Game Thoughts - Spurs vs. Mavericks - 1/8/14

[benefactor]

Last night, the Spurs had one of the most forgettable victories in recent memory. Not only did they blow a double digit lead in the closing moments, they allowed the game to go to overtime and allowed the Big 3 play way too many minutes on the front end of a back to back. One could easily speculate that Pop would decide to tank tonight’s game and rest Duncan and Parker(Manu was not going to play anyway due to hamstring tightness), but that would be far from the case. Instead, the Spurs stars would respond in a way no one expected…fighting through the fatigue and summoning championship level mental focus that would lead them to blow out of the Dallas Mavericks at home.

http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q45/gospelrapper/boxscore1814_zpse8691891.jpg

Tony Parker

Good aggression early despite the back to back and quite frankly did not look anything like a player that had just played 40 minutes the night before. He tried to do a bit too much early on and wound up with as many turnovers in the first half as he had assists. In the third quarter, he dialed in with sniper like precision, pouring in 14 points and only one turnover. The offensive explosion would snuff out any hopes the Mavs had of mounting a comeback and would send Parker to the bench for a well-deserved 4th quarter rest.

Tim Duncan

Duncan, in a word, was dominant. He was so dominant that only one half and some change of him was needed to make the Mavs wave the white flag early. His all-around presence around the rim and his complete destruction of the Mavs on the glass in the first half helped the Spurs keep the Mavs at arm’s length even though neither team was shooting well. He scored well, got to the line and played at the level we were all accustomed to seeing him play last season. Hopefully this win springboards him into more vintage performances.

Boris Diaw

Boris the Animal was Boris the perfect complement tonight. If he made a bad play, I don’t remember when it was because so much good basketball was just flowing out of him. A truly beyond the box score performance, filled with great passing, great court awareness and an outstanding defensive effort on Dirk which led to Dirk never getting a chance to get in any sort of rhythm. He was also very good at playing the quarterback role with the bench players with Manu gone. In the words of Walton, “This guy has it all.”

Kawhi Leonard

Leonard took over as the third of the Big 3. Picking up where he left off last night, he was all over the court with boundless energy. Great defense, great on the boards, opportunistic around the rim…Leonard was a disruptive force on one end and a source of second hand points and good, stead offense on the other. He even had a post up and knocked down a three. With Parker going into god mode in the third, he only needed to watch on offense, but he continued to play with great energy.

Danny Green

Danny wasn’t really needed tonight. He missed some shots early but contributed on the glass to offset that. He stayed in late in the game and helped the Spurs prevent any sort of replay of last night’s debacle by playing good defense, continuing to rebound well and knocking down a few shots. Since that was the extent of what the Spurs needed from him this evening, I’d say he served his purpose.

Marco Belinelli

It was an uneven game for That Dude. He was extremely shaky early on with some poor decisions/ball handling, but overall I’d say he didn’t really help or hurt much in the first half. In the second half he had a four point play opportunity that seemed to ignite him. Coupled with energy provided by the ignition of Tony Parker, Beli morphed into the player that we have been used to seeing most of the season…scoring most of his 17pts late in the game while leading the unit that kept the blowout intact.

Matt Bonner

Bonner missed some threes early and played in garbage time late. That’s about it.

Jeff Ayres

It was a mixed bag tonight from ST’s favorite son. Had 3 offensive boards in 4 minutes in the first half but also had 3 fouls in that same time span. He had a good cut to the basket for a finish in the second half. All of that is better than the alternative that we experienced last night.

Patty Mills

Patty was part of the poor shooting in the first half as well with a couple missed threes, but came back in the second half and helped the garbage time unit preserve the lead. He made a great saving pass to Joseph for a three late in the game which was the highlight of his evening.

Aaron Baynes

Played the length of a drawn in breath in the first half then in garbage time. Ayres seems to be Pop’s new project and it’s at Baynes expense. January tinkering, tbh.

Cory Joseph

Joseph played with Parker and Mills in the third and made quite a nice contribution for a player that has gotten zero burn lately. He had a couple of really good defensive plays that led to easy baskets while the Spurs were on their tear in the third quarter. He also did a nice job as floor general during garbage time with 9pts, 5ast, 3stl while going 4-4 from the stripe.

