Game Thoughts: Spurs vs. Rockets Jan. 19th

[timvp]

Another game against a winning team, another loss for the Spurs. That makes the Spurs 0-7 in their last seven games against teams with a winning record. No matter the context, that’s a scary stat for San Antonio.

The Houston Rockets played just well enough to escape with an 83-81 victory in front of their home fans. In a typical Spurs versus Rockets slugfest, the Rockets got in the final blow and won the game. Yao Ming played well and came up with some big plays at the end to will the Rockets to victory.

For the Spurs, it was more of the same. Their offense was raged, with no one outside of the Big Three scoring more than six points for the second consecutive game. While the Spurs did play better defense this game, they negated their improvement by giving up 16 offensive rebounds – including a host of key ones in the fourth quarter.

It’s not time to sound the alarm but it’s getting close to make it or break it time. Everyone expects the Spurs to flip the switch sometime soon and start shooting up the standings.

But what if this is the year the Spurs can’t flip that switch? It’s probably best not to ponder that frightening notion.

-As has been the case since his return from injury, Tim Duncan played hard and was into the game mentally. He played pretty well but you have to give the Rockets credit as Yao and even Luis Scola defended him effectively. Duncan finished with 24 points, 17 rebounds and two blocked shots. His passing wasn’t as crisp as it was in the last couple games, as Duncan turned the ball over five times and had only one assist. Duncan didn’t have his A game but played well enough for the Spurs to win.

-Manu Ginobili had a favorable outing for the most part. His shot looks really good right now and he’s being aggressive offensively. Ginobili hit 4-of-7 three-pointers on his way to 21 points, five rebounds and four assists. Offensively, Ginobili did about all he could. Defensively, I thought he could have boxed out better in a number of situations. Ginobili also had a bonehead foul on Yao at the end of the first half. 94 feet away from the Rockets’ basket and with less than a second to go in the half, Ginobili fouled Yao on a reach in foul – leading to two Yao free throws. As Ginobili matures as a player, he has to better understand time and situation and when it’s inappropriate to go for a steal or blocked shot. It turned out that those two points could have been useful at the end of the game.

-Tony Parker continued his extremely erratic play. His defense at the beginning of the game was poor. His offense was mostly poor throughout the game. The best thing you can take away from this game in regards to Parker is that he hit his jumpers. On shots outside of the paint, Parker finished 6-for-9 from the field. The problem is he went 1-for-6 in the paint and had only four assists to go along with his 16 points in 36 minutes of action. Once Parker finds his game, that could be the turning point for the Spurs this season. In the last six weeks, we’ve only seen glimpses of it.

-Bruce Bowen’s during the game was good. He was also active on the boards – especially early on. However, he scored just two points and continues to be in a major offensive funk. Bowen is due for a breakout offensive performance in one of the upcoming games.

-Michael Finley seems to be the player who has had his minutes slashed since the return of Brent Barry. In 19 minutes, Finley had two points on 1-for-5 shooting. While Finley needs to hit for a better percentage, his inconsistent minutes lately have obviously negatively influenced his game.

-Fabricio Oberto fought valiantly against Yao. He didn’t have much success but you can’t question his effort. A few times he let Yao beat him to punch but overall, Oberto’s defense was good enough. Offensively, Oberto was again quiet. The easy shots Oberto had gotten in the beginning of the season have seemingly disappeared.

-Ime Udoka played one of his better games as a Spur, even though nothing pops out on the statsheet. In 13 minutes, Udoka had four points on 2-for-2 shooting from the field. Where he really flourished was defensively, where he applied a lot of pressure. Overall, Udoka played with a calmness and confidence that I hadn’t seen before out of him as a Spur.

-Jacque Vaughn played 12 minutes and his only dent on the statsheet was a layup. Other than his 1-for-1 shooting, Vaughn didn’t do anything. Usually, that’d be a negative thing to say about a player. However, with Vaughn, it’s best when he just blends into the background.

-Matt Bonner’s game will be remembered for the missed shot in the lane he had at the buzzer to try to send the game into overtime. While the play wasn’t drawn up for Bonner, he got off a good shot that he’s made numerous times this season. Bonner’s other nine minutes and 49 seconds of playing time was mostly a success. He hit 2-of-3 three-pointers and was active defensively.

-Francisco Elson was the first bigman off the bench for the Spurs. He contributed two turnovers, three missed shots and a foul in his six minutes of play. Oh and don’t forget how he got an offensive rebound for the Rockets late in the game by knocking it away from Duncan and Oberto. Behind Yao, Elson might have been the second best Rocket on the court tonight.

-Robert Horry took another half step in the right direction tonight. He didn’t make a shot but he grabbed three rebounds and handed out two assists in six minutes of action. The next step is to improve his 18.4% shooting from the floor.

