltdown :)

Yeah, I know we have a better team, but I was struck by the realization the other night that a guy who hasn't played for our team in over two years knows all our plays still, forwards and back (and their weaknesses).

I don't know what's more frustrating, the fact that after being gone all this time Avery still knows our entire playbook, or that our coach was incapable of coming up with something different on his markerboard (or at halftime) while Avery's drawing up cute little end of quarter plays to get his team easy buckets.

So with all that, I have to say I hope we don't play _allas in the playoffs, because we just might, with Pop's offensive ineptitude, help them put the D back in there.

DISCLAIMER FOR THE SMALL MINDS: This is not a fire Pop rant, merely the fact that once again, his lack of offensive creativy when it matters is the biggest threat (outside of no Duncan) to our title hopes.

Flame away.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Oh yeah, one more thing:

While he's still hobbling down the stretch, either:

1. Sit Manu out altogether until Duncan gets back.

or

2. Sit him on one of the games in the back to backs (play him against the better team).

[Kori Ellis]

Dallas has been increasingly playing better D against all the teams they have played under Avery. It's not just a matter of Avery knowing Pop's offense. Look at how they rank in defensive categories like opponents field goal percentage, defensive rebounding and steals. They will be a touch matchup for any team in the playoffs and are a team that I've been saying for the last month or so has a legitimate shot at knocking off Phoenix.

So though you may be right that they'd be a tough matchup for the Spurs, your reasoning as to why is completely off-base.

[timvp]

You do know that the Spurs didn't run any plays last night, right? This is a common Pop ploy late in the season to make sure the other team doesn't get an advantage in the playoffs.

So the Spurs without Duncan and without calling anything other than basic plays lost. Wow.

[Solid D]

Dallas homer. :hat

[picnroll]

How did Mouse get Aggie Hoopsfan's password?

Spurs don't even run the same offense as when Avery was last in black and silver.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

I don't deny _allas isn't playing better D, but they made everyone on our team look bad.

Don't tell me we weren't running plays either, I saw Pop standing up calling them out.

This just worries me, because while timvp may be right that we went vanilla, we got treated to the same thing last year when Pop puckered up after losing one to LA, and I'm afraid it's gonna happen again :(

Or hell, maybe I just need some sleep. To be continued tomorrow.

[Solid D]

Since AHF has moved to Dallas, it was only a matter of time.

[Kori Ellis]

Or hell, maybe I just need some sleep.

Good night.

[timvp]

The Spurs were on the second game of a back-to-back, without Duncan and without anything more than pick-and-roll or screen down plays to work with. There was no way they were going to win that.

And that was probably the plan. Don't let them see any of the plays so if they do meet up in the playoffs, you can hit them with some new flavor. The Mavs, on the other hand, let it all hang out.

They're toast if they advance far enough in the playoffs to meet the Spurs.

[1Parker1]

Sidenote: What happened to all your VBOOKIE money Timvp? LOL. Don't tell me you of all people lost it all! If so, maybe you should take some tips from Ducks :)

[T Park]

Don't tell me we weren't running plays either

Ok, then how about Mike Bud,

he said after the game last night they ran the basic offensive plays and basic defensive plays.


But of course, once again, you know everything thats going on.

[Das Texan]

Avery is going to teach that team defense if it kills him. Look at what he has already done.


Pop doesnt give a fuck right now. We lose we lose. We win we win. Who cares?


It means little.


Rest up some and be ready to unleash it on them in a couple of weeks.


Sounds like fun.

[boutons]

Screw the limited offense possibilties, timvp. The Spurs couldn't get many open shots due to Dallas defense, and what open shots, layups, FTs, the Spurs got they couldn't hit them, just like last May. Total NBDL bball.

As always happens with these Spurs, when the other team plays defense, hustles, ie, make it a little tough, the Spurs fold up and play like shit, whether Tim is or isn't playing.

These Spurs aren't going anywhere in the playoffs, with Tim, unless they they get tough, esp on the road.

Having run off 17 straight games last year, the Spurs folded when LA shut down the paint. These Spurs really aren't looking any better equipped for the playoffs.

And don't anybody give me any shit about hocus-pocus homer "belief" BS. Don't pay attention to me, don't pay attention to the fool's gold of the overall record, watch how the Spurs are playing right now, how they win, how they lose, what tests they pass and fail.

I fully "believe", probably a lot more than others, that the Tim-less Spurs are capable of playing great basketball, but they simply aren't doing it.

[TDfan2007]

couldn't disagree w/ AHF more. The Spurs have stuck it to Dallas 2 times before in the playoffs and that 02-03 Dallas team was the best that the Mavs ever had, including this year. With Tim in the lineup we should beat them with little difficulty.

[MannyIsGod]

Sidenote: What happened to all your VBOOKIE money Timvp? LOL. Don't tell me you of all people lost it all! If so, maybe you should take some tips from Ducks :)


:lol

LJ gets his vTips from the wrong person.

