ESPN breaks down Spurs 5 on 5

[KaiRMD1]

This is going to be a marquee match up if it happens in the WCF

[Wild Cobra Kai]

ESPN desperately does NOT want the Spurs in The Finals. Ironic, too, since their chosen ones in BOS and LA are gravitating rapidly towards a brand of ugly ball reminiscent of the 99 Spurs they loathed so much, while SA is gravitating towards a much more aesthetically pleasing brand they used to like so much.

[will_spurs]

SA is not the best team in the West. That won't change until the Spurs prove otherwise.

I often wonder how you can have 16k posts and still be a GNSF. Now I know.

The Spurs are #1 in the West and own the tiebreaker vs OKC, Lakers and Clippers. What else do you want?

[will_spurs]

The Spurs need a lot to go right. They need their Big 3 to play well but because no one plays huge minutes, they also need their role players to play well. The Spurs won't advance far if their role players are struggling. Plus, the Spurs are much more likely to suffer a debilitating injury at some point before or during the playoffs.

I'm pretty sure the big 3 will play more minutes in the playoffs if need be. Managing minutes is for the reg season, and something Pop has done admirably. Parker in particular showed this year that he can play more than his season average.

Re: injuries, it's true mostly of Manu. Parker doesn't seem less durable than Durant or Westbrook, and Duncan's injuries are usually linked to fatigue. On the other hand Westbrook has missed games this year while injured.

Both Durant and Westbrook seem tireless, but they still have played a lot more minutes than any of our guys this year. Even young players get injured. Plus, as you point out re: depth, a loss of any of those 2 would be a lot more devastating to OKC than to the Spurs.

[roycrikside]

ESPN desperately does NOT want the Spurs in The Finals. Ironic, too, since their chosen ones in BOS and LA are gravitating rapidly towards a brand of ugly ball reminiscent of the 99 Spurs they loathed so much, while SA is gravitating towards a much more aesthetically pleasing brand they used to like so much.

It has nothing to do with the basketball. Nobody at ESPN (or America) cares whether the games are 72-65 or 118-117. It's the brand names and the personalities. ESPN knows how to market the Lakers and the Celtics because of their fan bases. Same with the Knicks.

The Bulls have Derrick Rose. The Heat are the villains with the electric fast break. OKC has two young high-flying talents. Even the Clips have Griffin and Paul.

With the Spurs there is nothing to market but great basketball. The brand is blah. The market is blah. There are no controversies. The players love each other. Everyone loves the coach. Nobody ever says anything stupid. There is no Manu vs. Tony, even though ST thinks there should be at times. Nobody ever commits a crime. There's no story line about so-and-so "finally getting his shot at a ring after 12 years" or whatever. Two of the players are foreign (news flash, the casual American sports fan is xenophobic as ) and Duncan hasn't said anything interesting in 15 years. There's simply nothing for the broadcasters and executives to sell.

Forget about the quality of basketball with the Spurs vs. other teams. Most people who watch aren't sophisticated enough to figure out the difference or to care. The Spurs won't ever be compelling unless they do something off the court that interests people. It's sad, but we're a tabloid culture. We're always going to have that "boring" reputation ON the court just because we're boring off the court. It doesn't matter who the Spurs play in the Finals, if the games are in the 80s or 90s, they'll be blamed for dragging the scores down even though it'll be the East team's style, not ours.

[roycrikside]

Re: injuries, it's true mostly of Manu. Parker doesn't seem less durable than Durant or Westbrook, and Duncan's injuries are usually linked to fatigue. On the other hand Westbrook has missed games this year while injured.

Manu played more games than Tony each of the past two seasons. Funny how reputations work.

[will_spurs]

Manu played more games than Tony each of the past two seasons. Funny how reputations work.

2 years ago was the year Tony was injured. Last year was pretty much the same (Manu played 2 more games but 100 fewer minutes). Last year's playoffs and this year, Manu was injured.

Parker averages 73 games a year in his career, Manu 66.5

[Manufan909]

There was so much win in both of these posts that I had to quote them.

ESPN desperately does NOT want the Spurs in The Finals. Ironic, too, since their chosen ones in BOS and LA are gravitating rapidly towards a brand of ugly ball reminiscent of the 99 Spurs they loathed so much, while SA is gravitating towards a much more aesthetically pleasing brand they used to like so much.

It has nothing to do with the basketball. Nobody at ESPN (or America) cares whether the games are 72-65 or 118-117. It's the brand names and the personalities. ESPN knows how to market the Lakers and the Celtics because of their fan bases. Same with the Knicks.

The Bulls have Derrick Rose. The Heat are the villains with the electric fast break. OKC has two young high-flying talents. Even the Clips have Griffin and Paul.

With the Spurs there is nothing to market but great basketball. The brand is blah. The market is blah. There are no controversies. The players love each other. Everyone loves the coach. Nobody ever says anything stupid. There is no Manu vs. Tony, even though ST thinks there should be at times. Nobody ever commits a crime. There's no story line about so-and-so "finally getting his shot at a ring after 12 years" or whatever. Two of the players are foreign (news flash, the casual American sports fan is xenophobic as ) and Duncan hasn't said anything interesting in 15 years. There's simply nothing for the broadcasters and executives to sell.

Forget about the quality of basketball with the Spurs vs. other teams. Most people who watch aren't sophisticated enough to figure out the difference or to care. The Spurs won't ever be compelling unless they do something off the court that interests people. It's sad, but we're a tabloid culture. We're always going to have that "boring" reputation ON the court just because we're boring off the court. It doesn't matter who the Spurs play in the Finals, if the games are in the 80s or 90s, they'll be blamed for dragging the scores down even though it'll be the East team's style, not ours.

[Ishta]

ESPN, in addition to all the other "Experts" will always pick anyone other than the Spurs. As it has been said time and time again Spurs are flying under the radar... Plus, these "Experts" are both dumb, and blind clinging to the old definitions of old, and boring that has been attached to us for years. I say bring on the playoffs. Let the W's speak for themselves. Does this piss me off that we do not get the recognition our team deserves, and has rightfully earned this year, of course it does! No question about that! We know this year has been freaking fantastic so I say screw em
Go Spurs Go