View Full Version : Spurs know defense has to improve
Vic Petro
10-11-2012, 10:15 PM
"A lot of people still see us as the nice Spurs," said point guard Tony Parker. "This year, I think we need to play like we're hungry and we want it.
"We have to stop saying, 'Oh, we won a lot of championships and we'll come back,' " Parker said. "We have to play with more attitude. Like Pop said, more nasty, all season long."
http://www.nba.com/2012/news/features/fran_blinebury/10/11/more-attitude-for-spurs/index.html?cid=nba_12_twitter_L
If they keep this up all season long another :lobt: isn't unlikely.
Bruno
10-12-2012, 10:30 AM
Improving defense is Spurs priority and it's logical.
Pop talked about it for an interview he made for NBA TV:
http://www.nba.com/video/channels/nba_tv/2012/10/11/2012-spurs-popovich-interview.nba/
DapDaGenius
10-12-2012, 10:38 AM
If they keep this up all season long another :lobt: isn't unlikely.
This and I could only imagine how hard it would be to beat the Spurs if they improved on defense.
ambchang
10-12-2012, 12:02 PM
The Spurs have some young enough athletes (Kawhi, Green) that are decent one on one defenders, but they are by no means shut down ones. They also do not have the experience and speed to double down low and recover back out in the perimeter.
In the low blocks, I still see Duncan as a fantastic defender, very smart, positional defender, but he can't dominate the paint like he could in the past due to age. Splitter isn't a great defender, Bonner is average and Blair is downright atrocious.
The effort is there, the system is still top notch, but Duncan is a step slower, Bowen is no longer around, and there just seems to be a general lack of personnel.
SenorSpur
10-12-2012, 12:16 PM
My mandate to Pop is still the same - if you want your team to be better defensively, get better defensive players on the roster.
There are several players on the roster, who despite giving their best effort, do not have the foot speed, skills or prowess to be able to keep their man in front of them.
therealtruth
10-12-2012, 07:09 PM
A good low post defender can make up for his subpar teammates. Look at how Dwight Howard kept the Magic's defense good for years. We might not be able to get DH but if we can get a big that can rebound and block shots that will help the team defense. The other part is consistency and accountability. Pop has to start calling people out when they make defensive mistakes. The amount of defensive mistakes should go down as the season progresses.
They can bring all the nasty they want, but if Bonner and Blair are on the floor together, the only nasty will be the dunks over them.
One of those two will be out by the playoffs. Bonner has continued to suck into this year's preseason :hat
Hoops Czar
10-15-2012, 04:27 AM
It takes more than knowing and wanting to play good defense. You have to have the personnel and the resources and the Spurs clearly do not.
ChuckD
10-15-2012, 07:25 AM
An indicator of their true intent will be who they keep for the 15th roster spot. If it's Curry, it's business as usual. If it's Derrick Brown, IT'S ON.
An indicator of their true intent will be who they keep for the 15th roster spot. If it's Curry, it's business as usual. If it's Derrick Brown, IT'S ON.
That, and whatever moves they make up to the deadline.
therealtruth
10-15-2012, 08:55 AM
It takes more than knowing and wanting to play good defense. You have to have the personnel and the resources and the Spurs clearly do not.
I disagree. To a certain extent the personnel is going to affect how well you can play defense but having the team commitment and accountablity means much more. When the Mavs beat the Heat in the Finals it's not because they were super athletic but they played really good defense because the whole team had bought into it. Their best defensive player was Tyson Chandler and TD is as good or better defensively than Chandler.
ElNono
10-21-2012, 08:31 PM
It's obviously early, but apparently, the team didn't get the memo, tbh
It's obviously early, but apparently, the team didn't get the memo, tbh
Tail end of a back to back and a time when the team's best defensive player only played one quarter, tbh
ElNono
10-21-2012, 09:25 PM
Tail end of a back to back and a time when the team's best defensive player only played one quarter, tbh
Well, if only one guy or two are going to give a shit on D, we're cooked, tbh
Ice009
10-21-2012, 10:02 PM
Tail end of a back to back and a time when the team's best defensive player only played one quarter, tbh
This isn't a great post. So are you saying that only one guy is supposed to do all the defensive work. The other guys aren't supposed to play their asses off on defense unless Tim is out there?
