The Mental State of Spurs Fans

[DAF86]

I'm in a strange place right now. I expect a 60ish win season but I think A LOT of things have to go our way for the Spurs to be able to trully contend for a championship.

[Kidd K]

Combination of being excited since it's a new season and we're still pretty good, but also disappointment because of last year's fixed WCF, and the fact that we didn't exactly upgrade the team. We needed a halfway decent C or PF addition. Imo, we need it worse than ever with Howard going to LA.

OKC we can beat. But the Lakers? If they're healthy, the Spurs' current team cannot defeat them unless Kobe goes into full Chucky Bryant mode and jacks up 30 a game and only shoots 35-40%, or somehow Jackson turns back the clock to how he was 5 years ago. . .or Leonard, Mills, and Splitter make warp drive leaps forward in ability to help.

[spurspokesman]

I dont expect much barring a trade that improves this teams interior. But im still riding with my spurs sun up or sun down.

[gameFACE]

Got over last season pretty quick. My expectations built up as they went along in the post season, of course. But deep down inside I always knew that Tim not being in his prime, lack of decent bigs and token defense were not going to get it done. I feel the same way to start the season. But this should be a fun team to watch.

[LongtimeSpursFan]

Magic Johnson, Isaiah Thomas and Dwayne Wade say 'hi'.

[LongtimeSpursFan]

San Antonio is easily the best coached team in the league since PJ retired, and Pop deserves beaucoup credit for the Spurs overachieving with largely sub-standard talent. His player/minutes management is superb and he puts guys in great positions to maximize their talent and succeed--so they will always be a thorn in your side in the playoffs. They also have the enviable position of being underdogs again going into the year.

All that being said, the NBA is a game of haves and have-nots, and San Antonio can't beat a healthy OKC or LAL team in the playoffs because they don't have the bosses to do it anymore. It's been said a million times, but you have almost a 0% chance of winning a le if your PG is the best player on your team.

Magic Johnson, Isaiah Thomas, Chauncey Billups and Dwayne Wade say 'hi'.

[Fabbs]

baseline bum and the PPoppers

Great playoffs last year. Very happy with everything and Pop is the best.

Couple insertions for ya:

Last year built everyone's hopes enormously high. Just the chemistry which the players developed in that short season was amazing to watch. Diaw and Jackson additions and Jefferson's departure gave Spurs new momentum. That streak was amazing. The streak and the way the vets minutes were handled got me to change my mind about Pop and that it indeed could be the Spurs' year... even the head coach wasn't going to stop them! But then the OKC defense, clutch Durant play, and some referee unkindness dashed it all. The WCF meltdown crashed us down to earth, and hard. I didn't look at this site for awhile, but it seems like Pop is not getting the wrath I would expect. As with most failures, there's a host of reasons. But for the coach to scramble up like he did indicates how truly unlikely the Spurs' past glories were and that the players should get way more credit than this coach's "genius." This is the coach who masterminded losing 4 straight with a 2-0 lead in the WCF. I'm never going to forget that. The "hangover" from last year will go away slowly, but all will be forgotten at least temporarily once college football and the NFL have finished their business and basketball is all this town has to focus on. I'm tired of second guessing the moron coach, I just have to live with what he does and enjoy the great play by the Spurs. Everyone knows it will be Lakers / Heat.

roycrickside

I'll watch every game still, but I can't get too emotionally involved until football season ends anyway, because of work.

Also, last season's playoffs kind of took the wind out of my sails. I'm convinced they were boned by the league/refs and the whole thing was rigged for an OKC/Miami final. The officiating in game 6 especially was a joke. I just feel, even if by some miracle all the main guys on the team stay healthy for the playoffs, that it'll be fixed to have a Lakers-Heat finals or at least a rematch of last year's and that the Spurs won't get a fair shake because they're ratings poison and Stern just wants that TV money.

Finally, and this needs to be mentioned, I think Pop will kill them again once the playoffs come around. He might be the best regular season coach in NBA history, but he gets his lunch handed to him in May, panics, doesn't trust his bench enough and simply refuses to work the refs through the media to get calls the way other successful coaches do. He's just too full of himself and they'll never win another one with him in charge.

Truth bombs. Couple of many on the thread.

[Fabbs]

Unfortunately I'm quite discouraged. I have never been a fan of "blowing it up" but I feel like the time has come to do just that. In today's NBA the current spurs are not more than a regular season money-grab type of team. Guys like..... Matt Bonner are just gonna fail epically again and let me down.

Kori Ellis

But it was perfect for us... When else could we buy 10 lower level tickets for $20?

good one!

[Drom John]

Bullets winning the Eastern Conference in 1979 was almost as tough as Thunder winning the West in 2012.
Washington was the #1 seed, but the Spurs had a 3-1 lead.

[SequSpur]

Just answer the damn poll question.. ..

[DD]

Magic Johnson, Isaiah Thomas, Chauncey Billups and Dwayne Wade say 'hi'.

Magic and Zeke were 2+ decades ago, so that really supports your argument. A lot.
lol Wade the PG...just like calling LeBron the PG on this most recent team. White Chocolate and Payton were their PGs, but nice try grabbing dudes from different positions and crowbarring them into your take.

Chauncey Billups was the FMVP, but then again so was Parker and he wasn't even the 2nd best player on that 2007 team. The Pistons were pretenders until they acquired Sheed...they also had DPOY Ben Wallace.

In summation, you have provided one actual PG since 1990, and even his status is questionable as best player on that team.

[shorttotry]

Chemistry is the key word in this regard. We dumped RJ and gained JAX and Diaw; that along with the development of Green and Leonard is the what will make the difference this year. We know what to expect from the the Big 3, barring injury, so the integration of these guys are what is going to be the deciding factor. TBH, I have high hopes... just because its the ing SPURS.

[racm]

While the Spurs don't have the best chances of winning it all, I like their chances better than the Lakers tbh.

The Spurs got into contender status the moment they dumped RJ and added Diaw and Mills. Sure, the 20 win streak was unsustainable, but the Spurs finally have a full training camp with that same team. The development of the young talent is key, as well as the health of the older guys. The emphasis on defense in camp seems to be paying off. Even Cory Joseph has been increasingly comfortable.