Poor showing from Lamarcus Aldridge in a must win game for the spurs

[siraulo23]

You can argue this guy kills ball movement because the opposing team can live with him taking mid range and fadeaway jumpers

He's a big man:

who camps in the perimeter
below average passer
below average rim protector
poor court vision
average offensive awareness
rarely rolls to the basket/no gravity when he does
not great at setting screens


He had 2 great games taking and making tough shots, other than that, how do you win when your second best player is strictly a midrange shooter?

And of course in game 5, a must win for the spurs, he didnt make the open shots he needed to make in the 4th quarter, was poor on the glass and was horrible defensively.

2 great games and 3 inefficient games from LA, not good enough

[apalisoc_9]

Hes like those bigs who jumpt to avoid contact instead of jumping straight up to cotest a drive. :lol

Its hilarious. :lol

[Hoops Czar]

This is only LMA's second time ever he's made it to the second round of the playoffs. He's the overrated of bigs.

[Nbadan]

poor showing by Durant too...think the OKC fans are giving up on him?

[apalisoc_9]

Im telling you..the guy plays with zero energy on D if his offense isnt work. Those kind of dudes are tough tl deal with.

[Darius Bieber]

poor showing by Durant too...think the OKC fans are giving up on him?

No, because Durant has proven he's a top 5 player in the league before.

[Nbadan]

No, because Durant has proven he's a top 5 player in the league before.

How many big guys in the league do you think are better than Aldridge down low?

[Harry Callahan]

LMA got 2 fouls in the first 5 minutes. Tough to D up when that happens. At least one was a chickenshit call.

[SouthernFried]

There is plenty of blame to go around, if you're into the blame game.

LMA is close to the bottom of the list.

[siraulo23]

Im telling you..the guy plays with zero energy on D if his offense isnt work. Those kind of dudes are tough tl deal with.

the sad thing is he's shown glimpses of good defensive performances when he's locked in and he's looked good defensively on the perimeter and protecting the rim

but most times, he's a step slow and always in poor position to defend

[Darius Bieber]

How many big guys in the league do you think are better than Aldridge down low?

If we are talking strictly down-low ability/performance:

Non-injured Blake Griffin, Draymond Green, Cousins if he gets his shit together/wasn't on the Kings, DeAndre Jordan just to name a few.. You can't really say LMA is good down low of Adams is totally bossing him around.. Most of LMA's production this series, which has nosedived since the first two games, comes from mid-range.

[J_Paco]

LMAO

The Spurs wouldn't have won 67 games in the regular season, made the playoffs or won one game in this series, but all of a sudden certain idiots want to have "buyer's remorse."

Yeah, because the guy who is the "future of the Spurs" with a max contract really kicked ass, tonight. The team didn't lose because of just Aldridge, jackasses.

[therealtruth]

That foul on WB was pathetic. If you're fouling him knock him down.

[J_Paco]

If we are talking strictly down-low ability/performance:

Non-injured Blake Griffin, Draymond Green, Cousins if he gets his shit together/wasn't on the Kings, DeAndre Jordan just to name a few.. You can't really say LMA is good down low of Adams is totally bossing him around.. Most of LMA's production this series, which has nosedived since the first two games, comes from mid-range.

You sir are extremely stupid.....

Moronic post by a stupid poster........

[siraulo23]

The missed chip shots right at the rim when the spurs couldve taken the lead smh

[cjw]

Dumb thread, deflecting from all players not named Lamarcus, Danny and Kawhi

[Nbadan]

22 and 8 and getting 'bossed around' by Adams

[midnightpulp]

He's the least of our problems.

The issues with this team are obvious (bench).

It's funny how winning changes perception. Westchuck has been by far the worst star in this series overall, but, Durant aside, OKC gets CONSISTENT game-to-game production from Adams, Ibaka, Kanter, and now Dion Waiters. Dion scored 9 points in 5 shots tonight. Our bench scored 11 points in 18 shots. How can you win?

