T Park
11-04-2005, 02:37 AM
It won't be like this every night. Brent Barry, for example, won't run out to midcourt and plant a kiss on the cheek of David Stern
Not every night.
Michael Finley also won't do what he did Tuesday, not every night, not in every fourth quarter. If he did, the Spurs wouldn't lose a half-dozen games.
Finley instead will find what all shooters find in San Antonio, that changing minutes and limited attempts can mess with a man's rhythm. He also will find there will be nights when Manu Ginobili is healthier and taking more than nine shots, and when Bruce Bowen will do something to stay on the floor.
But for a first night? Tuesday is what Finley dreamed of when he turned down more money in Miami and more friends in Phoenix.
And the dream wasn't just about him.
Finley says the ring ceremony got to him, which didn't set him apart from the sellout crowd. But Finley's view was up close. With new teammates celebrating an old season, he says he felt like a kid. "I want one of those," he was telling himself.
Then came the start, which Finley didn't. He had walked out for the tip for eight consecutive seasons, as automatic as anyone on the teams he played for, and this time he simply sat.
For an entire 90 seconds. Then Gregg Popovich sent Finley to the scorer's table to replace Bowen.
His entrance was delayed, but the moment said so much about the defending champs. Popovich loved to mix and match before, and now he has more options.
There will be nights when Barry draws more time, when Nick Van Exel takes over a quarter, when Robert Horry makes more than one shot. And there will be nights when Finley misses, too.
He did in his last game for the Mavericks. Then, in Game 6 against Phoenix last spring, Finley played more than 40 minutes, yet ended with seven points on 2-of-10 shooting.
Wonder why Mark Cuban paid Finley's way out of town? Such a last impression can have that effect.
That said, no one was surprised by what Finley did Tuesday. Then he put together an 11-point fourth quarter, and the shot chart was classic Finley. Three long jumpers preceded a 3-pointer. And when he finally missed, Tim Duncan rebounded, Finley cut to the basket and Duncan gave it back to him.
"We have an inside player here," Finley said afterward when asked the difference between the Spurs and Dallas.
This was part of the dream that Finley had last summer. Duncan, similar in personality and style, influenced his decision as much as anyone. And here Duncan was, making the game so easy, along with playmakers Ginobili and Tony Parker, sharing and creating.
Finley talked about this afterward, standing in a suit and tie. And standing on the opposite end of the locker room, dressed the same way, was Bowen. Bowen's outfit added an accessory this night (another ring). Otherwise, they looked like men from the same law firm.
This wardrobe is nothing new for them. The dress code didn't change a thing for them.
But before this season, they were corporate enemies. Finley squared off in a game two seasons ago, joining the anti-Bowen campaign. So when Finley replaced Bowen early Tuesday and then took his minutes late, wasn't this a slap?
After all, Bowen was essential in the 2005 playoffs against Denver. Who else could slow Carmelo Anthony? Yet on the same night he got his second ring, Bowen had to sit.
"I think you have to take responsibility," Bowen said afterward, "and I didn't come out the way I have to. Carmelo got a couple of quick baskets, and regardless of who was on this team, I would have been snatched. Then Mike did a great job, and he brought us something we were lacking last year. Hey, why would you take him out?"
It's easy to say, but not to accept. Somewhere inside of Bowen there were likely less noble, more human feelings.
But this is how these Spurs will have to react, and how Miami, for example, will be pressed to. They will have to sacrifice and be professional, and Tuesday was Bowen's turn.
The dream?
This is what Finley came for.
Not every night.
Michael Finley also won't do what he did Tuesday, not every night, not in every fourth quarter. If he did, the Spurs wouldn't lose a half-dozen games.
Finley instead will find what all shooters find in San Antonio, that changing minutes and limited attempts can mess with a man's rhythm. He also will find there will be nights when Manu Ginobili is healthier and taking more than nine shots, and when Bruce Bowen will do something to stay on the floor.
But for a first night? Tuesday is what Finley dreamed of when he turned down more money in Miami and more friends in Phoenix.
And the dream wasn't just about him.
Finley says the ring ceremony got to him, which didn't set him apart from the sellout crowd. But Finley's view was up close. With new teammates celebrating an old season, he says he felt like a kid. "I want one of those," he was telling himself.
Then came the start, which Finley didn't. He had walked out for the tip for eight consecutive seasons, as automatic as anyone on the teams he played for, and this time he simply sat.
For an entire 90 seconds. Then Gregg Popovich sent Finley to the scorer's table to replace Bowen.
His entrance was delayed, but the moment said so much about the defending champs. Popovich loved to mix and match before, and now he has more options.
There will be nights when Barry draws more time, when Nick Van Exel takes over a quarter, when Robert Horry makes more than one shot. And there will be nights when Finley misses, too.
He did in his last game for the Mavericks. Then, in Game 6 against Phoenix last spring, Finley played more than 40 minutes, yet ended with seven points on 2-of-10 shooting.
Wonder why Mark Cuban paid Finley's way out of town? Such a last impression can have that effect.
That said, no one was surprised by what Finley did Tuesday. Then he put together an 11-point fourth quarter, and the shot chart was classic Finley. Three long jumpers preceded a 3-pointer. And when he finally missed, Tim Duncan rebounded, Finley cut to the basket and Duncan gave it back to him.
"We have an inside player here," Finley said afterward when asked the difference between the Spurs and Dallas.
This was part of the dream that Finley had last summer. Duncan, similar in personality and style, influenced his decision as much as anyone. And here Duncan was, making the game so easy, along with playmakers Ginobili and Tony Parker, sharing and creating.
Finley talked about this afterward, standing in a suit and tie. And standing on the opposite end of the locker room, dressed the same way, was Bowen. Bowen's outfit added an accessory this night (another ring). Otherwise, they looked like men from the same law firm.
This wardrobe is nothing new for them. The dress code didn't change a thing for them.
But before this season, they were corporate enemies. Finley squared off in a game two seasons ago, joining the anti-Bowen campaign. So when Finley replaced Bowen early Tuesday and then took his minutes late, wasn't this a slap?
After all, Bowen was essential in the 2005 playoffs against Denver. Who else could slow Carmelo Anthony? Yet on the same night he got his second ring, Bowen had to sit.
"I think you have to take responsibility," Bowen said afterward, "and I didn't come out the way I have to. Carmelo got a couple of quick baskets, and regardless of who was on this team, I would have been snatched. Then Mike did a great job, and he brought us something we were lacking last year. Hey, why would you take him out?"
It's easy to say, but not to accept. Somewhere inside of Bowen there were likely less noble, more human feelings.
But this is how these Spurs will have to react, and how Miami, for example, will be pressed to. They will have to sacrifice and be professional, and Tuesday was Bowen's turn.
The dream?
This is what Finley came for.