Other Notes

The Spurs had 8 offensive boards in the first quarter and with the Spurs shooting 41% and the Mavs shooting 35%, rebounding was clearly the difference in the game in the first half as the Spurs outrebounded the Mavs 36-18 led by Duncan who had 12. The starters carried the team in the first half and the lack of Manu was evident…as the bench shot a miserable 3-12. Both teams shot a combined 1-12 from distance in the first half but this disadvantage was much more glaring with the Mavs as the Spurs continued to attack the rim leading to opportunities at the line that they did an outstanding job of converting. By the end of the game they had only missed 3 of their 26 attempts. Parker’s contribution was key to the victory…but make no mistake…if you let a team go +18 on you from the stripe and +23 on the glass you are going to lose and lose badly 95% of the time.

Final Thoughts

This was easily one of the best wins of the season. What can be taken from this game is that the Spurs seemed genuinely pissed about the near loss last night and played like that from the opening whistle. It’s good to see because they have been doing a lot of coasting early in the season. It’s nice to know that when they are ready to dial it in and kick ass they still have it in them. Hopefully they save some of this fire for another great postseason run.

[wildchild]

Even the bench defended relentlessly and rebounding great

Good read. Thanks benefactor!

[ElNono]

Great read, bene. Thanks :tu

[Robz4000]

Solid thoughts :tu

[TheGoldStandard]

Solid read

The way the Spurs carried themselves tonight showed that they were on a mission not to let a lead slip away and to bury their opponent early and often. Tony Parker took a trip in his DeLorean at halftime to find his 2012-2013 self and exploded in the 3rd quarter. I can't say enough about Tim Duncan, we see what he does game after game but I honestly think we're desensitized to his greatness, the subtle things that make him an all time great are almost always lost on those seeking some kind of glamour to their superstars. He's the most consistent player of our generation and even at 37 he can outplay younger more athletic players.

[spursfaninla]

great read. thanks.

[TheyCallMePro]

My Thoughts:

The Mavericks SUCK. Holy mother of God these guys are awful. They don't rebound. They don't play defense. Their offense is a mess. And they're old as $%#%. How in the WORLD are they currently sitting at the #8 seed in the West? I'm convinced that the Spurs can't lose to them. Drawing them in the #1/#8 match-up would be an absolute dream. But there's no way it happens. Surely Denver or Minnesota will eventually overtake them for that last spot.

[TheGoldStandard]

My Thoughts:

The Mavericks SUCK. Holy mother of God these guys are awful. They don't rebound. They don't play defense. Their offense is a mess. And they're old as $%#%. How in the WORLD are they currently sitting at the #8 seed in the West? I'm convinced that the Spurs can't lose to them. Drawing them in the #1/#8 match-up would be an absolute dream. But there's no way it happens. Surely Denver or Minnesota will eventually overtake them for that last spot.

Denver sucks major balls too and Minny is too inconsistent

[wildbill2u]

It was as though the Spurs remembered that good things happen when you play aggressive defense and rebound. Not only good team defense but Diaw has to be singled out for the job he did on Dirk. He played inside the dude's jersey all night and never let him breathe. Taking Dirk out of the game was the key to the win IMO. A++

Mavs came in with a hot streak on the road and we beat the snot out of them.

[silverblackfan]

Nice read. Thanks!
Tony was dialed in and that made everything easier. Thank god we have a defined backup pg rotation. Patty is playing some inspired ball and really solidifying that backup spot. Corey is a fine 3rd PG and good insurance.
Love watching this team lately, especially for the cerebral plays from Tim, Manu, Diaw, or Belli. All of the team are obviously enjoying the hell out of the game. This team just seems to be clicking as a group very well. Diaw is is playing so well, he almost looks bored sometimes. Scary depth.

[Budkin]

bene ftw :tu

[Cry Havoc]

My Thoughts:

The Mavericks SUCK. Holy mother of God these guys are awful. They don't rebound. They don't play defense. Their offense is a mess. And they're old as $%#%. How in the WORLD are they currently sitting at the #8 seed in the West? I'm convinced that the Spurs can't lose to them. Drawing them in the #1/#8 match-up would be an absolute dream. But there's no way it happens. Surely Denver or Minnesota will eventually overtake them for that last spot.

