Game Thoughts: Spurs vs. Hornets Game 4

[timvp]

The San Antonio Spurs had a chance to even the series in Game 4 and they took advantage of the opportunity. After leading 24-22 at the end of the first quarter, the Spurs started the second period by going on a 21-6 run. San Antonio never looked back on their way to a 100-80 victory.

The New Orleans Hornets finally showed that they are indeed mortal. After playing great basketball in the first three games, the Hornets struggled in Game 4. New Orleans got outrebounded 45-36 and had 15 less assists (27 to 12). After shooting nearly 50% over the first three games, the Hornets shot 40.2% from the field on this night. Chris Paul was good (23 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals) but nobody else on his team played up to their capabilities.

The Spurs, on the other hand, shot the ball well – hitting 51.3% of their shots from the field. Although they hit only 8-of-26 three-pointers, they hit enough shots early on to soften up the middle for Tim Duncan to operate.

Defensively, the Spurs seem to be getting better and better in this series. They know exactly what the gameplan is on defense and the Spurs are doing a good job for the most part. Truthfully though, the Hornets helped out tonight by missing a good number of open shots.

Overall, this was a very impressive win for the Spurs. San Antonio needed this type of victory not only for their confidence, but to also hopefully make the Hornets start thinking. This series is far from over but the Spurs are suddenly looking okay.

-Welcome back to the playoffs, Tim Duncan. While I’m not a fan of excuses in the playoffs, it’s now obvious that Duncan was sick earlier in the series. The good news is that he looked 100% in Game 4. Duncan finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds, four blocks and three assists. His production was close to what I politely asked for prior to the game (http://spurstalk.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2483761&postcount=26), however I didn’t expect the Hornets to abandon their early and often double-teams. Without double-teams, Duncan was unstoppable. He made 10-of-13 field goal attempts – and one of those misses was a halfcourt heave. Defensively, Duncan was extremely active and was closing down the paint. Game 4 was obviously Duncan’s best game of the series and hopefully it’s a sign of what we can expect going forward.

-Manu Ginobili played a good game. He didn’t play at a Game 3 level, but then again the Spurs didn’t need it. Ginobili finished with 15 points, eight assists and four rebounds. He did a very good job of creating offense throughout his time on the court – whether by scoring or finding the open man. While he didn’t shoot great (5-for-13) and had four turnovers, he was playing the type of cerebral game the Spurs need out of him. Defensively, Ginobili still can improve a bit but it was his best showing on that end of the court in the series. The Hornets put Peja Stojakovic on him more than usual, which is a matchup that Ginobili must exploit. Honestly, the Hornets have no one who can guard Ginobili when Ginobili is at his best.

-Tony Parker’s numbers weren’t overly impressive but I think this was one of Parker’s best playoff games of his career. He was totally in control offensively and made almost flawless decisions throughout the contest. Parker attacked the Hornets relentlessly but at the same time his playmaking abilities were on full display. Basically, Parker played like a mature point guard who knew exactly what he wanted to do. He finished the game with 21 points, eight assists and six rebounds, while shooting 8-for-12 from the field. He also led the Spurs with a plus/minus of +25. Defensively against Paul, Parker defended him about as well as possible, especially if Paul’s repeated push offs won’t be called. Overall, I was just extremely impressed with Parker’s play. The intelligence and maturity he played with were off the charts. Hopefully he can bring this level of play to Game 5.

-Defensively, Bruce Bowen was very good. He got up into Stojakovic and totally took Stojakovic out of his rhythm. Stojakovic had six points on 3-for-9 shooting from the floor. After scoring 47 points in the first two games, Bowen held him to 14 points in the next two contests. Bowen containing Stojakovic is vital for the Spurs to have a chance in this series. Offensively, Bowen wasn’t as productive. He shot only 3-for-9 from the field, including 1-for-7 from three-point land. Bowen will need to shoot much better if the Spurs are going to be able to win a road game. Though if Bowen can outscore Stojakovic, it’s hard to be too disappointed in Bowen’s play.

-The lack of offensive cohesion between Kurt Thomas and the rest of the team was evident tonight. Thomas just doesn’t have the same chemistry offensively that the other players have in this system. The offense stalled with Thomas on the court and luckily Pop recognized that fact and limited Thomas to only eight minutes. Thomas played good defense and pulled down three rebounds in those eight minutes, but he needs to find a way not to be a liability offensively.

-After only playing garbage minutes in Game 3, Pop put Ime Udoka back into the rotation and Udoka responded by playing his best game of the postseason. In 23 minutes, Udoka had 15 points, six rebounds and four steals, while shooting 5-for-8 from the field and 3-for-5 from beyond the arc. When Udoka is hitting shots, he’s an asset for the Spurs. Defensively, he was outstanding against Bonzi Wells. The 21-6 run in the second quarter started and ended when Udoka entered and exited the game. He was a huge part of this win. Now if he can hit his perimeter jumper, he can continue being a difference-maker.

-Michael Finley struggled a bit early on but eventually turned it around. He finished the game with 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field and 2-for-4 from three-point land. Finley also chipped in three rebounds and three assists in his 23 minutes of action. Defensively, he left a lot to be desired but his D also got better later in the game. Finley’s ability to score off the bench has been huge over the last two games. If Ginobili is going to start, the bench needs to find someone to score – and Finley appears to be the best option right now.

