What do the Spurs do with James?

I know it's premature and it's also rhetorical, in the sense that no team has a shot at slowing him. But in most cases, the Spurs are well equipped to at least adequately defend the oppositions stars. He's the most glaring exception to that I can think of and not just because he's the best player in the league.

Leonard is really their only legit James defender, but even he won't be able to guard him in the post and even if he could, he can't be expected to guard him for roughly 45 mpg and stay out of foul trouble. They clearly need a second guy; unfortunately, they just don't have it. Diaw is too slow (yes, he did a nice job in the first meeting, but James and the Heat in general were clearly coasting once they found out who wasn't playing and didn't bother to start playing until they were in serious danger of losing) to guard him off the dribble and Green isn't big or strong enough. The only other possibilities are Ginobili, who's also not big or strong enough or McGrady, who for obvious reasons probably won't play a meaningful second unless something has gone horribly wrong. He's also a sub par defender that, for all intents and purposes, hasn't really played a game in a few months and that was in China.

This is not the Lakers or Grizzlies, where the Spurs can get away with fronting the post and mostly disregarding their outside shooters. This team is too intelligent to not figure that out and has way too many good shooters, who are due for progression to the mean. They might just have to essentially concede something like 35 per game to him, stay home on their myriad shooters and hope that they can do a solid job on everyone else.

Double him in the post. The Heats spacing on offence is horrible, there will be a lot of opportunity to send a double team at him.

You have to double, or he'll get a layup every time.

Other than that, just try to make him take jump shots and hope he misses. If Lebron and Wade get in to the lane, they're unbeatable. If they shoot jumpers, we'd have a chance.

:lmao Heat in 5

Jack was supposed to be our secondary defender. :depressed

TMAC tbh

As I mentioned in another thread, I'd put Green on him for a variety of reasons, main one being that he has the most knowledge on Lebron's moveset stemming from his days as a Cav in his rookie year where he surely had experience defending him during practices. Also, it would put less pressure on Kawhi's knees having to defend a past-his prime Wade. So, you shut down Wade have TD d up Bosh and you're left with Lebron having to carry the team on his back against a deep Spurs team that has more size than them. Let that glory-hog get his bullshit dunks and style points, but shut down the rest of the team. Of course, it's easier said than done but it's not as impossible a feat as many are saying it is here.

I think Pop's strategy is to make Lebron a scorer rather than a playmaker. The Heat are really dangerous when the rest of their role players are getting involved on offense. I'm pretty sure Lebron will drop 40 or more with that strategy, but he's going to get huge numbers anyway. Green can guard an injured Wade, and we have multiple guys to throw at Bosh who right now just sits in the corner to to launch corner-threes:lol It'll be interesting if Spo will match up with a big lineup, use James on Parker, or try to play small against the Spurs. As much as we're concerned about the Heat, the question now is who in that team can contain Duncan? If Howard, Marc/Pau, and Z-Bo can't handle Duncan, what makes them think that Andersen and Haslem:lol can?

There is nothing the Spurs can do. Also battier, Allen, bosh all murder the Spurs. Seeing as how the spurs will give you the midrange Miami will kill us from there.

Heat in 5, but lets enjoy our first finals in 6 years. That really is something.

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Originally Posted by Richie

Double him in the post. The Heats spacing on offence is horrible, there will be a lot of opportunity to send a double team at him.

You have to double, or he'll get a layup every time.

Other than that, just try to make him take jump shots and hope he misses. If Lebron and Wade get in to the lane, they're unbeatable. If they shoot jumpers, we'd have a chance.

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Their spacing is not only not horrible, it's right there with the Spurs as the best in the league.

He might get a layup every time, but he's going to get roughly 30 ppg no matter what the Spurs do. If they can at least severely limit their wide open threes, as well as layups/dunks to their bigs, I'll take conceding an extra few ppg to James.

The days of "just hope he takes jumpers and misses" are over. He's officially become a good jump shooter this season and he's also intelligent enough now to not fall in love with it.

I'd call you all pessimists except that I'm pessimistic myself.

I say just let LeBron get his and try to shut down everyone else.

Of course, let's close out the Grizzlies first, m'kay?

I'll prolly get shat on for suggesting this, but they should try Splitter. Guy is quick enough on his feet to stick with him reasonably and has the length to bother him in the post. Start out with Kawhi and see how he does and throw Diaw at him as well. If he starts trying to play in the post, Splitter is the best choice to allow TD to protect the rim and shut down Bosh/Birdman.

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Originally Posted by TD 21

Their spacing is not only not horrible, it's right there with the Spurs as the best in the league.

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You think this looks like good spacing?

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BLO_KkFCQAAZ7pa.png

No reason for the Pacers not to double on this possession. Send West to double, Augustin can defend Battier and Cole in this situation

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Originally Posted by TD 21

He might get a layup every time, but he's going to get roughly 30 ppg no matter what the Spurs do. If they can at least severely limit their wide open threes, as well as layups/dunks to their bigs, I'll take conceding an extra few ppg to James.

The days of "just hope he takes jumpers and misses" are over. He's officially become a good jump shooter this season and he's also intelligent enough now to not fall in love with it.

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He's become a good jumpshooter, but you'd rather give him layups every possession? He will get 60ppg if you let him back down Kawhi in the post every possession, he's too big and strong.

The Spurs are a far better matchup than the Heat has faced so far in the playoffs.

For one, the Spurs' P&R offense will make it tough for the Heat, who rely on strangling the ball handler and expecting the big man to fail. If Roy Hibbert with his limited offense can do so well, I expect Duncan & Splitter to do far better. In sum, the Heat are going to find it extremely difficult (relatively) to smother the Spurs' offense as opposed to the Pacers or any other Eastern Conference team.

