duncan228
05-09-2008, 11:10 PM
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA050908.01C.BKNspurs.hornets.main.38891e9.html
Spurs plan to give Paul his space, not his assists
By Jeff McDonald
Express-News
For what seemed like the hundredth time in a Western Conference semifinal series that wasn't yet three games old, New Orleans' Chris Paul was on the loose again.
Tony Parker tried to grab him. Tim Duncan tried to bump him. Paul went spinning, like a woozy carnival-goer on a Tilt-a-Whirl, until he found himself facing the exact wrong direction for attempting a layup.
Back to the basket, Paul flipped the ball over his head anyway, spinning it high with the English of a pool shark.
As the shot went down, late in the third quarter of the Spurs' much-needed Game 3 victory Thursday, the New Orleans bench “ooooed.” The partisan crowd “aaaahed.” Somewhere, the SportsCenter theme cued.
The Spurs barely blinked. If Paul plans to beat them that way, then more power to him.
“We feel that Chris is going to score,” Spurs forward Kurt Thomas said. “But if we can control everyone else, I think it definitely plays to our benefit.”
Paul scored 35 points and doled out nine assists in a losing effort in Game 3, narrowly missing his third double-double in as many games. What did not happen next could define the rest of this series.
Between now and Game 4 on Sunday, when the Spurs get a shot at getting even in the series, they will not waste much time looking for ways to slow New Orleans' preternatural point guard.
Resigned that Paul probably will find points no matter what brand of defense is thrown at him, the Spurs have put into place a plan to try and slow most everybody else.
Heading into Thursday's Game 3, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich made two significant adjustments.
One — moving super-sub Manu Ginobili into the starting lineup — was made to boost the Spurs' offense. The other — moving top stopper Bruce Bowen from Paul to Peja Stojakovic — was made to buttress the Spurs' defense, which allowed an average of 101.5 points in the first two games.
The second of those adjustments was aimed at limiting the damage of Paul's supporting cast, and it worked. After pumping in 47 points in the first two games, Stojakovic managed just eight in Game 3.
“Chris is going to score regardless. He's got the ball in his hands every single time. Every single play it's Chris Paul,” said Parker, who nearly outdueled Paul with 31 points and 11 assists in Game 3. “So we decided to put Bruce on Peja and at least hold somebody down, because Peja was killing us.”
Running what Popovich has called “an organized playground,” Paul totaled 30 points and 12 assists in the Hornets' 102-84 victory in Game 2.
It was a game notable only in that it was about par for the course for Paul in this year's postseason, and it confirmed what Popovich already had suspected about this year's NBA MVP runner-up.
“He's in that category where you're not going to stop him,” Popovich said.
What galled the Spurs most were not Paul's 30 points, but his 12 assists.
“If he's going to score 30, and still get double-digit assists, that's hard to handle,” Duncan said.
Paul's Game 2 Mardi Gras made Popovich's decision heading into Game 3 an easy one. If Bowen couldn't keep Paul from running roughshod, why not put his best perimeter defender to use somewhere else?
The Spurs essentially decided they could live with a big scoring night from Paul, so long as the likes of Stojakovic and Morris Peterson didn't join the points party.
So Bowen took Stojakovic, and helped harass him into a 2-for-7 night. One game after making all five of his field goals and scoring 12 points, Peterson hit just one shot in Game 3.
Though not the same class of defender as Bowen, Parker had about as much success guarding Paul as anyone (read: not much). Paul scored at will, but Parker nearly matched him shot for shot and pass for pass.
As Game 4 looms, it's the Hornets who are headed back to the drawing board.
“Peja and Mo understand the game, and when they had the looks, they knocked them down,” Paul said. “We have to find a way to get them involved.”
While Paul certainly doesn't mind supplying scoring punch, he knows what the Spurs know.
No man can win a series alone.
Spurs plan to give Paul his space, not his assists
By Jeff McDonald
Express-News
For what seemed like the hundredth time in a Western Conference semifinal series that wasn't yet three games old, New Orleans' Chris Paul was on the loose again.
Tony Parker tried to grab him. Tim Duncan tried to bump him. Paul went spinning, like a woozy carnival-goer on a Tilt-a-Whirl, until he found himself facing the exact wrong direction for attempting a layup.
Back to the basket, Paul flipped the ball over his head anyway, spinning it high with the English of a pool shark.
As the shot went down, late in the third quarter of the Spurs' much-needed Game 3 victory Thursday, the New Orleans bench “ooooed.” The partisan crowd “aaaahed.” Somewhere, the SportsCenter theme cued.
The Spurs barely blinked. If Paul plans to beat them that way, then more power to him.
“We feel that Chris is going to score,” Spurs forward Kurt Thomas said. “But if we can control everyone else, I think it definitely plays to our benefit.”
Paul scored 35 points and doled out nine assists in a losing effort in Game 3, narrowly missing his third double-double in as many games. What did not happen next could define the rest of this series.
Between now and Game 4 on Sunday, when the Spurs get a shot at getting even in the series, they will not waste much time looking for ways to slow New Orleans' preternatural point guard.
Resigned that Paul probably will find points no matter what brand of defense is thrown at him, the Spurs have put into place a plan to try and slow most everybody else.
Heading into Thursday's Game 3, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich made two significant adjustments.
One — moving super-sub Manu Ginobili into the starting lineup — was made to boost the Spurs' offense. The other — moving top stopper Bruce Bowen from Paul to Peja Stojakovic — was made to buttress the Spurs' defense, which allowed an average of 101.5 points in the first two games.
The second of those adjustments was aimed at limiting the damage of Paul's supporting cast, and it worked. After pumping in 47 points in the first two games, Stojakovic managed just eight in Game 3.
“Chris is going to score regardless. He's got the ball in his hands every single time. Every single play it's Chris Paul,” said Parker, who nearly outdueled Paul with 31 points and 11 assists in Game 3. “So we decided to put Bruce on Peja and at least hold somebody down, because Peja was killing us.”
Running what Popovich has called “an organized playground,” Paul totaled 30 points and 12 assists in the Hornets' 102-84 victory in Game 2.
It was a game notable only in that it was about par for the course for Paul in this year's postseason, and it confirmed what Popovich already had suspected about this year's NBA MVP runner-up.
“He's in that category where you're not going to stop him,” Popovich said.
What galled the Spurs most were not Paul's 30 points, but his 12 assists.
“If he's going to score 30, and still get double-digit assists, that's hard to handle,” Duncan said.
Paul's Game 2 Mardi Gras made Popovich's decision heading into Game 3 an easy one. If Bowen couldn't keep Paul from running roughshod, why not put his best perimeter defender to use somewhere else?
The Spurs essentially decided they could live with a big scoring night from Paul, so long as the likes of Stojakovic and Morris Peterson didn't join the points party.
So Bowen took Stojakovic, and helped harass him into a 2-for-7 night. One game after making all five of his field goals and scoring 12 points, Peterson hit just one shot in Game 3.
Though not the same class of defender as Bowen, Parker had about as much success guarding Paul as anyone (read: not much). Paul scored at will, but Parker nearly matched him shot for shot and pass for pass.
As Game 4 looms, it's the Hornets who are headed back to the drawing board.
“Peja and Mo understand the game, and when they had the looks, they knocked them down,” Paul said. “We have to find a way to get them involved.”
While Paul certainly doesn't mind supplying scoring punch, he knows what the Spurs know.
No man can win a series alone.