Manu's not fixable, rather.
the problems are fixable. The offense which has been good was terrible tonight, when the Blazers took out timmy the Spurs were lost on offense, and on defense no one could stay in fron of any of the Blazers. the difference was effort, the Blazers had it the Spurs didn't. Maybe our big three is burned out. the game looked like the new guys were waiting on the big three to make some plays and get them started, after the first half it never happened.
Playmaking ability is a needed talent to thrive in the Spurs system. Players like Manu,Jackson,Horry,Barry could thrive in the Spurs system for so many years because they had that natural playmaking ability to make the extra pass or know how to shake a defensive scheme.
Bogan,RJ and Parker dont have that mentality. Parker and Jefferson have the same mindset and that is to score most of the time. They have not shown the ability to improvise team offensive schemes on the fly. Spurs need more playmakers to keep the ball moving. They all look lost and unsure right now.
Parker doesnt know how to run a fast break. He can have 3 guys running with him and still find a way to turnover the ball. Unacceptable. Especially for a former NBA Finals MVP....
It ultimately comes down to shooting and defense. The spurs can't shut teams down like they did in the past. The shooting is very sporadic to say the least. I hold my breath everytime the spurs shoot a three. If you put the least amount of pressure on the shooter, they brick it bad or they hit the side of the backboard.
The Spurs need Parker to score. Parker has les with this team. Yeah, this team doesn't have the same chemistry but sounds like your solution is to roll over and die.Parker cant play the role of "Pass-first" PG...
Jefferson is too soft and his game doesnt seem to gel well with the Spurs style of play...
Spurs need more playmakers. Bogans,Jefferson,Parker and Hill are not natural playmakers...
Spurs dont have the defensive weapons they once had...
Manu is no longer an all-star...
It hurts to come to these conclusions but Its painfully obvious these are the problems with this current team. I hope that I can be proven wrong but unless these problems are addressed quickly, this Spurs team is going nowhere...
There are plenty of pieces to make a run and I believe the Spurs usually start turning the corner in the coming month.
A little TMZ of you to start giving up now.
Here's what is scary. Let's say that both Gasol and Bynum both tear an ACL on Christmas Day against Cleveland. Wow, then the Spurs would cakewalk to the West le, right?
Dude, guess what...we're not even in the top 8 seeds right now.
Last year, I would've said that we could have won the West if Gasol went down. Yet this year, we're healthy except for Bonner and Finley, we have way better players than last year, yet we're still the 9th place team in the West. Unbelievable.
When are people going to start blaming Popovich for this disgrace? Why does he get a free pass? Isn't it obvious? Our guys play with fire about 3% of the time, and that's only with 2 minutes left in the game.
There is no switch to flip this year. Pop has the guys playing scared, and nobody is loose. He has Parker confused and Jefferson lost (and scared to make a mistake). Well, those guys are making about 25 million between them, not to mention Manu, who makes 10 million and is so inconsistent that he's unrecognizable. He's only "on" about one of of every 5 games.
Peter Holt must be livid right now.
Sacramento, Houston, Oklahoma City, and Memphis aren't going to roll over and die. If the spurs continue to play like this, their won't be a playoffs.
At least ducks talks to himself now.......
I'm starting to feel less pissed off about the Gasol trade, as it's clear that the league has moved on since '07. We've been looking up instead of looking down at the compe ion since then.
We can squeeze out a good game now and then, and we might even salvage a decent record, but championship Spurs ball is long gone.
The pieces just aren't there anymore. Or rather they're there, but it's not 2005 anymore.
Might be time to start thinking about playing Ratliff more reguarily to help on defense. Both Parker and Ginobili's eroding man to man defense almost requires having a shot blocker out there or teams are going to take turns torching these two on drives to the basket. The small ball idea Pop tried in the 3rd quarter with RJ trying to guard Aldridge went predictably south. I'm not sure why Pop didn't use him last night.
Alot of guys had bad games. McDyess had a few costly turnovers again and a handful of unnecessary fouls. George Hill had another stinker of a game on offense.
But quietly, Roger Mason had yet another solid game, showcasing his clutch shooting and improving ball handling/playmaking skills. Popovich needs to get this guy in the starting lineup IMO. In big games against the big dogs, this guy shows up, unlike Bogans.
Parker cant play the role of "Pass-first" PG...
Jefferson is too soft and his game doesnt seem to gel well with the Spurs style of play...
Spurs need more playmakers. Bogans,Jefferson,Parker and Hill are not natural playmakers...
Spurs dont have the defensive weapons they once had...
Manu is no longer an all-star...
It hurts to come to these conclusions but Its painfully obvious these are the problems with this current team. I hope that I can be proven wrong but unless these problems are addressed quickly, this Spurs team is going nowhere...
Fully agreed. One of the first things I noted was that Manu hasn't been the same since his 5 game layoff earlier in the season. He looks all of 32 and then some. Bottom line? If Manu can't get back to at least 85%, we're done.
Beating crappy teams by 15 doesn't tell me anything. The fact that the Spurs are about 2-10 against any team with a winning record? That tells me everything I need to know.
X1
Just as Agloco said if Manu doesnt at least get to 85% there is no championship. It's either just tank or hope spurs make some moves to try to fix this season.