As regards, the Spurs' defense, they will pack the paint with Duncan & Splitter and expect James to beat them from the perimeter. Leonard, Ginobili will have to play a good role there. I dont' expect the Spurs to double team James, just pressure him when he dribbles onto the paint.

What worries me is whether Parker & Ginobili will withstand the Heat's outwordly wing defense. If they do it well, combining with Duncan & Splitter on the P&Rs and make the Heat pay for their lack of size, they will compete well with the Heat. If on the other hand, Parker & Ginobili make uncharacteristic mistakes and can't manage the P&Rs, they will simply be eaten up by the Heat's transition game, which will be un-defendable.

I think the Spurs win this either in 6 or 7. I trust Duncan & Splitter to maximise the size advantages and Pop to outcoach Spoelstra.

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Originally Posted by Amuseddaysleeper

There is nothing the Spurs can do. Also battier, Allen, bosh all murder the Spurs. Seeing as how the spurs will give you the midrange Miami will kill us from there.

Heat in 5, but lets enjoy our first finals in 6 years. That really is something.

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Pretty much this unfortunately.

Turnover city if they face Miami. You saw some of that early last game against Memphis when they applied pressure, Miami is even better at causing turnovers.


Parker will be gassed by the defensive perimeter pressure. the spurs only hope for a title is either for Indiana to somehow win or injuries to key Miami players.

Guarantee you Pop has no strategy for James right now. He won't until the Spurs win the WCF. The Heat have too many weapons. You put your best on James and Wade kills you. You switch up and Bosh kills you. You manage to avoid those and Allen kills you from outside.

Their only weakness is that they lack size inside. Pop will want to slow it down with them, but that's no secret tactic and no one else has been able to. They score off turnovers, they shoot the 3, they shoot a high percentage, they get offensive boards, they share the ball, they move the ball well, they defend well, they even shoot FTs well.

It will be quite a feat to win a single game against them. Taking them to 7 would be monumental. Beating them would be borderline impossible. They have to play subpar and the Spurs have to play out of their minds to even stand a chance.

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Originally Posted by Amuseddaysleeper

There is nothing the Spurs can do. Also battier, Allen, bosh all murder the Spurs. Seeing as how the spurs will give you the midrange Miami will kill us from there.

Heat in 5, but lets enjoy our first finals in 6 years. That really is something.

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I understand that Spurs fans should be restrained in their enthusiasm considering the Heat have far more talent than mostly any other team in recent history.

But the Heat, with their strengths are also flawed as a team in many senses. And some of their flaws are particularly in places where the Spurs have strong strengths - big man P&R play, post defense. If the Indiana Pacers have done so well so far against the Heat - its been a tough 2-1 for them so far - the Spurs can do much better.

It would be irrational to simply argue that the Spurs are doomed to lose from the beginning.

On the contrary, I think it will be a very close fight and I trust the Spurs to come through.

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Originally Posted by DMC

Guarantee you Pop has no strategy for James right now. He won't until the Spurs win the WCF. The Heat have too many weapons. You put your best on James and Wade kills you. You switch up and Bosh kills you. You manage to avoid those and Allen kills you from outside.

Their only weakness is that they lack size inside. Pop will want to slow it down with them, but that's no secret tactic and no one else has been able to. They score off turnovers, they shoot the 3, they shoot a high percentage, they get offensive boards, they share the ball, they move the ball well, they defend well, they even shoot FTs well.

It will be quite a feat to win a single game against them. Taking them to 7 would be monumental. Beating them would be borderline impossible. They have to play subpar and the Spurs have to play out of their minds to even stand a chance.

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Maybe, but let's actually play the games first, m'kay?

I thought it would be a laugher most of the season but the Bulls and Pacers have exposed flaws that Pop can exploit. Pop can easily out coach Spo so I'm sure he'll come up with something that will at least give us a fighting chance. Oh, and we still have the best PF to ever play the game. And he's playing like it was 10 years ago. Let LeBron get his and play great D on the rest. He can't win the games by himself.

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Originally Posted by Richie

You think this looks like good spacing?

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BLO_KkFCQAAZ7pa.png

No reason for the Pacers not to double on this possession. Send West to double, Augustin can defend Battier and Cole in this situation.

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So one random screenshot determines that? That's like saying a 40% 3-point shooter is not a good shooter after he goes 1-5 in a game.

Sure, on this particular possession, where their spacing is mucked up.

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He's become a good jumpshooter, but you'd rather give him layups every possession? He will get 60ppg if you let him back down Kawhi in the post every possession, he's too big and strong.

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Like I said, he's not going to bail them out by shooting jumpers non stop. He's too intelligent a player now and they're too well coached to think the Spurs are going to out smart them.


Spursfanfromafar, good analysis. I agree that the Spurs are probably better equipped than anybody to deal with their trapping defense. Duncan, in particular, is perfect for that, since he's both adept at shooting the mid range jumper and making split second decisions off the dribble. Splitter is also pretty good at the latter and Diaw can do both.

Not sure why y'all sweating this... SpursDynasty told me Green is better than Lebron... they should be worried, IMO

Does anyone remember Lebron's stats in his 4 games against us in the '07 Finals? I know that has no bearing on the personnel we have now but I'm curious.

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Originally Posted by TampaDude

Maybe, but let's actually play the games first, m'kay?

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My initial point was "let's actually get past Memphis first".

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Originally Posted by DMC

It will be quite a feat to win a single game against them. Taking them to 7 would be monumental. Beating them would be borderline impossible. They have to play subpar and the Spurs have to play out of their minds to even stand a chance.

