Initial Reaction: Spurs vs. Thunder Mar. 31

[Borosai]

If the 2006 Miami Heat were able to win a championship, then so can the 2009 San Antonio Spurs (yes, that's the only positive thought I can muster).

This team has no iden y. Well, maybe one: ing chuckers. But they are no longer the dominant defensive team they once were. There is no rhyme or reason to their offense. , when was the last time we saw such ty execution at the end of games?

The effect injuries have had on team chemistry is evident, but the system isn't the same. Pop has gone soft: he's not rabid anymore, and the players are bored and not responding. How many embarassing losses do they need to experience before they wake up and play like they give a ? The Spurs have the right players on the team. The problem lies in the fact that they are sitting on the bench or playing out of position. And then there's the defense. .

[timvp]

This is like a bad dream. Pop has made Finley part of the Big Four. Bowen has been relegated to ball boy duties. Vaughn has replaced Hill in the rotation. RMJ has gone Hedo before the playoffs even begin. Gooden has made the bigman rotation even more jumbled. Duncan and Ginobili are about 70% health. Parker very well could have peaked too early. Pop is coaching like its preseason and there are eight games to go before the playoffs.

Unbelievable.

BBL.

[ElNono]

I think he will shorten the rotation also but plug in the wrong players to fill the majority of the minutes (Finley, Vaughn, Bonner, etc). Nothing over the last couple of weeks says otherwise to me...which is why I feel the Jazz and Rockets core lineups are in much better shape at this point.

I think Thomas will get the lion share at center, except for foul trouble. Finley will play, you know he will. Tony will play a lot more minutes than now. I don't really see Vaughn playing backup in the PO. Either Manu or Mason.
I just still believe Bowen will play a bigger role then. I have to.

[xtremesteven33]

Maybe Pop will "Throw in the towel" for the season and insert Bowen for Finley and Thomas for Bonner and there we go....we have our championship lineup

[HarlemHeat37]

I would expect a lot more from people that think this will be the same team in the playoffs..while we definitely aren't a contender right now, the fact that our big 3 will be seeing a significant increase in playing time and EFFORT for the playoffs is enough to make us much better..

the Lakers are the only team in the West that hasn't had inconsistent stretches this season..

this team has a LONG way to go before we can have expectations..but the other teams in the West won't look any better..LA should have an easy time..

[timaios]

Wow !
I can't believe what's Pop doing with this team.
I am really angry now.
Damn, the coach part was the last thing i was worried about... until the last 4 weeks.
Now, i lost all my faith in Pop. I just can't believe it.

Only 8 games left. I don't care about losses, i don't care about seeding.
All i want is the old fashioned Pop.
Please, please, please, please... Pop, come back with the old school Spurs.
I beg you.

[tp2021]

Maybe Pop will "Throw in the towel" for the season and insert Bowen for Finley and Thomas for Bonner and there we go....we have our championship lineup

I like the way you think...Pop gives up, and everyone is happy.

[Chomag]

Duncan said there are no excuses in his post game interview. He took the blame for not calling a time out, and he included himself when asked about Pop saying a "couple of people need to play better."

If Duncan can rise I know he will.

I'm cautiously optomistic that he can.

I'm still very optimistic on Timmy as well

I still think Timmy has another gear that he is saving. In his whole career He has always been a very steady player keeping it around 3rd gear . Thats far from saying he is not always trying but his health has seemed to set him in 2nd and 3rd gear where as seasons past he has always played a steady 3rd gear and then putting it into 4th for the playoff run.

I still think there is a ton of Timmy left and we will see the beast we all know very soon.

[xtremesteven33]

I like the way you think...Pop gives up, and everyone is happy.

haha yea we have our championship lineup by default.

[mexicanjunior]

I don't really see Vaughn playing backup in the PO. Either Manu or Mason.

Mason is arguably worse than Vaughn as a backup PG. He simply cannot control his dribble against pressure defense, finish at the rim or stay in front of anyone with speed. Vaughn's shooting may be poor but he at least can get the ball up the court and make good decisions with the ball.

