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thanks timvp! Go Spurs tonight!!!
Looking back, what's the good news and bad news Spurs fans can take from Game 1?
The good news is that many points in the gameplan were executed to perfection.
- The Grizzlies got only five offensive rebounds. During the regular season, they averaged nearly triple that against the Spurs.
- Zach Randolph averaged more than seven offensive rebounds per game against the Spurs in the regular season. In Game 1, he was held without an offensive rebound.
- The Grizzlies only scored 40 points in the paint. Their regular season average led the league at more than 50 points in the paint per game.
- The Spurs only turned the ball over 10 times and the Grizzlies only had two steals. Memphis led the NBA in steals.
- The Spurs controlled the tempo and limited the Grizzlies to only five fast break points, while scoring 15 fast break points of their own.
- The Spurs went to the free throw line 47 times. That was their most trips to the charity stripe in nearly eight years.
The bad news is the Spurs accomplished all of that but still lost the game. The Spurs are unlikely to follow their gameplan any better the rest of the series, which is sobering thought.
So if the Spurs did all that good work, how did they lose?
Give the Grizzlies credit, they knocked down their shots. From 16 feet and out, Memphis hit 14-of-27 attempts. The Spurs, on the other hand, were just 7-for-33 on two-pointers that weren't at the rim.
Defensively, it appeared as if the Spurs were willing to give up mid-range jumpers in an attempt to keep the Grizzlies out of the paint. The Grizzlies, as the stats show, made the Spurs pay for that strategy.
On the other side of the court, the Grizzlies pressured the Spurs for practically every inch, which definitely played a part in the Spurs shooting 21.2% on two-pointers away from the rim.
The other obvious reason for the loss was the absence of Manu Ginobili. More specifically, the Spurs missed the way Ginobili usually quarterbacks the second unit. Even though he has started all season, his biggest help has been the way he has elevated the bench players.
In Game 1, the starters actually did good work. When Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, George Hill and Richard Jefferson were on the court, the Spurs outscored the Grizzlies by 14 points. But when the bench players were on the court, the offensive efficiency plummeted -- and that just doesn't happen when Ginobili is around.
Do you have any second thoughts to your initial reaction after rewatching the tape?
Tony Parker wasn't as bad on tape as I thought when watching it live. Yes, he missed a ton of easy shots, but his execution throughout the game was solid. Almost all of his 12 misses were good looks and he created a lot of open shots for his teammates. And with the Grizzlies playing him physical, Parker took advantage by getting to the line 16 times while only turning the ball over twice.
If Parker gets the same looks again and creates the same shots in Game 2, he could very easily go for 32 and 10. Plus, that much criticized jumper he missed late in the fourth wasn't exactly a new idea. Parker hit that same exact shot in a much more important game.
Conversely, on second viewing, Antonio McDyess was even worse. He made a lot of mistakes on defense in addition to being physically manhandled. On offense, his presence allowed the Grizzlies to sag into the paint and clog the lane.
Like the rest of the known Spurs fans in the universe, you think Tiago Splitter should play more, right?
Actually I don't. He just doesn't have enough experience in the system. Blame the injuries that kept him out of training camp. Blame Pop for not making it a priority to indoctrinate Splitter during the regular season. But at this point, it's just too late. The ship has sailed.
And really, I don't think Splitter is a good fit to force feed against the Grizzlies. If Memphis is going to sag against McDyess, they'd really sag off of Splitter. Secondly, Splitter's main flaw right now is he has weak hands. The Grizzlies are the last team you want to play against if you have issues controlling the basketball.
But Matt Bonner sucks!!!
He was much, much better than I expected he'd be in Game 1. Defensively, he actually wasn't liability. By my count, the player he defended scored nine points on 4-for-9 shooting from the floor. Bonner also boxed out extremely well, especially in the fourth quarter against Randolph.