-In Brent Barry’s second game back, he played only five minutes and hit his only shot from the field. He wasn’t a very good match for Houston’s physical guards, leading to his 43 minutes on the bench.

-Pop once again used a seldom seen 12-man rotation. If the Coyote would have made the short jet ride over to Houston, I’m sure Pop would have figured out a way to get him out on the court.

This was almost a carbon copy game to the Cavaliers game. Pop goes with a preseason rotation against a quality opponent who is trying hard to win. The result is the role players outside of the Big Three mostly struggle and the Spurs are left with the Big Three shouldering almost the entire scoring load.

Right now, the Spurs aren’t playing well, their coaching is toying with the rotations and their fans are waiting for the switch to be flipped. Until then, San Antonio is in a holding pattern.

The bottomline is the Spurs continue to lose winnable games. I guess we won’t know until the end of the season whether this is just a bump on a championship ride or an early warning sign that there were problems all along.

[Pistons < Spurs]

Your recaps always kick ass LJ.

Keep them coming!

[Kori Ellis]

Francisco Elson was the first bigman off the bench for the Spurs. He contributed two turnovers, three missed shots and a foul in his six minutes of play. Oh and don’t forget how he got an offensive rebound for the Rockets late in the game by knocking it away from Duncan and Oberto. Behind Yao, Elson might have been the second best Rocket on the court tonight.

:lol

[T Park]

Agree about Oberto and others.

Personally if Udoka would've played the first half, and more of the 4th quarter, I think the Spurs win the game.

[T Park]

I wouldn't be 100% opposed to calling up Ian and seeing what hes got.

Could he be much worse than Elson?

[meta2007]

The rockets won because they wanted it more than the spurs.

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

Not looking good for the Spurs right now.

I'm really hoping they call up Mahimni at some point this season, I'd like to see he can contribute moreso than Bonner and Elson

[T Park]

:lol

not looking good.

AHHHHHHH

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

:lol

not looking good.

AHHHHHHH


Why do fans laugh off these losses like they don't mean anything?

Yes the Spurs will probably peak around February or March, but do you guys realize how hard it would be if the Spurs had to beat Phoenix/Dallas/Boston or Detroit all without home court advantage?

[timvp]

Why do fans laugh off these losses like they don't mean anything?

Yes the Spurs will probably peak around February or March, but do you guys realize how hard it would be if the Spurs had to beat Phoenix/Dallas/Boston or Detroit all without home court advantage?Championships have turned Spurs Fan into the cockiest of all fans in existence outside of Yankee Fan.

[Please_dont_ban_me]

I wouldn't be 100% opposed to calling up Ian and seeing what hes got.

Could he be much worse than Elson?

I could be wrong, but I don't think Pop is real big on Elson.

So Mahinmi must really be worse if they haven't given him a shot yet.

[Mavs > Spurs]

Dallas/Phoenix WCF. Timvp great recap. You know deep down inside the era is over. I know it and Spurs fans will soon know it. This flipping the switch shit isnt going to work anymore. It will catch up to the Spurs. Hell at this rate, the Mavs might get the honor of dethroning the Spurs yet again. I was hoping for a WCF matchup but oh well.

[Indazone]

Pop needs to look at Mahinmi. He has the highest PER in limited minutes on the entire Spurs team. That means something. Funny thing is, Landry had the highest PER on the Rockets before being turned loose 3 games ago. He has performed above all expectations.

[Mavs > Spurs]

Spurs fans are shitting their pants right now...

[LA24]

-Bruce Bowen’s during the game was good. He was also active on the boards – especially early on. However, he scored just two points and continues to be in a major offensive funk. Bowen is due for a breakout offensive performance in one of the upcoming games.

Yes he is and it will come next Wednesday against the Lakers. :grim:

[SequSpur]

The spurs fucking suck

[Capt Bringdown]

Spurs giving their fans little room for optimism right now.

[polandprzem]

Championships have turned Spurs Fan into the cockiest of all fans in existence outside of Yankee Fan.

That's been said before.

Spurs losing is not normal so anything what is not normal is being noticed and critisized. Everybody wants to win.

As for the spurs.
last year they were playing even worse at that time of the year, and I had great concern. Spurs won the title. Right now I'm not so much concern and maybe it is not that good.

Last year Kori said that the spurs won't win unless they will make a trade.


What about the rotation?
How should it look like at this stage?

TP
Fin
Bruce
TD
Oberto
-------
Barry
Udoka
Gino
-----
Elson
Voughn
Bonner
Horry


Extreamly hard to do it. Still probably we have to put Jaque into the 8-man rotation. What does that mean?

That meand there will be no chance for Udoka or/and Barry (depends if the spurs want to keep the small ball for longer stretches)

[SenorSpur]

For the Spurs, it was more of the same. Their offense was raged, with no one outside of the Big Three scoring more than six points for the second consecutive game. While the Spurs did play better defense this game, they negated their improvement by giving up 16 offensive rebounds – including a host of key ones in the fourth quarter.

