Grades: Spurs @ Thunder - Mar. 16

[timvp]

No Manu Ginobili. No Richard Jefferson. No Stephen Jackson. No Tiago Splitter. No problem. The Spurs went into Oklahoma City and came away with a 114-105 victory over the Thunder. It definitely wasn't a bad night at the office against the West's top seed.

San Antonio had a great start, leading 30-19 after the first quarter. In the second, things got even better. DeJuan Blair finished a runner in the lane to put the Spurs up by 27 points with 3:35 remaining in the half. Predictably, that lead didn't last.

By the start of the fourth quarter, the lead was only 13 points. And that advantage almost instantly disappeared in the final stanza when the Thunder scored the quarter's first 11 points. But then Danny Green started balling. He scored eight of the team's next nine points to give the Spurs some breathing room. After Tim Duncan scored on a layup to give S.A. a four-point lead with a minute to go, Green stole an inbounds pass and his slam on the other end put an exclamation point on the victory.

Despite the blown lead and the iffy defense, I loved this win. The Spurs were shorthanded and had every excuse to lose the game but instead they kept executing and grinded out a gutty win. There were a lot of encouraging individual performances and the offense continues to look sharp. In the last five games, the boring Spurs are averaging 114.8 points per game.

http://oi42.tinypic.com/6ixsgm.jpg

http://oi40.tinypic.com/xnhg6b.jpg

Tim Duncan A-
Again, Tim Duncan doesn't get the headlines but he played quite a game. The way he defended the rim and controlled the boards was legendary. With young athletes flying all around him, the old man was somehow stronger and quicker to seemingly every loose ball. Offensively, Duncan hit a couple huge shots and played at a good pace all night long. Though he had his faults (he wasn't very good in pick-and-roll defense and attempted a few questionable shots [and passes]), there's no doubt that Duncan has played some of his best basketball of the season recently. He looks healthy and locked in right now.

Tony Parker B+
This was an exhausting game for Tony Parker. The Thunder threw multiple defenders at him and gave him a lot of different looks coming off of pick-and-rolls. In the paint, they were physical with him and went after just about every shot he attempted. On the other end, Parker had to fight around countless screens and his transition defense responsibilities were even more important than usual. Through it all, Parker battled. He didn't have a pretty game and he had a few rough patches -- but all in all, there's no way I can fault his effort. At the end of the game, Parker knocked down a pair of key jumpers and kept the Spurs in their offensive sets. Defensively, the gameplan was to go under the screens and make Russell Westbrook take a ton of shots. While Parker fouled Westbrook needlessly a few times, he challenged the fellow star point guard enough to not allow him to go completely nuts.

Danny Green A
I have been negative about Danny Green's recent play but he turned it around tonight. He got back to the havoc wreaking style, as evident by his five steals, that allowed him to play so well earlier in the season. With Green active on defense, it seemed like his offense came more naturally. He didn't have to force the issue, he simply took open shots. And, wow, did he take advantage of those open shots. With Stephen Jackson coming to town, it'll be interesting to see what kind of role Green will play once the roster is whole. Tonight, he showed why he shouldn't be forgotten.

Kawhi Leonard A
I wouldn't say this was Kawhi Leonard's best game of the season. However, it might have been his most professional outing. Tonight, Leonard didn't play like a rookie at all. His defense on Kevin Durant wasn't flashy but it was solid; Leonard kept a hand up and didn't allow Durant to easily get to his spots. On offense, I didn't see much timidness. When he got touches, he was looking to produce instead of simply trying to fit in. Since the All-Star break, Leonard's growth has been amazing. If he keeps up this type of in-season maturing, I honestly have no idea what his ceiling could be going forward.

DeJuan Blair A-
DeJuan Blair was a ball of energy tonight. His first half was one of the most productive halves he has played during his career. In 16 minutes, he totaled 18 points and seven rebounds on 9-for-11 shooting. His production was undoubtedly one of the main reasons, if not the main reason, why the Spurs got up by 27 points. In the second half, Blair obviously slowed down but he was still putting up stats at an impressive rate. That said, Blair's production came in such a wild fashion that it would be impossible to expect him to replicate this effort. He was constantly making things happen -- both positively and negatively -- but come playoff time, the Spurs need Blair to be ready to play a calmer, more under control brand of basketball.

