Leads over the past 2.5 weeks

[Cry Havoc]

12.23 @ POR: 21
12.25 CHI: 20
12.28 PHX: 22
12.30 POR: 20
1.1 @ ATL: 10 (L)
1.3 TOR: 34
1.5 @ DEN: 31
1.7 CHA: 22

For all the talk about how dominant we haven't been this season, the Defense is now solidly rated at #1 in the league, and the big leads are starting to happen with regularity.

[Dex]

12.23 @ POR: 21
12.25 CHI: 20
12.28 PHX: 22
12.30 POR: 20
1.1 @ ATL: 10 (L)
1.3 TOR: 34
1.5 @ DEN: 31
1.7 CHA: 22

For all the talk about how dominant we haven't been this season, the Defense is now solidly rated at #1 in the league, and the big leads are starting to happen with regularity.

https://media.giphy.com/media/rl0FOxdz7CcxO/giphy.gif

[dabom]

Kawhi with another DPOY. :lol

[Amuseddaysleeper]

I still don't trust this team's interior defense at times, seen a lot of layup drills this season but good to see those stats :tu

[TheGreatYacht]

MVParker doesn't get enough credit for that team defense, tbh..

[boutons_deux]

Weak compedition and yes interior D weak

Only Cavs and okc this month, the rest is dreck

[Cry Havoc]

I still don't trust this team's interior defense at times, seen a lot of layup drills this season but good to see those stats :tu

At least at the eye test it has improved significantly, especially when Dedmon is in the game. Pau has even had some decent defensive spells, he got a couple of nice blocks last game.

[boutons_deux]

Gasol is Spanish, explains his matador defense

[Cry Havoc]

Weak compedition and yes interior D weak

Only Cavs and okc this month, the rest is dreck

Dreck that we weren't destroying earlier in the year. Beating a team like the Lakers doesn't say much, but it sure is nicer to be up by 20+ in the second quarter than to be leaning on Kawhi to score clutch points in the 4th to ensure a win by 2 possessions.

[Cry Havoc]

http://i.imgur.com/hf3Wpyv.png

[Cry Havoc]

Spurs are the best 3rd quarter team in basketball. :wow

[GSH]

12.23 @ POR: 21
12.25 CHI: 20
12.28 PHX: 22
12.30 POR: 20
1.1 @ ATL: 10 (L)
1.3 TOR: 34
1.5 @ DEN: 31
1.7 CHA: 22

For all the talk about how dominant we haven't been this season, the Defense is now solidly rated at #1 in the league, and the big leads are starting to happen with regularity.


And they've only given up one or two 30-point first quarters in that stretch. I like to see them looking better coming out of the locker room. And they haven't had any more 15 point quarters or 32 point halves since the Chicago loss. Since then, only the Clippers loss was sort of a concern. I thought they played damned well on the road in Atlanta.

There's no doubt that they are playing better ball. The Spurs are clearly one of the top 3 teams in the league, even though they could struggle with the Clippers size. To me, it's all a question of whether Tony and Pau can be good enough against those other 3 teams.

[szkorhetz]

Spurs are the best 3rd quarter team in basketball. :wow
Didn't we completely struggle with that last year?

[Cry Havoc]

Didn't we completely struggle with that last year?

Hence the shock, though if memory serves it was more like teams from 2013 and 2014 that really shat the bed in the 3rd. Last year we just donkey punched everyone in the regular season.

[Dex]

http://i.imgur.com/hf3Wpyv.png

Top 5 team in every quarter...I guess that happens when you have a 30-7 record.

I'm surprised that we aren't lower for 1st quarters though...we have put up a lot of stinkers.

[spursistan]

They have looked better the past month or so, but I am still skeptical as to if this team have another gear in the playoffs..

[Dex]

They have looked better the past month or so, but I am still skeptical as to if this team have another gear in the playoffs..

:spam:

As long as we are healthy and playing well at the start of the playoffs, I will take the Spurs against any other team.

[Cry Havoc]

Top 5 team in every quarter...I guess that happens when you have a 30-7 record.

I'm surprised that we aren't lower for 1st quarters though...we have put up a lot of stinkers.

We start 1sts off terribly but usually recover by the end of the quarter.

[Mr. Body]

It's usually around January where I feel whether or not the Spurs have what it takes to win it all. Last year was a fluke in that Golden State was even better. I'm definitely seeing a big possibility with this team, but lots to still be determined.