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I get that the Heat are of course the favourites, but this kind of stuff is crazy. This isn't far removed from the team that lost to the Mavericks in 6 a couple of years ago. How did the Mavericks beat the Heat? With the pass. The Spurs share the ball better than any team in the league. We have a chance of winning the series, no question.

Battier and Allen are a combined 30-102 on 3s in the post season. Theres every possibility they will heat up, but then again there's every possibility they wont. To write off the series before we've even finished the WCF in foolish.

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Originally Posted by DMC

Guarantee you Pop has no strategy for James right now. He won't until the Spurs win the WCF. The Heat have too many weapons. You put your best on James and Wade kills you. You switch up and Bosh kills you. You manage to avoid those and Allen kills you from outside.

Their only weakness is that they lack size inside. Pop will want to slow it down with them, but that's no secret tactic and no one else has been able to. They score off turnovers, they shoot the 3, they shoot a high percentage, they get offensive boards, they share the ball, they move the ball well, they defend well, they even shoot FTs well.

It will be quite a feat to win a single game against them. Taking them to 7 would be monumental. Beating them would be borderline impossible. They have to play subpar and the Spurs have to play out of their minds to even stand a chance.

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:lol This is so beyond "being realistic" it's laughable. Of course the Spurs stand a fucking chance. The Heat have been beating up JV teams all season. Lets see them play a real team with all its players and a badass coach. Of course they will be the favorites but to think they would just steamroll us is fucking bullshit.

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Originally Posted by SpurPadre

Does anyone remember Lebron's stats in his 4 games against us in the '07 Finals? I know that has no bearing on the personnel we have now but I'm curious.

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In 2007, we faced a young LeBron and a bunch of scrubs in the Finals. This Heat team is light years better than that 2007 Cavs team. There is no comparison.

As for LeBron's stats in the 2007 Finals, you can find them here: http://espn.go.com/nba/team/schedule...land-cavaliers

LeBron is the best player in the NBA. We're not going to shut him down or hold him to 10 points like we have the "stars" throughout the playoffs so far. He's probably going to get 25 a night, but it won't be the end of the world. The Spurs need to focus on containing everyone else while slowing LeBron down as much as possible without overreacting every time he hits a tough drifter or bulldozes his way to the basket.

On the other side of the coin though, what're they going to do about Parker? Chalmers is a terrible defensive player. Cole is even worse. Allen and Miller are too slow. They will either have to eat Tony's dominant play or will be forced to put Wade or LeBron on him. I'd argue Battier is too slow to guard him at this point too. And if LeBron guards Tony, their interior defense will be a joke and Duncan + Tiago will feast.

Speaking of Duncan, who do they have that can stop Duncan? Miami will have the softest frontcourt we've faced all postseason. No Dwight, no Bogut, no Gasol/ZBo. It'll be Bosh/Haslem. Come on. :lol Duncan is playing determined as fuck right now.

So tbh, while we can't "stop" LeBron, basically 2 of our best defensive players can guard that position, + our best if LeBron tries to go into the post. Meanwhile our best two players can attack their weakest defensive positions. Our best 2 perimeter defenders can also guard Wade.

I think we match up very nicely in terms of each team's best players vs each team's best defenders/worst defenders. I'm not saying I'm not worried, but I'm not that worried. The Spurs are a good team this year. I'll take my chances tbh.

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Originally Posted by TampaDude

In 2007, we faced a young LeBron and a bunch of scrubs in the Finals. This Heat team is light years better than that 2007 Cavs team. There is no comparison.

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I know that, again, I'm just curious what he was able to do against us back then and how Pop decided to gameplan him then.

Don't double, just stay home and let Lebron shoot jumpers.
Put Kawhi/Diaw or even Splitter on him.

The Heat are also relatively untested against teams with strong big men -

Lets take the last time the Heat faced a tough matchup in the playoffs, it was against the very flawed and old Celtics team last season. OKC relies on wing play as well and has some atrocious big man offense and failed against the Heat.

In the regular season this year, they were 1-2 against the Pacers and 1-1 against the Grizzlies - two of the better big man teams in the league. And the Spurs, as the Grizzlies series shows, has by far the best big men combine in the league.

I am surprised as to how the Spurs are simply written off against the Heat. It will be far far difficult for the Heat to defeat the Spurs in a 7 game series than what people imagine. Duncan & Splitter vs Haslem & Bosh is pretty much a wash for the Spurs and Ginobili & Parker & Leonard & Green match up well against Wade & Allen & Lebron & Battier.

Seriously, the big issue with Lebron is that he's grown as a basketball player. He now understands he doesn't need to force the issue, and has become an adept passer. Being surrounded by good players helps, obviously.

If you're the Spurs, you keep doing what you're doing and got your this far: stuff the paint and make them beat you from outside. I agree that taking care of the ball is major. But if you do keep your turnovers low (and there's no reason why the Spurs couldn't do that), then defending their halfcourt offense shouldn't be insurmountable. Ultimately, the Spurs might need to pick their poison, and I would suspect Pop would prefer the likes of Cole and Battier to win the game rather than Lebron and Wade.

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Originally Posted by SpurPadre

I know that, again, I'm just curious what he was able to do against us back then and how Pop decided to gameplan him then.

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http://espn.go.com/nba/team/schedule...land-cavaliers

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Originally Posted by TD 21

I know it's premature and it's also rhetorical, in the sense that no team has a shot at slowing him. But in most cases, the Spurs are well equipped to at least adequately defend the oppositions stars. He's the most glaring exception to that I can think of and not just because he's the best player in the league.