If Bowen were being saved for the playoffs, I truly feel Pop would be giving him run at this point of the season to keep him in rhythm. DNP-CD's pretty much confirm that he will be getting spot minutes at best...

[timaios]

This is like a bad dream. Pop has made Finley part of the Big Four. Bowen has been relegated to ball boy duties. Vaughn has replaced Hill in the rotation. RMJ has gone Hedo before the playoffs even begin. Gooden has made the bigman rotation even more jumbled. Duncan and Ginobili are about 70% health. Parker very well could have peaked too early. Pop is coaching like its preseason and there are eight games to go before the playoffs.

Unbelievable.

BBL.

I think Tony is just trying to adjust to Manu's return.
He took only 8 shots with Manu starting.
Manu was really great at the start of the game and it took away the offensive game of Tony. He never was in rhythm in offense.
With Manu coming from the bench, i think both Manu & Tony would have had a great game.

[baseline bum]

This is like watching the Spurs in '01-'02 when Bowen was injured, except he's ing right there suited up and ready to play. I've always thought the championship window would slam shut when Bruce isn't able to play anymore, and this team is doing nothing to convince me otherwise right now.

[Whisky Dog]

4 les and a lot of memories. It was a damn good run...

but now it's over. This team (like last year's) just doesn't have cohesion, consistency, or killer instinct. All three things they had in spades during the le runs.

Unless they hit the jackpot again it's over for the foreseeable future, but it was great while it lasted.

[ElNono]

Mason is arguably worse than Vaughn as a backup PG. He simply cannot control his dribble against pressure defense, finish at the rim or stay in front of anyone with speed. Vaughn's shooting may be poor but he at least can get the ball up the court and make good decisions with the ball.

It's different when you have another player(s) getting attention out there. I think come playoff time Pop will play at least 2 of the big 3 on the court at all times. He's done that before. I actually think Manu starting tonight has more to do with giving him more playing time with Tony and Timmy, than something that will stick. Unfortunately, while the ball flows better with Vaughn, he just can't keep up with anybody. Do you really want him guarding Aaron Brooks or Farmar? What ends up happening is he makes those silly fouls like tonight, that end up costing us a lot. So it's going to have to be Mason or Manu. If it's Vaughn, I don't think we're going far at all.

If Bowen were being saved for the playoffs, I truly feel Pop would be giving him run at this point of the season to keep him in rhythm. DNP-CD's pretty much confirm that he will be getting spot minutes at best...

I agree with you on that. That said, the playoffs end up being about matchups. I'm sure Bruce will get his fair shake at trying to slow down whoever it is. I just can't think Pop went from praising this guy top to bottom, to we don't need you anymore in the blink of an eye.

[mexicanjunior]

Do you really want him guarding Aaron Brooks or Farmar? What ends up happening is he makes those silly fouls like tonight, that end up costing us a lot. So it's going to have to be Mason or Manu. If it's Vaughn, I don't think we're going far at all.

Defensively, I don't think Mason would be much better and I can't see Manu being used in that role coming off of his injury. I like Manu running the show on offense and I hope he takes over that role in the playoffs but I don't see it happening.

[itzsoweezee]

-If you just look at Tim Duncan's line, one would assume he had a solid ballgame. But the truth doesn't match the numbers. The truth is that the Thunder sent a minimum amount of help his way. All they did was have a few players reach after Duncan put the ball on the ground. In fact, Oklahoma City got so brazen at one point that they put Jeff Green on him. The lack of respect for Duncan's skills paid off because Duncan wasn't able to dominate single coverage.

duncan was double-, and even triple-, teamed all night.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

There is simply not enough time for this team to become the well-oiled playoff machine we are accustomed to. It has just been one of those years. Injuries have killed our cohesiveness. Compounding the problem is Pop over thinking and not using the best young talent we've had since Ginobili.

