If you thought....

[Johnny RIngo]

I thought his defense is substantially better than Neal, tbh... he's not a lockdown guy or anything like that, but 'average' is an improvement and IMO, he's just that.

If you look at defensive rating for the past couple of seasons, Neal was always near the bottom... Belli is middle of the pack... hope he can sustain it. Along with Patty improved D, they really help the second unit keep the defensive intensity.

Bellinelli's Defense - Pts per 100 Poss.
On Court: 100.4
Off Court: 90.6
Net: +9.8

[Embedded]

I saw Mr. Bellinelli make passes tonight that I've never seen Gary Neal make. He has court vision and like Mr. Ginobili has a mental map of where other players are even when not in view.

[Skull-1]

I saw Mr. Bellinelli make passes tonight that I've never seen Gary Neal make. He has court vision and like Mr. Ginobili has a mental map of where other players are even when not in view.

+1

[ElNono]

Bellinelli's Defense - Pts per 100 Poss.
On Court: 100.4
Off Court: 90.6
Net: +9.8

Defensive Rating (est points allowed per 100 possessions):
Neal 11-12: 107
Neal 12-13: 106
Bellinelli 13-14: 97

[ElNono]

Granted, it's a small sample. That's why I said I hope he keeps it up.

[SpurPadre]

In his short stint, Marco's already shown far superior court vision than Neal ever did and looks to be much better defensively tbh. Neal is a better scorer so he might have more games where his stats look better but it's pretty easy to see that Beli is just a better fit on this team IMO

Marco's offensive awareness is also much better than Neal's ever will be. No more stupid ing shots at the top of the three point line with 22 seconds on the shot clock left.

[Skull-1]

Marco's offensive awareness is also much better than Neal's ever will be. No more stupid ing shots at the top of the three point line with 22 seconds on the shot clock left.

This! Neal drove me nuts with that crap. (But so does Manu.)

[Kool Bob Love]

Marco better ball out in the finals.

[benefactor]

Raven
Beli silencing her with a long, thick sausage right down the eso us

[Spur|n|Austin]

Belli fits into the Spurs offense much better than Neal ever did. His defense is just as bad as Neal's though.

I wouldn't go that far. Even if remotely as bad, Belli's passes make up for it.

I love, love, love Marco. He's a ing badass.


But c'mon.


Neal had games like this too.

Its hard to remember a game within Neal's first 14 games, where he hit as many shots as confidently as Marco, and dropped as many nice dimes.

[tim_duncan_fan]

Manu vs Parker
Belli vs Neal
Cojo vs De Colo (lolololololol)

Why must there be Spur Wars?

Can't we all get along, enjoy a 13-1 record and mutually acknowledge that Richard Jefferson is a punk-ass ?

[Sean Cagney]

It is a great move! Belli is alot better overall. Neal could get hot and hit some threes but other than that he was very limited and at times a burden from his shot selection and his horrible D.

[ace3g]

Marco has stopped at least 3 fast breaks, he is good at timing the pass on a 2 on 1 situation.

[Uriel]

How quick people can be to forget Game 5 of the 2013 NBA Finals.

[ElNono]

How quick people can be to forget Game 5 of the 2013 NBA Finals.

I don't think anybody is forgetting or being ungrateful with Gary. At least I'm not. Despite the oddball game where he was a scoring machine, we all knew he was very limited. Belli so far looks like a better fit, what's not to like?

[Skull-1]

How quick people can be to forget Game 5 of the 2013 NBA Finals.

Not as quick as the Manusuckers forgot Game Six.

[Skull-1]

I don't think anybody is forgetting or being ungrateful with Gary. At least I'm not. Despite the oddball game where he was a scoring machine, we all knew he was very limited. Belli so far looks like a better fit, what's not to like?

For once I agree with ElDildo.

[spurraider21]

Defensive Rating (est points allowed per 100 possessions):
Neal 11-12: 107
Neal 12-13: 106
Bellinelli 13-14: 97

wasn't carlos boozers "defensive rating" elite last year

[anakha]

If nothing else, Belinelli makes a better backup point guard than Neal did.

[Skull-1]

If nothing else, Belinelli makes a better backup point guard than Neal did.

Neal couldn't even bring the ball up court after a possession change without getting trapped....

Good riddance to that Tracy Morgan lookalike.

[ElNono]

wasn't carlos boozers "defensive rating" elite last year

It wasn't, tbh... 100...

[PlayNando]

Marco = The Truth. The Dude. The X-Factor.

[PlayNando]

Marco = 5.

[Mikeanaro]

I always liked Gary as a 3 point shooter, not as a point guard Pop tried to improved him but I feel it was too much pressure for him.
Marco is a total upgrade, if somebody cannot see how the guy moves around pass the ball shoot and defend (much better than gary) well... that person is blind

[hyhy]

I used to worry every time spur's 2nd unit comes in and cant wait for the starters to come back in.
Now, I cant wait for the 2nd unit to come in. Thats the difference