Leonard is really their only legit James defender, but even he won't be able to guard him in the post and even if he could, he can't be expected to guard him for roughly 45 mpg and stay out of foul trouble. They clearly need a second guy; unfortunately, they just don't have it. Diaw is too slow (yes, he did a nice job in the first meeting, but James and the Heat in general were clearly coasting once they found out who wasn't playing and didn't bother to start playing until they were in serious danger of losing) to guard him off the dribble and Green isn't big or strong enough. The only other possibilities are Ginobili, who's also not big or strong enough or McGrady, who for obvious reasons probably won't play a meaningful second unless something has gone horribly wrong. He's also a sub par defender that, for all intents and purposes, hasn't really played a game in a few months and that was in China.

This is not the Lakers or Grizzlies, where the Spurs can get away with fronting the post and mostly disregarding their outside shooters. This team is too intelligent to not figure that out and has way too many good shooters, who are due for progression to the mean. They might just have to essentially concede something like 35 per game to him, stay home on their myriad shooters and hope that they can do a solid job on everyone else.

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The Spurs will have 10 days off to rest Kawhi's knee. He will guard lebron with Green rotating on him as well. Manu and Parker will cut off the passing lanes, and the twin towers will be waiting if he goes by.

Sours win.

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Originally Posted by TD 21

So one random screenshot determines that? That's like saying a 40% 3-point shooter is not a good shooter after he goes 1-5 in a game.

Sure, on this particular possession, where their spacing is mucked up.

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That's just one of the screenshots somebody posted on Twitter tonight. Pretty much every time Lebron backed down George they had the ability to send a double and rotate back to the shooters to get it out of his hands. Instead they let Lebron get layup after layup.

I'd rather put faith in our defensive rotations to put pressure on weak side shooters than give Lebron a layup in the post.

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Originally Posted by ElNono

Seriously, the big issue with Lebron is that he's grown as a basketball player. He now understands he doesn't need to force the issue, and has become an adept passer. Being surrounded by good players helps, obviously.

If you're the Spurs, you keep doing what you're doing and got your this far: stuff the paint and make them beat you from outside. I agree that taking care of the ball is major. But if you do keep your turnovers low (and there's no reason why the Spurs couldn't do that), then defending their halfcourt offense shouldn't be insurmountable. Ultimately, the Spurs might need to pick their poison, and I would suspect Pop would prefer the likes of Cole and Battier to win the game rather than Lebron and Wade.

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Lebron is well past his prime, he has lot a lot of quickness and jumping ability, he just has better teammates now than at Cleveland. Only his outside shooting is slightly better now.

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Originally Posted by Brunodf

Don't double, just stay home and let Lebron shoot jumpers.
Put Kawhi/Diaw or even Splitter on him.

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What is it with you and not doubling?

I agree about making him shoot jumpers. The defensive philosophy should be based around that and if he beats us with his jump shot then so be it. Better than giving him layups or assists to dunks/open 3s.

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Originally Posted by Spursfanfromafar

I understand that Spurs fans should be restrained in their enthusiasm considering the Heat have far more talent than mostly any other team in recent history.

But the Heat, with their strengths are also flawed as a team in many senses. And some of their flaws are particularly in places where the Spurs have strong strengths - big man P&R play, post defense. If the Indiana Pacers have done so well so far against the Heat - its been a tough 2-1 for them so far - the Spurs can do much better.

It would be irrational to simply argue that the Spurs are doomed to lose from the beginning.

On the contrary, I think it will be a very close fight and I trust the Spurs to come through.

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Finally, someone talking sense. Its stupid to just think we're going to just lose from the start.

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Originally Posted by Galileo

Spurs win.

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Yes. 5 more times, please. :hat

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Originally Posted by Galileo

Lebron is well past his prime

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what? :lol

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Originally Posted by Richie

What is it with you and not doubling?

I agree about making him shoot jumpers. The defensive philosophy should be based around that and if he beats us with his jump shot then so be it. Better than giving him layups or assists to dunks/open 3s.

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Heat is full of jumpshooters, if u double they will make u pay.

Im more worried about Bosh.

LBJ will get 30ppg with 1-3 defenders on him. Put 1 on him and let him get his 30.

Wades been subpar but Bosh can go awol and stretches the defense.

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Originally Posted by Budkin

:lol This is so beyond "being realistic" it's laughable. Of course the Spurs stand a fucking chance. The Heat have been beating up JV teams all season. Lets see them play a real team with all its players and a badass coach. Of course they will be the favorites but to think they would just steamroll us is fucking bullshit.

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lol

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Originally Posted by Richie

That's just one of the screenshots somebody posted on Twitter tonight. Pretty much every time Lebron backed down George they had the ability to send a double and rotate back to the shooters to get it out of his hands. Instead they let Lebron get layup after layup.

I'd rather put faith in our defensive rotations to put pressure on weak side shooters than give Lebron a layup in the post.

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It's not possible to be the 2nd best 3-point shooting team and best all around shooting team period with poor spacing . . . and like I said, given how poor they've shot in the playoffs (granted, they've played against an elite and another near elite defense), they're due for some serious progression to the mean.

I'm not interested in watching the likes of Allen, Battier and Chalmers, raining uncontested 3's, while James still get's around 30 anyway.

For those suggesting Splitter, James would walk around him off the dribble and get non stop layups/dunks/kick outs to wide open 3 point shooters.

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Originally Posted by TampaDude

http://espn.go.com/nba/team/schedule...land-cavaliers

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Thanks for digging that up but I also thought people would remember how we gameplanned him then. I don't have the DVD of that Championship year with me.

Some of this stuff reads like LG.com stuff. Of course most of you are going to say the Spurs will win. You don't have any technical explanations as to how, but I suppose that's what faith is all about, belief without evidence.