-Fabricio Oberto played a good ballgame. His stats look very pedestrian (four points and zero rebounds in 20 minutes) but the numbers don’t tell the whole story. He was making good passes and setting good screens offensively. Defensively, he still struggled but wasn’t a complete sieve against David West like he was in the first three games. He can play better defense and obviously it’d be nice if he grabbed a rebound but right now the offensive chemistry he has with the rest of the team is invaluable.

-Robert Horry got a couple minutes of first half action and I thought he played well in those minutes. He hit a turnaround jumper, played good defense and then was active on the boards. It was the most agile and powerful Horry looked all playoffs. If he’s called upon again, at least now there’s precedence of him being his old self.

-Brent Barry, Jacque Vaughn and Damon Stoudamire got garbage time at the end of the game. The only notable thing I saw was Barry appeared to have trouble accelerating, which isn’t a good sign for someone coming back from a pair of calf injuries. Hopefully he was just stiff and not limited by injury.

-Pop basically stuck to the Game 3 plan in Game 4 and it worked really well. The Hornets finally missed some shots and that allowed the Spurs to pull away. Pop threw in some new wrinkles like playing Udoka and calling more plays for Ginobili, but overall it was basically the same gameplan.

The outcome of the game was about as perfect as Pop could have drawn it up. The Spurs blew the Hornets out and then Pop was able to rest the starters in the fourth quarter. That fourth quarter rest could prove to be huge in Game 5, especially since there is only one day off between games. I like how Pop put his trust in the bench players early in the fourth even though the Hornets theoretically had time to make a run.

Pop also deserves props for handing over the reins to Parker. In past years, Pop still was the one who ran the show. This year in the playoffs, more than ever, it’s Parker who is in control. This type of performance out of Parker was a direct result of Pop showing confidence in him and giving him the room to grow.

The bottomline is the Spurs are back to where they started the series. It’s now a best of three series with the Hornets having homecourt. Game 5 is extremely important – in fact, I think it’s safe to say that the winner of Game 5 is going to win the series. The Spurs have the momentum and the gameplan to go down to New Orleans and get a victory. Get Game 5.

Believe.

[T Park]

Truthfully though, the Hornets helped out tonight by missing a good number of open shots.


Helped is a strong strong overstatement.

The Spurs shut them down. THe missed open looks was a direct result of the good defense in that they are getting rattled.
No question.

[Trainwreck2100]

After only playing garbage minutes in Game 3, Pop put Ime Udoka back into the rotation and Udoka responded by playing his best game of the postseason. In 23 minutes, Udoka had 15 points, six rebounds and four steals, while shooting 5-for-8 from the field and 3-for-5 from beyond the arc. When Udoka is hitting shots, he’s an asset for the Spurs. Defensively, he was outstanding against Bonzi Wells. The 21-6 run in the second quarter started and ended when Udoka entered and exited the game. He was a huge part of this win. Now if he can hit his perimeter jumper, he can continue being a difference-maker.

He had that nice drive to, which showed he wouldn't necessarily settle for the open 3


I like how Pop put his trust in the bench players early in the fourth even though the Hornets theoretically had time to make a run.

Scott blinked first, pop had his starters out to begin the 4th, Gino stayed in a couple minutes extra. That was stupid on Scott's part IMO, cayse why give the old guy rest?

[timvp]

Helped is a strong strong overstatement.

The Spurs shut them down. THe missed open looks was a direct result of the good defense in that they are getting rattled.
No question.Eh, they missed more open shots than they did the first three games of the series combined. Then again, they were due. Eventually, they had to stop shooting 70-80% on open shots.

[SouthernFried]

3rd "must win" game in a row...

Have to admit tho, these last 2 were a little bit more crucial. We can still win this if we lose in NO in game 5 (history notwithstanding). If we'd lost either of these last 2, it was over.

Still, game 5's being what they are...

Yea, I believe :)

[4001 STEREO SPUR]

Helped is a strong strong overstatement.

The Spurs shut them down. THe missed open looks was a direct result of the good defense in that they are getting rattled.
No question.

AMEN!

The SPURS defense was in the house tonight. Please bring it again
for game 5.....and the Hornets are as good as done!!

:elephant:elephant

[MannyIsGod]

http://spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94866

I called that they'd give Duncan room in the first half. I figured Scott would try it at some point and after the way they tore the double teams apart in game 3 today seemed like the best chance.

Thats the good news, the bad is that I doubt Duncan ever sees that kind of space again in this series. I honestly don't know how they plan on stopping Tony Parker coming off those screens but I'd imagine we may see some zone out of the Hornets. The one time tonight they went to it they actually managed to stall the Spurs for a short period of time. If thats the case, They will need to find some mid range game to exploit it unless Parker and Manu are able to get to the bucket against it.

[SouthernFried]

We missed a few gimme's as well. Early on, both Parker and Duncan missed easy ones...not to mention Manu's dunk attempt (if you needed any more proof of Manu's condition, I think that pretty much answered it.)

But, I agree. Those easy early misses from NO really did seem to affect them more.

[T Park]

Eh, they missed more open shots than they did the first three games of the series combined. Then again, they were due. Eventually, they had to stop shooting 70-80% on open shots.

Peja and MO Pete were the only ones to miss that I know of.

Peja though is so mentally beaten he looks like Roberto Duran out there saying "no mas"

[vander]

calls went our way tonight too, not that we would have lost otherwise, but it was noticeably unbalanced

[T Park]

I don't know, Peja and West missed like 4-5 layups early that they would make 8 out of 10 times. Yea, Spurs were contesting and challenging, but those were GIMMES.


West missed contested gimmies. Theres a difference.

Peja though missed his with guys running at him. Again. Defense.

