What a beautiful night.

[Marcus Bryant]

*sniff*

:cry

We're back.

[DPG21920]

MB is going to get auto pinked for starting too many threads in one day :lol

[EricB]

DeJuan Blair brought a tear to my eye no question.

[kbrury]

DeJuan Blair brought a tear to my eye no question.

he brought me something but it wasn't a tear.:hitit:

[Manu20]

Dejuan Blair!!:cry:cry

[DAF86]

Tony 17
Manu 16
Blair 14
Mason 11
Bonner 11
Finley 10
Duncan 9
Hill 9
McDyess 9
Jefferson 5
Ratliff 2

[Cant_Be_Faded]

*sniff*

:cry

We're back.

:toast

[Agloco]

DeJuan Blair brought a tear to my eye no question.

+1

He's a player. Just needs to get in NBA shape though. He looked a bit winded towards the end.

[SequSpur]

Dude...Bonner started... :cry

[EricB]

If you would've told me Richard Jefferson would score 5 and Duncan 9 and they would win by double digits I would've said you were nuts.

[Manu20]

29 assists and only 10 TO.

[TIMMYD!]

I cried.

[EricB]

+1

He's a player. Just needs to get in NBA shape though. He looked a bit winded towards the end.

High energy guy that belongs on the bench.

He will get that extra wind by the end of the season hopefully but, he's perfect as that bundle of energy off the bench and causing havoc.

Ala Malik Rose. Except he's damn good.

[DAF86]

If you would've told me Richard Jefferson would score 5 and Duncan 9 and they would win by double digits I would've said you were nuts.

What if I'd have told you we'd score 113 points with our top scorer scoring just 17 pts?

[marini martini]

Dude...Bonner started... :cry
Soooo???:lol

All's well that ends well!!!:toast

[Marcus Bryant]

29 assists and only 10 TO.

:tu

[EricB]

What if I'd have told you we'd score 113 points with our top scorer scoring just 17 pts?


Go drink Draino :lol JK

[EricB]

Soooo???:lol

All's well that ends well!!!:toast


He's pissed cause Bonner had 11 and Ginobili looked good.

[G-Nob]

They were so good tonight, it looked like they were playing 7 on 5.

[Marcus Bryant]

The thing is, they looked like they'd played for a half season already.

Man.

[EricB]

To think they are gonna improve on the defensive end no question.

Guys like McDyess and Blair will learn the season more. Hill will assert himself more. Jefferson won't shoot that bad all year. Duncan will get more in rhythm..

Good stuff.

[Marcus Bryant]

mDMgmcbF2c8

[Interrohater]

Man, it's still crazy to think that this is exactly what we were all hoping for when we thought about how scary good this team looks on paper. I seriously am still in shock about how deep this team is. Whenever anybody came in and subbed, they made an immediate impact, it was nuts.


Except Bogans.... at least he was the last guy off. I really hope he steps it up.

[Agloco]

The thing is, they looked like they'd played for a half season already.

Man.

This shit NEEDS to translate to the playoffs........

[Riverwalkman]

Where are those guys who claimed Spurs is done last year?

[Kool Bob Love]

What if I'd have told you we'd score 113 points with our top scorer scoring just 17 pts?

PASS IT OVER HERE :hat

[coyotes_geek]

Tony 17
Manu 16
Blair 14
Mason 11
Bonner 11
Finley 10
Duncan 9
Hill 9
McDyess 9
Jefferson 5
Ratliff 2

This right here is what impresses me the most. Nine different guys with 9 or more points.

[tlongII]

How did Dick Jefferson look?

[coyotes_geek]

His shot was off, but he was very active. Real good job passing the ball. Had about 3 assists through traffic in the lane.

[Spursfan092120]

Anyone see the Blair interview on KENS news? Dude said "They picked me when nobody else did. I'm going to give them 200% every time I'm on the court." Damn that's exciting to hear.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

*sniff*

:cry

We're back.

Damn straight. :ihit

I love this team already, and I don't fall in love easily. Tonight they looked like teams usually look in December - they are way ahead of the curve. Great signs! :D

[ouyang]

Blair is powerful.Beast indeedly!

[DPG21920]

Tough b2b tomorrow, lets see how these low minutes help the team out. Wonder if Duncan is out?

[slick'81]

id be surprised if this early duncan sits out.parker and duncan kept there minutes in check they should be good to go in chi town tomorrow

[Agloco]

How did Dick Jefferson look?

Dick is a good passer. His shot was off but we didn't need it tonight. It will come as he gets more comfortable with the system.

[peskypesky]

Dick is a good passer. His shot was off but we didn't need it tonight. It will come as he gets more comfortable with the system.