Riche is usually wrong about everything, tbh, especially regarding Miami..so take his posts with a grain of salt..

I'm not sure what the Spurs are going to do with Lebron, I'd probably lean towards making him the only scorer on the floor, but we'll see..Leonard's rebounding and defense have been a massive reason for the Spurs success, so I'd understand if the Spurs try to keep him off Lebron at times and put him on Wade, a much easier matchup..

Let Lebron try to score 40 every game, limit the rest of the team IMO..

I expect Parker and Ginobili to be overwhelmed by Miami's perimeter D, but systematically, the Heat can struggle against top bigs and great passing teams that can shoot..

The Spurs need a dominant series from Duncan, a big series from Splitter, and Bonner/Green/Leonard/Diaw to make their 3-pointers at a high rate to win the series, tbh..it's certainly possible that the Spurs could win the series, but relying on Splitter and the role players to make shots hasn't always been kind to the Spurs..

I'm worried about Lebron and Miami's pressure defense, but the Spurs do have Pop and Duncan, and they have the potential of a 2009 Orlando-like shooting barrage, tbh..if you remember that Magic team, they beat the Cavs with Lebron averaging 38-8-8 on the series..

Obviously those Cavs didn't have Wade and Bosh, but the Spurs will need a similar 3-point effort..

The only thing that will keep this series up for the grabs is if TD continues his dominance. As far as what to do? Im with Elnono here, pack the paint and let the shooters kill you. Oh, and I think Wade will be very banged up. He and manu will basically cancel out, so if Timmy outplays Bosh and the jumpshot doesn't kill us, the series will be up for grabs. This series is miami's to lose, though

Why the heck did we trade James? :lol

http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/show...53#post6589553

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Originally Posted by Brunodf

Don't double, just stay home and let Lebron shoot jumpers.
Put Kawhi/Diaw or even Splitter on him.

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Lol you serious? Lebron has about 45 lbs onKawhi. He'll just overpower him. And he'd run circles around Diaw and Splitter.. We have no one who can defend Lebron James.

Kawhi is the best spur to defend james. that's obvious. imo

but yeah, double that niggger every single time

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Originally Posted by BatManu20

Lol you serious? Lebron has about 45 lbs onKawhi. He'll just overpower him. And he'd run circles around Diaw and Splitter.. We have no one who can defend Lebron James.

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Neither does the rest of the league. He's the best on the planet for a reason. If you could single coverage him he'd be no better than any 3rd option. You cannot even single coverage Wade with any real success other than with help side defense.

Even if we double Lebron and turn him into a facilitator, he'll easily take that and drop dimes to Wade, Bosh (who is shooting lights out right now), Allen, Battier, Chalmers, Cole, etc. Birdman is suddenly playing like a man possessed down low. There's really nothing the Spurs can do. Miami is far more talented, deeper, plays better defense, and simply has the best player on the planet right now who is unguardable one-on-one. They're simply the better team, as they should be with that ridiculous roster. BUT, that's why you play the game. Hope the Spurs make me eat crow.

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Originally Posted by HarlemHeat37

Riche is usually wrong about everything, tbh, especially regarding Miami..so take his posts with a grain of salt.

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:toast

I'm not saying the Heat always have bad spacing, but when Lebron dribbled down in to the post on George tonight it was generally pretty poor. I think Leonard should play Lebron straight up almost all the time, just not in the post. Leonard will get thrown around just like George did tonight, and it becomes a layup drill for Lebron.

If you sit off Lebron and Wade and let them shoot jumpers, you might lose. If you get right up on them and they blow by you collapsing the defence and either scoring in the paint or kicking to open 3 point shooters, you'll definitely lose.

Regarding the offensive end, here's a video explaining how the Heat double the ball in the pick and roll to stop penetration (because they have no shot blocking) and how if you hit the roll man you can get easy shots against them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHXfc3UlNfY

If and when Leonard fails to really stop Lebron, I'd like to see him switched on to Wade and let Green guard Lebron when the starters are in. I think Leonard has a serious shot of limiting Wade, and if Splitter/Duncan can outplay Bosh/Haslem there's a chance the Spurs could do the impossible. Of course the role playersw ill need to step up which is asking a lot.

Honestly, the only realistic hope for the Spurs is a hot shooting series, tbh..

Luckily, the potential is there..the Spurs have Ginobili, Green and Bonner that can get hot from outside, along with Leonard and Diaw that can make them, as well..maybe Gary Neal will finally wake up..

I'm not counting on it, but it's possible..Miami is prone to giving up open looks to shooters after they swarm the pick&roll ball-handler..

Relying on shooting role players sucks, but it's better than a team with poor shooters(Indiana, Memphis)..

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Originally Posted by Robz4000

If and when Leonard fails to really stop Lebron, I'd like to see him switched on to Wade and let Green guard Lebron when the starters are in. I think Leonard has a serious shot of limiting Wade, and if Splitter/Duncan can outplay Bosh/Haslem there's a chance the Spurs could do the impossible. Of course the role playersw ill need to step up which is asking a lot.

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I think Green has every chance of defending Wade. If Wade was 100% I'd give Green no chance, but I don't think he is.

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Originally Posted by Richie

I think Green has every chance of defending Wade. If Wade was 100% I'd give Green no chance, but I don't think he is.

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After watching the last two games in the MIA/IND series I'm fairly confident Wade's injury is being massively overblown. He's at least 90% and it wouldn't surprise me if he's closer to 100%.

