Tony's mini slump

[ElNono]

I know, the team is 14-2, best start in franchise history, Manu MVP, Neal with it, November NBA champions, etc etc etc. Some will argue it's not time to get lost in the details or be nit-picky, but I think this is an important topic, and wanted to get some opinions about it.

Tony started the season on a tear. Some people pointed out that it was the byproduct of being healthy and rested again. Now the last couple of games, he seemingly been on a small slump.

What are the reasons in your opinion?
Is it the personal stuff taking over?
Is it the fact that he went against a couple of shotblocking bigs (Chandler/Okafor) that protect the paint fairly well?
Is it just part of the up and downs every player go through each season?
Other reasons?

[sananspursfan21]

i'll be worried if this goes on longer than a week from now

[MaNuMaNiAc]

It is as you said, a mini slump. Emphasis on mini. I mean, how many "bad" games are we talking about here, 2?, 3? a player can't have a couple of bad games?

[Cane]

Other reasons including focusing on defense especially against other top PG's in the league which probably drains Parker's overall energy and playing with a red-hot RJ.

Hopefully its just a minor slump, Parker should be the one making a case for MVP than Manu since he's younger and Manu needs to be rested for the playoffs.

[Chomag]

It's to early to tell if it's not anything more then just a slump. After 5 or so games in a row then I would start thinking into it more.

I agree though, it does seem to be a focus thing and I'm sure Tony knows that, and will get his head back where it needs to be.

[Bukefal]

Couple of games? It's only been 2 games and yes yesterday he did not score much but he did not have such a bad game at all. 9 assists, 6 rebounds.

Come on. TP has been nothing but great since the beginning of this season as well as the Spurs. Can't he just have a bad game? Also if the Spurs are losing one game or two, I mean It's going to happen, that the Spurs will lose a game. It's normal. I don't get all panic. We are 14-2 damnit!!

Yesterday too, after the first half, some were getting in panic mode, for nothing. Creating threads like trade parker, fire pop, we are fucked etc. etc. etc. I mean WTF, seriously?



Open the NBA.com website, have a look at the Standings page and see which team is on first place and chill out :king

[it's me]

I’m sure Ducks is working on his retarded styled, apologetically homeristic poem to give you an explanation on how it’s actually Manu’s fault.

[MaNuMaNiAc]

Couple of games? It's only been 2 games and yes yesterday he did not score much but he did not have such a bad game at all. 9 assists, 6 rebounds.

Come on. TP has been nothing but great since the beginning of this season as well as the Spurs. Can't he just have a bad game? Also if the Spurs are losing one game or two, I mean It's going to happen, that the Spurs will lose a game. It's normal. I don't get all panic. We are 14-2 damnit!!

Yesterday too, after the first half, some were getting in panic mode, for nothing. Creating threads like trade parker, fire pop, we are fucked etc. etc. etc. I mean WTF, seriously?

Open the NBA.com website, have a look at the Standings page and see which team is on first place and chill out :king

to be fair, the only one that seems to be flustered here is you. Nono just asked a question

[jag]

He's had one bad game that resulted in a loss. Other than the Dallas game he's played well.

Tony had 24 and 10 against the Magic and 18 and 6 against the TWolves, so i think it's safe to assume that isn't included as part of his "mini slump."

He didn't score well against the Hornets, but he also only had 7 shot attempts. If you look past the scoring he still had 9 assists, 6 boards and 2 steals for his 2 TOs... 2 more assists than Paul.

He didn't play well against the Mavs, but only one or two players actually did. You can consider the Hornets game part of his 2-game "mini slump," but i actually like the fact that he distributed the ball and didn't force anything.

The Spurs found an offense that was working and Tony molded his game to work within that offense. When the Spurs were up 10 with six minutes left, Tony could have tried to work his stats, but instead he stayed within the offense. I, for one, consider that a positive.

If he has difficulty finding his shot against Golden State, then he needs to continue distributing the ball and playing solid defense. He's proven that his value extends beyond his scoring ability.

[Agloco]

The Spurs found an offense that was working and Tony molded his game to work within that offense. When the Spurs were up 10 with six minutes left, Tony could have tried to work his stats, but instead he stayed within the offense. I, for one, consider that a positive.

If he has difficulty finding his shot against Golden State, then he needs to continue distributing the ball and playing solid defense. He's proven that his value extends beyond his scoring ability.

This.

