Next two weeks are crucial.

[aaronstampler]

The Pistons, after a laugher on Monday against the Hawks, play the next 7 straight, 8 of 9, and 10 of 12 against playoff teams. If we're ever gonna pass them and get HCA, it'll be because of the next three weeks.

I think Pop is smart enough to know that this year, more than ever, HCA means everything. If it was just about the Western Conference, it wouldn't matter, we could beat either the Suns or the Mavs even if the whole series was played in their gyms. But to beat the Pistons we need the home court, I truly believe that is our only chance.

We have to have almost a college football mentality here where every game matters. Seriously, it's like can almost exhale and relax and lose our first playoff game, and I wouldn't care because we can always beat an 8 seed in their gym no problem. But we gotta do everything in our power to get the best record if we want to repeat.

[LilMissSPURfect]

either that or just roll over

[exstatic]

Pistons ALMOST dropped another one, beating a squad of CBA players known as the Bobcats by 5 points tonight, 108-103.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

I'd take health over home court.

[leemajors]

I'd take health over home court.

ditto

[Obstructed_View]

I'd take health over home court.
Yep. Stay healthy. The Spurs don't need HCA against anyone to win.

[Mr. Body]

Don't go crazy getting that home court, not enough to hurt anybody. The Pistons look weak right now and we hold the series with Dallas in our hands.

But yes, Detroit's coming couple weeks look brutal.

[Joepa]

Guarantee Pop's mantra is not to worry about the HCA but to take one game at a time and do everything in their power to win each one.

[mavsfan1000]

ditto for Dallas. Homecourt is overrated.

[SilverPlayer]

Am I the only one who doesn't want HCA against detroit? We can win one of the first two in Detroit, and we can beat them at home. HCA is not an advantage unless it goes past five.

[boutons_]

"HCA is not an advantage unless it goes past five."

A Spurs-Pistons Finals would go past five. Therefore, HCA would be ...

[exstatic]

Am I the only one who doesn't want HCA against detroit? We can win one of the first two in Detroit, and we can beat them at home. HCA is not an advantage unless it goes past five.
Only one team in 20+ years of the 2-3-2 format has won all of the middle three at home. HCA is huge in the Finals, much more so than in the 2-2-2-1 format. You should basically plan on having to take one of the first two and one of the last two on the road if you lack HCA.

[CubanMustGo]

Ask Pop and the rest of the Spurs if having Finals Game 7 at home was beneficial last year.

[TDMVPDPOY]

we are goin to win the rest of the games till end of the month, the game against the fakers will be crucial cose i wanna see kome out of the playoffs and stop their fakerfans from boasting about kome winnin mvp, then we play the dallas ponies last game of the regular season series, both series we lead 2-1.

crucial? yes, but i be more happy if we get the win without any injuries, this is when we SPAM!

[Obstructed_View]

Ask Pop and the rest of the Spurs if having Finals Game 7 at home was beneficial last year.
Forgetting that the teams are different this year, so everything previous goes out the window, having the previous six games at the other arena would have changed the outcome of those games as well, and it may not have even gone to seven games. That's the major flaw in that logic.

Home court is necessary as an advantage for an evenly matched or inferior team. The Suns and the Mavericks need home court to have a shot at the Finals. IMO the Pistons need home court.

[SAGambler]

First the Pistons get beat by the worst team in Basketball. Then they squeek by the 2nd worst team.

Someone over on Pistons board was telling me they have the best home court record in the league. I agree. They do.

The problem is the only two top teams that have played at the Palace is against the Spurs and Miami. Now they are facing Phoenix, Mavs and Miami X 2 again, plus the Nets if they play like they did today will give them fits also.

I still wish we would have had one of the games against Detroit occur after the All Star Break.

Of course, it could work to our advantage losing those two. They might be so cocky they forget to play ball.

[WalterBenitez]

HCA is good in long series, that's it ... but since you have some key players injured I'll take be healthy ... but believe me a 7th game in DET (If SAS reach that scenario) will destroy our hopes.

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

Home Court was HUUUUUUUUGE in last years finals. How can you say its overrated??

[SAGambler]

Home Court was HUUUUUUUUGE in last years finals. How can you say its overrated??

