Initial Reaction: Spurs vs. Thunder Mar. 31

[peskypesky]

So is this the worst spurs team of the Duncan Era?

could very well be. but i think Pop bears a lot of the blame. that and injuries.

[timvp]

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.

How can TP shooting only eight times be a sign that he's a scorer and not a distributor? That logic doesn't follow.

What you posted would make sense if Manu and TD weren't getting enough touches. Not the opposite.

[peskypesky]

How can TP shooting only eight times be a sign that he's a scorer and not a distributor? That logic doesn't follow.

What you posted would make sense if Manu and TD weren't getting enough touches. Not the opposite.

are you using inverse logic?

[timvp]

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

Those were mostly soft shows at Duncan. The Thunder usually waited until he dribbled or made a move before sending help. That's the type of coverage Duncan usually eats for lunch, especially when the initial defenders were average at best.

[kace]

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.

i'm really starting to hate guys like you or ducks who tries to turn every thread into a manu vs tony thing. unless it was a joke and i missed it.


anyway, it is possible that Pop told tony to do so few in order to let others getting back in shape for the PO (mainly manu and tim)? i would assume he wouldn't have played tony so much if it was the case.

but seeing finley taking twice the shots tony took, and more than manu and tim, isn't exactly what i expect from the spurs.

[timvp]

are you using inverse logic?

That appears to be what you are doing.

"Parker is a scorer so that's why he only got eight shots when the Big Three are back full."

Does that make sense to you?

[crc21209]

I BELIEVE. We'll be fine. The Spurs lost tonight to the Thunder because it seemed like they took them too lightly out there. Both Green and Durant present big matchup problems for us. No one could guard either. Finley on Durant? Bonner on Green? Are you kidding me? It HAS to be CIA, I mean come on no Bowen? no Hill?

[Amuseddaysleeper]

"That it comes after DISASTER? that we were in New Orleans, but now we surpassed ourselves… That papelon! Complica the end of the season. We are going to see as we give return it."

- Google translation of Manu's latest posting on facebook

I had no idea where else to post this.

[sprrs]

I really don't see how Pop can justify the crap he puts out on the floor. It's painfully obvious he doesn't know what he's doing and it's getting embarrassing to watch. He's gone senile.

But can't say I didn't see this coming. Pop's been Finley's GF for several years now. Even with the signings of Mason and Hill in the offseason I knew Finley was still going to get his 30+ minutes a game.

[E20]

Bring out the brooms.

Spurs will rampage through the playoffs like the mongols did to the virgin women of a town. Spurs will most likely end up 3rd seed, but doesn't matter, they will beat every team they meet in the PO's. Spurs = 09 champs.

My predictions are always 100% true.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

Bring out the brooms.

Spurs will rampage through the playoffs like the mongols did to the virgin women of a town. Spurs will most likely end up 3rd seed, but doesn't matter, they will beat every team they meet in the PO's. Spurs = 09 champs.

My predictions are always 100% true.

Sorry my young padawan. It's just not in the stars this year.

[timtonymanu]

I got to vent right now. The reason why we're messing up like this is Pop. The guy coaches like he doesn't give a where we end up this year. He is treating these games like they're not serious. We're frickin third in the West now. We need to have homecourt at least till the WCF because we're not getting it there and also in the finals.

Why is Bowen not playing?
Hill is no longer the back-up point and he is getting no playing time.
Mason is playing the back-up point and he's losing confidence.
I don't get it.
I hate to say it right now but we're not winning this year. It's just looks like such a ty season and I don't know if it will be any better in the playoffs.

If the Spurs proves me wrong and I hope they do, then i will allow all of you to bash me.

[peskypesky]

That appears to be what you are doing.

"Parker is a scorer so that's why he only got eight shots when the Big Three are back full."

Does that make sense to you?

didn't he play PG tonight?

[MannyIsGod]

I don't understand the start for Manu. Thats completely an offensive move and the Spurs real problems are coming at the defensive end. Bowen needs to play, Hill needs to play, Gooden needs to sit, and Kurt Thomas should probably be a starter by this point. I don't have a problem with Finely playing but his minutes need to be seriously cut into by Bowen because you're not going to win with Finely playing big minutes. Its just not going to happen because he doesn't provide enough outside of occasional shooting.

[timvp]

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.

That's a pretty damn good comparison. Either that stretch in 2002 when the Spurs were like 11-12 when Bowen was out ... or maybe early in the 1999-2000 season when the defensive stopper was Chucky Brown

I can't believe Pop just watched a guy who can't bench the bar curbstomp Finley repeatedly without even giving Bowen a chance. The amazing thing is that Udoka might be an even worse defender than Finley when out on the perimeter. Bowen ten years from now wouldn't like Durant score 15 straight possessions without putting up some sort of fight like Finley/Udoka did tonight.

If Pop is essentially going to send Bowen into retirement ... at the very least use George Hill to retain some level of defensive ability on the court. No Bowen and no Hill and this team turns into a punching bag.

[E20]

Sorry my young padawan. It's just not in the stars this year.

I will bump this.

[MannyIsGod]

I don't understand because its like Pop has abandoned the principles HE brought to this team.