Defense has been very, very average.
I'm starting to get to the point where I feel like banging Pop's head against the wall. If he wants defense then he needs to stop playing piss poor defenders and get serious about it.
Gagnrath
10-21-2012, 10:47 PM
Ice a big part of the problem is that the spurs roster is mainly average to poor defenders, Manu has always played gambler defense and now that he has lost a step and a half it doesn't work out as often, and he doesn't recover as well when it doesn't, a few years ago Manu pulled the run down block from behind that Lebron likes to do on LeBron, he's not doing that now. Duncan isn't as mobile on a consistent basis as he was in the mid 2000s and you have your back-up bigs of Bonner and Splitter, one as slow as a Yugo, the other as soft as Charmin and neither really making up for it in other areas. Blair is decent when he is defending a back to the basket post player, but anyone who is really a big just faces up and shoots over him.
Danny Green is allright, and Leonard is above average. However when most of the team simply isn't matching up athletically with the guy across from them its hard to ask for real tight defense.
Ice009
10-21-2012, 11:08 PM
Ice a big part of the problem is that the spurs roster is mainly average to poor defenders, Manu has always played gambler defense and now that he has lost a step and a half it doesn't work out as often, and he doesn't recover as well when it doesn't, a few years ago Manu pulled the run down block from behind that Lebron likes to do on LeBron, he's not doing that now. Duncan isn't as mobile on a consistent basis as he was in the mid 2000s and you have your back-up bigs of Bonner and Splitter, one as slow as a Yugo, the other as soft as Charmin and neither really making up for it in other areas. Blair is decent when he is defending a back to the basket post player, but anyone who is really a big just faces up and shoots over him.
Danny Green is allright, and Leonard is above average. However when most of the team simply isn't matching up athletically with the guy across from them its hard to ask for real tight defense.
I know what you are saying, but I am pointing to Pop playing guys like Gary Neal that are just totally horrible defenders. That is one example I can give you right off the bat. Last season I thought Cory Joseph was terrible and shouldn't even be in the NBA, but he has really shown improvement on offense, and he also looks to have a lot of defensive potential. If Pop wants defense he should really have taken a longer look at exploring Cory's defensive potential in the preseason. I like what I have seen from Cory on the defensive end of the court.
It seems to me that Pop is full of shit about defense and that it is just lip service to the media.
Sean Cagney
10-21-2012, 11:13 PM
Ice a big part of the problem is that the spurs roster is mainly average to poor defenders, Manu has always played gambler defense and now that he has lost a step and a half it doesn't work out as often, and he doesn't recover as well when it doesn't, a few years ago Manu pulled the run down block from behind that Lebron likes to do on LeBron, he's not doing that now. Duncan isn't as mobile on a consistent basis as he was in the mid 2000s and you have your back-up bigs of Bonner and Splitter, one as slow as a Yugo, the other as soft as Charmin and neither really making up for it in other areas. Blair is decent when he is defending a back to the basket post player, but anyone who is really a big just faces up and shoots over him.
Danny Green is allright, and Leonard is above average. However when most of the team simply isn't matching up athletically with the guy across from them its hard to ask for real tight defense.
That is the sad truth and that is why they aren't going anywhere this year IMO. I mean they area playoff team and a regular season team, but other than that they are not a title team like some hope so whipe that notion out immediately to those who think it.
dbestpro
10-21-2012, 11:24 PM
An indicator of their true intent will be who they keep for the 15th roster spot. If it's Curry, it's business as usual. If it's Derrick Brown, IT'S ON.
