Screw K-mart

[Amuseddaysleeper]

Nuggets' Anthony dismantles Spurs

Web Posted: 03/23/2006 01:15 AM CST
Johnny Ludden
Express-News Staff Writer

DENVER — Maybe it was the sight of old friend George Karl, the boos that once again rained upon him from the rafters of the Pepsi Center or the forearm Kenyon Martin used to club him.


Or maybe, for the first time in six months, Manu Ginobili felt whole again. Whatever the cause, Ginobili looked like, well, Ginobili on Wednesday night, sticking 3-pointers, dribbling behind his back, throwing no-look passes, driving fearlessly to the rim.

Now, if he could just find some help.

Ginobili scored 26 points in one of his best performances of the season, but his spirited attempt to rally the Spurs unraveled in the fourth quarter as Carmelo Anthony led the Denver Nuggets to a 104-92 victory.

Anthony scored 32 points and the Spurs, struggling again in the second game of a back-to-back, were outrebounded 58-27. Tim Duncan contributed 22 points but made only 6 of 14 free throws.



"They competed harder for more minutes than us," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "I thought Denver did a good job of making it men and boys for a good part of the game."
Popovich blamed defensive breakdowns by the Spurs' perimeter corps and the team's inability to match Denver's aggressiveness in the first half. The Nuggets led by as many as 18 points in the second quarter and were still up 14 at the half before Ginobili led the Spurs back.

Making it clear they hadn't forgotten each other from their meeting in the first round of last season's playoffs, the teams traded words and elbows for part of the night. Duncan and Nazr Mohammed each got jabbed in the eye, while Tony Parker bruised his right shoulder during a hard foul from Francisco Elson.

With the Spurs down 61-48 in the third quarter, Ginobili broke free for what looked like a certain dunk when Martin ran down and cracked him from behind. As Ginobili hit the court with a thud, Popovich stared at Martin and shouted, "That's bull...!" Martin smiled back.

A couple of minutes later, Martin hit Ginobili in the arm after the whistle, further incensing Popovich. In each instance, Ginobili simply pushed himself to his feet and stepped to the free-throw line.

Ginobili's aggressiveness seemed to shake the Spurs from their slumber.

Parker tossed in a runner. Ginobili hit a 3-pointer. Parker hit one. Duncan even made a bank shot.

The Spurs' surge pushed them ahead, briefly, late in the third quarter. The game stayed close until Anthony made another jump shot and found Greg Buckner for a layup to push Denver's lead to 93-86 with 4:36 left.

The Spurs never seriously threatened again.

The Spurs were making the first stop of a five-game, 10-day trip, their longest since they spent 11 days in a row on the road from Feb. 25-March 6, 1993. They also knew they were walking into a buzz saw Wednesday.

While the Spurs labored to put away Golden State on Tuesday night, the Nuggets were enjoying their third day of rest, though many of them spent it on the training table.

Backup point guard Earl Boykins is expected to be out at least another three weeks after fracturing his left hand last week. Martin and Marcus Camby, both coping with knee injuries, were healthy enough to play Wednesday.

Despite their string of injuries, the Nuggets have taken firm control of the Northwest Division race. Anthony deserves a lot of credit for that. Ruben Patterson and Reggie Evans, acquired on the NBA's trade deadline four weeks ago, also have helped.

"It's even more of an intense, rock 'em, sock 'em group now," Popovich said. "I think they're one of the most physical teams in the league."

That wasn't good news for the Spurs, who, once again, looked like they were playing on dead legs. Denver ran out to a 13-4 lead in the first five minutes.

Ginobili responded with his own burst of energy, picking off a pass, burying a 3-pointer, driving for a layup and pulling up for a 17-footer. He helped the Spurs recover long enough to tie the game 15-15.

After Anthony went to the bench with 9:42 left in the second quarter, the Nuggets hiked their lead from four to 14. With the Spurs feeding them eight turnovers, seven in the opening quarter, the Nuggets totaled 17 fast-break points in the first half.