It’s not time to sound the alarm but it’s getting close to make it or break it time. Everyone expects the Spurs to flip the switch sometime soon and start shooting up the standings.

But what if this is the year the Spurs can’t flip that switch?


Another great summary.

The points about this so-called "switch flipping" are dead on and exactly the point I've been hammering on for a few weeks now. What if there is no juice left when the Spurs attempt to "flip that switch?"

This team is seriously lacking consistent offensive production, rebounding and energy at both ends. Pop wants to conserve minutes and health for the playoffs. However, the physical toll of carrying this team night in and night out looks as though it's already wearing on the Big Three. To the point that it's starting to appear as though it wasn't such a wise idea for the FO to have "stood pat" with this current roster. Just because a team wins the title doesn't mean they should sit still and not improve the roster. Look at 2007 Miami Heat as an example as to how a veteran championship team responds to the challenge of repeating. Even the 2008 Pistons, with a veteran roster, decided they too needed to make investments into developing their young bench contributors for this season, after their ECF flameout.

It's very frustrating to see other teams getting significant contribution, energy and production from rookies, 2nd and 3rd-year players, while the Spurs elect to exile their young players away. The coaching staff's attitude of low tolerance for the mistakes of young players is invalid when you've got a roster of veterans making the same stupid-ass mistakes or committing the cardinal sin of not giving maximum effort. Everyone says the Spurs are in a different position because they're playing for championships and cannot afford to give young players the minutes. I say bullshit! Especially when its the veteran players who are not giving the consistent production needed to win ballgames. Aren't they supposed to know better? Aren't they supposed to talented enough and professional enough to know better?

The Spurs are being outplayed and outhustled at both ends of the court in seemingly every game - just like last season. Every game seems is a constant struggle - even the wins. It's my contention that a couple of young, hungry, active players are just the tonic needed to strengthen a team's bench and help get a team through these "dog day" periods of the season. We certainly saw this last night against Houston and from other teams of recent note (Detroit, Memphis)

Personally, I've seen enough to suspect that this crew may not be capable of "flipping the switch" this season. This team needs a jump start contribution from a source that may not be on this roster. For those that want to see more Ian and less Frankie/Oberto right now, I'm with that. Call him up. Furthermore, go out and acquire another player to help shore up some of these deficiencies. I'd rather the Spurs don't take the risk of waiting until after the trade deadline to find out they waited too long to tweak the roster.

The FO needs to rid this themselves of this notion that a roster of 14 veterans and no youth is the only way to a championship. Remember this franchise has never repeated for whatever reason. It's time the Spurs make some roster decisions to allow them to start chasing their own championship aspirations - just as every other team is doing against them.

[MONTENEGRINO]

I still believe that it is way better to have problems now, and then try to reach high level after the ASG. We have many old players, and it is not expected from them to play whole season on high level performance. BELIEVE that Pop will set pieces for playoffs.

[Spurs Brazil]

I don't know why Elson still play.

He sucks since game 1 this season

[pku47]

I don't know why Elson still play.

I guess it's an omen of a trade You've got to give him time and let him play...
anyway, who knows ...

[urunobili]

why Barry didn't play more minutes on this game?

[1Parker1]

I think Pop should seriously consider inserting Udoka in the starting lineup in place of Finley. Finley getting inconsistent minutes as a starter is making him an inconsistent player. Not to mention, he's not exactly a 3 point threat as of late. That combined with Bowen's lack of offense leaves Parker and Duncan to shoulder the entire offense for the STARTERS. That's a huge task against above .500 team starters. I think Udoka would benefit from extended playing time along Duncan and Parker and he's a good 3 point shooter as well.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

I agree that Udoka should be experimented with in the starting lineup.
He's coming along nicely so far.

[bigfundamental21]

Yes, the switch needs to be flipped. I myself am getting impatient and tired of watching lackluster performances. The Big 3 are trying to carry the team, but with Pop giving inconsistent minutes to the rest of the team, it is hard for anyone to get any rhythym. Does anyone think that Pop will put Manu in the starting lineup at some point? He seems to do this every year and I am just wondering if that time is coming soon. With 12 of the next 14 games on the road, we need to flip that switch soon or we will be looking at a number 7 or 8 seed in the West. I know it doesn't look good now, but you have to believe that the Spurs still have it in them. Believe.

[duncan228]

If the Coyote would have made the short jet ride over to Houston, I’m sure Pop would have figured out a way to get him out on the court.

:lol

Thanks for the thoughts and the humor.

