BatManu20
03-18-2013, 04:11 PM
http://www.nba.com/2013/news/features/david_aldridge/03/18/morning-tip-teams-ready-for-stretch-run-chris-wright-feature-anthony-davis-q-and-a/index.html
They rise.
Late March, and the teams that are serious about winning begin to rise. Like great milers, they slowly, but measurably, begin separating themselves from the pack, the pace increasing as the regular season wanes. It is almost time for the bell lap, and the sprint for the tape.
Miami rises and puts down a marker, a big one, 22 in a row. They're bludgeoning the ill-equipped teams playing out the string, vanquishing the upstarts that had put a barrier down in their path earlier. New York? Check. Indiana? Check. Milwaukee? Check. All now falling back as the Heat stretch their legs to see how fast they can go.
Oklahoma City rises, advancing on the unprepared. The Thunder are self-critical to the point of parody after they eased up off the gas on Friday and blew most of a 27-point lead over hapless Orlando, the point long since made that we are the Thunder and you are the Magic, and nice to see you, Rob Hennigan. The Thunder rise.
Denver rises. Only Miami is playing better right now than the Nuggets, 11 in a row and counting, a gaudy 30-3 at home. They're blowing people's doors off at the Pepsi Center, sending waves of players, each seemingly as fast as the last, at opponents. The Nuggets average 108.4 points per game at home; 17 of their 30 wins there have been by 10 or more points. Friday, the Nuggets stared down a legit, physical opponent in the Grizzlies, in a win that had coach George Karl smiling that brief smile I've seen before, the one that telegraphs: my kind of team. Might have something here.
The Lakers limp -- a team with its star player as gimpy as Kobe Bryant does not rise. And yet, they beat the Pacers in Indiana Wednesday with Bryant playing 12 minutes. Dwight Howard stepped into his past in Orlando, faced down the boos and dominated his old team. The Lakers do not rise, but they are stirring.
San Antonio does not rise. San Antonio can't rise. The Spurs are stuck, like a fat man trying to get off a couch with a plastic cover on it. The Spurs do not rise because their engine is on the bench, dressed in a suit instead of a uniform. The Spurs' hopes always depend on the health of the Big Three, and Tony Parker is out with a sprained ankle suffered two weeks ago -- though the team is increasingly hopeful he could be back as soon as the end of this week. But the race is not over for them, not by a long shot, not with all the pride and poise in their locker room, not with coach Gregg Popovich to push them.
They are the unhappiest 50-win, top-seeded team in the league, not because they won't make the playoffs or be a high seed ... but because they know what's at stake, and how unforgiving the clock is. How many more times can Tim Duncan tap into that great heart and tireless work ethic to summon amazing performances -- two seasons after Parker said this Spurs group was down to its last good chance to win a fifth championship?
This is when the true contenders tighten things up at both ends, and get their rotations straight. But the Spurs aren't tight. They had a great win a week ago over OKC, then looked horrid in a blowout loss in Minnesota the following night -- a game in which Popovich rested Duncan and Kawhi Leonard.
Thursday, they were outplayed at home by Dallas, but escaped with a one-point win. They were life and death Saturday with Cleveland before holding on for the win. They grind, but they do not rise.
"We're just sporadic right now," Duncan said late Thursday night. "It's kind of up and down, up and down, up and down. We just need to get a more consistent focus, get guys on the same page. We're missing Tony a little bit right now. It was bound to catch up with us at some point. We're missing him right now, and not just his scoring and his play, but his playcalling and his understanding of what Pop wants and when he wants it."
Parker may have been having his best season when he went down March 1 against the Kings. He was in the MVP discussion, averaging 21 points and 7.6 assists, shooting 53 percent. He was in complete control on the floor at all times, the transfer of the team from Duncan's control to Parker's complete.
No one expects Cory Joseph, Nando DeColo or Gary Neal to do what Parker does. But the difference is obvious, especially when the shot clock winds down.
"Tony's the ultimate playmaker," forward Danny Green said, "and we're the ultimate bailout guys for him. Right now, the playmaking part is where we're lacking. We don't have a guy who can dribble around and around, get easy layups [and] floaters in the paint, and run the offense the way he did. Cory's doing a great job, Gary's doing a great job as well. But it's different what Tony brings."
And Popovich sees slippage at both ends.
In training camp, he'd stressed getting the Spurs' defense back toward where it was in the glory days. He had believed that with his aging stars and younger role players, his team had no choice but to give up some of its defensive prowess in order to become better offensively. And San Antonio did that; the Spurs finished first and second, respectively, the last two seasons in offensive rating.