Matt Bonner C-
Honestly, I don't know how the King of Plus/Minus did it tonight. He had at least a couple nice blocks (I thought I saw three blocks but he was only credited for two) but other than that, Bonner didn't do much else right. That, though, didn't stop him from posting a game-best +16. Defensively, his rotations were decent but far from great. His individual defense was shaky. On offense, the Thunder were actually rotating off of him quite a bit. The only shot he hit was in the second quarter when the Spurs were up by a bunch. But some how, some way, Bonner was apparently an asset tonight. I just didn't see it.

Gary Neal C+
The pattern continues for Gary Neal at backup point guard: Ugly yet effective. In his ten minutes running the show, the Spurs scored 24 points and outscored the Thunder by four. Even without Ginobili at his side, Neal was able to run the show without many hiccups. Surprisingly, Neal's worst moments of the game all came with him at shooting guard. His defense wasn't good tonight, especially when isolated against a quick player, and he suffered from tunnel vision when driving to the hoop.

James Anderson A-
With the trade deadline behind him, I thought James Anderson looked a lot better than usual. He was aggressive, showed poise and confidence, made a few plays in tight quarters, and his defense was surprisingly good. I thought he ran the court extremely well and his overall athleticism appeared to be better than we've gotten accustomed to seeing. While the Spurs could have saved quite a bit of money by trading him away, it looks like they made a wise choice to keep him around for the added depth he provides at the wing positions.

Tiago Splitter Inc.
Tiago Splitter only played a couple minutes before he vanished from sight. A lot of us were fearing an injury but it turned out Splitter was just dealing with an upset stomach. Let's hope he's ready to go tomorrow night in Dallas.

Pop A-
The bad: I really don't understand the 26 minutes for Bonner. I guess it technically worked out but I thought Pop should have either gone back to Blair or gone small instead of leaning on Bonner during the clutch minutes of the game. I also thought the playcalling got rather predictable for a stretch early in the fourth. The good: Nearly everything else. The Stephen Jackson trade could have been a distraction. Playing without Ginobili is never easy. The Spurs lost Splitter early on. The big lead was also lost. But Pop kept coaching with a steady hand and kept his troops focused on getting the win. Impressive.

[Chase_the_Bass]

One of Bonners blocks Westbrook kinda just threw it at his arms I thought.

[Redshadows]

No Manu Ginobili. No Richard Jefferson. No Stephen Jackson. No Tiago Splitter. No problem.
Jefferson is the problem.

[manufan10]

Stayed up late just for the grades. Thanks, as always!

[DPG21920]

Calling it early: This will be Kawhi's true breakout game.

[Spurs da champs]

Damn you predicted a trade to, Nostradamus?

[DrSteffo]

Great analysis and a great win! Loved the way Green stepped up when needed and the D from Leonard and a lot of other things.

[Manufan909]

One of Bonners blocks Westbrook kinda just threw it at his arms I thought.

Indeed. Did Bonner get credited for blocking Nazr? If not, who was his other credited block against?

[Paranoid Pop]

James Anderson A-
With the trade deadline behind him, I thought James Anderson looked a lot better than usual. He was aggressive, showed poise and confidence, made a few plays in tight quarters, and his defense was surprisingly good. I thought he ran the court extremely well and his overall athleticism appeared to be better than we've gotten accustomed to seeing. While the Spurs could have saved quite a bit of money by trading him away, it looks like they made a wise choice to keep him around for the added depth he provides at the wing positions.

:toast I still believe in him, I think his individual defense at the 2 is better than Green's (who makes up for it with hustle plays and actually hitting his 3s). I'm not surprised that Harden ended up 8/11, felt like we couldn't slow their 2 at all.

[Redshadows]

How much do you guys think the Spurs should pay to keep D.Green?

