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  1. #101
    Race for seis crc21209's Avatar
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    Honestly, it looked the the Spurs just relaxed with a 2-0 lead. Right out of the gate they had FOUR straight turnovers, their decision making was horrendous, and the passes were lazy, lazy, lazy. Bam, down 8-0 right out of the gate. Sure the Spurs weathered the first run, but that was all. The ball stopped moving, people stopped moving, and the Spurs went 4-down or Iso for alot of the game, and that isnt their game AT ALL. The Spurs had a season high 21 turnovers and shot a season worst 39%. I'm pretty confident that that won't happen again. The Spurs need to come out completely locked in right from the tip and take it to these guys....

  2. #102
    5. timvp's Avatar
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    Sefalosha murdered the Spurs offense in the first half of game 1 also. That mother er; he's a championship role player and the Spurs really need to figure out how to take care of the ball when he's on the floor.
    Well said.

    Sefolosha isn't Bruce Bowen when it comes to individual defender but he's a got damn great team defender. In Game 1 and tonight, the only person I can think to compare his team defense to is Scottie Pippen.

    His main weakness as a player is he can go cold offensively and then will start passing up shots. When he's shooting well like he is tonight, he's pretty much a beast. Wouldn't be a stretch to say he was their best player tonight.

    FWIW, I disagreed with the strategy of the Spurs giving him open looks. During the regular season, IIRC, Sefolosha shot in the low 30's percentage wise from three-point land on the road. But at home, he was somewhere around 56%.

    That is probably a flukishly high number but still, I wouldn't have dared him as much as the Spurs did tonight.

  3. #103
    🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 ElNono's Avatar
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    Whole different mindset/preparation for Thabo in picking up Parker on occasion/late in Game 2 and knowing that his role in Game 3 was to check him. You can't compare.
    so it was the 'mindset' that stopped Parker?

    tbh, OKC played much better team defense on the pick and roll, I just haven't seen anything Thabo did that was much different than any of the other two games.

    I don't know if Thabo is capable of maintaining that level of defensive intensity for the duration of the series; but if he is, major adjustments will be necessary.
    again, what did Thabo do exactly that caused Parker to have such an awful game?

  4. #104
    🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 ElNono's Avatar
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    I agree he burned us on offense... that said, this was his career playoff high... I would hope he comes back down to earth the next few games...

  5. #105
    Starter off the bench Uriel's Avatar
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    The Spurs keep track of deflections.
    How do you know all this stuff?

  6. #106
    5. timvp's Avatar
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    Whatever happened with Diaw? Did he play?
    The more I think about it, the best way to limit Bonner is probably just to play Diaw more minutes and then spend the rest of the time using small ball.

    Diaw can and should play 30+ minutes.

    So basically you didn't address the two biggest issues in Pop and Tim.
    Read harder.

    apparently Thabo didn't annoy him in game two... also didn't make him toss that 4down to tim in the post and run away...
    Thabo barely defended TP in Game 2. And I know CoM wants to blame TP even though he was easily the best of the Big 3 tonight but blaming TP for Duncan being impotent on the low block is a stretch even for CoM tbh.

  7. #107
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    Tbh, while it's obvious Bonner doesn't have the intestinal for ude to play basketball at this level of intensity, the Spurs can usually withstand his sucking because his role is pretty basic. But Splitter is a HUGE part of the second unit; he's as involved as much as anyone including Ginobili because he sets screens on every play. If Splitter is negated by Fisher, that hurts a lot more than anything Bonner can do.

    And if Splitter can't adjust, at least we know that Blair can set a screen and then score if a point guard switches off onto him.
    Splitter hasn't completely choked like Bonner has and does, and I'll always choose him over Bonner for that reason. I'd like Bonner out of the rotation completely. The game went south when Bonner came out there for an extended stint in the first half. Not completely Bonner's fault, but this guy is so bad in the playoffs that it's a waste of time playing him.

    I'd start Blair and bring Diaw and Splitter off the bench to completely cut Bonner out of it.

    Edit : I just finished watching the game so I might have a different opinion after I cool off.

    The Spurs as a whole played total crap ball tonight, no emotion, aggression, no anything. They may have bought into the hype and seemed to think they can win with execution alone. Didn't match the Thunder's energy or intensity at all.

  8. #108
    Veteran cutewizard's Avatar
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    DONT QUIT

    When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
    When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
    When the funds are low and the debts are high,
    And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
    When care is pressing you down a bit,
    Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.

    Life is with its twists and turns,
    As every one of us sometimes learns,
    And many a failure turns about,
    When he might have won had he stuck it out;
    Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
    You may succeed with another blow.

    Often the goal is nearer than,
    It seems to a faint and faltering man,
    Often the struggler has given up,
    When he might have captured the victor's cup,
    And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
    How close he was to the golden crown.