But even though San Antonio is still in the top 10 (seventh) in offensive rating, and third in the league in defensive rating, Popovich says his team's defense has dropped since the All-Star break. And offensively, the Spurs are in "mud," according to the coach.
"Everybody wants to do it on their own," he said after the win over Dallas. "No real people movement, no hard cuts, nothing that's hard to guard. Just moving the ball around the perimeter, end of shot clocks. I've got to do a better job of getting it across that we've got to have the same movement that we've had all year long."
But assuming Parker can pick up where he left off, the Spurs remain as dangerous as they were last year, when they were two wins away from The Finals before coming apart against the relentless Thunder. Duncan says his knee feels good; he was dominant against the Mavericks, with 28 points and 19 boards, and followed that up with 30, 12 and five blocks against the Cavs. Manu Ginobili is, again, healthy. And the Spurs' depth is as good as any team in the league.
Tiago Splitter has become the player San Antonio waited all those years for in Europe. Green and Neal understand their roles: shoo, shoot and shoot. And Popovich may have only liked and trusted Duncan as early in his career as he trusts Leonard -- who, like everyone else who comes through town, had to learn The Popovich Way.
"Pop coaches every game like a playoff game," Leonard said. "He likes to win each and every game. If I'm not doing my job, he'll just get on me. Each and every game, I have to play defense and knock down open shots."
Popovich's affection for Leonard is obvious. But Leonard still had to learn that the yelling wasn't personal.
"This is my first time really having a coach that's all in your face," Leonard said. "He just really wants you to just be a better player, each and every game. But I'm used to it now. It's my second year. Last year, it was getting to me quick. But the veteran guys have been helping me out and telling me who Pop is."
As long as Popovich (who got his 898th career win Saturday) is around and Duncan, Parker and Ginobili lead the way, the Spurs will never be sassy or haughty. And, chances are, they won't be struggling by the time the playoffs start. OKC is still a force and the Nuggets might be a beast, and Memphis has shown it can beat up -- and beat -- San Antonio in the playoffs. The Clippers have Chris Paul, and the Lakers might be finally living up to the hype. But the Spurs never go away.
They always look to rise.
"We know we're not where we want to be," Green said. "It's a long season. Teams go through lapses. Guys go through lapses individually. We've got some guys that are injured, hurt or whatever, bumped and bruised, mentally drained, physically drained. But we know we're a team of character, and that no matter what, we're going to continue to fight, and grind it out, help each other, support each other."
They rise.
Late March, and the teams that are serious about winning begin to rise. Like great milers, they slowly, but measurably, begin separating themselves from the pack, the pace increasing as the regular season wanes. It is almost time for the bell lap, and the sprint for the tape.
Miami rises and puts down a marker, a big one, 22 in a row. They're bludgeoning the ill-equipped teams playing out the string, vanquishing the upstarts that had put a barrier down in their path earlier. New York? Check. Indiana? Check. Milwaukee? Check. All now falling back as the Heat stretch their legs to see how fast they can go.
Oklahoma City rises, advancing on the unprepared. The Thunder are self-critical to the point of parody after they eased up off the gas on Friday and blew most of a 27-point lead over hapless Orlando, the point long since made that we are the Thunder and you are the Magic, and nice to see you, Rob Hennigan. The Thunder rise.
Denver rises. Only Miami is playing better right now than the Nuggets, 11 in a row and counting, a gaudy 30-3 at home. They're blowing people's doors off at the Pepsi Center, sending waves of players, each seemingly as fast as the last, at opponents. The Nuggets average 108.4 points per game at home; 17 of their 30 wins there have been by 10 or more points. Friday, the Nuggets stared down a legit, physical opponent in the Grizzlies, in a win that had coach George Karl smiling that brief smile I've seen before, the one that telegraphs: my kind of team. Might have something here.
The Lakers limp -- a team with its star player as gimpy as Kobe Bryant does not rise. And yet, they beat the Pacers in Indiana Wednesday with Bryant playing 12 minutes. Dwight Howard stepped into his past in Orlando, faced down the boos and dominated his old team. The Lakers do not rise, but they are stirring.
San Antonio does not rise. San Antonio can't rise. The Spurs are stuck, like a fat man trying to get off a couch with a plastic cover on it. The Spurs do not rise because their engine is on the bench, dressed in a suit instead of a uniform. The Spurs' hopes always depend on the health of the Big Three, and Tony Parker is out with a sprained ankle suffered two weeks ago -- though the team is increasingly hopeful he could be back as soon as the end of this week. But the race is not over for them, not by a long shot, not with all the pride and poise in their locker room, not with coach Gregg Popovich to push them.