It's strange, but I'm not that concerned. I was more concerned last year at this same point.
I believe they will work it all out. This team is old but they are experienced and they know what's at stake. The next few weeks are crucial. I expect them to come together on the road, and I expect them to be on the rise heading into the ASG.
I'm not watching the win/loss column right now, I'm watching the team. Their attitude is what pulls them together on the RRT, and I've seen seen flashes of it in the last 2 games. By SPAM I think we will see the team we know fall into place.

[whottt]

Again I'm going to challlenge your stance that Barry isn't a good match for the Rockets...

One of the best games of Barry's career as a Spur came against the Rockets...with Tim Duncan out, and we blew the Rockets out in the 4th quarter of that game, in large part because of Barry.


Yet for some reason Pop usually elects not to play Barry much against the Rockets, and those have been some of the most frustrating losses of the past 3-4 years.


Just show me a game where Barry did get a lot of minutes against the Rockets that justifies your(and Pop's) stance that he isn't a good matchup for them...

[LaMarcus Bryant]

whawhotttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt???


pznwnt


BTW, fuck home court advantage. It's good for the spurs to not have home court advantage, makes them earn their victories through harder work come playoff time.

[exstatic]

Championships have turned Spurs Fan into the cockiest of all fans in existence outside of Yankee Fan.
I think it's more like the annual swoon/recovery that does it.

[da_suns_fan]

No mention of the fact that the Spurs only scored 81 points. This is the seventh time in eleven games the Spurs have failed to reach 90.

How do you only score 81 points in an NBA game?

I looked at the boxscore expecting the shooting percentages to be in the low 30s. They weren't (45% shooting for the Spurs).

The Spurs did miss almost half their free throws, but even if they would have hit them all, they would have only scored 89.

Were there a ton of turnovers? Nope. They only had twelve.

So how in gods name do you only score 81 points in a 48 minute NBA game?

[spurms]

No mention of the fact that the Spurs only scored 81 points. This is the seventh time in eleven games the Spurs have failed to reach 90.

How do you only score 81 points in an NBA game?

I looked at the boxscore expecting the shooting percentages to be in the low 30s. They weren't (45% shooting for the Spurs).

The Spurs did miss almost half their free throws, but even if they would have hit them all, they would have only scored 89.

Were there a ton of turnovers? Nope. They only had twelve.

So how in gods name do you only score 81 points in a 48 minute NBA game?

that's because playing a half court offense always plays into the hand of the rockets, and spurs are that sort of team.

[Kori Ellis]

So how in gods name do you only score 81 points in a 48 minute NBA game?

By missing over 1/2 your freethrows and letting the Rockets get so many O boards. Rockets shot 12 more FGA than the Spurs due to the O boards and the turnover difference.

[ploto]

The points about this so-called "switch flipping" are dead on and exactly the point I've been hammering on for a few weeks now. What if there is no juice left when the Spurs attempt to "flip that switch?"


I wrote about this a few days ago and got hammered-- timvp writes it, and now it is Gospel. :depressed

[timvp]

Again I'm going to challlenge your stance that BarryShocking.

At least with Barry back you are posting again :tu


One of the best games of Barry's career as a Spur came against the Rockets...with Tim Duncan out, and we blew the Rockets out in the 4th quarter of that game, in large part because of Barry.
Which game is that? I'm not like you -- I don't mentally reference games by how well Barry plays.

Wait, are you talking about that meaningless game at the end of the '06 season? The game better known for Beno getting stripped by Chuck Hayes and basically ending his Spurs career?

Please tell me you aren't talking about that game. Neither team was trying and it was a meaningless game for both teams. IIRC, Duncan, Parker, McGrady and Yao all didn't play that game.

Seriously, please don't tell me you are speaking of that game. Pointing to that game as "one of Barry's career best games" would be your lamest take of all time. Preseason games are played with more intensity than that game -- literally.


Yet for some reason Pop usually elects not to play Barry much against the Rockets, and those have been some of the most frustrating losses of the past 3-4 years. Last night, specifically, Barry either had to chase around a small guard (Head), get banged around by a bruiser (Wells) or attempt to defend McGrady. Ginobili was on Battier. Bowen/Udoka was on McGrady. You want Barry on Head or Wells? He's not a good matchup for either.

And when he was in the game, the Spurs got smoked defensively.


Just show me a game where Barry did get a lot of minutes against the Rockets that justifies your(and Pop's) stance that he isn't a good matchup for them...The Spurs have lost their last four games against the Rockets when Barry has played at least 20 minutes. Coming into this game, the Spurs had won their last five games against the Rockets when Barry played less than 20 minutes.

Read the above paragraph again to realize how much ownage you just ran into. That's some ungodly ownage.


whawhotttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt???


pznwntYou, too.

[da_suns_fan]

By missing over 1/2 your freethrows and letting the Rockets get so many O boards. Rockets shot 12 more FGA than the Spurs due to the O boards and the turnover difference.