[T Park]

calls went our way tonight too, not that we would have lost otherwise, but it was noticeably unbalanced


I disagree, it was balanced, but the Hornets got away with alot of moving picks and alot of over the backs on rebounds.

Whatever though.

[timvp]

http://spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94866

I called that they'd give Duncan room in the first half. I figured Scott would try it at some point and after the way they tore the double teams apart in game 3 today seemed like the best chance.

Thats the good news, the bad is that I doubt Duncan ever sees that kind of space again in this series. I honestly don't know how they plan on stopping Tony Parker coming off those screens but I'd imagine we may see some zone out of the Hornets. The one time tonight they went to it they actually managed to stall the Spurs for a short period of time. If thats the case, They will need to find some mid range game to exploit it unless Parker and Manu are able to get to the bucket against it.Yeah, nice call on that Hornets adjustment. SpursTalk on a whole seems to be one step ahead of the coaches in this series. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad sign for the coaches :lol

It was just a matter of time before the Spurs got the Hornets out of their double-team look. You double-team Duncan hard and fast and the Spurs will eventually adjust.

The Hornets main adjustment in Game 5 will probably just be emotional. They'll be amped up in front of their fans. I also expect them to go back to double-teaming Duncan and hope the players have more energy to swarm in front of their home fans (no put intended). Double-teaming also makes sense for the Hornets because otherwise Chandler will almost positively get in foul trouble.

We'll see though. The ball is in Scott's court now. If I'm him, I probably go back to the original gameplan and hope that the Spurs' shooters aren't hitting on the road.

[T Park]

In other words the Hornets are out of bullets and have to hope throwing the gun at the Spurs works.

[T Park]

Those go in, in No.

Uh, they don't go in anywhere when you're scared shitless about the other team.

[Popo>Phil]

-Michael Finley struggled a bit early on but eventually turned it around. He finished the game with 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field and 3-for-5 from three-point land.
2/4 LJ :p:


The only notable thing I saw was Barry appeared to have trouble accelerating, which isn’t a good sign for someone coming back from a pair of calf injuries. Hopefully he was just stiff and not limited by injury
I noticed that too, did he stretch his calf on saving Vaughn's pass?

And I remember Manu missed a dunk, an easy basket, just an incident or sth wrong with his calf?

[timvp]

In other words the Hornets are out of bullets and have to hope throwing the gun at the Spurs works.


Uh, they don't go in anywhere when you're scared shitless about the other team.So at 2-2 without homecourt advantage you are already claiming this series is over?

[SouthernFried]

Yeah, that was a stupid pass by Vaughn to Barry. "Here Barry, I'll lead you by 20 feet, hustle up now."

[T Park]

So at 2-2 without homecourt advantage you are already claiming this series is over?


Depends on how the Hornets come out at the start of game 5.

Although the Hornet's body language and their play tonight sure was a sign of a team thats beaten.

The Spurs are just beating the confidence out of them. Period.

[T Park]

Yeah, that was a stupid pass by Vaughn to Barry. "Here Barry, I'll lead you by 20 feet, hustle up now."


:lol

If Brent can't manage to chase down passes then he needs to hang it up.

[Borosai]

I knew Udoka on Bonzi was a good move. Ime isn't afraid of the contact.

Ime Udoka!

[T Park]

I knew Udoka on Bonzi was a good move. Ime isn't afraid of the contact.

Ime Udoka!

Yeah Ime guarded Bonzi fantastically tonight and that was great to see.

I for one in game 5 would love to see Ime guarding Paul when Tony takes a break.

[timvp]

Depends on how the Hornets come out at the start of game 5.

Although the Hornet's body language and their play tonight sure was a sign of a team thats beaten.

The Spurs are just beating the confidence out of them. Period.2005 Sonics. Spurs easily win first two. Lose a close Game 3. Get blown out in Game 4. Win Game 5 and then steal Game 6.

The Hornets are still in the driver's seat. I'll admit I like where the Spurs are but to being dismissing the Hornets right now is premature. They win Game 5 and then the Spurs are suddenly not looking so superior. And that's not too hard to imagine since the Spurs have gotten blown out three straight times in NO.

[MannyIsGod]

One thing that was great tonight was the decision making. Virtualy every decision made by Tony and Tim ended up excellently for the Spurs.

[T Park]

2005 Sonics. Spurs easily win first two. Lose a close Game 3. Get blown out in Game 4. Win Game 5 and then steal Game 6.

The Hornets are still in the driver's seat. I'll admit I like where the Spurs are but to being dismissing the Hornets right now is premature. They win Game 5 and then the Spurs are suddenly not looking so superior. And that's not too hard to imagine since the Spurs have gotten blown out three straight times in NO.

Not dismissing them, just stating the obvious and that its a team that has lost a million points of confidence and is really pressing like a mofo right now.

The Sonics though are a million times different animal and they had some tested playoff vets. One of the most tested vets the Hornets have is Melvin Ely.

[T Park]

One thing that was great tonight was the decision making. Virtualy every decision made by Tony and Tim ended up excellently for the Spurs.

Yeah the decision making has improved exponentially and in turn the Spurs have tied up the series. Just keep doing what they've been doing. It's really that simple.

[T Park]

One of the huge huge key to this game though was Ginobili's minutes.
His minutes were not alot, and hopefully that ends up showing in game 5. THe Spurs will need a better shooting game out of him and Bowen in game 5. No question.

