02'-03 All Over Again

[21_Blessings]

One thing I've been noticing this season in the first six games, is how familiar the team is this year. This group of players reminds me of the depth we had when we won the le in 02'-03'. Position by position, you have the similiar skill sets, all across the board. Here's the notable players playing familiar roles.

Parker as himself. Averaging more assists at this point though. Also in his prime now, which means good things.


Tim Duncan as David Robinson. Quiet leader. Letting the younger guys dominate the offense, but answering when his number is called. Can put up solid numbers any day of the week still, but knows he can allow the other guys to play their game, and let the offense come to him.

DeJuan Blair as Malik. Hustling, rebounding, putting his body on guys, and giving us six fouls to use against the better centers/power forwards (Gasol) out there. His patience is no where near what Malik's was, but Pop is not gonna put up with him rushing his shots for long. He will improve.

George Hill playing the role Speedy played as the quick, shifty backup PG, except with more wingspan, and better defense. George is in a shooting slump, but I'm confident he will come around well before playoff time.

James Anderson as Stephen Jackson, shooting the 3, defending, with the ability to drive and create his own shot. Main difference I see between the two is Jackson's demeanor, and the ability to split the double team and set up other players like Jack would.

McDyess as Kevin Willis coming off the bench, rebounding, providing experience, and toughness. His elbow jumper is lethal which gives him the huge advantage over Willis. Not to mention Willis was known for his "T-Rex" arms.

Gary Neal as Steve Kerr. Comes in with one purpose. Shoot the ball.

Bonner as Danny Ferry. Now that we have the depth to slide Bonner down to the bottom half of the rotation, he now plays the role Ferry would. 6'10" forward who cant defend, but will occasionally heat up and have a good multiple 3 game. Pretty sure both would take a beating from Camby as well.

Splitter as Ginobili. Comes in as the well decorated, experienced rookie from overseas, who was the MVP of the Euroleague, and lead his team to the championship as well. Ginobili had one year on him, as he came in at 26 as a rookie.Splitter also will be given time to ease himself into the starting role as Ginobili did before him. Manu averaged in his rookie season, 7.6 PPG in 20 mins of action, and Splitter's production is about the same if you doubled his minutes currently at 3.7 PPG in about 12 minutes.

Chris Quinn as Meng Bateer. Nah just kidding. But both are equally crappy.

Biggest differences from the two squads would definitely be the added dimension we now have with the emergence of Jefferson, and the leadership of Manu.

I know it's premature, but if he continues with the hot corner shooting, we get the offensive perk of Bowen, with the ability to put the ball on the floor and finish. His defense is nowhere near the 02' Bowen, but he has decent lateral movement for 30. If he is gonna average 20 a game for us we can find a stopper elsewhere. He makes us a big four, and right now that would be ahead of the game, as the majority of contenders are now built around their version of "The Big Three".

Other big difference is Ginobili playing some of the best basketball as a Spur. He's averaging a career best in PPG this year at over 21. We won in 07' off sixteen a game from him and 18.6 from Tony. Tony will probably average closer to sixteen this year, so It's similiar production, in switched roles. Who knows, Parker could go on a tear and boost his PPG and have both averaging over 18. There's definitely alot of firepower on this team. All in all, extremely pleased with the depth, and offensive side of the ball. The defense will come, players WILL buy into Pop's system, and it will click as a unit.

And as the team before them in 02', watch these guy's become a well oiled machine come Rodeo road trip time. Here's to a great season, can't wait to see these players and this team develop.

[HarlemHeat37]

The OP's post isn't that bad, he made some good comparisons..

I thought this part was funny though:

Biggest differences from the two squads would definitely be the added dimension we now have with the emergence of Jefferson, and the leadership of Manu.

Those are the biggest differences, not the fact that they wouldn't have the best player in the NBA, like they did in 2003..

[ElNono]

Splitter is no Ginobili.
Who is our Duncan now?
Gary Neal couldn't touch a seasoned Kerr with a 10 foot pole.
Jax drove a lot more than what Manu has been driving this season.
Who is our Bowen now?

Other than that, and the fact that defensively these teams are nothing alike, it's not an awfully bad comparison.

[TwelveGs210]

I actually think your read was quite interesting. It's a better thread than 3/4 of the I sit here and sift through day to day.

You acknowledged it was still early in the season. Not a bad take imo.

Spurstalk's just filled with assholes.

Yeah theres plenty of bags on message boards. It comes with the territory. Most people read between the lines in attempt to ruin the thread, for the thrill of ruining a thread. Nothing more.

[GSH]

For tonight's performance, the part of the big blonde with huge boobs will be played by a tiny Puerto Rican transves e.

[TwelveGs210]

yup!!! just getting on here before i go, can't wait!!!

I'm not too thrilled with this release, but in need of a new shooter to tide me over to Bad Company 2 :Vietnam.

[TwelveGs210]

tiny Puerto Rican transves e.

AKA Carlos Arroyo.

[TwelveGs210]

Splitter is no Ginobili.
Who is our Duncan now?
Gary Neal couldn't touch a seasoned Kerr with a 10 foot pole.
Jax drove a lot more than what Manu has been driving this season.
Who is our Bowen now?