Thats true....I didn't see the game but assume the Rockets milked the shot clock after every offensive rebound.

[timvp]

So how in gods name do you only score 81 points in a 48 minute NBA game?You were born to be a Sun Fan.

[whottt]

whawhotttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt???


pznwnt


Thanks :tu


With even Pop claiming that the offense, not the defense, is the problem(which incidentally coincides with Barry's absence)...Barry needs to be getting more minutes.






BTW, fuck home court advantage. It's good for the spurs to not have home court advantage, makes them earn their victories through harder work come playoff time.


Agree...a lot of mock drafts are predicting Kevin Love will go in the bottom 15 picks...this guy alongside Duncan would be a thing of beauty...

Of course, a youg bigman does not appear to be our greatest future need(that would be 2 guard), and Love has some legitimate defensive weaknesses, but still....it'd be awesome to have two players that are masters of fundamental play on our frontline...

[da_suns_fan]

You were born to be a Sun Fan.

I might make that my sig.

[whottt]

Shocking.

At least with Barry back you are posting again :tu

Which game is that? I'm not like you -- I don't mentally reference games by how well Barry plays.

Wait, are you talking about that meaningless game at the end of the '06 season? The game better known for Beno getting stripped by Chuck Hayes and basically ending his Spurs career?

Please tell me you aren't talking about that game. Neither team was trying and it was a meaningless game for both teams. IIRC, Duncan, Parker, McGrady and Yao all didn't play that game.

Seriously, please don't tell me you are speaking of that game. Pointing to that game as "one of Barry's career best games" would be your lamest take of all time. Preseason games are played with more intensity than that game -- literally.


No...I'm talking about the final matchup against the Rockets of the 04-05 season where Duncan was injured...


To quote Kori Ellis:

Barry was frickin awesome.






Last night, specifically, Barry either had to chase around a small guard (Head), get banged around by a bruiser (Wells) or attempt to defend McGrady. Ginobili was on Battier. Bowen/Udoka was on McGrady. You want Barry on Head or Wells? He's not a good matchup for either.

Defense was not the problem....offense was, and Barry doesn't do any worse against MaGrady than anyone else does...

It'd be one thing if we stopped him...we don't. Might as well get some offense in there.








And when he was in the game, the Spurs got smoked defensively.

LOL the 5 minutes he was playing?


Well in that case Pop was correct to not play him...we might have lost otherwise :rolleyes




The Spurs have lost their last four games against the Rockets when Barry has played at least 20 minutes. Coming into this game, the Spurs had won their last five games against the Rockets when Barry played less than 20 minutes.

You can't just throw an arbitrary 20 minute mark out there and expect me to consider it relevant....


The fact that you do think you can pull that off is quite revealing..


What's next? You going to trot out last nights +/- numbers?




Read the above paragraph again to realize how much ownage you just ran into. That's some ungodly ownage.


Yeah? And go back and read some previous Timvp's game thoughts VS the Rockets from this season and see if you still feel you have owned anyone...

[td4mvp21]

The reason our offense is suffering is because over half of our plays are ISOLATIONS! I saw isolations for four guys-Duncan, Ginobili, Parker, and Finley. Worst of all, NONE of those guys passed it when they had no where to go-they continued to work the isolation and ended up jacking up tough contested shots. Thankfully, Ginobili and Duncan made a couple of them. Finley didn't hit much. This game Parker didn't force as much as he had been, he actually hit some very good shots with consistency. Furthermore, Pop draws up isolations for these players when there are NO OTHER THREATS ON THE FLOOR. The lineup at the end of the first, start of second, end of third, start of fourth are horrible and make absolutely no sense at all. To sum it up, there is no passing, no team work, and the offense is fucking predictable. That is why it is suffering. It is very easy to stop. Especially considering our role players haven't been hitting their shots with any consistency.

[wildbill2u]

Amazing that all our experts here can't figure out what is wrong and agree on a way to fix it. Just imagine the dilemma Pop is in.

Pop went with Oberto against Yao, giving up a lot of size and weight against a player who will kill you if you foul him. Props to Oberto for playing him that well and not fouling out. Incredibly, Pop put Elson in at the end of the game, cold, and not playing much lately. It didn't work.

[ClingingMars]

No mention of the fact that the Spurs only scored 81 points. This is the seventh time in eleven games the Spurs have failed to reach 90.

How do you only score 81 points in an NBA game?

I looked at the boxscore expecting the shooting percentages to be in the low 30s. They weren't (45% shooting for the Spurs).

The Spurs did miss almost half their free throws, but even if they would have hit them all, they would have only scored 89.

Were there a ton of turnovers? Nope. They only had twelve.

So how in gods name do you only score 81 points in a 48 minute NBA game?

how in gods name do you give up over 100 pts a game and expect to win?