[TDMVPDPOY]

How much do you guys think the Spurs should pay to keep D.Green?

if they lowball him like that did for jax in 03, he should just go to the highest team....i think 4m sounds about right

[TJastal]

if they lowball him like that did for jax in 03, he should just go to the highest team....i think 4m sounds about right

Green should get a 2 yr / 6.5m type deal IMO. Even if he's worth a little more. Last thing you wanna do is load a guy down with expectations (even though it appears he could handle em).

[Spur|n|Austin]

Thanks, timvp. Do you guys think Duncan sits tonight? After he ended up having to play extended minutes I could see Pop sitting him on the back to back.

[TMT®]

Thanks, timvp. Do you guys think Duncan sits tonight? After he ended up having to play extended minutes I could see Pop sitting him on the back to back.

That would be a shame to sit Tim in Captain Jack's first game back. If anything he will play the first half, and Pop will go easy on him in the second despite what the scoreboard reads.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

An upset stomach
Crofl
F
M
L


Crofl

[TDMVPDPOY]

u guys know why splitter was nowhere to be seen when KL has a monster jam?? he was taking a shit

[Manu-of-steel]

Thanks for the grades, timvp. If I were the one to make this write up, I'd give A to anyone not named Matt. Bonner had two critical errors in the 4th quarter-his pass was stolen that led to a fastbreak, and an offensive foul while trying to set a pick. But the + - shows a +16. Still, a great win for the Manu/ Jackson/Splitter-less spurs. Yeah!

[Amuseddaysleeper]

u guys know why splitter was nowhere to be seen when KL has a monster jam?? he was taking a shit

And so was Kawhi on Ibaka.

[TDMVPDPOY]

ibakas 5 blocks all mounted to spurs 2nd chance points

[Manu-of-steel]

The spurs gambit seemed to limit the touches of KD and let Westbrook do the heavy lifting. Looked like it backfired against in the 4th quarter when Westbrook went wild on us with his jumpers. In the end, it was a nice strategy as KD didn't have his rhythm and Westbrook tried to to do too much without success.

[therealtruth]

Bonner plays like he's scared. I can't understand it. It's almost like he's afraid people will discover he's not really an NBA player. I'll be celebrating when the team finally parts with him.

[GSH]

During the game, the ESPN announcers were speculating about whether the Thunder are ready to take the next step to the NBA Finals. And of course they concluded that they are ready. I say they're not. And one good example of why not came in a post-game interview, when Scott Brooks said this:
"When we end up taking just 20 free throws and 25 threes it's probably not a good night for us."

No shit, Scott? You're going to blame this loss on the lack of FTA's? You're going to send your team the message that they need more than 20 free throws to win a game? I know there's a lot of talent on that team, and they draw a lot of fouls. But if they are being conditioned to accept that kind of thinking, they aren't ready for the next step. (For the record, I just clicked on a Spurs box score at random - it was a 105-83 win over Atlanta. The Spurs shot took 15 FTA's, and took 23 3P attempts. It didn't seem to be too bad of a night for them.) How about some mention of the fact that they got their asses totally kicked on the glass, and gave up 12 steals? And that during crunch time, they spent an awful lot of time worrying about the whistles?



Green should get a 2 yr / 6.5m type deal IMO. Even if he's worth a little more. Last thing you wanna do is load a guy down with expectations (even though it appears he could handle em).

I've been one of Green's biggest supporters. But he needs to put some good games together, or the only thing he's getting is a trip to Pop's doghouse. Maybe some of his problems have been Pop. (Subject for another discussion.) Maybe some of his recent problems has been from the shoulder. But whatever the reason, he has been erratic and sometimes downright bad. I love the way he plays ball, but he's got to perform more regularly. I'm still very confident that he can, but he's got to step up and prove it.



One of Bonners blocks Westbrook kinda just threw it at his arms I thought.

I was watching the game with friends. I commented during the game that Bonner looked like he didn't even know what happened. The look on his face, and his body language were hilarious. He just stood around like he didn't know who had the ball. That doesn't even make sense if you know you've just slapped a block on someone. I'm still not sure he even knew it happened.

