The San Antonio Spurs needed to bounce back and beat the New Jersey Nets. Despite a slow start and not playing with very much energy, the Spurs were able to come out victorious. Their 97-85 victory was powered by their defense, as the Nets scored only 38 points in the second half and shot below 40% from the field for the game.
-It was another stellar performance from Tim Duncan. He had a season-high 17 rebounds in only 27 minutes of action. He chipped in 14 points, three assists and two blocks for good measure.
-Manu Ginobili looked really good off the bench. He led the team with 21 points and made all eight of his free throws. His highlight of the night was a vintage dunk through the middle of the lane.
-Tony Parker struggled with his shot (3-for-12) and didn't seem to be playing at 100% -- for whatever reason. That said, he dished out five assists without committing a turnover ... so it wasn't all bad.
-Richard Jefferson was relatively quiet against his former team. He had only eight points and four boards but he was one of the few players on the team playing with a lot of energy.
-Keith Bogans had an impressive performance as he helped in a number of facets. He had five points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block in 25 minutes. His passing off of penetration was particularly good to see.
-DeJuan Blair started at center but didn't play well. He was just 2-for-6 from the floor and grabbed only two boards in 15 minutes. His play of late suggests he may be hitting some sort of rookie wall.
-George Hill was solid across the board, finishing with ten points, four assists and no turnovers in 24 minutes. He played very good defense and ran the court well.
-Antonio McDyess was a little bit better after his disastrous performance against the Mavs. He had four points, three rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes, with his passing standing out as his best attribute on the night.
-Roger Mason, Jr. gave good effort off the bench as he scored seven points in 21 minutes. His shooting helped spread the floor and he hit a couple big shots to give the Spurs some much needed cushion.
-Where'd he come from? Ian Mahinmi was the story of the game. After not playing in the NBA for over two years, Mahinmi stepped on the court and played pretty darn well. In 21 minutes, he had 15 points, nine rebounds and a high flying block. He also hit all six of his shots from the field and three of his four free throws. Mahinmi struggled a bit with foul trouble but other than that he played about as well as could have possibly been expected considering he hasn't played any type of real game since preseason.
Parker better play A LOT better against the Lakers, since that's our primary mismatch against them..he's going to be the guy that opens up the 3-point shooting with his penetration, and he'll obviously have to make his Js since the Lakers always give it to him..
hopefully the law of averages evens out for him..
Manu was awesome. That dunk gave me some hope that Manu could be back in a big way come playoff time.
Tony is sick (or at least he was after the last game). A few of the players are sick with Manu's illness.
Mahinmi was a pleasant surprise. But was it a showcase game?
You betcha. As soon as Bonner and Finley are back, he's gone...
Mahinmi for Lebron?
good read
This game probably elevated Mahinmi's trade value to the point where a team would probably be willing to absorb his contract without the Spurs also having to throw in money to cover his salary.
You could always keep him and play him.
Don't get our hopes up.
It would seem that way.
It's slightly possible that Pop doesn't like what he's seen from Dice and Blair recently to the point he's willing to give Ian a try but I doubt it.
I hope this game means Pop will try to play Ian more regularly, and either play him or Theo in every game for the rest of the year. I don't smoke or drink, so I have no delusions this will happen, especially with Fin and Bonner coming back eventually (Pop's 2nd fave PF/C respectively).
Yeah, let's hope Pop had a eureka moment.
No Small Ball!!!! Except for garbage time, we did not play any small ball and I thought we did a good job on defense and on the boards...
If Ian could play consistently he makes much more sense starting next to Duncan than Blair. Blair has performed very well as the starter, but Ian can space the floor a little better and is a better defender overall imo.
That was my mindset before the season, but obviously it has not played out that way and it would be a huge gamble.
Ian played well without even playing a minute next to Tim Duncan. Considering all the attention Tim gets from defenses and generally how much better he makes people around him, I'm curious as to whether Ian could be even better while next to TD.
I wonder if we'll ever find out why Mahinmi fell all the way to the 15th man to start the season. I can't remember a player who sat this long into the season without getting any PT in the history of Pop. He always gives players at least a few minutes early in the season to keep them interested and allow for hope.
Thanks for the information. I was unable to watch, but heard some of it on the radio. Did anyone hear Pop's post game reaction? Sure would be great if Ian could be that big we so obviously need.
I heard he was on his way to the Wiz for one of their all-stars...
Seriously - I have to admit as hard as it would be to get him regular minutes, screw it - Pop should put him out there on Odom and see how he does.
But since they kept Hairston I guess it comes down to two possibbilities - the FO is either in " it - in for a penny in for a pound" mode, or more likely it was the middle of the road decision of keeping Hairston and trying to dump Mahinmi's contract with no guarantees of success vs the sure-thing savings of dumping Hairston straight up.
Much as I hate to say it, would make some sense to shave the lux tax hit to under $10M... but if Ian can play at 80% of the level he showed tonight I'd rather have him than Hairston.
Looking beyond this season it makes even more sense to keep Ian. If the Spurs can spend the 2 million this year on Mahinmi and he turns out to be a real NBA player that has repercussions on their decision / offer to Splitter...
Last edited by Mark in Austin; 01-10-2010 at 10:39 PM.
It really is confusing..
His SL/training camp/preseason play wasn't great, but it certainly wasn't bad enough for him to not get any minutes..especially when Haislip, a guy that had a horrible preseason, was being activated ahead of him..
It must have had to do with some politics IMO..something to do with his future or contract IMO..
I don't think Parker's inconsistency is about law of averages or his being sick. Let's face it, he hasn't been right all season. Whether it's due to fatigue from playing internationally in the summer or his relatively oft sprained ankles never fully healing, he's lacked that extra burst and subsequent uncanny finishing ability at the rim that he's become synonymous with.
It's too bad, because Duncan is playing at an MVP level and Ginobili is in the process of getting his groove back, but as has been the case for the past two years, at least one of the big three clearly isn't 100% physically and because of it the Spurs are not at the peak of their powers.
Maybe RC sent him an email telling him to work on his rebounding and didn't get a reply filled with apologies and praise for his superior general managing skills.
Learn your place, Ian!
Thing about Pop and the Spurs is that they are extremely fair to players. If Ian has said he think he can play the Spurs won't let him rot on the bench. They will give him his chance to pursue his dream as long as it makes business sense.
That is why the showcase theory makes so much sense. Will be interesting to see the post game interviews and if Pop says anything.
Back to Ian maybe playing with Duncan . . .
Remember the 4-5 alley-oop they used to run with TD and Robinson? Man, those were the days . . .
Be nice to see that again.
Might have to do with not wanting to give him "false hope". If they were not going to pick up his contract, they might not have wanted to play him and give him the sense he might have the chance.
Ian's play, if it continues could have the opposite effect (showcase) and we could see bigger salaries go. (Bonner, Finley, Ratliff) while Ian stays. I think Ian if he is able to stand out would easily resign with the Spurs after all they been through together.
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