[Manufan909]

Sadly I missed the first half, so I only have half the story. Actually only a third, because the fourth quarter wasn't needed. How was Ginobili? I'm assuming he wasn't as agressive, since he only took 13 shot overall, but did he look hurt? I'm hoping he just deferred to Duncan and Tony, since they were having monster games, and he couldn't even dunk.:( That bullshit can happen to Bonzi, West, and Parker, but if SuperManu misses one then he's in some serious pain. 15 and 8 isn't bad, though, don't get me wrong. Hell, he had just as many assists as Tony, and 3 more than "best player in the NBA" Chris Paul, so he did great. And he was playing smart, so it's all good.

And Vaughn neds to calm the fuck down. I was like "OH SHIT!!! DUNK IT BRENT!!!!!!!!" And then Vaughn threw his worst pass while dress in silver and black, and ruined it. Usually he's spot on with passes, but not at full speed apparently.

[T Park]

Ginobili played well. Its just guys like Parker and Duncan and others just made the game go on cruise control.
No question Ginobili isn't 100%, but he isn't horribly bad right now.

[jcrod]

Defensively against Paul, Parker defended him about as well as possible, especially if Paul’s repeated push offs won’t be called.

How about the pushes he gets away with on defense. He's been pushing Parker in the back as soon as he goes up for a layup. I don't think there's another player who doesn't receive calls right now more than Parker.

It feels real good to know it was sickness holding Tim back. this team looks soo much better now. They need to win Tuesday. NO will come out swinging in front of their crowd.

[timvp]

Ginobili looked the healthiest he's looked all series. For the Spurs to win Game 5, I think Ginobili is going to have to carry a good chunk of the offensive load. He's the one player on the Spurs the Hornets don't really have an answer for defensively.

[Kori Ellis]

Ginobili looked the healthiest he's looked all series...

And he has that vampire thing going on.

He should go for 40 in Game 5 :drunk

[mystargtr34]

Awesome recap as usual...

Home court advantage is obviously big... but in this particular instance it may help going on the road. I think it might put a little more pressure on the Hornets...

It now becomes a must win for them in the sense that theyl be facing an elemination game on the Road if they dont win the next one. That has to be playing on their minds... I think its more must win for them than it is for the Spurs despite the fact they have the potential game 7 in NO.

I would prefer HCA of course but i kinda like the position we are in right now... the pressure is back on the Hornets for mine.

[T Park]

Ginobili looked the healthiest he's looked all series. For the Spurs to win Game 5, I think Ginobili is going to have to carry a good chunk of the offensive load. He's the one player on the Spurs the Hornets don't really have an answer for defensively.


I disagree, that missed dunk showed that he is not healthy.
He didn't look as good as he did in game 3 IMO of course.

[Manufan909]

Ginobili played well. Its just guys like Parker and Duncan and others just made the game go on cruise control.
No question Ginobili isn't 100%, but he isn't horribly bad right now.

Cool beans. I just hope we get the next two and have to wait for LA to finally win, so Manu can just chill and get some from his wife. He should be good in no time.

[timvp]

I disagree, that missed dunk showed that he is not healthy.
He didn't look as good as he did in game 3 IMO of course.Ginobili was limping around the court in Game 3. After he saved that one pass, he limped for the next five minutes up and down the court.

I didn't see him limping tonight. That miss dunk it just looked like he didn't get a good angle on the jump.

[Manufan909]

Idk, I bet everyone watching and even the NO players thought he would dunk it. I've seen missed dunks by older, washed up players(read: Shaq, Wells), but not SuperManu.

[wildbill2u]

Our Big Three has to be big; their Big three has to be big.

Role players have to do their thing. We have an edge in experience which may help us withstand the pressure.

These teams are so evenly matched, Whichever side blinks, loses.

[Kori Ellis]

I disagree, that missed dunk showed that he is not healthy.
He didn't look as good as he did in game 3 IMO of course.

He played well in Game 3, but limped a lot.

[roycrikside]

I think it was a great call by timvp that this was one of the best playoff games Tony's ever played. The stats don't bear it out, but partly that has to do with the game being such a runaway. Really I thought Tony was amazing out there. He clearly outplayed Paul this game, on both ends, and I can't really think of any aspect of the game he didn't do well, outside of free throw shooting. His decision making was quite good and he always looked in complete control. When Pop told him, "It's your show" or whatever it was he said, that was very telling.

As for the game, I don't think either team, especially us, was as good defensively as the score suggests. It could've easily been 115-95. We missed a ton of open threes and they missed quite a few jumpers on their end. We didn't give them many easy shots, which I like, but they also were a bit cold. If we play the exact same way in New Orleans, I think they'd probably have 20 more points, easy, just because they're used to their home building, so we'll need Bruce to shoot better for sure.

I think Manu looks pretty healthy, but he still can't jump very well. I think on the missed dunk he took the steps like he was just going to lay it in like he has the whole playoffs, but at the last instant he thought, eh let me dunk it to energize the fans but he didn't jump as hard as he had to.

[polandprzem]

I'm so pissed! :cuss

Why did the spurs let the Hornets get 2-0 lead in the series?

Oh well it is what it is.

Good experience and fantastic play by the spurs. No one from the Hornets went of, there was Pargo at the end of 1st. but since when he hit those 3 pts he was back into a bench man with n ot much productivity.

Aha! (I said to myself), now you (Hornets) are hesitating the shots. The first two games spurs did it and now Hornets are thinking too much about their play. And they looked beat up.
It's now in hands of Scott to lead the mental aspect and Paul to lead on the court ifd they want to be one game closer to winning the series.