[BillMc]

We are a head of schedule with so many new bodies. We'll see how we look by the end of the RRT. But team is definitely a contender... Pop and co doing a masterful job.

#1 D despite a chorus of "Pau can't play" and a ridiculous media game of "Is Kawhi hurting the Spurs defense". :lol

[BillMc]

http://i.imgur.com/hf3Wpyv.png

Nice post. I remember in 2014 we used to dread 3rd quarters. Problem solved apparently. Now, its slow starts....ever season has its thing....:lol

[DPG21920]

We are a head of schedule with so many new bodies. We'll see how we look by the end of the RRT. But team is definitely a contender... Pop and co doing a masterful job.

#1 D despite a chorus of "Pau can't play" and a ridiculous media game of "Is Kawhi hurting the Spurs defense". :lol

Yup. Whats funny is I took a lot of time to try and explain pre-season how patience would be needed. It was true but it's been even better than I could have imagined. SA has struggled, but was still winning despite the ups and downs. Now? The team is definitely coming together and you see the results.

It's a damn talented team with a high ceiling and a decent floor all the while no hamstring contracts :cheer

Spurs have flaws and who knows how the playoffs go, but no matter what anyone says the Spurs did a damn good job all things considered in the real world.

[ECOV]

I don't really mind the slow starts ,it's all about how you finish the game strong, and not how you start it.

[BillMc]

Yup. Whats funny is I took a lot of time to try and explain pre-season how patience would be needed. It was true but it's been even better than I could have imagined. SA has struggled, but was still winning despite the ups and downs. Now? The team is definitely coming together and you see the results.

It's a damn talented team with a high ceiling and a decent floor all the while no hamstring contracts :cheer

Spurs have flaws and who knows how the playoffs go, but no matter what anyone says the Spurs did a damn good job all things considered in the real world.
Agree 100% RC is amazing. The emergence of Kawhi and the signing of LMA ensured they'rd be no rebuild. But teams still have to gel. Look at Atlanta and how much talent they have and recently had and now its fire sale time. Talent doesn't guarantee long term success if you don't use it right. We're lucky to have the front office and coaching staff we have. You can see the puzzle being assembled before our eyes. Just not sure where they Kyle piece goes yet, and the Forbes piece might be left in the box.

Fit also might be why as good as the Dubs are, they may not be all that much better than pre-Durant. In fact, since their depth suffered, they might be slightly more vulnerable. Of course, we'd have done the same for Durant. (In fact, we killed our "beautiful game" depth to get LMA and re-sign Kawhi and Danny.) But RC did a masterful job getting new talent on good contracts. Even Pau's is short and not overly expensive by modern standards.

[All Mighty Janitor]

We had a harder schedule to start the season. As we've been playing worse competition our defensive numbers have gotten better.

[Mnky]

That's good to see. In all honesty this forum has a perfection obsession. They expect our backups to be better than other teams starters, and they expect our starters to be the best at the their position.. ever.

The team put together is a good team. They're coincidentally going against all time great teams in LeBron and Durant, two of the most dominant offensive players, choosing to stack the heck out of their teams. Which isn't to say that's a bad thing, everyone tries to get better, but the spurs can't expect to be the one best team every single year. No team can. Even the super teams haven't had more than 2 years of dominance resulting in a championship.

It's amazing the spurs have been so consistent. I say it all the time, but they've been the best franchise in all of sports the past twenty years.

And then you have people on here questioning Pop on whether he knows how to use fathead right.

Boy, I tell you.

Pop choosing to go big to counter the GSW was a good decision. Its really he only logical one.. who could they have brought in to out shoot Durant curry and klay? That didn't work so well for everyone trying to emulate them.

We will see how the season plays out. As always, I expect the spurs to get better as the season goes. Pop knows what he's doing.

[Dex]

That's good to see. In all honesty this forum has a perfection obsession. They expect our backups to be better than other teams starters, and they expect our starters to be the best at the their position.. ever.

The team put together is a good team. They're coincidentally going against all time great teams in LeBron and Durant, two of the most dominant offensive players, choosing to stack the heck out of their teams. Which isn't to say that's a bad thing, everyone tries to get better, but the spurs can't expect to be the one best team every single year. No team can. Even the super teams haven't had more than 2 years of dominance resulting in a championship.

