The San Antonio Suns

[Nathan89]

The San Antonio Spurs are five games into the season and have never looked more like the Phoenix Suns. For the first five games the Spurs have averaged 109ppg and have allowed their opponents to average 105ppg. Unfortunately this comparison was not drawn only from the offensive end but also the defensive end.

The Spurs offense is currently operating on all cylinders. In large part do to the drastic improvement of Richard Jefferson over the summer. Somehow he has transformed into a three-point specialist, shooting 60% for the season. For years the Suns have had many 3pt shooters, with the arrival new players and Rj's new abilities the Spurs have accumulated a lot of three-point threats. The Spurs players with 3pt capabilities include :Manu, Rj, Neal, Anderson, Hill and Bonner. In addition to that Tony Parker is doing his best Steve Nash impersonation with a career high 8.4 apg. Leading the Spurs to offensive efficiency that has been unseen in years past. There should be many more high scoring games this year with the offensive weapons the Spurs now have.

Just like the Suns, it seems that the defense of the Spurs is not operating at all. In the past Spurs basketball has concentrated on the philosophy that defense wins championships. This is partly a result of losing talented defensive players(Bruce Bowen:() and the diminished athletic ability of Tim Duncan over the years. This however is no excuse for the embarrassing averages that the opponents have been scoring. Us Spurs fans have to hope that the defensive struggles are mainly the result new players trying to mesh together at the beginning of a new season. That it is only a matter of time before Coach Pop ingrains his emphasis on defense into minds of all the players.

Here's to hoping the defense improves.:toast If so we could win a:lobt:.

[8FOR!3]

We're 4 and 1 guys. Save the complaining for when we start losing, you'll need it.

[TwelveGs210]

Yeah, I'm loving the offense right now..now the typical "boring" Spurs of past years. I'm hating the close games though. At least the Spurs are gonna fight it out at the end, but we cant keep getting put in those nail biter scenarios. Great start for Jefferson is definitely better late than never.

[DJB]

We're 4 and 1 guys. Save the complaining for when we start losing, you'll need it.

:lol

[OrEmuN]

We're 4 and 1 guys. Save the complaining for when we start losing, you'll need it.

But but ... we might go 81-1.... :lol

[ajh18]

A couple responses to this.

First of all, I actually don't think this team's offense is "operating on all cylinders" at all yet. They are turning the ball over, and Tony and Manu are both shooting below their career averages. Blair has also been pretty terrible as the starting center, playing well below what he's capable of. At their best offensively, this Spurs team is even more efficient and puts up even more points.

Plenty of people have also pointed out that its a change in pace that has led to the Spurs increased offensive stats, and decrease in defense. I think an increased pace is actually more aligned to the personnel we have than a slower pace, and has really helped players like RJ. And I don't think the faster pace precludes good defense, at least in terms of shooting percentage. I don't really care how many points the other team puts up if we can hold the other team to a low percentage, create turnovers, and limit second opportunities.

But adjusting to that kind of defensive scheme will just take time, particularly with a team in which four players (Blair, Splitter, Neal, and Anderson) are both young and relatively new to the system and their roles.

[mookie2001]

unoriginal, we heard it already

the suns didnt invent offense, we're 4-1 and they beat us last year


?

[GSH]

The Suns could go off for 130+ in a non-over time game. They could also keep the pressure up, and outscore an opponent by 30 points. They pushed the ball on every play, and they got a large percentage of layups and wide-open 3's. The Spurs are a hell of along way from being anything like the Suns. When scoring 112 and 113 (in regulation) is a big deal, you're not the kind of scoring machine the Suns were.

Last season we scored 113 in two of our first three games. We also scored 85 in a loss, and in the sixth game we scored 131 in regulation, without Tim Duncan or Tony Parker. I wouldn't be in too big of a rush to get happy. So far we look more like last year's Spurs than the run-and-gun Suns.

The Spurs not only need to get their shit together defensively, they need to do it consistently. I see some things to be optimistic about. Jefferson is playing well, and the rookies show signs of being able to contribute. Hopefully that means we will be better than last season. But the Lakers, Celtics, and Magic will give our offense hell. We have to be able to do the same thing back to them. Otherwise they will do the same thing to our offense that we used to do to the Suns offense.

I'm not being negative - I'm just saying.

[Nathan89]

First of all, I actually don't think this team's offense is "operating on all cylinders" at all yet. They are turning the ball over, and Tony and Manu are both shooting below their career averages. Blair has also been pretty terrible as the starting center, playing well below what he's capable of. At their best offensively, this Spurs team is even more efficient and puts up even more points.



