Project Spurs: Do Spurs have frontline built to contend?

[silverblk mystix]

They absolutely do. Sunday was a law of averages game. They had won 22 straight at home, were coming off an insane offensive performance against an elite team and had beaten the Lakers 3 straight times. Unfortunately, they were due for that type of game and it just so happened to come at the hands of the Lakers in a nationally televised game. So the Lakers ass kissers/cheerleaders can use it as so-called "proof that the Spurs can't beat the Lakers in a series" (funny how the Spurs beating them 3 straight before that was meaningless).

I have no idea why people continue to refer to Blair as the Spurs center. You are what you guard and he exclusively guards power forwards. Duncan is the Spurs center and has been since '08. However, since the Spurs are physically over matched against the Lakers, what they should do is cross match. Duncan can basically physically negate Gasol. He's smaller, but still very long in his own right and he's stronger. That would leave Blair to guard Bynum. Theoretically, he wouldn't struggle any more with Bynum than he would Gasol and he actually might have a better chance at adequately defending him, since Bynum isn't as skilled as Gasol and is more reliant on sheer power.

It's going to take all five bigs playing a part to get through the Lakers. Even if Splitter is the fifth big and playing limited minutes, they're going to need him to take a turn guarding either Bynum or (preferably) Gasol. But Pop's should also be willing to get creative. Artest is extremely limited offensively, which means Bonner should guard him in stretches. Some will say Blair, but that takes him out of prime rebounding position and the Spurs can't afford to do that with one of their two best rebounders, since they're already at a disadvantage on the glass. Bonner should suffice. If the Lakers want to attempt to exploit it and isolate Artest, let them. That only takes the ball out of their four best players hands. This match-up would allow the Spurs to play bigger and find more minutes for Splitter.

This.

[Capt Bringdown]

Outside of Duncan and to limited degree Dice, we don't know what we're gonna get from our frontline in the PO. How can that not be a problem?

[HarlemHo 37]

They absolutely do. Sunday was a law of averages game. They had won 22 straight at home, were coming off an insane offensive performance against an elite team and had beaten the Lakers 3 straight times. Unfortunately, they were due for that type of game and it just so happened to come at the hands of the Lakers in a nationally televised game. So the Lakers ass kissers/cheerleaders can use it as so-called "proof that the Spurs can't beat the Lakers in a series" (funny how the Spurs beating them 3 straight before that was meaningless).

I have no idea why people continue to refer to Blair as the Spurs center. You are what you guard and he exclusively guards power forwards. Duncan is the Spurs center and has been since '08. However, since the Spurs are physically over matched against the Lakers, what they should do is cross match. Duncan can basically physically negate Gasol. He's smaller, but still very long in his own right and he's stronger. That would leave Blair to guard Bynum. Theoretically, he wouldn't struggle any more with Bynum than he would Gasol and he actually might have a better chance at adequately defending him, since Bynum isn't as skilled as Gasol and is more reliant on sheer power.

It's going to take all five bigs playing a part to get through the Lakers. Even if Splitter is the fifth big and playing limited minutes, they're going to need him to take a turn guarding either Bynum or (preferably) Gasol. But Pop's should also be willing to get creative. Artest is extremely limited offensively, which means Bonner should guard him in stretches. Some will say Blair, but that takes him out of prime rebounding position and the Spurs can't afford to do that with one of their two best rebounders, since they're already at a disadvantage on the glass. Bonner should suffice. If the Lakers want to attempt to exploit it and isolate Artest, let them. That only takes the ball out of their four best players hands. This match-up would allow the Spurs to play bigger and find more minutes for Splitter.

I love how your infatuated with the notion "the Heat" are elite. If 14-18 vs. teams above .500 teams makes you elite, then half the league is elite. Yeah, they beat the Lakers two straight THIS season and won in LA on a fluke tip with Bynum on the bench. I guess Duncan will find the fountain of youth, Blair will grow 3 inches, Dice will rebound and block shots, Bonner will be a hulk in the paint, and Tiago will suddenly "get it" overnight. This could happen if your that naive.

[Basketball Power]

51-12 tells you all you need to know.

Lakers thrashing the Spurs tells you all you need to know

[Budkin]

No we don't have the height to match up, yet we win anyway. Shows you how tough this team really is.