It's amazing the spurs have been so consistent. I say it all the time, but they've been the best franchise in all of sports the past twenty years.

And then you have people on here questioning Pop on whether he knows how to use fathead right.

Boy, I tell you.

Pop choosing to go big to counter the GSW was a good decision. Its really he only logical one.. who could they have brought in to out shoot Durant curry and klay? That didn't work so well for everyone trying to emulate them.

We will see how the season plays out. As always, I expect the spurs to get better as the season goes. Pop knows what he's doing.

:clap

[GSH]

Top 5 team in every quarter...I guess that happens when you have a 30-7 record.

I'm surprised that we aren't lower for 1st quarters though...we have put up a lot of stinkers.


That 3Q is pretty damned amazing. The 4Q is pretty good, especially when you figure that there's a lot of garbage time involved. I would love to know how much of that third quarter margin is from the bench.



I'm surprised about the 1st quarter margins being bigger than the second, too. Actually, I'm a LOT surprised. Here's a really good article related to the subject of NetRTG by quarter, and how it correlates to W/L. http://hardwoodparoxysm.com/2013/01/30/correlation-between-netrtg-and-quarter/

[GSH]

That's good to see. In all honesty this forum has a perfection obsession. They expect our backups to be better than other teams starters, and they expect our starters to be the best at the their position.. ever.


It's true. But there are plenty of people (like me) who mostly worry about Tony not being able to get to the rim, and Pau being a damn matador on defense.

Tony looking years younger has been pretty incredible news. Pau... not so much. Look at the article I posted just above, and you'll understand a little more why I'm concerned about the starting C being an invitation to score.

[BillMc]

That's good to see. In all honesty this forum has a perfection obsession. They expect our backups to be better than other teams starters, and they expect our starters to be the best at the their position.. ever.

The team put together is a good team. They're coincidentally going against all time great teams in LeBron and Durant, two of the most dominant offensive players, choosing to stack the heck out of their teams. Which isn't to say that's a bad thing, everyone tries to get better, but the spurs can't expect to be the one best team every single year. No team can. Even the super teams haven't had more than 2 years of dominance resulting in a championship.

It's amazing the spurs have been so consistent. I say it all the time, but they've been the best franchise in all of sports the past twenty years.

And then you have people on here questioning Pop on whether he knows how to use fathead right.

Boy, I tell you.

Pop choosing to go big to counter the GSW was a good decision. Its really he only logical one.. who could they have brought in to out shoot Durant curry and klay? That didn't work so well for everyone trying to emulate them.

We will see how the season plays out. As always, I expect the spurs to get better as the season goes. Pop knows what he's doing.
:toast

[cutewizard]

That's good to see. In all honesty this forum has a perfection obsession. They expect our backups to be better than other teams starters, and they expect our starters to be the best at the their position.. ever.

The team put together is a good team. They're coincidentally going against all time great teams in LeBron and Durant, two of the most dominant offensive players, choosing to stack the heck out of their teams. Which isn't to say that's a bad thing, everyone tries to get better, but the spurs can't expect to be the one best team every single year. No team can. Even the super teams haven't had more than 2 years of dominance resulting in a championship.

It's amazing the spurs have been so consistent. I say it all the time, but they've been the best franchise in all of sports the past twenty years.

And then you have people on here questioning Pop on whether he knows how to use fathead right.

Boy, I tell you.

Pop choosing to go big to counter the GSW was a good decision. Its really he only logical one.. who could they have brought in to out shoot Durant curry and klay? That didn't work so well for everyone trying to emulate them.

We will see how the season plays out. As always, I expect the spurs to get better as the season goes. Pop knows what he's doing.


--------------------------------------------------------

Magnifico!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-lmj2kuoAU

[Splits]

--------------------------------------------------------

Magnifico!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-lmj2kuoAU

i shaved, bae

[Cry Havoc]

Nice post. I remember in 2014 we used to dread 3rd quarters. Problem solved apparently. Now, its slow starts....ever season has its thing....:lol

Well, if our first quarters were better we'd be blowing teams out by historic margins.

Complete dominance from tip to tip is something not even the 96 Bulls had. Many nights it felt that way, but their MOV was smaller than ours was last season if memory serves.

[GSH]

Well, if our first quarters were better we'd be blowing teams out by historic margins.

Complete dominance from tip to tip is something not even the 96 Bulls had. Many nights it felt that way, but their MOV was smaller than ours was last season if memory serves.


