duncan228
05-18-2008, 11:18 PM
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA051908.4D.BKNspurs.notebook.37bcbf3.html
Spurs-Hornets notebook: Winning team won't have long to rest
By Mike Monroe
NEW ORLEANS — The three-day break between Games 6 and 7 of the Spurs-Hornets Western Conference semifinal series will put the winner in a tough situation.
With Game 1 of the Western Conference finals scheduled for Wednesday in Los Angeles, the winner of tonight's game will have a long cross-country flight to make, either very late Monday night or on Tuesday, and less than 48 hours to prepare for the Los Angeles Lakers.
The silver lining for the oldest team in the league: The Spurs had plenty of time before tonight's game to rest bodies that don't snap back from one game to the next as easily as they once did.
“I think it helped us a lot, definitely,” said Tony Parker, at 26 the youngest member of the Spurs' regular playing rotation. “(Coach Gregg Popovich has) been great at that, getting everybody treatment and a massage. I think everybody will be ready to go (tonight).”
Parker, who turned 26 on Saturday, even suggested that he is prepared — anxious, even — to play all 48 minutes.
10 most wanted: Six plays by Bruce Bowen showed up on the New Orleans Times-Picayune's list of the Spurs' “10 Most Questionable Plays,” a feature that appeared on the paper's Web site on Saturday.
Bowen was not surprised.
“What are you going to do?” he said. “What are you going to do?”
Asked if his being featured as the Spurs' No. 1 basketball evildoer might take some of the heat off Robert Horry, still being vilified in Louisiana for his foul on David West in Game 6, Bowen rose to Horry's defense.
“Seeing that some folks feel, even in this city, that Rob's play was not legit,” he said, “it's really a shame when you hear that some folks here think that. Seeing the time that he's been here, and then seeing that just bothers me.”
‘Another' Game 7: Spurs swing man Michael Finley has more Game 7 experience than any player in the series but Horry, with three wins in his four Game 7s.
The extremely competitive nature of the Spurs' first-round series against the Phoenix Suns, he said, ought to serve them well as they prepare for the pressure of tonight's game.
No rest at home: With three days off between games, some Hornets and Spurs had to search for ways to deal with boredom. But not New Orleans center Tyson Chandler.
He spent the past couple of days taking care of his young daughter and has had little chance to catch his breath.
“She kept her energy up,” Chandler said. “I think she might be tougher to chase around than Tim Duncan — no disrespect to Tim Duncan.”
No speeches necessary: Hornets coach Byron Scott has said he usually puts a lot of thought into his pregame pep talks, often drawing from motivational techniques learned when he played for Pat Riley with the Lakers. But he's not planning anything extravagant for tonight.
“It's Game 7,” Scott said. “I really shouldn't have to say a whole hell of a lot.”
Staff writer Mike Finger contributed to this report.
Spurs-Hornets notebook: Winning team won't have long to rest
By Mike Monroe
NEW ORLEANS — The three-day break between Games 6 and 7 of the Spurs-Hornets Western Conference semifinal series will put the winner in a tough situation.
With Game 1 of the Western Conference finals scheduled for Wednesday in Los Angeles, the winner of tonight's game will have a long cross-country flight to make, either very late Monday night or on Tuesday, and less than 48 hours to prepare for the Los Angeles Lakers.
The silver lining for the oldest team in the league: The Spurs had plenty of time before tonight's game to rest bodies that don't snap back from one game to the next as easily as they once did.
“I think it helped us a lot, definitely,” said Tony Parker, at 26 the youngest member of the Spurs' regular playing rotation. “(Coach Gregg Popovich has) been great at that, getting everybody treatment and a massage. I think everybody will be ready to go (tonight).”
Parker, who turned 26 on Saturday, even suggested that he is prepared — anxious, even — to play all 48 minutes.
10 most wanted: Six plays by Bruce Bowen showed up on the New Orleans Times-Picayune's list of the Spurs' “10 Most Questionable Plays,” a feature that appeared on the paper's Web site on Saturday.
Bowen was not surprised.
“What are you going to do?” he said. “What are you going to do?”
Asked if his being featured as the Spurs' No. 1 basketball evildoer might take some of the heat off Robert Horry, still being vilified in Louisiana for his foul on David West in Game 6, Bowen rose to Horry's defense.
“Seeing that some folks feel, even in this city, that Rob's play was not legit,” he said, “it's really a shame when you hear that some folks here think that. Seeing the time that he's been here, and then seeing that just bothers me.”
‘Another' Game 7: Spurs swing man Michael Finley has more Game 7 experience than any player in the series but Horry, with three wins in his four Game 7s.
The extremely competitive nature of the Spurs' first-round series against the Phoenix Suns, he said, ought to serve them well as they prepare for the pressure of tonight's game.
No rest at home: With three days off between games, some Hornets and Spurs had to search for ways to deal with boredom. But not New Orleans center Tyson Chandler.
He spent the past couple of days taking care of his young daughter and has had little chance to catch his breath.
“She kept her energy up,” Chandler said. “I think she might be tougher to chase around than Tim Duncan — no disrespect to Tim Duncan.”
No speeches necessary: Hornets coach Byron Scott has said he usually puts a lot of thought into his pregame pep talks, often drawing from motivational techniques learned when he played for Pat Riley with the Lakers. But he's not planning anything extravagant for tonight.
“It's Game 7,” Scott said. “I really shouldn't have to say a whole hell of a lot.”
Staff writer Mike Finger contributed to this report.