Again with winning=perception. If LMA got some support during game 2, this is probably a different series. I think OKC losing that game would've deflated them. And we're here talking about LMA's 41 on 15-20 as one of the all-time great Spur playoff games.

I think he's performed well. So have Parker and Green. Kawhi's been a star. Duncan's wheels falling off and the bench being shit is what killed this team. Not LMA.

"Worth it."

[Nbadan]

The issues with this team are obvious (bench).

The issues with this team is rebounding......the Spurs are winning every other stat in this series except rebounding....

[Nbadan]

They especially have to keep Kanter and Adams off the offensive glass....

[siraulo23]

He's the least of our problems.

The issues with this team are obvious (bench).

It's funny how winning changes perception. Westchuck has been by far the worst star in this series overall, but, Durant aside, OKC gets CONSISTENT game-to-game production from Adams, Ibaka, Kanter, and now Dion Waiters. Dion scored 9 points in 5 shots tonight. Our bench scored 11 points in 18 shots. How can you win?

Again with winning=perception. If LMA got some support during game 2, this is probably a different series. I think OKC losing that game would deflated them. And we're here talking about LMA's 41 on 15-20 as one of the all-time great Spur playoff games.

I think he's performed well. So have Parker and Green. Kawhi's been a star. Duncan's wheels falling off and the bench being shit is what killed this team. Not LMA.

"Worth it."

The Spurs got the split in OKC, they had control of their fate and lost Game 5. You cant lose 2 home games in a playoff series especially when you went 40-1 at home

And the bench never get open looks because of the things i mentioned in the OP, why leave three point shooters when you can let Aldridge shoot contested 2s?

[dg7md]

We'd be out of the first round if not for LMA.

The whole team has played collectively bad in the closing moments of games. Other than that, we've been solid. We cannot close a game out to save our lives.

[HarlemHeat37]

Aldridge is the Carmelo Anthony of bigs, tbh..

It's funny, I lived in NY at the onset of the Melo era, and Knicks fans would relentlessly defend him with the same arguments that Spurs fans use to defend Aldridge:lol

[midnightpulp]

The issues with this team is rebounding......the Spurs are winning every other stat in this series except rebounding....

OKC posted historically great rebounding numbers this season. We aren't winning that battle, especially now that Duncan's other knee went.

Also, the rebounding woes are related to the bench, since West and Diaw are getting killed on the boards. This is also Pop's fault, since he continues to go with that lineup for some inexplicable reason.

[Nbadan]

KC posted historically great rebounding numbers this season. We aren't winning that battle, especially now that Duncan's other knee went.

..but that is the battle the Spurs have to win......the Spurs need to get either Kanter or Adams in early foul trouble and play hack a Adams...

[midnightpulp]

Aldridge is the Carmelo Anthony of bigs, tbh..

It's funny, I lived in NY at the onset of the Melo era, and Knicks fans would relentlessly defend him with the same arguments that Spurs fans use to defend Aldridge:lol

He's not blameless, but he isn't the issue.

Dion Waiters nearly equalizes the bench's production in 13 less shots, but that is somehow LMA's fault.

And you can't excuse their poor play with, "They're role players, what do you expect?" Patty House, Fat Ass, and Manure all got contracts based on the expectation that they would perform relatively close to their 2014 level. House is 27, in his basketball prime. Fat Ass is still a matchup nightmare, but obviously his eating takes priority over basketball. Manu is old, so I guess he gets a pass, but him not being automatic for his usual 8-10 points is killing us.

I know those players are Crew favorites, but they are the primary issue right now. Duncan is also an issue.

[HarlemHeat37]

He's not blameless, but he isn't the issue.

Dion Waiters nearly equalizes the bench's production in 13 less shots, but that is somehow LMA's fault.

And you can't excuse their poor play with, "They're role players, what do you expect?" Patty House, Fat Ass, and Manure all got contracts based on the expectation that they would perform relatively close to their 2014 level. House is 27, in his basketball prime. Fat Ass is still a matchup nightmare, but obviously his eating takes priority over basketball. Manu is old, so I guess he gets a pass, but him not being automatic for his usual 8-10 points is killing us.