RJ is going to be a huge asset throughout this season. One shaky shooting night won't change that fact.

[crc21209]

Tony 17
Manu 16
Blair 14
Mason 11
Bonner 11
Finley 10
Duncan 9
Hill 9
McDyess 9
Jefferson 5
Ratliff 2

That stat sheet is beautiful. Talk about options...

[crc21209]

The scary thing is that the Spurs didn't play even close to their best tonight. They still have plenty of room for improvement.

Damn straight. And they STILL won by double digits. :tu

[TDMVPDPOY]

http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/6255/abeautifulmindgp.jpg

[Mel_13]

Beautiful night indeed. I came home hoarse tonight, I can't remember the last time that happened for a regular season game. The balance, the passing, Manu, Blair, it was awesome.

On Blair, I've never heard a Spurs crowd chant a player's name before. In the third quarter, the GO SPURS GO chant morphed into GO BLAIR GO.

Great night.

[Mel_13]

The scary thing is that the Spurs didn't play even close to their best tonight. They still have plenty of room for improvement.

I thought you were crazy to think a rookie could average 10rpg in the minutes we expect Blair to get. Now I'm not so sure.

[Stringer_Bell]

Anyone see the Blair interview on KENS news? Dude said "They picked me when nobody else did. I'm going to give them 200% every time I'm on the court." Damn that's exciting to hear.

I didn't see that, but I believe whatever Blair says!

Spurs held NO to 13 in the first quarter which is arguably the toughest time since the Hornets were gonna be on the attack to push the pace of the game. STOP. DROP. SHUT EM DOWN, OPEN UP SHOP. :flag:

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

The scary thing is that the Spurs didn't play even close to their best tonight. They still have plenty of room for improvement.

Totally.

[EricB]

The scary thing is that the Spurs didn't play even close to their best tonight. They still have plenty of room for improvement.


They fucked up enough on D to let Pop chew em out right now on the plane to Chicago :lol

[Biggems]

Tony 17
Manu 16
Blair 14
Mason 11
Bonner 11
Finley 10
Duncan 9
Hill 9
McDyess 9
Jefferson 5
Ratliff 2

even more impressive, but far less impressive than your sig

parker 26:17
finlwy 20:41
bonner 28:52
jefferson 24:26
duncan 22:23
ginobili 23:34
blair 22:33
mason 22:23
hill 21:43
mcdyess 18:02
bogans 5:23
ratliff 3:42

yep bonner led all spurs in minutes tonight with just under 29 minutes......they should be well rested for Chicago.

BTW, if they are able to continue to disperse the minutes in this fashion, where 10 guys are playing in the mid to low 20s every night.....we will be a very fresh team come playoff time. Plus it will definitely give Blair a shot at rookie of the year.

[TheSullyMonster]

Where are those guys who claimed Spurs is done last year?

Hoping for another 1st round exit, so they can say 'I told you so!'?

[Galileo]

Galileo's Simple Ratings for the Night:

Parker +26 in 26 minutes
Finley +10 in 21
Bonner +18 in 29
Jefferson +18 in 24
Duncan +26 in 22
Ginobili +18 in 24
Blair +33 in 23
Mason +19 in 22
Hill +23 in 22
McDyess +21 in 18
Bogans -5 in 5
Ratliff -1 in 4

Paul +19 in 34
Peterson +2 in 16
Okafor +20 in 29
West +17 in 38
Wright +6 in 28
Brown -6 in 23
Stojakovic -11 in 20
Armstrong -14 in 19
Posey -15 in 19
Songaila -6 in 8
Brown -1 in 3
Collison +1 in 3

Note - Galileo's Simple Ratings (secret formula) are very simple to calculate, and are very highly predictive for MVPs, All-NBA Teams, and All-Star Selections.

[monkeypunk]

Other than ring ceremony nights, that was the most satisfying opening game I can remember.

[baseline bum]

It's sweet to not only have one, but two bigs not named Duncan who can grab a board. Rebounding has been this team's main Achilles heel since Nazr fell out of the rotation in 06.

[Manufan909]

Beautiful night indeed. I came home hoarse tonight, I can't remember the last time that happened for a regular season game. The balance, the passing, Manu, Blair, it was awesome.

On Blair, I've never heard a Spurs crowd chant a player's name before. In the third quarter, the GO SPURS GO chant morphed into GO BLAIR GO.

Great night.