For all of the Parker haters out there, he's added another dimension to his game this year. It's not all going to be about his scoring anymore.

I think he had one bad game against Dallas. The NO game saw him be the assist leader for the game. Not bad for a formerly one-dimensional guard.

[Bukefal]

to be fair, the only one that seems to be flustered here is you. Nono just asked a question

Im not really referring to the question of Nono. Im just saying this because of things, the panic, Ive seen yesterday on here, especially after the first half of the game and after the first loss to Dallas.

[ElNono]

My impression in general has been that his attack aggression has dipped in the last couple of games. Not only in his drives, but he also has been looking for his shot less.
I know he still dished assists at a fairly good rate (at least in the last game) but if you go back to before the last two games, he didn't really had much trouble doing both scoring and assisting.

Let me point out that I have no problem with people that disagree that Tony is in any kind of slump. Just gathering impressions in general, whatever they might be.

[jag]

He definitely looked less aggressive in the last two games. But if he feels like he doesn't have his legs or his shots aren't falling then I like that he didn't try to force the issue. Hopefully we see Tony at his best against GS.

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

tony is a pro, he's gonna be fine.

[ALVAREZ6]

No concern here.

[WildcardManu]

The up tempo style has opened up the new dimension for parker being able to dish out more assist but his scoring has to take a hit since he's not scoring as much because they don't play as much half court.

[Pauleta14]

he also has been looking for his shot less.

This.

I think maybe that was part of the instructions he received from Pop.
The previous game against Dallas, proved that he has a real impact on other players production, specialy RJ...

Anyway, a couple games is not enough to "jump" on any conclusion.

[spurtech09]

tony parker just looks alittle tired....tony will be fine

[clambake]

he's probably worried about snipers.

[jjktkk]

. Some will argue it's not time to get lost in the details or be nit-picky, but I think this is an important topic, and wanted to get some opinions about it.

ElNono being nit-picky? Say its not so. :D

[Cry Havoc]

"What have you done for me lately?" forum.

Manu is on fire right now. Parker is letting him take the reins.

[eric365]

Is it the personal stuff taking over?


He told in an interview Sunday that the personal stuff started before the start of the season and it has no impact on his game
I don't think it's the issue since he managed it for 14 games

He is driving less and shooting more threes. Seems a physical issue but he repeated again he was great physically in the same interview.

[ElNono]

ElNono being nit-picky? Say its not so. :D

At 14-2, what else are we gonna talk about? :D

[Cessation]

i dont think hes in a slump, recently he had to guard that annoying magic point guard, kidd, and peasant paul

has less energy to score, id guess

[jjktkk]

At 14-2, what else are we gonna talk about? :D

Just a little, good-natured, poke buddy. :toast

[jestersmash]

Not an issue at all. When Duncan was posting single digit games, I wasn't worried about his offense (his defense, however, has consistently showed signs of the type of deterioration to be expected with age). Yesterday's game is a perfect example. Parker had an off night and Duncan/RJ were able to step up.

RJ and Ginobili are going to have off nights, and hopefully Parker will step up when that happens.

Tony only took 7 shots yesterday. An occasional 2-7 game is nothing to worry about, especially when he went 0-2 from 3 point land. 3 pointers are not his game. He's clearly been toying with the thought of the 3 pointer early on this season, but he's more than earned his share of attempting a 3 point shot or two after he hit a number of clutch 3 pointers in previous games.

So really, considering 2 point shots alone (which is usually Tony's game) he was 2-5 which isn't enough to call it a "bad" offensive game.

I'd be worried and irritated if he forced the issue and ended up going 9-30, but he didn't. He realized that -

1) his shot wasn't falling (and even then this may not have been the case; more importantly is point #2 -->)
2) RJ and Ginobili (particularly early in the game) had the hot hand

and so he deferred his shots to them while still facilitating the offense (9 assists).

[TD 21]

It's just the inevitable up and down every player goes through throughout the season.

In 05-06 he shot over .548% from the field, but career wise, he shoots .491%. Meaning the chances of him continuing to shoot over 54%, as he was just two games ago, were not good. He's simply regressing to the mean. I'm not worried about Parker in the least.

It'll eventually happen to Ginobili, as well. I doubt he shoots 47/40/91 on the season. He'll probably come down two percent in each.

[DieHardSpursFan1537]

Not concerned at all. Most players have a couple rusty games.

