There weren't threads for me to express these thoughts, so I figured I'd just make a thread and see if it goes anywhere.
1. I thought it was interesting tonight to hear Collins relate that Pop says the Spurs haven't really been game-planning for any opponents and are worried more about what they're doing than who the opponent is. Coupled with the idea that Pop wants the Spurs to focus on their individual defense, I'm not worried as much about the actual game results for a while. Wins are great, but wins when the Spurs are just tinkering and working through issues are all the better and losses during that stretch seem a bit less worrisome.
That's pretty standard operating procedure for Pop. It's always about what they're doing, not what the opponent might do.
He definitely has been tinkering more than usual though, specifically with his adaptation of Boston's defense earlier in the year and his willingness to have defense take a backseat to offense at times. It almost leads you to believe he's come to the realization that, with the personnel he has, he's going to have find a new way to "skin the cat" if they're to get to their ultimate goal.
2. John Hollinger must be on the verge of a meltdown. He's been predicting for weeks that this stretch of the Spurs' schedule would see them slide down the standings. Getting wins at Utah and Phoenix certainly wasn't at all a part of Hollinger's calculus. What looms is not easy, but other than the game at Boston, everything for the next couple of weeks seems quite winnable -- particularly for a team that seems to be building momentum.
3. Along with their stellar record and calm performances in close games -- on evidence again tonight when Parker drained the long jumper to quell the Suns' rally after Hill's steal-and-1 -- these Spurs have played really well on the road so far. They're 14-7 overall and have now won 7 of 9 since dropping the NO-ORL back-to-back. Since the injury plagued start, the Spurs are 14-5 on the road, with 3 of the 5 losses coming in NO, ORL, and LA and a 4th coming in Houston on the 2nd night of a back-to-back.
He both "pulled a Manu" (bad decision to try and draw a foul and getting stripped, only to redeem his self with a clutch shot) and bailed Manu's ass out (after that terrible foul he committed on Hill) in all of two possessions. (Manu... Have you learned nothing?
)
4. Bowen's response to the Hack-a-Bruce strategy was huge, obviously. But I thought the Spurs won tonight's game when they closed the first half strong while Parker sat with 3 fouls. It would have been a fairly easy time for the Spurs to let the Suns get away, but they dug in and rallied to close the gap and take a lead before Nash tied it at the buzzer. The tie wasn't ideal, but it was far better than being down 6 or so at the half, which they were in danger of doing. The game was 47-46 Phoenix when Parker departed and the Suns proceeded to go on a 7-2 run to make it 54-48. Ginobili missed a 3, but Duncan got an offensive board and the Spurs scored to cut the Suns' lead to 4. Including that play, the Spurs made 4-5 field goals to close the half while holding the Suns to 1-3 field goals (and having Barnes miss 2 free throws).
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