Hollingers Spurs Preview

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Hollinger's Spurs Season Preview is available for free (not insider, like the rest of the previews) at
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/trainingcamp07/insider/columns/story?columnist=hollinger_john&page=SpursPreview0708&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fnba %2ftrainingcamp07%2finsider%2fcolumns%2fstory%3fco lumnist%3dhollinger_john%26page%3dSpursPreview0708

The short summary is that he thinks the Scola deal might come back to bite us in the ass, and he is worried about the age of our wings. He likes most of our offseason moves, but doesn't think much of the Mahinmi signing. He also hasn't paid a lot of attention to the details of our draft (the Printezis trade to Toronto) and signings (he thinks the Udoka signing is one year).

He still thinks we have the best organization in sports, and predicts


59-23, 2nd in Southwest, 2nd in Western Conference

[da_suns_fan__]

Also predicts HOUSTON to win the southwest division and the number one ranking in the conference with a 61-21 record.

Obviously, Hollinger's formulas don't factor in likely injuries.

[da_suns_fan__]

Outlook (HOUSTON)
This might take some of you by surprise, so let me start by saying I realize the waters in which I tread have claimed many good souls before. Betting on Adelman and McGrady to achieve postseason success hasn't been a really wise play over the past decade. Betting on both to win together seems downright masochistic.

AP Photo/David J. Phillip

Could this be the year T-Mac and Yao see the second round?

That said … I'm betting on these guys. Big time. Like division champs big. Like best record in the West big. And yes, like winning the championship big.

Of course, it's never easy to come out of the West. Houston could easily finish third in its own division, as it's populated by what I consider to be the three best teams in basketball. The two-month playoff grind is a concern, too, given the health problems for McGrady and Yao in recent years -- especially the back trouble that has plagued T-Mac.

While I'm going over potential weaknesses, let's put a few others out there. The team is unlikely to defend as well as it did last season, as Adelman can't match Van Gundy's brilliant track record at that end. It's not clear if Francis can reform his over-dribbling ways and become a secondary player, nor if Scola can make the immediate adjustment to NBA ball that will be needed to close the open wound at power forward. And it appears Yao's defense can be taken advantage of in a seven-game series -- just ask Carlos Boozer for confirmation.

I like them anyway.

What makes me think these guys are so qualified to climb to the top of the mountain? Mainly, the help. Last season Houston had two superstars but little else offensively, and McGrady's numbers cracked under the strain. This season the Rockets have the same two superstars, but now have several quality role players around them to pick up the slack.

In particular, the addition of more players who can create their own shot is going to be a huge benefit to the offense, which was excruciating to watch last season. I'm still haunted by the memories of four guys standing around watching T-Mac during that seventh game against Utah while missing a ton of open kickout shots.

And it's not as if Houston was chopped liver a season ago. The Rockets won 52 games, and actually were much better than their record. One would expect a team with their scoring differential to win 57.4, and as those of you who've read me for a while know, differences between real and "expected" wins are almost pure luck.

That came with McGrady and Yao combining to miss 45 games, Wells going in the tank, Snyder missing half the season and the head coach working on his exit strategy.

So what happens if you take that team and add Wells (essentially), Francis, James, Brooks, Scola, and Butler, and give it a coach who wants to be there? It's scary to think, but a gang that had 57-win talent a season ago may also be the league's most improved team.

And for that reason, even considering T-Mac's and Adelman's postseason histories, one can make a fairly convincing case that the Rockets are the team most likely to be holding the Larry O'Brien Trophy in June.


Prediction: 61-21, 1st in Midwest, 1st in Western Conference


John Hollinger writes for ESPN Insider. To e-mail him, click here.

[RC's Boss]

Hollinger must be committed immediately before he comes to work w/ a sawed off shotgun claiming he just rose from the dead after three days.

[Jimmy1234]

@ da_suns_fan__

Please post that for the Mavs and Suns. Thank you. :)

[thispego]

"Brent Barry shot the lights out on 3s and Michael Finley had his moments, but the other role players' offensive contributions ranged from meager (Francisco Elson, Fabricio Oberto) to disappointing (Robert Horry, Beno Udrih) to nonexistent (Bruce Bowen, Jacque Vaughn)."

good article but the last half of the last paragraph is all wrong

[hater]

Bowen nonexistent? what?

[Darkwaters]

Pretty solid article. He seems to think that Udoka only has a one year deal (maybe indicating Udoka has a player option year two which will be declined) and he also mentions that 8M over 3 years for Bonner is a "bargain" which deviates from some tyrades I've seen on this board. Also, hes not overly high on Udoka for next season but he also doesn't go into detail for future years. Also, according to the markings on the pictures Splitter is two-faced, being both a tall white boy with crazy hair as well as a 6'5 black Nigerian (look at the pictures on the second page under each picture). All and all, not a bad read.

[Darkwaters]

Bowen nonexistent? what?

I think he meant on offense.

[GhostofAlfrederickHughes]

Um, I dont understand why Hollinger thinks the addition of Scola is going to suddenly make T-Mac and Yao step up and become championship-level players. Scola is a role player---a solid one, in all likelihood---but if T-Mac keeps pulling disappearing acts in the playoffs, Houston goes nowhere.
And what, exactly, in his career thus far leads anyone to expect he will make that leap this year?

[barbacoataco]

It is hard to justify "Bowen nonexistent" on any level. Shutting down Lebron James on national television? Bowen also was the most consistent 3-pt shooter for the Spurs in the playoffs. It is just ridiculous that an "expert" could even begin to write something like that.
Just look at the +/- for Bowen when he is on the court vs. off the court. Bowen has one of the highest differentials on the whole team.

[LilMissSPURfect]

"haters r gonna hate"

[BeerIsGood!]

Hollinger can't come off as too much of a Spurs homer and I guess he thinks Scola is the greatest forward of all time, a forward with the seemingly magical ability of reversing TMacs playoff choking, making Yao a factor in anthing but a half court game who doesn't get completely worn out by halftime, and somehow reversing his own defensive deficiencies and turning himself into the DPOY.

[Oink Oink]

Houston is a 5th seed at best.

[da_suns_fan__]

POWER TO THE PEOPLE



Mavs:

2006-07 Recap
It was a dream season in Dallas. Motivated by the loss to the Heat in the Finals the previous June, the Mavs tore through the league en route to 67 regular-season wins, posting the 10th-best record in NBA history. Dirk Nowitzki won the MVP award, Josh Howard made his first All-Star team, and in the spring the Mavs cruised to …

… a six-game smackdown by 8th-seeded Golden State???


AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

Can Dirk and the Mavs rebound from a disappointing '06-07?

Huh???