Oh shit can we average 120ppg?:wow

[Nathan89]

We're 4 and 1 guys. Save the complaining for when we start losing, you'll need it.

But were a bieber's chin hair away from 2 and 3.

[jestersmash]

I wonder if Pop ever watches elite defensive teams of this era with similar team dynamics (Boston) and motivates his own players to emulate what they are seeing.

Really buckle down game by game (through these first 5 games) analyzing who has done what wrong on defense while comparing this analysis to Boston gameplay.

We're not at the same defensive level as Boston right now - not even close. We should strive to emulate arguably the most consistently elite defense of the post-spurs championship era (i.e. post-2007)

It boggles my mind when I watch Boston. It's like I'm watching the '05-'07 Spurs all over again. They are what we used to be on defense, as much as it pains me to say that.

Fortunately, we're only 5 games in and 5 games hardly constitutes a sufficient sample size to truly derive meaningful trends. But, it's all we have to go by so far.

[mingus]

Problem with the high octane offense is it's tiring. Manu, who is probably the most active person on offense, is struggling to defend opposing teams' guards. He's making defensive plays when he needs to (ie the steal on Courtney Lee) but the effort isn't there consistently. is he concsiously doing this in order to preserve energy for offense? Or does he now lack the athleticism to play defense? I think it's the former.

Used to be that Duncan was the primary creator offensively but a lot of it now falls on Manu. Expecting him to carry such a big load offensively and play stellar defense is kind of ridiculous ESP. considering his age.

[DeadlyDynasty]

I'm loving the new brand of ball, can't wait till LA strolls into town:tu

[barbacoataco]

I wonder if Pop ever watches elite defensive teams of this era with similar team dynamics (Boston) and motivates his own players to emulate what they are seeing.

Really buckle down game by game (through these first 5 games) analyzing who has done what wrong on defense while comparing this analysis to Boston gameplay.

We're not at the same defensive level as Boston right now - not even close. We should strive to emulate arguably the most consistently elite defense of the post-spurs championship era (i.e. post-2007)

It boggles my mind when I watch Boston. It's like I'm watching the '05-'07 Spurs all over again. They are what we used to be on defense, as much as it pains me to say that.

Fortunately, we're only 5 games in and 5 games hardly constitutes a sufficient sample size to truly derive meaningful trends. But, it's all we have to go by so far.

Agree. Boston has the best defense right now. It took them to the 7th game against the Lakers which could have gone either way. The Spurs don't have the players to be great defensively, but they could be a lot better.

[mingus]

The bright side is Anderson looks to be a good defensive prospect and George Hill was playing good d against Houston. And Splitter looks to be good on defense as well with his mobility and length.

I don't think the Spurs will be nearly as bad defensively as the Suns at the end of the day.

[barbacoataco]

Problem with the high octane offense is it's tiring. Manu, who is probably the most active person on offense, is struggling to defend opposing teams' guards. He's making defensive plays when he needs to (ie the steal on Courtney Lee) but the effort isn't there consistently. is he concsiously doing this in order to preserve energy for offense? Or does he now lack the athleticism to play defense? I think it's the former.

Used to be that Duncan was the primary creator offensively but a lot of it now falls on Manu. Expecting him to carry such a big load offensively and play stellar defense is kind of ridiculous ESP. considering his age.

good point. Manu can't be the guy on defense. He has too much of the burden on the offensive side, and he is supposed to be saving himself anyway. I think they just need a better team defensive effort, and having Splitter get involved could help a lot too.

[mingus]

The bright side is the Spurs have really looked shitty in some respects and are still trying to incorporate new players defensively and offensively. Blair is playing REALLY bad, Splitter's minutes are being limited right now, Anderson and Neal are being incorporated, and the turnovers are pathetic. Team has got more room to improve than any playoff team.

[barbacoataco]

The bright side is the Spurs have really looked shitty in some respects and are still trying to incorporate new players defensively and offensively. Blair is playing REALLY bad, Splitter's minutes are being limited right now, Anderson and Neal are being incorporated, and the turnovers are pathetic. Team has got more room to improve than any playoff team.

Add to that Hill hasn't got it going yet either. Blair, Hill and Splitter should all play better as the season goes on. McDyess seems like he wants to go out with a bang. He is playing with unusual heart for so early in the season. I think he knows that Splitter will get more minutes later in the season so he is trying to carry the load right now.

[Waps1980]

Fast paced offense leads to more shots for both us and them so by not slowing to our half court game there will be more points scored it would be stupid to think otherwise.