[Austin_Toros]

Initial reaction: what the ???

Again!!!

[Ghazi]

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. .

No they didnt

[peskypesky]

i'm really starting to hate guys like you or ducks who tries to turn every thread into a manu vs tony thing. unless it was a joke and i missed it.

?

It's not a Manu vs Tony thing. It's a who is a better PG thing. I'm from the old school that believes a PG should be a great passer. Manu is a better passer in my opinion. I think he sees passes that Tony doesn't. Either that, or Tony sees the pass but doesn't feel confident to pull it off.

That's my opinion, based on watching the Spurs for years.

And the problem when your PG isn't a great passer? If the other team packs the paint and cuts off penetration by the PG, the offense stagnates.

Allen Iverson is another guy who plays a lot of PG when he's really not one.

That being said, at this point in time, I do think Tony is our most effective offensive weapon, slightly ahead of Tim. So I would be totally fine with Parker getting a ton of minutes and being the designated scorer.

[Fabbs]

-I really just can't fathom what Pop sees in Finley. Pop seriously is treating Finley as if Finley is a part of the Big Four. And now that Pop is setting his rotation, that has resulted in Finely becoming an even bigger part of the team. I apologize to any of Finley's family members who may be reading this but Finley is not good enough anymore to be a key part of a championship team. He's just not. Durant slaughtered him repeatedly. It got sickening to watch after a while. It was even more sickening that Pop never made much of a move to fix the situation. In Pop's eyes, Finley must be some sort of cross between Bruce Bowen and Michael Jordan. Otherwise, I just can't explain the love affair any longer.

.....(God forbid Pop ever actually create a mismatch instead of always being the one to react to a perceived matchup problem.)

-As you may have figured out by reading this far, I wasn't overly impressed with the way Pop coached tonight. In fact, I truly believe Pop is in the worst coaching stretch of his career. He has no clue what he's doing and he's hurting this team - both in the short-term and the long-term. Pop has been instrumental in these recent losses and he's laying the foundation for a disappointing playoff exit. I seriously can't figure out what he's doing or any of the method to his current madness.

Overplaying Finley alone is enough for this team not to win a championship. But compound that issue by giving Finley tons of responsibilities on a nightly basis and it's just flabbergasting. I don't even want to type about it any more because it's such a horrible coaching decision.

Timvp, Aggie Hoop Fan and I would you like to welcome you to the fold. I've been wondering when you would come to this conclusion. Does this mean can reopen the Pop-Finley civil union gifts thread? Just kidding.

I'm not going to say that believe is dead but this is exactly like watching a car heading 50 miles per hour straight towards a cliff with the driver asleep at the wheel. Either the driver will wake up in time to avert disaster or the ending won't be pretty.

Excellent analogy/illustration.

[timvp]

I don't understand the start for Manu. Thats completely an offensive move and the Spurs real problems are coming at the defensive end. Bowen needs to play, Hill needs to play, Gooden needs to sit, and Kurt Thomas should probably be a starter by this point. I don't have a problem with Finely playing but his minutes need to be seriously cut into by Bowen because you're not going to win with Finely playing big minutes. Its just not going to happen because he doesn't provide enough outside of occasional shooting.

Good points. The only reason I don't mind starting Manu is that it gives the Big Three more time together before the playoffs begin. They may need that extra time together to get their cohesiveness back in a hurry.

But yeah, Pop needs to go back to defense and use Bowen, Hill and Thomas as much as possible. Finley can't be the perimeter stopper and the combination of Bonner and Gooden can't have Duncan's back.

The Bowen situation is just amazing. When given time, he has looked close to his normal self. His shooting is good. In the past, he's been one of the Spurs who always seems to hit a few threes to break the team out of a shooting slump. Plus he's probably the most consistent shooter in team history in the playoffs. Even if he's lost a step defensively, it's not like he didn't have room to lose a little bit. He was freakin' first team All-Defense last season.

The one got damn time I would love for Pop to run a veteran into the ground to the point that it becomes painfully obvious that the veteran just doesn't have it anymore ... and Pop somehow doesn't give Bowen that chance. Instead, Pop is going to pull the cord on Bowen before we know whether Bowen is done or not. And yet, Pop has a history of letting others prove their failure on the court.

Just amazing.

[Indazone]

Spurs trying as hard as possible to give first place to the Rockets.

[peskypesky]

The Bowen situation is just amazing. When given time, he has looked close to his normal self. His shooting is good. In the past, he's been one of the Spurs who always seems to hit a few threes to break the team out of a shooting slump. Plus he's probably the most consistent shooter in team history in the playoffs. Even if he's lost a step defensively, it's not like he didn't have room to lose a little bit. He was freakin' first team All-Defense last season.

[crc21209]

Reasons I believe Pop is playing super possum right before the Playoffs:

1. NO BOWEN? Are you serious? With Fin left to dry out there while Durant lights him up? Just doesnt sound or look right...

2. Vaughn over Hill when Hill has been playing good all year whether at backup pg or even little defensive spurts.

3. Bonner >Thomas? Really? When Bonner wasnt doing so hot out there at all.

All these things lead me to believe Pop knows what he's doing and is really hiding his deck this time around...