They have no answer for parker, Paul is good but if Scott will decide that he is not as good he can put Mo Pete on Tony, then Manu can kill Paul or they will try to guard Bowen with paul. Still Wright is there who can defend. I wonder if Scott will go for some risky tactics in pivotal game 5.

Also he must answer the question if to double team Tim as much and as hard as he used to in two first contests. Or won't let shooters go off. Tim's play was phenomanal 10-12 from the 2 point FG! But his stats do not show how phenomenal he was. He played a quarterback that is what Scott also saw in 2003 NBA Finals.

"If Pop when shooters go so was CIA" - if I'm correct. 8/26 is not looking impressive, so Scott will probably concentrate on pace of the game. Like kenny said after the game it's the most important thing. Esp. when you talk about transition D and O.
Spurs played faster, spurs played smarter and spurs played with intensity - things I said (link not necessery) that will decide who will be victorious.

All in all we can write about this game a book.
So many things were happening.
Damn hopefully Barry will be okay. And daymn the reserves were sloppy and played badly.

Ah and I want to add that I'm surprised that Scott is not using Armstrons as much as I though he will.


We need that pivotal game!

[Tiro]

when xx(i forget who) shot free throw. there was a conversation betweet Pop and Tony. it is Parker who told Pop what the situation was on the court. that told something.

"yes, yes, baby, it's your game." Pop said to TP.

Parker become mature more and more during the playoffs.

all and all 3rd "must win" game in a row. Next game is pivotal.

[polandprzem]

when xx(i forget who) shot free throw. there was a conversation betweet Pop and Tony. it is Parker who told Pop what the situation was on the court. that told something.

"yes, yes, baby, it's your game." Pop said to TP.

Parker become mature more and more during the playoffs.

all and all 3rd "must win" game in a row. Next game is pivotal.

OI believe it was: "... yes Sir, it's your game baby!"

Will be time to rewatch it :)



Udoka has had more failure than success this season in defending physical small forwards.

[bobbybob0]

I was really impressed by Ime's D on Wells.

I think for the rest of this seris Ime should check in in as soon as Bonzi comes in just to take him out of his game like Bruce is doing with Peja.

Same for Oberto, nothing spectacular but he seems to be getting under DWest skin.

The one thing I'm not so confident about for game 5 is the officiating in NO. If the zebras let CP use his forearms to clean room on offense and run away with 3 steps on each layup or to push Parker on the back on defense that could be a big disadvantage.

I think for game 5 we should attack CP repeatidly with whoever he's guarding (expect if it's Bruce... sorry Bruce but I hate it when you try to drive) and run tons of picks just to wear him out.

[florige]

Yeah, nice call on that Hornets adjustment. SpursTalk on a whole seems to be one step ahead of the coaches in this series. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad sign for the coaches :lol

It was just a matter of time before the Spurs got the Hornets out of their double-team look. You double-team Duncan hard and fast and the Spurs will eventually adjust.

The Hornets main adjustment in Game 5 will probably just be emotional. They'll be amped up in front of their fans. I also expect them to go back to double-teaming Duncan and hope the players have more energy to swarm in front of their home fans (no put intended). Double-teaming also makes sense for the Hornets because otherwise Chandler will almost positively get in foul trouble.


We'll see though. The ball is in Scott's court now. If I'm him, I probably go back to the original gameplan and hope that the Spurs' shooters aren't hitting on the road.


Nah, I think we are feeling it now. I think we take the next two. Scott has got to find a way to get another scorer involved. Bowen has pretty much eliminated Peja from the series. And you cannot bank on West putting up 20 a game. The only sure weapon that they have is Paul. Note the score last night.

[Supergirl]

Home court does crazy things to emotional players. West gets so amped up, Peja has always played better at home, since his days in SAC.

This comes down to Bowen/Oberto/Thomas


As I said after Game 2, Pop's adjustment to have Bowen shut down Peja has been a key turning point in this series. Peja is done for the series, I predict - he's not good enough like a Kobe or a Lebron to be able to find a way to create his own shots. He's strictly a straight up shooter, like Barry is for us, so when you play defense on him he's got no game.

Spurs need to go into Game 5 with the same "Game 7 urgency" they played the last two with. Seriously, that's been the key to the series more than anything. The Spurs have woken up, and responded with a defensive efficiency that has opened things up on the offensive end. We still don't have homecourt advantage so the key to Game 5 is all emotional - the Hornets are going to be energized by their fans, and we need to counter by playing with the same kind of intensity that got us the last two wins.

If we win Game 5, series will end in 6 games in S.A. If not, it will be a lot tougher to win in a game 7 in NO -- but still possible.

[peewee's lovechild]

-Tony Parker’s numbers weren’t overly impressive but I think this was one of Parker’s best playoff games of his career. He was totally in control offensively and made almost flawless decisions throughout the contest. Parker attacked the Hornets relentlessly but at the same time his playmaking abilities were on full display. Basically, Parker played like a mature point guard who knew exactly what he wanted to do. He finished the game with 21 points, eight assists and six rebounds, while shooting 8-for-12 from the field. He also led the Spurs with a plus/minus of +25. Defensively against Paul, Parker defended him about as well as possible, especially if Paul’s repeated push offs won’t be called. Overall, I was just extremely impressed with Parker’s play. The intelligence and maturity he played with were off the charts. Hopefully he can bring this level of play to Game 5.



Great post, timvp.

But, I liked what you wrote about Tony.

All this talk about CP3 being the Messiah of basketball has really been getting to me. CP3 is a great player, but Parker has proven himself and last night he showed himself to be the better of the two. Tony had a good offensive and defensive game. I couldn't have wanted more out of him.

