A LOT of this loss falls on the coach. He didn't give his team a chance to win with the ridiculous lineups he was playing. Where the was McDyess? 17+ minutes, that's it. Ratliff? DNP-CD. Jefferson? Only 31+ minutes.
He's so ing stupid that he doesn't realize that even though Duncan is averaging 32 mpg, look at how arduous those minutes are. A lot of the time he's the sole big on the court, playing rim protector AND help defender for every other Spur. He's also the sole rebounder, low post scorer and combined that with the amount of ground he has to cover on defense and he's almost certainly going to wear down by mid-season again.
Jefferson, who's in his prime and durable, can never play major minutes apparently. Even with the early foul trouble, he should have sat about 2 more minutes the rest of the game. Quick blow in the 2nd half and that's it. When are we going to see him play 40, 42, 44 minutes the odd game? He's supposed to be the guy who can do that so that the Spurs can keep the minutes of the big three down while still having a guy who can be a go-to scorer for stretches on the court.
It's time Duncan take control of this situation, have a sit down with Buford and Pop and tell them to start playing McDyess more minutes and Ratliff every game. It won't solve the problem, but it'll help. Ultimately, this team needs to go out and get another starting big if they want to be taken seriously this year. Camby, Haywood, I don't give a who it is, just go out and get one now.
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