As it turned out, that set the stage for the Spurs' comeback, one that ultimately fell short.

"I scored more, but we lost," Ginobili said. "I think I prefer the way it was a week ago when I couldn't make a basket and we were still winning."


I honestly hope K Mart gets cancer. Its one thing to give a hard foul but its another to intentionally try to hurt a player and act like a bitch about it. I wish him the absolute worst in life.

[polandprzem]

I'm going to Denver :makemyday

[carina_gino20]

the thread title says it all...

i guess the only good thing we can take from this was Manu's renewed sense of taking over the game although they all came up short.

[Slo spurs fan]

And fuckers from other teams says "Bowen is dirty player"!!! I would hit K-mart in his ugly face if I was Gino, no matter what would happen´ later.

[Budkin]

Don't worry, he'll end the season once again with his head buried in his hands... someone post that picture, it'll make all of us feel better.

[texbumTHElife]

He does know he is losing his minutes to Maurice Evans and Ruben Patterson right? If anything he should be throwing Manu alley-oops to try and get a job in SA.

[carina_gino20]

looking for this?

http://cache.gettyimages.com/xc/52725834.jpg?v=1&c=MS_GINS&k=2&d=401F04AA9AE983EAF62AB5D0C7C506FF

[Tigole Bitties]

looking for this?

http://cache.gettyimages.com/xc/52725834.jpg?v=1&c=MS_GINS&k=2&d=401F04AA9AE983EAF62AB5D0C7C506FF

busted link.

[dragonfly]

My favourite quote from the end of the film Rainman - Dustin Hoffman: "K-mart sucks." :)

[carina_gino20]

busted link.

works for me.. :wtf

go to gettyimages.com and search Kenyon Martin playoffs. :spin

[carina_gino20]

You have to pay to get Getty Images, so please don't post the pictures here.

Thanks.

--Kori

[Slo spurs fan]

busted link.
Can´t see it too.

[timvp]

I honestly hope K Mart gets cancer. Its one thing to give a hard foul but its another to intentionally try to hurt a player and act like a bitch about it. I wish him the absolute worst in life.

:td

It wasn't that hard of a foul. He was trying to foul him but not hurt him.

[TDMVPDPOY]

Sumone better post that pic of kmart from last seasons playoffs with the "PWNED" logo on his face :D:D:D

Anyway this is the sort of intensity i wanan see duncan play with like Gino when playoff comes around.

[Taco]

I'm going to Denver :makemyday

:lol

[Manu'sMagicalLeftHand]

http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/9223/kenyontat5hd.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[nkdlunch]

This is nothing new. Manu always gets back up and comes back for more. (knock on wood)

[Solid D]

K-Mart didn't play much after that play...for whatever reason.

[nkdlunch]

"I scored more, but we lost," Ginobili said. "I think I prefer the way it was a week ago when I couldn't make a basket and we were still winning."


:lol

[Sec24Row7]

Nuggets' Anthony dismantles Spurs
I honestly hope K Mart gets cancer. Its one thing to give a hard foul but its another to intentionally try to hurt a player and act like a bitch about it. I wish him the absolute worst in life.
:td

I think K-Mart is a pompous ass too but I would never wish the guy ill for doing everything in his power to try and win.

[Solid D]

Actually, now that I think of it, Evans came for K-Mart and played well. K-Mart did get another 3 minutes or so in there near the end.

The crowd loved K-Mart's "effort" on the Ginobili foul. It wasn't flagrant but I'm not sure there was much attempt to block the shot after running all that way.

[TDMVPDPOY]

http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/9223/kenyontat5hd.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
^bump, brings back the good memories how we let them off on teh first game and they were boasting about beatin us, karma prevail for the contenders.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

"Ain't nobody didn't think we coudln't win no games but not us."

[bdubya]

I missed the Martin foul, but I was wondering about Horry's after-the-bucket elbow on Evans late in the third; was that some sort of payback thing? Looked pretty cheap at the time...