I agree. I would prefer to having HCA as opposed to not having it.

But, that being said, if it is so HUGE, why didn't we dispense with the Pistons in 6 last year?

[1Parker1]

^On the flip side, How did we end up dispensing them in 7 then??

[nkdlunch]

I agree, next weeks are crucial. We don't wanna give up HCA to Pistons. I think travelling East to play games sucks to begin with. Especially all the way to Detroit. Also the Palace is one place where it would be impossible to win a game 7.

The good news is that our schedule is easier than Pistons and Pistons are struggling now. I can see us getting HCA, actually I expect us to get HCA. vbookie please?

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

I agree. I would prefer to having HCA as opposed to not having it.

But, that being said, if it is so HUGE, why didn't we dispense with the Pistons in 6 last year?

If it's not so huge, why were the first 4 home games blowouts won by the home team?? It seems pretty odd that a team can win by 20 one game, and lose by 20 the next game.

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

I agree. I would prefer to having HCA as opposed to not having it.

But, that being said, if it is so HUGE, why didn't we dispense with the Pistons in 6 last year?

And I'm sure having game 7 in our gym helped just a little bit.

[easjer]

HCA is better than not having HCA.

Health is better than HCA.

If the Spurs hadn't completely fucked up games 3 and 4, then HCA is a non issue. If the Spurs hadn't screwed up game 6, HCA is a non-issue.

Bottom line, a good team, by which I mean a CHAMPIONSHIP team can when no matter whose court they are on. A good team with all their shit together can win in less than seven games (so, yes, I don't think the Spurs had all their shit together in that series).

You take care of the ball, you take care of business, you know what you are doing, and it doesn't go to seven, making HCA irrelevant. It is overblown for a team that is focused.

Further, as for an all out push - why? It's sort of a one game at a time thing. They can't make the Pistons lose, or make Dallas lose, they can only control their own destiny. Stay focused, do the job. That's the only thing in their power. As soon as they start worrying about the other teams they are fucked by head games.

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

HCA is better than not having HCA.

Health is better than HCA.

If the Spurs hadn't completely fucked up games 3 and 4, then HCA is a non issue. If the Spurs hadn't screwed up game 6, HCA is a non-issue.

Bottom line, a good team, by which I mean a CHAMPIONSHIP team can when no matter whose court they are on. A good team with all their shit together can win in less than seven games (so, yes, I don't think the Spurs had all their shit together in that series).

You take care of the ball, you take care of business, you know what you are doing, and it doesn't go to seven, making HCA irrelevant. It is overblown for a team that is focused.

Further, as for an all out push - why? It's sort of a one game at a time thing. They can't make the Pistons lose, or make Dallas lose, they can only control their own destiny. Stay focused, do the job. That's the only thing in their power. As soon as they start worrying about the other teams they are fucked by head games.

But what you forget to realize, Spurs and the Pistons are both great championship teams. The Spurs are not much more superior than the Pistons. All in all these teams are very evenly matched.

[NCaliSpurs]

The Spurs will lose again this season. Possibly more than a few times.

The Pistons will have to lose that number + 2.

I just don't see it. The Spurs priorities should be 1) Health 1A) Health 1B) HEALTH.

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

You really don't want to play games 6 and 7 in the NBA Finals on your opponent's home turf.

HCA matters. We'd probably be looking at Detroit's B2B titles were it not for our HCA last season.

[easjer]

Mmmm, no, haven't forgotten that the Pistons are former champs. I understand that the Pistons and Spurs are pretty evenly matched. . . I just disagree that HCA is the vital thing to winning a championship. I think it would be better to have it than not, but if we have to have it to beat the Pistons, then . . . well, we are not good enough to win and Detroit is the better team.

That's all there is to it, the way I see. A good team will win on whatever court they happen to be playing on.

HCA is overrated, imo. If the Spurs had taken care of business in either one of games 3 or 4, HCA is irrelevant. If the Spurs had taken care of business in game 6, all this crap people constantly spew about how important it was to have game 7 at home would be irrelevant. If the Spurs can't win two games on the road (allowing for one home loss), then they don't deserve to be champs again. It's really simple, as I see it.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it's not nice to have. Better to have it than not, but HEALTH is the important thing. Not worth fighting over the necessity of HCA against the Pistons if they are too injured to get past the second round of the playoffs.

