What would you do if you were Coach Pop for next game?

[Tom_Foolery]

If I were Coach Pop:

1. Start Manu and have Devin Brown come in as sub, play Barry as a sub for Bowen.

2. Play Nazr longer than Rasho. The Spurs were down by 6pts in the 3rd, then Horry & Rasho came to finish the 3rd and before you know it, the Spurs were down by 16pts at the end of the 3rd.

3. Hit somebody. Sonics, for the 2nd game in a row, punched the Spurs in the mouth while the Spurs "turned the other cheek". I know the Spurs are fine gentlemen and very "faithful" christians and all, but c'mon...enough of this "turn the other cheek" stuff. Hit somebody. They hit our guards when we got into the paint, but our bigs refused to do the same to the Sonics guards. I think I saw Luke fall on the floor twice the entire game. I think part of this is because of Tim Duncan's reluctancy to put some wood on AD. And AD knows it. AD knows Tim won't put any physical presence on him at all because, "hey, we're friends...right AD?" Well you can be sure AD could care less about TD's friendship...AD has a game to win. It's time for Tim to realize this and stop with the preferential treatment of AD in the paint. Off with the gloves.


I think Popovich made some real questionable coaching moves this game, most noteably playing Rasho more than Nazr. True, Nazr didn't start the game very well, but while he was on the floor in the 2nd half, the Spurs were down by 6pts. When Horry & Rasho came into the game, that lead quickly turned into 16pts.

What would you do if you were Pop?

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Quit and let PJ run the team. :spin

[unnosy]

1. the most obvious, start manu.
2. tell timmy that antonio is not his only friend, own him.
3. threathen parker with trade to the hawks if he doesnt get his acts together.
4. bring in brown for longer stretches of time.
5. put t.mass to get some hard fouls, preferably on that little boy that made a fool of us.
6. and give them the same advise that nate gave his team after game two. it seemed to work for two games and all we need are two wins.

[popavich the loser]

hang myself

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

Play Duncan 40 minutes. (utilize timeouts/tv breaks to get him rest)

Pick and roll seattle to death.

Run plays for tony early, get him into the game, keep him aggressive.

Maybe give Tmass a few minutes.

[Go-spurs-Go]

3 keys to win next game: pace (control the pace), turnover, and rebound.

1.) Parker has to be aggressive (both defensively and offensively - just like what he did in Game 1). Attack Luke, and take his confidence away. Parker has to show his leadership to lead the team (i.e.: calling out play).

2.) Take care of the BALL!! TurnoverS is the key reason why we lost game 4.

3.) Crash the broad! Box out! Limit Sonics 2nd chance points.

[SLOVENIAN 8]

I would quit!
or
start with practice for more offensive game.

[zeleni]

1.start Rasho, Ginobili and Beno. Parker gets minutes only if amazing so he will be mean enough for the western finals or game 6.

2. give heat to Parker (he was terrible), he obviously needs it

3. Big Dog has to get more minutes in the 2nd and 3rd period.

[stéphane]

I would just tell my guys to play bball unlike game 4.

[Gummi]

I can almost guarentee you guys that Tony Parker will come out strong and score 20+ points in Game 5. Now, to the changes. Start Manu. It's simple, we need his scoring right away to build a lead. Barry's been bad either way, comming off the bench or not. Start playing Nazr more then 16 and 14 minutes like he did in the two games in Seattle.

If I were Pop, play Glenn more then Brent. Glenn is looking for his shot unlike Barry. Plus Barry's been making too many mistakes on the offensive end, charges and turnovers.

[Ginofan]

~ Get Dbo back in the rotation, either start him or start Manu and have Devin rotate in. Let Brent rot on the bench where he belongs.

~ Get Tmass back in the rotation, we need his toughness.

~ Preach defense until you're blue in the face!

~ Make sure the Coyote gets ejected to get things really fired up.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

H_wabout run a practice. It's inexcuseable that P_p gave his team the damn day _ff Friday.

Guess what P_p, it sh_wed last night.

[LilMissSPURfect]

1. the most obvious, start manu.
2. tell timmy that antonio is not his only friend, own him.
3. threathen parker with trade to the hawks if he doesnt get his acts together.
4. bring in brown for longer stretches of time.
5. put t.mass to get some hard fouls, preferably on that little boy that made a fool of us.
6. and give them the same advise that nate gave his team after game two. it seemed to work for two games and all we need are two wins.


