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Thanks so much for all the first person takes and pics anjlbitz. It's great stuff. It's cool that you got to meet Pop, RC, and Kerr. It sounds like you're having a blast. Thanks for sharing it with us.
This is quite possibly the best day of my Spurs fan life! We got to sit behind the bench again next to some die hard Spurs fans like myself. We also got to go in the arena a little early to watch the Spurs run some plays.
I was talking to another fan about Pop and how I'd probably pee my pants if he actually came to the game and I met him. A few minutes after that conversation, we saw Pop sitting down by himself up in the stand so I rushed up the stands to go meet him. He was very gracious and greeted us right away as he saw us climbing up the stairs to go talk to him. I thanked him for the championships and everything he has done for the organization and he smiled at us. As we headed down the stairs we also got to talk to RC Buford, I shook his hand and thanked him for this off-season and he laughed.
George Hillgot progressively better as the game went on. He's a lot more comfortable handling the team as a point guard this game. He was a willing passer but at the same time also knew when to take over. What impressed me the most was his leadership on and off the court. While he was on the court, he was communicating with his teammates who were out of position. When he sat on the bench he helped out and was almost "coaching" the team.
The girly-girl in me is still squealing because he autographed our cap with a heart lol.
Ian Mahinmi looked he would be ready for the big boys NOW. He had good instincts around the basket and I thought he got more than the 5-6 boards from the stat sheet. He was hustling down the court and would often be one of the first guys back on D. He still needs some work on finishing strong. He missed out on a lot of "and-1" opportunities.
Malik Hairston's jumpshot looks to be much improved from last season. If he combines this shooting with his defensive talents, he will be a valuable swingman for the Spurs. What I love about Malik is his ability to get to the rim. He has a deceptively quick first step and he is a very good finisher. What he needs to improve is his ball-handling skills. He seems to have butterfingers especially in traffic. He is going to need to work hard on handling passes too cause he has been fumbling quite a few this summer league. If he can't handle those passes, I doubt he'll survive playing with Manu Ginobili.
DeJuan Blair is a beast. I knew he was a rebounding monster but in this game, he showed off his post moves. That spin move for a lay-up in the 3rd quarter was a thing of beauty. I love that he's also able to finish strong when he goes in for a layup. He's also able to recognize shotblockers and was able to use the rim to protect his shot.
I thought James Gist played relatively well this game. He was overshadowed by the great games of his teammates but he appeared to play better in this game compared to his previous games. He still needs to play better to be assured of a spot on the team.
Met Steve Kerr too after the game and thanked him for '03. Just to fan the flames of the "CIA Spurs-Kerr" conspiracy theorists, Pop and Kerr talked the entire 2nd quarter of the Clippers-Grizzlies game right after Pop had a long conversation with George Hill.
Also, Marcus Williams sighting!
Here a some pics (I actually managed to take a pic of that monster Malik Hairston dunk in the first half): http://picasaweb.google.com/anjlbitz/SLSpursThunder
Thanks so much for all the first person takes and pics anjlbitz. It's great stuff. It's cool that you got to meet Pop, RC, and Kerr. It sounds like you're having a blast. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Very cool.
Where could I fin score-boxes for these SL games?
Spurs.com
Thanks for the writeup, anjlbitz. And cool pics, too
Nice, anjlbitz
You didn't happen to get a mic next to Pop and George, did you?
Keep up the good work.
anjlbitz, that's awesome! That signed hat is one of a keepsake!
Yeah I am. I live here in Vegas so I'm starved for any basketball action especially Spurs related. So I try to go to as many. I was really only planning to go to 2 games but this team got me addicted, and it's just summer league!
I wish! After the game my sister and I moved up nearer to where Pop was sitting so we can meet some players but we got too shy to move closer hehe.Nice, anjlbitz
You didn't happen to get a mic next to Pop and George, did you?
Keep up the good work.
Hoping to get the big three and DROB in there soon!
I am not a pop fan, but i am a little surprised he was nice to you. I will have to give him credit here. He always seems to be hostile on tv towards the media and spurs fans. I guess everyone cannot be all bad.
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