What do you think of the new starting lineup?

[objective]

Remember when Pop went huge with Perdue-Robinson-Duncan after Elliott got hurt?

Man, those were the days . . .

I'd enjoy it if Pop went monster-ball again. Duncan-Mahinmi-Blair/Bonner/McD with Parker and Hill. Just to screw around with it.

[TD 21]

Pop has officially lost it. Wasn't he just talking about how pleased he was with McDyess and how this is how it's going to have to be (McDyess starting, even though he prefers coming off the bench) for the remainder of the season? Now all of a sudden, he's inexplicably pulled for the fourth best big on the team. Only on this team could the second and third best bigs be coming off the bench. If not the top two, then at least two of the top three wings are coming off the bench, as well.

What the is this senile goof doing? Duncan needs to take matters into his own hands because this is well past the point of being ridiculous. It's almost as if Pop is trying to set the team up to not just fail, but embarrass themselves in the process.

You want to know why this team has no chemistry? Because this coach is a ing re and is jerking them all around with ridiculous, inexplicable lineups and rotations that drastically change so frequently that no one has a chance to feel comfortable or in a rhythm with anything.

With this stupid ing starting lineup and Ratliff's being dealt, the Spurs actually managed to get worse, all while conference (and divisional) rivals Mavs and Rockets got better. If Yao is healthy next season and resembles the player he was last season, the Rockets should be head and shoulders above the Spurs next season. The Mavs probably already are after this trade. The Trail Blazers, if their two centers are healthy, should be better and the Thunder, if they're not already, almost certainly will be as well, just from internal improvement. As bad as it looks now, this team will have to fight just to be a 7th or 8th seed next season and let's face it, they're still not guaranteed a playoff spot this season.

[Admidave50]

Lets hope it is Pop's plan to boost everybody's confidence. It sucked really hard that the Spurs didnt make a significant trade, it looks like Pops last desperate move before giving up on this team.

Lets face it, despite of some progress our current team is going nowhere deep in the postseason.
Our team is really lacking of chemistry and it show on team defense.
- Bonner was great before injury. He had confidence in shooting and hustling by coming off the bench, something he never managed to do in the past. We actually won a decent amount of game last year With Bonner in thé starting lineup. I can live with him being in théme starting lineup ONLY IF it boosts his confidence, he plays limited minutes and it doesnt prevent Blair from progressing and we put him on thé bench come playoffs time.

- Bogans played very good early in the season, hes been ineffective since. We CAN only hope he get his swagger back and that putting RJ on the bench relieves him of some pressure and makes him play much better!

- Lets also hope that by starting Bonner, Dice and Blair will play with a vengeance from the bench.

We all know that Pop is a smart Man and that he praises people only to boost their confidence (ex: Hill during the preseason), we can only hope that putting back these scrubs in the starting lineup and saying its a major move/shake up, thats its only one of Pops trick that he believes in Matt and Bogans involvement for the success of the team.

If Tp regain his allstar level, Bonner plays as good as he did before his injury, Bogans is once again a bulldog defender with decent FG%, RJ wakes his ass off, we might have a slight chance to save this season and create some momentum before the playoffs.

One another thing, it looks like Manu can only play at a very good level for a limited time. Lets hope that by surrounding him by RJ and with better player that he will be less tired and that he manages to play longer.

I dont like at all this starting lineup but thats what I try to guess from Pops strategy and I really hope that some of this stuff may work because this season has been pretty depressing So far.

Lets pray one last time... GO SPURS GO

[Obstructed_View]

I can see the logic on the paper behind playing Bogans and Bonner:
-Teams best perimeter players are starting so starting Bogans, who is described as a defensive specialist, makes sense.
- Duncan and Parker are Spurs main offensive weapons of the starting lineup. They both can't shoot a 3. Having Bonner to space the floor makes sense.

It sounds nice on the paper, but in reality the Bo's aren't good players and don't have the level to start on a good team. Pop is trying too much to play role players who fit instead of playing the best players.

Spurs aren't contenders but they could surely do better with another starting lineup.

If that's the logic, then Dice and Mason should be starting. Both have range and can space the floor, which allows Hill to play alongside Manu who handles the ball for the second team. Dice can rebound, block out and change some shots in the paint.