I don't have the energy to do it right now, but I really wonder if the Spurs doing better in first quarters coincided with Pop subbing for Pau earlier in first quarters.

Yeah, coming out playing shit defense and giving up 30 point first quarters is a big problem. I don't think a lot of people here understand how much of a problem it is if they do it against good playoff teams. Especially IN the playoffs.

[Cry Havoc]

I don't have the energy to do it right now, but I really wonder if the Spurs doing better in first quarters coincided with Pop subbing for Pau earlier in first quarters.

Yeah, coming out playing shit defense and giving up 30 point first quarters is a big problem. I don't think a lot of people here understand how much of a problem it is if they do it against good playoff teams. Especially IN the playoffs.

For sure. Falling behind in the playoffs is not a habit you are likely to win a title with. What's good lately is that both our bench and starting unit seem to be playing well -- earlier in the year it seemed to be one would consistently bail the other one out.

Also, it seems that if we can destroy teams in the 3rd, we should theoretically be able to shut them down in the 1st. Our defense is far and away the best in the NBA this year (along with Memphis). So that points toward a potential for putting the clamps on early.

[GSH]

For sure. Falling behind in the playoffs is not a habit you are likely to win a title with. What's good lately is that both our bench and starting unit seem to be playing well -- earlier in the year it seemed to be one would consistently bail the other one out.

Also, it seems that if we can destroy teams in the 3rd, we should theoretically be able to shut them down in the 1st. Our defense is far and away the best in the NBA this year (along with Memphis). So that points toward a potential for putting the clamps on early.


So are you going to do the digging to see if the Spurs improved 1Q performance is linked to fewer 1Q minutes from Pau? I've had flu for the first time in probably 10 years, and I still feel like I'm in a rented body. Surely someone has a cool research tool that will let them automate it?

I dig into the numbers because memory will fool you. My perception is that Pau has been shamefully bad on defense at times (many times), and that has fueled a lot of the 1Q debacles. Maybe he's really gotten better, and I've been too negative about him. But my first guess is that Pop has subbed him out earlier.

Like Fox Mulder said - "I want to believe".

[NameLess Scrub]

Guys, stop getting your hopes up. You know Spurs will get the Clippers before the WCF so they can have their 15 mins of brilliance.

[tonight...you]

So are you going to do the digging to see if the Spurs improved 1Q performance is linked to fewer 1Q minutes from Pau? I've had flu for the first time in probably 10 years, and I still feel like I'm in a rented body. Surely someone has a cool research tool that will let them automate it?

I dig into the numbers because memory will fool you. My perception is that Pau has been shamefully bad on defense at times (many times), and that has fueled a lot of the 1Q debacles. Maybe he's really gotten better, and I've been too negative about him. But my first guess is that Pop has subbed him out earlier.

Like Fox Mulder said - "I want to believe".
Flu sucks. Hope you feel better soon bro.

[BG_Spurs_Fan]

I still don't trust this team's interior defense at times, seen a lot of layup drills this season but good to see those stats :tu

Spurs are 7th best at opponent points in the paint allowed.


We start 1sts off terribly but usually recover by the end of the quarter.

Yep - top 5 in first quarter margin.

[Cry Havoc]

So are you going to do the digging to see if the Spurs improved 1Q performance is linked to fewer 1Q minutes from Pau? I've had flu for the first time in probably 10 years, and I still feel like I'm in a rented body. Surely someone has a cool research tool that will let them automate it?

I dig into the numbers because memory will fool you. My perception is that Pau has been shamefully bad on defense at times (many times), and that has fueled a lot of the 1Q debacles. Maybe he's really gotten better, and I've been too negative about him. But my first guess is that Pop has subbed him out earlier.

Like Fox Mulder said - "I want to believe".


6:24 down 12-11 (Dedmon)
5:42 down 18-21 (Dedmon)
4:28 up 28-10 (Lee)
6:04 up 12-6 (Lee)
7:12 down 19-11 (Simmons)
-No record of Pau subbing out vs Phoenix-
5:09 up 26-8 (Lee)

These are the past 7 games, newest to oldest. Our run of blowouts (minus Atlanta) actually began 8 games ago, but Pau was inactive for the first blowout of the current run.

It does look like Pau is routinely only playing the first half of 1Q, but he is not often being subbed for Dedmon until recently.