-Mars

[timvp]

No...I'm talking about the final matchup against the Rockets of the 04-05 season where Duncan was injured...


To quote Kori Ellis:

Barry was frickin awesome. Well at least you weren't speaking of that other game. Your lamest takes ever are safe, for now :lol


Barry doesn't do any worse against MaGrady than anyone else does...

It'd be one thing if we stopped him...we don't. Might as well get some offense in there.
I spoke too soon . . .

Barry guards McGrady as well as Bowen and/or Udoka? You sure you want to stick to that take?

McGrady was held to under ten points last night. Granted he was returning from injury but Bowen and Udoka played him well. McGrady on one leg probably goes off for 30 on Barry.


LOL the 5 minutes he was playing?


Well in that case Pop was correct to not play him...we might have lost otherwise :rolleyesShould Pop have just kept playing him? Spurs vs. Rockets has been a defensive struggle for years. The Spurs haven't scored 100 points versus the Rockets in I don't know how long. To beat them, you have to out-defend them.


You can't just throw an arbitrary 20 minute mark out there and expect me to consider it relevant....


The fact that you do think you can pull that off is quite revealing..The Spurs win when Barry doesn't play against the Rockets and lose when he does. How much simpler do you want it?

You were the one asking for proof. It doesn't get much more elementary than that.


Yeah? And go back and read some previous Timvp's game thoughts VS the Rockets from this season and see if you still feel you have owned anyone...While you are searching, maybe you can tell me what whottt said after Barry laid that 22 trillion against the Sonics in the playoffs.

[mbass]

That's been said before.

Spurs losing is not normal so anything what is not normal is being noticed and critisized. Everybody wants to win.

As for the spurs.
last year they were playing even worse at that time of the year, and I had great concern. Spurs won the title. Right now I'm not so much concern and maybe it is not that good.

Last year Kori said that the spurs won't win unless they will make a trade.


What about the rotation?
How should it look like at this stage?

Try Udoka at point ?????

TP
Fin
Bruce
TD
Oberto
-------
Barry
Udoka
Gino
-----
Elson
Voughn
Bonner
Horry


Extreamly hard to do it. Still probably we have to put Jaque into the 8-man rotation. What does that mean?

That meand there will be no chance for Udoka or/and Barry (depends if the spurs want to keep the small ball for longer stretches)

[duncan228]

Amazing that all our experts here can't figure out what is wrong and agree on a way to fix it. Just imagine the dilemma Pop is in.


:lmao

Classic.

[baseline bum]

Championships have turned Spurs Fan into the cockiest of all fans in existence outside of Yankee Fan.

I was in full-panic mode last year at this time, and then the freaking team goes 16-4 on the way to winning a title. I have to confess to having no idea what to think about losses like this until March and April roll around.

[da_suns_fan]

how in gods name do you give up over 100 pts a game and expect to win?

-Mars

Score 101.

[SpursDynasty]

Well, as has been the case many times this season, the other team just happened to get their shots to go down, no big deal..There have been a couple of bullshit losses that we should have won:

December 13@Lakers: Lost 102-97, we were without Parker AND Duncan in this one. The Lakers just got a lot of open looks in this one.
December 17 vs. Phoenix: Lost 100-95, we were without Parker and we lost because we let Grant Hill go 8-for-12 from the field. A couple of bounces here and there and win this game.
December 19@Memphis: Lost 88-85 as some no-name Rudy Gay hits what will probably be the high point of his career, a bullshit game-winner. It didn't help that we were without Parker.
December 28 vs Toronto: Our shots didn't go in and theirs did. Simple as that
January 3@Denver: Lost 80-77. Once again, a bounce here or there and a miss here or there for them, and we win.
January 17 and 19: Two bullshit losses to Cleveland and Houston, each by 2 points. These 2 teams are among the league's worst with the league's most overrated fluke players behind Dwight Howard: LeBron James and Tracy McGrady.

[bdictjames]

I wish the grades were back.

[td4mvp21]

I was in full-panic mode last year at this time, and then the freaking team goes 16-4 on the way to winning a title. I have to confess to having no idea what to think about losses like this until March and April roll around.

I think this year is worse than last year

[Russ]

I think this year is worse than last year
The trend on maturing dynasties is to take a tougher road to the title in each successive year (see Lakers 2000-'02 and Spurs '03-'07). Each started with the best overall record in the league and slid progessively, daring the fates a little more each time. Getting a little more cocky each time. Then it ends.

I am still optimistic about this version of the Spurs but I think HCA for a round or two is critical. The factor that people who discount the HCA forget is travel (vs. the abiility to win on a hostile court, which the Spurs have).