No one is stopping the Heat this year, the Finals winner has always been decided this year since the last 2 years the team that won it didn't have the HCA. It ain't happening 3 years in a row, it's a lot harder to win the Finals w/o HCA than it is to win in the Eastern/Western Conference playoffs w/o HCA. Sorry to disappoint you guys but before the last 2 years when was the last time a team w/o HCA won the Finals 2 years straight? Exactly, it's almost never happened, the last 2 years were the exception, not the rule.

I think the Heat have a 50% chance of losing next year though, all great teams eventually will run out of gas, it happened to the Lakers back in 2011.

A couple of weeks ago, I was leaning towards Kawhi defending lebron in a possible finals match-up, that said, kawhi is too important of a player both offensively and rebounding wise to waste too much energy and fouls on lebron. Part of the reason why i thought of the former is because i probably underestimated Leonard's overall impact on the team.

I Would suggest putting leonard on lebron, but only on the last 2-3 or minutes of the game tbh.

- Stay on shooters
- Don't double leborn because he's one of the best passers in the league not to mention they have both bosh, and wade on the same team
- have a combination of Ginobili-Diaw-Leonard-Green -Splitter on him, change it up a bit. Confuse him
- If you can't stop lebron from scoring ( no one can) stop his other ways of killing teams which is his passing, playmaking. Get them out of their system. To do do that, let lebron score.
- Make sure to stay on your man instead of thinking to much about deflections because Miami is probably the second best team in spacing the floor in the NBA.

Overall, just have Miami play a different kind of offense as oppose to their spacing, kick and drive offense. To do that, let lebron do his thing.

Lebron is too good of a player today though, so i wouldnt really be surpirsed if they win the championship even if they have to play out of their own system offensively. IMO though, it gives you a better chance winning.

tbh, the way we stopped Dwight, Curry, Thompson, and now Z-Bo/Gasol has given me faith that we can win the championship for the first time this season.

LeBron is a different beast, but the team has officially proven that they're not a bunch of squares of defense. I couldn't have said that in 2012, or even 2 months ago.


see what happens in game 1 and adjust, adjust, adjust.

Pacers in 7

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Originally Posted by justinandimcool

tbh, the way we stopped Dwight, Curry, Thompson, and now Z-Bo/Gasol has given me faith that we can win the championship for the first time this season.

LeBron is a different beast, but the team has officially proven that they're not a bunch of squares of defense. I couldn't have said that in 2012, or even 2 months ago.


see what happens in game 1 and adjust, adjust, adjust.

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Those teams have a shitty offensive system and GS system was too gimicky. Pop did the right thing of containing the "star" players, but against Miami, IMO, it would be best to let lerbon score because Miami has on offensive system that would beat you 9/10 ten, if they combine it with their defense.

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Originally Posted by Kidd K

LeBron is the best player in the NBA. We're not going to shut him down or hold him to 10 points like we have the "stars" throughout the playoffs so far. He's probably going to get 25 a night, but it won't be the end of the world. The Spurs need to focus on containing everyone else while slowing LeBron down as much as possible without overreacting every time he hits a tough drifter or bulldozes his way to the basket.

On the other side of the coin though, what're they going to do about Parker? Chalmers is a terrible defensive player. Cole is even worse. Allen and Miller are too slow. They will either have to eat Tony's dominant play or will be forced to put Wade or LeBron on him. I'd argue Battier is too slow to guard him at this point too. And if LeBron guards Tony, their interior defense will be a joke and Duncan + Tiago will feast.

Speaking of Duncan, who do they have that can stop Duncan? Miami will have the softest frontcourt we've faced all postseason. No Dwight, no Bogut, no Gasol/ZBo. It'll be Bosh/Haslem. Come on. :lol Duncan is playing determined as fuck right now.

So tbh, while we can't "stop" LeBron, basically 2 of our best defensive players can guard that position, + our best if LeBron tries to go into the post. Meanwhile our best two players can attack their weakest defensive positions. Our best 2 perimeter defenders can also guard Wade.

I think we match up very nicely in terms of each team's best players vs each team's best defenders/worst defenders. I'm not saying I'm not worried, but I'm not that worried. The Spurs are a good team this year. I'll take my chances tbh.

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This tbh.

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Originally Posted by BatManu20

Lol you serious? Lebron has about 45 lbs onKawhi. He'll just overpower him. And he'd run circles around Diaw and Splitter.. We have no one who can defend Lebron James.

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Kawhi played well vs him. Splitter/Diaw can defend guards, pretty sure they can stay in front of Lebron(when Kawhi is resting).

I'm not suggesting the Spurs should be favorites, but people are nuts if they think they're going to get destroyed. They'll have what the Mavs had going for them in '11: A level of desperation that the Heat can't possibly match, since unlike the Heat, it's now or never for them. Sure, the Heat are a lot better now than they were then, but this Spurs team is better than that Mavs team and from a match-up/strategy standpoint, there is no team better equipped to deal with them. I'm expecting a potential all-time great Finals.

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Originally Posted by Robz4000

After watching the last two games in the MIA/IND series I'm fairly confident Wade's injury is being massively overblown. He's at least 90% and it wouldn't surprise me if he's closer to 100%.

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Did you see his elevation when James made that last second layup? Wade did one of those high springy knee bend jumps, and you don't do that on the sidelines if you've got an injury to the knee.

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Originally Posted by TD 21

I'm not suggesting the Spurs should be favorites, but people are nuts if they think they're going to get destroyed. They'll have what the Mavs had going for them in '11: A level of desperation that the Heat can't possibly match, since unlike the Heat, it's now or never for them. Sure, the Heat are a lot better now than they were then, but this Spurs team is better than that Mavs team and from a match-up/strategy standpoint, there is no team better equipped to deal with them. I'm expecting a potential all-time great Finals.

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In 2011, the Heat were in their 1st season together. It's not the same team this year.