Thus far into the season, I'm still unsure what Bogans is perceived to do for this team other than look a bit like Bruce Bowen from a distance.

[HarlemHeat37]

If that's the logic, then Dice and Mason should be starting. Both have range and can space the floor, which allows Hill to play alongside Manu who handles the ball for the second team. Dice can rebound, block out and change some shots in the paint.

Thus far into the season, I'm still unsure what Bogans is perceived to do for this team other than look a bit like Bruce Bowen from a distance.

This would make sense and go along with the theory that Pop has truly gone senile..he probably can't tell the difference..

[mingus]

i actually agree with the change to an extent. it's the Spurs best defensive unit. offensively there are several implications. the first being that it now caters to a 1-2 punch of Duncan and Parker and almost everything will run through them. when it doesn't, Pop will try to give Hill an oportunity to create and see if he can take advantage of it. having Bonner in there will really stretch out the floor for him and parker. if this lineup can come together defensively and they play good enough on offense, they should be in every ball game. our second unit wil destroy any other teams second unit whether they gel or not - they're just that talented. they'll be able to create leads or build on them if th first unit gives them a good enough of an opportunity, which i think they can.

[Obstructed_View]

i actually agree with the change to an extent. it's the Spurs best defensive unit. offensively there are several implications. the first being that it now caters to a 1-2 punch of Duncan and Parker and almost everything will run through them. when it doesn't, Pop will try to give Hill an oportunity to create and see if he can take advantage of it. having Bonner in there will really stretch out the floor for him and parker. if this lineup can come together defensively and they play good enough on offense, they should be in every ball game. our second unit wil destroy any other teams second unit whether they gel or not - they're just that talented. they'll be able to create leads or build on them if th first unit gives them a good enough of an opportunity, which i think they can.

The 28 first quarter points they gave up to Indiana might disagree with you there, particularly if you notice the 59 points they gave up in quarters two, three, and four.

[HarlemHeat37]

Keith Bogans is NOT a good defender..I don't know how anybody can watch him and believe he's a good defender..he gets beat ALL the time, he has NO athleticism or quickness, he can't jump..he has no physical attributes that make him a good defender at his current age of 30..

He was an above average defender in the first few weeks of the season, maybe a little longer, but he's been declining ever since..he clearly can't fill that role at his current age, he's already worn out and it's only February..

[The Truth #6]

Is this move intended to push us towards the playoffs? Is it a move to tank the season? What's the difference? Pop is probably trying to improve the team but will end up getting us into the lottery. If he wanted to tank, he'd probably play Ian and Hairston a bunch, and instead we'd probably improve.

I'm curious if Pop thinks everyone is a moron and he's the genius everytime by doing the opposite of what everyone else would do. That behavior looked a lot smarter when the Big 3 were in their prime.

This new starting lineup is fairly pathetic but maybe the improved bench will do better than we think...I guess that's the bright side.

[galvatron3000]

I wanna vote but there is nothing for Laughable available

[ElNono]

This is what the Lakers think...

[ducks]

booner started but played 1 quarter of the game

it really does not matter who starts for the spurs
it is the minutes played that makes the difference

[ElNono]

It matter who starts... it matters because it takes a lot of energy to play catchup and to get out of holes that ty lineups get you into... You want a solid enough starting 5 to set the tone for the game...

[Obstructed_View]

booner started but played 1 quarter of the game

it really does not matter who starts for the spurs
it is the minutes played that makes the difference

And booner gave up lots and lots of points.

[silverblk mystix]

every time i read that bonner spreads the floor for duncan...i want to kill someone...duncan has not attacked anyone in a couple of seasons...i love duncan...but who says that the spurs will be better by having duncan be a prime low-post SCORING threat...
run the offense THROUGH duncan---yes---it will work---but spreading the floor (with bonner) and RELYING on duncan to be duncan of five years ago is crazy...

every mediocre player BLOCKS at least 3 of his shots...stop trying to force duncan to carry you---let him be what he is...an excellent starting forward/center who can still defend,rebound, score in the flow of the game and make his teammates better...
couln't this be done withOUT bonner?

make parker and RJ the MAIN scorers...put some size in the lineup and make other teams MATCH-UP to the spurs!

i am really disappointed in pop---he has completely lost his way-----yes he HAS been a great coach---in the PAST...