[Solid D]

It looked to me like Horry got his elbow up into Evans' face. Like he was raising his arm but to sort of give Evans a little sumpin' at the same time. He didn't really swing the elbow in the replay they showed. Evans' made sure the refs noticed.

[myhc]

http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/9223/kenyontat5hd.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

:lol Get your shots in now Kmart, we already own your ass in the playoffs anyways. But you do have those oh so nasty dunks and staredowns! :lol

[Amuseddaysleeper]

i dont care how out of line my comments were, and like i said, its one thing to give a hard foul to send a message, but this jackass was doing it out of absolute spite, his smile to popovich says it all. manu got knocked into the padding under the basket headfirst after he tried to dunk it and K mart just smiled. i promise you had manu been injured, the crowd woulda given k mart a standing ovation and he woulda kept pumping them up. so once again. he deserved those comments, cuz this isnt basketball, he's making it personal to showboat since his basketball skills have totally diminished.

[GrandeDavid]

I feel perfectly qualified to lay out Kenyon Martin since we both went to the University of Cincinnati. Nobody was a bigger fan of his, nor respected his wonderful story from rags to riches through hard work and discipline, than I. Certainly nobody was more disappointed than I when he broke a bone in his leg in the 2000 conference tournament, which ended Cincinnati's hopes of a national championship. Make no mistake, perched at #1 virtually the entire season and boasting a 32-2 record, Kenyon Martin was on a mission.

We Bearcats alumni felt genuinely sorry for more than ourselves, Bob Huggins or for the team when Kenyon went down in such a meaningless game. We all felt bad for Kenyon. He deserved more as a senior, Wooden Award winning National Player of the Year, a silent leader.

No way such a quiet, humble warrior whom I respected like David Robinson at one point, would end such a stellar collegiate career in which he went from total unknown to the pinnacle of the game.

Then came the NBA and sweet justice. Irrespective of the broken leg, it was a weak draft year and Kenyon still went first overall. But there started the problems, the tatoos, the foul language, the back talking to Byron Scott. To me, Kenyon Martin's behavior in the NBA has shouted volumes about how truly underrated Bob Huggins is as a coach.

With nobody to keep this instant millionaire's ego in check, and with an evident lack of moral constraint and role models in his life, Kenyon Martin essentially junked his prestigious Wooden Award status with such gems as making fun of a teammate struggling to return from an organ transplant (Alonzo Mourning), although it was mainly Richard Jefferson who supposedly stirred that pot. And although he suffers from some sort of speech impediment, its hard to sympathize with someone so combative in interviews with a salty mix of four letter words. Such class, indeed. And when Bob Huggins was unceremoniously all but dismissed from the University of Cincinnati, angering 99% of the alumni, including myself, only the "pro" version of Kenyon Martin could spew the garbage that he had to say on stage at Huggins' going away shindig:

"I want my number taken down from the university. I only played for Bob Huggins anyway." Basically, what Kenyon Martin said was that he could care less about the alumni and fans who essentially gave him the opportunity to become a millionaire. Student athletes play for their schools, first and foremost, not their coaches.

What is Kenyon Martin today as a "pro"? He's a limited game-having thug. And former #1 draft picks and Wooden Award winners should not be mere thugs. Kenyon Martin is a thorough letdown, an embarrassment to me as an alumnus of the University of Cincinnati. He will never possess even a fraction of the character and class of the tenth man on a team like the San Antonio Spurs. Kenyon Martin is selfish.

So Martin needs to take those hard, cheap fouls he lashes onto Manu Ginobili too often and save the energy. He would be better served to apply that thuggish energy toward smashing his own face against a steel wall like some sadistic toddler...which is pretty much how his game and act shows him to be.

Kenyon Martin does not even deserve to walk on the same floor as Manu Ginobili as he does not deserve to breathe the air at Fifth Third Arena where my Cincinnati Bearcats play. Not until he apologizes to people, eats an oversized portion of humble pie and goes back to playing basketball instead of thugball.

