duncan228
12-18-2007, 01:51 PM
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Injuries revealing depth for Spurs
Brian Guerra
It is only December, but a few things are already beginning to reveal themselves.
For one, you can’t fake depth. You either have it or you don’t. The Spurs have it.
Consider Ime Udoka. First off, do you even know who he is?
Last year, he started nearly the entire season for the Portland Trail Blazers. This year, he’s appeared in only 17 games for San Antonio, none as a starter.
It seems like a trivial thing, but the NBA season is a grind. Injuries happen, as they have for the Spurs the past few weeks.
First, Duncan went down. Then, Parker’s ankle acted up. Against Denver, on Saturday, Francisco Elson also sprained his ankle.
Is there anything in the NBA that will make you turn your head away faster than a rolled ankle? The player goes down, gripping his foot, and everyone instinctively looks for the replay.
You’re waiting for it, waiting for it, and then you see it. Usually, the injured player jumped up for a shot or to grab a rebound and landed on someone else’s foot.
Anyone who has ever sprained their ankle lets out an audible groan. It truly is painful to watch.
And most teams wouldn’t be able to handle their best player going down. For the most part, the Spurs were able to keep it in cruise control.
Manu Ginobili went off for 74 points in two games, and Fabricio Oberto and Michael Finley each had a season-high 21 points against Denver.
“In general, their role players beat us as much as anybody,” Denver coach George Karl said after they lost to the Spurs. “From Barry to Finley to Oberto, they beat us as much as Ginobili or Duncan did.”
Doesn’t that speak volumes about the Spurs? They come at you from seemingly every direction.
That will come in handy as the regular season continues to unwind itself, and, undoubtedly, more injuries will surface.
But if you’re a Spurs fan, you should hold your breath that no one is injured on Feb. 10, when San Antonio travels to Boston, and Mar. 17, when Boston comes to San Antonio.
It will be perhaps the two most intriguing games of the season, but both teams need to be at their full capacity so everyone can clearly gauge who the best team in the NBA is.
As of Sunday, both teams are first place in their respective conferences, and they are the only two teams in the league who are still undefeated at home.
Boston and San Antonio have already begun to separate themselves from the rest of the league, and many will view these games as a preview of the NBA Finals. It’d be hard to argue with them.
Boston has only two losses, and two of San Antonio’s five losses have come with Tim Duncan and/or Tony Parker in street clothes because of troubled ankles.
Of course, maybe everyone is getting a little carried away with their prognosticating and predictions. After all, it’s only December.
Brian Guerra is a freelance writer in San Antonio who covers the San Antonio Spurs for a national sports wire service.
Injuries revealing depth for Spurs
Brian Guerra
It is only December, but a few things are already beginning to reveal themselves.
For one, you can’t fake depth. You either have it or you don’t. The Spurs have it.
Consider Ime Udoka. First off, do you even know who he is?
Last year, he started nearly the entire season for the Portland Trail Blazers. This year, he’s appeared in only 17 games for San Antonio, none as a starter.
It seems like a trivial thing, but the NBA season is a grind. Injuries happen, as they have for the Spurs the past few weeks.
First, Duncan went down. Then, Parker’s ankle acted up. Against Denver, on Saturday, Francisco Elson also sprained his ankle.
Is there anything in the NBA that will make you turn your head away faster than a rolled ankle? The player goes down, gripping his foot, and everyone instinctively looks for the replay.
You’re waiting for it, waiting for it, and then you see it. Usually, the injured player jumped up for a shot or to grab a rebound and landed on someone else’s foot.
Anyone who has ever sprained their ankle lets out an audible groan. It truly is painful to watch.
And most teams wouldn’t be able to handle their best player going down. For the most part, the Spurs were able to keep it in cruise control.
Manu Ginobili went off for 74 points in two games, and Fabricio Oberto and Michael Finley each had a season-high 21 points against Denver.
“In general, their role players beat us as much as anybody,” Denver coach George Karl said after they lost to the Spurs. “From Barry to Finley to Oberto, they beat us as much as Ginobili or Duncan did.”
Doesn’t that speak volumes about the Spurs? They come at you from seemingly every direction.
That will come in handy as the regular season continues to unwind itself, and, undoubtedly, more injuries will surface.
But if you’re a Spurs fan, you should hold your breath that no one is injured on Feb. 10, when San Antonio travels to Boston, and Mar. 17, when Boston comes to San Antonio.
It will be perhaps the two most intriguing games of the season, but both teams need to be at their full capacity so everyone can clearly gauge who the best team in the NBA is.
As of Sunday, both teams are first place in their respective conferences, and they are the only two teams in the league who are still undefeated at home.
Boston and San Antonio have already begun to separate themselves from the rest of the league, and many will view these games as a preview of the NBA Finals. It’d be hard to argue with them.
Boston has only two losses, and two of San Antonio’s five losses have come with Tim Duncan and/or Tony Parker in street clothes because of troubled ankles.
Of course, maybe everyone is getting a little carried away with their prognosticating and predictions. After all, it’s only December.
Brian Guerra is a freelance writer in San Antonio who covers the San Antonio Spurs for a national sports wire service.