Ludden does it again - Ginobili turns frustration into fuel

[Emanuel20]

Major props to Coach D. for sticking up for Manu.

Who knows--now that he is with the Knicks, he might even become likable...

He said that about Manu during the PO series.

[Manu'sMagicalLeftHand]

I thought manu was more mentally tough then this
I guess he wanted to find out for sure so he could be manu again

Wow, you're on a roll.

Did you increase the amount of varnish you drink per day?

You've probably cheered like a Laker Dancer that the Spurs lost Game 1 & 2.

Here's to you, dumbass.

[ManuTim_best of Fwiendz]

He said that about Manu during the PO series.

If D'Antoni has any strength it's recognizing talent.

He gains an ounce of respect from me when I learnt that he helped scout Manu for the Spurs.

And how he remarked, that Beno was along the lines of a lazy fat kid.
Before I knew that little tidbit, I would have thought it was a fluke, but I guess he's good for something..

[Emanuel20]

If D'Antoni has any strength it's recognizing talent.

He gains an ounce of respect from me when I learnt that he helped scout Manu for the Spurs.

And how he remarked, that Beno was along the lines of a lazy fat kid.
Before I knew that little tidbit, I would have thought it was a fluke, but I guess he's good for something..

He has always praised Manu but I did not know that he scouted Manu for the Spurs. Good thing on his resume!

[SPARKY]

D'Antoni may have scouted Manu, I'm not sure. I believe he joined the Spurs after Manu had been drafted. He coached against Manu in Italy.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Great article! I particularly appreciated the following:

1. “Manu’s pissed,” one San Antonio Spurs coach said early Sunday evening before Ginobili had taken even his first step onto the court. “That could be good for us.” -

2. All season long the Spurs have sensed Ginobili playing with an edge, even an anger, they had not felt in previous years. Now he barks back at opposing players, and after Ronny Turiaf and Derek Fisher decked him with a hard foul in the second half, Ginobili picked himself up and growled.

3. Bryant, too, has long respected Ginobili from afar. He once called him his favorite player to watch. On Sunday, he merely called him “phenomenal.”

4. “He’s one of the best players in the world, without a doubt, but he never gets mentioned,” said New York coach Mike D’Antoni, who coached against Ginobili in Italy and lost to him four times in the playoffs in Phoenix. “He didn’t even make the All-Star team, which is a travesty.

“I think he exemplifies everything you want a player to be: great in the clutch; great at getting after a loose ball; great at defense; great at offense; unselfish; takes a contract for less money to make his team better.

“I don’t think there is one superlative you can say that is too much about him. … In the world he is unappreciated. Maybe because he is unorthodox, whatever. I don’t know. But I’ll tell you what, you can’t get a better player than him.

“You can debate Kobe or LeBron. Fine. But he is right there in the debate.”

Damn straight. I say the same things to my mates and they laugh, but they are wrong.

Manu is one of the top 10 guards in the world , and one of the top 3 clutch players. Anyone who really watches basketball and understands it know this, and the stats bear it out.

MANU!!!

MANU!!!

MANU!!!

[sassystriker]

Manu being pissed is always good for us

[MoSpur]

Kobe can get his shot anytime he wants. He's pretty much done that in 3 games now. I'd rather the ball in Kobe's hands and him trying to beat the Spurs by himself than have Gasol/Odom get going offensively to start and Kobe take over in the end. Which is probably the Lakers gameplan.

I agree. The more time the ball is in Kobe's hand COULD be bad news for the Lakers because that MAY mean he is jacking up a lot of shots and not passing. In Game 3, Kobe had 30 points while taking 23 shots. He only had one assist. In game one, Kobe had nine assists and in game two he had five assists. The more he passes, the better the Lakers are.

[polandprzem]

Kobe can get his shot anytime he wants. He's pretty much done that in 3 games now. I'd rather the ball in Kobe's hands and him trying to beat the Spurs by himself than have Gasol/Odom get going offensively to start and Kobe take over in the end. Which is probably the Lakers gameplan.

Excactly sister!

[ambchang]

I hope (and strongly suspect) that Manu struggled in Games 1 and 2 because of fatigue more than anything else. On paper, nobody on the Lakers can guard Manu, and he knows it.

That said, I am looking to have a more aggressive Parker for the rest of the series, he is capable of so much more.

[Indazone]

Ginobili plays harder than Kobe