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Hornets winning 13 of 14 at home does not sound good for the spurs. I just wish they play hard and win this one.
No rest for weary Spurs with afternoon tipoff
Jeff McDonald
NEW ORLEANS — The Spurs have nothing against Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., nor the holiday named for him. Still, they would probably prefer to celebrate the civil rights leader's life in a manner other than a 2:30 p.m. tipoff at New Orleans Arena.
Coming on the heels of four games in five days, today's early start robs the Spurs of some recovery time. An extra five hours rest, it seems, would have made some difference.
“The worst part is it's going to be five games in 61/2 days,” said Spurs guard Manu Ginobili, who is 7 of 21 from the field on the trip.
“It's an early game against a great team. It's going to take a lot from us. We not only have to save our legs but play with our heads more.”
Though the Spurs' offseason makeover did accomplish the goal of making them younger, getting their average age below 30, they are still the oldest team in the league.
Saturday's 92-86 loss at Memphis came with all the hallmarks of a tired team.
The Spurs were outrebounded 51-44, coughed up 16 turnovers and shot 41.4 percent from the field. Four of their top four scorers combined to go 7 of 32. Richard Jefferson, at 0 for 6, suffered through his first game without a field goal in nearly four years.
The Spurs' search for rest won't end after today's game. Not until after Friday's home game against Houston will they enjoy more than one day between games. By that point, they will have played seven times in 11 days.
Rookie lesson: One of the first lessons Tony Parker had for rookie DeJuan Blair was how to handle his head coach. Gregg Popovich can be notoriously demanding of rookies, a fact Parker knows perhaps better than anyone.
“I have a lot of stories,” Parker said. “It can't be as bad as me. Everybody knows I have the gold medal on that.”
So far on this road trip, Blair has produced one superb game (28 points, 21 rebounds at Oklahoma City), one pretty good one (11 points, 16 rebounds at Charlotte) and one not-so-good one (eight points, eight rebounds, five fouls at Memphis).
Parker has been impressed with how Blair has carried himself through the ups-and-downs.
“I think DeJuan is doing a great job, handling all that screaming, and at the same time playing hard,” Parker said with a grin. “He knows Pop just wants him to be better.”
No cure-all: If given their druthers, the Spurs could have picked an easier foe to try and break a two-game losing streak against.
New Orleans is 18-12 under Jeff Bower after recovering from a 3-6 start that got Byron Scott fired. The Hornets have won 13 of the past 14, including seven in a row, at New Orleans Arena.
Hornets winning 13 of 14 at home does not sound good for the spurs. I just wish they play hard and win this one.
someone needs to get those stories and post them
Well IMO thats good to know that pop is still screaming... these days its hard to tell whether hes really into the game or not..
i remember just a few years back he used to get so worked up on the sideline, pacing back and forth yelling at everyone. Now it just kind of seems like hes pretty content, and im afraid that influences the team a little bit.
Ginobili is 7-31, not 7-21.
The 14 millions dollars man is 9-25 over the last three games.
Spurs loosing this one.
Spurs are going to loose huh? Is that loosen their tie? Belt? What exactly does it mean to "loose"?
Lose, lost, lost.Spurs are going to loose huh? Is that loosen their tie? Belt? What exactly does it mean to "loose"?
I am sure you are familiar with the verb.
I just did not like that quote by Manu at all. Very negative and whiny. I think that the press and fans realize how taxing it must be to play 5 in 6.5. Still, its the players' jobs to stay motivated and positive, even under duress and adversity. Just say you're going to go in there and give it your all and it'll be a good test of the team's will to win. And I truly hope that Richard Jefferson makes up for last game. Goodness gracious.
It was the same situation with OKC, Charlotte and Memphis. All four teams are hot right now and the last three in particular are playing quite well at home. I hope the Spurs can pull this one out......
Just be grateful he's not 8-25, or we could be talking about an 0-4 road trip here.
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