[TJastal]

During the game, the ESPN announcers were speculating about whether the Thunder are ready to take the next step to the NBA Finals. And of course they concluded that they are ready. I say they're not. And one good example of why not came in a post-game interview, when Scott Brooks said this:
"When we end up taking just 20 free throws and 25 threes it's probably not a good night for us."

No shit, Scott? You're going to blame this loss on the lack of FTA's? You're going to send your team the message that they need more than 20 free throws to win a game? I know there's a lot of talent on that team, and they draw a lot of fouls. But if they are being conditioned to accept that kind of thinking, they aren't ready for the next step. (For the record, I just clicked on a Spurs box score at random - it was a 105-83 win over Atlanta. The Spurs shot took 15 FTA's, and took 23 3P attempts. It didn't seem to be too bad of a night for them.) How about some mention of the fact that they got their asses totally kicked on the glass, and gave up 12 steals? And that during crunch time, they spent an awful lot of time worrying about the whistles?




I've been one of Green's biggest supporters. But he needs to put some good games together, or the only thing he's getting is a trip to Pop's doghouse. Maybe some of his problems have been Pop. (Subject for another discussion.) Maybe some of his recent problems has been from the shoulder. But whatever the reason, he has been erratic and sometimes downright bad. I love the way he plays ball, but he's got to perform more regularly. I'm still very confident that he can, but he's got to step up and prove it.




I was watching the game with friends. I commented during the game that Bonner looked like he didn't even know what happened. The look on his face, and his body language were hilarious. He just stood around like he didn't know who had the ball. That doesn't even make sense if you know you've just slapped a block on someone. I'm still not sure he even knew it happened.

I'd actually be quite happy if Green was completely average (or even sub-par) for 90% of the games but comes to play in the big games that matter. We already have a ton of guys who are just the opposite.

Problem is, with Ginobili returning, along with "captain Jack" we'll probably now only get to see Green sitting on the bench for the remainder of the season.

[FlAVaK]

Jefferson WAS the problem.

FIFY :toast

[dylankerouac]

This was a great game! I have hope for the post-season.

[The ADMIRAL 50]

Thanks for the grades, timvp. If I were the one to make this write up, I'd give A to anyone not named Matt. Bonner had two critical errors in the 4th quarter-his pass was stolen that led to a fastbreak, and an offensive foul while trying to set a pick. But the + - shows a +16. Still, a great win for the Manu/ Jackson/Splitter-less spurs. Yeah!

Not normally the guy to run to Bonner's defense, but in all fairness that illegal screen was a god awful call. Westbrook pulled a CP3 flail.

[iManu]

It is SO fun to read these grades and not see Jefferson's name and his D-. Seriously, I was wanting to go home, kick my dog, and beat my kids, if I had some. Every game this season I have looked at Jefferson's minutes, then his grade, then imagined how we could have won with him in there.

[jiggy_55]

Great write-up as always, agreed with all the grades. Loved Danny and Kawhi both brought it and showed they can ball. It's great that RJ is out of the way, he has not even scored one 20point game all season, compared to Green with 3 and Leonard who has 1 (albeit with the big 3 missing).. Green might be inconsistent but he puts in effort every night and is getting better every game I believe. He also shoots the 3 just as effectively as RJ does. Kawhi has been bringing it and is playing great D all season, while no longer hesitating on the offensive end. Both have bigger balls then RJ, and can put up points on the board when needed.

On to the Dallas game, would suck if Duncan is rested tonight against the Mavs. We have 3 days off after this before facing Minnesota on Wednesday, so they will have ample rest and practices with S-Jax. Could be another good game and statement to the league, while also flashing the Spurs at full strength with RJ out, and Manu + S-Jax in the lineup and hopefully Splitter is over his little stomach bug.

[jiggy_55]

Timmy needs to play tonight. Throwing games is fucktarded especially since we're only up 3 on the LAL.

Exactly my thoughts. HCA against LAL is huge as they have been superb at Staples Center, while awful on the road.