Dirk's a hell of a player, for one thing. Marion is their best defender and he was out tonight. Not saying they're a good team, but far from the horror show they put on tonight. Spurs played active defense and Dallas looked pretty old.

[Spur|n|Austin]

:toast

[pgardn]

Blair at center. The basket is assaulted.

End of story.

[DapDaGenius]

:toast Man, that was a lot of reading. Very good read though. Can you include the letter grades next time...please? I'm the type of person who likes a book for the pictures...if you get what I'm saying. :depressed

[racm]

Since losing to the Knicks the Spurs have scored 110+ in three straight games.

[spurs10]

Excellent write-up! Thanks Mr. benefactor!

[HI-FI]

:tu thanks for grades.

I've been real excited with Kawhi's energy and play the past two games. Bill Walton's analysis of Boris looks to have been spot on after all, and I liked Boris since Phoenix but never thought he would put it all together.

[racm]

:tu thanks for grades.

I've been real excited with Kawhi's energy and play the past two games. Bill Walton's analysis of Boris looks to have been spot on after all, and I liked Boris since Phoenix but never thought he would put it all together.


Helps that he's playing alongside a buddy and for a coach who can put him in a position to succeed.

[spurraider21]

LOL errors outrebounding blair in half as many minutes. sup playblair

[Chinook]

Great work. Thanks.

Still don't get why Pop insists on putting Kawhi on small guards. Leonard wasn't very good on Ellis for stretches. He should have been on Carter who was posting Green up. It's just not using players to their strengths.

[lowdown]

Solid read/excellent takes.

[Brazil]

Bene with the goods :tu

[rmt]

As one of the commentators noted, Blair sits on the bench for SAS and starts for MAVS. Their rim protection was terrible. Loved Diaw last night - if he would play aggressively like that ALL the time instead of only when some are out.

[rmt]

Great work. Thanks.

Still don't get why Pop insists on putting Kawhi on small guards. Leonard wasn't very good on Ellis for stretches. He should have been on Carter who was posting Green up. It's just not using players to their strengths.

I thought he should have put Bowen on Billups and let Parker chase Rip around those screens. Series wouldn't have gone to 7 games then.

[elbamba]

Very good takes. What is crazy is that the Spurs have been coasting and they still have the best record. This team can still be very dangerous when properly motivated. The playoffs can't come soon enough.

[look_at_g_shred]

Thanks man. :tu

[Amuseddaysleeper]

Awesome write up man, keep it up!

[clambake]

that game was brutal.

[Dex]

Good thoughts.

Matt Bonner -5 :wow :wow :wow :wow :wow

[palangi]

Since losing to the Knicks the Spurs have scored 110+ in three straight games.
You mean since splitter went out????

[Manufan909]

Great takes Benefactor, thanks!!!

[Bruno]

Thanks. :tu

[Killakobe81]

Last night, the Spurs had one of the most forgettable victories in recent memory. Not only did they blow a double digit lead in the closing moments, they allowed the game to go to overtime and allowed the Big 3 play way too many minutes on the front end of a back to back. One could easily speculate that Pop would decide to tank tonight’s game and rest Duncan and Parker(Manu was not going to play anyway due to hamstring tightness), but that would be far from the case. Instead, the Spurs stars would respond in a way no one expected…fighting through the fatigue and summoning championship level mental focus that would lead them to blow out of the Dallas Mavericks at home.

http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q45/gospelrapper/boxscore1814_zpse8691891.jpg

Tony Parker

Good aggression early despite the back to back and quite frankly did not look anything like a player that had just played 40 minutes the night before. He tried to do a bit too much early on and wound up with as many turnovers in the first half as he had assists. In the third quarter, he dialed in with sniper like precision, pouring in 14 points and only one turnover. The offensive explosion would snuff out any hopes the Mavs had of mounting a comeback and would send Parker to the bench for a well-deserved 4th quarter rest.