    Success is failure turned inside out--
    The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
    And you never can tell how close you are,
    It may be near when it seems so far,
    So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
    It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

    - Author unknown

  9. #109
    Race for seis crc21209's Avatar
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    In Game 2, the Thunder "Big 3" had 88 points,and lost... tonight...they didnt score much, but they won. If I were the Spurs, I would focus more on shutting down the "other guys"....

  10. #110
    🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 ElNono's Avatar
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    The more I think about it, the best way to limit Bonner is probably just to play Diaw more minutes and then spend the rest of the time using small ball.

    Diaw can and should play 30+ minutes.
    Give Blair a chance against Nazr/Collison... I have no problem with Diaw being plan C.

    Thabo barely defended TP in Game 2. And I know CoM wants to blame TP even though he was easily the best of the Big 3 tonight but blaming TP for Duncan being impotent on the low block is a stretch even for CoM tbh.
    To be frank, I successfully baited Brazil into a Frenchie trolljob in the NBA Forum's thread, but over all, I think I've been quite clear that all of the big 3 sucked tonight, and I didn't even think OKC had much to do with it.

    That's why I'm not buying the "thabo adjustment" storyline. btw, these are the same people that were talking about Perkins being "THE" adjustment going into this game, and yet Perkins is a huge reason Tim looks like 77 years old in the post.

  11. #111
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    Sefalosha murdered the Spurs offense in the first half of game 1 also. That mother er; he's a championship role player and the Spurs really need to figure out how to take care of the ball when he's on the floor.
    About time some people give him credit for his defense, Thunder fans know how much he means to this team.

    He did a phenominal job on Kobe last series, sans Game 5 where Kobe was making everything. At least shooting wise where Kobe had a lot of 7-24, 9-25, 7-21, etc type games.

    I'm not sure if he'll hold TP like this, but if his job is to commit on defense to Parker, i have full confidence he can make it tough on him. Phenominal defender, and a capable scorer as well.

    Westbrook is a good defender, but he can't guard Parker, too quick for him.

    EASILY the team MVP tonight, incredible effort from Thabo.

  12. #112
    🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 ElNono's Avatar
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    Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing Thabo. I'm just saying stopping TP is a lot different than stopping a ball hog like Kobe. TP is unselfish. He will do damage not just by taking his jumper or driving and laying it in, but also dishing out... OKC did a great job tonight on TEAM defense... crowded the pick and roll, etc. The Spurs were also very sloppy on their offensive execution. They had 4 turnovers (OKC steals) in the first 5 possession.
    That isn't just on one guy.

  13. #113
    Believe. KD4MVP's Avatar
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    I agree he burned us on offense... that said, this was his career playoff high... I would hope he comes back down to earth the next few games...
    Probably won't play that good offensively, but that will even out with better games from Durant/Westbrook.

    Thabo can score, i wish we'd let him get more shots.

  14. #114
    🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 ElNono's Avatar
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    Probably won't play that good offensively, but that will even out with better games from Durant/Westbrook.

    Thabo can score, i wish we'd let him get more shots.
    He had a lot of wide open looks too... that's on us. But he knocked them down, so you have to tip your hat.

  15. #115
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    so it was the 'mindset' that stopped Parker?

    tbh, OKC played much better team defense on the pick and roll, I just haven't seen anything Thabo did that was much different than any of the other two games.



    again, what did Thabo do exactly that caused Parker to have such an awful game?
    You need to improve your reading comprehension a little bit. Thabo approaches guarding Tony differently and prepares more when he goes into the game knowing that is his role. He talked about watching film from the first two games when he found out he was going to be checking him. A defender is going to preform much better when they know what their role is and have time to prepare.

    As for the last part: What did Thabo do? Well, nothing aside from being five inches taller than Tony with a 7-foot wingspan and quick enough feet to stay in front of him (at least tonight). He was aggressive and never let Tony penetrate, did a good job of getting through screens, forced several turnovers and deflections, and generally made his life a living . When you are going against that much length and the defender is staying with you, your court vision isn't as good and you can't make many productive passes. The number of passes Tony threw that actually set our offense in motion (not just assists) were few and far between. I guess you're right, that's not very significant. Seriously...did you watch a different game than everyone else? There's a reason everyone has decided to talk about Thabo Sefalosha.

  16. #116
    bandwagoner fans suck ducks's Avatar
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    pop has their attention was not total happy the way they played in game one and 2
    he wants the win on saturday
    pop will get them to play at a high level
    pop let the younger guys see what wcf are like on the road
    I think the whole team came out flat buying into hype but they will win on saturday

  17. #117
    Race for seis crc21209's Avatar
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    Probably won't play that good offensively, but that will even out with better games from Durant/Westbrook.

