McDonald: Spurs' Popovich Praises Comeback Effort

[mexicanjunior]

If you dont double team Duncan take the defender out. Or get him in foul trouble.

I think the Magic made the choice last night to allow Howard to get fouls in order to deny Finley, Bonner, Bowen and Mason open 3's because they know that is the only way they can hurt the Magic on offense. None of those 4 players are a real threat to drive the lane and attack the rim, it was a smart move as long as Howard didn't get his 6th, which never came. I would expect more of the better teams with decent big men will follow this blueprint and probably be successful with it....

[FromWayDowntown]

Good effort or not. This was the week I felt would determine or give us a real look at what we were made of. And our bigs proved me correct. Talk about getting your butts whipped inside the paint. And the Magic only hit 6 of there 25 shots from beyond the arc. This could have been an even more worse blow out then the score really says. Or the comeback we made. In the end it wasnt because of their outside shooting that cost us the game. It was because of layups. It drew Pop into getting pissed. But hey Pop what do you expect with a bunch of scrubs for bigs. I mean heck you brought these scrubs in. And this is what you might as well expect when you play against teams with alot of talent. The biggest question I have is would we have lost to NO and Orlando if we would have played them at home? And when is Ian gonna be ready? Matt is ok against sorry teams. But he aint worth a crud against the teams that will be fighting for and in the POs. If the FO isnt working on some kind of plan to get Timmy some help. Then imo they're playing their fans for suckers. And Matt has alot of fans for suckers. At MYSA.com someone said trade Tony for Amare,Marion or Okafor. Who knows with Timmy being the best passing Big in the NBA. Maybe Hill can run the show while Timmy and one of those other bigs dominate the paint. Nah, Hill would get eaten alive in the post season. Bottom line is the Spurs are not fooling anyone. And did anyone see Manu's jumping ability? In last nights game his lack of staying in the air(which has been an important asset in his driving ability to score layups and dunks), has gone flat. Manu has no lift in his legs anymore. He is basically a jump shooter now. And we have plenty of them. Trade him for a big. Or continue to get smoked by younger more talented teams. Like NO, Orlando and the Lakers. Or wait till 2010. And watch the FO bring in another scrub of a Big.

Why do you even bother following the team if they make you this miserable?

And are you really arguing that the Spurs should trade both Parker and Ginobili for bigs? Assuming for fun that both ideas came to fruition, I'm curious who on the remaining roster has any chance to make plays on the perimeter? Are you hoping for the Spurs to become a not-as-good version of the Toronto Raptors or something?

[Bruno]

Oberto out: Reserve center Fabricio Oberto sat out Thursday's game with a sore left foot. He is considered day-to-day.

If Oberto is still out for the next game on Saturday against Raptors, Spurs will have only 3 healthy bigmen with Duncan, Bonner and Thomas. Spurs should bring back Tolliver and if Spurs' staff isn't sure whether or not keeping him for the year, this game could help them to make their choice. Seeing what he can do against perimeter oriented and mobile players like Bosh and Bargnani could decide his fate with Spurs.

[mrspurs]

Why do you even bother following the team if they make you this miserable?

And are you really arguing that the Spurs should trade both Parker and Ginobili for bigs? Assuming for fun that both ideas came to fruition, I'm curious who on the remaining roster has any chance to make plays on the perimeter? Are you hoping for the Spurs to become a not-as-good version of the Toronto Raptors or something?

Because I can. And they dont make me misable. I enjoy the games. They are a few teams I like out there on this planet. And those teams have players I personally dont like. And Ive earned that right. If you dont like it, then ignore it. Its a great feature Ill show you how to use it.

[FromWayDowntown]

Because I can. And they dont make me misable. I enjoy the games. They are a few teams I like out there on this planet. And those teams have players I personally dont like. And Ive earned that right. If you dont like it, then ignore it. Its a great feature Ill show you how to use it.

I was actually trying to engage you in discussion by asking you to clarify points in your rant.

I just wonder why some people continue to complain about the same things in the Groundhog Day world of Spurs fandom.

I'm absolutely certain that gripes just like yours were prominent in this forum in 2005 and in 2007, too.

[leemajors]

If Oberto is still out for the next game on Saturday against Raptors, Spurs will have only 3 healthy bigmen with Duncan, Bonner and Thomas. Spurs should bring back Tolliver and if Spurs' staff isn't sure whether or not keeping him for the year, this game could help them to make their choice. Seeing what he can do against perimeter oriented and mobile players like Bosh and Bargnani could decide his fate with Spurs.

i think they called him up today.

http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=112492

[lefty]

Pop.

Howard is benched because of his 5 fouls and we don't give the ball to TD

Timmy, he has csrubs defending him and he settles for the jump-shot

And Pop for pushing Tim to take more jump-shots.

.