[smeagol]

That miss dunk it just looked like he didn't get a good angle on the jump.

I thought he was a bit hesitant on that play. It looked like he meant to lay it up and then, in the last nano-second, he decided to dunk it.

The guy I really liked tonight was Ime. One of his best playoff performances, if not the best.

[peewee's lovechild]

I knew Udoka on Bonzi was a good move. Ime isn't afraid of the contact.

Ime Udoka!

I agree.

Ime had an outstanding game.

[peewee's lovechild]

2005 Sonics. Spurs easily win first two. Lose a close Game 3. Get blown out in Game 4. Win Game 5 and then steal Game 6.

The Hornets are still in the driver's seat. I'll admit I like where the Spurs are but to being dismissing the Hornets right now is premature. They win Game 5 and then the Spurs are suddenly not looking so superior. And that's not too hard to imagine since the Spurs have gotten blown out three straight times in NO.

I disagree, tim.

Game 5 is a must win for both teams, but even more so for NO. They know that they have to win at home because winning in SA is NOT an option. They know that if they lose this one, they're done.

I think they're going to be extremely physical. I think that there's going to be a lot of cheap shots at Manu, Tim, and Tony.

I seriously doubt that a blow-out is going to happen.

[florige]

I disagree, tim.

Game 5 is a must win for both teams, but even more so for NO. They know that they have to win at home because winning in SA is NOT an option. They know that if they lose this one, they're done.


I think they're going to be extremely physical. I think that there's going to be a lot of cheap shots at Manu, Tim, and Tony.
I seriously doubt that a blow-out is going to happen.



I agree with that. Don't be surprised if you see either Parker or Manu get creamed hard by a Bonzi type of player. He would not risk getting any of his starters suspended for something like that.

[PlayoffEx-static]

Eh, they missed more open shots than they did the first three games of the series combined. Then again, they were due. Eventually, they had to stop shooting 70-80% on open shots.

Especially David West. He hit a ridiculous amount of jumpers in NO, even more than the HCA would account for.

[Louae]

calls went our way tonight too, not that we would have lost otherwise, but it was noticeably unbalanced

This was what I was hoping for. For once, I was hoping we'd get some calls to go our way. Especially with West and Paul b/c those two are the ones who get frustrated when they don't get calls going their way. Now, if they could just call Paul on a carry or a push off, that would be enough to make him loose it.

[DarrinS]

UDOKA!!!
http://foodcourtlunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/barkley.jpg

[YoMamaIsCallin]

I don't know, Peja and West missed like 4-5 layups early that they would make 8 out of 10 times. Yea, Spurs were contesting and challenging, but those were GIMMES.

When your nuts shrink up into your scrotum, gimmes get hard.

Scott acknowledged as much in his halftime talk and his little on-court interview after the first quarter when he said they needed to "loosen up".

They're feeling the pressure now.

[SAGambler]

Especially David West. He hit a ridiculous amount of jumpers in NO, even more than the HCA would account for.

In game 2 West hit for 10 points on 2 for 11 shooting. And that was in NO.

In game 1, he managed to go off. But since then, he really hasn't showed that same game 1 fire.

West is good, but he isn't as good as the media makes him out to be. As this series goes on, he seems at times on the verge of actually breaking down and doing something really stupid.

CP3 also didn't look too gung ho last night either. I think it has finally dawned on the Hornets that they are in a fight with the champs.

So far in the playoffs, they have had almost everything go their way. Now, not so much. Maybe they are starting to doubt themselves in crunch time.

You know, Scott is going to let them know, it won't get any easier. Scott has seen his team (the Nets) be dismantled by the Spurs before.

If the Spurs can win game 5, and I don't see why they can't, I wonder how much fight the Hornets will put up in game 6.

Maybe experience if finally starting to win out over emotion.

Guess we will see tomorrow night.

[TMTTRIO]

Manu looked a lot better but still doesn't look great especially his shooting game. Hopefully he gets it back soon

[SpurOutofTownFan]

Next 2 games are game 7s

[PDXSpursFan]

I do expect Byron Scott to make some adjustments for game 5. Probably, he'll change the double team strategy on Duncan to do it only after he puts the ball down (instead of automatic). If that's the case, the Spurs will have to move the ball quicker to keep finding open looks.

[Obstructed_View]

The Spurs need to keep playing defense the same way they have, keep going into the paint, and hit a reasonable percentage of outside shots. If they do that, they can win this series by Thursday. If not, they get a game seven in NO where anything can happen.

[justanotherspursfan]

The Spurs need to keep playing defense the same way they have, keep going into the paint, and hit a reasonable percentage of outside shots. If they do that, they can win this series by Thursday. If not, they get a game seven in NO where anything can happen.

That, and they need to stay out of foul trouble. :tu

[Whisky Dog]

If I'm RC I'm having by video guys make some tape of every Paul drive specifically highlighting the push off every time. I'm sending that to the league office to try to get the refs looking for it in game 5. His travelling doesnt bother me because everyone gets away with it, but blatantly pushing off with your off arm to get your shot up should be called 90% of the time. And he does it on every drive to the rim.

[FromWayDowntown]

It would be foolish to think that the Hornets are done. They will be energized by their crowd and out to overcome the embarassment of losing Game 4 the way they did. I think they know that they can play better and I think they have to believe that the Spurs probably can't play any better than they did in Game 4. I think the Spurs managed to put a lot of pressure on the Hornets and, for the first time in the playoffs, those guys are now dealing with some adversity. I didn't think the Hornets handled true adversity very well in Game 4.

