draft87
01-13-2010, 04:24 AM
SAN ANTONIO -- It's all coming together for Spurs forward Richard Jefferson (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=1006).
Sitting in the corner of the locker room before San Antonio's 105-85 pull-away win over the Lakers on Tuesday, he talked about the places he's been like the University of Arizona ("I hope [former Wildcat teammate] Gilbert [Arenas] starts to 'get it.'"), New Jersey ("[Lawrence] Frank had to be let go.") and Milwaukee ("I feel so bad for Mike [Redd], I need to text him about his knee.") before settling on where he is now.
"It's the best place in the world," Jefferson said, ranking the sleepy Texas city behind the bright lights of New York where he lived for seven years when he played for the Nets, earning a reputation as a bit of a socialite.
"I'm done with all the other stuff. This is all about basketball for me now."
While any win against the defending NBA champions is a welcome result for a team incorporating three new starters (Jefferson, Keith Bogans (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=1995) and rookie DeJuan Blair (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=3965)) into its lineup, it's the progress of the incorporation -- and not their W-L record in January -- that matters to this Spurs bunch.
"Hopefully we're not that far," Tim Duncan (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=215) said after going for 25 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks against Andrew Bynum (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=2748), who is an inch taller, 25 pounds heavier and 11 years younger than The Big Fundamental. "Hopefully we're starting to turn the corner. Every little win counts and hopefully this solidifies something for us."
San Antonio head coach Gregg Popovich wants his team ready to compete for a title, come June. That's why Mr. IV to Phil Jackson's Mr. X, knew that he couldn't read much into a win when his team let a 22-point third quarter lead slip down to six in the fourth against a Lakers squad that was missing Pau Gasol (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=996) (strained left hamstring) for the game and without Kobe Bryant (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=110) (lower back spasms) for all of the fourth quarter.
"We played well tonight," Popovich said. "They obviously were wounded. Both facts are true. We're happy to get the win."
The win gives San Antonio the third best record in the West with the season's midpoint fast approaching, but the Spurs still only claim a 4-9 record against teams with a better than .500 record as of Jan. 12.
Jefferson, who had 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting, said the learning curve has been so steep this season that instead of staying after practice to run or lift or get extra shots up, he often implores groups of four or five other of his teammates to stay late and practice offensive sets and defensive rotations as a team after practice.
"We have a lot of learning to do," Duncan said. "We have a lot of new guys and we're trying to get everybody on the same page. We're not a team that only has one or two plays, we got a hundred of them, so for Pop to be able to call things on the fly and be able to change things on the fly like we've done in the past guys are going to need the extra work. That helps guys."
Jackson was asked about the "new-look Spurs" after the game, a team he's faced in the playoffs five out of the 10 years he's been the coach in L.A. and didn't see much of a difference from the San Antonio squads of the past.
"They took our kids to school out there and pulled some of their tricks that they're good at," Jackson said. "I didn't see anything new out there. It looked like the same old group."
Jefferson said he looked at this season as an "82-game learning process."
Looks like the Spurs are showing off what they've learned sooner than expected.
Dave McMenamin writes about the Lakers for ESPNLosAngeles.com
Sitting in the corner of the locker room before San Antonio's 105-85 pull-away win over the Lakers on Tuesday, he talked about the places he's been like the University of Arizona ("I hope [former Wildcat teammate] Gilbert [Arenas] starts to 'get it.'"), New Jersey ("[Lawrence] Frank had to be let go.") and Milwaukee ("I feel so bad for Mike [Redd], I need to text him about his knee.") before settling on where he is now.
"It's the best place in the world," Jefferson said, ranking the sleepy Texas city behind the bright lights of New York where he lived for seven years when he played for the Nets, earning a reputation as a bit of a socialite.
"I'm done with all the other stuff. This is all about basketball for me now."
While any win against the defending NBA champions is a welcome result for a team incorporating three new starters (Jefferson, Keith Bogans (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=1995) and rookie DeJuan Blair (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=3965)) into its lineup, it's the progress of the incorporation -- and not their W-L record in January -- that matters to this Spurs bunch.
"Hopefully we're not that far," Tim Duncan (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=215) said after going for 25 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks against Andrew Bynum (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=2748), who is an inch taller, 25 pounds heavier and 11 years younger than The Big Fundamental. "Hopefully we're starting to turn the corner. Every little win counts and hopefully this solidifies something for us."
San Antonio head coach Gregg Popovich wants his team ready to compete for a title, come June. That's why Mr. IV to Phil Jackson's Mr. X, knew that he couldn't read much into a win when his team let a 22-point third quarter lead slip down to six in the fourth against a Lakers squad that was missing Pau Gasol (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=996) (strained left hamstring) for the game and without Kobe Bryant (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=110) (lower back spasms) for all of the fourth quarter.
"We played well tonight," Popovich said. "They obviously were wounded. Both facts are true. We're happy to get the win."
The win gives San Antonio the third best record in the West with the season's midpoint fast approaching, but the Spurs still only claim a 4-9 record against teams with a better than .500 record as of Jan. 12.
Jefferson, who had 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting, said the learning curve has been so steep this season that instead of staying after practice to run or lift or get extra shots up, he often implores groups of four or five other of his teammates to stay late and practice offensive sets and defensive rotations as a team after practice.
"We have a lot of learning to do," Duncan said. "We have a lot of new guys and we're trying to get everybody on the same page. We're not a team that only has one or two plays, we got a hundred of them, so for Pop to be able to call things on the fly and be able to change things on the fly like we've done in the past guys are going to need the extra work. That helps guys."
Jackson was asked about the "new-look Spurs" after the game, a team he's faced in the playoffs five out of the 10 years he's been the coach in L.A. and didn't see much of a difference from the San Antonio squads of the past.
"They took our kids to school out there and pulled some of their tricks that they're good at," Jackson said. "I didn't see anything new out there. It looked like the same old group."
Jefferson said he looked at this season as an "82-game learning process."
Looks like the Spurs are showing off what they've learned sooner than expected.
Dave McMenamin writes about the Lakers for ESPNLosAngeles.com