[spursfan05]

they only beat us once big deal

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

The Spurs have stuck it to Dallas 2 times before in the playoffs

Yeah well Malik Rose was once a solid contributor to this team too.

Look, things in _allas have changed, Avery is teaching them defense.

The crux of my statement is that whenever we play teams we play better defense than, we're in good shape. Run into a team with a comparable defense, and our offense becomes our achilles heel.

I just got a bad feeling the other night watching that game that we're in for the same again this playoff season. When the pucker factor gets high, Pop goes back to his damn security blanket of posting up Duncan all the time, when we should be unleashing our guards on people and running motion.

I'm just saying don't be shocked if it happens again.

[adidas11]

Aggie, you're living in Dallas now??? Which part of town?? How do you like it here so far?

Anyhow, this might sound a little crazy, but I think Dallas losing Steve Nash might have been the best thing to happen to them. Having Jason Terry at the point makes them a better defensive team, and now that AJ is at the helm, their defensive focus and intensity has dramatically improved. Dallas just seems to respond better to AJ, something that I never expected. Without a doubt, Dallas is a threat in the playoffs, and they'll be a tough out for any team.

Right now, the Spurs must focus on winning their division, so they at least get the number 2 seed, but Dallas is not that far behind them. 4 games in the loss column, right?

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

The _allas improvement has nothing to do with Nash and everything to do with getting rid of a coach who thought defense was a bad word.


I'm in Plano, working for a software company. It's good so far, but that's hard to base things on - I've been on the road for work more than I've been "home" in Big D so far :lol

(not that I'm complaining, I get lots more pay when I'm on the road and I don't have to hear the nauseating sports news about the Mavs).

[Obstructed_View]

The _allas improvement has nothing to do with Nash and everything to do with getting rid of a coach who thought defense was a bad word.
Agreed. The Suns this year are the Mavs of three years ago. Nash will break down and they'll lose in the playoffs. Nellie was great at getting down on or getting rid of anyone who didn't score, like Mantis and Danny Fortson, respectively. AJ understands the value of role players, even though there are precious few role players to be found on the Mavs roster. It's also possible that the Mavs are responding to the coaching change more than the fact that AJ is a brilliant coach. We'll see how he does once the "new" wears off.

[Spurminator]

Our offense was terrible on Thursday because Manu, Parker and Bowen did not seem to realize that Erick Dampier is capable of blocking shots, particularly weak layup attempts. When we play Dallas in the Playoffs, Duncan is going to have to work the low post and get Damp in foul trouble. Otherwise, we will have to rely more on the outside shot.

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

Since AHF has moved to Dallas, it was only a matter of time.


I remember telling him the EXACT same thing!! :lol

[Obstructed_View]

Our offense was terrible on Thursday because Manu, Parker and Bowen did not seem to realize that Erick Dampier is capable of blocking shots, particularly weak layup attempts.
They were weak, weren't they? Most decent big men would have swatted some of those attempts the Spurs brought in. It's possible the Spurs knew they were probably going to lose and shut it down once it started to look grim.


When we play Dallas in the Playoffs, Duncan is going to have to work the low post and get Damp in foul trouble. Otherwise, we will have to rely more on the outside shot.

After relying on the outside shot last year against the Lakers, let's hope they do their job on the inside. If Parker catches another case of the tentatives, they could be in trouble, too.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Since AHF has moved to Dallas, it was only a matter of time.


Well I've been on the road so far for the company more than I've been in _allas :lol

I still love the Spurs and hate the Mavs, scenes like Thursday night just bring back the nightmares of last year's playoffs.

[Leetonidas]

I don't think the Spurs will have any trouble with Dallas in the playoffs.

Tim Duncan is the answer to any problem we have. A main reason we lost in Dallas was defense, which the Mavs are playing better. If they threw the ball to Timmy in the post, he gets double-teamed, passes it out, and gives someone a free shot. If he gets the ball in the post and does not get double-teamed, then he scores.

Devin Brown is also a high energy player, which we're missing too at the moment. Glenn Robinson needs to get back into shape, Manu is Manu, Tony is playing better as of late (except for 2 or 3 games), and Brent has been doing great from beyond-the-arc. We have all necessary pieces to win here.

Tim > Dirk
Tony > Jason Terry
Manu > Josh Howard
Bruce > Michael Finely (Bruce will get him with the tenacious defense)
Rasho...well, I actually do believe Erik Dampier is better, but Rasho is good post presence.

Their bench is great.

Devin Harris
Marquis Daniels
Shawn Bradley
Allan Henderson
Keith Van Horn
Jerry Stackhouse
Darryl Armstrong

But I think the Sprurs have a better starting lineup, and a fairly good bench.

So I still take Spurs. We should have homecourt (knock on wood) so here at SBC, we're unstoppable.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Tim Duncan is the answer to any problem we have.

Worked out great last year.

[Leetonidas]

The .4 thing was crap...don't even talk about it, I don't want to rant about how cheap that was.

[slayermin]

0.52

[Leetonidas]

0.52

How do you get that?