Of course, all of that pressure and adversity can go away very quickly if they put it on the Spurs again in New Orleans.

On the whole, I thought the Spurs were fantastic in Game 4 and they've done a good job of dealing with the adjustments that Scott has been making. I thought the Spurs did a pretty good job in Game 4 of not forcing Duncan to catch the ball in the post everytime and allowing him to move to catch the ball a bit more -- while Scott didn't bring doubles as frequently, it does seem to me that if the Spurs want to free Duncan from those doubles, one solution is to have him more on the move and change the angles for the help. With that said, Duncan's post-game quotes almost seemed to beg for more doubles -- he said something about knowing where they're coming from and being able to move the defense by exploiting that. The Spurs' ball movement in Game 4 bore that out.

Tony Parker has played Chris Paul to draws (at worst) in each of the last 2 games, which has been huge for the Spurs -- I actually think Parker has been better than Paul in the last 2 games. It seems pretty clear that Paul can do little to deter Tony Parker's drives and the more Tony attacks, the more things open up for the rest of the Spurs' shooters. But, importantly, Tony has understood his role defensively and not let Paul's scoring successes affect his aggressiveness on either end. Paul is going to score and Parker might look bad defensively sometimes, but if Parker can even come close to matching Paul's offense, the Spurs are in great shape.

I still think a telling stat in this series is the Hornets' assist-to-FG ratio. The lower that number is, the more the Hornets are out of their natural state because it means that Paul isn't creating as many easy shots for his teammates, who aren't necessarily great at creating for themselves. In Games 1 and 2, the Hornets had assists on well more than half of their baskets -- 53.5% in Game 1 (23/43) and 61.1% in Game 2 (22/36). That number has completely changed in Games 3 and 4. The Hornets had assists on well under 40% of their field goals in San Antonio -- 36.6% in Game 3 (15/41) and 36.4% in Game 4 (12/33). If Paul doesn't create, nobody does for the Hornets -- they only had 3 guys average more than 2 assists per game during the season (Paul (11.6), Pargo (2.4), and West (2.3)).

[T Park]

I still think a telling stat in this series is the Hornets' assist-to-FG ratio. The lower that number is, the more the Hornets are out of their natural state because it means that Paul isn't creating as many easy shots for his teammates, who aren't necessarily great at creating for themselves. In Games 1 and 2, the Hornets had assists on well more than half of their baskets -- 53.5% in Game 1 (23/43) and 61.1% in Game 2 (22/36). That number has completely changed in Games 3 and 4. The Hornets had assists on well under 40% of their field goals in San Antonio -- 36.6% in Game 3 (15/41) and 36.4% in Game 4 (12/33). If Paul doesn't create, nobody does for the Hornets -- they only had 3 guys average more than 2 assists per game during the season (Paul (11.6), Pargo (2.4), and West (2.3)).


That is a big reason why this series is close to being over.

[J.T.]

Udoka plays like that consistently and we have two Bowens.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

If I was Scott, I would pull a page out of Suns book and put some length on Parker, ala Marion.

They don't have anyone long to put on him. Neither Peterson or Peja can keep up with Tony, and they don't have someone like Kerry Kittles or Grant Hill sitting on the bench either.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Yeah, nice call on that Hornets adjustment. SpursTalk on a whole seems to be one step ahead of the coaches in this series. I'm not sure if that's a good or bad sign for the coaches :lol

It was just a matter of time before the Spurs got the Hornets out of their double-team look. You double-team Duncan hard and fast and the Spurs will eventually adjust.

The Hornets main adjustment in Game 5 will probably just be emotional. They'll be amped up in front of their fans. I also expect them to go back to double-teaming Duncan and hope the players have more energy to swarm in front of their home fans (no put intended). Double-teaming also makes sense for the Hornets because otherwise Chandler will almost positively get in foul trouble.

We'll see though. The ball is in Scott's court now. If I'm him, I probably go back to the original gameplan and hope that the Spurs' shooters aren't hitting on the road.


They're going to have to get more accommodating play calls from Pop to make the double worth anything. We only ran 4down eight times in game 4. NO is getting a heavy dose of the PnR.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

:lol

If Brent can't manage to chase down passes then he needs to hang it up.

Or maybe Vaughn shouldn't be leading a guy coming off a leg injury like that :rolleyes

[T Park]

Or maybe Vaughn shouldn't be leading a guy coming off a leg injury like that :rolleyes

Once again, if he can't chase down a pass like that, then he needs to hang it up.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

The one thing I'm not so confident about for game 5 is the officiating in NO. If the zebras let CP use his forearms to clean room on offense and run away with 3 steps on each layup or to push Parker on the back on defense that could be a big disadvantage.

He's been getting away with it all series, that's not going to change.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Once again, if he can't chase down a pass like that, then he needs to hang it up.

You're retarded. Barry is playing on a bum wheel, and you're defending a shitty pass by Vaughn.

Once again, maybe Vaughn shouldn't be leading a guy with a bum wheel by fifteen feet. :rolleyes

[T Park]

You're retarded. Barry is playing on a bum wheel, and you're defending a shitty pass by Vaughn.

Once again, maybe Vaughn shouldn't be leading a guy with a bum wheel by fifteen feet. :rolleyes


Get off the court if you can't handle it.

That simple.

[FromWayDowntown]

Get off the court if you can't handle it.

That simple.