Never has a team's postseason been so incongruous with its first 82 games. Nowitzki, who had the league's top PER among those who played at least 60 contests, was a disaster against Golden State, closing with one wide-open brick after another in the blowout loss in Game 6. Meanwhile, the Mavs' stingy defense suddenly became befuddled by the likes of Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes.

But take a step back and look at the Mavs' season, and you'll see the Golden State series was part of a more general decline over the final months. To review, Dallas lost its first four games of 2006-07, then went on a ridiculous, unbelievable, unfathomable 50-5 tear to run away with the league's best record.

But from that point on, the Mavericks didn't play nearly as well. I don't say that just because they went "only" 17-6 the rest of the way, but also because of how that record was compiled. Starting on March 12, they had a 17-point loss to Golden State that offered an omen for the postseason. Then they lost to Phoenix before ripping off another nine-game win streak.

But this nine-game streak was done mostly with smoke and mirrors. Dallas won by 2, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 points, even though only two of the opponents had winning records. And Nowitzki, for all his brilliance, was decidedly less brilliant in the season's final two months.

In April, things got worse. The Mavs played five games against playoff teams and lost four of them -- the only win coming in the infamous Joey Crawford game when San Antonio's Tim Duncan was ejected before halftime. The other contests were a 22-point drubbing by Phoenix, a 75-71 snoozer in Denver, a 15-point loss to Utah and a 29-point blowout by Golden State.

The last game marked one of two odd late-season choices by coach Avery Johnson. It was the second-to-last game of the season and the Mavs could have helped eliminate their nemesis from the Bay with a win. But Johnson rested his starters and played all his scrubs that night -- it was never clear why, but Golden State won by 29 and that win helped the Warriors clinch a playoff spot.

C'est la vie, you might think, except that the Mavs hadn't beaten the Warriors in over a year and seemed a bit freaked out by this. Going up against former mentor Don Nelson, Johnson blinked before the opening tip of Game 1. He opted to start offensively-challenged Devean George and go small, the Mavs scored only 85 points in a defeat, and the tone was set for the whole series.


AP Photo/Don Ryan

Avery Johnson made a couple of unusual calls down the stretch.

The late slump explains some of the playoff woes, but even if you look at the full season the 67-win season starts to smell a bit fishy. Normally to win this many games you need to be both lucky and good -- either that or you need Michael Jordan on your team -- and the Mavs were a great example.

They outscored their opponents by 7.2 points per game, which is impressive, but normally teams who do that win 63.5 games, not 67. Dallas won more than its share because it was so fortunate in close contests, going an absurd 20-4 in games decided by five points or fewer. Normally I have to explain to people that this is almost pure luck rather than a sign of clutch ability, but given the Mavs' recent history this sort of goes without saying.

But let's get back to that decision to start George in Game 1, because it reflects an oddity in Dallas' approach that really cost the Mavs in the Golden State series -- the team's habit of genuflecting toward veteran role players.

After the loss to Miami in 2006, somehow the Mavs got it in their head that what they needed was more crumbling 30-something types around their stars. So they went out and picked up George, Greg Buckner and Austin Croshere.

The Mavs doled out 3,382 minutes -- or about 40 minutes a game -- to that trio, and were rewarded with a combined player efficiency ratio (PER) of 9.10. While George and Buckner had some defensive value, it's not much of an exaggeration to say Dallas could have pulled three guys out of the D-League and done just as well.

But these weren't D-League pickups or 10-day contracts -- the Mavs gave up real assets to get these guys. Dallas traded a talented shooting guard in Marquis Daniels to acquire Croshere, and used all of its free-agent dough on Buckner and George.

Worse yet, I sense the Mavs felt they succeeded because of those players, when actually they succeeded in spite of them. So when the going got tough against Golden State, the Mavs instinctively turned to those players instead of turning away -- especially to George and Buckner. Buckner played 44 playoff minutes and scored one measly point, while George saw nearly 20 minutes a night and shot 20 percent for the series with more turnovers than baskets.

The way it ended for the Mavs obviously left a bad taste in their mouths, but let's not forget that for most of the season they were really, really good. Dallas ranked second in the league in offensive efficiency thanks mostly to the incredible efficiency of Nowitzki, who created high-percentage shots while hardly ever turning the ball over. Howard, Jason Terry, Devin Harris and Jerry Stackhouse -- who had an unexpectedly strong campaign at 32 -- added to the fun, giving the Mavs several scorers who could punish opponents for doubling Dirk.

But one thing Dallas wasn't was a running team. While most casual fans, and some serious ones, still think of this as a freewheeling run-and-gun outfit, the Mavs have been among the league's turtles the past two seasons. Dallas played the league's third-slowest pace last season, preferring to isolate in the half court for Nowitzki, Howard or Stackhouse.


Fewest Opponent 3-point Attempts Per Opponent Field Goal Attempt
TEAM OPP. 3-PT% OPP. 3A/FGA
San Antonio 33.4 17.0
Dallas 34.9 17.3
Indiana 37.2 18.3
Detroit 33.9 19.0
Boston 35.4 19.1
League average 35.8 21.3


Defensively, the Mavs were nearly as good -- at least until that Golden State thing went down. Dallas finished the season ranked fifth in defensive efficiency, with Johnson taking a page from the Spurs' book by totally cutting off the 3-point line. Only 17.3 percent of opponent shots came from beyond the arc, putting Dallas a close second behind San Antonio, and on those few attempts the Mavs held opponents below the league average at 34.9 percent.

And despite their soft reputation, the Mavs were a very tough interior defensive squad. Dallas had the league's fourth-best defensive rebound rate and ranked eighth in blocks; the one area on D where the Mavs were below average was that they fouled at a much higher rate than the league average, which doesn't exactly reinforce their rep as softies.

While Nowitzki has made great strides on D, nearly all of Dallas' secondary players defended well too. DeSagana Diop is an ace in the middle, Harris will be an all-defense pick as soon as the coaches realize they're allowed to vote for him, and Howard is well above average as well.


MAVS OFFSEASON MOVES:

Offseason Moves
One reason the Mavs are good every year is that, despite the impulsive impression we may have of Mark Cuban, they do a great job of avoiding knee-jerk overreactions. Believe it or not, the money-to-burn Mavs have a good chance of being under the luxury tax threshold a year from now.

This was the second straight offseason of patience in Dallas, as the Mavs opted to target two needs -- backup shooting guard and backup power forward -- rather than go crazy because of what happened against Golden State. Read between the lines and you'll see the real offseason targets were "replacing Greg Buckner and Devean George," an appropriate change of course after last year's free agents flamed out.

While Dallas has the maximum 15 contracts on hand, the club's work may be unfinished. The Mavs are targeting both P.J. Brown and Chris Webber in free agency, but thus far neither has committed.



