We just may not be good enough to beat the Thunder with any regularity.

[SenorSpur]

Hmmmm. The Spurs needed a last second buzzer-beater in order to defeat the Thunder in the first game. Now the Spurs, less Leonard and 6th man Ginobili, were blown out by the Thunder in OKC. Obviously having Leonard and Ginobili back in the fold can only make the Spurs better, yet it does nothing to address the glaring shortcomings that were exposed against a supremely talented and athletic team like OKC.

Pop focusing the defense around stopping both Durant and Westbrook is a good strategy, and it worked. However as we saw again, the Thunder supporting cast proved capable. Once again we were reminded that the Spurs simply have no one capable of even contesting Ibaka, much less stopping him. He does pretty much what he wants on both ends of the court. If you compound that fact plus the rate the Spurs struggle offensively against the quicker Thunder, the way they turn the ball over against this team and their continued failure to keep the Thunder off the offensive glass, I'd have to say that I agree with the OP. The Spurs, as currently constructed, are not good enough to beat the Thunder with any regularlity. Of course, this was the fear of every Spurs fan coming into this season. When the front office was touting "internal growth and development", there were many here that felt that the Spurs' weaknesses, which were exposed during last year's WCF, were still there. Thus far, there is no evidence to dispute that.

[SenorSpur]

If the Spurs could get Milsap for Jackson (slim to none, but the Jazz need to trade either Jefferson or Milsap because Favors is just too good & has too much potential to sit on the bench), I'd be all for that, his jump shot could lure Ibaka await from the paint & he's a decent post scorer.

He's also got the ability to play the 3.

But I don't know what it is with Ibaka & even Perkins they just don't miss their J's against the Spurs?

I like Millsap, but he still an undersized big. I just don't think he would give the Spurs any better chance of slowing down Ibaka - on both ends of the court.

[exstatic]

Its on Pop to counter what the Thunder are doing to Parker

To be fair, season series is 1-1 without Manu playing either game

The counter is to cross match your best defender onto THEIR PG like they do on us. To score on Kawhi, Westbrook will have to totally ignore his team mates, and even then, it will be at low efficiency.

[JRHernandez88]

Hmmmm. The Spurs needed a last second buzzer-beater in order to defeat the Thunder in the first game. Now the Spurs, less Leonard and 6th man Ginobili, were blown out by the Thunder in OKC. Obviously having Leonard and Ginobili back in the fold can only make the Spurs better, yet it does nothing to address the glaring shortcomings that were exposed against a supremely talented and athletic team like OKC.

Pop focusing the defense around stopping both Durant and Westbrook is a good strategy, and it worked. However as we saw again, the Thunder supporting cast proved capable. Once again we were reminded that the Spurs simply have no one capable of even contesting Ibaka, much less stopping him. He does pretty much what he wants on both ends of the court. If you compound that fact plus the rate the Spurs struggle offensively against the quicker Thunder, the way they turn the ball over against this team and their continued failure to keep the Thunder off the offensive glass, I'd have to say that I agree with the OP. The Spurs, as currently constructed, are not good enough to beat the Thunder with any regularlity. Of course, this was the fear of every Spurs fan coming into this season. When the front office was touting "internal growth and development", there were many here that felt that the Spurs' weaknesses, which were exposed during last year's WCF, were still there. Thus far, there is no evidence to dispute that.

You forgot a BIG part. They're missing Harden, the one player that pushed them over the top.

[rascal]

Manu needs to be the difference maker against them. If they want Sefelosha on Parker, then Martin will have to be on Manu which should give us a big edge.

Manu is finished as a difference maker. He is a role player now.

[Proxy]

Manu is finished as a difference maker. He is a role player now.

He hasn't been a difference maker this season, but I would attribute it to a cast of injury excuses before saying he's finished for good. The olympics were this past summer and he played well. I'm sure there isn't one team in the league that reads Manu as a role player in their scouting report either.

[silverblackfan]

Just stop. No Leonard and no Manu changes lots of things. Player rotations, combinations, etc. OKC took a step back when they lost Harden. It will all wash out in the playoffs. Memphis and San Antonio are more than capable of beating this version of the Thunder. We aren't even at the halfway point of the season. OKC is playing good basketball and we are in a tough stretch. The Spurs will get some home cooking soon and some rest and will get back to the top of the WC. I'm with Tony - If Ibaka's going to shoot that much, then you let him be the poison. He (no one really) can sustain what he did last night.

This.
Although I think OKC still has an advantage when playing their starting 5, I believe the Spurs can beat this team when healthy and ready. Pop just needs to work out some scenarios that disrupt their offense. Getting stops on them is a of a task, but the Spurs have the components when playing disciplined ball.

[Spurs da champs]

I like Millsap, but he still an undersized big. I just don't think he would give the Spurs any better chance of slowing down Ibaka - on both ends of the court.

He'd make him work on both ends of the court, something that nobody else at that current 4 spot has yet to make him do, either way it's disturbing how he seemingly never misses against the Spurs.