Tim Duncan

Duncan, in a word, was dominant. He was so dominant that only one half and some change of him was needed to make the Mavs wave the white flag early. His all-around presence around the rim and his complete destruction of the Mavs on the glass in the first half helped the Spurs keep the Mavs at arm’s length even though neither team was shooting well. He scored well, got to the line and played at the level we were all accustomed to seeing him play last season. Hopefully this win springboards him into more vintage performances.

Boris Diaw

Boris the Animal was Boris the perfect complement tonight. If he made a bad play, I don’t remember when it was because so much good basketball was just flowing out of him. A truly beyond the box score performance, filled with great passing, great court awareness and an outstanding defensive effort on Dirk which led to Dirk never getting a chance to get in any sort of rhythm. He was also very good at playing the quarterback role with the bench players with Manu gone. In the words of Walton, “This guy has it all.”

Kawhi Leonard

Leonard took over as the third of the Big 3. Picking up where he left off last night, he was all over the court with boundless energy. Great defense, great on the boards, opportunistic around the rim…Leonard was a disruptive force on one end and a source of second hand points and good, stead offense on the other. He even had a post up and knocked down a three. With Parker going into god mode in the third, he only needed to watch on offense, but he continued to play with great energy.

Danny Green

Danny wasn’t really needed tonight. He missed some shots early but contributed on the glass to offset that. He stayed in late in the game and helped the Spurs prevent any sort of replay of last night’s debacle by playing good defense, continuing to rebound well and knocking down a few shots. Since that was the extent of what the Spurs needed from him this evening, I’d say he served his purpose.

Marco Belinelli

It was an uneven game for That Dude. He was extremely shaky early on with some poor decisions/ball handling, but overall I’d say he didn’t really help or hurt much in the first half. In the second half he had a four point play opportunity that seemed to ignite him. Coupled with energy provided by the ignition of Tony Parker, Beli morphed into the player that we have been used to seeing most of the season…scoring most of his 17pts late in the game while leading the unit that kept the blowout intact.

Matt Bonner

Bonner missed some threes early and played in garbage time late. That’s about it.

Jeff Ayres

It was a mixed bag tonight from ST’s favorite son. Had 3 offensive boards in 4 minutes in the first half but also had 3 fouls in that same time span. He had a good cut to the basket for a finish in the second half. All of that is better than the alternative that we experienced last night.

Patty Mills

Patty was part of the poor shooting in the first half as well with a couple missed threes, but came back in the second half and helped the garbage time unit preserve the lead. He made a great saving pass to Joseph for a three late in the game which was the highlight of his evening.

Aaron Baynes

Played the length of a drawn in breath in the first half then in garbage time. Ayres seems to be Pop’s new project and it’s at Baynes expense. January tinkering, tbh.

Cory Joseph

Joseph played with Parker and Mills in the third and made quite a nice contribution for a player that has gotten zero burn lately. He had a couple of really good defensive plays that led to easy baskets while the Spurs were on their tear in the third quarter. He also did a nice job as floor general during garbage time with 9pts, 5ast, 3stl while going 4-4 from the stripe.

Other Notes

The Spurs had 8 offensive boards in the first quarter and with the Spurs shooting 41% and the Mavs shooting 35%, rebounding was clearly the difference in the game in the first half as the Spurs outrebounded the Mavs 36-18 led by Duncan who had 12. The starters carried the team in the first half and the lack of Manu was evident…as the bench shot a miserable 3-12. Both teams shot a combined 1-12 from distance in the first half but this disadvantage was much more glaring with the Mavs as the Spurs continued to attack the rim leading to opportunities at the line that they did an outstanding job of converting. By the end of the game they had only missed 3 of their 26 attempts. Parker’s contribution was key to the victory…but make no mistake…if you let a team go +18 on you from the stripe and +23 on the glass you are going to lose and lose badly 95% of the time.

Final Thoughts

This was easily one of the best wins of the season. What can be taken from this game is that the Spurs seemed genuinely pissed about the near loss last night and played like that from the opening whistle. It’s good to see because they have been doing a lot of coasting early in the season. It’s nice to know that when they are ready to dial it in and kick ass they still have it in them. Hopefully they save some of this fire for another great postseason run.

thought this would be a great matchup.