Fazekas• Drafted Nick Fazekas, Reyshawn Terry and Renaldas Seibutis
Fazekas was the result of the Hawks' generosity, as Atlanta gave the Mavs a second-round pick for Anthony Johnson at the trade deadline last season. This was shockingly good news for Dallas, which would have pretty much paid somebody to take Johnson -- he isn't terrible, but he was making nearly $3 million to twiddle his thumbs and costing double that with luxury tax.

Needless to say, the Mavs couldn't believe that somebody would pay them for the trouble. And Fazekas was an inspired pick who should score and rebound at the pro level -- though he slipped in the draft because he can't defend.

Dallas' other two second-round picks went off to Europe, as the Mavs' overcrowded roster flashed a giant "No Vacancy" sign. But watch Terry next year, when he's likely to return to the U.S.

• Re-signed Devean George
I can't decide which amazes me more -- that George opted out of a deal that would pay him $2.2 million this season, or that Dallas gave him a raise to $2.5 million. Yes, he has his uses, but players such as these are fungible commodities. I have no idea why the Mavs value him so highly.



Stackhouse• Re-signed Jerry Stackhouse
One of the oddities of the salary cap is that teams who are already over it have a strong incentive to overpay to keep their better free agents, since it's impossible to replace them once they leave. Seen in that light, Dallas' decision to pay Stackhouse $22 million over the next three years doesn't seem so odd. The Mavs weren't going to be able to replace this production even if they used their full midlevel exception, and had they done so it would have severely limited their options down the road.

• Signed Brandon Bass, waived Pops Mensah-Bonsu
I presume adding Bass was a CYA move in case Webber and Brown blow them off and George loses a step. Otherwise I wonder why they bothered. Bass is still quite young, but has done nothing of note in two seasons with the Hornets and as an undersized power forward is likely to keep taking his lumps. It cost nothing, but he's using up a roster spot and I can't imagine him being in the rotation for real.



Jones• Signed Eddie Jones
At first glance this looks like the typical Mavs move of fawning over a decomposing vet for no reason, but read the fine print. Jones can still play, and Dallas got him cheap. A quality reserve guard who can defend and make jump shots was exactly what the Mavs needed against Golden State last season, and Dallas filled that need using only its biannual exception -- a two-year deal worth $3.8 million.

• Extended Devin Harris
The Mavs gave him a five-year, $42 million deal over the summer, removing any doubt over whether they still view him as their point guard of the future. That seems a wise decision. Though his point guard instincts are questionable at times, Harris already is an elite defender and can be a devastating penetrator at the offensive end. His PERs have been in the top 20 among point guards the past two seasons, and he's still young enough to get substantially better.



Hassell• Traded Greg Buckner to Minnesota for Trenton Hassell
Everyone makes mistakes; the good teams make fewer of them, yes, but they also admit them quickly and move on, as the Mavs did here. Hassell can't score, but he's an elite wing defender who might have proven useful against Dwyane Wade two springs ago. Unfortunately, his contract is even worse than Buckner's, but Cuban has shown he can handle the added expense

MAVS STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSES:


Biggest Strength: One-On-One Play
The Mavs are the masters of the isolation, with Nowitzki leading the way. Setting up shop from his office at the top of the key, he can survey the defense before lofting a jumper over smaller defenders or taking bigger ones off the dribble.

But he's far from the only one. Dallas has several players who can wreak havoc if the opponent fails to match up correctly, as Howard, Stackhouse, Terry and Harris all are capable shot creators in individual matchups. Second-year pro J.J. Barea could be another -- his D-League numbers from last season were off the charts.

This is what enabled the Mavs to beat San Antonio in the playoffs two seasons ago, as they were able to take advantage of whatever mismatch presented itself by allowing that offensive player to attack. Conversely, one reason they struggled against the Warriors was that Golden State's lineup matched up so well against everyone besides Nowitzki, and Dirk couldn't find his jumper.




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



Biggest Weakness: Waiting For April
OK, I'm trying to find something here, but the Mavs are a deep, balanced team that won 67 games last season, so it takes some digging. My first instinct was to say "post offense," but they ranked second in the NBA in offensive efficiency -- how big of a problem can we be talking about? And while Avery Johnson made a few iffy moves last spring, does anyone seriously think he's a bad coach after the way he changed this team around defensively?

No, the Mavs' biggest enemy for the next six months will be between their ears. It's not as if they can improve on 67 wins, but meanwhile they're 2-8 in their last 10 playoff games. Basically, their entire regular season is a dress rehearsal for the playoffs and everybody knows it, so nothing they can do between now and April will mean anything to anyone. Then, once they hit the first pocket of adversity in the postseason, all the questions will start anew.

MAVS OUTLOOK:


Outlook
While I still get this uneasy feeling that 2006 was this team's best shot at a ring, one has to give the Mavs as good a chance as anyone of winning the title this season. Dallas will have to do a better job of focusing its energies toward the end of the schedule, as the club seemed to peak too early last season. But there's little question that this team will win 55-60 games and be one of the top five seeds in the Western Conference playoffs.

Even if they aren't as lucky in close games and Nowitzki cools off a bit from his MVP season, the Mavs are likely to make it up by replacing the production of George and Buckner with better players and improvements from the still-developing trio of Howard, Harris and Diop.

The questions will begin anew in the postseason, but in a way this is a sign of what a raging success the Mavs have become -- anything short of a championship is now equated with failure. After the disappointments of the past two springs they seem to be the forgotten contender, but I have them as the third-best team in basketball right now and wouldn't be the least bit shocked if they finally got over the hump this June.


Prediction: 58-24, 3rd in Southwest, 3rd in West (5th seed for playoffs)


John Hollinger writes for ESPN Insider. To e-mail him, click here.

[SenorSpur]

Outlook (HOUSTON)
This might take some of you by surprise, so let me start by saying I realize the waters in which I tread have claimed many good souls before. Betting on Adelman and McGrady to achieve postseason success hasn't been a really wise play over the past decade. Betting on both to win together seems downright masochistic.

AP Photo/David J. Phillip

Could this be the year T-Mac and Yao see the second round?

That said … I'm betting on these guys. Big time. Like division champs big. Like best record in the West big. And yes, like winning the championship big.

Of course, it's never easy to come out of the West. Houston could easily finish third in its own division, as it's populated by what I consider to be the three best teams in basketball. The two-month playoff grind is a concern, too, given the health problems for McGrady and Yao in recent years -- especially the back trouble that has plagued T-Mac.

While I'm going over potential weaknesses, let's put a few others out there. The team is unlikely to defend as well as it did last season, as Adelman can't match Van Gundy's brilliant track record at that end. It's not clear if Francis can reform his over-dribbling ways and become a secondary player, nor if Scola can make the immediate adjustment to NBA ball that will be needed to close the open wound at power forward. And it appears Yao's defense can be taken advantage of in a seven-game series -- just ask Carlos Boozer for confirmation.

