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25-3
'nuff said!
The Glass-half-full story is that the San Antonio bench is far better than last year's and has cojones. Tiago Splitter is skilled, fearless and can be a force on either end, despite limitations and has a great future ahead of him. Gary Neal is dynamite on the offensive end. And in Chris Quinn, the Spurs have a mistake-free point guard who is safe insurance.
The Glass-half-empty story is that the Spurs in their attempt to transmogrify themselves have lost a bit of their own USP. The defensive abilities of the personnel are quite lacking - interior defense marshalled by Tim Duncan is weaker than ever and perimeter defense is almost non-existent. What the Spurs show is a lot of hustle and canniness. They would need more than that to win No. 5.
I think though that the Glass is three quarters full. The team's veterans have great IQ and drive to win and the rookie bunch helping them out apart from the support cast are matching them in those intangibles. As the season progresses, if the Spurs continue to emphasize fundamentals on defense, they can get better and lessen the odds against them for a championship. With many early wins, the pressure to adjust on the fly as the season progresses will be far lesser and that is the best thing about the superb start to the season.
It is good times again for a Spurs fan.
Merry X'Mas.
25-3
'nuff said!
The glass is twice as big as it needs to be... tell that story.
Fans hate gambling on defense unless it creates turnovers. No one es when Manu comes from the weak side to steal, but they hate it when someone steps out and goes for a steal and doesn't get it.
There's no risk-free aggression. You either play aggressively or you do not.
I hope they can keep up 75% of this pace all year, I know they will lose their games and even get blown out again from time to time, but this record still has me flat out shocked at this point.
If they can just win 2 of 3 on average, I'll be happy.
Winning 2 of 3 in the playoffs gets you the
That is not fail-safe defense. That is gambling, which succeeds with a lower percentage of success. Spurs are not known to gamble, but to play perimeter defense that makes it tough for the opponent to score 3s and closes interior lanes.. forcing them to take low percentage shots. Thats what the Spurs have been known for, all along. Granted, the personnel have changed and Spurs don't have a Bowen anymore. But they can't win a championship through gambling and scrambling on defense. And I am sure every Spurs fan who has watched this team for sometime knows it.
Spurs won this game without George Hill, and James Anderson.
Anytime you see Parker or Ginobili or even RJ or Hill steal the ball up top, it's a result of a gamble on defense. Sometimes gamblers lose. They won tonight but not because of their gambling.
Regardless, the Nuggets were doing just fine even when the defenders stayed at home on the perimeter guys. Denver was doing fine until they just the bed in the 4th, thanks to some success on offense from a deep and talented bench and in no small part to a zone that caught Denver by surprise.
Fans who have watched this team for some time (like me) also know that the Spurs always predicated their game on defense and dumping the ball down low in crunch time. This year it's different, and the results look good so far.
That is NOT true. Both were in attendance.
George Hill is by far our most consistent perimeter defender. When JR was going off, George would have had the duty to gaurd him. Neal struggled with him a lot.The defensive abilities of the personnel are quite lacking - interior defense marshalled by Tim Duncan is weaker than ever and perimeter defense is almost non-existent.
On the other hand. I don't think our perimeter defense is that bad. Were solid, but we just don't appear that way because the spurs have upped the pace considerably. You cannot expect to stop a team like they did in past years when we play at this pace.
I disagree. That gambling is creating easy points and compensating for some of the Spurs' individual defensive shortcomings.
One take away, for sure, is that highlight moves do no equate to wins... otherwise Vince would have more rings than MJ.
I think the worry warts on here have to realize, like Pop has, that this current group of Spurs are not the defensive oriented bunch of a few years ago. They no longer possess the talent, due to Bowen's retirement, Duncan's age, etc... This Spurs team's strength lies in their offensive firepower, namely thier perimeter shooting, and their guards ability to drive and kick. On defense, the Spurs are pressuring the ball more, becoming more aggressive in steal attempts, because of their lack of front court defense, with Timmy, being the only true shotblocker to protect the rim. Since this group doesn't possess the ability to shut an oppenent down defensively, the only option is to open up the offense, with the hope that this current group of Spurs will improve defensively as the season goes on. You should also know that Pop will continue to get on this team to work and compete on the defensive end.
The Nuggets without Carmelo Anthony almost beat the Spurs...that in itself scares me. I thought Carmelo Anthony was the only player on the Nuggets roster, but I guess they have the players necessary to keep up with the Spurs.
Seriously though, WTF???!!!! The Sprs keep winning, sure, but now they're barely getting by teams that need to be blown out, especially when Melo is out. This is like beating the early decade Sixers, without Allen Iverson (so basically no one), by a slim margin.
as long as we are winning when the playoffs come, there shouldn't be much complaining...If they can just win 2 of 3 on average, I'll be happy.
Winning 2 of 3 in the playoffs gets you the
Thats a bit unfair. It isn't like the Nugg's are a bunch of scrubs. They have quite a bit of talent offensively.
Also, the Nugg's with Melo almost beat the Spurs, except they didn't have Billups, K Mart & who else? Was it Birdman? Point being, is that they are still a tough team with alot of offensive talent. Do not underestimate a team like that. They put up a pretty good fight & had a decent chance against the Lakers just 2 years ago.
wtf is james Anderson??
anyone ??
Pathetic s!
Since we are not the defensive stalwart team of the past, those gambles also translate into buckets when they pay off. Just saying.
Also, one last thing, if we can not iron out the kinks on D, we may have no choice but to keep gambling. Now this will suck, but we are winning, so lets just let it unfold how it will.
hahhaa, you'll get to know him, don't worry
hahhaa, you'll get to know him, don't worry
oh no im not worried about pathetic worthless unproven injury prone rookies
OH, then just log in the right forum, obviously you took the wrong buss
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