Spurs expect Jazz to play much better at home in Game 3
NBA playoffs » Parker says home crowd will help Jazz play with more energy.
By Brian T. Smith
| The Salt Lake Tribune
First Published 3 hours ago • Updated 1 hour ago
San Antonio • A packed, raucous EnergySolutions Arena doesn’t compare to battery- and rock-throwing European basketball crowds that left San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili fearing for his safety.
Jazz home games no longer compare to the John Stockton and Karl Malone years, when Spurs point guard Tony Parker recalls fans proudly shouting obscenities and referees buying a little too much into the "let them play" playoff theory.
"Suddenly there’s no more calls," Parker said, reflecting on his early years against Utah. "It’s like super-physical and you’re like, ‘What happened?’ It’s like almost no referees."
But everyone from Ginobili and Parker to Danny Green and Boris Diaw acknowledged after practice Thursday they expect a recharged Jazz team to emerge for Game 3 Saturday.
Utah was 25-8 at ESA during the regular season, and a key portion of the Jazz’s late push for a postseason spot came as an unproven team rode a late hometown wave. Now, the Jazz’s up-and-down season is officially on the line. And while the Jazz were an embarrassing mess during Game 1 and 2 losses in San Antonio, the Spurs expect to face a different club in Salt Lake City.
"We know they’re going to play better at home and they’re going to play with a lot more energy," Parker said. "They’re going to shoot better, because the first two games they didn’t [shoot] the ball well. … We’re going to have to match that and make sure we stay on top of their game, because we don’t want to give them any hope."
Ready and able
San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said reserve center Tiago Splitter (left wrist bone bruise) has been upgraded to probable for Game 3. Splitter was active but didn’t play in Game 2.
Even with undersized forwards DeJuan Blair and Diaw manning up against Utah’s bigs, the Spurs still have outscored the Jazz 120-80 in the paint.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/jazz/54...tml.csp?page=2
How are we going to get LESS calls?
They've shot more FTs in both games, in spite of the fact that we are LIVING in the paint on offense.
Considering that we've outscored them by 46 points in two games, they could play a LOT better AND get even more calls, and still lose.
Normally a pessimist I am.
But I think we may have turned the corner on these guys.
i have changed my prediction from 5 games to a sweep. bring it.
Yeah I re-watched both games 1 and 2 and was somewhat surprised to learn that Utah edged us out (by 5 favorable non-calls/wrong calls to only 3 favorable non-calls/wrong calls) at the free throw line in game 2. We probably should've had 4 more FTA, but obviously it ended up not affecting the course of the game.
Game 1 was pretty neutral. By my count, there were only 2 blatant missed calls for both teams, which evens out.
I actually thought our last 2 games against Utah in the regular season were among the worst refereed games I've ever seen. The Sunday game at home, the Spurs just had a parade to the free throw line on a unusually large number of ticky tack phantom foul calls. It's funny because the game overall was called so poorly that both teams had reason to complain. There were many times that a ticky tack foul was called in our favor on one possession, but a harder foul was then ignored 2 possessions later.
That being said, the Spurs overwhelmingly had an unfair, biased free throw advantage in that Sunday game.
Then, for the Monday game I thought it was exactly the opposite - particularly in the 2nd half (4th quarter, mostly). Just as the Spurs were unfairly favored the previous night, the Utah Jazz were unfairly favored by the refs at home.
To be honest, had both games been called fairly, I actually thought we probably should've lost the Sunday game @ full strength on account of a poor game by Ginobili (he did not deserve 15 FTA that game), and I thought we should've won on Monday with our 2nd and 3rd units and no Big 3.
The end result worked out the same (that 2 game stretch ended up 1-1, as it should have ended up), but the reffing left a bad taste in my mouth.
This Utah Jazz team statistically is among the top 3 or 4 in sending people to the free throw line with their overly physical defense, and our Spurs team is statistically among the top 3 or 4 in fewest allowed free throws. Neither game so far has borne that statistical average out (not that it should, of course - like I said, both games were almost called well. I thought Utah had only a 2 call advantage in game 2).
If we get swept then so be it. I just want to see us play better these last 2 games. It pisses me off watching this team over the past two games, knowing that we're a better team than what we showed. I can live with losing to the Spurs. , I expect us to lose...but we have to fight.
I wouldn't question their effort. I can only attest for game 1 since thats the only game I've seen so far, and their effort in that game was pretty damn good. The game was just that a game, until after Tinsley's three, then after that the Spurs ran away with it late in the 4th.
Meh, shouldn't be too hard to win this one in Utah. They are going to come out strong against the Spurs but they'll probably fall in the mid 3rd.
I lmao when Jazz fan thinks their trademark physical play and ref help will give them the edge. Spurs play the same way my mormon bruhs. It's never worked on SAS like it does on most of the league.
Am I the only one who thinks the Spurs will come out fully engaged and lay another 20+ point beatdown on them?
This is the toughest game coming up yet, this will be a close game.
Bring.It.On.
No matter what happens, I will NEVER stop believing in My Spurs.
Game 2 was one of those game where the Spurs were in a zone. Everything we threw up went in the basket and everything y'all did wasn't enough. Once you get down so far, it's mentally dispiriting for these proud men.
But take this tip from a Spurs fan since 1973. Never give up on your team. Ya gotta help inspire them to play better when they are down if you're at the game. If not, pray to the God of your choice that they win. If that doesn't work, get ready for next year.
What else could Jazz do ? They were aggressive on offensive boards, they tried to trap parker in the zone. They have no weapons. They probably wont score more than 85-90 pts, if it is blowout from the Spurs.
It's funny. Spurs fans felt exactly the same way when we used to get stomped by Utah in the Karl Malone / Stockton days. Those teams dissected us and it was frustrating as . We had talented Spurs teams with athletic players but Utah just methodically did what they did and we couldn't stop it.....until Tim Duncan came into his own.
He was a part of the LAST Utah playoff series loss back in 1998. We lost 4-1 in his rookie season but the games felt close. At least we tried.
I still think utah steals one at home, probably tomorrow night. It's the weekend, their fans will be ready, the Jazz players know they need to step it up, etc. They shouldn't win one tbh, but I just have that gut feeling they will.
Of course the Jazz will play better in game 3. They really couldn't play any worse.
This one will probably be more of a grinder, but the Spurs just have too many weapons.
Spurs by 11.
If the Spurs lose, it will be because they beat themselves, not because Utah beat them. Spurs taking their foot off the gas is the only chase Utah has at this point.
The threat of going down 0-3 in a series could make the Utah rookies crumble psychologically.
Or, it could give them a " the world, we're losing this series anyway so let's just play loose ball" at ude.
Utah's not going to stop the Spurs from scoring. They have to shore up their offensive woes if they want to win a game.
blow them out Spurs!!
This will be the best shot for the Jazz to take a game in the series. If the Spurs put them away in game 3 it is a sweep.
I don't think they will this series. After the last few years, I think this is a hungry Spurs team that takes care of business whenever it can. Utah's a good young team, but I just think it's going to take someone legitimately compe ive with us to start stealing games.
The Spurs are just flat out too good for this team, like the Heat against the Knicks. The game will be close but the Spurs will bust it open eventually.
I think he was just saying they'd win a game, not the series.
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