I like them anyway.

What makes me think these guys are so qualified to climb to the top of the mountain? Mainly, the help. Last season Houston had two superstars but little else offensively, and McGrady's numbers cracked under the strain. This season the Rockets have the same two superstars, but now have several quality role players around them to pick up the slack.

In particular, the addition of more players who can create their own shot is going to be a huge benefit to the offense, which was excruciating to watch last season. I'm still haunted by the memories of four guys standing around watching T-Mac during that seventh game against Utah while missing a ton of open kickout shots.

And it's not as if Houston was chopped liver a season ago. The Rockets won 52 games, and actually were much better than their record. One would expect a team with their scoring differential to win 57.4, and as those of you who've read me for a while know, differences between real and "expected" wins are almost pure luck.

That came with McGrady and Yao combining to miss 45 games, Wells going in the tank, Snyder missing half the season and the head coach working on his exit strategy.

So what happens if you take that team and add Wells (essentially), Francis, James, Brooks, Scola, and Butler, and give it a coach who wants to be there? It's scary to think, but a gang that had 57-win talent a season ago may also be the league's most improved team.

And for that reason, even considering T-Mac's and Adelman's postseason histories, one can make a fairly convincing case that the Rockets are the team most likely to be holding the Larry O'Brien Trophy in June.


Prediction: 61-21, 1st in Midwest, 1st in Western Conference


John Hollinger writes for ESPN Insider. To e-mail him, click here.

While I enjoyed Hollinger's take on the Spurs, he lost all credibility with this prediction about the Rockets.

[da_suns_fan__]

SUNS

2006-07 Recap
Maybe they would have lost anyway. But Phoenix fans will always wonder if last season's playoffs would have turned out differently had Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw not been suspended for Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals against San Antonio. Even without them the Suns lost that game by only three points, and the defeat allowed San Antonio to clinch the series two days later and eventually win the title.

AP Photo/Lm Otero

Can the Suns regroup after last season's disappointing ending?

The wound stings deeper because the Suns are the most cursed franchise in basketball. Seemingly every year they win between 55 and 60 games and then find some excruciating way to lose in the playoffs. Whether it was the refs ignoring Paul Silas' timeout call in 1976, or the Suns leaving John Paxson unguarded in 1993 or the suspensions of last season, there's a four-decade-long history of weird events conspiring to derail the Suns' title hopes. No sports franchise this side of Buffalo has come close so many times without winning.

Unfortunately, blaming things on evil David Stern or evil Robert Horry (whose hard foul on Steve Nash started the ball rolling) is a little too easy. The fact is the Suns blew it themselves by failing to obey a rule that a) everyone knew, and b) has been enforced consistently for nearly a decade.

Suns fans might quibble that the league didn't also suspend San Antonio's Tim Duncan and Bruce Bowen for that game -- they had got up off the bench during a brief incident earlier in the game -- but to scream bloody murder about this misses the point. Stoudemire and Diaw lost their heads at exactly the wrong time, and the assistant coaches who usually are playing frantic D during these situations were nowhere to be found.

To focus on the suspensions also ignores the inconvenient fact that there were five other games in the series and San Antonio won three of them. The Suns were close -- as close as they've ever been in fact, if one allows that Phoenix would have eviscerated the Jazz and Cavs in the final two rounds just as the Spurs did -- but they weren't quite there.

That they were even close is a tribute to the dedication of Nash and Stoudemire. Though Nash didn't win a third straight MVP award, he had his best season to date at the age of 33, while Stoudemire shook off last season's knee problems and re-established himself as one of the best finishers in basketball, providing a deadly complement to Nash on the pick-and-roll.

They had plenty of help, too, as Shawn Marion continued to star on the wings, Leandro Barbosa won the Sixth Man award with his scoring exploits off the bench, and Raja Bell tied for the NBA lead in made 3-pointers. Overall, the Suns led the league in offensive efficiency for a third straight season, and once again it was a one-sided race (see chart).

Offensive Efficiency: 2006-07 Leaders
TEAM W-L FG% FT% 3-PT% TS% OFF. EFF.
Phoenix 61-21 49.4 80.8 39.9 59.0 111.42
Dallas 67-15 46.7 80.5 38.1 55.9 108.45
Utah 51-31 47.4 74.3 33.5 55.1 106.67
San Antonio 58-24 47.4 75.1 38.1 56.1 106.66
Washington 41-41 45.0 76.5 34.8 54.2 106.66
League average 41-41 45.8 75.2 35.8 54.1 103.06


Phoenix dominated on offensive primarily because of its awesome shooting. The Suns were great at every facet, leading the NBA in field goal percentage, free-throw percentage, 3-point percentage and true shooting percentage. They had the lowest rate of shots blocked and took care of the ball, sporting the fourth-best turnover rate. I'm not sure what else to say -- they were unbelievable.

Relative to the league average, in fact, it was the third-best offensive team since the league started tracking turnovers in 1973-74. That, in turn, means Nash has now been the point guard for the four most effective offensive teams of the past 35 years -- this crew, the 2004-05 Suns, and the 2001-02 and 2003-04 Mavericks.

So dominant was the Suns' shooting performance that they were easily the league's top offense despite faring terribly in two other measures -- drawing fouls and getting rebounds. Phoenix had the lowest rate of free-throw attempts per field goal attempt in basketball, and ranked 29th out of 30 teams in offensive rebound rate.

However, the lack of fouls tied into Phoenix's playing style very well. The Suns love to run, of course, and while they didn't do it as often last season -- they were "only" third in pace factor -- their games featured long whistle-free stretches that tended to leave opponents winded and ragged. That's because Phoenix also fouled less than any team in the league, giving up just .268 free-throw attempts per field goal attempt -- all told, you were less likely to see a foul in a Suns game than in those of any other team.

In other respects, the Suns were average to mediocre on defense. They gave up a middling shooting percentage, forced few turnovers, and were slightly below par on the defensive boards. But because they didn't foul, their true shooting percentage against was better than the league average, and they ended up 13th in defensive efficiency.


Lowest Opponent Assisted Baskets, 2006-07
TEAM OPP. AST/FG
Phoenix .478
San Antonio .495
Dallas .527
Utah .551
Indiana .560
League average .583





Looking at their numbers, it appears Phoenix focused very hard on stopping guys one-on-one, and otherwise let them go and started taking it the other way. Just 47.8 percent of Phoenix's opponent baskets were assisted, far and away the lowest rate in basketball. So even though the Suns were giving up size, they weren't real big on double-teaming -- they just took their chances, avoided the foul, and started running.