Last night in Denver, when Kenyon essentially smashed Ginobili in the head then smirked at Coach Popovich, was the final straw. Incredibly, Martin is my least liked player now and I am hoping for a playoff matchup with Denver. Meantime, I want to see Martin laid out on the floor by a nasty flagrant 2 foul. Sadly, Kevin Willis is no longer on the team. Maybe Karl Malone could come out of retirement in time for the playoffs?

Anyway, from rags to riches to the trash heap- that is Kenyon Martin's career.

[SoCalSpursFan]

Even the first game of the season K-Mart was a jackass, he taunted the fans and what not. Karma already dealt him a broken leg...we'll see whats next.

[Rick Von Braun]

I feel perfectly qualified to lay out Kenyon Martin since we both went to the University of Cincinnati. Nobody was a bigger fan of his, nor respected his wonderful story from rags to riches through hard work and discipline, than I. Certainly nobody was more disappointed than I when he broke a bone in his leg in the 2000 conference tournament, which ended Cincinnati's hopes of a national championship. Make no mistake, perched at #1 virtually the entire season and boasting a 32-2 record, Kenyon Martin was on a mission.

We Bearcats alumni felt genuinely sorry for more than ourselves, Bob Huggins or for the team when Kenyon went down in such a meaningless game. We all felt bad for Kenyon. He deserved more as a senior, Wooden Award winning National Player of the Year, a silent leader.

No way such a quiet, humble warrior whom I respected like David Robinson at one point, would end such a stellar collegiate career in which he went from total unknown to the pinnacle of the game.

Then came the NBA and sweet justice. Irrespective of the broken leg, it was a weak draft year and Kenyon still went first overall. But there started the problems, the tatoos, the foul language, the back talking to Byron Scott. To me, Kenyon Martin's behavior in the NBA has shouted volumes about how truly underrated Bob Huggins is as a coach.

With nobody to keep this instant millionaire's ego in check, and with an evident lack of moral constraint and role models in his life, Kenyon Martin essentially junked his prestigious Wooden Award status with such gems as making fun of a teammate struggling to return from an organ transplant (Alonzo Mourning), although it was mainly Richard Jefferson who supposedly stirred that pot. And although he suffers from some sort of speech impediment, its hard to sympathize with someone so combative in interviews with a salty mix of four letter words. Such class, indeed. And when Bob Huggins was unceremoniously all but dismissed from the University of Cincinnati, angering 99% of the alumni, including myself, only the "pro" version of Kenyon Martin could spew the garbage that he had to say on stage at Huggins' going away shindig:

"I want my number taken down from the university. I only played for Bob Huggins anyway." Basically, what Kenyon Martin said was that he could care less about the alumni and fans who essentially gave him the opportunity to become a millionaire. Student athletes play for their schools, first and foremost, not their coaches.

What is Kenyon Martin today as a "pro"? He's a limited game-having thug. And former #1 draft picks and Wooden Award winners should not be mere thugs. Kenyon Martin is a thorough letdown, an embarrassment to me as an alumnus of the University of Cincinnati. He will never possess even a fraction of the character and class of the tenth man on a team like the San Antonio Spurs. Kenyon Martin is selfish.

So Martin needs to take those hard, cheap fouls he lashes onto Manu Ginobili too often and save the energy. He would be better served to apply that thuggish energy toward smashing his own face against a steel wall like some sadistic toddler...which is pretty much how his game and act shows him to be.

Kenyon Martin does not even deserve to walk on the same floor as Manu Ginobili as he does not deserve to breathe the air at Fifth Third Arena where my Cincinnati Bearcats play. Not until he apologizes to people, eats an oversized portion of humble pie and goes back to playing basketball instead of thugball.

Last night in Denver, when Kenyon essentially smashed Ginobili in the head then smirked at Coach Popovich, was the final straw. Incredibly, Martin is my least liked player now and I am hoping for a playoff matchup with Denver. Meantime, I want to see Martin laid out on the floor by a nasty flagrant 2 foul. Sadly, Kevin Willis is no longer on the team. Maybe Karl Malone could come out of retirement in time for the playoffs?