Holy crap, really? I was amazed that Blair made his first 7 shots in the NBA, but to have Spurs fans in general almost as pumped up about him as we are. Hot damn.:toast

[holcs50]

The thing I took away from the game is how amazingly deep this team is. Jeff will get into things eventually-it's hard for a guy to go from numero uno on a team to playing more of a team role-but he's done it before and likes it and he will be huge come playoffs. I hope once playoffs comes around we have about 8 guys playing the minutes....lower bonner eventually while raising dice and blair. Lower finley/maybe mason a little to play jefferson/hill more. But I'm super excited for the season and think anyone we face will have a tough tough time because of the depth. :lobt2:

[silverblackfan]

even more impressive, but far less impressive than your sig

parker 26:17
finlwy 20:41
bonner 28:52
jefferson 24:26
duncan 22:23
ginobili 23:34
blair 22:33
mason 22:23
hill 21:43
mcdyess 18:02
bogans 5:23
ratliff 3:42

yep bonner led all spurs in minutes tonight with just under 29 minutes......they should be well rested for Chicago.

BTW, if they are able to continue to disperse the minutes in this fashion, where 10 guys are playing in the mid to low 20s every night.....we will be a very fresh team come playoff time. Plus it will definitely give Blair a shot at rookie of the year.

Its only one game but to compare minutes played. Check out the Laker times vs Clippers last night:
R. Artest 40:51
L. Odom 40:04
A. Bynum 38:12
K. Bryant 38:20
D. Fisher 33:01
J. Farmar 14:59
S. Vujacic 04:46
D. Mbenga 09:48
S. Brown 08:41
J. Powell 07:56
L. Walton 03:22

I wonder how that kind of milage is going to effect them by the end of the year.

[AnthonyM]

Its only one game but to compare minutes played. Check out the Laker times vs Clippers last night:
R. Artest 40:51
L. Odom 40:04
A. Bynum 38:12
K. Bryant 38:20
D. Fisher 33:01
J. Farmar 14:59
S. Vujacic 04:46
D. Mbenga 09:48
S. Brown 08:41
J. Powell 07:56
L. Walton 03:22

I wonder how that kind of milage is going to effect them by the end of the year.

It doesn't mean too much now since it's just the first game of the regular season but it indicates a weak bench for the lakers and a huge drop off between starters and bench players obviously.

It makes you wonder how comfortable will Phil be bringing in his bench against the bench of the Spurs? Can he really afford to take out a couple of his starters at a time to take a break? I know it's only one game and I don't want to overhype the fact that the Spurs had one good game but just something to think about.

It'll definitely be a factor later in the season and the playoffs if the Lakers minutes continue to look like that. The only argument for the Lakers is that they are relatively younger so playing that much minutes throughout the season may not hurt them that much.

May not play much of a factor now or in a single game, but in a seven game series this is a big, big factor.

[mathbzh]

It doesn't mean too much now since it's just the first game of the regular season but it indicates a weak bench for the lakers and a huge drop off between starters and bench players obviously.

It makes you wonder how comfortable will Phil be bringing in his bench against the bench of the Spurs? Can he really afford to take out a couple of his starters at a time to take a break? I know it's only one game and I don't want to overhype the fact that the Spurs had one good game but just something to think about.

It'll definitely be a factor later in the season and the playoffs if the Lakers minutes continue to look like that. The only argument for the Lakers is that they are relatively younger so playing that much minutes throughout the season may not hurt them that much.

May not play much of a factor now or in a single game, but in a seven game series this is a big, big factor.

Don't forget Gasol did not play.

[The_Game]

^ not really

with Pau back those guys limited won't be as high..Odom will be more fresh so will Bynum.

Fact is though the Lakers in total are a young enough team...they aren't aging players who are all in the 30's...Kobe and Fisher are but the rest aren't. Chances are throughout the season fisher's minutes will be limited.

lakers do have a good bench when Pau is healthy...it isn't amazing but it is still good enough to give guys good rest. chances are the lakers will be blowing alot of teams out anyway so the stars will get rest.

it really is a non issue...if all our main players were in their early 30's like Boston then it could be a problem

[NZ Spurs]

Honestly, I think RJ impressed me the most. Those passes were impressive. The way he moved, and the constant threat he represents. He's going to be a huge part of this team and quickly.

[Obstructed_View]

Boring Spurs basketball is back.

[Mel_13]

You have to realize that DeJuan rebounds like Moses Malone. Not only is he in position to get the rebound, he is in position to score.

The kid is amazing. It's just that 10rpg would be such an historical anomaly, but it seems entirely possible. At this point, only his defensive deficiencies and the whistle can hold him back.

[SpurNation]

The kid is amazing. It's just that 10rpg would be such an historical anomaly, but it seems entirely possible. At this point, only his defensive deficiencies and the whistle can hold him back.

Kinda my thought as well. Especially the fouls called on him. The defense ought to improve with more playing time against the more elite players. The whistles on the other hand may be harder to reduce. NBA officials tend to be harder (less flexible) when it comes to rookies no matter how well they play.