And a further comment on the original post that Pop is smart enough to know the importance of HCA - I think it's worth noting that Pop has publicly stated that health is of greater importance to him than HCA, and that while HCA is a good thing, he's not pursuing it at the risk of the health of the team. So overall, I think the fans need to calm down and back off. I consider that Pop probably knows what he's doing here, three championships later. We've had league wide HCA and been swept on out of the playoffs. We've lost HCA and won championships.

[boutons_]

"We've lost HCA and won championships."

That wasn't true in 05 or 03 when Spurs had Finals HCA.

I don't know about 99, but I'm pretty sure the Spurs had Finals HCA in 99, too.

[NCaliSpurs]

Spurs didn't have HCA against Phoenix last year. We lost the edge to Denver as well (because of the first game loss). It is nice but not necessary.

The Lakers had a couple of non-HC championship seasons.

[himat]

Don't go crazy getting that home court, not enough to hurt anybody. The Pistons look weak right now and we hold the series with Dallas in our hands.

But yes, Detroit's coming couple weeks look brutal.

pistons have sucked against these low teams, and fans here are hoping the effort will come up since we're facing good teams. A good sta for the pistons, and not the spurs though: 11/17 are home games for pistons while san antonio only has half of their remaining games left. you guys are only .5 games behind (truly 1 game since we get HCA if we tie).

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

yes, health is more important than HCA, I'm not arguing with that. But we ARE going to be banged up this year in the playoffs.

[NCaliSpurs]

I will vbookie my lowly stakes that the Spurs will not catch the Pistons.

[SAGambler]

The Spurs will lose again this season. Possibly more than a few times.

The Pistons will have to lose that number + 2.

I just don't see it. The Spurs priorities should be 1) Health 1A) Health 1B) HEALTH.

I actually expect the Spurs will drop one or two of their remaining games.

Detroit on the other hand, could easily dump five. We'll see just where this Detroit team is come Wednesday night. If Miami goes into the Palace and puts a whopping on the Pistons, you can stick a fork in em. They're done for the year.

[leemajors]

detroit could get whooped by Miami and wake up just as easily. the playoffs are still a ways off...

[The_Game]

I actually expect the Spurs will drop one or two of their remaining games.

Detroit on the other hand, could easily dump five. We'll see just where this Detroit team is come Wednesday night. If Miami goes into the Palace and puts a whopping on the Pistons, you can stick a fork in em. They're done for the year.

LOL How on earth do you fiqure that? the Pistons have most of their games left at home where they have lost just TWICE...I repeat TWICE.....they have won 14 straight at home. I fail to see how they could lose 5 while the spurs just lose a few...when the spurs have been beaten by the lakers at HOME

If pistons lose to Miami on wednesday (doubtful) it won't mean they are done at all...are you really that stupid to believe that? everyone knows the pistons are a proven team and can turn it on in the playoffs like they did a year ago.

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

The Spurs had HCA in all three Finals.

Didn't need it in '99 or '03, but it comes in handy in a 6 or 7 game series.




Not as vital in the earlier rounds.

[Obstructed_View]

The series is less likely to go seven games if the Spurs DON'T have HCA because they will be less apt to drop a game due to lack of focus.

[aaronstampler]

As I said, I don't care about HCA against any other team besides Detroit, so basically, my argument of being hellbent on getting HCA is based on the assumption that we'll be playing the Pistons in the finals.

I think a focused Pistons team is good enough to beat as a minimum of two games in a series, and a more likely three or four games. If they're gonna beat us three times, then by definition, we'd need a game 7 to beat them and so I'd like that game 7 to be at home. Every championship deciding game 7 has been won by the home team since 1979. Look it up, trivia fans.

