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If the game tonight gives us any sign, it's that it will be tough for Pop to figure out the best way to use his perimeter players.
Hill was particularly confused with his new reduced role. I hope they can find a way to work it out.
Spurs' Popovich suddenly facing guard glut
Mike Monroe
Under Gregg Popovich the Spurs always have been an inside-out team.
When you have David Robinson and Tim Duncan in your first full season on the bench, this is what basketball experts call a no-brainer.
But Popovich always has been quick to adapt. When the league dramatically altered its defensive rules in 2001, effectively allowing zones, he stuck to most of the defensive principles that have characterized his teams, but tweaked his thick playbook accordingly.
The rule change eliminating hand checking on the perimeter, adopted before the 2004-05 season, did not seem to the average fan as dramatic as the elimination of the illegal defense rules. In fact, its effect has been even more pronounced. It gave perimeter players, mainly guards, a big advantage that interior players don't enjoy. NBA offense never has come so much from the perimeter.
Popovich understood the effect, and the Spurs who took the floor for Saturday's game in Houston are the result.
Thus far, no team in the league is getting more production from its backcourt players than the Spurs. The four guards who will get the bulk of the playing time the rest of the season — Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Roger Mason Jr. and George Hill — went into Saturday's game averaging a combined 66.0 points per game.
Only the Warriors come close, getting 61.9 points from Stephen Jackson, Jamal Crawford, Kelenna Azubuike and Anthony Morrow.
The Lakers' top four guards, led by Kobe Bryant, average 49.6 per game.
(You can add Michael Finley's 10.7 points per game to the Spurs' mix if you insist, but Finley is more often a small forward than a big guard.)
Granted, the Spurs' numbers are skewed by the fact that injuries kept Ginobili sidelined for 12 games, and Parker for nine. That meant Mason and Hill were required to play more minutes. Thus, their scoring averages — 15.3 for Mason, 11.7 for Hill — are higher than they are apt to be at season's end. On the other hand, Ginobili figures to increase his scoring from the 13.7 points he averaged in his first three games.
It is going to be fascinating to see how Popovich manages the minutes of his four most productive guards now that Ginobili and Parker are back on the active roster. He admits he has not yet formulated a plan. Rather, he has ideas. Fifteen games into the season, he feels as if he is back in the preseason, when experimentation carries considerably less risk.
His players will wait to find out, just as Spurs fans will. They are confident he will make the right decisions.
“I have no idea what's going to happen,” says Mason, who clearly enjoys playing point guard despite his primary designation as a shooting guard. “That's why they pay Coach the big bucks. I'm sure he'll figure out a way that's going to make us an even more potent team.”
A coach whose mantra is that defense wins championships never has tried to out-potent opponents, but Popovich recognizes its value. Now, he has options that address a lot of concerns.
Popovich has worried that Ginobili's commitment to representing Argentina in international play has put too much mileage on a 31-year-old's legs. Making him his sixth man has been Popovich's way of saving his energy for crunch time.
Now, things have changed because Mason is a player Popovich can trust to take some of Ginobili's time without losing the pop the Argentine provides from the perimeter. Starting the Big Three — Duncan, Ginobili and Parker — seems more sensible when he has Mason, Hill and Finley to do the scoring for a second unit.
“We're still trying to find our final shape,” is how Ginobili puts it, and he, too, trusts Popovich to get it right.
“Hopefully, soon, Tony and I start sharing more time together, and with Tim, too, and we can again be the old Spurs.”
If the game tonight gives us any sign, it's that it will be tough for Pop to figure out the best way to use his perimeter players.
Hill was particularly confused with his new reduced role. I hope they can find a way to work it out.
Pop said before the game that it will be another 3-4 games before they get a rotation down. I think it's hard for anyone to get in a rhythm at all when they go 12 deep and the subs ution patterns are so wild.
Mason and Hill looked really tight tonight. They seemed like they were trying too hard and doing too much to prove their worth now that Tony and Manu are back. Like they were looking over their shoulder a little.
I think its better if Pop starts the big 3 with bowen and fabs. Mason as pg and hill at 2 off the bench..that's enough offense and they'll be more comfortable playing with each other.
All Pop has to do is put Duncan in, and surround him with Hill, Manu, Mason, and Parker and then tell them to run and gun. Watch the scores go up into the 140's.
Smallball Rulezz
We had a bad defensive game. Poor intensity and poor effort. Regardless of who's playing out there, we can't come to play asleep. It's great we have options, but everybody needs to be on the same page: Defense wins championships. The west is packed again, and we're in no position to take nights off.
Yeah, that makes perfect sense. I can't wait to see these guys settle down - it's going to be one of a team to watch once they are clicking together consistently (like they did at times against Memphis the other night).
That'd be fun, but more suited to Mike D'Antoni than Pop!
Agreed. You can only play 5 guys at a time. And we still havnt started working on our Bigs. Cos we dont have them yet. I refuse to believe our FO is gonna let this team go the rest of the season with Fab and Kurt. Come PO time if we still have them playing. Timmy will have his hands full again. And none of the smalls we have are gonna make much of a difference. Its no surprise. If you want to beat the better team. You must make stops. And we dont have the players todo that yet. Scolla outplayed 4 players on our team last night. And Scolla only played 25 mins. The Rockets are stronger in the areas we are weaker. They are loaded with SF's(no tmac, but had Shane). And its no surprise how well Scolla played against Fab, Kurt and AT. If we want to keep believing, then we better stick to playing the teams we've been beating. I cant wait to see us against the Lakers or the Hornets.
Not gonna happen. It works for awhile, but the better teams will easily stop that by going big. Just like last season, NO would score a layup twice and we would have to make a 3 to make up for not being able to stop a layup or alley-oop. If you can keep players from scoring easy buckets, then you can mix it up with small ball. But you cant live with small ball. Not in this league. And all this hype that the media keeps saying (roger can play the 3 spot) is a joke. He is to small to play the 3. When the games count, teams will do like the Suns do with Diaw. Back Roger down one on one. And Roger is to small for that. So was Ime. Spurs just need to find another 3 and 4/5. Thats all there is to it. And the Rockets were a perfect team to exploit it. Rockets have real good 3s who can play 4s and of course have Scolla who can play 3,4 and 5 if needed. Our small guys didnt do well against Scolla and Co. last night.
Agreed 100%. Then again, our schedule has made us look like we were headed to the Championship game.
We saw as much on display in the playoff series versus the Hornets and Fakers. Despite Duncan's brilliance, the Spurs were repeatedly beaten, outhustled and outrebounded by the bigs those bigger frontlines - and the Fakers didn't even have Bynum then.Agreed 100%. Then again, our schedule has made us look like we were headed to the Championship game.
That said, I agree. The backcourt glut is a wonderful problem to have. However, it cannot offset the lack of frontcourt depth and deficiencies that exist there. I cannot wait to see how much or if Ian helps shore up some of these areas.
Parker 34mpg Mason 30mpg Manu 30mpg Hill 16mpg and Finley plays only at the SF spot....thats about right.
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