    Thabo can score, i wish we'd let him get more shots.
    Better games from Durant and Westbrook dont guarantee a win. Durant, Harden, and Westbrook had 88 points combined in Game 2 and still lost. IMO, the Spurs should focus on shutting down the role players like Sefolosha, Fisher, Cook, Collison, Ibaka, and Perkins. Let those 3 have all they can eat in sort of the same way they let Amare get all he wanted back in 05'....

  18. #118
    Believe. KD4MVP's Avatar
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    Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing Thabo. I'm just saying stopping TP is a lot different than stopping a ball hog like Kobe. TP is unselfish. He will do damage not just by taking his jumper or driving and laying it in, but also dishing out... OKC did a great job tonight on TEAM defense... crowded the pick and roll, etc. The Spurs were also very sloppy on their offensive execution. They had 4 turnovers (OKC steals) in the first 5 possession.
    That isn't just on one guy.
    I agree, i thought our team defense was excellent for the most part. Very active, disrubtive, but Thabo was a huge reason the defense was good, Thunder fans appreciate and know good he is.

    I also do agree Parker is different then Kobe who is pretty much a jump shooter at this stage of his career. He won't shut him down like this, but not letting him go off for 36, like Game 2 is what they need to do, and hold him in the low 20's scoring wise.

    Thabo just needs to make it tough on Parker, Westbrook can't stay with him, and i think Westbrook is a pretty good defender, Parker is just a nightmare matchup for him.

  19. #119
    🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 ElNono's Avatar
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    As for the last part: What did Thabo do? Well, nothing aside from being five inches taller than Tony with a 7-foot wingspan and quick enough feet to stay in front of him (at least tonight). He was aggressive and never let Tony penetrate, did a good job of getting through screens, forced several turnovers and deflections, and generally made his life a living . I guess you're right, that's not very significant. Seriously...did you watch a different game than everyone else? There's a reason TNT and ESPN were/are talking about Thabo Sefalosha after a game.
    Did Thabo was 5 inches taller and grow a 7-foot wingspan just to guard Parker?

    I think we all watched the same game... so how many "turnovers and deflections" did Thabo force on Tony? Is he transparent and just goes through screens? His teammates had nothing to do with it?

  20. #120
    Veteran tesseractive's Avatar
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    The Thunder taught that lesson anew by pinning the first loss of these playoffs on the Spurs, 10282, on Thursday night. However, none of the last six NBA teams with a win like that -- by 20-or-more points in Game 3 when trailing in the series, two games to none -- went on to win the series.


    The last team that won a playoff series after being in a two-games-to-none hole and winning Game 3 by a 20-point margin? The Lakers, in a 2004 Western Conference Semifinals series, when they used a 10581 victory in Game 3 as a springboard to win four in a row -- over Gregg Popovich's Spurs.


    http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime

  21. #121
    🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 ElNono's Avatar
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    Thabo just needs to make it tough on Parker, Westbrook can't stay with him, and i think Westbrook is a pretty good defender, Parker is just a nightmare matchup for him.
    Westbrook also makes it personal. Brooks won't admit it, but you can tell. It ends up affecting his offense too, IMO.

  22. #122
    5. timvp's Avatar
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    Westbrook has the tools to be a good defender but he's a bit too much of an airhead at this stage of his career to be considered even average. He can be good for a short stretch but that's about it.

    Then again, the list of point guards who have been forced off of Parker at some point in a series is quite extensive, tbh, so there's not a huge amount of shame in it.

  23. #123
    Believe. KD4MVP's Avatar
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    Better games from Durant and Westbrook dont guarantee a win. Durant, Harden, and Westbrook had 88 points combined in Game 2 and still lost. IMO, the Spurs should focus on shutting down the role players like Sefolosha, Fisher, Cook, Collison, Ibaka, and Perkins. Let those 3 have all they can eat in sort of the same way they let Amare get all he wanted back in 05'....
    That is fair.

    Ibaka had his jumper doing good tonight, and Thabo was very, very active on both ends. Perk doesn't really do much offensively, but he's arguably the best low post defender in the game.

    And yes, the key is certainly our role players, if they play well along with our Big 3, we're a tough team to beat.

    Pop will make adjustments, and have them ready to go for Game 4.

  24. #124
    Believe. MR-Clutch's Avatar
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    Does anyone think we should give bonners minutes to Kawhi? He can do everything bonner does and more, he can drive past his man, rebound, hustle, probably shoot better ,close out and rotate quicker.

  25. #125
    Believe. KD4MVP's Avatar
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    Westbrook also makes it personal. Brooks won't admit it, but you can tell. It ends up affecting his offense too, IMO.
    Yes, it's very frustrating, he gets too erratic and forces shots when Parker scores on him. At least in SA in the first 2 games.

    Love the guy, but he needs to settle down, i thought he did a better job controlling the offense tonight. Still takes stupid shots at times, but not like we have any better options outside of KD in our starting lineup

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