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To summarize...
The Spurs have had a lot of trouble scoring.
Thanks for the heads-up.
Executive Summary, for the reading impaired: the Spurs ability to beat themselves may be more of a threat than anything the Hornets will throw at them. In their last 8 losses, the Spurs have had quarters with: 14, 14, 13, 11, 11, 9, and 8 points. Even in three of their wins in that time they had quarters of 15, 13, and 11. And that also doesn't count the times that a 12-minute drought spanned more than one quarter. For those not threatened by anything longer than a single paragraph, read on.
Hornets fans may not be aware, because they probably only watched the Spurs a few times this season - but the single most disturbing problem the Spurs had was their tendency to go completely cold for very long stretches of a game. At times, it almost looked like the Spurs had to spot the other teams one quarter, just to make the games interesting.
The Spurs have had similar problems in the past, but probably never to this degree. Numerous times during the season, the Spurs set (or approached) records for the lowest scoring x-quarter in franchise history. Some of the missed shots were obviously due to the other teams stepping up on defense. But in many cases, the Spurs seemingly got any shot they wanted, and simply could not knock them down - even missing shot after shot at the rim at times.
Game 4 against the Suns is a good example. Even with Boris Diaw and Raja Bell shooting lights-out, it was the non-existent shooting of the Spurs that really turned that game into a Suns blowout. Similarly, the two games that the Spurs lost to the Hornets by big margins were due more to the Spurs' shooting woes than anything the Hornets did on defense.
There is always a tendency to count blowout victories as more than just another win. There has certainly been a lot said about the Hornets two big wins over the Spurs during the regular season. But consider the following about those two games:
In the January 26 game in San Antonio, the Spurs were ahead 43-42 at the half. And the Hornets were ahead by only 1 point (60-59) with 4:42 left in the 3rd quarter. But by 4:34 left in the 4th quarter, the Hornets were ahead 95-70. The Spurs scored only 11 points in a 12-minute stretch. And, although the Hornets defended during that period, the Spurs repeatedly failed to knock down open shots.
In the March 12 game in New Orleans, the Hornets were ahead 52-49 with 9:49 left in the 3rd quarter. But by 3:14 left in the 3rd quarter, the Hornets were ahead 68-54. The Spurs got it back to 67-76 by the end of the 3rd quarter. but by 5:08 left in the 4th quarter, the score was 91-71. It happened in two stretches, but the Spurs only managed 10 points in 13.5 minutes of game time. And during much of that 4th quarter run, the Hornets had Ely, Wells, and Pargo on the floor. Not to take anything away from those players, but the Spurs just didn't knock down any shots, to speak of - even missing 5/6 free throws.
To give a better idea, look at the Spurs side of the play-by-play for the 1/26 loss to New Orleans:
Hornets 60, Spurs 59
4:27 Parker Jump Shot: Missed
3:40 Parker 3pt Shot: Missed
3:37 Duncan Rebound (Off:1 Def:5)
3:36 Duncan Layup Shot: Missed
2:56 Bowen 3pt Shot: Missed
2:36 Vaughn Turnover:Bad Pass (1 TO)
1:56 Duncan Jump Shot: Missed
1:25 Duncan Jump Bank Shot: Missed
1:10 Horry Putback Slam Dunk Shot: Made (2 PTS)
0:40 Udoka 3pt Shot: Made (5 PTS)
0:05 Vaughn Running Hook Shot: Missed
0:00 Ginobili 3pt Shot: Missed
Start 4Q
11:40 Udoka Pullup Jump shot: Made (7 PTS)
11:12 Horry 3pt Shot: Missed
10:43 Ginobili Turnover:Out of Bounds Lost Ball Turnover (2 TO)
10:18 Horry 3pt Shot: Missed
9:48 Finley Jump Shot: Missed
9:13 Duncan Jump Shot: Missed
9:12 Udoka Turnover:Step Out of Bounds Turnover (2 TO)
8:44 Ginobili Turnover:Bad Pass (3 TO)
8:11 Duncan Jump Shot: Missed
7:38 Udoka 3pt Shot: Missed
7:00 Richardson 3pt Shot: Missed
6:53 Udoka Layup Shot: Made (9 PTS)
6:26 Finley 3pt Shot: Missed
5:47 Parker Jump Shot: Made (17 PTS)
5:02 Parker Jump Shot: Missed
4:34 No shots taken by Spurs since 5:02
Hornets 95, Spurs 70
To the Spurs credit, they were able to overcome their long scoring droughts in some games - usually by playing incredible defense until the shots started falling again. It's going to be tough to stifle Paul and West to that degree, should the same thing happen in this series. The Big 3 will get their numbers overall. But in the lulls, we are really going to need the other guys to knock down some jumpers, and to finish those gimmes at the rim. Without any 10-point quarters from the Spurs, there won't be any blowouts. And the Spurs will wear them down in 6.
Last edited by GSH; 05-03-2008 at 07:26 PM.
To summarize...
The Spurs have had a lot of trouble scoring.
Thanks for the heads-up.
That's like saying the price of gas has gone up a little.
In their last 8 losses, the Spurs have had quarters with: 14, 14, 13, 11, 11, 9, and 8 points. Even in three of their wins in that time they had quarters of 15, 13, and 11. And that also doesn't count the times that a 12-minute drought spanned more than one quarter. That's not "trouble scoring... that's a call for life support.
How does a team as good as the Spurs get held to less than 15 points in a quarter that many times? It's not because the other teams just played lock-down defense. And it's scary because we can totally fail to score, even when the other team isn't defending well.
Alot of it needs to be taken in context. Tony missed a good chunk of games, during which the offense grew stagnant and the Spurs were asked to hit some really tough shots. When Tony did get back, he needed a few games to get into a rhythm before he became effective. And of course, Brent missed a huge part of the season, which seriously damaged the offense. He was one of our deadliest shooters hen he was on the floor. He's just barely starting to get into the swing of things, which will be vital from here on out.
Finley's cold shooting can't really be explained....hopefully he just snaps out of it.
I agree with the thread starter. This team has had problems with offense and it's due to losing carlesimo. This is the flaw that might hurt the Spurs in the playoffs if they cannot shut down opponents while they are going through long cold stretches. I really hope this problem can be solved as the playoffs go on.
Looks like more of a smartass comment now, doesn't it SouthernFried? When they get like this, they even miss chip shots and free throws. And we have no in-between game at all anymore. It's either paint or 3-pointers.
if ginobili can't take over on offense, we've got no shot. parker does his part, but duncan is getting swarmed. that means someone else has to step up.
The Spurs lost the game because they couldn't buy a basket. But it was a blowout because we allowed them to take 15 more shots than we did.
please add another quarter to that count.
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