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Watching LA/Boston on TV right now confirms this intuition for me.
In the final game of a six-game homestand, the Spurs wanted to leave for the Rodeo Road Trip feeling good about themselves. Mission failed. In a back and forth affair, the Denver Nuggets eventually overwhelmed the Spurs and won by a final score of 103-89.
-Tim Duncan continues to look slowed. I'm not sure what the issue is but he's just not moving like the Duncan from earlier in the season. His defense suffered the most, while his offense was decent enough.
-Manu Ginobili once again struggled with his shot and once again was ineffective in the fourth quarter (no field goal in the final stanza). His energy was very good and his passing was amazing, however he was a bit more careless with the ball than he's been in recent outings.
-Richard Jefferson was decent. He didn't shoot well but at least he was aggressive offensively -- a trait we haven't seen often. He struggled in man-to-man defense but he was active away from the ball.
-George Hill scored well but the rest of his game was lacking. He played poor defense, did a very poor job running half court offense and overall just wasn't the calming influence he needed to be.
-Antonio McDyess was very bad in the first half. He picked it up in the final two quarters -- scoring all 13 of his points. But the Spurs can't afford for McDyess to come out of the gates playing passively and weak.
-Roger Mason, Jr. could have been a difference maker for the Spurs. Instead, he missed all five of his three-pointers even though he had great looks. Mason going 1-for-6 and Arron Afflalo going 6-for-6 might have been the difference in the game.
-Matt Bonner was once again the first bigman off the bench. He actually played pretty well. Getting three steals and two blocks from Bonner is always a plus. Bonner still needs to calm down a bit and his work on the boards could be better.
-DeJuan Blair only played when Duncan was off the court. Considering his quality production in limited minutes, Blair did his part for the Spurs to win. He entered the game looking to be aggressive and it worked out well for him.
-Michael Finley made his return to the court after missing 27 games due to an ankle sprain. He had a couple good defensive plays but was obviously not in game shape.
-Keith Bogans played five disastrous minutes. His biggest mistake came when he inexplicably wandered away from Chauncey Billups and let Denver's best player shoot and make a wide open three-pointer.
The Rodeo Road Trip is now upon the Spurs. This game illustrated that San Antonio still has a whole lot of work to do. The defense is weak and the offense can go through maddening bouts of inefficiency. The Spurs need smarter and more physical play on both ends of the court, especially with Tony Parker sidelined. As it stands, they just don't have enough pieces playing at a high level to win a pretty basketball game.
Let us hope that the Spurs return from the Rodeo Road Trip in one piece.
Watching LA/Boston on TV right now confirms this intuition for me.
A lot of work? It's basically over. Even if they win the majority of these games on this trip, Duncan's already fading, Parker will not be physically right for the remainder of the season, Ginobili is a s of his former self, so big deal if they win 5 or 6 of 8 against mostly weak compe ion. Because of the amount of travel, the upcoming back-to-backs and the amount of minutes and energy the key players will have to expend just to accomplish that, this team will look like their running on fumes coming down the stretch. The only chance they have at salvaging this disaster is by making a significant trade, preferably as soon as possible.
Boston looks horrible..actually, they did look horrible, until Tony Allen came in the game, a good athlete with unpolished skills everywhere else..we don't have an energy spark like that, because we don't have any athletes on the active roster..
If the bold is a given, no trade would fix the hole in the ship.
I agree as well, The Spurs need to make a trade to upgrade the defense. I don't see this current group of Spurs contending.
I don't think any trade is going to bring us a le either way, it's too late in the season to fix some of the glaring holes IMO..
I'd still make a trade though, as long as it doesn't hurt the team from a long-term contract perspective..
I'd rather see the Spurs compete for the 2nd/3rd round, instead of being 1st round fodder or not even make the playoffs..
What happened to all the Tank threads?? haha
Probably not, but it's their final saving grace at this point. Let's be honest, you've got to be kidding yourself if you believe this team can contend for, much less win, a championship at this point. They're nowhere near being capable. Since they're supposedly going "all-in" any way and it's almost a guarantee that after Duncan retires this team will plummet, why not continue to attempt to change the team while it's still possible? There's three valuable expiring contracts on the roster, plus a 1st round pick and Splitter to offer up (if the player(s) coming back is good enough).
The boys seem to do poorly on nationally televised games.
I'm curious how the FO reacts to the win. Do they wait for Parker to return and hope he somehow plays at a much higher level then we've seen so far this year? Or, do they look to move some players to get someone back in return?