[Josepatches_]

I think the Magic made the choice last night to allow Howard to get fouls in order to deny Finley, Bonner, Bowen and Mason open 3's because they know that is the only way they can hurt the Magic on offense. None of those 4 players are a real threat to drive the lane and attack the rim, it was a smart move as long as Howard didn't get his 6th, which never came. I would expect more of the better teams with decent big men will follow this blueprint and probably be successful with it....

But you are talking about Howard and even he was in foul trouble, maybe Chandler or Camby too can do that (NO could be a problem like they was last year) but how many more players can stop TD without double team? Even NO lat year in the WCSF sent always Paul to double team
Last 2 games we played against 2 teams which have 2 of the best defensive big men of the league.
But teams like Lakers are not going to leave alone Gasol or Bynum against TD.He will destroy them.We saw last week how Dampier or Diop can't do it neither.Shaq needs help when TD begin the move too.90% of the league's teams send help when TD puts the ball in the floor.Even Howard needs help if he don't want to be in foul trouble.

I'm not worried about that.If teams want to let TD play one on one he could score easily at least 60-70%.The problem is when we are not able to use the advantages of the double team on TD.Like last year series against the Hornets.

[SenorSpur]

Personally, I'm not into moral victories. This is an unforgiving league. You're either good enough to compete on a given night or you're not. There's no such thing as "we almost won" or "we played hard". It simply comes down to whether your team got a "W" or an "L". That's all that matters. I'm actually surprised Pop fell back on such a weak statement. He's usually no-nonsense.

[mrspurs]

Personally, I'm not into moral victories. This is an unforgiving league. You're either good enough to compete on a given night or you're not. There's no such thing as "we almost won" or "we played hard". It simply comes down to whether your team got a "W" or an "L". That's all that matters. I'm actually surprised Pop fell back on such a weak statement. He's usually no-nonsense.

+1

[Kori Ellis]

Personally, I'm not into moral victories. This is an unforgiving league. You're either good enough to compete on a given night or you're not. There's no such thing as "we almost won" or "we played hard". It simply comes down to whether your team got a "W" or an "L". That's all that matters. I'm actually surprised Pop fell back on such a weak statement. He's usually no-nonsense.

For Pop, it doesn't simply come down to a W or L. I have seen him be livid after games when the Spurs win by 10+ points, just because the D sucked or some other aspects. Throughout the regular seasons in the last five years or so, I've seen him find merit in losses and be pissed off in wins dozens of times. This isn't a new thing coming from Pop.

I'm not saying this particular game was one that he should / shouldn't have been pissed off about. But I'm saying maybe he didn't expect a win. Not getting to bed until 4am on the second game of a back to back with two of your three stars not in game shape - maybe he just didn't expect a win and appreciated the guys trying to make a comeback.

[SenorSpur]

For Pop, it doesn't simply come down to a W or L. I have seen him be livid after games when the Spurs win by 10+ points, just because the D sucked or some other aspects. Throughout the regular seasons in the last five years or so, I've seen him find merit in losses and be pissed off in wins dozens of times. This isn't a new thing coming from Pop.

I'm not saying this particular game was one that he should / shouldn't have been pissed off about. But I'm saying maybe he didn't expect a win. Not getting to bed until 4am on the second game of a back to back with two of your three stars not in game shape - maybe he just didn't expect a win and appreciated the guys trying to make a comeback.

Well said. One thing is for certain, Pop definitely has a great read and feel for the the pulse of the team. Maybe you're right. Maybe he knew the odds were long that they'd win that game.

However, I still believe bench contribution will be critical in road games like this. If Pop commits toward developing the bench on the fly, it will help provide the added energy jolt needed on such back-to-back games.

[mrspurs]

Regardless of Ws or Ls, Pop has been yelling for more then 5 years. He has toned it down somewhat. But when you let a guy make an easy layup when your on a come back run. And quite possibly I think Pop thought we could win this one. Then expect Pop to hit something like the scorers table. I personally dont think Pop was making any excuses. But sometimes things slip out. What I am sure of is this. Pop could care less what we think. And I dont mean that in a bad way at all.

[bigfan]

For Pop, it doesn't simply come down to a W or L. I have seen him be livid after games when the Spurs win by 10+ points, just because the D sucked or some other aspects. Throughout the regular seasons in the last five years or so, I've seen him find merit in losses and be pissed off in wins dozens of times. This isn't a new thing coming from Pop.

I'm not saying this particular game was one that he should / shouldn't have been pissed off about. But I'm saying maybe he didn't expect a win. Not getting to bed until 4am on the second game of a back to back with two of your three stars not in game shape - maybe he just didn't expect a win and appreciated the guys trying to make a comeback.

You are exactly right. Pop doesnt do "moral victories" or any of that crap, he probably was suprised the team played as good as it did under the cir stances. That is a good example of why the guy is the best coach in the league; he isnt going to sweat the small stuff, we will be in the playoffs with a better, tougher team.

[Spur-Addict]

No. No. Notorius