Spurs Brazil
05-22-2008, 11:36 AM
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA052208.6C.BKNspurs.lakers.notebook.18824138.ht ml
Spurs-Lakers notebook: Champion Air won't carry Spurs
Web Posted: 05/22/2008 12:29 AM CDT
By Tom Orsborn and Mike Monroe
[email protected]
LOS ANGELES — The Spurs have flown their last flight with Champion Air.
Team chairman Peter Holt said the league assured him Tuesday another carrier would transport the Spurs to San Antonio after Game 2 of the Western Conference finals Friday and would also fly them to the rest of their road playoff games.
Word of the change came less than 24 hours after the Spurs spent seven hours on a tarmac in New Orleans after mechanical problems grounded the Boeing 727 provided to the team by Champion, which declared bankruptcy in March and is set to ground its 16-plane fleet May 31.
“The league called the next morning and said they were working on it right away,” Holt said. “They said they would find us another airplane that (it) will be with you as long as you are in the playoffs. That’s another thing we didn’t want to have to do, keep switching.”
Holt said he made it clear to the league they were done with Champion. The league arranges for the Spurs’ carrier, but the team foots the bill.
“We just told them we obviously don’t have any faith or trust any more (in Champion),” Holt said. “I don’t know if it is a safety issue, as much as we don’t want to be stuck again, especially with us playing every other day from this point on.”
Holt said he hasn’t spoken to anyone from Champion.
“Not interested in Champion,” Holt said. “We’re done.”
Different perspective: What’s it like spending 11 hours onboard an aircraft after you have expended most of your energy in Game 7 of a playoff series?
“Not fun,” Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said.
But Ginobili had a different take on the ordeal that followed the Spurs’ victory Monday night than most of his teammates. He played three seasons in the Italian League, where long bus rides were commonplace.
“It’s not the first time it happened to me,” he said. “I’ve slept many times on buses, so it was not much of a difference.”
Some of his teammates, Ginobili said with a smile, have had it too easy.
“They are spoiled,” he said. “I’ve spent 20 hours on a bus. So it’s no big thing. Probably never the day before a game. That’s kind of different, but it happened, and we’ve just got to face it.”
Long-range struggles: The Spurs hit just 25 percent (5 of 20) of their 3-point shots Wednesday night, including only 18 percent (2 of 11) in the second half. In their 12 previous games this postseason, they had connected on 38 percent from beyond the arc.
“We got away from our game plan,” forward Robert Horry said. “Sometimes when you get up by 20 like we did in the third quarter, you look for too many knockout blows by shooting 3s. Down the stretch, we should have worked it inside to Tim (Duncan) and stopped shooting jumpers.”
Horry said it was surprising that a veteran club made such poor decisions after gaining a commanding lead.
“We took a lot of jumpers and didn’t play smart at all,” Horry said. “We have got to be smarter than that. We are a veteran team. We should know we have to go inside-out first, and we did a lot of outside-in this game.”
Against the odds: With Wednesday’s 89-85 loss, the Spurs are 7-1 this postseason when holding an opponent to 99 points or less. During the regular season, the Spurs finished 50-16 when limiting teams to 99 points or less and 33-7 when holding them to 89 points or less.
Spurs-Lakers notebook: Champion Air won't carry Spurs
Web Posted: 05/22/2008 12:29 AM CDT
By Tom Orsborn and Mike Monroe
[email protected]
LOS ANGELES — The Spurs have flown their last flight with Champion Air.
Team chairman Peter Holt said the league assured him Tuesday another carrier would transport the Spurs to San Antonio after Game 2 of the Western Conference finals Friday and would also fly them to the rest of their road playoff games.
Word of the change came less than 24 hours after the Spurs spent seven hours on a tarmac in New Orleans after mechanical problems grounded the Boeing 727 provided to the team by Champion, which declared bankruptcy in March and is set to ground its 16-plane fleet May 31.
“The league called the next morning and said they were working on it right away,” Holt said. “They said they would find us another airplane that (it) will be with you as long as you are in the playoffs. That’s another thing we didn’t want to have to do, keep switching.”
Holt said he made it clear to the league they were done with Champion. The league arranges for the Spurs’ carrier, but the team foots the bill.
“We just told them we obviously don’t have any faith or trust any more (in Champion),” Holt said. “I don’t know if it is a safety issue, as much as we don’t want to be stuck again, especially with us playing every other day from this point on.”
Holt said he hasn’t spoken to anyone from Champion.
“Not interested in Champion,” Holt said. “We’re done.”
Different perspective: What’s it like spending 11 hours onboard an aircraft after you have expended most of your energy in Game 7 of a playoff series?
“Not fun,” Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said.
But Ginobili had a different take on the ordeal that followed the Spurs’ victory Monday night than most of his teammates. He played three seasons in the Italian League, where long bus rides were commonplace.
“It’s not the first time it happened to me,” he said. “I’ve slept many times on buses, so it was not much of a difference.”
Some of his teammates, Ginobili said with a smile, have had it too easy.
“They are spoiled,” he said. “I’ve spent 20 hours on a bus. So it’s no big thing. Probably never the day before a game. That’s kind of different, but it happened, and we’ve just got to face it.”
Long-range struggles: The Spurs hit just 25 percent (5 of 20) of their 3-point shots Wednesday night, including only 18 percent (2 of 11) in the second half. In their 12 previous games this postseason, they had connected on 38 percent from beyond the arc.
“We got away from our game plan,” forward Robert Horry said. “Sometimes when you get up by 20 like we did in the third quarter, you look for too many knockout blows by shooting 3s. Down the stretch, we should have worked it inside to Tim (Duncan) and stopped shooting jumpers.”
Horry said it was surprising that a veteran club made such poor decisions after gaining a commanding lead.
“We took a lot of jumpers and didn’t play smart at all,” Horry said. “We have got to be smarter than that. We are a veteran team. We should know we have to go inside-out first, and we did a lot of outside-in this game.”
Against the odds: With Wednesday’s 89-85 loss, the Spurs are 7-1 this postseason when holding an opponent to 99 points or less. During the regular season, the Spurs finished 50-16 when limiting teams to 99 points or less and 33-7 when holding them to 89 points or less.