GIVE them a TASTE of THEIR OWN medicine! Sonics guards are coming into the paint without RECOURSE!

[GrandeDavid]

Start Manu, bury Barry on the bench way behind Devin. Remind guys to protect the ball.

[samikeyp]

Kick Ray Allen square in the vagina.


H_wabout run a practice. It's inexcuseable that P_p gave his team the damn day _ff Friday.

Guess what P_p, it sh_wed last night.

:lol classic!

[Jimcs50]

Need to let Mass kill AD and Ray when they go into the lane.

Say what you will, but Manu and TP are not near as aggressive as they were earlier in the series. They are human and they get a little nervous doing something that they know will end up with them getting smashed in the mouth over and over.

[JustSpurs]

I'd get in a refs face and get ejected after the 40th hard fowl on (Insert Spurs players name here)...get the troops riled-up!

[MadDog73]

H_wabout run a practice. It's inexcuseable that P_p gave his team the damn day _ff Friday.

Guess what P_p, it sh_wed last night.

You missed an "o" in about, Aggie.

So, you'd rather have PJ coach huh? That will win us another Championship. :rolleyes

I understand Pop screwed up. But saying he has no offensive plays is ludicrous.

[bigzak25]

put eva in the stands so tony can show up again.

29, 22, 18, 12. ppg.

[waly.mg]

Start manu
Or Big Dog
Or Devin Brown

[beirmeistr]

Start Rasho and Manu. This should lead to better defense and keep Allen busy on defense.
If Bowen is ineffective against Allen, replace him with Devin for a while. better offense for Spurs.
Let Manu and Tony drive to the basket and get the Sonics bigs in foul trouble. No problem for Manu. Tony might require hypnosis.
Discourage the attack of the midgets with hard but legal fouls.

[team-work]

Can't wait for Devin Brown to play big minutes. If Pop doesn't let Brown play instead of Barry and then lose Game 5, he'll be cursed by everybody. On the other hand, if Brown plays as his usual self but gets injured again at some time, and the Spurs lose in this series or another, no one would blame Pop for letting Brown play prematurely.

Brown didn't seem too limited by injuries in Game 4.

[Tom_Foolery]

You missed an "o" in about, Aggie.

So, you'd rather have PJ coach huh? That will win us another Championship. :rolleyes

I understand Pop screwed up. But saying he has no offensive plays is ludicrous.


Well, it was the zone defense that PJ begged Pop to use the last championship run, so yeah, there is some truth to that;)

[Jimcs50]

Correct the 3 problems that cost the losses.

1. FTs(was better in game 4, wish we could have switched FTs in games 3 and 4)
2.defend the Pand R better
3. Turnovers...that killed us

[Tom_Foolery]

Can't wait for Devin Brown to play big minutes. If Pop doesn't let Brown play instead of Barry and then lose Game 5, he'll be cursed by everybody. On the other hand, if Brown plays as his usual self but gets injured again at some time, and the Spurs lose in this series or another, no one would blame Pop for letting Brown play prematurely.

Brown didn't seem too limited by injuries in Game 4.


And if we lose the next game regardless, we are going to get swept out of the playoffs.

Might as well take that chance with playing Devin more than Barry because if we stick with playing Barry more and we lose, it will be too late for us to start playing Devin more...might as well shut him down for the season as we will lose the series to the Sonics.

[spur219]

Hit somebody.

[Rick Von Braun]

There is a very nice rant by Matt (http://www.nbaspurs.blogspot.com/) that I would like to share with you. I have been saying this for a long time (http://p204.ezboard.com/fsanantoniospurs62937frm1.showMessageRange?topicID =14533.topic&start=51&stop=80)

15 May 2005

Twenty-Five

Twenty-fucking-five. More on that later.

*****

Before I, uh, let loose, I have to give credit to the Sonics. Ray Allen, after being positively horrendous is game 3 (6-23), hit a host of difficult shots on his way to 32 points on 20 FGA. Luke Ridnour also had a huge game, hitting wide open runner after wide open jump shot. He finished with 20 points on 15 FGA. Both of them were key in SEA's huge 3rd quarter, where they scored 36 points on 127% shooting. As good as Ridnour was, Antonio Daniels was probably even better, with 19 points on 13 FGA.