[Texas_Ranger]

Expect to see Timmy playing tonight. He did play 33 minutes, but on offense he didn't really play that hard, there were no typical inside passes to Tim. I'm sure he got more tired on D... Still, 25 minutes tonight would be nice to see. But with Pop I wouldn't be surprised if both Duncan and Parker won't play.

[TDMVPDPOY]

give green one off season to work on his stroke, he come back a more refine player

hopefully him and leonard works on their spacing allowed for players to work on them, working to play under/over the screen, they usually take too much gamble and try to beat them with their wingspan sometimes getting the better of them....

[Obstructed_View]

Great win. Fun game to watch.

I watched the Cavs Thunder game yesterday, and predicted beforehand that the Spurs would score a ton of points. The Thunder aren't playing defense lately, hence their record. It's a quality win, but the Spurs caught them at a bad point. Not really a good measuring stick game.

Is OKC the new Phoenix? Do they just expect calls? That was not a badly officiated game, unless you count Tony Parker getting intentionally fouled at the end of the first half without a call.

Kawhi Leonard is special. I'm ready to use the B word to describe him.

Timmy's amazing. When he had that goofy turnover when the game got close, I was thinking "here we go again". That banker against Ibaka for the and-1 was a hall of fame move. Hope this Duncan is still around in June.

Bonner's performance is proof that you can't rely on +/- as a stat. After being great on both ends in the first few minutes, he then went on to make several stupid mistakes that actually made me shout at the TV. That retarded bank shot he attempted that almost hit the shot clock actually made Duncan yell at him. Bonner's continuing need to try to save fouls puzzles me. He knows he's going to get called for it, just go ahead and prevent the guy from scoring. I'm really hoping Bonner is the odd man out in the rotation with Jack on board. It's smallball every time he's on the floor anyway.

We should start calling Danny Green Dr Jeckyl. One of his personalities is showing up for the game. It might be appropriate to call the one that can play basketball Mr Hyde.

Gary Neal is not a point guard. I really like him, and he does more things good than bad. Asking him to run point is too much. Asking him to defend a position he's not familiar with is too much. Those burdens are going to catch up to him sooner or later. He's also a horrible defender. Watching him bite on the exact same Westbrook move twice in a row was embarrassing.

[Old School 44]

Nice win.

I like Pop's approach of trying to make Westbrook a jumpshooter for the game.
Westbrook is very talented, but lots of poor decisions, especially late. He seems to always want to take the "hero" shot. Very impatient IMO. I can see OKC trading him away if he continues this pattern.

Reading some of the national/okc news, you'd think the Spurs were just loaded with a veteran championship roster with tons of playoff experience. When's that myth going to end? Not counting Jack, there's only 3 guys with this kind of experience and one didn't even play last night.

Look at the roster.

Green 2 yr
Neal 1 yr
Leonard R
Anderson 1 yr
Blair 2 yr
Splitter 1 yr

Kudos to RC/Pop for rebuilding on the fly right in front of everyone.

[wildbill2u]

The coaching staff needs to rethink trying to improve Bonner's game. It's obvious that someone has been trying to teach him that learning to drive to the hoop will improve his game. It might work with another player but he has no handle at all.

Trying to teach him to dribble and move with the ball is like trying to teach an elephant to dance. In the end, you don't really have a dancing elephant, just an animal trying to mimic a human art form. :nope

It's painful to watch him give up a decent look at a 3pt shot and take off on a dribble. You can almost see him mentally gear up and then go galllumphing down the lane with an awkward high dribble and absolutely no chance to succeed most of the time. He tried it three times last night and looked foolish.

Go back to what you do best, Red Rocket and we'll all breathe easier.

[Old School 44]

Here's an interesting fact. Add up all the NBA experience of 8 players on our roster and Tim Duncan by himself has more!

