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Duncan will lead them, he always has. I expect his team to follow him Thursday. They're out of time.Duncan, understanding the moment, stepped into the fray on Monday. What happens next depends on who follows him.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/c...s.4042bd4.html
Mike Finger: Duncan desperately needs help
Web Posted: 05/06/2008 01:07 AM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
Finger NEW ORLEANS — Snarling and outraged, Tim Duncan stood up for Fabricio Oberto. Now someone needs to stand up for Duncan.
If the Spurs are going to do what they've never done before — if they're going to win a playoff series they trail two games to none, and stem this tide of alley-oops and layups and shockingly thorough blowouts — then a few guys have to do for Duncan what he's so often done for them. This time they have to be the difference-makers.
It's true that the tone of a series can change as quickly as a burst of a fire extinguisher, and this one can take a similar turn on Thursday. But if a shift is coming, Duncan probably won't be the reason for it. The Hornets are intent on forcing somebody else to beat them, and so far no one has accepted the offer.
Rarely in his career has Duncan looked this frustrated, this powerless, this out of sync, in back-to-back games. If it hasn't been because of a reported illness — one he refused to acknowledge after Monday's game — it's been because of too-short jump hooks and the long arms and double-teams of the Hornets.
All of this was building up inside, and it finally erupted with 4:06 left in the third quarter. After David West was bumped by Oberto and drew a foul, West lingered in Oberto's face, clapping and nodding. Duncan, apparently taking umbrage with West's taunt, charged over screaming at West, and the two power forwards had to be separated.
But when it came time for Duncan's teammates to help him in a time of need, they failed to deliver. Manu
Ginobili, perhaps still suffering from a calf injury, couldn't work his usual magic. Even when Tony Parker got to the rim, he was often greeted by a defender waiting to swat his shot into the first row. Bruce Bowen couldn't keep up with Chris Paul, Oberto couldn't stay in front of West, and Michael Finley wasn't long enough for Peja Stojakovic.
And not only do the Hornets have the bodies to give the Spurs matchup problems, they have the minds to take advantage of them. An example:
Early in the third quarter, 6-foot-9, 240-pound West found himself being guarded on the baseline by 6-foot-2, 180-pound Parker. In that situation, most big men would try to post the smaller defender up.
But West? He knew someone was coming to help Parker. So he fired the ball to the spot where he figured that defender — Bowen — was coming from. When Morris Peterson caught the pass, he was all alone in the corner, and swished a 3-pointer.
Plays like that were the norm during the first two games, and simply moving the series west doesn't guarantee they'll stop. Even though he was better in Game 2 than he was in a historically bad Game 1, Duncan himself pointed out his effectiveness Monday was “not a whole lot different.”
He said the Spurs “have got guys who have been in this situation before,” but that's not entirely true.
Duncan is the only player on the team who's ever lost the first two games of a playoff series, and that one didn't work out so well. In the 2001 Western Conference finals, they were swept by the Lakers.
Gregg Popovich said he'd be worried even if the Spurs were coming home ahead 2-0, but he recognizes the magnitude of this challenge. And he also has a pretty good idea of what the solution is.
“Your best players,” Popovich said. “This is the time for all of them to perform.”
As we've seen all season long, the Spurs' “best players” aren't limited to tall men wearing No. 21 anymore. They have guys who can exploit matchup advantages of their own, guys who have hit big shots in big games, guys capable of firing off a quick-as-an-extinguisher change of momentum of their own.
Duncan, understanding the moment, stepped into the fray on Monday. What happens next depends on who follows him.
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Duncan will lead them, he always has. I expect his team to follow him Thursday. They're out of time.Duncan, understanding the moment, stepped into the fray on Monday. What happens next depends on who follows him.
if the shooters cant hit shots, then i would like to see duncan force shots on the double teams, fukn pussys.
Ugh...now I know how Rockets fans of the late 90s felt...
The old time (circa 2003) would laugh at double teams and then proceed to pick them apart, either by turning baseline for a jumper or making the PERFECT pass to an open teammate who would then KNOCK IT DOWN.
Unless the Spurs pull a 180, Tim's spectacular 1st round will have been for nothing.