The problem with a trade is determining the most important weakness. We have problems all over the place. If we can get a quality player for some of expiring contracts then it's an obvious move. However, the heart of this team is no longer beating. It seems like all the "corporate knowledge" has been lost or forgotten. It will be interesting to see what happens next.
If a championship isn't possible, the only trade I'd do would be one that helps the team out next season. A first round exit is the same as any other exit. In fact, a first round exit might be preferred since it'd allow for more rest.
That said, I think it's way too early to absolutely say this team can't win a championship as put together.
You never know what could happen though, so I'd still try..
There's always the chance of our guys getting hot at the right time like Orlando last year..a Gasol/Bynum or anybody else suffering from a major injury..you never know, I think it's worth trying for..
It could also make some more $ for ownership from ticket sales..
Also, if we make a trade for the right guy, there's also the potential inside track for signing him to a long-term deal, which like you said, could help the team next year and beyond, depending on the player in question..
Either way, I doubt Pop and the guys believe they have NO chance to win a le, so I expect them to do something..they can't possibly believe they can win with the current roster IMO..
Maybe it's the tendinitis but he's not saying anything.-Tim Duncan continues to look slowed. I'm not sure what the issue is but he's just not moving like the Duncan from earlier in the season. His defense suffered the most, while his offense was decent enough.
You can't judge the Spurs without TP. He's too important to the mix. Despite the improvements made in the season, the Spurs still have only two playmakers -- TP and Manu. With Manu struggling with endurance, the Spurs basically had no playmakers by the fourth quarter.
Add in Parker today and Billups wouldn't have been able to eat him alive like he did Hill ... and the offense would have gotten cleaner looks more often. So, to answer your question, I don't think this game changes what the FO is thinking one way or the other.
Right, because that did them so well in '09. The reality is basketball, more than ever, is a young man's game. True, veteran teams win championships, but you can't have a core full of guys who can't withstand the rigors of the NBA season and expect to win a championship.
This managing minutes was a necessity with this group, but what good has it done? Duncan looks sluggish, despite playing under 33 mpg, Ginobili looks close to done, despite playing under 27 mpg, Parker is worn out, despite playing under 33 mpg. How much more rest do these guys need? Pop can't afford to give them any more rest, because it's going to be a struggle just to make the playoffs.
It's no longer "way too early" for anything. You're still clinging to the past.
I guess I should have clarified: no national team play in the summer and no player coming off of surgery. The rest would help Duncan ... but that's no guarantee that he'll be able to survive an 82 game season either way.
Show me a trade that allows for the Spurs to make up for a declining Duncan, a hurt Parker and an over the hill Manu and then we'll talk.
Totally disagree.
I loved that pass on the 3 on 2 fastbreak in the second quarter. That really showed how good this guy is.
After that failed dunk in the third, he sits on the bench forever.
Intead, he goes on making his nonsense plays and fouls late in the fourth.
He just emanates a languid air of softness and sighs throughout his body.
He is contagious, as of lately.
Throw in a Jefferson in the 03, 05 and 07 squads and, ipso facto, bye bye les.
Speaking very frankly, the decision to play this guy at all, is a big hint at Popovich having just lost it.
Even when Tony was playing well before the injury the FO was still considering making a trade. Yes, having Parker on the court is better than without, however I'm not sure Parker would have been a great defender either as Billups has been playing very well lately.
I still suspect this game further cements whatever notions the FO might have. With more and more losses mounting, they know they have to do something.
This trip is always when they get it together, Pop can finalize his rotation then we'll really see what we got. I don't know why they don't run the offense through Duncan, and I really don't know why the way Blair played today that he got such little time, so instead we could watch Bonner miss wide open 3's. Anyway let's not give up just yet!
Billups was no match for the Spurs guards.
Simply too good. The defense-less 2010 Parker would hardly have made a difference.
If the Spurs are going to improve RJ is going to have to improve. I don't think playing Bogans in his place is that much better of an option. I think Pop makes mistakes but the team is stuck waiting to see if RJ can get better. I agree it may not happen, but with his salary there's little chance he's going to get benched like you suggest.
Good summary timvp.
I think you were a little harsh on Duncan; only because I felt the refs allowed Denver to play overly physical with him.
To me the 2 turning points were the missed rotation by Bogans on Billups and the three point play by Martin.
With every passing game it becomes more and more mind boggling why Pop allows Bogans to see the floor.
In many ways, this loss is on Pop. Inserting Bogans was a momentum changer- except not for us and limiting Blair's time (especially on Martin) was also very suspect.
Pop needs to decide on a rotation and stick with it.
This team needs cohesiveness. Too many guys have no clue what their roles are and Pop hasn't figured out what combinations work best.
Here's hoping the Rodeo produces that and rescues our season.
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