Green 2 yr
Neal 1 yr
Leonard R
Anderson 1 yr
Blair 2 yr
Splitter 1 yr
Dawson R
Joseph R

[EVAY]

If Tim is getting an A for this game, Tony deserves at least an A for essentially keeping his cool while being mugged repeatedly by the Thunder and getting NO calls for it. I really believe that Spurs fans underestimate how much guts it takes for one of the smallest guys on the court to keep running into the paint again and again and getting beat up when the biggest guys on court (Tim, I'm talking to you) are out on the elbow not even giving him a block to protect him. Not only does he get in there, but as opposed to most point guards in the league, he scores most of his points in the paint.

[bklynspursfan]

No. Scoreboard is key. The Mavs have been pretty terrible lately and if we show up and play Spurs basketball we should be able to jump ahead of them pretty big in the first two and a half quarters. Basically, Tim and Tony etc. are playing the first half for extra rest. They must earn it if they want it.

Agreed. Not to mention we don't play again till Wednesday. I don't see Pop resting anyone. But I can be 100% wrong lol.

[Viva Las Espuelas]

Westbrook is a Spreewell waiting to happen.

[Mugen]

Loved Green/Leonard last night. They showed grit and the ability to perform in a playoff type atmosphere.

That said, Matt Bonner absolutely looked terrified when a little bit of pressure was applied from the Thunder. Two of his miscues: turnover later in the 3rd and a running bank shot that didnt hit anything led to two Thunder runs. He left Royal Ivey open for 3s on a couple of occasions even though his help defense in the paint is laughable at best. One of those open 3s was a potential game tying 3 pointer from Ivey that could have vaulted the Thunder to victory. He is an absolute liability on both ends of the court as soon as halftime is over.

Once again, this is expected from a proven choker and born loser. The fact that he got such heavy mins in the 4th even tho Pop could have easily gone to small ball with Neal or JA is absolutely perplexing.

When the Thunder went to small ball, Pop countered with mentally small ball. If the Spurs manage to bring in Diaw, then i have no doubt that the best thing that could happen to this team is a Bonner injury right before the playoffs. As long as he's healthy, Pop has shown a willingness to play him ahead of clutch guys like Neal/Leonard/Green/Tiago. The only way that doesnt happen is if Pop doesn't have that option.

[galvatron3000]

Great win. Fun game to watch.

I watched the Cavs Thunder game yesterday, and predicted beforehand that the Spurs would score a ton of points. The Thunder aren't playing defense lately, hence their record. It's a quality win, but the Spurs caught them at a bad point. Not really a good measuring stick game.

Is OKC the new Phoenix? Do they just expect calls? That was not a badly officiated game, unless you count Tony Parker getting intentionally fouled at the end of the first half without a call.

Kawhi Leonard is special. I'm ready to use the B word to describe him.

Timmy's amazing. When he had that goofy turnover when the game got close, I was thinking "here we go again". That banker against Ibaka for the and-1 was a hall of fame move. Hope this Duncan is still around in June.

Bonner's performance is proof that you can't rely on +/- as a stat. After being great on both ends in the first few minutes, he then went on to make several stupid mistakes that actually made me shout at the TV. That retarded bank shot he attempted that almost hit the shot clock actually made Duncan yell at him. Bonner's continuing need to try to save fouls puzzles me. He knows he's going to get called for it, just go ahead and prevent the guy from scoring. I'm really hoping Bonner is the odd man out in the rotation with Jack on board. It's smallball every time he's on the floor anyway.

We should start calling Danny Green Dr Jeckyl. One of his personalities is showing up for the game. It might be appropriate to call the one that can play basketball Mr Hyde.

Gary Neal is not a point guard. I really like him, and he does more things good than bad. Asking him to run point is too much. Asking him to defend a position he's not familiar with is too much. Those burdens are going to catch up to him sooner or later. He's also a horrible defender. Watching him bite on the exact same Westbrook move twice in a row was embarrassing.

he certainly was unable to guard Westbrook

[T Park]

The Neal PG experiment is going to fail sooner than later, and sadly it'll be too late.

Hey but Neal makes jumpshots and has an awesome nickname so screw getting another pointguard!