IF Manu cant get his game going, sorry Manu fans but Spurs might need to use his expiring to entice a trade for a good player from another team.
Last edited by Chomag; 12-24-2009 at 11:21 AM.
Wrong and you should know to check your facts.
http://www.nba.com/standings/team_re...w_Std_Cnf.html
The Spurs are Currently #7 in the West.
It ain't where the Spurs are used to being true but 7 of 8 means they are still in.
It's amazing that a person with the speed of Parker cannot defend better. Fixable? Well...This is all on Parker. Somehow I get the feeling Parker doesn't care to improve in that area.
Ginobili's body is just too old and beat up to compete as he once did. A loss that cannnot be fixed.
I would suspect what the powers at be were thinking regarding RJ is obviously not what they're getting thus far from his defense and rebounding. But honestly...I can't understand why they thought they would be getting more than what he's been doing thus far since his numbers over the past 3 years didn't reflect he would be any different than what he's playing now. Fixable? Definately the biggest waste of money out of all the players on the team.
Bogans is an experiment in the recourse of loosing Bowen without all the benefits that an experienced, taller Bowen used to be able to provide on a consistent basis. "His spot/His shot" will not be heard again with this team. Might be fixable but highly unlikely.
Hill is about where he was at the end of last year. Too early to tell if he can step up to a higher level of play on a consistent basis. Fixable? Ever since his hard fall incident he seems to play more tentative than when he first started. Sometimes the mental is harder to fix.
Mason? The most improved player on the team thus far compared to other perimeter players from last year. He has fixed many areas of his game he lacked last year but...one can't expect him to become a Ginobili.
Our post? The biggest non-fixable element of the team. Not enough youth, talent and physical attributes rolled into any single player to be counted on to provide the team with consistent play when Duncan is not on the court OR compliment Duncan when he is on the court. This has been the biggest failure thus far. And I'm not saying the FO is all at fault here but it is definately going to be something not fixable without the aid of a trade.
Any team out there willing to give up that type of quality in a big or even have enough of those types of bigs to spare for a trade?
Rights to Splitter/Bonner/Ginobili for Chris Bosh.
We have a variety of bigs available, like tools in a toolbox, but Pop just isn't using them right. Last night Ratliff should have gotten 20 minutes to help close down the lane from Bayless and guard the taller jumpshooters Aldridge and Juwon Howard. I think he would have helped the spurs' defense enough to give the spurs a better chance at the end to snag the victory.
LOL, they would laugh in your face.
The last thing they need is another soft little defense playing 3pt shooting center. You'd have to throw in something more of value instead that they could actually use. Like George Hill.
Hill/Gino/Splitter might get them to actually pause instead of breaking out in hysterical laughter.
People are so fricking hysterical on this board. Yes, it was a bad loss, a pathetic game, but one that has no bearing on the Spurs flaws, big picture. The only person who beat the Spurs last night was the Spurs.
As for their bigger issues: Tony Parker is one of the best PGs in the league. He hasn't yet played his best ball this year, but that's because he's the quarterback for a team that is still figuring out their iden y. He'll be fine. Duncan is putting up the best numbers of his career and carrying this team on his back.
RJ has shown he is more than capable on offense, the problem is figuring out the rotations and how to best use him. That will take time. It typically takes new Spurs a year to learn the offense. I certainly hope RJ can learn it faster than that, and he hasn't shown me anything yet to make me think he can't.
DeJuan Blair and Hill are the future of the Spurs. It will be Parker, Blair, and Hill's team in 5 years, and they will be GREAT. But right now they are rookies and learning and getting no respect from the refs.
This team has a huge upside, but it's in transition right now. It's a team that can still win 1-2 more championships with Duncan *IF* they can figure out how they can play together and get back to the basics on D. But it's also a team with a tremendous upside.
Manu is an open question, I agree. His contract is up this summer, and if he keeps paying like he's been playing this year, he won't be back. But I think he may have a few surprises up his sleeve in the second half of the season...we'll see.
I'd be surprised if tony was still here.It will be Parker, Blair, and Hill's team in 5 years...
spurs o is 5 in the nba
yeah the spurs never won championships right?
Spurs need ratliff out there to protect paint and minimize easy buckets.
Regardless of chemistry this team will not get past first round if they make it.
Dwill is better than TP Last year? i would of given Parkewr a slight edge ...ESPECIALLY early in the year ...
BUt DWILL is and willbe the better player ...
Reality is though how many Pass first PG's are there in the NBA?
Kidd, Ty Lawson, Rondo? There are almost extinct like great big men ...Most Pg's are scoring combo gaurds like Nelson, Rose, Evans, Jennings Flyn Bayless westbrook etc.
It would be perfect but it's not going to happen.
Yes,TP played great for us but right now we don't need his style of play if we want to be a tle contender.He never will be a pass -first PG and he never will be as good to lead the team to the championship.And don't tell me about 2007 because TD was clearly the leading scorer of the team in the playoffs and Manu was the second best SG of the league.
But since 2007 at the same time TP's primacy was bigger we began to be worse.Shoot-first PG doesnt work to win the tle even if you are as good as Iverson was in 2001.
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