Also, give credit to Nate McMillan for being the first NBA coach this year to figure out Tony Parker is a bad jump shooter. At one point Tony had the ball one foot inside the three point line at the top of the key. Antonio Daniels, who was "guarding" him, was at the free throw line, going under consecutive attempts at a pick and roll. I've said it time and time again, why would any team play up on a guy who A)is one of the quickest players in the league and B) shoots under 30% from 3?

And by the way, SA never had a lead in this game.

*****

I can imagine Timmeh sitting on the plane ride home, looking at the stat sheet. 35 points on 19 FGA. 10 REB. 2 BLK. Nobody else had more than 15 points. Nobody else had more than 7 boards. Maybe, just maybe he thought "Wow, this must be how KG feels."

Tim had a good game. He was aggressive, hit his free throws and crashed the offensive glass. Everyone one else either sucked or sucked hard. Both Parker and Ginobili are forcing penetration, trying to create something against a Seattle defense packing it in. The Wee Frenchman attempted exactly zero of his signature floaters tonight. It's as if both of them are trying to prove they aren't intimidated by the rampant physicality of Seattle's big men.

SA also over-compensated with their pick-and-roll defense. In game 3 the big men were stepping out and the rotations weren't quick enough which led to numerous uncontested dunks. In game 4 the big men didn't step out. At all. Which led to no dunks but instead to numerous uncontested 12-18 footers. At the end of the third quarter Ridnour came off a pick and roll and Duncan basically stayed right under the basket. Luke shot the laziest 8 foot runner I've ever seen. I think he yawned half-way through.

The Spurs also turned the ball over 15 times in the first half and 20 for the game. Lousy team offense + lousy team defense = blowout.

The Sickness was the least sucky of all the non-Duncan Spurs, but we needed more from him. Of course when you're on the bench FOR HALF OF THE MOTHERFUCKING GAME IT'S HARD TO DO A GODDAMNED THING. Twenty-five fucking minutes.

Look people, I'm sure Gregg Popovich has forgotten more about basketball than I'll ever know blah blah blah. He's know more about Xs and Os and 4-downs and that run-his-hand-across-his chest play. He's learned things about these players that I will never know. He knows about individual personalities. He knows that Devin Brown is afraid of snakes and Nesterovic's favorite flavor of ice cream is mint-chocolate-chip. He's heard that Duncan recently switched from briefs to boxer briefs because he a bad, bad case of epididymitis. Maybe I am a fucking idiot and have absolutely no damn clue what I'm talking about.

But you know, if I had a guy on my team that had the THIRD HIGHEST +/- IN THE WHOLE FREAKING LEAGUE DURING THE REGULAR SEASON I just might think it would be better for him to be on the court than on the bench. I'm just talking out loud here. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe that WHOLE SEASONS WORTH OF DATA is a bunch of shit.

And maybe, if I looked at my team and saw that TWO PLAYERS HAD +/- OF OVER 15 I just might think "Hmm, maybe one of them should be on the court at all times."

Please Pop, STOP DICKING AROUND. This is the playoffs. There's no more time for "teaching players lessons" or "trying to find a lineup that works." Here's a fucking clue: TP-MG-BB-TD-RS outscored their opponents by 18.25 POINTS PER 48 MINUTES DURING THE REGULAR SEASON. There's your damned "lineup that works". Dance with the motherfucking horse that brought you.

For fuck's sake, it's one thing to start Brent "I am required to make one obscenely bad pass per game" Barry against the Nuggets when he could guard either Buckner of DerMarr Johnson. Which Sonic is he supposed to guard? You obviously do not think he can guard Lewis because you're doubling him whenever he gets the ball. And he certainly cannot guard Allen, Ridnour or Daniels. So why the fuck is he out there? To shoot threes? Manu's just a good 3P shooter as he is. If Brent cannot shoot 3s coming off the bench then I have a splendid idea: LEAVE HIM ON THE GODDAMNED BENCH.

There's a novel idea. You actually do not have to play all your players during the playoffs! True story! During the regular season you can get away with playing your big guns an average of only 30-35 minutes a game because you sometimes encounter really fucking bad teams. Last time I checked, "really fucking bad teams" don't make the playoffs.

But, again, I'm no coach. What the fuck do I know?

Maybe Parker really does need to sit out the last 2 minutes of every first quarter. And maybe he really does need to sit out during the first 6 minutes of every second quarter, too. Maybe he needs that fifteen minute break. Maybe between quarters he retires to the locker room and masturbates furiously to photos of Eva Longoria. Maybe this tires him out. Maybe he's really 42 instead of 22 and thus can only play 36 minutes a game while Steve Nash plays 38.

