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Agreed.Seems like they are having fun out there too now which is great to see.
It goes without saying we need to be healthy. I think the most important think aside from that is franchise point guard play from Parker. He needs to continue to play at the level he is playing. He needs to be one of the 2 best players on the court consistently, and I think he can continue to do that.
Agreed.
They added Sessions which will allow them to play faster.
The best thing about this team right now is that even if we rest Duncan, Manu, or even Parker I can still see us winning most games and doing fairly well. The team is deep enough to handle a few injuries or a few nights of Pop resting some players.
Parker out? Sure you have Neal, Manu, Green, Jack and others (Mills when he arrives) who can fill in part-time.
Manu out? No problem, Neal, Green, Jack, Leonard can all fill in very well.
Duncan out? Sure you lose the team's defensive anchor, but you still have enough talented big men to play well enough with the likes of Splitter, Bonner, Diaw and Blair.
Agree with the OP, YES the Spurs are now contenders. Especially out in the West with no clear-cut favorite, I expect the Spurs to make it at least to the WCF. If the added pieces continue to blossom in the Spurs system, there's no reason not to believe this team can't win it all with the depth we have, even against the likes of the Heat or Bulls in the Finals. I absolutely love it!
Last edited by jiggy_55; 03-24-2012 at 03:25 AM.
Agree 100% with Benfactor. This is the first time i can envision the Spurs winning the championship since 2008.
Even last season.. while i didnt expect a first round exit.. i never felt the team could truly compete with the best.
This team looks special.
I would still like the team to fill the frontcourt hole somehow. However I like the team's versatility. This is probably the most versatile Spurs team ever. You have several players that can play multiple positions effectively.
As far as rotation goes I think this year will be different than any other year. As we know, Pop usually shortens the rotation to get ready for the post season...and the Big 3 usually see a minute increase. This usually happens out of necessity as there are only so many players on the roster that can be trusted to give minutes to alongside TD/TP/Manu. That's not the case this year. There are so many effective weapons on the team right now and so many players that could be useful in different match ups that I think he almost has to go 10 deep.
It will be interesting to watch. In the past there's always been a pretty good feel about who Pop trusts as the post season approaches. Right now he has so much good depth at his disposal that he can basically plug in a quality player on the fly depending on what type of match up he is dealing with. I think this is what we will see and what has to happen in the playoffs this year for them to win it all.
+1 exactly my feelings
Sessions is better than Fisher.
The Spurs will never lose an NBA finals.
If this quote is from the video interview of Tim Duncan, then it seemed more like the reporter posing the scenario to the player, then hoping for Tim to agree. I can't stand this style of journalism. Simple questions allow complex answers. Complex questions beg for simple answers.
Parker-Ginobili-Leonard-Duncan-Splitter
To me that's the lineup that can get it done. Pop has to maximize it.
imagine if tj ford stayed healthy... oh man...
[Q024;5725698UOTE=]imagine if tj ford stayed healthy... oh man...[/QUOTE]
Dude Patty Mills is better than TJ. He can distribute the ball just as well except he's a better scorer and defender. He is slower but that doesn't hurt much.
How does the second unit protect the rim if you use this starting lineup?
Plus, IMO, Diaw's skillset matches quite effectively the first unit one, he is a offense facilitator with top notch passing skills, decent defender(though undersized), could mesh quite well with timmy, set nice screens (parker and manu will love that) and Kawhi makes up for his so-so rebounding rate...
Just because Splitter's in the first unit doesn't mean he's banned from playing with the bench.
"Defense wins championships" isn't just a nice catchphrase. By starting the Twin Towers 2.0 (or 1.5 if you prefer), at the very least the Spurs can platoon Tim and Tiago for a prime Duncan+okay player in the frontcourt-like effect. Tell the wings to force people either baseline or inside if they get beat and start breaking opponents from the opening tip.
Then sub accordingly. If Diaw can be solid on defense then it's really only the Bonner line-up that'll be compromised on that end of the floor. Limit Matt's minutes and the rest will sort itself out.
Agreed with the interesting to watch part. The talent is there. However, being deep might not mean much if you don't hand out the minutes. And that's why I reserve judgement until we see what kind of rotations we're going to put out there. I still remember washed up Finley over George Hill or Tiago only starting to see minutes after two games in a series went by while getting murdered inside. So the skepticism isn't necessarily unfounded.
I do think everyone is more or less ready, something that was not the case last season. A byproduct of the injuries and the compressed season, no doubt. There's also less turds to hand minutes too, another plus.
Ultimately, I think their chances will have a lot to do with the kind of strides they make defensively in these last 15 games or so. We just can't be rank at the bottom and pretend to make a deep run. You need stops to win games.
I would say that the defense is definitely improving-but not there yet.
If the defense develops an edge and you begin to see some "nastiness"...then I will believe the Spurs are le contenders.
Right now....not there yet.
Let's get that defense tight asap.
Exactly. Tiago and Tim can help set a defensive tone from the tip. And with Kawhi to hound the perimeter players that should set a good tone for the game. The Spurs offense should be able to carry them home. They can't afford giving up first quarter points just to have Splitter's unit lead them back into the game. Points are precious in the playoffs and they should be fought for.
I couldn't agree more. Counting on your bench to come back and save you every game just isn't winning basketball. And in fact I would argue that a large part of the reason why the bench tends to salvage games is because they play something closer to old school Spurs basketball. They work hard on D and they acquired an inside-out offense once they realized Tiago could score when he got the ball and even command doubles at times.
The team won't get away with that during the post season.
Pop had the right idea last year when he put Dice in the starting unit. He wanted better defense for the playoffs, especially with all the good power forwards in the WC. It just didn't work out that well. Splitter's got even better defense than Dice and a low post game. Duncan seems even more automatic than Dice with his jumper.
Also think about all that length on the frontline with Kawhi, Tim, and Tiago. It's going to be tough for opponents to get clean looks.
Tiago started playing after 3 games.
I know Manu only thinks there is 15gms or so left but there is 21gms left.
3rd game of a back to back to back? No centers? Good defensive team? Doesn't matter...because contenders win those games son.
If I had to bet for the champion TODAY, my vote would go to the Spurs. They are rolling!
I feel a lot more confident heading into the playoffs with this team than last year's squad. We are deeper, tougher and have some very good defensive wings. No way this teams gets bounced in the 1st round again.
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