Offensively, he scored 12 points on four shots and didn't turn the ball over. Those two three-pointers he hit late were extremely surprising considering he has sucked shooting in the playoffs ... much less shooting under pressure in the playoffs. Let's hope it's a sign that Bonner may finally be ready to carry his regular season level of play into the postseason.
You're crazy. Splitter rules, Bonner's a fool. Anyways, what adjustments are needed in Game 2?
The Spurs have to find a way to slow down Randolph and Marc Gasol. In Game 1, that duo scored 49 points on 19-for-25 shooting from the field. San Antonio can afford for one of the two bigs to have a good game -- but not both. Paying more attention to Gasol and throwing more defensive looks at Randolph should help.
What isn't helping is Memphis' marksmanship from three-point land against the Spurs. In the five games against the Spurs this season, the Grizzlies are 25-for-54 on three-pointers for 46.3% -- including 6-for-10 in Game 1. In the other 78 games they've played, they are 32.9% from deep. The Spurs have to defend the three-point line better, but you also have to think their percentage will start regress toward the mean.
I also think it's important in Game 2 to get George Hill going early. He's a player who tends to play a lot better if he begins well. If Hill struggles early, he has a bad habit of playing more and more passively as the game progresses. The Spurs really need an offensive punch from Hill, so Pop needs to call a couple early plays for him.
Pop also has to be careful with McDyess. If he's a dud again, pulling the plug early is vital. Bonner and DeJuan Blair showed enough in Game 1 to replace McDyess if need be.
The offensive gameplan needs to adjust to how Duncan is playing. In Game 1, he was playing too well to get only a handful of touches in the second half. If Duncan has it rolling again in Game 2, the Spurs need to look for him a lot more, especially if Ginobili isn't at full force.
You talk as if Ginobili is playing ...
[interrupting]He has to. The AT&T Center in Game 1 felt more like a funeral than a playoff game. Everyone -- from the players to the fans to the ushers -- was mourning the fact that Ginobili was sitting on the sideline with a face like Father Pop had sent him to his room behind the bench. (Well, since that's basically what happened, it's difficult to blame anyone.)
Even if it's more of a ceremonial Willis Reed type role, the Spurs need the emotional lift. And even with one arm, I expect Ginobili to some how, some way make a difference.
Is this a must-win game?
Yeah, it is. These Grizzlies aren't your typical 8th seed. As we've already discussed, the Spurs took away their main strengths and yet they were still able to win on the road. The number of 8th seeds in history who could do that can be counted on one hand. If the Spurs aren't mentally prepared for a long, difficult series, they are in for a surprise ... and a possible upset.
Get Game 2.
1.
Believe.
Last edited by timvp; 04-20-2011 at 03:17 PM.
thanks timvp! Go Spurs tonight!!!
Great read Timvp. I'm excited for game 2. I'm not concerned yet. How many championships have we won after losing game 1 of the first round? Heck, we have had our share of series wins after a game 1 loss. Go SPURS GO!
Excellent write up. Finally, some truth about that game is posted instead of idiots claiming ridiculous fiction such as Bonner guarded Randolph every trip down the floor or Dice played decent defense. I hope you're right about Gino, I expect him to lead the Spurs to a big win tonight.
Good writeup, timvp, but I have to disagree with you on one thing: I think putting Splitter out there would be worth a shot. Sure, I don't see BOTH Gasol and Randolph shooting that well again tonight, but Timmy had to carry much of the defensive load against those two by himself because of our lack of height on the front line. Monty Williams (a Pop disciple, as I'm sure you know) threw an underutilized Aaron Gray out there to neutralize the Lakers' size, and it was a huge part in the Hornets stealing game 1.
Do you think Pop starts Blair tonight in place of Dice? I know he went to that in the 2nd half last game. Not sure if it was because of foul trouble but I actually like the move going into Game 2 as well.