[HarlemHeat37]

every time i read that bonner spreads the floor for duncan...i want to kill someone...duncan has not attacked anyone in a couple of seasons...i love duncan...but who says that the spurs will be better by having duncan be a prime low-post SCORING threat...
run the offense THROUGH duncan---yes---it will work---but spreading the floor (with bonner) and RELYING on duncan to be duncan of five years ago is crazy...

every mediocre player BLOCKS at least 3 of his shots...stop trying to force duncan to carry you---let him be what he is...an excellent starting forward/center who can still defend,rebound, score in the flow of the game and make his teammates better...
couln't this be done withOUT bonner?

make parker and RJ the MAIN scorers...put some size in the lineup and make other teams MATCH-UP to the spurs!

i am really disappointed in pop---he has completely lost his way-----yes he HAS been a great coach---in the PAST...

[itzsoweezee]

statistically, the lineup that started before the break was the best spurs lineup.

http://www.82games.com/0910/0910SAS2.HTM

popovich is just out of his damned mind. no justification for such stupidity.

[timtonymanu]

the lineup blows.

there's a reason Bonner is playing better this year -- he's more suitable as a bench player. Starting him makes him play like a pussy. He's allergic to starting for some reason.

No matter how much RJ is struggling, he should still be starting. Bogans has no business starting because he brings nothing. His defense is below average and his offense is much worse.

Parker - Hill - Jefferson - Duncan - McDyess

I dont know why this lineup was bad. It did make us blow out Denver on the road, even though Parker didn't play.

[xtremesteven33]

Popovich is drunk on power. Hes the captain he can do whatever the he wants.

My question is, is Duncan on the same page with Pop? Does Pop run everything thru Duncan first? Smallball for example. Everyone knows Pop throws out small lineups,but does he do it cause Tim wants it that way?

Over the Allstar weekend Craig Seger reported that Duncan wanted to play with all four PG at the same time. He requested that to George Karl. Does Duncan love smallball? Is this Duncans doing just as much as it is Pops?

[SenorSpur]

I didn't see a "Deckchairs on the anic" option.

I thought that to myself when I saw the options.

[SenorSpur]

Popovich is drunk on power. Hes the captain he can do whatever the he wants.

My question is, is Duncan on the same page with Pop? Does Pop run everything thru Duncan first? Smallball for example. Everyone knows Pop throws out small lineups,but does he do it cause Tim wants it that way?

Over the Allstar weekend Craig Seger reported that Duncan wanted to play with all four PG at the same time. He requested that to George Karl. Does Duncan love smallball? Is this Duncans doing just as much as it is Pops?

I've thought about this before. Other than Holt, who doesn't make personnel decisions, who checks Pop? Of course, when your team is winning, it's not an issue. However the point is RC and Pop are supposed to balance each other. Does this actually happen? Who breaks the tie, when they have disagreements. Of course, no of us truly know the parameter of their working relationship.

[SouthTexasRancher]

Lineups with this team don't seem to work out no matter how much Pop screws with things. He has allowed the NBA game to pass him by. This team is a bad mixture of too old and too young coupled with terribly low basketball IQ and topped off with the fact we are about the least athletic team in the NBA. , these guys don't even have the bball IQ of Junior Hi players.

Oh yeah, small ball may work for a particular game but, not for a series. All Pop needs to do is ask Nellie.

[xtremesteven33]

I've thought about this before. Other than Holt, who doesn't make personnel decisions, who checks Pop? Of course, when your team is winning, it's not an issue. However the point is RC and Pop are supposed to balance each other. Does this actually happen? Who breaks the tie, when they have disagreements. Of course, no of us truly know the parameter of their working relationship.

Pop is the Alpha and Omega of the Spurs. It just gets me mad that he doesnt own up to his own bull .

[SouthTexasRancher]

Pop is the Alpha and Omega of the Spurs. It just gets me mad that he doesnt own up to his own bull .

Well said...!

[spurs10]

Well, we're not going to go far giving up 28 points in the 1st quarter. I can't imagine going with this group in Philly. We were very lucky to get over that bad start last night. The Sixers have been a tough win for us on the road, with TP less than 100%, it's won't be easy.