Defending the Pick n Roll/Pop. You could argue that defending the 3 is out biggest problem, but I know when we try, our wings are capable of not helping one pass away.
Our Pick and Roll/Pop defense worries me though. It's so bad at times, I feel like a team could run it (mostly) successfully every time on offense. I haven't been watching the Spurs much these last couple of weeks, so idk how we've been doing lately, but I remember Timmy very slow to stop the Roll/Pop guy and I remember our guards not fighting through screens.
Now Maybe these last few weeks when i javent been watching they've been better but, to me, it's our biggest issue.
For examples, see: Reggie Jackson Career high
Pray hard that Tim gets young, that we can trade Tony for a better defensive PG, release Ayers Splitter Diaw and Bonner so we can sign an agile big man who can defend pick and roll and who's super athletic so he can chase down anyone who's able to break our PnR D. We can trade CoJo and Mills for Mike Conley, that way we have a better back up PG.
REBOUNDING. We simply do not box out for rebounds. Been the case for a few years now. Who would have thought it would literally cost us a le?
All these things have a common theme:
Matt bonner
jeff errors
true, I forgot about our terrible box out skills.
Flat out wrong. Spurs' DRB% rank the last five years (including this year): 4th, 10th, 1st, 3rd, 6th.
A bigger pair of balls
The biggest problem with the Spurs is that they no longer have a top 15 player, tbh..
age
I can't tell whether this is just semantics or prisoner of the moment talk, but if it's the latter: 1) Hasn't Parker earned the benefit of the doubt? Meaning, to attribute his drop off to fatigue/injuries. 2) Name 15 players that are definitively better than Duncan. Not guys playing better recently necessarily, like Dragic and Lowry, but in the grand scheme of things.
The lack of a player playing at a top ten level is definitely the biggest issue though, with three-point defense and turnovers being secondary ones.
You're talking to a Heat fan who doesn't care. I'm not sure what kind of response you were expecting, tbh. The biggest problem is that Pop is treating every game like it's a glorified scrimmage.... clueless rotations, off the wall coaching decisions, giving quality minutes to D-league contributors, one on one basketball, shooters just chucking, Ayres, piss poor defense...etc.
Even when healthy, the defense was a huge ? against better teams. The season was basically lost in the offseason. This is what happens when you repeatedly refuse to fill team needs. The Spurs run this organization like a family practice, not a business. They're slow, unathletic, small, and they lack depth.
Well, to clarify, the Spurs biggest problem at the moment, outside of health, is their lack of a dominant player IMO..
Duncan is still arguably a top 15 overall player, but he no longer has the offensive consistency to carry the Spurs for long stretches, tbh..more importantly, he can't play the minutes that most other top-level players can play at this point..
Parker could turn it around, but I don't think people understand how badly he has plummeted this season..casual fans/media haven't made it a story because they don't care, but his downfall has been fatal for the Spurs..his on/off advanced metrics have been awful, he just can't dominate for more than short stretches anymore, and his style of play is useless off the ball unless he's playing off of Tim in the high post..
I had hopes for Parker turning it around if Pop could sit him for a few weeks, but with so many injuries, Pop doesn't feel like he can sit him out, obviously..
Both Parker and Duncan were anywhere from the 3rd to 10th best players in the league last season..Pop's system gets a ton of credit, and it seems like a lot of people have already forgotten how dominant both Duncan and Parker were last year..
It's much easier to run a defensive lineup with inconsistent offensive players like Splitter and Green when you have Parker and Duncan carrying the offense efficiently, which hasn't been the story this season..
This right here. Parker doesn't have his speed this year. Hope he finds it before the playoffs.
So Parker is the sole reason the team is getting guaged defensively. I knew their had to be a scapecoat. First injuries, now Parker.
it's only February... chill
They rank 5th in defense despite an abundance of injuries to the best defensive players on the team..
The 3-point defense was great last year when Leonard-Green were on the floor..this season, the lack of offense forced Pop to go to Belinelli more often, one of the worst defensive players in the league, which has killed perimeter defense on the team..and yes, Parker has been one of the worst defensive players in the league this season, he probably misses more rotations than any player on the team..
Fair enough.
I agree with the majority of what you said . . . all I'm saying is, there's a big difference between no longer and at the moment.
As far as the three-point defense, it started great last season, then plummeted around mid-season, only to rebound in the playoffs, until the Finals. But you look at the Lakers, with their injuries and Grizzlies and neither was a real threat from three. Then this season, it started strong, but has been probably the worst in the league the past two months.
I don't know how long your going to tout defensive efficiency. The teams they're clocking won't reach the playoffs and they're allowing elite teams to shoot 46% or better in almost all their games. The 3-point defense is a joke. They may not give up a ton of three's but when they do, team's are hitting them at a hefty clip. They're also atrocious at finishing off quarters.
I'm not loking at stats but I can flat out tell you there's at least to newcommers on the Spurs alone who have missed more rotations than Parker.
Nando De Culo
I agree completely. Timmy can't dominate consistently and Tony can't take over but for short stretches. In the playoffs, those issues will be magnified. I do get the feeling that Timmy has been pacing himself so far, as he's been much more successful on post ups and high post isos as of late. But really everything hinges on Tony's health. He's the engine that gets the offense going.
As for defense, Timmy's PnR defense saw a mini-resurgence last year, but now he's back to just dropping back and hoping that the ball handler misses an open pull up J. Tony is playing what probably amounts to the worst defense of his career. His problem isn't just physical as you pointed out, he's blowing rotations left and right. He's also getting caught pointlessly "helping" on penetration far too often.
Other issues on this team: We only have two above average rebounders (Timmy and Kawhi), only one rim protector (Timmy), and we've poorly developed/integrated our only perimeter player besides Tony who might be capable of getting his own shot when the offense breaks down (Kawhi). Also, Jeff Ayers, Aaron Baynes, and Nando De Colo are wearing Spurs jerseys instead of a Toros ones...
No. The main reason is we've been without 3 of our best defenders for long stretches of the season. The thread le says OTHER than that, though.
And Parker's lack of ability to get to the tin ABSOLUTELY affects our defense. When our offense breaks down, it means we end up having to take bad shots or long 3s. Know what happens when you miss one of those shots? The rebound goes long, and the defense gets a fast break. Now, if Parker gets into the lane, blows up the defensive coverage, and gets us a close miss or a bucket, our defense has time to get back and get set. Effective, efficient offense leads to good opportunities for defense. Ragged offensive possessions lead to easy buckets going the other way.
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