[Dice]

We all know Gasol and Bynum's number both drop significantly when playing teams with bigs that are 6'10 or higher. Dirk too. All the teams with big front lines dominate the Lakers and the Mavs' wins against those teams were fluke wins.

We have no chance against them in the playoffs no matter what Tony, Manu, Neal, Bonner, and Hill do. They cannot score enough points to make up for these two unstoppable front lines.

[Brazil]

IMO a lakers / spurs match up will strongly depend on Kobe. If Kobe plays smart, feed his bigs instead of shooting 40% all over the place they have all the card in their hand. If Kobe tries to be the hero of the serie I like our chances especially with HCA.

[jjktkk]

IMO a lakers / spurs match up will strongly depend on Kobe. If Kobe plays smart, feed his bigs instead of shooting 40% all over the place they have all the card in their hand. If Kobe tries to be the hero of the serie I like our chances especially with HCA.

Imo, you would see both sides of the Lakers, the good and bad. In order for the Spurs to have a legitimate chance in a series with the Lakers, the Spurs front line needs to be healthy and Bonner and Blair, and to a lesser extent, Splitter, all need to contribute.

[AlleyOopNazi]

if they can rebound, they can win

[20beastie45]

The Spurs have also never had a 6-7center starting next to Duncan or a toilet paper soft 3pt shooting (big man?)getting minutes behind him.

99' Duncan/Robinson/Rose
03' Duncan/Robinson/Rose
05' Duncan/Mohammed/Horry/Nesterovic
07' Duncan/Oberto/Horry/Elson

09' Duncan/BONNER/Thomas - FAILED
10' Duncan/Mcdyess/BONNER - FAILED
11' Duncan/Blair/BONNER/Mcdyess - FAILED

I agree with this....oh wait....WTF 11'?

[20beastie45]

if they can rebound, they can win

Don't acre for 3's or anyway we score......All I care about is Defense and Defensive Rebounding

and it seems like were lacking in both from previous years..

Prove me wrong!

[20beastie45]

we dont play the cavs every night either.

True but didn't there bigs that play on the worst team the league has seen in years torch us on the offensive boards....

[AlleyOopNazi]

No

nice take

[mingus]

guess we'll find out what the Spurs have in their frontline in the coming weeks. if Pop didn't get the memo on Sunday that Splitter needs to be used in a rather large capacity come playoffs, i'll be pretty damn pissed.

[024]

spurs got hammered on the boards again. not a good sign, especially since it was against a mediocre team.

[HarlemHo 37]

Shoot 64% and win by 7. Thats all you need to know.

[20beastie45]

20 offensive rebounds by the ing pistons...

"but we won blah blah blah"

we're in for a rude awakening in the playoffs

+1

[20beastie45]

o spurstalk, im backkkkkk!!!!!!!!!!!!

but the truth is that size is all relative people, i mean seriously nobody has the size the lakers can put up and what i mean is that the lakers have size that can defend or just play offense. dallas has size that can just play either offense or defense, boston has size to just play offense, unless we believe that shaq will be healthy, which i dont. so nobody can put the same size out on the floor besides the lakers. but the spurs must find other ways to beat a team like the lakers, no team this year is that better or great this year, the lakers or no other team in unbeatable and every team has weaknesses and if theres one nba coach that can find a weakness that the lakers or mavs have and exploit them its coach pop.

i am disappointed in coach pop for not playing tiago more, we have size but for some reason he plays small ball and doesnt play the little size we do have, for example, againt the game with the heat we have a size advantage if we played tiago and tim together, thats two seven footer we could have used to protect the rim and rebound and yet pop wont do it, i frustrates my to high heaven why he wont play tiago. but spurs have the size to win a championship, not all championship teams have great size, its all about how we are playing on the defensive end will determine if we win it all or not. well see

True.....But the most recent have!!!!

since 2003
2003 Robinson/Duncan/Rose/Willis
2004 Wallace/Wallace
2005 Duncan/Horry/Nazr/Nesterovic
2006 O'neal/Mourning/haslem/walker
2007 Duncan/Horry/Oberto/Elson/
2008 Garnett/Perkins/Davis/Powe/Brown
2009,2010 Bynum/Gasol/Oden

not mentioning the earlier teams!!!