I know those players are Crew favorites, but they are the primary issue right now. Duncan is also an issue.

I'm not a fan of Aldridge, I've never tried to hide that..you are a fan, that's fine..

I'm not blaming him entirely..I'm just saying that he's the Carmelo Anthony of bigs, which is a pretty legit argument IMO, but it doesn't have to be an insult..he's a top 15 player in the NBA, great volume scorer that can explode on some nights, but I don't believe you can build a title team with him as a top 2 option..his style of play isn't suited for it, like Melo's IMO..

Most people would be happy with both Melo and/or Aldridge on their team, and I understand their reasons..personally, I'm just not a fan of that style of play..

[Harry Callahan]

This team won a ton of game this year due to LMA getting in a grove and playing really well. He was worth the contract to team with KL. The bench players have on balance sucked big time this series. Duncan is simply not healthy enough to be a factor. Those things have killed this team.

They have a chance to turn things around. It's not out of the question they can. The damn officials have sucked the life out of this series and made it a disjointed mess.

[Harry Callahan]

poor showing by Durant too...think the OKC fans are giving up on him?

8-21 . Awesome showing for Duhrant

[midnightpulp]

I'm not a fan of Aldridge, I've never tried to hide that..you are a fan, that's fine..

I'm not blaming him entirely..I'm just saying that he's the Carmelo Anthony of bigs, which is a pretty legit argument IMO, but it doesn't have to be an insult..he's a top 15 player in the NBA, great volume scorer that can explode on some nights, but I don't believe you can build a title team with him as a top 2 option..his style of play isn't suited for it, like Melo's IMO..

Most people would be happy with both Melo and/or Aldridge on their team, and I understand their reasons..personally, I'm just not a fan of that style of play..

I'm not a "fan" per se, I just realize the value he brings to the team. All of last season we complained about the lack of spacing for Kawhi alongside Tim and Tiago. LMA rectifies that, without sacrificing any size (most stretch 4s are 6'8"-6'9"). He stepped up with back-to-back 40 point performances. Yes, I know he's been mediocre-to-bad over the last 3 games, but that's typical performance for a 2nd tier star. They play above-and-beyond for 2 or 3 games and then cool off (or vice versa). Only a few players in the league can give you +20 ppg on +50 percent shooting nearly every game.

We're getting our money's worth here. I just don't see how you can lay the majority of the burden on him when the bench can't even outplay Randy Foye.

LMA isn't blameless, but he's 3rd or 4th down on the list of suspects.

[spursistan]

I'm not a "fan" per se, I just realize the value he brings to the team. All of last season we complained about the lack of spacing for Kawhi alongside Tim and Tiago. LMA rectifies that, without sacrificing any size (most stretch 4s are 6'8"-6'9"). He stepped up with back-to-back 40 point performances. Yes, I know he's been mediocre-to-bad over the last 3 games, but that's typical performance for a 2nd tier star. They play above-and-beyond for 2 or 3 games and then cool off (or vice versa). Only a few players in the league can give you +20 ppg on +50 percent shooting nearly every game.

We're getting our money's worth here. I just don't see how you can lay the majority of the burden on him when the bench can't even outplay Randy Foye.

LMA isn't blameless, but he's 3rd or 4th down on the list of suspects.

The disintegration of the offensive punch provided by the Manu/Diaw/Mills triad in their shared court time since January has been the biggest culprit in this team underperformance in the last third of the season and now here in the playoffs..Even Green/TP have pulled some some weight in the series.

[midnightpulp]

The disintegration of the offensive punch provided by the Manu/Diaw/Mills triad in their shared court time since January has been the biggest culprit in this team underperformance in the last third of the season and now here in the playoffs..Even Green/TP have pulled some some weight in the series.