[DBMethos]

I think we had already scored 36 points by the time TP hit his first field goal...that really brought a smile to my face. :)

[easjer]

Great night, seriously. Far better than expected.

[ManuTastic]

Whole team looked great: Blair was fantastic, Manu's coming back, Dice and RJ soooo welcome to the party. Glad Pop realizes Hill is the real deal and won't forget him this season, unlike last year. Bonner's nice game I will pass by in silence. Can't wait for the rest of the season.:lobt2:

OTOH, who knew the Hairnets would be so bad? CP must be PO'd. Wonder if they need a new coach? They looked so lifeless out there.

[Spurs Brazil]

The game was really fun to watch. I hope to see another great one tonight

[ATRAIN]

*sniff*

:cry

We're back.

:cry:cry:cry

Its a great thing. I was watching last night in shock and awe. This team is re-fucking-loaded....Its going to be a great to see us play the Lakers. Lakers got their ring but now its time for the return of the king.

[Samr]

Boring Spurs basketball is back.

Yeah, I tend to lose interest around the 3rd quarter of those blow-outs as well.

[ATRAIN]

anyone see the blair interview on kens news? Dude said "they picked me when nobody else did. I'm going to give them 200% every time i'm on the court." damn that's exciting to hear.

helll mfing yes!!

[AnthonyM]

Don't forget Gasol did not play.

I completely forgot that Gasol didn't play.

[PUPPETMASTER]

/deepest team in the NBA/

[Spur|n|Austin]

Beside obviously being impressed with Blair, as I knew I would be; I agree that Jefferson looked great. Some of those passes in traffic were amazing. I as most of you look forward to much growing this season.

[Mr. Body]

Its only one game but to compare minutes played. Check out the Laker times vs Clippers last night:
R. Artest 40:51
L. Odom 40:04
A. Bynum 38:12
K. Bryant 38:20
D. Fisher 33:01
J. Farmar 14:59
S. Vujacic 04:46
D. Mbenga 09:48
S. Brown 08:41
J. Powell 07:56
L. Walton 03:22

I wonder how that kind of milage is going to effect them by the end of the year.

Lakers are fortunate they resigned Odom. Not that there was much doubt, but without him, they have to play their bench guys much more, and frankly the Lakers might have the worst bench in the league, not even among contenders.

[benefactor]

After I got home late and watched the game I didn't make it to bed until after midnight. I would normally sleep in as I am off today, but I found myself still so excited from the night before I was up at 6am.

I don't think I have felt this good about a Spurs team in my 10ish years as a fan. We are more than just back...we are brand new and better than ever.

[The_Game]

Lakers are fortunate they resigned Odom. Not that there was much doubt, but without him, they have to play their bench guys much more, and frankly the Lakers might have the worst bench in the league, not even among contenders.

But with Odom it is a very respectable bench and would be mid of the range..certainly good enough to win the title with again.

[peskypesky]

It's sweet to not only have one, but two bigs not named Duncan who can grab a board. Rebounding has been this team's main Achilles heel since Nazr fell out of the rotation in 06.

yep. that's why when i heard we got McDyess AND the Beast, i knew we would kick ass. we had the perimeter players. we had the slashers. we had the coach. and we had timmy. but for the past couple of years, we lost a LOT of games on the boards.

some of it was Pop's fault, for idiotically experimenting with small-ball...but a lot of the time, we just had a grand total of ONE rebounder on the team. you CANNOT win the Championship with one rebounder, especially if that rebounder also happens to be one of your offensive threats.

finally getting Timmy some help in the post is going to make ALL the difference. mark my words.

[NASpurs]

Maybe with having three great rebounders, the Spurs can run the fast break a bit more now than in the past.

I remember in the past that since Tim was the only one rebounding, teams would have a feast on the offensive boards. So Pop would have the guards stay back and help with rebounding.

[SamoanTD]

Man the spurs look to nice out there yesterday everything wuz jus smooth as silk those 3's were jus killa and manu look like he wuz one of the young guns out dere runnin, stealin, and pullin j's in peoples faces oweeeeeee hornets jus flat out got the buisnesss lol

[LOL texans]

really excited about DeJuan!

[760Spursfan]

Tony 17
Manu 16
Blair 14
Mason 11
Bonner 11
Finley 10
Duncan 9
Hill 9
McDyess 9
Jefferson 5
Ratliff 2

These number and a double digit win....I am glad to see that our big 3 didn't have to score 30pt each to win a game. talk about spreading the ball around. :flag:

Blair was very impressive. That is what we needed, a big man who can grab boards and score. Rookie of the year...please stay healthy.