McDonald: Parker Says, "Thanks, Dallas"

[SenorSpur]

Anyone who has watched the Spurs and Mavs play in the last two years know that the Spurs were doing backflips when that trade went through. Devin Harris is probably the only player in the league who can stay in front of Parker defensively. On top of that, Diop is one of the few shotblockers in the league who has consistently gotten to Parker's tear drop.

Diop also bothers Duncan like few players in the league. The Mavs themselves had to know that the Spurs would be happy with the trade. However, most of the talk coming out of Dallas is basically saying that while the Mavs were built to beat the Spurs, they weren't going to win a championship because they didn't matchup well with many other teams.

There's no way the Mavs did that trade and thought they'd have a better shot against the Spurs. The Mavs did that trade because they didn't think they'd advance far enough in the playoffs to even face the Spurs if they didn't make a move.

All the more reason the Spurs should make a run at Diop over this offseason. Imagine the motivation he'd have in coming back to haunt the Mavs 4 times a year and possibly in the playoffs.

[FromWayDowntown]

this is great. i posted the article in a mavs forum... told them they have a built-in excuse.

I've stopped lurking in other places, but went to check out their responses to this (and their thoughts on Kidd, Night 1). There are interesting differences in the ways that Spurs fans and Mavs fans see that rivalry.

[CaptainLate]

Subs ute "Parker" for "Paul", "Finley" for "Stojakovic" and "Ginobili" for "Jackson", and this is what is going to happen vs. Dallas if we meet in the Playoffs


[ Meanwhile, Paul’s dazzling performance on both ends of the floor had the enraptured crowd on its feet, raining down chants of “M-V-P!” for their own All-Star point guard while a banner offering similar sentiments flapped from the upper deck.

“It’s fun to watch. I was getting pumped up,” said Hornets center Tyson Chandler...“Tonight was unbelievable. The guy was all over the place. He took a personal challenge to go out and just, I mean, he was incredible. I haven’t seen anything like that in a while.”

While Paul dribbled surgically through Dallas’ defense, Peja Stojakovic and Bobby Jackson shot with precision from the perimeter, combining for eight of the Hornets’ 10 3-pointers as New Orleans won its fifth straight.

[CaptainLate]

LA is a tough match up. Be good if the Spurs could add a better big.

Does Kurt Thomas answer the bell for you?

[CaptainLate]

There's no way the Mavs did that trade and thought they'd have a better shot against the Spurs. The Mavs did that trade because they didn't think they'd advance far enough in the playoffs to even face the Spurs if they didn't make a move.

I'm sure the Mavs are hoping what happened to them vs. GS last year will happen to the Spurs this year -- i.e., Spurs get knocked out before the two meet. How funny would it be to have the Spurs and Mavs be the 4-5 seeds and the Mavs get knocked out 4-1?

[CaptainLate]

However, the Spurs have bigger problems to worry about than the Mavericks. I would rate San Antonio as an underdog in a playoff series against either Los Angeles or Phoenix.

And now, after the trade for KT?

[CaptainLate]

I don't know why so many people are underrating the Utah Jazz. They are going to a tough contender in the playoffs against anyone.

Still too young. They were fortunate to play GS in Round 2.

[SenorSpur]

http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblog...onald_p_7.html

Jeff McDonald: Parker says, "Thanks, Dallas"

If Tony Parker had been allowed a spot on the mythical NBA trade committee that Spurs coach Gregg Popovich wants to establish, this much is certain: He would have given a big thumbs up to the swap that brought Jason Kidd back to the Dallas Mavericks from New Jersey.

Yes, the Mavs added a Hall of Fame point guard, albeit one in the twilight of his career. But the cost was steep, especially when viewed through the prism of the Spurs-Mavs rivalry. To get Kidd, Dallas essentially parted with two players who have been perennial thorns in the Spurs' side -- Devin Harris and DeSagana Diop.

Here is Parker verbatim following Wednesday's practice: "To be honest with you, I'm really happy for that trade. Diop was doing a good job on us. And Devin Harris, most of the time, he played good against us. So I thought it would be good for us. No disrespect to Jason Kidd, he's a great point guard, but those guys that left always gave us trouble."

In that, Parker was simply verbalizing the conventional wisdom floating around the Spurs' locker room in the wake of the Kidd trade. Harris is one of the few point guards on the planet who can keep up with Parker's speed. Diop was a capable big man, useful for banging on Tim Duncan.

Now, both are in the Eastern Conference.

(Incidentally, Parker agrees with his coach on the swap the Lakers swung to pry Pau Gasol from Memphis. He called that deal a "Christmas gift.")

As for the question of whether the Spurs are poised to enter the trade market before Thursday's league-imposed deadline, the answer is still a definite maybe.

Once again Wednesday, Popovich declined to rule out the prospect of a minor deal before D-Day. But he also didn't sound like the Spurs were exactly drooling over the available prospects.

"Oh yeah, it's amazing, the thrill and elation we feel at some of the possibilities," Popovich said, with an overdose of sarcasm.

I just knew that we fans couldn't have been the only ones that saw the benefits from the Mavs doing this deal.