[rmt]

I like that Pop gave Leonard, Green and JA (and sat Neal) a lot of run last night. It was the right call against a young, athletic team like OKC. It baffles me though that he had Bonner in so much in the 4th when Blair had such a great game. I guess we'll see the other players tonight since DAL is old and slow in comparision to OKC.

SA matchup up well with OKC. I'm hoping for LAL, DAL, MEM and OKC on the other half away from SA with OKC coming through to meet SA in the WCF (getting ahead of myself, aren't I?)

[T Park]

This game more than anything proved Blair is a bench big.
He DOMINATED the lesser bigs of the Thunder but when the Thunder ratcheted up the D just a hair he panicked.

[Beanzamillion21]

As usual TIMVP with the goods I agree 100%. Hopefully this was a break out game for Anderson. I would like to see him get more minutes but that is not likely to happen.

[lmbebo]

JA finally played composed, solid bball. he looked to schizo out there earlier in the season always trying to force the issue.

Solid win without 2 big pieces away from home.

hopefully this game will jump start the 2nd half of pre season until the real season starts

[T Park]

Timmy needs to play tonight. Throwing games is fucktarded especially since we're only up 3 on the LAL.

Yeah run Duncan with bad knees into the ground!!!!

[rmt]

And isn't this the first time that the young'uns played really well on the road - not just at home?

[TJastal]

It is SO fun to read these grades and not see Jefferson's name and his D-. Seriously, I was wanting to go home, kick my dog, and beat my kids, if I had some. Every game this season I have looked at Jefferson's minutes, then his grade, then imagined how we could have won with him in there.

Enjoy it while it lasts. Soon you will be lamenting the name 'Stephen Jackson' instead.

[TJastal]

Loved Green/Leonard last night. They showed grit and the ability to perform in a playoff type atmosphere.

That said, Matt Bonner absolutely looked terrified when a little bit of pressure was applied from the Thunder. Two of his miscues: turnover later in the 3rd and a running bank shot that didnt hit anything led to two Thunder runs. He left Royal Ivey open for 3s on a couple of occasions even though his help defense in the paint is laughable at best. One of those open 3s was a potential game tying 3 pointer from Ivey that could have vaulted the Thunder to victory. He is an absolute liability on both ends of the court as soon as halftime is over.

Once again, this is expected from a proven choker and born loser. The fact that he got such heavy mins in the 4th even tho Pop could have easily gone to small ball with Neal or JA is absolutely perplexing.

When the Thunder went to small ball, Pop countered with mentally small ball. If the Spurs manage to bring in Diaw, then i have no doubt that the best thing that could happen to this team is a Bonner injury right before the playoffs. As long as he's healthy, Pop has shown a willingness to play him ahead of clutch guys like Neal/Leonard/Green/Tiago. The only way that doesnt happen is if Pop doesn't have that option.

This is why Pop has screwed the pooch in not developing the Tiago/Tim tandem up to this point.. it will be absolutely necessary for playoff basketball and he has avoided it like the plague for two years.

[T Park]

Enjoy it while it lasts. Soon you will be lamenting the name 'Stephen Jackson' instead.

Only mentally deficient people like you would.

[TJastal]

Only mentally deficient people like you would.

This whole Stephen Jackson drama reminds me of the movie Pet Sematary. Stephen Jackson was buried in there almost 10 years ago, and now he's coming back. Except I fear he's not .. quite.. the same now.

[Gagnrath]

This whole Stephen Jackson drama reminds me of the movie Pet Sematary. Stephen Jackson was buried in there almost 10 years ago, and now he's coming back. Except I fear he's not .. quite.. the same now.

First of all it was a Stephen King book the movie was questionable though the emergency room patient returning with bigger and blue eyes each time was cool. We know he's not quite the same, in 2003 he was a giant 2 guard with some playing time at the 3. Now he's a tweener 3/4 due to age and general wear and tear slowing him down. He was a slightly unfocused guy new to the NBA who was a good teammate and made occasional rash decisions. He's now a seasoned vet who has a reputation for always having a teammates back. When he is with a team that gives a Da*n he has a rep as a hard worker when with a team that isn't trying he is known to say dumb things. Hum last time I checked the Spurs seem to be trying to win.


