No Bonner, no victory.
two bad defensive games
On top of that, two bad games for Blair
two good games for RJ
I have to give props to Pop for keeping Tony out right after he just signed an extension to keep the run going. Don't know many coaches that would do that.
I'm torn on how to feel. I'm hoping Tiago will come in and help defensively but logically I know a rookie to the NBA is not going to get the benefit of any calls and have lots of transition issues. Its going to be a long season defensively.
Defense looked old and slow, it felt like the Dragic game the way CP3 was getting those layups. Tiago and Blair's young legs NEED to hold down that fort, because Timmy and Dyess while having nice moments can't play amazing help D all season. If this isn't addressed might as well tank the season, because everyone's backcourt will be running 100 on us every game.
Some points in the second half the offense looked lost. Credit NOLA's defense, but at some points Hill, Anderson, and Tony were just making up. I'm confident they'll work it out as the season progresses, but damn I haven't seen the Spurs offense so poorly ran in a long time.
You're probably lucky not to have been kicked out
interiorally, the Spurs will be fine. McDyess, Splitter, and Duncan is a versatile enough group of bigs. Blair hopefully gets a lot better sooner rather that later, but those three guys are enough defensively for the interior.
it's the perimiter that's the problem. Manu, while still basically as effective as ever on offense, can't cover people or space like he used to. Parker has always just been solid in that area, Jefferson is average. he's a great athlete but is slow laterally.
we're going to get burnt all ing year by other teams' guards. Thornton, Green, and Paul all shot over 50%. it's the same that happened last year against Pheonix: Nash ing this team up the ass, Richardson looking like the second coming of MJ, and solid, solid, play by Dragic, Hill and Dudley.
Out of the core of bigs, spurs really lack shotblocking/intimidation. Duncan with his limited mobility and age needs to have a young agile leaper next to him, that's why I always thought Tyrus Thomas would have been the perfect compliment.
Remains to be seen how much Splitter will help in this regard, he seems pretty mobile, but not really the shotblocker/intimidator that would be most helpful.
Your probably right, though I think the Spurs can get away with what the have as far as the defensive presense down low assumming Splitter plays up to his expectations. However there's no way the Spurs are going to be able to get away with not having a defensive wing in the roatation. Which is why I think this team should make a trade for one.
All those ABCDEF means nothing unless you get W
haven't seen the game but after watching the game numero uno it seems like the spurs are off the rythm esp when it comes to rotations. It looks like Pop still setting a battle for the starting job. Well I think two positions are lock PG and PF. Other positions got to be settled.
If the Spurs' defense doesn't become a constant that can turn around a game, the Spurs can't go very far. Not looking too promising right now.
The Big Three are what they are. They won't get better defensively (or ever regain their old form). That leaves almost no margin for error.
The Spurs need to roll the dice with Anderson and force feed him into the lineup earlier than they would like. He has a strange shotblocking ability for a guy with his size and quickness. That may be a sign of tenacity that can be harnessed in the Spurs' scheme.
Then Splitter needs to be an anchor in the middle -- not an athletic force at the rim -- he can't do that. But rather a "glue" in the middle of the Spurs team D, a cohesive force that holds it together. He just may have the experience and basketball IQ to perfom that role.
I'm afraid the Spurs' chances to become a strong defensive team may hinge on the sooner-than-planned contributions of those two new players.
Last edited by Russ; 10-31-2010 at 10:18 AM.
good post. Don't count on Splitter being a big time defender.
I blame this loss mostly on Tony Parker and Tim Duncan, they both looked even worse than they did in their low points last year (and they're supposed to be healthy and rested!) and for both of them that wasn't a good season. They looked like they were sleepwalking out there, absolutely pathetic effort especially since they had a few days of rest since the last game and the Spurs need every win at "our house".
Blake Griffin is going to humiliate the Spurs lazy defense and the lack of vertical leap from our frontcourt....I'm seeing a lot of dunks and blocks from that guy. Tiago's going to see firsthand the difference between elite Euro athletes and American ones next game....wonder if Tiago will get minutes defending either Kaman or Griffin - both should be good tests but then again Tiago's probably going to be rusty as .
Does it seem like the dedication to running the break more lasted all of one half in the first game? Obviously it got out of hand because the defense suffered. But in that first quarter of the first game the offensive sets had more fluidity and it seemed like the team was trying to rely less on Tim by pounding the ball in every time like they always do. As a result, RJ looked pretty good in the first part of the first game.
This game seemed like a return to what we're more used to seeing on offense. Dump it in to Tim. Jack up 3s. I don't think it was a coincidence that RJ hardly got the ball during the first half. Yes, the game was tied at the break but we'd already given up the majority of our lead. I think they should still consider ways to diversify the offense. They don't have to run like the Suns but variety in the halfcourt would be beneficial.
The defense was terrible in the 3rd. CP3 killed Tony and TD and Blair did a terrible job helping. Rotations were always late.
I really hope Tiago can help our D
I'm trying to stay positive, and I liked a few things during that game...
- Neal and Anderson can be productive THIS year , no doubt about it
- Hill is showing some improvement in the playmaking
- Splitter and Bonner were out, Duncan wasn't Duncan, and we still managed to almost win that game without any relevant big man (sorry McDyess, I know you'll be there for the PO...)
- RJ is not perfect yet, but it's "night and day" compared to last year so we can (resonably) be optimistic..
Last edited by Pauleta14; 10-31-2010 at 01:28 PM.
There are positives. Neal and Anderson look like the are going to be contributors. Splitter will allow Blair to go back to what he does best. I think in very short time we have seen that Blair and Duncan do not play well together. That is okay as long as Pop does not continue to try and force their play together. While Splitter may not have huge numbers, his play may give us the chemistry we need to maximize our team play.
If there is a silver lining to this dark cloud, its that Jefferson got the highest grade on the team.
I agree. It was so awkward. There were times at the Alamo Dome when people would stand up half the game.
Sorry, but Timmy gets an F. No way should he be playing like this at any point in the season, much less in the second one. It's games like this that make me very nervous about his ability to get through an entire season.
Hopefully the wheels haven't fallen off.....
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