Splitter will start again tonight.

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2012/...gain-by-spurs/

Here's the link for the Brown interview, skeptic.

^^ Thanks a lot. :toast

I guess it's the same link as the other one. I just didn't look far enough for Mike Brown's interview. :lol

You're welcome. :) As much as I love Splitter starting the game, Diaw starting the 2nd half seems to have a much greater effect. Someone on here might be right when they said Diaw is great in the 2nd half on a not-so-fresh Gasol, which could have merit. But to ignore the vastly better defense Diaw plays on the Spaniard as compared to Splitter, as well as how much more smooth Diaw looks in the offense (attacking the rim and passing) would be quite foolish. Starting Blair over either player in any half of the PS will make no sense to me, unless the opposing team is from OKC.

P.S. Does the fact that Diaw is in Gasol's head on one end of the court explain why he's so confident on offense? I think he's had more contested layups againt the Lakers than against all the other teams combined. And not to dig on Blair further, but Diaw can finish against size without going all spastic, which I love.

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Originally Posted by Manufan909

You're welcome. :) As much as I love Splitter starting the game, Diaw starting the 2nd half seems to have a much greater effect. Someone on here might be right when they said Diaw is great in the 2nd half on a not-so-fresh Gasol, which could have merit. But to ignore the vastly better defense Diaw plays on the Spaniard as compared to Splitter, as well as how much more smooth Diaw looks in the offense (attacking the rim and passing) would be quite foolish. Starting Blair over either player in any half of the PS will make no sense to me, unless the opposing team is from OKC.

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I wouldn't say that Diaw is going up against a less fresh Gasol so much as he's just taking them by surprise.

My suspicion is that the reason for starting Splitter vs LAL is to help keep Bynum off the glass and to have him (Tiago) run their bigs ragged more than for exclusively defensive purposes although Tiago>Blair. This allows the Spurs to match their size a bit better while also taking advantage of their tiredness throughout the next 3 quarters. Diaw plays an intelligent but completely different style and that seems to throw the Lakers out of sorts once he's in there. For that reason, my preference is to leave Tiago where he is vs the Lakers.

That said, Diaw has been playing fantastic and it wouldn't hurt to start him against LAL either. I definitely want Diaw starting against everybody else though.

Like I've said elsewhere, I have a really good feeling about Splitter. Since he's a rhythm player who needs time to adjust, however, it's in Pop's best interests to play him more but to let him warm up from the bench like he's used to. Shifts similar to the Houston game would be good. Unless TD says otherwise the plan should be to give Splitter another offseason to get more polished and then to start him next year if that's the goal. Even then I think he'll have a few games like these last ones before he settles in.

Diaw has more experience, he's versatile, and he's a great playmaker. If Blair gets dropped out of the rotation and Bonner gets his minutes reduced a touch, I think there's enough minutes for Splitter to get 20+ while the team also starts Diaw. That's the kind of rotation I think they can win with in the post-season tbh.

RE Diaw confident against Gasol: It wouldn't surprise me although it could just be that he knows Pau probably won't block the shot. :D

It really made me happy to see Tim & Tiago out there together. I seriously almost cried tears of joy, lol. Kudos to Pop for not giving up on this--even this late in the season. I'll look on the bright side and give him the benefit of the doubt that he knows he's got some tweaking to do, and it's never too late to open your eyes to new possibilities. He has the right weapons, and he should definitely continue to utilize them as much as he possibly can. It's never too late, IMO. :toast

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Originally Posted by TheSkeptic

I wouldn't say that Diaw is going up against a less fresh Gasol so much as he's just taking them by surprise.

My suspicion is that the reason for starting Splitter vs LAL is to help keep Bynum off the glass and to have him (Tiago) run their bigs ragged more than for exclusively defensive purposes although Tiago>Blair. This allows the Spurs to match their size a bit better while also taking advantage of their tiredness throughout the next 3 quarters. Diaw plays an intelligent but completely different style and that seems to throw the Lakers out of sorts once he's in there. For that reason, my preference is to leave Tiago where he is vs the Lakers.

That said, Diaw has been playing fantastic and it wouldn't hurt to start him against LAL either. I definitely want Diaw starting against everybody else though.