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Originally Posted by DMC

Did you see his elevation when James made that last second layup? Wade did one of those high springy knee bend jumps, and you don't do that on the sidelines if you've got an injury to the knee.

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Can't recall it immediately, but what really confirmed it for me was seeing Wade's dunk. You don't dunk the ball when your knee is seriously hindering you, much less get that kind of elevation.

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Originally Posted by Robz4000

Can't recall it immediately, but what really confirmed it for me was seeing Wade's dunk. You don't dunk the ball when your knee is seriously hindering you, much less get that kind of elevation.

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He isn't attacking the rim anywhere near as well as he did a few years ago. That says more to me than a dunk or two

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Originally Posted by Richie

He isn't attacking the rim anywhere near as well as he did a few years ago. That says more to me than a dunk or two

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That has more to do with his overall decline and taking a backseat to Lebron/whatever "system" Spo is running. He's been attacking the rim plenty this postseason imo.

Splitter and Diaw are critical in this series. Look at what Indiana is doing to Miami. If the Heat have to go big, their spacing suffers a lot, and them going big depends on them not being able to play Battier at the four. As good as Hibbert is, Duncan is still better on both ends, and Splitter isn't that far behind. The advantage inside is pretty big when you see how inept the Heat are at dealing with Hibbert and West. Then you have Green and Ginobili instead of Lance Stephenson and Parker instead of Hill, and it doesn't even matter if Leonard isn't as good as Paul George. The Spurs are a tougher match-up for the Heat than the Pacers are.

What's interesting to me is seeing how the Heat handle Parker. If they try putting James on him (I actually don't think Lebron can guard him), then it's up to Green or Leonard to win the Chalmers cross-match. Leonard should be able to score over both Heat guards, and Green just needs to be opportunistic and keep Wade honest.

Also, James may be the most versatile defender in the league, but he can't legitimately guard a big. Splitter needs to have confidence in taking Lebron in the paint if the Heat try to use James as the four.

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Originally Posted by Robz4000

Can't recall it immediately, but what really confirmed it for me was seeing Wade's dunk. You don't dunk the ball when your knee is seriously hindering you, much less get that kind of elevation.

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time for wi-fi to earn his keep

If the Heat play up to their potential, I think there's very little anyone can do.
But I also thought the Grizz would sweep the Spurs :)

I just don't wanna see f'n Battier draining 3 after 3 ffs

David and Goliath moment coming. Go spurs!!! Well after memphis

stick Splitter on Bosch all game long, I think he can handle that at least. Have Green and Kawhi rotate between Wade and James with help defense from Duncan and one of our wings cheating off their defender when they close in on 5ft. When that happens, have Splitter cheat off of Bosch and box out Bird Man while someone else picks up Bosch on the outside.

In short, make them a jump shooting team (force Bosch to make jumpers) just like we did with the Warriors.

http://youtu.be/6U7rOUSvYM8 Basically how I feel about the Spurs-Heat matchup

If ECF game 3 heat/james show up vs the spurs, they gon geet swept. Leonard isnt strong enough to defend james in the post(if those post moves showcase wasnt a fluke) and the heat have too many spur killers... battier, allen, bosh, haslem and even cole. Good news is i dont think the heat can play at such a high level on a consistent basis as good as they are, still spurs have to play out of their minds to win another championship

If the spurs win a game or two in the finals against the heat, i'd be very very happy

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Originally Posted by phyzik

stick Splitter on Bosch all game long, I think he can handle that at least. Have Green and Kawhi rotate between Wade and James with help defense from Duncan and one of our wings cheating off their defender when they close in on 5ft. When that happens, have Splitter cheat off of Bosch and box out Bird Man while someone else picks up Bosch on the outside.

In short, make them a jump shooting team (force Bosch to make jumpers) just like we did with the Warriors.

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the heat have too many guys who can create their own shots, too many players to penetrate the paint and kick to sharpshooters, it'll be a tough task to say the least

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Lebron is well past his prime

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Originally Posted by ElNono

what? :lol

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I just spit my drink reading this

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Originally Posted by siraulo23

the heat have too many guys who can create their own shots, too many players to penetrate the paint and kick to sharpshooters, it'll be a tough task to say the least

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If anyone other than Lebron, Wade or Bosh is creating, I think the Spurs will have to live with that. None of the others have looked especially good this post-season in that role.

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Originally Posted by siraulo23

If ECF game 3 heat/james show up vs the spurs, they gon geet swept. Leonard isnt strong enough to defend james in the post(if those post moves showcase wasnt a fluke) and the heat have too many spur killers... battier, allen, bosh, haslem and even cole. Good news is i dont think the heat can play at such a high level on a consistent basis as good as they are, still spurs have to play out of their minds to win another championship

If the spurs win a game or two in the finals against the heat, i'd be very very happy

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Agreed, there is no chance Kawhi can defend Lebron in the post, but as always it takes a team to defend a superstar, especially an MVP like Lebron. Pacers didn't gameplan for Lebron in the post because he didn't do it in Games 1 and 2, caught Indiana completely off guard and Vogel couldn't adjust.

If nothing else, the Spurs have a big matchup advantage in Pop v Spo

I just can't wait for that inevitable moment when on a switch or something , its bonner guarding lebron 1 on 1

"“This was just the first time you’ve seen it, other times I’ve been able to not show you,” Wade said after the game before revealing a rather gnarly detail about the bandage that certainly helps explain his troubles in the postseason.“I’m taping it. When you have a [bone] bruise, you try to move the kneecap over so it won’t rub. When you get into game sweat you have to re-tape it a bit.”
Moving the kneecap over, even if that’s just athlete/trainer jargon, is not a reassuring revelation."