Other than that, and the fact that defensively these teams are nothing alike, it's not an awfully bad comparison.

1. Never said Splitter was Ginobili.

2. Clearly said in a prior post I should have labeled Duncan as a dual role of himself and Dave, as the wording was misleading.

3. What is your basis on that statement at this point in the season, as all I said is the 2 players both had the SAME ROLE. Come in and shoot the ball.

4. Who compared Jax to Manu?

5. Didn't have a Bruce comparison as I stated we have not found the stopper at this point.

Try again guy. Maybe start reading, as opposed to looking at letters arranged in paragraphs.

[Nathan89]

This guy put some work into this post and ripped into pieces.

[TwelveGs210]

It's amusing me, as I'm trying to pass the time. It has served it's purpose.

[crc21209]

The OP has the right idea, just executed the post a tiny bit wrong. This team resembles the 03' le team because of the good mix of vets and young guns, anyone can see that so far. The 03' team had the leadership of Big Dave to go along with league MVP Tim Duncan, and a hustling big man in Malik on the inside. On the outside we had a young and unproven TP and Manu Ginobili and an unknown X-Factor in Stephen Jackson. A defensive stopper and 3-pt specialist in Bowen. Add Kerr and Willis and we had a very good mix of young and old. Now while this year we dont have the TD of 03' or any MVP type candidate, there are some similarities. This time around TD is the older veteran leader with an older, proven backcourt in TP and Manu, RJ playing the X-Factor role, Blair playing the role of Malik and Dice playing a much better version of Willis. Now just like the 03' team had question marks all around it with TP, Manu, and Jackson...that was the case with Neal, Anderson, and Splitter, but all 3 have SO FAR proven that they belong. I am liking what I am seeing so far for sure... I know I'll take Neal and Anderson over our "3-pt shooting specialists" in Bogans and Mason of last year.

[thekingrobert]

How so? SJAX was never the focal point of the offense, nor was he the closer.

he was one of the few who could create his own shot as well for others and hit huge buckets when needed

[Leonard Curse]

i give this thumbs up for effort and youre right this is as close as well probably get to the 02 03 season!!

[UnWantedTheory]

People should not be thinking so literal and make an attempt to understand what the OP is trying to convey. This is more geared toward a team comparison, despite the attempted player to player analysis'. Some flaws, but overall I get the point and it is something many have stated before...you just put your two cents in. Decent overall. Good job.

[poeticism707]

Unfortunately, it seems most posters in this thread are like unto mindless piranhas, who just swoop for the kill and bite till the prey is dead, full bellies or no, because it's the devouring that appeases you.

The OP made a very insightful comment, whether you disagree or no, that's up for discussion. But the immature, blind, backbiting for no reason, is very obvious, and also very immature. If you can't discuss discuss a simple thing like basketball civilly, then maybe you should give up watching and discussing basketball altogether.

Here's some Spurs Talk irony for deaf and blind: if timvp had posted this EXACT argument, verbatim, word for word, most posters here would be drooling about the nuances he presented, dissecting the the obvious yet hidden parallels between both teams, and no doubt lauding his imaginative thinking on the topic as a whole.

Inversely, some new poster comes in and posts that same insightful topic, and most people who commented are clamoring over one another, much like crabs in a barrel, to pull him down.

Pathetic. Some things never change.

[mountainballer]

damn. right. good comparison.
like in 2003 the Spurs play with 5 players on the court!
AND THEY WEAR BLACK JERSEYS ON THE ROAD!

[TE]

[silverblk mystix]

Unfortunately, it seems most posters in this thread are like unto mindless piranhas, who just swoop for the kill and bite till the prey is dead, full bellies or no, because it's the devouring that appeases you.

The OP made a very insightful comment, whether you disagree or no, that's up for discussion. But the immature, blind, backbiting for no reason, is very obvious, and also very immature. If you can't discuss discuss a simple thing like basketball civilly, then maybe you should give up watching and discussing basketball altogether.

Here's some Spurs Talk irony for deaf and blind: if timvp had posted this EXACT argument, verbatim, word for word, most posters here would be drooling about the nuances he presented, dissecting the the obvious yet hidden parallels between both teams, and no doubt lauding his imaginative thinking on the topic as a whole.

Inversely, some new poster comes in and posts that same insightful topic, and most people who commented are clamoring over one another, much like crabs in a barrel, to pull him down.

Pathetic. Some things never change.

I have noticed this same thing....over and over and over.

Everytime anyone posts something...I know that as soon as it goes up-it will get trashed and the insults will fly....every single time.

[SpursFanInAustin]

I would say that there are good comparisons. I would say Manu now is our Tim Duncan of 03. Obviously Manu isn't the best player in the NBA like Tim was then, but he is our go to guy in crunch time and the one guy you trust with the game on the line. I also saw the Manu of 03 comparisons to Splitter where we finally landed the guy whom we drafted during our last le year of 2007 (like Manu in 1999) and we waited 3 years for him to arrive after winning MVPs and championships in the Euroleagues. Also, we are 4 seasons removed from our last le like we were in 2003 after the Lakers winning the Western Conference the last 3 seasons, like they did in 2000, 2001, and 2002.