Anyway, from rags to riches to the trash heap- that is Kenyon Martin's career. I appreciate your perspective.

Thanks for sharing.

[SAGambler]

I never could put my finger on it, but there was just something about that guy I have been able to stomach.

Maybe that was it. I didn't really know anything about his college days, but ever since the pros he has always reminded me of someone who thinks the NBA is part of the WWF.

The Spurs just ran out of gas in that fourth quarter. Not surprising, on a b2b and at the Denver altitude.

Maybe thought he needs to be reminded that if they meet the Spurs in the post season, there will be no b2b and Spurs will own HCA and own K-Mart and the Nuggets.

Yeah. K-Mart sucks. Big time.

[Amuseddaysleeper]

I appreciate your perspective.

Thanks for sharing.


me too, its hard to imagine a K Mart with class but apparently there was one a long time ago. he's crossed the line between basketball and just plain malice

[SenorSpur]

The Nuggets were foolish enough to give this jack-ass a max contract (when the Nets refused) and they've regretted since then. Thier desparate attempts to ship him out over the past couple of seasons bear this out.

I guarantee you if someone took a shot at him like that, he'd be ready to fight.

I agree with most that has been said, he's a selfish, spoiled, self-centered jack-ass who is not as good as he thinks he is.

[Winnipeg_Spur]

K-Mart's a joke. My lasting image of him will always be from the 2003 NBA Finals, when in Game 6 he was so terrified of getting his shit blocked (he helped Timmy set a Finals series record iirc) he just bricked jumpers all game (shooting 3-23 in the process). God, he just wouldn't stop shooting, it was unbelievable to watch. Good times... :smokin

[NugzFan]

I honestly hope K Mart gets cancer. Its one thing to give a hard foul but its another to intentionally try to hurt a player and act like a bitch about it. I wish him the absolute worst in life.

classy post. all this after a tough (NOT dirty) foul. he didnt try to HURT manu.

i think you might be taking this GAME too seriously.

[Amuseddaysleeper]

classy post. all this after a tough (NOT dirty) foul. he didnt try to HURT manu.

i think you might be taking this GAME too seriously.

no no he tried to hurt him. he wouldnt have fucking smiled at Pop if he didn't. he is a total ass and wasnt out there playing defense he was out there legitamately trying to hurt manu. like i said, his dumbass smile said it all

[NugzFan]

uh no. he didnt try to HURT manu. if he wants to hurt him, he could but he would never. he smiled in reaction to popovichs comment.

you guys are taking that play waaay too hard. hes a tough player and if hes gonna take a hard foul to prevent a dunk, hes gonna do it. hes not the only player like this. and hes not the first nor last guy to take a foul to prevent a basket.

[Winnipeg_Spur]

http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/9223/kenyontat5hd.jpg

Does this look like the face of a tough player to you? :lol

[NugzFan]

yeah i guess thats funny but he lost in the playoffs. frankly id be pissed if that picture showed the opposite - kmart happy that the team just got eliminated.

THATS one reason i love kmart - his intensity, attitude and just wanting to win. period. those are the types of players i want on my team. shows he wants to win and cares about it. lots of players dont care and are seen joking around after losses. i hate that.

[nkdlunch]

K-mart ain't the brightest bulb around

[ALVAREZ6]

K-fuck is a bitch. He always has been.




But he made a mistake. Manu has been known to tear it the fuck up when someone tries to bang him up.

[Vingianx]

It looked to me like Horry got his elbow up into Evans' face. Like he was raising his arm but to sort of give Evans a little sumpin' at the same time. He didn't really swing the elbow in the replay they showed. Evans' made sure the refs noticed.
A lot of people Manu is a flopper, but Evans is the biggest flopper i've seen..