Source

Fuck knows what we'll do with him. What are they gonna do with Tim and Tony?

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Originally Posted by Russo21

Fuck knows what we'll do with him. What are they gonna do with Tim and Tony?

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Exactly.
Too many people forgetting just how great we are.

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Originally Posted by TD 21

I'm not suggesting the Spurs should be favorites, but people are nuts if they think they're going to get destroyed. They'll have what the Mavs had going for them in '11: A level of desperation that the Heat can't possibly match, since unlike the Heat, it's now or never for them. Sure, the Heat are a lot better now than they were then, but this Spurs team is better than that Mavs team and from a match-up/strategy standpoint, there is no team better equipped to deal with them. I'm expecting a potential all-time great Finals.

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This.

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Originally Posted by TampaDude

I say just let LeBron get his and try to shut down everyone else.

Of course, let's close out the Grizzlies first, m'kay?

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For the billionth time. Fans have no control over the current series.

Our best chance is for Hibbert to do Duncan a solid in the game Indiana is eliminated in by making sure he fouls Lebron so hard he can't walk for three weeks.

Miami is sleepwalking in the East. No one can beat them to four wins in a series. Still, it's a championship the Spurs got there.

If I'm the coaching staff, I would review every game Miami lost this year and try to find something. In fact, I would even hire people to watch the games and give me feedback, on everything, everything, every play they run, every substitution, time out, everything.
Miami has lost before, it can be done.
Still, lets win tonight!
PS: I cant believe we are talking about this, wow. Amazing that the Spurs have come this far.

Play Kawhi one on one on him. And lock down the rest of their team. Let Lebron get his and it's not like we really have a choice.

Initially, the Spurs will try and do the same thing they did in '07 with Lebron and turn him into a jump shooter. The Spurs need to lock in on everybody else. If you keep the rest of their guys from catching fire and get them on the PnR with Duncan and Splitter, you give yourself a chance.

I know it's premature and all with the Spurs still needing to win one more game but I know many of us Spurs fans feel ecstatic picturing the Spurs playing in the Finals again and hopefully, win another ring for Tim and Pop. If the two aforementioned teams ever get to face each other in the Finals, it would pretty much be, in my opinion, a tossup as both teams play excellent offense and defense. Who cares if they have Lebron? We have the Big 3 playing great at the right time and we have great defenders in Green and Leonard.

Force LeBron to carry the scoring load and try to take away his playmaking and make him beat you on offense. That is how the Spurs will win. James is too good at getting his teammates involved, he must be forced into the scoring role. Spurs have shown in the past they can let 1 player go bonkers on offense and hold the rest of the team in check and win. That's the formula imo. Wade being a little hobbled will help a lot.

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Originally Posted by ElNono

Seriously, the big issue with Lebron is that he's grown as a basketball player. He now understands he doesn't need to force the issue, and has become an adept passer. Being surrounded by good players helps, obviously.

If you're the Spurs, you keep doing what you're doing and got your this far: stuff the paint and make them beat you from outside. I agree that taking care of the ball is major. But if you do keep your turnovers low (and there's no reason why the Spurs couldn't do that), then defending their halfcourt offense shouldn't be insurmountable. Ultimately, the Spurs might need to pick their poison, and I would suspect Pop would prefer the likes of Cole and Battier to win the game rather than Lebron and Wade.

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This is the dumbest post I've ever read. James has always been a player that naturally let's the game come to him and has most certainly always been more then a good passer...

People are going to be in for a very rude awakening when Norris Cole locks down Parker. He's done it before and is a very tough matchup for TP. TP will get some points but Cole can stay in front of him. Relying on TP's midrange game still makes me nervous, although he has improved a ton over the years.

As for Duncan, he'd need to average 28 and 13 because the Spurs struggle with Bosh.

As much as people worry about LeBron, it's the fact that Allen, Battier, and Miller always do really really well against us. Miami's role players will slaughter ours.

And finally, people can make fun of Birdman all they want but I promise you he will make life hell in the paint for our slashers.

Heat in 5, maybe even 6 if the Spurs play really well.

I'm just happy we got this far.

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Originally Posted by Amuseddaysleeper

People are going to be in for a very rude awakening when Norris Cole locks down Parker. He's done it before and is a very tough matchup for TP. TP will get some points but Cole can stay in front of him. Relying on TP's midrange game still makes me nervous, although he has improved a ton over the years.

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But a Parker that has done well against the likes of Mike Conley (much better than Norris Cole) or Klay Thompson (length and chops) can definitely be expected to overcome Norris Cole. Raza, you do need to look into your sample size of the Cole-Parker matchup :).

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Originally Posted by Amuseddaysleeper

As for Duncan, he'd need to average 28 and 13 because the Spurs struggle with Bosh.

As much as people worry about LeBron, it's the fact that Allen, Battier, and Miller always do really really well against us. Miami's role players will slaughter ours.

And finally, people can make fun of Birdman all they want but I promise you he will make life hell in the paint for our slashers.

Heat in 5, maybe even 6 if the Spurs play really well.

I'm just happy we got this far.

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I am quite happy as well. The thing is the Heat bench is resourceful and useful - better than the Grizzlies role players - but the Spurs are on the verge of "sweeping" a team that many expected to trample them.

I think you should not only be happy but appreciate the reasons for the Spurs' success so far. The difference between a healthy Spurs and a peak Heat is not so much as is made out to be. I am willing to risk "irrational optimism" to say that the Spurs could actually overcome the Heat, as objectively they are not very far from the Heat, as you make it out to be.

I'd be more concerned about finishing the Grizz before thinking about an opponent that hasn't finished its opponent yet.