Game 5: Western Conference Finals- Thunder @ Spurs

[Budkin]

W-W-L-L-W-W really isn't too unrealistic.

There is absolutely no way we win in OKC. We win at home in 7.

[sammy]

I predicted Spurs in 6! Come on everyone, they protected their home court! Now the series starts with Game 5! This game will decide the series! Am I disappointed? Absolutely! I laugh at OKC as they kept their starters in until the end of the game against our 3rd string! LOL! They have no confidence in themselves or their bench that they had to play their starters until the end of the game! Really, playing to the end with our 3rd string (Bonner, Baynes, Belli, Joseph & Green?) Although, our 3rd string played with more heart (Baynes, Bonner & Cojo) than our entire team! So proud of them! They played with heart and tried to win this game! If the ing refs wouldn't have called fouls to bail westbrick out when we got it to 11, we may have been able to pull it off! Oh well, onto Game 5! Spurs in 6! Go Spurs Go!

[rjv]

yeah, sammy, spurs in 6 was always a solid pick. spurs fans tend to go ape when spurs don't sweep. OKC's role players are great at home. i still think they will play poorly in SA and will also have to overcome injuries that will make a win in game 5 very difficult. winning one in OKC will be very tough but i think we can get it on saturday.

[cd98]

As crazy as it sounds Matt Bonner wouldn't be a bad choice out there when Ibaka is playing. I do agree Diaw needs to start, with Splitter off the bench. We need more spacing out there. Mills should backup tony, but if he is struggling or westbrook is going off then cojo should play. I don't think Marco should play anymore this series, and cojo should get his minutes.

It's not really all that crazy. Ibaka is just a spot up shooter and a roll guy. He isn't a back to the basket guy that would normally destroy Bonner on the block. The only real issue is Bonner getting defensive rebounds. Diaw could probably guard Ibaka, but he's less of a threat to pull Ibaka out of the paint because he isn't a great three point shooter. I think OKC will roll the dice that Diaw can't hit three or four three pointers.

[soxxx]

Bunch of morons on this forum. No one had the Spurs in 4 or 5 games.... No one. The Series was going to be 2-2 no matter how you sliced it, whether it be splits at home or sweeps at home.

Im not worried, and yeah I know we lost game 5 in 2012 but im telling you, home court means A LOT, in that 2012 game the Spurs played like crap and were still right there to win it at the end. (Of course Harden hit his shot)

[Strategic]

Start Manu and Diaw. Those two play well together.

Bring Green and Joseph off bench with Splitter.

Where's the bench points going to come from for the Spurs?

[timtonymanu]

Game 7 right here, tbh.

[LakerHater]

i cant see Spurs overcomming this, !

[Tp9gospursgo]

I see spurs winning by 7-10. Close game til the end then pull away for the win.

[myhc]

Where's the bench points going to come from for the Spurs?

Yea I think a lineup change is in order but not at 2 spots. I think you keep Danny in for his D and hope he gets hit from 3. Keep Manu on the bench. Splitter looks totally useless right now so I bring him off the bench and put Diaw in the lineup to give us another playmaker. Diaw was tearing it up in the 4th quarter so I would try to ride that at the start of the game. The Thunder have 3 guys who can create on offense at the start of the game, Spurs right now only have 1. I would start Diaw.

[Aztecfan03]

Just stating what's gonna happen. No need to get all defensive over basketball.

Every single one of your posts is about how the Spurs are going to lose. Why are you even here?

[Jimcs50]

Where's the bench points going to come from for the Spurs?

Hey I'm just spit ballin, I don't have all the answers.

[weebo]

Start Diaw, bring Splitter off the bench, give Bonner some minutes if need be, bench Marco for the remainder of the series, and split his minutes between Mills and Cojo.

Having said that, Diaw and/or Bonner are going to have to hit some shots from the outside because the Thunder are daring the Spurs to make that shot in order to keep the Spurs from penetrating into the paint.

[look_at_g_shred]

Any idea if the team is practicing today, or is it a rest day?

[Amuseddaysleeper]

Any idea if the team is practicing today, or is it a rest day?

film session only

[Dex]

Spurs have only started ing around tbh

You deserve to lose your All-ST medal for that awful ing avatar, tbh

[Darius Bieber]

Every single one of your posts is about how the Spurs are going to lose. Why are you even here?

To try to put some sense into Spurs homers...

[Horry Hipcheck]

I'm confident the comparisons to 2012 end tomorrow night, with the Spurs hitting back and taking Game 5. It won't be a blowout, I imagine, but if they can just get a resounding counter punch in, it'll do wonders for momentum. I'm pretty sure I'll be dead long before this franchise wins in OKC again, so win tomorrow night because in all honesty there will be a Game 7 if they do.

[EVAY]

I'm confident the comparisons to 2012 end tomorrow night, with the Spurs hitting back and taking Game 5. It won't be a blowout, I imagine, but if they can just get a resounding counter punch in, it'll do wonders for momentum. I'm pretty sure I'll be dead long before this franchise wins in OKC again, so win tomorrow night because in all honesty there will be a Game 7 if they do.

My fear is that if we are not in a blow out situation against OKC (with the Spurs in the lead) in the third quarter that Pop will put the starters to rest them for game 6.

[gameFACE]

W-W-L-L-W-L-W

Seems more realistic at this stage.

There is absolutely no way we win in OKC. We win at home in 7.

All it takes is one game to change everything. Spurs in 6 was my original prediction so I'm sticking with it.........for now.

[ThePop]

All it takes is one game to change everything, and OKC did just that.

[gameFACE]

All it takes is one game to change everything, and OKC did just that.

Tomorrow is the only "one" game that counts. It's like a broken record every playoffs whether it's the Spurs or any other teams. One team wins their first two games and everyone thinks it's over. Then the other team wins their two games and people say the first team is in trouble. Blah, blah blah. Tomorrow is the only "one" game that counts. If the Spurs win everyone will change their minds. Of course if the Spurs lose they have a big ing hole in the ship.

[Nathan89]

Game 5 hero tbh. The Church of Bonner is going have a service for the first time in a long time.

[therealtruth]

That's the formula for every single Spur loss.

Hopefully Pop starts Diaw though, that would be a great idea.

So they can leave him wide open at the 3pt line?

[EVAY]

I'm tired of hearing Pop say in the post games that " adjustments don't matter" or " x's and o's don't matter" - it is how hard you play and how smart you play."

Well, dammit Pop, what the are you doing about any of that?!!? And doesn't it just work so well for you that it is all on the players?! Aren't you lucky that they are simply insufficiently motivated or too dumb to win the games that you have put them in to play?? Because in some situations and
on some teams, the GD coach might actually be required to take some damn responsibility for a team collapsing!!?

You have called out Parker and he took the public humiliation and all the responsibility for Game 3's loss. He played better than any other Spur not named Diaw in game 4, but your comments were just a broader brush than the game 3 comments!!

When the do you take any public responsibility, Pop? When? Because I know that basketball is not the most important thing in the world, but if it is your damn job, it is also not nothing!!

Try manning up yourself, Pop!! I'm tired of your ing about your team!!