Memphis' biggest advantage is their front court. To see how they pretty much torched us in Game 1 and to say that giving Tiago some mins. couldn't help doesn't really make sense. It's not like DeJuan is spreading the floor when he's out there with Timmy....
Good points, as always though.
in all honesty, i think Splitter might play against the Lakers if/when we meet them.
call me crazy, but i think that will be the case.
Great points concerning Bonner. All that "Golden Minute" talk concerning his clutch 3's was such non-sense. Dude played his heart out, didn't overthink anything, and did exactly what everyone pisses on him about for not doing - made clutch shots.
I believe in the shootaround video yesterday Pop was asked, besides Gino, if there would be any starting lineup changes, and he said no. So Dice should start, but I sure hope the string on him is short and he isn't jacking up his 18 footer with double-digits left on the shot clock.
Precisely.
I agree that the reason for his not playing is that he doesn't have enough time in the system by the person that didn't give him any time. I agree that the ship has sailed for this year, whether or not he'd actually be able to contribute.
Additionally, the second paragraph is the key: Even if they played him, it wouldn't be the way anyone calling for him would want in this series. He'd get minutes behind Duncan, not beside him, and he would indeed get the ball far too much on offense. Having both of them on the floor could allow Duncan some rest on offense by allowing him to stand 20 feet from the basket while Splitter takes the beating, and you still have as close to shut-down interior defense as the Spurs have had in a long time. There probably aren't two players who have played fewer minutes together than Duncan and Splitter this year.
Disappointing to hear. Thought Pop had come to his senses and realized that Blair/Bonner should never be out there with Randolph/Gasol.
Bonner and Blair were way better than Dice. The only lineup change Pop would make to the front line would be one of those guys to start.
Your posts always put order to chaos.
Agree with both points. I wanted to see Blair start tonight.
but but but but but tp sucked ass and he was the main reason they lost
pop cia
I'm sure it's been impressed upon Dice for three days how badly he played. He probably deserves one more shot to redeem himself.
Main reason? No, but don't act like it wasn't a big reason they lost.
Love the TPark wannabe act, btw. Well done.
Interesting points, but is timvp interviewing himself here? What's going on?
His play has been subpar since he was inserted into the starting lineup.
I think Dice will play better tonight. But my thinking with Blair starting is to see how he handles Randolph early with the luxury of playing with Tim. If he's getting torched than you can bring Dice in for a different look. As opposed to Dice starting and still playing bad, then you'd have to rely on Blair/Bonner to cool down Randolph.
Dice's play is crucial to winning this series, IMO.
The lineup change to begin the second half was very likely due to foul trouble. However, like you, I wouldn't be mad at Pop for changing the starting lineup. With Blair going up against Randolph, at the very least the Spurs can count on an energetic start.
Their bigs did a lot of their damage with jumpers. I don't think Splitter would be a big improvement in defending the mid-range area.
If the Grizzlies dominated in the paint, I could possibly see the advantage of simply getting Splitter's size out there ... but that wasn't the case in Game 1.
The three areas where Blair has an advantage over Splitter are strength with the basketball, rebounding and experience. The Grizzlies leading the league in steals and previously dominating the Spurs on the boards makes those first two points important. This being the playoffs makes experience important.
Don't get me wrong, if I were in charge, I would have given Splitter a lot more minutes during the regular season so he could be ready for the playoffs. But Pop didn't so, like I said, I think that ship has sailed.
During the regular season, Duncan and Splitter played together for about 33 minutes total. TOTAL. On the season, Duncan and Blair played together for 930 minutes.
If the Spurs fail to win a championship, Spurs fans will point to the lack of Splitter as perhaps the main reason. I probably won't be able to totally disagree ...
Did you just interview yourself?
Yes
seriously -- good writeup
neal is much better then a 50% manu
manu is not that great of a three point shooter
especially with a guy in his face
mem would be wise to force him to drive
if they play as phyisical as last game manu would not drive
how many times did tp hit the ground
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