One item of concern is that last season is the second in a row where the Suns' defensive stats dropped off sharply after the All-Star break. Two seasons ago they had Kurt Thomas' injury to blame, but last season was harder to figure out. While the decline wasn't as severe as the avalanche in 2005-06, it was worrisome enough: The Suns ranked seventh in defensive efficiency prior to the All-Star break and only 21st afterward. They'll need to sustain the D over 82 games if they're going to get over the hump in '07-08.

Offseason Moves
It was an interesting offseason in the Valley of the Sun, one in which new owner Robert Sarver seems to think having a pretty good team that stays under the luxury tax is preferable to having a great one that's over it. I can't blame him for wanting to make money, but Suns fans might be a little bummed out by some of the cost-cutting moves this summer.

Executing them was a new general manager, Steve Kerr, who took over for head coach Mike D'Antoni -- a wise move, since men who hold both jobs tend to inadvertently sabotage their own efforts.

It's not a bad hire either. While former players with little management experience normally get circles run around them, especially in their first year or two on the job, Kerr is likely to be an exception. He'd been advising the ownership group for a while, he'd stayed in touch with the game through his announcing and writing gigs, and he's among the sharpest players you'll ever encounter. We'll see how that translates to an NBA front office, but perhaps not for a little while yet: Kerr did much more selling than buying this summer.

The Suns also get hosed in the draft lottery, as they would have had Atlanta's pick if it fell outside the top three; alas, the Hawks ended up third. That likely cost the Suns the services of somebody like Joakim Noah, who would have thrived in this system, and while the Suns own the pick this season with no lottery protection, the Hawks are likely to be a lot better and thus the pick much lower.

Phoenix still retains a few assets should they get jumpy at the trade deadline, including that Hawks' pick and a couple trade exceptions from their other deals, but it's tough to imagine the Suns using them. In fact, they might have to go the other direction one more time, as they're still a few pennies over the tax line.

One way to do that would be to trade Shawn Marion, who said he wanted out after the team dangled him in a Kevin Garnett deal this summer and refused to give him a three-year extension for the max. He can opt out of his contact after the season and his high-maintenance ways can be grating, but he's also so integral to this team's system that Kerr will be swimming in dangerous waters if he starts talking trade.




Thomas• Traded Kurt Thomas and two first-round picks to Seattle
This is how serious the Suns are about avoiding the luxury tax -- in a conference where the road to the Finals goes through Tim Duncan, they traded their best (some would say "only") post defender in order to get rid of the $8 million salary obligation he carried.

To bribe the Sonics into it, the Suns had to send two draft choices with no lottery protection, one in 2008 and one in 2010. Granted, that probably won't be an issue if the Suns are as good as they expect, but there's a small chance they could be left high and dry. On a positive note, this deal does give the Suns an $8 million trade exception and they have until next summer to use it.



Jones• Traded James Jones and a first-round pick to Portland
Here's another salary dump, as the Suns raffled off yet another draft choice. As many before me have asked, wouldn't it have been easier to use the picks and just not sign Marcus Banks last year? It also gave the Blazers Jones, a reliable sub who could be missed in Phoenix this season. The Suns gained a $2.9 million exception from this deal that can be used until draft day.

• Drafted Alando Tucker and D.J. Strawberry
The Suns inadvertently forgot to sell one of their first-round picks and ended up taking Tucker, who figures to step into Jones' role as a combo forward off the bench. Tucker had a knack for scoring as a collegian, but he's not nearly the long-range shooter that Jones is and might have a rough adjustment to the pros. Second-round pick Strawberry has potential as a defensive stopper and should thrive in the Suns' transition game, but he'll need to show he can knock down shots in the halfcourt.



Hill• Signed Grant Hill
Phoenix's one big offseason acquisition was signing Hill to a two-year deal for the biannual exception. It goes without saying that Hill is an injury risk, and he probably won't play as many minutes as he did in Orlando so that the Suns can save him for the postseason. But he gives the team a second ballhandler when Nash checks out, which they've needed, and his scoring more than replaces what was lost in the Jones and Thomas deals.


• Signed Brian Skinner
Skinner had a bad 2006-07 season and I'm not sure he's capable of playing at the Suns' pace. But Phoenix had a need on the roster for an inexpensive banger, and he qualifies. Look for him to see heavy duty against Duncan, Shaq and Yao and take a seat against the other 26 teams.

Biggest Strength: Transition Offense
This might be the fastest NBA team ever assembled, and if you thought they were great offensively last season you might not have seen anything yet. The replacement of the team's slowest rotation player (Thomas) with one of the league's fastest (Hill) means the Suns are going to push the pedal even further to the metal this season. Stoudemire and Marion will form an undersized frontcourt that figures to exploit slower big men in transition, leaving opponents with the usual conundrum of how to match up against this team.

That extends to the second unit, where blazing-fast Barbosa and, possibly, Banks, will head the backcourt unit while backup "center" Diaw can run opposing big men into the ground or torture them on drives from the high post. Rookies Tucker and Strawberry both are good athletes as well and figure to get their chances in the Suns' running game. And of course, running the show is Nash, who is as good at throwing it ahead as anyone in the game and should have plenty of targets again.




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



Biggest Weakness: Interior Defense
The loss of Thomas leaves a major dent in the middle for the Suns, and that's a big problem since their defense always has been the weak link. Phoenix has managed to stay in the middle of the pack in defensive efficiency the past few seasons, but when you're one of the best offensive teams of all time and still don't win the title, it's obvious where the weak link lies.

A big weight rests on Stoudemire, who will have to improve his post defense and show he can shut down the players -- notably Duncan and Yao -- that Thomas was guarding last season. Diaw will also get shots at defending the five spot, and the Suns still are trying to persuade P.J. Brown to come aboard for the minimum salary and round out the rotation. In the meantime they'll see if Skinner can answer the bell for 10 minutes a night and save Stoudemire some of the pounding.

Outlook
This should be one heck of a show. After spending the past two years trying to be more like San Antonio, the Suns appear to have tacked in the opposite direction. They're going to be smaller and faster than ever, throw caution to the wind and dare opponents to beat them 120-110.

At least, that's the plan for the moment; one doesn't get the impression the Suns are quite finished with their makeover. We keep hearing allusions to chemistry issues after the loss to San Antonio, while trade rumors involving Marion are like the NBA version of whack-a-mole -- as soon as one goes away another one pops up.

Evaluating what they have right now, though, one has to figure they'll come up a little bit short. The Suns effectively have a seven-man rotation, and one of the seven is the injury-prone Hill. And one of the others is Stoudemire, who had microfracture surgery two years ago and underwent a procedure on the other knee at the start of training camp.

Does that sound like a unit that can survive an 82-game grind? Additionally, the focus on cost-cutting really limits what the team can do to reshape its roster from here -- really the only option would be something involving Marion, and his ability to play power forwards on one end and then beat everybody downcourt at the other is what makes a lot of what the Suns do work.