Yeah, yeah, I know Ginobili had 2 fouls in the first quarter. So what? Put him on Ridnour and tell him not to foul. If he gets his third then sit him. Give him the chance.

What fucking kills me is it's not like the backups are playing worth a shit. Udrih would rather dribble wildly to the basket that shoot open 3s. Barry also enjoys fruitless trips into the paint and couldn't guard Sue Bird. And on the defensive end Nazr looks like he's being controlled by a 2 year old holding his PS2 joystick upside down. Big Dog is shoving people into refs and complaining about non-calls while his man runs down the court for a layup.

Here's your rotation. Feel free to print a copy for yourself!

Parker
The Sickness
Bowen
Duncan
Nestie

Horry for Duncan at the 8 minute mark
Barry for Ginobili at 4
Duncan for Nestie at 4
Beno for Parker at 2
Brown for Bowen at 2

Mohammed for Horry to start the 2nd
Parker for Barry at 10
Ginobili for Udrih at 10
Nestie for Duncan at 8
Bowen for Brown at 6
Horry for Mohammed at 6
Duncan for Nestie at 6

Something similar for the second half gives you:

Parker 40 minutes
Ginobili 36 minutes
Bowen 32 minutes
Duncan 36 minutes
Nestie 20 minutes

Nazr 12 minutes
Horry 28 minutes
Barry 12 minutes
Beno 8 minutes
Brown 16 minutes

This affords either Manu or Tim on the court at all times. Also, either Nestie or Duncan are on the court at all times, too. The 36 minutes between Barry, Beno and Brown can be redistributed based on matchups and who's actually willing to shoot open 3s that night.

Look, I'm not blaming Pop for the loss. He's not responsible for the turnovers or the botched pick and rolls. But he's fucking up the one thing he's responsible for: getting your best players on the court in an intelligent manner and as much as possible. No amount of strategerie or tinkering can make up for talent. Play your best players. This is not the time to "prove a point" or to "teach a lesson" or to "mix and match." This is not the time to "get some guys some rest." (What exactly would they be resting for anyways? There's at most 16 games left spread out over about 40 days.)

The playoffs are about riding your horses to the finish line. Which, if Ginobili keeps getting 25 minutes, will be here sooner than expected.

[spur219]

What the Spurs need to do is break their game into possessions. It looked like they were giving up on D and they were expecting to score on the way back. They need to play every possession as if they are looking for a victory. Let's say they are on defense well they need to try their best possible for them not to score. If they don't and the Spurs get the rebound well the Spurs have won that possession. And the same thing on offense. I think that is a different way looking at the game and it might help them out.

[MadDog73]

That is nice. Good constructive criticism, as opposed to crappy "Fire P_p! He has no O!" posts.

I think Pop gave up too early last night. I understand that Pop was telling the other players they had to be able to shoot, too, but a Game 4 in Seattle is probably not the best time to teach your players a lesson.

Or maybe it is. Maybe the Spurs will come out breathing fire tomorrow night (like I thought they would do last night).

Maybe all these rants and "advice" will be little more than a memory as we get ready to play in our 3rd Final series.

All I can say is I hope the team learned something last night, and in the end it will help us get better.

[beirmeistr]

There is a very nice rant by Matt (http://www.nbaspurs.blogspot.com/) that I would like to share with you. I have been saying this for a long time (http://p204.ezboard.com/fsanantoniospurs62937frm1.showMessageRange?topicID =14533.topic&start=51&stop=80)

15 May 2005

Twenty-Five

Twenty-fucking-five. More on that later.

*****

Before I, uh, let loose, I have to give credit to the Sonics. Ray Allen, after being positively horrendous is game 3 (6-23), hit a host of difficult shots on his way to 32 points on 20 FGA. Luke Ridnour also had a huge game, hitting wide open runner after wide open jump shot. He finished with 20 points on 15 FGA. Both of them were key in SEA's huge 3rd quarter, where they scored 36 points on 127% shooting. As good as Ridnour was, Antonio Daniels was probably even better, with 19 points on 13 FGA.