The magnitude of the travel diference is deceptive. For example, if you end a series in 5, whether you have HCA for the next series is huge. You don't have to travel for a week or more if you have HCA in the next series -- it's almost like a mini training camp until Game 3 of the next series. Getting a solid week at home during the playoff marathon is critical, especially for a team of the Spurs "vintage" agewise. Have the Spurs ever won when they didn't have that amount of time at home at some point?

Also, ending a series in 5 is easier if you have HCA -- then you only spend two games away from home. Winning in 6 without HCA, entails a longer series and two travel trips.

Therefore, my advice to the Spurs is to get in gear and don't try to play with fire. :toast

[Ice009]

I think Pop should seriously consider inserting Udoka in the starting lineup in place of Finley. Finley getting inconsistent minutes as a starter is making him an inconsistent player. Not to mention, he's not exactly a 3 point threat as of late. That combined with Bowen's lack of offense leaves Parker and Duncan to shoulder the entire offense for the STARTERS. That's a huge task against above .500 team starters. I think Udoka would benefit from extended playing time along Duncan and Parker and he's a good 3 point shooter as well.

I said this in the game thread last night. No one seemed to agree with me about starting Udoka. Any one else think it would be worth a shot?

[td4mvp21]

I said this in the game thread last night. No one seemed to agree with me about starting Udoka. Any one else think it would be worth a shot?

That's just another guy for the defense to sag off of. Having Finley out there is good, most games he hits his open shots. Others, like last night, he doesn't.

[Slinkyman]

I said this in the game thread last night. No one seemed to agree with me about starting Udoka. Any one else think it would be worth a shot?

I don't agree but think Udoka should get more minutes, more then finley anyway.

[Ice009]

That's just another guy for the defense to sag off of. Having Finley out there is good, most games he hits his open shots. Others, like last night, he doesn't.


That's the thing, if Udoka starts and gets into a rhythm from the open looks Tim will give him he might be an even bigger offensive threat than Michael, plus his defense will be better and may help us finish the first quarter with leads. We won't know usless we give it a go. Pop should have tried something like this a lot earlier though. He needs to do it soon if he's even thinking about it at all.

[Ice009]

I don't agree but think Udoka should get more minutes, more then finley anyway.


Udoka seems to be playing a lot better lately, stats might not show it but he's definitely playing better. I hope Pop is thinking about giving him a shot at the rotation NOW and not waiting until next season.

[SenorSpur]

Udoka seems to be playing a lot better lately, stats might not show it but he's definitely playing better. I hope Pop is thinking about giving him a shot at the rotation NOW and not waiting until next season.

He definitely should. When a team is struggling, the coaching staff SHOULD try different options in order to get them jump-started. I like this idea a lot. Why wait until next season to give the guy significant minutes if he's earned them now.

[td4mvp21]

He definitely should. When a team is struggling, the coaching staff SHOULD try different options in order to get them jump-started. I like this idea a lot. Why wait until next season to give the guy significant minutes if he's earned them now.

The problem is Udoka isn't consistently hitting his shots-Finley has been more consistent than Udoka.

[Ice009]

The problem is Udoka isn't consistently hitting his shots-Finley has been more consistent than Udoka.


That's why you should start Udoka or at least give him more minutes, let him play through his mistakes. It's worse not giving someone like Udoka a real chance and then losing at the same time. Might aswell give him a shot. Also, Finley wasn't hitting jack shit off the bench either. Who knows, maybe Udoka starts hitting everything if he's in the starting 5 and getting open looks from Tim. Won't know unless Pop tries it out.

[greens]

-Manu Ginobili had a favorable outing for the most part. His shot looks really good right now and he’s being aggressive offensively. Ginobili hit 4-of-7 three-pointers on his way to 21 points, five rebounds and four assists. Offensively, Ginobili did about all he could. Defensively, I thought he could have boxed out better in a number of situations. Ginobili also had a bonehead foul on Yao at the end of the first half. 94 feet away from the Rockets’ basket and with less than a second to go in the half, Ginobili fouled Yao on a reach in foul – leading to two Yao free throws. As Ginobili matures as a player, he has to better understand time and situation and when it’s inappropriate to go for a steal or blocked shot. It turned out that those two points could have been useful at the end of the game.




Honestly, I don't think the game was lost over those two points right before the halftime. The Spurs had plenty and plenty opportunities to win the game and more than enough time to do. I think the main problem was indeed the rebounds as you had mentioned, and the fact that outside of the Big Three, no one seems to really step up anymore....

As for that foul, yeah, it wasn't a smart foul at all...but every single player makes a couple of bad plays during a game...kind of weird to point out this foul right at the halftime, when it's kind of meaningless...the game was more lost in the fourth quarter, in the very few minutes left...basically.

Plus, I think Manu is one of the very few Spurs players at the moment playing with any intensity at all and has been scoring rather nicely in the last few games even with that splint on his finger...take away his points in this game, the Spurs would have lost by more than 20 pts...