They'll still be a great show, of course, and they'll still be a factor come May. But in the past three years we've been looking at a Suns-Mavs-Spurs trio ruling the West; I'm afraid the other two clubs in that arrangement have left this one behind.


Prediction: 54-28, 1st in Pacific, 4th in Western Conference (3rd playoff seed)


John Hollinger writes for ESPN Insider. To e-mail him, click here.

[SenorSpur]

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/trainingcamp07/insider/columns/story?columnist=hollinger_john&page=SpursPreview0708

Biggest Weakness: Age On The Wings:
The one serious threat to the Spurs' title hopes this season is that all their wing players are over 30. The most worrisome case is that of Bowen, because nobody else can fill his role. He's 36 now and he slipped even further offensively last season. If some of that slippage carries over to the defensive end it's going to be a big problem. While the Spurs picked up Udoka in case Bowen declines, he's 30 himself.

It goes much deeper than only Bowen, though. Barry is 35, and while his sweet shooting stroke doesn't figure to suffer much, his defense has become a major liability. Finley is 34 and relies a lot more on his legs than Barry. Then there's Ginobili, who is 30 and takes a beating on his many drives to the rim.

My question to the masses is how much or little of a factor do you think the Spurs advanced age, on the perimeter, will make this year? Obviously, Hollinger thinks it will be significant enough of an issue.

[Bruno]

Hollinger is an horrible analyst, he thinks that his PER formula can explain and predict everything.
I guess that it's next article will be "PER analysis of Lindsey Lohan vs. Britney Spears". :rolleyes

[diego]

holinger is showing he just looks at boxscores. everybody just writes off whatever bowen does on offense. during the regular season of course there were games were you wish horry, vaughn, udrih, elson, barry, oberto, and fin played better, but in the playoffs they all came through at one point or another (well, save for beno and maybe elson). the rest were actually pretty consistent contributors, given that with the big 3 producing they dont need to be that spectacular anyway. and i consider bowen one of our stars, but he's in a class of his own, sure he isnt a scorer but when hes hitting that corner 3 we become invincible and with his good D often outscores his counterpart. lets hope udoka pans out, but it will be tough to fill bowen's shoes.

[barbacoataco]

To answer SenorSpur's question: the perimeter player I am most worried about in terms of old age is Michael Finley. He seems to be going downhill rapidly. He doesn't drive to the basket much anymore, and his jump shot is so streaky that you can't really count on him. While the Spurs don't need Barry to win, they do need Finley, or someone else (Udoka?) to fill his role.

[Поповић]

Maybe the Rockets will win a playoff series now that the Spurs gave them Scola.

[FromWayDowntown]

Hollinger must be thinking that there's going to be some great improvement in the East in 2007-08, because his projections for wins in the West don't seem to add up very well.

He's essentially predicting that the bottom of the West won't be "as good" as it was last year in terms of team wins while predicting at the same time that the top of the West won't be as good either, particularly given that he predicts a team with a losing record to make the playoffs.

For the record, the last time a team from the West made the playoffs with a losing record was 1997 (when the T'Wolves, Clippers, and Suns all qualified with losing records). In 1998 and 1999 the 8th seed finished at .500 and between 2000 and 2006, it took at least 43 wins to make the playoffs.

In any event, Hollinger seems to think that the top teams won't be quite as good as their counterparts from last season and that the bottom teams also won't be quite as good -- here are his predictions and the difference in wins from the team finishing in the same spot as last year (with the team and its number of wins from 2006-07):

1. HOU 61-21 (-6; DAL - 67)
2. SAS 59-23 (-2; PNX - 61)
3. PNX 54-28 (-4; SAS - 58)
4. DEN 53-29 (-2; UTH - 51)
5. DAL 58-24 (+6; HOU - 52)
6. UTH 50-32 (+5; DEN - 45)
7. LAL 43-39 (+1; LAL - 42)
8. NOH 39-43 (-3; GST - 42)
9. GST 36-46 (-4; LAC - 40)
10. SEA 35-47 (-4; NOK - 39)
11. MEM 34-48 (+1; SAC - 33)
12. SAC 27-55 (-5; MIN - 32)
13. PRT 26-56 (-6; PRT - 32)
14. MIN 22-60 (-9; SEA - 31)
15. LAC 20-62 (-2; MEM - 22)

In essence, where the West was +64 in its games against the East last year, Hollinger expects that they'll collectively only be +4 if these predictions hold. That's a rather curious position to take, I would think.

[mountainballer]

Hollinger isn't worth a second of reading. no matter if he praises the Spurs (the major reason why so many still think he is a somehow competent analyst).
in the first place he praises himself anyhow. the claim that he was the one to tell the world the Spurs will be best, based on his points difference ranking, is just ridiculous when looking at more than just last season.
then you see that best point difference = best team is just nonsense. (the few times this is right, you can call accidently. of course a team with a good point difference is usually not the worst team in the league)
did the Mavs win 2003? did the Spurs win 2004? did the Spurs win 2006? did the Bulls play the finals 2007? did the Pistons play the finals 2006? did the Heat play the finals 2005? did the Pacers play the finals 2004?

just a reminder. last year Hollinger called Butler the steal of the free agency and his list of the break out players 06-07 included a player named Beno Udrih.

[Dalhoop]

In essence, where the West was +64 in its games against the East last year, Hollinger expects that they'll collectively only be +4 if these predictions hold. That's a rather curious position to take, I would think.

Maybe he expects Boston to make up all those games vs the west? but still a +60 over last year is a bit much :)

[SAGambler]

I look for the Spurs to win around 55 - 57 RS games, with the starting five playing fewer minutes than other teams starters. I think the Spurs will probably be #3 seed in the playoffs.

I look for Mavs and Suns to vie for the #1 seed in the West. But I also look for them to wear down their starters trying to reach that goal.

As for Houston, we will have to wait and see just how well they gel together and IF they can keep their players healthy. Yao, I don't see being able to get in any better shape to run up and down a full 48 than he has in the past. His biggest asset is also his biggest deficit. He is great until the fatigue sets in, then he becomes a liability. I just don't see Houston coming in much better than #5 in the West. The story is yet to be told whether the Spurs were a boom or a bust on the Scola/Butler deal.

I'm just excited that the season opener is on the horizon, and am looking forward to some good basketball. Winning another championship would be great for the Spurs and
put it all in perspective as to how great a team we have here.

I think we need a bit of luck along the way, keeping everyone healthly and coming together at playoff time. If the Spurs can do that, I see another trophy in sight.