Also, give credit to Nate McMillan for being the first NBA coach this year to figure out Tony Parker is a bad jump shooter. At one point Tony had the ball one foot inside the three point line at the top of the key. Antonio Daniels, who was "guarding" him, was at the free throw line, going under consecutive attempts at a pick and roll. I've said it time and time again, why would any team play up on a guy who A)is one of the quickest players in the league and B) shoots under 30% from 3?

And by the way, SA never had a lead in this game.

*****

I can imagine Timmeh sitting on the plane ride home, looking at the stat sheet. 35 points on 19 FGA. 10 REB. 2 BLK. Nobody else had more than 15 points. Nobody else had more than 7 boards. Maybe, just maybe he thought "Wow, this must be how KG feels."

Tim had a good game. He was aggressive, hit his free throws and crashed the offensive glass. Everyone one else either sucked or sucked hard. Both Parker and Ginobili are forcing penetration, trying to create something against a Seattle defense packing it in. The Wee Frenchman attempted exactly zero of his signature floaters tonight. It's as if both of them are trying to prove they aren't intimidated by the rampant physicality of Seattle's big men.

SA also over-compensated with their pick-and-roll defense. In game 3 the big men were stepping out and the rotations weren't quick enough which led to numerous uncontested dunks. In game 4 the big men didn't step out. At all. Which led to no dunks but instead to numerous uncontested 12-18 footers. At the end of the third quarter Ridnour came off a pick and roll and Duncan basically stayed right under the basket. Luke shot the laziest 8 foot runner I've ever seen. I think he yawned half-way through.

The Spurs also turned the ball over 15 times in the first half and 20 for the game. Lousy team offense + lousy team defense = blowout.

The Sickness was the least sucky of all the non-Duncan Spurs, but we needed more from him. Of course when you're on the bench FOR HALF OF THE MOTHERFUCKING GAME IT'S HARD TO DO A GODDAMNED THING. Twenty-five fucking minutes.

Look people, I'm sure Gregg Popovich has forgotten more about basketball than I'll ever know blah blah blah. He's know more about Xs and Os and 4-downs and that run-his-hand-across-his chest play. He's learned things about these players that I will never know. He knows about individual personalities. He knows that Devin Brown is afraid of snakes and Nesterovic's favorite flavor of ice cream is mint-chocolate-chip. He's heard that Duncan recently switched from briefs to boxer briefs because he a bad, bad case of epididymitis. Maybe I am a fucking idiot and have absolutely no damn clue what I'm talking about.

But you know, if I had a guy on my team that had the THIRD HIGHEST +/- IN THE WHOLE FREAKING LEAGUE DURING THE REGULAR SEASON I just might think it would be better for him to be on the court than on the bench. I'm just talking out loud here. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe that WHOLE SEASONS WORTH OF DATA is a bunch of shit.

And maybe, if I looked at my team and saw that TWO PLAYERS HAD +/- OF OVER 15 I just might think "Hmm, maybe one of them should be on the court at all times."

Please Pop, STOP DICKING AROUND. This is the playoffs. There's no more time for "teaching players lessons" or "trying to find a lineup that works." Here's a fucking clue: TP-MG-BB-TD-RS outscored their opponents by 18.25 POINTS PER 48 MINUTES DURING THE REGULAR SEASON. There's your damned "lineup that works". Dance with the motherfucking horse that brought you.

For fuck's sake, it's one thing to start Brent "I am required to make one obscenely bad pass per game" Barry against the Nuggets when he could guard either Buckner of DerMarr Johnson. Which Sonic is he supposed to guard? You obviously do not think he can guard Lewis because you're doubling him whenever he gets the ball. And he certainly cannot guard Allen, Ridnour or Daniels. So why the fuck is he out there? To shoot threes? Manu's just a good 3P shooter as he is. If Brent cannot shoot 3s coming off the bench then I have a splendid idea: LEAVE HIM ON THE GODDAMNED BENCH.

There's a novel idea. You actually do not have to play all your players during the playoffs! True story! During the regular season you can get away with playing your big guns an average of only 30-35 minutes a game because you sometimes encounter really fucking bad teams. Last time I checked, "really fucking bad teams" don't make the playoffs.

But, again, I'm no coach. What the fuck do I know?

Maybe Parker really does need to sit out the last 2 minutes of every first quarter. And maybe he really does need to sit out during the first 6 minutes of every second quarter, too. Maybe he needs that fifteen minute break. Maybe between quarters he retires to the locker room and masturbates furiously to photos of Eva Longoria. Maybe this tires him out. Maybe he's really 42 instead of 22 and thus can only play 36 minutes a game while Steve Nash plays 38.

