I remember a while back when there were a bunch of people hoping Boris would go away. I think Bellineli will be much better next year after a year in the system, just like what happened to Boris.
hyperbole much?
I remember a while back when there were a bunch of people hoping Boris would go away. I think Bellineli will be much better next year after a year in the system, just like what happened to Boris.
I'm not sure what people expected from det dude Beli. He was never going to get major minutes in the postseason, and Patty catching fire made him pretty redundant unless Kawhi was in foul trouble.
He played within the offense, hit his open shots, and played defense as well as his limits will allow him. And he hit two of the biggest shots in the playoffs.
Sure, he wasn't quite Brent Barry 2.0, but he played his role fine. Even if his biggest contribution was not being Gary Neal.
No, the incorrect take is assuming every player in the Spur system will improve after one year. Jefferson never got better. Blair never got better. Mason never got better. Gary Neal was worse by his 3rd year in SA. Beno never did anything better in his 2nd year. ty players will always be ty players no matter how much time they spend in the Spurs system. Tiago never got playing time in his first two years in SA. He was always a good player. Only difference is he's getting more minutes now than in 2011.
I agree with this.
I don't remember a lot of shots...but, I remember that one. The timing was what made this one so big. I was getting worried and Miami had momentum...that shot changed it all.
Its actually kinda odd, because the first 2 games were VERY compe ive. Then game 3 the Spurs came out and shot 75%, Heat had a comeback but ultimately fell because the Spurs were shooting the lights out. Then game 4 happenned and it went from "the spurs shooting" to "Miami not having a supporting cast around Lebron James". I dont know if I believe that, I just think the Spurs dominated from rebounds, passing, defense, etc.
Bellinelli struggled against the Mavs, he was great all season but after the Mavs series everyone turned on em. It happenned to Danny Green against the Thunder in 2012, he fell apart, but came back the next year great in the playoffs.
Green's impact stats have always been good. Yes, even in 2012(his first season in SA) he was a plus player on offense and defense. This season, Marco was rated as an overall negative impact player. His offense was a plus but his defense was so bad it negated anything positive he did on the other end of the floor. Marco's expendable.
Best phrase on the thread so far.
true and belli will never gain the foot speed to be effective defensively in the POs and he'll always be a net liability but u cant take away the clutch shots he MADE in the POs and the finals
Turned the series....
I don't think the series needed to be turned. I think the Spurs played like they just had 5 days off. They play bad after a long break. They had 23 or so turnovers and won. Lebron cramped up and was never the same after that. He was slow in transition most of the time, he had some moments but he wasn't the same guy as he's been before.
After that game 2 loss due to missed FTs (should have been a sweep imo), Spurs never looked back.
Also you have to get to the Finals and you have to get to the playoffs to get to the Finals. Marco was instrumental in helping the Spurs secure HCA. Even if a guy doesn't shine in the playoffs, there's 82 games before the playoffs that have to be played, and you need people to play them. That's why Matty has a job even now.
Yep, important shot. We were wavering and that steadied us. Still probably would've won the game given all the energy the Heat had used to get back in the game, but it was an important shot by Beli.
Rewatching the Portland series genius
No Argentina = great Manu 2014.
Thats definitely a big shot, OP.
the real turned around plays came at the Thunder game 6, it was the Manu three, the Kawhi steel and Timmy in overtime... That was the critical series...
Some of you are not talking about the same series.
Before Marco hit that shot in Game 3 that was the only point of the series I was actually nervous.
They were storming back, getting every call, and the crowd started doing that Seven Nation Chant. Game 6 of last year started to haunt me at that point and it felt like we were about to blow our 26 point lead and then, most likely, blow the series.
Ballanelli!
Yea. Playing a game 7 with a half injured Tony and then only 2 more days to rest and prepare for the Miami would be hard.
The two plays of the year IMO were Manu's 3 in game 6 at OKC to put Spurs up 1 with seconds left and Kawhi's block of Westbrook on sure layup, which would have given Thunder the lead late in game.
Had we lost that game, OKC might have won game 7, because Parker probably either had to sit out, or would have been limited. Also, Spurs would have been exhausted with only 1 day off before game 1 of Finals, and who knows how that would have affected game 1.
It's true, that Beli 3 was a huge shot that deflated Miami's big run that was turning our lead into a chokejob. Beli has hit some huge daggers throughout the playoffs and underselling them is a mistake. Sure, Manu outplayed him in every facet, but he was timely with big makes that kept our leads going strong.
But yes, that was the turning point of the series. You could also argue that the Chalmers cheapshot on Tony changed the series in our favor as well, despite the missed freebies that were a consequence of it. Miami never won another game after that one...
My favorite play...
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Agreed. I have the feeling he'll snub the NT and set the tone also for the rest of his teammates to come back with a fire within to repeat.
For the Finals, I have to agree that the Bellnelli shot was the one that clenched that game - showing the Heat, who were in the midst of a huge comeback, that we can score on them anytime at all with any player on our roster from anywhere on the court. THAT was the significance of it to me, and that is when I saw the wind come out of Miami's sails. Had Belli (or somebody else - could have been anyone) not made that shot and Miami gotten it to within five or four at home - we would have honestly had trouble. Not saying we wouldn't have eventually pulled out a win, but that shot at that time in that pressure situation really made the Finals a loss for Miami, imo.
Their entire body language after that was 'Damn".
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