[jcrod]

to be fair, the only one that seems to be flustered here is you. Nono just asked a question

The fact that the question is brought up only after two games where his defense hasn't left is stupid. His retort was not flustered.

[itzsoweezee]

His defense has taken a big step back the past two or three games. That's most glaring aspect to me; especially when compared to his defensive play earlier in the season.

Either he's injured, or his head's not on right. Either way, something has definitely been amiss.

[TE]

It's all good, its basketball...Tony will bring it back some time soon

[100%duncan]

tony is just on a usual up and down games in seasons. I'm sure he will be back soon. I also hope he can dominate with a + on the +/- on the game against GS

[smeagol]

ducks forum . . .

[GoSpursGo10]

I think it's just part of the ups and downs a player goes through. What, a player can't have ONE bad game? Look at Kobe, LeBron and all of the GOOD players. They have off games every once in a while too.

No need to worry...

[Jimcs50]

The Spurs' new offense
November, 30, 2010 Nov 301:20PM ETEmail Print Comments2 By Henry Abbott
Archive

David Sherman/NBAE/Getty Images

Tony Parker on a solo foray, against multiple defenders, early in the clock.
48 Minutes of Hell has been talking all season about how the Spurs are playing at a faster pace than they used to. And it's true. Their pace is up, and for the first time in the Tim Duncan era, the team's offense is ranked far better than its defense.

Things are changing.

But, as M. Haubs of The Painted Area points out, the exact nature of their up-tempo offense is more unconventional than you could imagine. By and large it's not some clever scheme. It's not showtime. It's not coordinated. The best part of the Spurs' running game is essentially Tony Parker vs. the world, playground style. Haubs writes:

In watching San Antonio, it doesn't even feel like they're looking to run fast breaks as a team, it really just feels like Parker increasingly looks to take off on one-man forays. Usually, TP breaks one of the cardinal rules of transition basketball: he never has the numbers. Really, almost never. He converts at an amazing rate, considering that he always seems to be going 1-on-3 or 2-on-3.

This phenomenon really stood out to me in San Antonio's 103-94 win over Chicago on Nov. 17. I went back at looked at Parker's clips on Synergy Sports for that game. For the season, Parker has been producing about 1.3 points per possessions (PPP) on transition plays, a strong rate. In the game vs. the Bulls, he was credited with 11 points on 5 transition plays (2.2 PPP). I mean, the Bulls are a good defensive team that plays hard - this is a crazy number. Indeed, a play-by-play analysis of the video showed that the Bulls were getting back on defense... but they still couldn't stop Parker. Here's a play-by-play breakdown:

1) 2-on-3 break: TP Bucket

2) 1-on-3 break (4th defender collapses at end): TP Bucket

3) 3-on-3 break (4th defender chases in at end): TP Bucket And 1

4) 2-on-3 break: TP Bucket

5) 2-on-3 break: TP Bucket

Not once did Parker have the numbers, yet he converted every single time. Another thing I noticed is that, on any break above where it was 2-on-3 or 3-on-3, the non-Parker Spurs always looked to spot up behind the three-point line, rather than run to the basket, and were really trailers more than what we commonly think of as active participants in fast breaks.

It really might be the most bizarre fast-break approach I've seen: they have one little guy who gets the ball and dribbles like crazy, as he runs a one-man break which he can finish uncommonly well, even against the numbers, and even though he's not a physically dominating guy -- he essentially can't even dunk in a game! And his teammates don't even look to run to the basket, they're just running to the line.

I think the conventional wisdom is that the Spurs take a fairly conservative approach, but I'm impressed at how Popovich has been open to embrace the unorthodox.

These forays are not just aberrations. Read the whole post and you'll see that while the Spurs have a lot of fastbreak points his year, Duncan has almost none: It's Parker, mainly, with Manu Ginobili and Richard Jefferson chipping in.

[duncan228]

Parker shrugs off back-to-back bad games (http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2010/11/30/parker-shrugs-off-back-to-back-bad-games/)

..."The last game in New Orleans, I didn’t get a lot of opportunities,” Parker said. “Sometimes, that’s going to happen. You’re going to have games like that.”


...“Maybe they’re a lot more focused on me,” Parker said. “They were trapping the pick and rolls a little bit more last game. They were playing good defense. I didn’t want to force it.”

http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2010/11/30/parker-shrugs-off-back-to-back-bad-games/