Yeah, yeah, I know Ginobili had 2 fouls in the first quarter. So what? Put him on Ridnour and tell him not to foul. If he gets his third then sit him. Give him the chance.

What fucking kills me is it's not like the backups are playing worth a shit. Udrih would rather dribble wildly to the basket that shoot open 3s. Barry also enjoys fruitless trips into the paint and couldn't guard Sue Bird. And on the defensive end Nazr looks like he's being controlled by a 2 year old holding his PS2 joystick upside down. Big Dog is shoving people into refs and complaining about non-calls while his man runs down the court for a layup.

Here's your rotation. Feel free to print a copy for yourself!

Parker
The Sickness
Bowen
Duncan
Nestie

Horry for Duncan at the 8 minute mark
Barry for Ginobili at 4
Duncan for Nestie at 4
Beno for Parker at 2
Brown for Bowen at 2

Mohammed for Horry to start the 2nd
Parker for Barry at 10
Ginobili for Udrih at 10
Nestie for Duncan at 8
Bowen for Brown at 6
Horry for Mohammed at 6
Duncan for Nestie at 6

Something similar for the second half gives you:

Parker 40 minutes
Ginobili 36 minutes
Bowen 32 minutes
Duncan 36 minutes
Nestie 20 minutes

Nazr 12 minutes
Horry 28 minutes
Barry 12 minutes
Beno 8 minutes
Brown 16 minutes

This affords either Manu or Tim on the court at all times. Also, either Nestie or Duncan are on the court at all times, too. The 36 minutes between Barry, Beno and Brown can be redistributed based on matchups and who's actually willing to shoot open 3s that night.

Look, I'm not blaming Pop for the loss. He's not responsible for the turnovers or the botched pick and rolls. But he's fucking up the one thing he's responsible for: getting your best players on the court in an intelligent manner and as much as possible. No amount of strategerie or tinkering can make up for talent. Play your best players. This is not the time to "prove a point" or to "teach a lesson" or to "mix and match." This is not the time to "get some guys some rest." (What exactly would they be resting for anyways? There's at most 16 games left spread out over about 40 days.)

The playoffs are about riding your horses to the finish line. Which, if Ginobili keeps getting 25 minutes, will be here sooner than expected.
Wow!! Bold post, RVB. You really put some time and effort on this.

[Xolotl]

If I was Pop I would implore the entire city of San Antonio to call the Sonics hotel rooms in the middle of the night. While driving around the hotel honking their horns, false fire alarms. Then hire some guy to bust Ray Allen over the kneecap a la Nancy Kerrigan

[popavich the loser]

There is a very nice rant by Matt (http://www.nbaspurs.blogspot.com/) that I would like to share with you. I have been saying this for a long time (http://p204.ezboard.com/fsanantoniospurs62937frm1.showMessageRange?topicID =14533.topic&start=51&stop=80)

15 May 2005

Twenty-Five

Twenty-fucking-five. More on that later.

*****

Before I, uh, let loose, I have to give credit to the Sonics. Ray Allen, after being positively horrendous is game 3 (6-23), hit a host of difficult shots on his way to 32 points on 20 FGA. Luke Ridnour also had a huge game, hitting wide open runner after wide open jump shot. He finished with 20 points on 15 FGA. Both of them were key in SEA's huge 3rd quarter, where they scored 36 points on 127% shooting. As good as Ridnour was, Antonio Daniels was probably even better, with 19 points on 13 FGA.

Also, give credit to Nate McMillan for being the first NBA coach this year to figure out Tony Parker is a bad jump shooter. At one point Tony had the ball one foot inside the three point line at the top of the key. Antonio Daniels, who was "guarding" him, was at the free throw line, going under consecutive attempts at a pick and roll. I've said it time and time again, why would any team play up on a guy who A)is one of the quickest players in the league and B) shoots under 30% from 3?

And by the way, SA never had a lead in this game.

*****

I can imagine Timmeh sitting on the plane ride home, looking at the stat sheet. 35 points on 19 FGA. 10 REB. 2 BLK. Nobody else had more than 15 points. Nobody else had more than 7 boards. Maybe, just maybe he thought "Wow, this must be how KG feels."