Ellis vs. Parker (speed on speed)
Timmy vs. dirk

and more importantly Pop vs. RC ...

Unfortunately Pop showed who is boss. Minus Manu and with heavy contributions from his bench it was a cakewalk. I dont even see how anyone (except Miami and maybe Indy) beats the Spurs. Without a significant advantage in talent (like OKC with harden) Pop's team are just better and more disciplined than anyone else. He has rebuilt Diaw's confidence. Salvaged Danny green. Helped (along with the shooting coach) built a jump-shot for Mills/Parker. He finds uses for Bonner, Ayers ...

Keep in mind, to beat the healthy spurs in the Pop/Duncan era it takes:

1. Shaqobe plus Phil Jackson
2. MVP Dirk
3. Prime Kobe (plus Phil)
4. Durant Westbrook and Harden ...
5. Lebron and the Heatles

The heat this guy takes on here is crazy. I would love Pop to take the torch from Riles to Phil and him ...
Best coach in the game. And if there was no superteam in Miami the hands on favorites to win it again.

[Amuseddaysleeper]

thought this would be a great matchup.

Ellis vs. Parker (speed on speed)
Timmy vs. dirk

and more importantly Pop vs. RC ...

Unfortunately Pop showed who is boss. Minus Manu and with heavy contributions from his bench it was a cakewalk. I dont even see how anyone (except Miami and maybe Indy) beats the Spurs. Without a significant advantage in talent (like OKC with harden) Pop's team are just better and more disciplined than anyone else. He has rebuilt Diaw's confidence. Salvaged Danny green. Helped (along with the shooting coach) built a jump-shot for Mills/Parker. He finds uses for Bonner, Ayers ...

Keep in mind, to beat the healthy spurs in the Pop/Duncan era it takes:

1. Shaqobe plus Phil Jackson
2. MVP Dirk
3. Prime Kobe (plus Phil)
4. Durant Westbrook and Harden ...
5. Lebron and the Heatles

The heat this guy takes on here is crazy. I would love Pop to take the torch from Riles to Phil and him ...
Best coach in the game. And if there was no superteam in Miami the hands on favorites to win it again.

You can see them beating a healthy OKC this year?

[AntiChrist]

The heat this guy takes on here is crazy. I would love Pop to take the torch from Riles to Phil and him ...
Best coach in the game. And if there was no superteam in Miami the hands on favorites to win it again.



I don't see how Spurs fans can bitch about anything. The Spurs have had an embarassment of riches over the past 15 years. Think of all the teams that have been good during that time, that have since been completely blown up.

[Rebounds]

I don't see how Spurs fans can bitch about anything. The Spurs have had an embarassment of riches over the past 15 years. Think of all the teams that have been good during that time, that have since been completely blown up.

:tu

[gnsf0946]

We really shouldn't draw any conclusions from this game, neither the good nor the bad ones.

[spurs10]

thought this would be a great matchup.

Ellis vs. Parker (speed on speed)
Timmy vs. dirk

and more importantly Pop vs. RC ...

Unfortunately Pop showed who is boss. Minus Manu and with heavy contributions from his bench it was a cakewalk. I dont even see how anyone (except Miami and maybe Indy) beats the Spurs. Without a significant advantage in talent (like OKC with harden) Pop's team are just better and more disciplined than anyone else. He has rebuilt Diaw's confidence. Salvaged Danny green. Helped (along with the shooting coach) built a jump-shot for Mills/Parker. He finds uses for Bonner, Ayers ...