Like I've said elsewhere, I have a really good feeling about Splitter. Since he's a rhythm player who needs time to adjust, however, it's in Pop's best interests to play him more but to let him warm up from the bench like he's used to. Shifts similar to the Houston game would be good. Unless TD says otherwise the plan should be to give Splitter another offseason to get more polished and then to start him next year if that's the goal. Even then I think he'll have a few games like these last ones before he settles in.

Diaw has more experience, he's versatile, and he's a great playmaker. If Blair gets dropped out of the rotation and Bonner gets his minutes reduced a touch, I think there's enough minutes for Splitter to get 20+ while the team also starts Diaw. That's the kind of rotation I think they can win with in the post-season tbh.

RE Diaw confident against Gasol: It wouldn't surprise me although it could just be that he knows Pau probably won't block the shot. :D

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RE=regarding? And I wish Duncan had the same confidence.

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Originally Posted by Manufan909

RE=regarding? And I wish Duncan had the same confidence.

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Yeah.

Well we can't have everything. :lol I thought TD looked more confident playing them these last 2 games so that's a good sign imo...

19 rebounds
2 rebounds

I missed the first half of the game. I'm wondering how did Splitter look in his second start next to Tim?

I thought Splitter did a fine job. Problem is he gets hit with some cheap fouls. It was just like the first game, he didn't start the 2nd half cause of foul trouble I'd suspect. But he defended Pau well and without help really. This allowed Timmy to play Bynum straight up, and more importantly they boxed out and rebounded the ball.

I thought Diaw did a great job as well. Splitter definitely did his part, and it was nice to have some height to start that game

How about that hustle play by Splitter that gave Manu the ball for that great pass. That was great teamwork and hustle man. Love Splitters movement.

So is this the end of Blair getting mins? Seems like he's fading to the back of the pack. I wonder if the Spurs get Utah in the first round if he'll start again. He usually destroys them.

this is where I read the comments from:
http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursna...-fridays-game/

Great move. I'm glad Pop is willing to play the two together.

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Originally Posted by SA210

How about that hustle play by Splitter that gave Manu the ball for that great pass. That was great teamwork and hustle man. Love Splitters movement.

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Seriously, that was a great hustle play.

But I cringed on the one play in the 2nd half where he grabbed the rebound, dribbled up all on his own, posted up Gasol and put up a crazy shot.

It was no surprise Pop yanked him immediately for that crap.

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Originally Posted by Blake

Seriously, that was a great hustle play.

But I cringed on the one play in the 2nd half where he grabbed the rebound, dribbled up all on his own, posted up Gasol and put up a crazy shot.

It was no surprise Pop yanked him immediately for that crap.

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The weird thing was, it wasn't the most horrible shot in the world-- he posted up, got pretty good position, threw an up and under and just missed the basket(I could tell it was one of those weird angles where the player isn't sure whether to use backboard or not). It was the whole "bringing the ball up the court" thing that really had me nervous. we were up huge at that point though, no way that would have happened in a close game.

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Originally Posted by Bill_Brasky

The weird thing was, it wasn't the most horrible shot in the world-- he posted up, got pretty good position, threw an up and under and just missed the basket(I could tell it was one of those weird angles where the player isn't sure whether to use backboard or not). It was the whole "bringing the ball up the court" thing that really had me nervous. we were up huge at that point though, no way that would have happened in a close game.

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Exactly.

Since we know there's no way Splitter would've attempted that play if it had been say a 5 point game at that point, there's no reason to get bent out of shape by him goofing off during a blow-out. If you're out there you might as well mess around and experiment some...Or make the most out of your opportunities if you're Blair.

Though since we're used to seeing disciplined basketball and high quality sets it is a little bit jarring to see.

In a close game, the guards would have done a better job of getting into position to get the ball from him.

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Originally Posted by TheSkeptic

Exactly.

Since we know there's no way Splitter would've attempted that play if it had been say a 5 point game at that point, there's no reason to get bent out of shape by him goofing off during a blow-out. If you're out there you might as well mess around and experiment some...Or make the most out of your opportunities if you're Blair.

Though since we're used to seeing disciplined basketball and high quality sets it is a little bit jarring to see.

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lol bent out of shape

I laughed when he got excited and threw up the shot.

If anyone got bent, it was Pop