Tim had a good game. He was aggressive, hit his free throws and crashed the offensive glass. Everyone one else either sucked or sucked hard. Both Parker and Ginobili are forcing penetration, trying to create something against a Seattle defense packing it in. The Wee Frenchman attempted exactly zero of his signature floaters tonight. It's as if both of them are trying to prove they aren't intimidated by the rampant physicality of Seattle's big men.

SA also over-compensated with their pick-and-roll defense. In game 3 the big men were stepping out and the rotations weren't quick enough which led to numerous uncontested dunks. In game 4 the big men didn't step out. At all. Which led to no dunks but instead to numerous uncontested 12-18 footers. At the end of the third quarter Ridnour came off a pick and roll and Duncan basically stayed right under the basket. Luke shot the laziest 8 foot runner I've ever seen. I think he yawned half-way through.

The Spurs also turned the ball over 15 times in the first half and 20 for the game. Lousy team offense + lousy team defense = blowout.

The Sickness was the least sucky of all the non-Duncan Spurs, but we needed more from him. Of course when you're on the bench FOR HALF OF THE MOTHERFUCKING GAME IT'S HARD TO DO A GODDAMNED THING. Twenty-five fucking minutes.

Look people, I'm sure Gregg Popovich has forgotten more about basketball than I'll ever know blah blah blah. He's know more about Xs and Os and 4-downs and that run-his-hand-across-his chest play. He's learned things about these players that I will never know. He knows about individual personalities. He knows that Devin Brown is afraid of snakes and Nesterovic's favorite flavor of ice cream is mint-chocolate-chip. He's heard that Duncan recently switched from briefs to boxer briefs because he a bad, bad case of epididymitis. Maybe I am a fucking idiot and have absolutely no damn clue what I'm talking about.

But you know, if I had a guy on my team that had the THIRD HIGHEST +/- IN THE WHOLE FREAKING LEAGUE DURING THE REGULAR SEASON I just might think it would be better for him to be on the court than on the bench. I'm just talking out loud here. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe that WHOLE SEASONS WORTH OF DATA is a bunch of shit.

And maybe, if I looked at my team and saw that TWO PLAYERS HAD +/- OF OVER 15 I just might think "Hmm, maybe one of them should be on the court at all times."

Please Pop, STOP DICKING AROUND. This is the playoffs. There's no more time for "teaching players lessons" or "trying to find a lineup that works." Here's a fucking clue: TP-MG-BB-TD-RS outscored their opponents by 18.25 POINTS PER 48 MINUTES DURING THE REGULAR SEASON. There's your damned "lineup that works". Dance with the motherfucking horse that brought you.

For fuck's sake, it's one thing to start Brent "I am required to make one obscenely bad pass per game" Barry against the Nuggets when he could guard either Buckner of DerMarr Johnson. Which Sonic is he supposed to guard? You obviously do not think he can guard Lewis because you're doubling him whenever he gets the ball. And he certainly cannot guard Allen, Ridnour or Daniels. So why the fuck is he out there? To shoot threes? Manu's just a good 3P shooter as he is. If Brent cannot shoot 3s coming off the bench then I have a splendid idea: LEAVE HIM ON THE GODDAMNED BENCH.

There's a novel idea. You actually do not have to play all your players during the playoffs! True story! During the regular season you can get away with playing your big guns an average of only 30-35 minutes a game because you sometimes encounter really fucking bad teams. Last time I checked, "really fucking bad teams" don't make the playoffs.

But, again, I'm no coach. What the fuck do I know?

Maybe Parker really does need to sit out the last 2 minutes of every first quarter. And maybe he really does need to sit out during the first 6 minutes of every second quarter, too. Maybe he needs that fifteen minute break. Maybe between quarters he retires to the locker room and masturbates furiously to photos of Eva Longoria. Maybe this tires him out. Maybe he's really 42 instead of 22 and thus can only play 36 minutes a game while Steve Nash plays 38.

Yeah, yeah, I know Ginobili had 2 fouls in the first quarter. So what? Put him on Ridnour and tell him not to foul. If he gets his third then sit him. Give him the chance.

What fucking kills me is it's not like the backups are playing worth a shit. Udrih would rather dribble wildly to the basket that shoot open 3s. Barry also enjoys fruitless trips into the paint and couldn't guard Sue Bird. And on the defensive end Nazr looks like he's being controlled by a 2 year old holding his PS2 joystick upside down. Big Dog is shoving people into refs and complaining about non-calls while his man runs down the court for a layup.