Every time I watched the Spurs this pre-season the announcers indicated that defense was a weakness for Brown.
therealtruth
10-21-2012, 11:35 PM
Ice a big part of the problem is that the spurs roster is mainly average to poor defenders, Manu has always played gambler defense and now that he has lost a step and a half it doesn't work out as often, and he doesn't recover as well when it doesn't, a few years ago Manu pulled the run down block from behind that Lebron likes to do on LeBron, he's not doing that now. Duncan isn't as mobile on a consistent basis as he was in the mid 2000s and you have your back-up bigs of Bonner and Splitter, one as slow as a Yugo, the other as soft as Charmin and neither really making up for it in other areas. Blair is decent when he is defending a back to the basket post player, but anyone who is really a big just faces up and shoots over him.
Danny Green is allright, and Leonard is above average. However when most of the team simply isn't matching up athletically with the guy across from them its hard to ask for real tight defense.
That's the nonsense Pop spews but it's simply not true. Defense isn't something played by just super athletic people. In fact sometimes the more athletic players are the worst defenders. Defense is played with smarts, desire, and commitment. Look at the '11 Mavs. They played championship defense and they're probably equivalent to us athletically. Look at the older Celtics the past few years. Let's stop with this myth you need all A+ athletes to play better defense. You need a coach and players that are committed to defense.
Hoops Czar
10-21-2012, 11:48 PM
This isn't a great post. So are you saying that only one guy is supposed to do all the defensive work. The other guys aren't supposed to play their asses off on defense unless Tim is out there?
Defense has been very, very average.
I'm starting to get to the point where I feel like banging Pop's head against the wall. If he wants defense then he needs to stop playing piss poor defenders and get serious about it.
No, if Pop wanted defense, he should have thought of that in the offseason. It's too late now.
This isn't a great post. So are you saying that only one guy is supposed to do all the defensive work. The other guys aren't supposed to play their asses off on defense unless Tim is out there?
Defense has been very, very average.
I'm starting to get to the point where I feel like banging Pop's head against the wall. If he wants defense then he needs to stop playing piss poor defenders and get serious about it.
When I see Pop I'll tell him the Spurs fandom wants him out of the head coaching job, tbh...
ElNono
10-22-2012, 01:18 AM
When I see Pop I'll tell him the Spurs fandom wants him out of the head coaching job, tbh...
tell him Bonner is a fkn wanker, kthx
Ice009
10-22-2012, 02:04 AM
When I see Pop I'll tell him the Spurs fandom wants him out of the head coaching job, tbh...
Tell him the defense has to improve, yet they keep running around out there like nancy boys. Ask him if he knows how to coach defense, or was it all David Robinson, Tim Duncan and Bruce Bowen.
dunkman
10-22-2012, 08:15 PM
The Spurs defense comes along typically after the rodeo trip, following the all star game. If by then they don't play good defense, well it won't go well in the playoffs.
Some players have limitations, the most glaring example is Neal. With another 3 backup PG's, the Spurs definitely want to solve that problem. True to be said TJ Ford was going to run the backup point last season, but he got injured and retired.
Gagnrath
10-24-2012, 06:15 PM
That's the nonsense Pop spews but it's simply not true. Defense isn't something played by just super athletic people. In fact sometimes the more athletic players are the worst defenders. Defense is played with smarts, desire, and commitment. Look at the '11 Mavs. They played championship defense and they're probably equivalent to us athletically. Look at the older Celtics the past few years. Let's stop with this myth you need all A+ athletes to play better defense. You need a coach and players that are committed to defense.
I disagree, you don't have to have everyone be top-notch athletes, but even if you have a team utterly dedicated to working on defense, you need to have personal that are in the same ball park athletically. It also helps to have at least one big man who has the speed, size and desire to be able to provide some intimidation to guy's penetrating. You also need to be big enough or have enough leaping ability that the other team can't just shoot over you. Yes alot of defense is scheme will and desire but as much or more means being capable of matching up against the opposing player, at least in man to man defense.
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