They are the unhappiest 50-win, top-seeded team in the league, not because they won't make the playoffs or be a high seed ... but because they know what's at stake, and how unforgiving the clock is. How many more times can Tim Duncan tap into that great heart and tireless work ethic to summon amazing performances -- two seasons after Parker said this Spurs group was down to its last good chance to win a fifth championship?
This is when the true contenders tighten things up at both ends, and get their rotations straight. But the Spurs aren't tight. They had a great win a week ago over OKC, then looked horrid in a blowout loss in Minnesota the following night -- a game in which Popovich rested Duncan and Kawhi Leonard.
Thursday, they were outplayed at home by Dallas, but escaped with a one-point win. They were life and death Saturday with Cleveland before holding on for the win. They grind, but they do not rise.
"We're just sporadic right now," Duncan said late Thursday night. "It's kind of up and down, up and down, up and down. We just need to get a more consistent focus, get guys on the same page. We're missing Tony a little bit right now. It was bound to catch up with us at some point. We're missing him right now, and not just his scoring and his play, but his playcalling and his understanding of what Pop wants and when he wants it."
Parker may have been having his best season when he went down March 1 against the Kings. He was in the MVP discussion, averaging 21 points and 7.6 assists, shooting 53 percent. He was in complete control on the floor at all times, the transfer of the team from Duncan's control to Parker's complete.
No one expects Cory Joseph, Nando DeColo or Gary Neal to do what Parker does. But the difference is obvious, especially when the shot clock winds down.
"Tony's the ultimate playmaker," forward Danny Green said, "and we're the ultimate bailout guys for him. Right now, the playmaking part is where we're lacking. We don't have a guy who can dribble around and around, get easy layups [and] floaters in the paint, and run the offense the way he did. Cory's doing a great job, Gary's doing a great job as well. But it's different what Tony brings."
And Popovich sees slippage at both ends.
In training camp, he'd stressed getting the Spurs' defense back toward where it was in the glory days. He had believed that with his aging stars and younger role players, his team had no choice but to give up some of its defensive prowess in order to become better offensively. And San Antonio did that; the Spurs finished first and second, respectively, the last two seasons in offensive rating.
But even though San Antonio is still in the top 10 (seventh) in offensive rating, and third in the league in defensive rating, Popovich says his team's defense has dropped since the All-Star break. And offensively, the Spurs are in "mud," according to the coach.
"Everybody wants to do it on their own," he said after the win over Dallas. "No real people movement, no hard cuts, nothing that's hard to guard. Just moving the ball around the perimeter, end of shot clocks. I've got to do a better job of getting it across that we've got to have the same movement that we've had all year long."
But assuming Parker can pick up where he left off, the Spurs remain as dangerous as they were last year, when they were two wins away from The Finals before coming apart against the relentless Thunder. Duncan says his knee feels good; he was dominant against the Mavericks, with 28 points and 19 boards, and followed that up with 30, 12 and five blocks against the Cavs. Manu Ginobili is, again, healthy. And the Spurs' depth is as good as any team in the league.
Tiago Splitter has become the player San Antonio waited all those years for in Europe. Green and Neal understand their roles: shoo, shoot and shoot. And Popovich may have only liked and trusted Duncan as early in his career as he trusts Leonard -- who, like everyone else who comes through town, had to learn The Popovich Way.
"Pop coaches every game like a playoff game," Leonard said. "He likes to win each and every game. If I'm not doing my job, he'll just get on me. Each and every game, I have to play defense and knock down open shots."
Popovich's affection for Leonard is obvious. But Leonard still had to learn that the yelling wasn't personal.
"This is my first time really having a coach that's all in your face," Leonard said. "He just really wants you to just be a better player, each and every game. But I'm used to it now. It's my second year. Last year, it was getting to me quick. But the veteran guys have been helping me out and telling me who Pop is."
As long as Popovich (who got his 898th career win Saturday) is around and Duncan, Parker and Ginobili lead the way, the Spurs will never be sassy or haughty. And, chances are, they won't be struggling by the time the playoffs start. OKC is still a force and the Nuggets might be a beast, and Memphis has shown it can beat up -- and beat -- San Antonio in the playoffs. The Clippers have Chris Paul, and the Lakers might be finally living up to the hype. But the Spurs never go away.
They always look to rise.
"We know we're not where we want to be," Green said. "It's a long season. Teams go through lapses. Guys go through lapses individually. We've got some guys that are injured, hurt or whatever, bumped and bruised, mentally drained, physically drained. But we know we're a team of character, and that no matter what, we're going to continue to fight, and grind it out, help each other, support each other."