[The Franchise]

While I enjoyed Hollinger's take on the Spurs, he lost all credibility with this prediction about the Rockets.
I keep hearing all this Rocket bashing but i gaurantee you none of your teams want to see us in April or May. :ihit I still think people are looking at us as last years Rockets. Last years team had a talent deficiency across the board and still won 52 games.This year we are as deep or deeper than any team in the league. If we were fourth best in the west with no offensive production, how in the hell do we become worse now with offense to spare, and a returning defense that was one of the leagues best? Common sense should tell you that at least one of the BIG THREE is in trouble. Don't take my word for it though i'm just a stupid Rockets fan. By Allstar break i will be looking like the most insightful MF in the basketball world!! :lol

[SenorSpur]

I keep hearing all this Rocket bashing but i gaurantee you none of your teams want to see us in April or May. :ihit I still think people are looking at us as last years Rockets. Last years team had a talent deficiency across the board and still won 52 games.This year we are as deep or deeper than any team in the league. If we were fourth best in the west with no offensive production, how in the hell do we become worse now with offense to spare, and a returning defense that was one of the leagues best? Common sense should tell you that at least one of the BIG THREE is in trouble. Don't take my word for it though i'm just a stupid Rockets fan. By Allstar break i will be looking like the most insightful MF in the basketball world!! :lol

No one is intimating that the Rockets will be worse off than last year. Anyone who follows the NBA offseason knows the Rockets probably had the best offseason acquisitions of any team. Hell, the talent upgrade alone should translate into a deeper playoff run.

However, the problem is they've not done it yet. There's been many an NBA team that won the offseason FA sweepstakes and whose talent level looked much improved on paper, yet never "got it done" during the playoffs. In case you've never noticed, chemistry is just as important as talent. The new pieces the Rockets have added will need time to "jell together" and figure out how to play with one another. That will not happen overnight. Besides, McGrady has been never led any team past the first round of the playoffs. That doesn't mean he can't. He just has not done it, as of yet.

As far as the Rockets defense is concerned, did you forget that Van Gundy is no longer the coach? Do you really expect Bonzi Wells, Stevie Franchise and Luis Scola to either maintain or improve the team's stellar defensive effort from last year? With Yao and Mutombo manning the paint, along with Battier and Hayes on the perimeter, the Rockets will surely be a formidable defensive team again. Just don't expect them to be the same top-flight defensive juggernaut they were last year. Adelman was brought in to revive the stagnant offense. He simply doesn't coach or stress team defense with the same aplomb.

My overall point is Hollinger's prediction that the Rockets will "leapfrog" the "Big Three" Western Conference favorites into a number 1 seed is highly unlikely. A top two, three or even top four finish is much more probable.

[FromWayDowntown]

For whatever it's worth, Hollinger's numbers don't add up -- in his Eastern Conference previews this morning, he has the East going 615-615; he has the West going 617-613. That result cannot happen, since the East teams will go .500 against each other and the West teams will go .500 against each other, if the West is 617-613, the East must be 613-617. It's not a big difference in that sense. But, again, he's predicting that the East will be fully 60 games better against the West in '07-08, which strikes me as a fanciful contention (to say nothing of his belief that both Atlanta and Charlotte will reach the playoffs).

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

2006-07 Recap
Last season's edition of the Rockets had a five-man defense and a two-man offense, a system that was useful for grinding out regular-season wins and shutting down opponents but came up short when an opponent could devise a game plan for it in the postseason. As a result, Houston's season ended earlier than expected after a surprising seven-game first-round defeat against Utah.

While Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady were the stars, in a way they were secondary in how the season played out. That the Rockets' campaign went the way it did was a product of two things: (1) a lack of secondary offensive players, and (2) Jeff Van Gundy.

Let's start with the first item. The Rockets were plainly shorthanded on the offensive end, putting all kinds of pressure on their two stars to create shots. Despite having Yao and T-Mac, Houston only finished 14th in offensive efficiency, which says about all you need to know regarding the supporting cast.

Most 3-Point Attempts Per Field Goal Attempt, 2006-07
TEAM 3-PT % 3A/FGA
Houston 37.2 .290
Phoenix 39.9 .287
New Jersey 36.3 .263
Detroit 33.9 .190
L.A. Lakers 35.3 .259
League average 35.8 .213

The Rockets took a ton of 3-pointers thanks to all the attention those two players drew, leading the league with 29.0 percent of their shot attempts coming on 3s. They cashed them in, too, ranking fifth in the league at 37.2 percent.

But nobody could create a shot on his own, and the strain showed in McGrady's numbers especially. He led the league in usage rate, but his 51.5 true shooting percentage was well below the league average. It's not hard to connect the dots -- McGrady kept having to force up bad shots at the end of the clock because his teammates couldn't create anything on their own.

While it was a season-long problem, the most glaring examples came in the postseason. In Game 5 against Utah all but eight of the Rockets' field goals were scored or assisted by McGrady; in Game 7 all but nine were.

One reason Houston's offense struggled was because two potential solutions never saw the light of day. One was Bonzi Wells, who signed as a free agent but showed up out of shape, couldn't get healthy and almost immediately clashed with Van Gundy. He struggled in his rare appearances and sat out the postseason. The second was Vassilis Spanoulis, a talented pick-and-roll point guard imported from Greece whom Van Gundy unbelievably tried to use as a spot-up shooter. Spanoulis can't shoot at all, and of course failed miserably in this role before being exiled to the end of the bench. Van Gundy's mishandling of Spanoulis continued a two-decade-long pattern exhibited by the entire Pat Riley coaching tree. For some reason, Riley's disciples have trouble bringing themselves to trust any overseas player shorter than 7-6.

Field Goal Percentage Defense Leaders
TEAM OPP. FG%
Houston 42.9
Chicago 43.5
Orlando 44.2
San Antonio 44.3
Miami 44.4
League average 45.8

While Van Gundy couldn't get the offense untracked, there's no question he is one of the best defensive coaches of all time. Houston led the NBA in field goal percentage defense last season; look at this roster and ponder that for a second. While role players like Shane Battier and Chuck Hayes deserve credit for their efforts, the Rockets unquestionably punched above their weight at this end. This is nothing new for Van Gundy, however -- every team he's coached has finished in the top five in field goal defense.

Once those shots missed, the Rockets took care of business. Houston's 77.0 percent defensive rebound rate led the league by a healthy margin, with Yao, Hayes and Dikembe Mutombo dominating the defensive glass.

The lone drawback was that Houston played a low-risk defense that had one of the league's lowest rates of forced turnovers. Thus, the Rockets "only" finished third in defensive efficiency, and the defense created few transition chances for the offense.

Despite the defensive success, all was not well on the home front. Van Gundy didn't feel appreciated by the Rockets, while the team had some qualms over the stagnant offense and the fact that two key offseason pickups, Wells and Spanoulis, were barely playing. Almost immediately after the season, the coach and team agreed to part ways.