These Spurs look like they've just started playing together and don't know eachother's tendencies. On top of that, one of the best defensive teams in the last 10 years is making stupid mistake after stupid mistake on that end...
am I really depressed right now. I haven't felt like this since we were down 3-1 to Dallas in 06, and that didn't end well.
yes, he always has had, besides Game 1 of this series when he recorder his worse playoff performance ever...
So he's gonna start Manu?“Your best players,” Popovich said. “This is the time for all of them to perform.”
the 4th quarter line up?
Manu on CP30!
He'll get 6 early fouls.
Duncan desperately needs help
Everybody needs help from everybody else.
Ah, yeah, you're right. Duncan it is.
as bad as Duncan has played in this series so far, it hurts even more that Ginobili has played even worse..he was supposed to be the "key" for our team winning, but he's playing like a rookie..
The game was ugly.. it seemed as if they relied on bowen, et al on making the shots.
The Spurs didn't look like themselves. Credit to the Hornets, though, but I stick with my original prediction of Spurs in 6.
Byron Scott is making us pay.
'03 finals? Hahah.
The problem is they send bowen's defender at timmy, and when bowen isn't making those corner threes they can get away with it. Not to mention Tony and Manu not being themselves..
They have no excuses now. Execution, and poise under pressure have always been the Spurs hallmark. They were missing in games 1, and 2.. They better show up in the next games, or else they're going home. 42% from the field and 29(!)% from beyond the arc isn't going to cut it..
I believe they'll be able to pull it off, though. One thing that goes in the Spurs favor though, is the pressure on NO to get the job done and NOT choke. And the fact that they've probably played all their cards..
Tim had flu. I expect he's going to be real monster in Thursday.
Maybe i'm expecting too much from Manu . I realise he's carrying an injury but the fact is he's still playing . He's been in this situation before lifting his national team to wins while still being hampered. He needs to do the same here. For the spur to win the next game Manu has to have a big one. Excuses are out the door.But when it came time for Duncan's teammates to help him in a time of need, they failed to deliver. Manu
Ginobili, perhaps still suffering from a calf injury, couldn't work his usual magic.
Not true.See the game again.They are sending Paul to Tim and they will do the same all the series if TP can´t make a ing open shot and he pass the ball.
.Scott isn't a dumb.Paul is the steal's leader of the league so he can do a lot of problems to TD when he is putting the ball on the court and Parker's JS aren't enough good to hurt them when he is open.By the way even he is passing the ball and we are losing the advantage of the double team.
In Game 2 even when TP stays far way to TD and the ball to Tim comes from Manu or Finley you can see how CP3 run to double team TD and he doesn't care about TP.
TP seems to be afraid to shot.That's easy when you begin the game with 0-6
Last edited by Josepatches; 05-06-2008 at 05:57 AM.
It's time for Tim to shave his hair, again.
I respect the Hornets but I don't see them winning just like that.
We have to win Game 3 and we'll be fine.
michael jordan had the flu and worst, but he still labored through and scored 38 pts in a crucial game 5 win over utah and colapse from exhaustion only after the game, the first two games of no show from tim is hardly an excuse that could be played down to illness alone, the next 2 games will be make or break, let's see if timmy and the spurs really do have the heart of champions or just odd season chockers.
NO has bottled the Spurs' formula for success and is drinking it down. They pack the paint for east layups and defense on the other end, which opens up the outside shooters. And their outside shooters were hitting lights out last night - 6 for 8 going into the fourth, I believe, and then some misses in the fourth brought their percentage down to "only" 65%"...the Spurs have won championships with this formula, and if they go on to lose this series it will be because of their weakness all season - the streakiness of their offense outside shooting.
This year more then ever teams have played TD straight up and the spurs have relied heavily on the P&R
Now all of a sudden TD is being doubled every time and NO are packing the paint like the 04 Lakers. 4-down is the correct call as we are getting good looks but this group has not really seen this type of defense played against them all year and it will take time to adjust. Hopefully they can get it together in time...
Anyone else like the idea of Bonner instead of Oberto??
It's not like Duncan is doing anything to help them on the defensive end either....it's a two way street and a team game.
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