[ALVAREZ6]

A lot of people Manu is a flopper, but Evans is the biggest flopper i've seen..
A lot of NBA player will try to flop, only a few are consistently good at it.


As you can see, George Fucking Karl, your players flop too. Reggie Evans flopped like 3 times last night, and Andre Miller did on Manu, but obviously isn't very good at it yet, his feet weren't even set.


The reason why people despise Manu is probably because he's good at flopping. He just adds a little spice to the charge, but they generally are fouls anyway.

[Peter]

I can't think of a player I dislike more. His antics are absurd relative to his game. That being said, I don't think he intended to harm Manu on that foul.

Nice reaction by the crowd to that play though.

[ALVAREZ6]

Nice reaction by the crowd to that play though.
Yeah :lol


Then the stupid ass commentators tried to cover it up by saying they weren't reacting to the hard foul, only the hustle from K-Fag.


Do they think we're that stupid???

The fans are dirty bitches.

[kalikot_boy_kr]

:bang :bang IM GONNA KICK YOU MARTIN!!! U SHIT SANABABITS!!!FUCK FUCK!!! U!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!U SUCK!!!!!!!

[cs100]

Kmart is all about Kmart. He doesn't know the difference between a hard foul and a dirty foul. His inclusion as an all star for one year was a fluke, and was due to Kidd's amazing passing skills. Kmart will never receive any more accolades or win a ring. That is the best retribution.

[kalikot_boy_kr]

:pctoss K-SUCK! K-SUCK!K-SUCK! DAMN U!!!!!!!!!!!

[aaronstampler]

What's hilarious about him is he's not even a thug, he's a fake wannabe thug. There is not one NBA player his size who's afraid of him at all. All his hard fouls are on guys smaller than him like Gino or TP. He would never take on Duncan in a million years. Kurt Thomas pretty much called him out as a "Fugazi" back when he was a Knick.


But yeah, he was officially dead to me as a person when he made fun of Zo for having a faulty kidney. That's just a disgusting thing to do as a human being, forget being an NBA player.

And as far as the NBA goes, he was Duncan's bitch the whole NBA finals in '03, and Gino and co. had him and Melo for lunch last year, they weren't the least bit intimidated by all their hard fouls.

Honestly, the only player in the league I hate more is and I use the word "player" loosely here is that one fat dirty goon piece of shit on the Sonics, who I won't even refer to by name because he doesn't deserve it.

[Spurologist]

i dont care how out of line my comments were, and like i said, its one thing to give a hard foul to send a message, but this jackass was doing it out of absolute spite, his smile to popovich says it all. manu got knocked into the padding under the basket headfirst after he tried to dunk it and K mart just smiled. i promise you had manu been injured, the crowd woulda given k mart a standing ovation and he woulda kept pumping them up. so once again. he deserved those comments, cuz this isnt basketball, he's making it personal to showboat since his basketball skills have totally diminished.

I have to agree. The nuggets turned a basketball game into a war zone and Kmart was the leader. The fact that his production on the game was slim to none only proves that his head was fucked and he had other things in mind instead of playing basketball. Smiling at pop complaining when manu hit the floor is beyond disgraceful. Besides fishing, Kmart should add another thing to his offseason list. "Check my fucked up self into a psyschiatric institution"

[Viva Las Espuelas]

there's no one i can't stand any more, besides anyone in the mavs organization, than him. he's a poor man's barkley without the stats. NEXT!!!!!!

[Obstructed_View]

Denver Nuggets under new ownership: MANU

[Viva Las Espuelas]

Denver Nuggets under new ownership: MANU
theyre just bitter because they couldn't lure him in 2 years ago.

[GrandeDavid]

I appreciate your perspective.

Thanks for sharing.

My pleasure, my friend.

[SpursWoman]

Screw K-mart


No thanks. I have a much better option at home. :lol

[Obstructed_View]

theyre just bitter because they couldn't lure him in 2 years ago.
And because he makes them his quivering bitch no matter how hard they try to pull a Karl Malone on him.