Yeah. I called our bench a nuclear weapon earlier in the season and thought they would be our biggest matchup advantage over GS, since I thought Livingston, Barbosa, Speights, etc would fold under the pressure while Manu, Patty, Boris, and West, all vets who've been through multiple deep playoff runs, would shine.

Then they all just went to shit, at the same time.

[Kawhitstorm]

OKC posted historically great rebounding numbers this season. We aren't winning that battle, especially now that Duncan's other knee went.

OKC destroyed GSW on the boards so that's not breaking news


Also, the rebounding woes are related to the bench, since West and Diaw are getting killed on the boards. This is also Pop's fault, since he continues to go with that lineup for some inexplicable reason.

Still not fuckin' sure why he just doesn't start D-Worst if he insists on playing him so he's matched up w/ Ibaka.:downspin:

West/LMA have also started game together & Tim/Diaw are part of the old regime so it would make sense to go w/ that pairing.

[Fireball]

LMA did not only shoot midrange shots in the first two games ... he scored with a variety of post moves as well ... OKC adjusted to that

[timtonymanu]

The disintegration of the offensive punch provided by the Manu/Diaw/Mills triad in their shared court time since January has been the biggest culprit in this team underperformance in the last third of the season and now here in the playoffs..Even Green/TP have pulled some some weight in the series.

Yep. I'll give Manu a pass just because he's old but the guy still fights hard and hasn't been god awful this series. But Diaw and Patty have more than enough left in the tank. West's jumpshot being broken (which was really his only value to the team) is another factor.

[hooperflash]

Game 6 is a must win game.

[Xevious]

Game 6 is a must win game.

How do you figure?

[hooperflash]

How do you figure?

I'm just clearing things up for the OP, in his opinion last night's game was a must win.

[spurs10]

I'm just clearing things up for the OP, in his opinion last night's game was a must win. :bobo

[r0drig0lac]

There is plenty of blame to go around, if you're into the blame game.

LMA is close to the bottom of the list.

[bic50]

Don't know why you guys freaking out. Spurs still winning this.

[mavsfan1000]

He choked no doubt. Worst possible time to get cold.

[AZK619]

Plays like a midget, tbh. Need less softridge, more LMAlpha. This beta shit is going to eliminate us.
Big 3 is too old, feed Kawhi and LMA. Now or never.

[spurtech09]

Would be nice if everyone can step up.....Spurs need to win as a team....

[spurtech09]

One guy can't do everything......He needs help from the others......Plus remember he hurt his hip in game 3 but people tend to forget......He did that awkward half split and was holding his hip....So that could be why he is not playing the same...

[LongtimeSpursFan]

His play in he last two games have been a little sub par. However, he played lights out in games 1/2 and decent in game 3. If a star can give you two performances like what he gave then those are two wins you must get. It's players outside of Aldridge, Kawhi and Parker that need to step up.

[Slippy]

2 things for me.

How the spurs handle the boards. Cant give up so many offensives. Kept okc in games.

How the spurs close out the game. Spurs have been toe toe with okc going into 4th quarter of games but have failed miserably in the last 5min. Last night up by 4 with 4mins left in game. The thunder have executed enough while the spurs have wilted . Also make sure we go down with KY making the plays in the end.

[Slippy]

Last post in Wrong thread . Meant for"3 things to look for in a game 6" thread

[tholdren]

One guy can't do everything......He needs help from the others......Plus remember he hurt his hip in game 3 but people tend to forget......He did that awkward half split and was holding his hip....So that could be why he is not playing the same...
his fat ass needs to get in shape. He runs the floor like a retard. it's like watching Jared Sullenger out there.

[SAGirl]

LMA did not only shoot midrange shots in the first two games ... he scored with a variety of post moves as well ... OKC adjusted to that
Agree on this they are sending doubles off TD when he gets in the paint. His shots are tougher or taken out and forced to pass out and reset. Pop benched TD for a good stretch of game 4 aside of the foul trouble bc of this but he went back to TD bc D west was not shooting from outside to make them pay and he's worse than TD in every way.