Duncan not scoring in 1 on 1 coverage is the nail in the coffin.

Tonight we were just another three point chunking team whose threes did not fall down.

[peskypesky]

, when was the last time we saw such ty execution at the end of games?... The Spurs have the right players on the team. The problem lies in the fact that they are sitting on the bench or playing out of position.

indeed.

in the playoffs, Pop better pay Thomas and Bowen a lot more, or we're ed. i don't want to see Udoka or Vaughan on the floor. i don't want to see Finley get more than 20-25 minutes (unless he's -hot).

and they better cut down the insane number of ing three's they've been taking.

[kace]

well, bad loss.

didn't see the game. why was parker taking so few shots ?

lazy ? well defended ? lazy and well defended ? Pop's strange choice (it wouldn't be the first) ?

tony seems to struggle to find his place with the big three back. the first game was amazing with our three stars playing so efficiently.

but the last two games seemed to show tony have some difficulties to stay hot with the whole big three back. 8 shots attempts ? come on.....

[ElNono]

Defensively, I don't think Mason would be much better and I can't see Manu being used in that role coming off of his injury. I like Manu running the show on offense and I hope he takes over that role in the playoffs but I don't see it happening.

If it's a wash on defense, then we have to look at offense. And it's Mason hands down. But you know what's aggravating? Hill should be the backup PG. I agree with timvp that Vaughn is a third stringer and Mason is a SG, not a PG. I also think Pop erased Hill because he's afraid he's going to get rookie-fear in the playoffs, so he looks for alternatives. The reality is that if Hill panics, Manu is the only solution to the problem. But we knew that. I don't understand why he had to kill Hill's and Mason's confidence to end up with what we all already knew. It's like watching Nightmare on Elm Street 22. It's a horror flick, and a BAD flick at that.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

Another huge mistake was Pop not calling a time out at the end of the game. He's tried to go Phil Jackson this entire season, and tried to let the players make something happen during end of game sitautions... I don't have any pure stats on this (Baseline bum, FWD, looking in your direction...) but this strategy has seemed to fail more than pay off.
And when you consider how we really need every win from here on out, and our supposed veteran players and coaching....it should be a given to call the TO and draw up a good shot.
All we needed was two points!

[peskypesky]

tony seems to struggle to find his place with the big three back. the first game was amazing with our three stars playing so efficiently.

but the last two games seemed to show tony have some difficulties to stay hot with the whole big three back. 8 shots attempts ? come on.....

it's because Tony is not a true PG. he's a scorer. he's not a distributor.

i often think that Manu should play PG and Tony SG. Manu is a better passer.

[ElNono]

Another huge mistake was Pop not calling a time out at the end of the game. He's tried to go Phil Jackson this entire season, and tried to let the players make something happen during end of game sitautions... I don't have any pure stats on this (Baseline bum, FWD, looking in your direction...) but this strategy has seemed to fail more than pay off.
And when you consider how we really need every win from here on out, and our supposed veteran players and coaching....it should be a given to call the TO and draw up a good shot.
All we needed was two points!

Well, I think up until about 3 weeks ago, we were incredibly good in close games. But I do agree that the way we've been paying lately, a timeout was the right choice.

[Yorae]

In the past years I rarely watch any regular season spurs games because to me, you ain't seeing the real spurs unless it's the playoffs. So now this season I decided to be really active in the regular season and the team I get to watch is an injury ridden spurs team. Now they got back all the pieces, they still can't get it together.....So is this the worst spurs team of the Duncan Era. I got a feeling that the Spurs are in unchartered territories right now....But I still and will always believe that you ain't seein Spurs unless it's the playoff and the Spurs will turn things around come playoff time. Now I'm off before my boss sees me.

[nz_spur]

Perhaps pop is just testing whether his players can handle that pressure. No timeout and trailing by 1 in the final seconds. If they can react to that pressure then they'll be fine for the post-season...

... but they couldn't.