[TJastal]

Problem with the high octane offense is it's tiring. Manu, who is probably the most active person on offense, is struggling to defend opposing teams' guards. He's making defensive plays when he needs to (ie the steal on Courtney Lee) but the effort isn't there consistently. is he concsiously doing this in order to preserve energy for offense? Or does he now lack the athleticism to play defense? I think it's the former.

Used to be that Duncan was the primary creator offensively but a lot of it now falls on Manu. Expecting him to carry such a big load offensively and play stellar defense is kind of ridiculous ESP. considering his age.

Good point about the fatigue factor of running alot. Which as an older team with shakier wheels puts the spurs at a disadvantage.

[TJastal]

Add to that Hill hasn't got it going yet either. Blair, Hill and Splitter should all play better as the season goes on. McDyess seems like he wants to go out with a bang. He is playing with unusual heart for so early in the season. I think he knows that Splitter will get more minutes later in the season so he is trying to carry the load right now.

Splitter's minutes will come at the expense of Bonner hopefully.

[ALVAREZ6]

Team has got more room to improve than any playoff team.

Debatable: Miami Heat


But definitely top 2 of real contenders.

[Leonard Curse]

regurgitated my shit like always

[greyforest]

the rules have changed so many times to limit the effectiveness of defense. no one likes to watch basketball based defense (ala pistons spurs finals), therefore the rules of the nba were rewritten for MJ-type players to prosper. pop and the spurs have been adjusting to the new landscape over the past few years.

[miserableman]

I'm not trying to be an ass.. i just thought this would be funny.

http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g328/miserableman/manu.jpg

[buttsR4rebounding]

the rules have changed so many times to limit the effectiveness of defense. no one likes to watch basketball based defense (ala pistons spurs finals), therefore the rules of the nba were rewritten for MJ-type players to prosper. pop and the spurs have been adjusting to the new landscape over the past few years.

Even so, we are 27th in the league in Opp FG% and dead last in Opp 3pt FG%. If we can play average defense we will be a major contender for a ring if this offense keeps up. If not, a 2nd round exit would be as good as we could hope for.

[TJastal]

Even so, we are 27th in the league in Opp FG% and dead last in Opp 3pt FG%. If we can play average defense we will be a major contender for a ring if this offense keeps up. If not, a 2nd round exit would be as good as we could hope for.

That's assuming Jefferson keeps up his 65% FG/60% from 3/70% FT numbers..

[Seventyniner]

The Spurs right now are 11th in the league in efficiency differential (+3.6 points per 100 possessions), 5th in offensive efficiency (109.7) and 17th in defensive efficiency (106.1). They're also a very un-Spurs-like 6th in pace. The absolute numbers will likely drop, but the defense, at least relative to the league, isn't terrible.

Now, for a supposed conference finalist, the D has to improve a lot. Hopefully Anderson and Splitter will help the team D as they learn the system better.

[ElNono]

We're 4 and 1 guys. Save the complaining for when we start losing, you'll need it.

I guess he's preempting the 'You weren't bitching when we were 4-1 and RJ was shooting 60%'

You know that one is coming too. :lol

I'm actually surprised nobody played the 'It's only November' card yet.

[ElNono]

the rules have changed so many times to limit the effectiveness of defense. no one likes to watch basketball based defense (ala pistons spurs finals), therefore the rules of the nba were rewritten for MJ-type players to prosper. pop and the spurs have been adjusting to the new landscape over the past few years.

This is a cop-out though. Yeah, rules have changed the way you have to play defense, but there are teams out there that still manage to do more than a good job at it on a rather consistent basis. IE: Boston already held 3 opponents out of the 6 games they played under 90 points. The Magic has done as well.
Heck, even the Heat and their publicized big man woes have been doing it.

So, it's certainly possible to do it, even with these rules. Not going to happen every night, but I don't think you can use that as an overall excuse.

[DBMethos]

Another difference between these Spurs and the run-n-gun Suns: their bench was paper-thin. D'Antoni basically ran his starters + 1 or 2 bench guys into the ground, leaving them extremely vulnerable come playoff time. This Spurs team looks to be ridiculously deep, and Pop has always been one of the best in the league in managing stars' minutes.

We don't have to have the suffocating defense of past Spurs teams to win a title...that just simply can't be done with this roster. But we can get significantly better than what we've seen so far, and that may be enough to give us a shot.

[Brazil]

That's assuming Jefferson keeps up his 65% FG/60% from 3/70% FT numbers..

exactly ! I don't see how people think there is room for improvement on Offense tbh. If we improve our Offense it will be to compensate an overachieving RJ...

As for the Defense, here we have a lot to do...