Blackjack
01-08-2010, 01:40 AM
Dallas Mavericks face an offensive juggernaut in Spurs (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/basketball/mavs/stories/010810dnspomavsdate.38e2100.html)
09:17 PM CST on Thursday, January 7, 2010
By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News
[email protected]
SAN ANTONIO – This week, the Mavericks were assigned the job of visiting a couple of Western Conference big dogs.
Pit bull No. 1 treated them rather meanly Sunday when the Mavericks went to LA and left with their tails between their legs after a 35-point loss to the Lakers.
Now, they'll try to bite back in San Antonio tonight against the Spurs.
Interestingly, they will see a different a different breed of Spurs. They have taken on a little different personality, although coach Gregg Popovich surely would disagree.
These Spurs average 102.1 points per game, far and away the most any San Antonio team has scored during the Popovich era.
So what gives? Have the Spurs wiggled off their leash and been allowed to run free?
"They're scoring, and they're playing defense," said Jason Kidd, who played for Popovich in the 2003 World Championships. "Pop knows how to make adjustments with the pieces of the puzzle that he has. And he has guys who can score.
"He's about defense, and he's a great coach. He understands how to handle people and that's why he's won championships. You have to worry about them. They can get hot from the perimeter and go from being down five or six to up 12. They're shooting the three well, and we got to take that part of the game away."
The Spurs have indeed evolved offensively. They were a consistent mid-90s, or lower, scoring team through most of the last decade, which included four championships.
They have gradually drifted away from the inside-outside game. They have replaced David Robinson, Rasho Nesterovic or Fabricio Oberto teaming with Tim Duncan to Robert Horry and then Keith Bogans, Richard Jefferson or Matt Bonner (currently injured) as the running mate for Duncan.
And they are No. 3 in the league in 3-point shooting percentage.
"They've been scoring all year," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "They've added some weapons. [Antonio] McDyess and Jefferson, those guys are top-caliber players. They've beefed up their team, and it's a tough matchup."
Added Jason Terry: "They're built a little different. Some of the pieces are interchangeable though. Keith Bogans is like Bruce Bowen with a better offensive game. You got Richard Jefferson, who's more athletic than Michael Finley at this point in his career. They just got more offensive weapons. So they still got the same defensive fire, but they definitely want to be a high-scoring team."
Of course, in the two meetings, the Spurs have averaged 93 points against the Mavericks, and that includes one game that went to overtime.
Clearly, the Spurs still pay attention to their defensive roots.
"That's why you play defense," Popovich said, "because you can always count on that."
Sibling rivalry: Terry said playing the Spurs was like big brother playing against little brother.
"This is your rival," he said. "They're big brother because they got all the titles and trophies. But never go to sleep on little brother. You know the saying, little brother always wins in the end."
Not sure that saying has gone mainstream yet. But Terry was on a roll.
"If you watch them over the past month, they might be the best team in basketball the way they've come together," Terry said. "We knew it was going to take some time with those new pieces, but Pop knows what he's doing. They've already beaten us once down there."
Nowitzki second: Dirk Nowitzki remains in second place in the NBA All-Star voting released Thursday. He is 742,129 votes behind Denver's Carmelo Anthony and 49,905 ahead of the Spurs' Duncan. Jason Kidd is sixth among Western Conference guards, and Shawn Marion is eighth among the forwards.
Dampier improving: Erick Dampier is hoping to play tonight. He's missed the last two games with inflammation in his left knee. "I should be playing, hopefully," he said. "But it's still a game-day decision."
09:17 PM CST on Thursday, January 7, 2010
By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News
[email protected]
SAN ANTONIO – This week, the Mavericks were assigned the job of visiting a couple of Western Conference big dogs.
Pit bull No. 1 treated them rather meanly Sunday when the Mavericks went to LA and left with their tails between their legs after a 35-point loss to the Lakers.
Now, they'll try to bite back in San Antonio tonight against the Spurs.
Interestingly, they will see a different a different breed of Spurs. They have taken on a little different personality, although coach Gregg Popovich surely would disagree.
These Spurs average 102.1 points per game, far and away the most any San Antonio team has scored during the Popovich era.
So what gives? Have the Spurs wiggled off their leash and been allowed to run free?
"They're scoring, and they're playing defense," said Jason Kidd, who played for Popovich in the 2003 World Championships. "Pop knows how to make adjustments with the pieces of the puzzle that he has. And he has guys who can score.
"He's about defense, and he's a great coach. He understands how to handle people and that's why he's won championships. You have to worry about them. They can get hot from the perimeter and go from being down five or six to up 12. They're shooting the three well, and we got to take that part of the game away."
The Spurs have indeed evolved offensively. They were a consistent mid-90s, or lower, scoring team through most of the last decade, which included four championships.
They have gradually drifted away from the inside-outside game. They have replaced David Robinson, Rasho Nesterovic or Fabricio Oberto teaming with Tim Duncan to Robert Horry and then Keith Bogans, Richard Jefferson or Matt Bonner (currently injured) as the running mate for Duncan.
And they are No. 3 in the league in 3-point shooting percentage.
"They've been scoring all year," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "They've added some weapons. [Antonio] McDyess and Jefferson, those guys are top-caliber players. They've beefed up their team, and it's a tough matchup."
Added Jason Terry: "They're built a little different. Some of the pieces are interchangeable though. Keith Bogans is like Bruce Bowen with a better offensive game. You got Richard Jefferson, who's more athletic than Michael Finley at this point in his career. They just got more offensive weapons. So they still got the same defensive fire, but they definitely want to be a high-scoring team."
Of course, in the two meetings, the Spurs have averaged 93 points against the Mavericks, and that includes one game that went to overtime.
Clearly, the Spurs still pay attention to their defensive roots.
"That's why you play defense," Popovich said, "because you can always count on that."
Sibling rivalry: Terry said playing the Spurs was like big brother playing against little brother.
"This is your rival," he said. "They're big brother because they got all the titles and trophies. But never go to sleep on little brother. You know the saying, little brother always wins in the end."
Not sure that saying has gone mainstream yet. But Terry was on a roll.
"If you watch them over the past month, they might be the best team in basketball the way they've come together," Terry said. "We knew it was going to take some time with those new pieces, but Pop knows what he's doing. They've already beaten us once down there."
Nowitzki second: Dirk Nowitzki remains in second place in the NBA All-Star voting released Thursday. He is 742,129 votes behind Denver's Carmelo Anthony and 49,905 ahead of the Spurs' Duncan. Jason Kidd is sixth among Western Conference guards, and Shawn Marion is eighth among the forwards.
Dampier improving: Erick Dampier is hoping to play tonight. He's missed the last two games with inflammation in his left knee. "I should be playing, hopefully," he said. "But it's still a game-day decision."