Keep in mind, to beat the healthy spurs in the Pop/Duncan era it takes:

1. Shaqobe plus Phil Jackson
2. MVP Dirk
3. Prime Kobe (plus Phil)
4. Durant Westbrook and Harden ...
5. Lebron and the Heatles

The heat this guy takes on here is crazy. I would love Pop to take the torch from Riles to Phil and him ...
Best coach in the game. And if there was no superteam in Miami the hands on favorites to win it again. :toast

[ace3g]

http://i4.minus.com/iUnfXySWqiQIJ.png

http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/88238/nba-shootaround-astronaut-status

[benefactor]

det nigga Diaw :tu

[dallasmaverickslose]

Last night, the Spurs had one of the most forgettable victories in recent memory. Not only did they blow a double digit lead in the closing moments, they allowed the game to go to overtime and allowed the Big 3 play way too many minutes on the front end of a back to back. One could easily speculate that Pop would decide to tank tonight’s game and rest Duncan and Parker(Manu was not going to play anyway due to hamstring tightness), but that would be far from the case. Instead, the Spurs stars would respond in a way no one expected…fighting through the fatigue and summoning championship level mental focus that would lead them to blow out of the Dallas Mavericks at home.

http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q45/gospelrapper/boxscore1814_zpse8691891.jpg

Tony Parker

Good aggression early despite the back to back and quite frankly did not look anything like a player that had just played 40 minutes the night before. He tried to do a bit too much early on and wound up with as many turnovers in the first half as he had assists. In the third quarter, he dialed in with sniper like precision, pouring in 14 points and only one turnover. The offensive explosion would snuff out any hopes the Mavs had of mounting a comeback and would send Parker to the bench for a well-deserved 4th quarter rest.

Tim Duncan

Duncan, in a word, was dominant. He was so dominant that only one half and some change of him was needed to make the Mavs wave the white flag early. His all-around presence around the rim and his complete destruction of the Mavs on the glass in the first half helped the Spurs keep the Mavs at arm’s length even though neither team was shooting well. He scored well, got to the line and played at the level we were all accustomed to seeing him play last season. Hopefully this win springboards him into more vintage performances.

Boris Diaw

Boris the Animal was Boris the perfect complement tonight. If he made a bad play, I don’t remember when it was because so much good basketball was just flowing out of him. A truly beyond the box score performance, filled with great passing, great court awareness and an outstanding defensive effort on Dirk which led to Dirk never getting a chance to get in any sort of rhythm. He was also very good at playing the quarterback role with the bench players with Manu gone. In the words of Walton, “This guy has it all.”

Kawhi Leonard

Leonard took over as the third of the Big 3. Picking up where he left off last night, he was all over the court with boundless energy. Great defense, great on the boards, opportunistic around the rim…Leonard was a disruptive force on one end and a source of second hand points and good, stead offense on the other. He even had a post up and knocked down a three. With Parker going into god mode in the third, he only needed to watch on offense, but he continued to play with great energy.

Danny Green

Danny wasn’t really needed tonight. He missed some shots early but contributed on the glass to offset that. He stayed in late in the game and helped the Spurs prevent any sort of replay of last night’s debacle by playing good defense, continuing to rebound well and knocking down a few shots. Since that was the extent of what the Spurs needed from him this evening, I’d say he served his purpose.

Marco Belinelli

It was an uneven game for That Dude. He was extremely shaky early on with some poor decisions/ball handling, but overall I’d say he didn’t really help or hurt much in the first half. In the second half he had a four point play opportunity that seemed to ignite him. Coupled with energy provided by the ignition of Tony Parker, Beli morphed into the player that we have been used to seeing most of the season…scoring most of his 17pts late in the game while leading the unit that kept the blowout intact.

Matt Bonner

Bonner missed some threes early and played in garbage time late. That’s about it.

Jeff Ayres

It was a mixed bag tonight from ST’s favorite son. Had 3 offensive boards in 4 minutes in the first half but also had 3 fouls in that same time span. He had a good cut to the basket for a finish in the second half. All of that is better than the alternative that we experienced last night.

Patty Mills

Patty was part of the poor shooting in the first half as well with a couple missed threes, but came back in the second half and helped the garbage time unit preserve the lead. He made a great saving pass to Joseph for a three late in the game which was the highlight of his evening.

Aaron Baynes

Played the length of a drawn in breath in the first half then in garbage time. Ayres seems to be Pop’s new project and it’s at Baynes expense. January tinkering, tbh.

Cory Joseph

Joseph played with Parker and Mills in the third and made quite a nice contribution for a player that has gotten zero burn lately. He had a couple of really good defensive plays that led to easy baskets while the Spurs were on their tear in the third quarter. He also did a nice job as floor general during garbage time with 9pts, 5ast, 3stl while going 4-4 from the stripe.