[td4mvp21]

That's why you should start Udoka or at least give him more minutes, let him play through his mistakes. It's worse not giving someone like Udoka a real chance and then losing at the same time. Might aswell give him a shot. Also, Finley wasn't hitting jack shit off the bench either. Who knows, maybe Udoka starts hitting everything if he's in the starting 5 and getting open looks from Tim. Won't know unless Pop tries it out.

True, I'm not opposed to the suggestion, I'm basically playing devil's advocate Very good point. Not sure if Pop would do that though.

[ClingingMars]

Score 101.

the glaring failure in that logic is that there are nights where your guys are simply going to be cold, and playing 0 defense like usual won't work. If you play solid defense every game, whether your offense is flowing or not, you have a chance to win every game.

-Mars

[Manu-of-steel]

i beg to dis agree with the idea of inserting manu in the starting line-up. if the bench players are sucking right now, and manu is in the starting 5, who will act as the energizer bunny from our thin bench? as spurs fan, i'm also worried on the way our team is playing, but deep inside me, i still think there's a long way to go for them to catch up. i hope our team find it's way into playing their type of basketball again.. mabuhay spurs! laban kung laban!

[Please_dont_ban_me]

i beg to dis agree with the idea of inserting manu in the starting line-up. if the bench players are sucking right now, and manu is in the starting 5, who will act as the energizer bunny from our thin bench? as spurs fan, i'm also worried on the way our team is playing, but deep inside me, i still think there's a long way to go for them to catch up. i hope our team find it's way into playing their type of basketball again.. mabuhay spurs! laban kung laban!

I disagree, we're not a long ways off.

I think if we were just a little more hungry and less lackadaisical we'd be fine.

[Please_dont_ban_me]

That's why you should start Udoka or at least give him more minutes, let him play through his mistakes. It's worse not giving someone like Udoka a real chance and then losing at the same time. Might aswell give him a shot. Also, Finley wasn't hitting jack shit off the bench either. Who knows, maybe Udoka starts hitting everything if he's in the starting 5 and getting open looks from Tim. Won't know unless Pop tries it out.

I don't think Pop trusts Udoka.

The only time I've seen him start someone where he really didn't know what he was getting was with Tony Parker. And Udoka's no Tony Parker. He's more of a...Malik Rose. You can develop him off the bench with extra minutes. No need to start him.

[spurspf]

Yes he is and it will come next Wednesday against the Lakers. :grim:

It usually does, but I think that it has to do more with Kobe, leaving Bruce completely alone to go freeranging on defense. Bruce alone in the corner means bang.

[timvp]

I think this year is worse than last yearNo way. Last year was the worst of all the swoons over the years. The Spurs looked horrible at this time last year. And they looked horrible until the middle of February.

[thousandth]

I watched the game two times. I'm just a little bit masochistic.
Where's Fin's offensive What the hell...? Why Bonner in last minutes Brent shoot! Tony what's happening?

Only Tim, Manu, Ime and Fad didn't take it lying down'. Only this guys fought their way out of.

Props Oberto for a pretty game against Yao. Oberto 6-10 245 Yao 7-6 310. Yao scored only five times on him (3:29 remaining 1st quarter Yao scored his first two points. 5:32' 2nd q. 8:05 3rd q. 5:59 Yao Layup Shot: Missed Block: Oberto 1 BLK. 3:05 4th q Oberto foul and Yao Free throw 2 of 2. 2:24 4th q) 10 points in 30'. Good job for Fab.

Props to Ime, too.

I don't think Pop trusts Udoka.


You must have heard it from ...somewhere

[thousandth]

-Francisco Elson was the first bigman off the bench for the Spurs. He contributed two turnovers, three missed shots and a foul in his six minutes of play. Oh and don’t forget how he got an offensive rebound for the Rockets late in the game by knocking it away from Duncan and Oberto. Behind Yao, Elson might have been the second best Rocket on the court tonight.



Sadly. That's right.

[G-Nob]

I truly believe the Spurs made progress in Houston. They were swingin the ball better, moving better on defense, and letting the game come to them. Unfortunately, the boards and the turnovers killed us. Even with the Rockets making their run in the 3rd quarter, the spurs had a chance to win and probably would've had battier not gotten that last rebound. The spurs were getting out to quick starts in the beginning of the season and I think that stemmed from moving the ball better on offense. A couple of folks in here are dead on when they said the spurs offense becomes so stagnant when they try to isolate one on one. I still think we'll see more of the same positive steps today in Charlotte and again as this rodeo trip gets underway. Do I think they need to make a move? Possibly, to provide a little more offensive punch off the bench. Two guys I think the spurs can live without right now are Finley and Elson. But even if the Spurs don't make a move, I have confidence these guys can make it work again.