Crap I started trying to talk sense into TJastel didn't I? I know better than that....

[jjktkk]

Thanks for the writeup Tim. :tu

[Solid D]

Well-written summary, as usual, timvp. I agree that the play-calling, or at least the offense, bogged down in the 2nd half. Part of that was due to a very active defense by the Thunder creating turnovers and part of that was Parker going head-to-head with Westbrook...seemingly trying to match Russell bucket for bucket. Parker held his own, scoring-wise. The reason the Spurs have had so many assists lately is due to their ball reversals, moving the defense, skip and extra passes. They stopped doing that for a while.

[ElNono]

Thanks for the writeup!

[Rapper]

The spurs are getting better and better . I'm pretty sure that the spurs can come out the west

[dylankerouac]

Ivey was a surprisingly good defender against Parker.

[Gagnrath]

Ivey was a surprisingly good defender against Parker.

That game was surprisingly physical as well especially for a Thunder game. Ivery was allowed to muscle Parker, and it can bother Parker when he is being bumped around the time line. Then again the game being fairly physical helped Leonard and Green on Durant as much or more. I really like the Thunder as a team, and their games are really good when they aren't being given free throw after free throw. When its called pretty fairly both ways and things are physical good games should happen between the spurs and the thunder.

[therealtruth]

This is why Pop has screwed the pooch in not developing the Tiago/Tim tandem up to this point.. it will be absolutely necessary for playoff basketball and he has avoided it like the plague for two years.

Bonner plays scared when it counts. You're not going to be effective if you play scared. If he had any confidence he could be possibly decent. I remember Scalabrine being big for the Nets in the playoffs years ago.

[pgardn]

u guys know why splitter was nowhere to be seen when KL has a monster jam?? he was taking a shit

So we have a trainer keeping up with bowel movements.

Who the hell needs grades when we have real inside information.

yorkle, yorkle...

[therealtruth]

The coaching staff needs to rethink trying to improve Bonner's game. It's obvious that someone has been trying to teach him that learning to drive to the hoop will improve his game. It might work with another player but he has no handle at all.

Trying to teach him to dribble and move with the ball is like trying to teach an elephant to dance. In the end, you don't really have a dancing elephant, just an animal trying to mimic a human art form. :nope

It's painful to watch him give up a decent look at a 3pt shot and take off on a dribble. You can almost see him mentally gear up and then go galllumphing down the lane with an awkward high dribble and absolutely no chance to succeed most of the time. He tried it three times last night and looked foolish.

Go back to what you do best, Red Rocket and we'll all breathe easier.

He needs to have a goto move and be decisive. I think it might make sense for him just to go for a midrange jumper in most cases. Teams run you off the line because they want to force you into a 2pt jumper instead.

[SenorSpur]

Great analysis, as always.

Also a great win - one of the best of the season!

Some lingering thoughts and questions following this one:

1. It shocks me as to how and why Parker gives Westbrook fits. As athletic as he is, this kid just can't seem to stay in front of Parker at all - for whatever reason. Is he a worse defender than say Royal Ivey, who got his turn at Parker in the 4th.

2. Why does Blair seemingly have monster games against OKC?

3. I don't understand Pop's reasons for resting Manu. I know it's the front end of a back-to-back, but Manu has missed the majority of this season. I would doubt that he would be badly need rest for these two opponents. And if Pop was going to rest him, why not do it for the Saturday night game in Dallas. Especially seeing as how Jack will be making his return.

4. Perhaps I've not been paying attention to the threads, but when did Dawson show back up? I like any young kid who gets a crack at a proving himself, but I have to admit that it was obvious to me, in his first stint, that this kid probably isn't big league material. Does anyone else share that opinion?

[maverick1948]

Bonner must be doing something right on D or else his +/- would reflect it. If the rest of the team can play 4 on 5 with him on the court why cant they play better 5 on 5 with him on the Bench?