Other Notes

The Spurs had 8 offensive boards in the first quarter and with the Spurs shooting 41% and the Mavs shooting 35%, rebounding was clearly the difference in the game in the first half as the Spurs outrebounded the Mavs 36-18 led by Duncan who had 12. The starters carried the team in the first half and the lack of Manu was evident…as the bench shot a miserable 3-12. Both teams shot a combined 1-12 from distance in the first half but this disadvantage was much more glaring with the Mavs as the Spurs continued to attack the rim leading to opportunities at the line that they did an outstanding job of converting. By the end of the game they had only missed 3 of their 26 attempts. Parker’s contribution was key to the victory…but make no mistake…if you let a team go +18 on you from the stripe and +23 on the glass you are going to lose and lose badly 95% of the time.

Final Thoughts

This was easily one of the best wins of the season. What can be taken from this game is that the Spurs seemed genuinely pissed about the near loss last night and played like that from the opening whistle. It’s good to see because they have been doing a lot of coasting early in the season. It’s nice to know that when they are ready to dial it in and kick ass they still have it in them. Hopefully they save some of this fire for another great postseason run.

Thank for this. It always feels great to beat the Mavs, no matter how good or bad they are.

[heyheymymy]

good job bene. nice touch adding the box score. solid formatting too.

[rascal]

Great takes Benefactor, thanks!!!

You might as well be watching a cartoon if you watch spider man.

[SpurSwag]

thought this would be a great matchup.

Ellis vs. Parker (speed on speed)
Timmy vs. dirk

and more importantly Pop vs. RC ...

Unfortunately Pop showed who is boss. Minus Manu and with heavy contributions from his bench it was a cakewalk. I dont even see how anyone (except Miami and maybe Indy) beats the Spurs. Without a significant advantage in talent (like OKC with harden) Pop's team are just better and more disciplined than anyone else. He has rebuilt Diaw's confidence. Salvaged Danny green. Helped (along with the shooting coach) built a jump-shot for Mills/Parker. He finds uses for Bonner, Ayers ...

Keep in mind, to beat the healthy spurs in the Pop/Duncan era it takes:

1. Shaqobe plus Phil Jackson
2. MVP Dirk
3. Prime Kobe (plus Phil)
4. Durant Westbrook and Harden ...
5. Lebron and the Heatles

The heat this guy takes on here is crazy. I would love Pop to take the torch from Riles to Phil and him ...
Best coach in the game. And if there was no superteam in Miami the hands on favorites to win it again.

great post, if only more laker fans were like you. I agree Pop gets waaaay too much hate on here (although the decision to bench Tim in game 6 and similar situations this year is pretty debatable) but he is definitely the best coach in the game

[DJR210]

:tu

[benefactor]

You might as well be watching a cartoon if you watch spider man.
Well that was random.

[Killakobe81]

great post, if only more laker fans were like you. I agree Pop gets waaaay too much hate on here (although the decision to bench Tim in game 6 and similar situations this year is pretty debatable) but he is definitely the best coach in the game

I admit I am baffled by it and posted a great SI article on the last 28 seconds ...
In that article he mentions how irritated he was at Green for leaking out when Lebron bricked that first late jumper, yet he took out one of the NBA's all time great rebounders, even though Bosh was subbed back in the game ...when he took out Duncan previously to match Spolestra who went "small".
you let Timmy get that rebound. or at the very least he blocks out Bosh ...

But again Not Phil, Nelli or Riles are perfect. Great coaches make mistakes and/or gambles and lose.

[Killakobe81]

You can see them beating a healthy OKC this year?

yes. I can because I dont think we will see a 100% Westbrook. And even if we do see him get close ... harden was the key difference in 2012.
I think SPurs win a close series ...unless Durant takes a Lebron type leap.

[tholdren]

Blair at center. The basket is assaulted.

End of story.

Blair has better Spurs numbers for a career at center than Tiago.... sad

[jjktkk]

Thanks for the write up benefactor.

[weeks]

thanks for the grades.