Here's your rotation. Feel free to print a copy for yourself!

Parker
The Sickness
Bowen
Duncan
Nestie

Horry for Duncan at the 8 minute mark
Barry for Ginobili at 4
Duncan for Nestie at 4
Beno for Parker at 2
Brown for Bowen at 2

Mohammed for Horry to start the 2nd
Parker for Barry at 10
Ginobili for Udrih at 10
Nestie for Duncan at 8
Bowen for Brown at 6
Horry for Mohammed at 6
Duncan for Nestie at 6

Something similar for the second half gives you:

Parker 40 minutes
Ginobili 36 minutes
Bowen 32 minutes
Duncan 36 minutes
Nestie 20 minutes

Nazr 12 minutes
Horry 28 minutes
Barry 12 minutes
Beno 8 minutes
Brown 16 minutes

This affords either Manu or Tim on the court at all times. Also, either Nestie or Duncan are on the court at all times, too. The 36 minutes between Barry, Beno and Brown can be redistributed based on matchups and who's actually willing to shoot open 3s that night.

Look, I'm not blaming Pop for the loss. He's not responsible for the turnovers or the botched pick and rolls. But he's fucking up the one thing he's responsible for: getting your best players on the court in an intelligent manner and as much as possible. No amount of strategerie or tinkering can make up for talent. Play your best players. This is not the time to "prove a point" or to "teach a lesson" or to "mix and match." This is not the time to "get some guys some rest." (What exactly would they be resting for anyways? There's at most 16 games left spread out over about 40 days.)

The playoffs are about riding your horses to the finish line. Which, if Ginobili keeps getting 25 minutes, will be here sooner than expected.

i nominate this guy to be coach

[Rick Von Braun]

Wow!! Bold post, RVB. You really put some time and effort on this. The quoted post is not my post... it is Matt's. There is a link to his blog if you click on his name in my original message. My posts are in the link I put above as well (click on "long time"). I suggested something similar as to what Matt said a long time ago, since the Denver series.

I knew this was coming. I even predicted the fall out of Brent Barry, the bitching of all fans, everything.

Sad but true.

[Xolotl]

Yeah it seems to me that Spurs fans are quick to flip the panic switch. I won't lie I am a bit worried, who wouldn't be, but I'm not quite ready to go burn down the SBC center yet.

[UnknownPlayer]

Start Tim, Horry, Devin, Manu & Tony

[gospursgojas]

Start Tim, Horry, Devin, Manu & Tony

Devin??? Why to keep Bruce out of foul trouble, or to give the Spurs alot of firepower to jump on the Sonics???

Please elaborate

[SWC Bonfire]

Start Tim, Horry, Devin, Manu & Tony

Are they going to play 48 min each?

I think when TP is on the floor he needs people running without the ball to pass to. Adjust rotations, but the people on the floor need to be moving. I also know that that is easier said than done. If I'm Pop I want the SBC crowd noise piped into the PA system.

I would also like to see TMassenburg, but I can see how he would not match up well w/ the sonics.

[ALVAREZ6]

hang myself
Did you read my mind? I swear, I was going to say that before looking at this thread.

But seriously:
1) Start Manu, and only give Barry like 5 minutes of playing time.
2) Devin Brown needs to be in when Manu isn't, basically, just have one or the other in.
3) In all seriousness, ask Rasho if he has a vagina.
4) Tell his team that they better fucking perform like the real San Antonio Spurs. If they don't win by 20, every player shall do 500 push ups.

[gospursgojas]

Are they going to play 48 min each?

I think when TP is on the floor he needs people running without the ball to pass to. Adjust rotations, but the people on the floor need to be moving. I also know that that is easier said than done. If I'm Pop I want the SBC crowd noise piped into the PA system.

I would also like to see TMassenburg, but I can see how he would not match up well w/ the sonics.

He could match up with their "put them on the floor" attitude, and go in their and put someone on thier butt.

[ALVAREZ6]

RVB, very nice post. I agree with everything you said, and I wish that I was so damn lazy to type, otherwise I would say the same.

[tlongII]

Tank next season to get the #1 pick in '06.

[Ishta]

Tank next season to get the #1 pick in '06.
WELL, WE'LL SEE HOW IT WORKS FOR YOUR TEAM....LET US KNOW!


GO SPURS GO