[TwelveGs210]

Unfortunately, it seems most posters in this thread are like unto mindless piranhas, who just swoop for the kill and bite till the prey is dead, full bellies or no, because it's the devouring that appeases you.

The OP made a very insightful comment, whether you disagree or no, that's up for discussion. But the immature, blind, backbiting for no reason, is very obvious, and also very immature. If you can't discuss discuss a simple thing like basketball civilly, then maybe you should give up watching and discussing basketball altogether.

Here's some Spurs Talk irony for deaf and blind: if timvp had posted this EXACT argument, verbatim, word for word, most posters here would be drooling about the nuances he presented, dissecting the the obvious yet hidden parallels between both teams, and no doubt lauding his imaginative thinking on the topic as a whole.

Inversely, some new poster comes in and posts that same insightful topic, and most people who commented are clamoring over one another, much like crabs in a barrel, to pull him down.

Pathetic. Some things never change.

I totally agree. You can definitely see how certain people around here ride other peoples nuts, especially timvp. The purpose is to spark up conversation about the Spurs, and the immature will look between the lines to try and dis-credit the post. Yet these same people sit here and feed in to EVERY single LMAO or LOL thread these bag kids start here, or feed into EVERY single meltdown thread Sequ starts. I would seriously like to look at a list of ages for some of the people here, let alone see a picture of some of them. Alot of peole here are real pieces of .

As far as some of the other valuable responses, I agree that Manu would have to be playing the role of 03' Duncan, as he is the focal point of the offense so far, and is the most reliable in crunchtime. Duncan of course at that time was the best player in the NBA also. Alot of the intelligent posters here got what i was trying to convey, and I appreciate the time for you to post back. Watch this team, I cant wait to see how they are playing in January-February. Here's to an injury free season.

[TwelveGs210]

The OP has the right idea, just executed the post a tiny bit wrong. This team resembles the 03' le team because of the good mix of vets and young guns, anyone can see that so far. The 03' team had the leadership of Big Dave to go along with league MVP Tim Duncan, and a hustling big man in Malik on the inside. On the outside we had a young and unproven TP and Manu Ginobili and an unknown X-Factor in Stephen Jackson. A defensive stopper and 3-pt specialist in Bowen. Add Kerr and Willis and we had a very good mix of young and old. Now while this year we dont have the TD of 03' or any MVP type candidate, there are some similarities. This time around TD is the older veteran leader with an older, proven backcourt in TP and Manu, RJ playing the X-Factor role, Blair playing the role of Malik and Dice playing a much better version of Willis. Now just like the 03' team had question marks all around it with TP, Manu, and Jackson...that was the case with Neal, Anderson, and Splitter, but all 3 have SO FAR proven that they belong. I am liking what I am seeing so far for sure... I know I'll take Neal and Anderson over our "3-pt shooting specialists" in Bogans and Mason of last year.

Yup, good comparison between our rookies to Manu, TP, and Jax. Definitely a good mix of young and old, and again that was the point of the thread. Pop has his skill sets in place, and has new players playing the roles of the best Championship team we have had, IMO.

[wontstartdumbthreads]

Wow. Great OP. But I disagree. I think they share more similarities with the original Dream Team.

Tim Duncan is like Karl Malone but instead of Malone's physical play, Tim has more of a fundamental approach to the game and a much higher bball IQ.
Tony Parker is like John Stockton but doesn't pass as well. But he's much quicker and gets to the rim.
Manu is like Michael Jordan except not as athletic and doesn't shoot as well.
RJ is like Magic but not a good passer or team leader. However both put their ding dong in places they shouldn't go.
Blair is like Barkley but doesn't rebound, shoot, pass, or run the floor as well.
Hill is like Drexler except smaller, not as powerful, and plays a different position.
Gary Neal is like Ewing but instead of being a powerful 7 foot center, he's undersized but can nail the 3.
James Anderson is very similar to Larry Bird but is black.
Bonner is like Mullin expect he can't shoot.
Dice is like Pippen.
Ugh...I'm tired...anyway, I think this could be the greatest Spurs team ever.

[Moses Guthrie]

Raise the bar and I will jump over it for a Slamma Jamma!

[boutons_deux]

yeah, the high TOs and ty FTs remind me strongly of 02/03.

[Homeland Security]

The two biggest differences between the 2002-03 Spurs and the 2010-11 Spurs are:

1) The 2002-03 Spurs had the best player in the NBA, while the 2010-11 Spurs have a couple of guys who have an outside shot at All-NBA 3rd team.

2) The 2002-03 Spurs had a starting frontcourt which was nearly impenetrable on defense, featuring the best player in the league, the best perimeter defender in the league, and an aging star who was still arguably the best defensive center of his generation. Meanwhile the 2010-11 Spurs' frontcourt is mediocre on defense, anchored by an aging star with bad knees and limited mobility.

Both teams inspire some excitement because of young talent whose development is fun to watch, but the 2002-03 team was vastly superior to this bunch. The signature of Spurs basketball during their le years was their defense. Those days are over.