[Mavs Troll Mulvany]

You think Tony Parker is better than Jason Terry? Ha! Parker sucks. He can't shoot to save his life (Terry is shooting around 50%) and Terry is a better defender (the Mavs are a better 3P defensive team than the Spurs).

Bowen is better than Michael Finley? HA! Bowen also can't shoot to save his life. You're telling me that Bruce Bowen will outscore Finley? That's funny. He'd have to be the greatest defender in the history of basketball to outscore Finley. I don't care how much D Bowen has. If he guards Finley and Finley outscores him it means all his D went for nothing.

[Mavs Troll Mulvany]

Also, for the guy that pointed out that Dallas only beat the Spurs once...

Dallas had an injured starter the first 3 games...but I don't recall Dallas losing by 36, do you? In fact, had a basket interference call been made the series would be tied 2-2.

If you have to rely on a single guy to make up a 36 point defecit then you're in trouble. No other team in the NBA has had as many injuries as the Mavs yet they're still the 4th best record in the NBA. Notice how Dallas passed Seattle when they finally started getting injuries. Notice how they've jumped right on the Spurs heels when they finally got injuries.

You're right...if you play the Mavs in the playoffs you're screwed. With or without Duncan, you can't win. The Mavs can score and they can stop you. The Spurs have no offense.

[Kori Ellis]

Parker sucks. He can't shoot to save his life (Terry is shooting around 50%)

Jason Terry shoots 50% and Tony Parker shoots 49%. Terry is a better perimeter shooter, but that doesn't translate into much of a difference in overall FG% because Parker is money with runners and scoop shots.


Bowen is better than Michael Finley? HA! Bowen also can't shoot to save his life. You're telling me that Bruce Bowen will outscore Finley? That's funny. He'd have to be the greatest defender in the history of basketball to outscore Finley. I don't care how much D Bowen has. If he guards Finley and Finley outscores him it means all his D went for nothing.

Better player is not defined by better offense. I don't think anyone said Bowen would outscore Finley That's not his job. His only job is to slow down whoever he's guarding. Any points he gets are gravy.

Welcome to the forum.

[TheWriter]

Spurs >> Mavs

YMCA Youth League >>> Mavs

[Obstructed_View]

If Bowen jacked up as many shots as Finley, his scoring would probably go up. Finley is an old fat sloth who still thinks he's the best player on his team.

BTW, Tony Parker is a career 46% shooter. Terry is a career 44% shooter.


I don't care how much D Bowen has. If he guards Finley and Finley outscores him it means all his D went for nothing.
Spoken like a true _allas fan.


He'd have to be the greatest defender in the history of basketball to outscore Finley.
Your grasp of basketball is truly staggering.

[CosmicCowboy]

Dallas is a tough matchup for the Spurs...you have to leave Duncan on Nowitzki on defense and Tim has to play him close all the way out to the arc which opens up the paint for cutters/slashers and mid range pullups...there are a lot of guys on that team that can take advantage of the matchup problem...

[bgantz]

i think the spurs would be the favorite, but the mavs would really have a big boost from their depth. it's basically a starting lineup when the mavs go to their bench. if the spurs are the best in the west, then the mavs are second for sure, they can beat the suns in the 2nd round.

[td4mvp21]

Also, for the guy that pointed out that Dallas only beat the Spurs once...

Dallas had an injured starter the first 3 games...but I don't recall Dallas losing by 36, do you? In fact, had a basket interference call been made the series would be tied 2-2.

If you have to rely on a single guy to make up a 36 point defecit then you're in trouble. No other team in the NBA has had as many injuries as the Mavs yet they're still the 4th best record in the NBA. Notice how Dallas passed Seattle when they finally started getting injuries. Notice how they've jumped right on the Spurs heels when they finally got injuries.

You're right...if you play the Mavs in the playoffs you're screwed. With or without Duncan, you can't win. The Mavs can score and they can stop you. The Spurs have no offense.

Uh that injured starter wasn't Dirk so don't even begin to rant on how we can't win without Duncan. You can't win without out Dirk.

Duncan couldve scored 36, but realistically 20-28. But his presence makes all the difference. He would have affected shots, blocked shots, gotten some more rebounds, and elevated the play of his teammates. We may have lost because of a back to back, but probably only by 5 or less.

Your analyzations of our players are completely bogus too. Parker is better than Terry. Not in outside shooting, but in passing and his ability to penetrate. Remember Parker was actually in the ballot for the All-star team.

Bowen isn't better than Finley, but face it, Finley is way past his prime. If we meet in the playoffs, there are gonna be games when finley is shut down and when he scores. Simple as that.

This is how I see it:
Parker>Terry
Ginobili=Finley
Bowen=Howard
Duncan>Dirk/or for your sake Duncan>Dampier
Rasho<<Dirk

Pretty even matchup I'd say. But I still think we could beat the Mavs in six.

[Jimcs50]

We better be 100% healthy or we will lose to them, no doubt about it.