[conqueso]

This might not be appropriate thread for this post, but that's never stopped me before. Here are the schedules for SA, Dallas, and Detroit...home in bold, road in italics:

Spurs:
3/21: Warriors
3/22: Nuggets
3/24: Blazers
3/26: Sonics
3/28: Clippers
3/30: Lakers
4/1: Wizards
4/4: Jazz
4/5: Kings
4/7: Mavs
4/9: Grizzlies
4/11: Sonics
4/13: Magic
4/16: TWolves
4/17: Jazz
4/19: Rockets
Home/away: 8/8
Average winning percentage: .481
Pairs of back-to-backs: 3
Games against playoff teams: between 5 and 7

Mavs:
3/21: Rockets
3/23: Warriors
3/25: Hawks
3/28: Pistons
3/29: Cavs
3/31: Magic
4/2: Nuggets
4/4: Kings
4/7: Spurs
4/8: Hornets
4/10: Clippers
4/12: Warriors
4/13: Suns
4/16: Jazz
4/19: Clippers
Home/away: 7/8
Average winning percentage: .535
Pairs of back-to-backs: 3
Games against playoff teams: 7, maybe 8 or 9

Pistons:
3/22: Heat
3/24: Pacers
3/26: Nets
3/28: Mavs
3/29: Sixers
3/31: Bucks
4/2: Suns
4/4: Hornets
4/6: Heat
4/7: Magic
4/9: Pacers
4/12: Cavs
4/14: Raptors
4/16: Knicks
4/17: Bucks
4/19: Wizards
Home/away: 10/6
Average winning percentage: .532
Pairs of back-to-backs: 3
Games against playoff teams: 11, maybe 12

~~~~~

So what does all this tell us? That Detroit probably has the toughest finishing schedule (11 games against playoff teams), and the Spurs have the easiest (.481 average winning percentage). Those late season games that Dallas plays against L.A. could be very telling...headed for a first-round matchup if the Mavs finish behind the Spurs, Clips will have a lot to prove and if they can win both, they will carry a lot of momentum into the playoffs. Here are the likely finishes for each team, in my opinion:

Spurs: 13-3 (losses to Nuggets, Mavs, Clippers)
Mavs: 13-2 (losses to Pistons and Clippers)
Pistons: 13-3 (losses to Pacers, Heat, Suns)

I think it's very unlikely that the Spurs win more than 13, and very unlikely that the Pistons lose more than 4, so HCA is theirs. Likewise, I think it's very unlikely that Dallas will win more than 13, but it's possible that the Spurs lose more than 3, so HCA in the West is still up for grabs. But, like I said, I think the Spurs will get it.

Sure will be fun to watch!

[NCaliSpurs]

But those winning percentage are not weighted by the team's home and away percentages, and there is usually quite a large difference between home and away records.

Take that into account, and I am willing to bet that Detroit has an easier schedule by virtue of the number of home games they have remaining.

[DarkReign]

If I were a Spurs fan, I would pray for health above all else.

Im serious when I say this...

Spurs and Pistons have to stop thinking they are shoe-ins for the Finals. IMO, the Pistons are more likely to lose focus than the Spurs (Pistons say all the right things when a mic is in their face, but you can tell by the way they play that they are a pretty cocky bunch).

Regardless, I am starting to get nervous. This Miami game will either ease my tensions or re-enforce my suspicions. Although, admittedly, the playoffs are a ways off yet. I hope Flip uses this time to impress the teams strengths and not their deficencies.

[conqueso]

But those winning percentage are not weighted by the team's home and away percentages, and there is usually quite a large difference between home and away records.

Take that into account, and I am willing to bet that Detroit has an easier schedule by virtue of the number of home games they have remaining.

Took your advice:

Adjusted opponent's winning percentage:

Spurs - .460
Mavs - .563
Pistons - .503

They still have a tougher schedule based on the percentages...and considering that they play many more playoff (i.e. good) teams than the Spurs or the Mavs, it's clear that my point still stands. Having said that, it looks like the Pistons have the inside track on HCA...oh well.

[StylisticS]

3/28: Pistons
3/29: Cavs

This is HUGE. I will be happy as hell by splitting this. But both these games are on the road and we are dealing with injuries right now.

[NCaliSpurs]

Took your advice:

Adjusted opponent's winning percentage:

Spurs - .460
Mavs - .563
Pistons - .503

They still have a tougher schedule based on the percentages...and considering that they play many more playoff (i.e. good) teams than the Spurs or the Mavs, it's clear that my point still stands. Having said that, it looks like the Pistons have the inside track on HCA...oh well.


Touche' then. The Mavs have it pretty rough.