I don't think it's too much to ask your point guard to be aware of the fact that he's leading a guy who's suffered a calf injury and a recurrence and suggest that he might not throw ridiculous lead passes to him in garbage time. Barry is obviously healthy enough to make contributions when called upon; why stress his injury more than necessary? Particularly because Barry's small contributions in this series have seriously outweighed anything that Vaughn has done.

There's a difference between being reasonably cautious and concluding that a guy just can't play anymore. Barry can obviously play and play effectively (the argument for why he should be on the court), but he's got an injury question that the Spurs should be careful not to stress in garbage moments.

Ultimately, for all of that, Barry went and got the ball, so the notion that he needs to "hang it up" was invalidated by demonstrated ability to catch up to the pass.

[T Park]

Ultimately, for all of that, Barry went and got the ball, so the notion that he needs to "hang it up" was invalidated by demonstrated ability to catch up to the pass

Didn't say quit.

But if hes that hurt he can't chase the ball down or have the ability, then get off the court for a healthy player.

[ducks]

if he throws a pass in garbage time to barry again
he needs to always stay on the bench

[Thunder Dan]

who called the game last night? Marv or Harlen?

[Obstructed_View]

Get off the court if you can't handle it.

That simple.

Oh fucking bullshit. The fact that he was able to get to that ball at all is testament to his health. It was a shitty pass and a stupid decision.

[FromWayDowntown]

Didn't say quit.

"Hang 'em up" means something other than quit? or are we working from a "depends on what the definition of 'is' is" sort of thing with this distinction?

[anjlbitz]

who called the game last night? Marv or Harlen?

Marv with Reggie

[Man in the Arena]

That was a rough loss. Credit to the Spurs for shooting the fucking lights out through three quarters. The difference in FG% was something like 39 (NOH) to 59 (SAS) at the end of the 3rd quarter. Our shooters could not hit a thing. Defended or open. Before the series started, I said this thing would go 7 games... and with double digit wins by the home team in every game so far, it looks like it's heading that way.

Gotta be honest, after hanging tight (or having a lead) through most of Game 3, I thought the Hornets had a really good chance to come out in Game 4 and pull ahead in a close one. Duncan and Parker sure shut down any notion of that happening. I'm sure y'all enjoyed the revenge for the two routs in NOLA, but that game was just brutal to watch. Good adjustments by the Spurs... and terrible performances on both ends of the court by the Hornets.

Coach Scott needs to change the way he's covering Duncan, Peja needs to find a way to get out of Bruce Bowen's death grip, and everyone else needs to remember how to actually make shots. Should be a fun Game 5. I've got my tickets and probably won't be able to focus at work tomorrow at all. Go Hornets. And good job Spurs... you handed us our asses last night. Hopefully, our boys can return the favor tomorrow night.

[Spurs Brazil]

Game 5 will be huge.

I like our chances. We'll play with a healthy TD and Manu. We're doing a better job on the gameplan

As I said before the series and after we were down 0-2, Spurs in 6, but game 5 will be very tough

[Manufan909]

I know I sound like a noob, but could someone explain 4down to me?

[peewee's lovechild]

Didn't say quit.

But if hes that hurt he can't chase the ball down or have the ability, then get off the court for a healthy player.

Dude, you should quit.

That was a horrible pass by JV. Barry chased it down and saved it.

You're not making sense.

Just quit defending your outlandish statements.

[StoneBuddha]

I know I sound like a noob, but could someone explain 4down to me?

4-down is a straight post-up for Duncan in the post. You see Pop with the hand signal all the time.

It's also not always the most popular play call on this board.

[beachwood]

Bowen on Peja + Going under the screen = Game 5 win

[timvp]

I think it was a great call by timvp that this was one of the best playoff games Tony's ever played. The stats don't bear it out, but partly that has to do with the game being such a runaway. Really I thought Tony was amazing out there. He clearly outplayed Paul this game, on both ends, and I can't really think of any aspect of the game he didn't do well, outside of free throw shooting. His decision making was quite good and he always looked in complete control. When Pop told him, "It's your show" or whatever it was he said, that was very telling.Yeah, all things considered, this might have been his best game of the playoffs. Spurs needed a blowout to give them a chance in Game 5. Parker responded with 16 points in the first 15 minutes and had six assists and no turnovers at half.


As for the game, I don't think either team, especially us, was as good defensively as the score suggests. It could've easily been 115-95. We missed a ton of open threes and they missed quite a few jumpers on their end. We didn't give them many easy shots, which I like, but they also were a bit cold. If we play the exact same way in New Orleans, I think they'd probably have 20 more points, easy, just because they're used to their home building, so we'll need Bruce to shoot better for sure.Agreed. Game 5 could come down to whether Bowen can hit his open shots.

After rewatching the game, the Hornets missed even more open shots than I thought they did. Things could be a lot different tonight if New Orleans hits their easy shots like they did in the first three games.

[1Parker1]

I think Parker's best playoff game was easily Game 3 against the Suns. Spurs were up 2-0 and if they had let the Suns get back into the series, that could have dragged out even farther.

I'm not disagreeing that he had a great Game 4 the other night, just that I don't think it was his best playoff game so far this postseason. Hopefully all this is moot anyways and Game 5 will be the Spurs best game ever as a whole so far this playoffs :)

[timvp]

The thing with Game 3 against the Suns was it was mostly a product of Parker's jumpshot being on. He didn't have to make great basketball decisions because he was hitting everything. In Game 4 versus the Hornets, he dominated with his decision-making and leadership.

But yeah, both Game 3 against the Suns and Game 4 against the Hornets won't mean anything if the Spurs don't win tonight . . .