I guess Spur and Rocket fan all believe lie after ESPN reporter tell truth they still believes it? JVG LIAR he LIE he screws Wells and Spanoulis for no reason. Spur fan thinks they no need Spanoulis but they makes big mistake.

[703 Spurz]

For whatever it's worth, Hollinger's numbers don't add up -- in his Eastern Conference previews this morning, he has the East going 615-615; he has the West going 617-613. That result cannot happen, since the East teams will go .500 against each other and the West teams will go .500 against each other, if the West is 617-613, the East must be 613-617. It's not a big difference in that sense. But, again, he's predicting that the East will be fully 60 games better against the West in '07-08, which strikes me as a fanciful contention (to say nothing of his belief that both Atlanta and Charlotte will reach the playoffs).

You didnt actually think this douchebag's math would add up did you?

[FromWayDowntown]

You didnt actually think this douchebag's math would add up did you?

Actually, since he's a math guy, I did. I also didn't figure him to conclude that the East would suddenly catch up to the West in inter-conference games. But that might just be me. . . . .

[SRJ]

God, Hollinger haters are complete idiots.

[Whisky Dog]

God, Hollinger haters are complete idiots.


If he's great then why does his math not even add up?

[FromWayDowntown]

God, Hollinger haters are complete idiots.

I don't hate Hollinger, but I'm skeptical about this set of previews.

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

I don't hate Hollinger, but I'm skeptical about this set of previews.

I look before last year he predict Spur win championship and he also say Rocket finish with 50 wins ands maybe have chance finally get pasts first round. Seem he know well what he talk about to me.

[Dalhoop]

I look before last year he predict Spur win championship and he also say Rocket finish with 50 wins ands maybe have chance finally get pasts first round. Seem he know well what he talk about to me.

I would think that most people on this form would predict about the same thing. For the past five years I would give the Spurs 50-50 shot at winning it all. I would place the Rockets around 50 wins and any team with 50 win has a CHANCE of getting out of the first round.

He is a math guy and his math is off, this is a major mistake for him.

[SRJ]

If he's great then why does his math not even add up?

Oh, now I understand. Sportswriters who argue by cliche can get stuff wrong all the time and there's no problem, but if an analyst like Hollinger gets a fact wrong on occasion, his entire argument loses credibility. Got it.


I don't hate Hollinger, but I'm skeptical about this set of previews.

I wasn't referring to you FWD - your arguments are always solid.

[Obstructed_View]

So has a team ever been dominant with two bigs that are post up players? Is Yao going to be put out on the baseline to hit Rasho-type jumpers? I'm not sure how everybody sees Scola being such a great addition to the Rockets if he's not going to be the guy getting all the touches on the low block, which is why I don't really think it's such a great loss for the Spurs.

[Obstructed_View]

God, Hollinger haters are complete idiots.
They certainly seem to go out of their way to discredit him, don't they?

[screw_ston713]

ive noticed more than just hollinger picking rockets to win it all. seems to me the only ppl who are finding it hard to believe is spurs and sum mavs fans. For 1nce houston isnt considered a dark horse and a team that could sneak up on you, but actually have a shot at the title. A team with just 2 stars while 1 missed 30+ games and the rest of the roster are streaky shooters who cant create for themselves won 52 games. you now have a retooled team with numerous options on offense and sum of these rocket haters still talking about the rockets as if vangundy is the coach and we are bringing back the exact same team. everybody realizes how much rockets have improved except spurs fans hmmm

[screw_ston713]

and what has anyone proved??? its barely training camp. mavs went to the finals instead of coming back the next yr and finally getting over the hump they get bounced in the 1st round so what did they prove??? that anything can happen in the nba

[E20]

Is there a list for all the people at the Spurs training camp? I'd like to know all the people attending/that were invited.

[duncan228]

Is there a list for all the people at the Spurs training camp? I'd like to know all the people attending/that were invited.

timvp had a thread a couple of days ago.
http://spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=78684

Here's the piece from the link he had from the Express News:

20 in camp: The Spurs have invited five non-roster players to camp, though one of them missed Monday's media day activities. Dan Nwaelele, a 6-foot-5 forward who was the leading scorer for Air Force Academy last season, is expected to be on hand for today's opening training camp session.

Other non-roster invitees are Kris Lang, a 6-11 forward-center from North Carolina; Keith Langford, a 6-4 guard from Kansas; Anthony Lever-Pedroza, a 6-3 guard from Oregon; and Darius Washington, a 6-2 guard from Memphis.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA100207.10D.SpursNotes.en.31805b4.html

[E20]

Thanks.

[mountainballer]

God, Hollinger haters are complete idiots.

great.
I'm not a Hollinger hater, so I'm not an idiot.
(I guess this could be a typical Hollinger reasoning.)
IMO he is just a very bad analyst. still no hate, somebody always has to be the worst in his field of activity.
in other words, Hollinger is the Steve Francis of sports writers.
he writes (and "calculates") a lot, like Francis dribbles a lot.
then he showcases some pseudo scientific conclusions and predictions (very often not accurate), that's much like Francis turning the ball over after 23 seconds of dribbling, (which happens as often as a wrong Hollinger prediction).
but for years there were still a lot of people thinking and claiming, that Francis in fact is a good player. (two or three out there still think so. one is Francis himself)
all the dribbling and jumping and dunking didn't make up for his horrible understanding (better: misunderstanding) of the game.
most people have learned, that he is just the most overrated player of his generation.
btw. I also don't hate Francis. (not as long as he isn't at my team)

[Obstructed_View]

and what has anyone proved??? its barely training camp. mavs went to the finals instead of coming back the next yr and finally getting over the hump they get bounced in the 1st round so what did they prove??? that anything can happen in the nba
That means your team actually has a chance to go to the second round. Yee ha. Hope your superstars don't miss fifty games again and that all those talented headcases don't destroy the locker room.

[screw_ston713]

That means your team actually has a chance to go to the second round. Yee ha. Hope your superstars don't miss fifty games again and that all those talented headcases don't destroy the locker room.
How many nba teams can have their 2 best players miss significant amount of time and still be a 50 win team with the 4th best record in the league???? if tim duncan missed 30+ games and parker missed time are they still a 50 win team?? i think even through the injuries rockets showed me they had HEART. rox coulda threw in the towel when yao went down but they rallied together. :ihit

[smrattler]

Also predicts HOUSTON to win the southwest division and the number one ranking in the conference with a 61-21 record.

Obviously, Hollinger's formulas don't factor in likely injuries.

Or likely suckage, likely choking, likely lack-of-defense, likely underachieving, likely coach that looks like Bob #1 from Office Space:

http://luminomagazine.com/2004.03/spotlight/officespace/images/bob1/bob1a.jpg