I don't like the way the game is officiated, and I think DeRozan probably should have gotten a couple of those. I'm watching GSW/Clippers right now, and saw one of the Clippers get fouled shooting a 3 without a whistle a few minutes ago. It 100% would have been called on the other end. BUT... the Clippers are playing their asses off, and built a 8 point lead at the half. Even if they lose the game, I always respect effort like that.
I remember those last couple of years that Barkley was in Houston. He busted his ass every single play, whether the Rockets were up by 20 or down by 20. Pippen came in that first year, and he would give up and at his teammates when they were losing. I gained a new level of respect for Charles, and a new disrespect for Pippen. Not denying how good Pippen was, but I don't like a guy who quits.
Your question though? The refs make elite players even better with their whistles. They force defenders to back off, and the elite guys only need a little daylight. Some of DeRozan's lack of calls may be that he avoids contact more than those guys, but he definitely doesn't get the same benefit as them.
Just play harder. I can’t believe we are saying this about a playoff team but play harder. It’s one thing to get frustrated with missed calls. It’s another to get bodied, out hustled and pout.
Outside of Mills/Jakob, there is no one on this team that is putting forth playoff level effort.
Yeah, that's the only thing to do. Draymond just pulled some that would get any player on the Spurs ejected. , he was trying to get ejected. He got a single T, and Kerr left him in the game because he got the crowd fired up. But the Clippers dug in and upped their lead to 15.
I don't think White's problem is effort. He had that big game, and Malone saw how important he is to the Spurs' play. So he focused on taking White out of the next game, and made those public statements about it. I think he got to White's confidence. And it's understandable, considering how far White has come, how fast. It was a smart move by Malone. I think White will learn from it and come back stronger, but it worked this year.
I know you've never given him his just due (weird cuz he's a "Culture" guy) but wow, absolutely ting on Tiago while being a huge Patty Mills, post 2013 TP, and Bryn Forbes fan, I couldn't even imagine. 2012 is a valid criticism though I would say he would have benefited from getting his playoff feet wet in 2011...but to completely disregard his contributions to the 2014 ring isIf you remember correctly, Pop's issue with Splitter back then was he was injury prone and he had a low pain threshold. You don't remember all those complaints by Pop saying how Splitter was "injured" when he was signed, "injured" again in training camp and then "injured" yet again in the regular season right after was given a steady spot in the rotation? Turned out, that low pain threshold haunted his career and Splitter was forced to retire at 28 or whatever it was.
And I know you are a big Splitter fan but that's a strange horse to tie your whataboutery wagon to in this argument, tbh. It's not like Splitter ended up being a playoff assassin once given a chance. The very next season, he played a key role in the Spurs getting backdoor swept by the Thunder after they started fouling him on purpose and he couldn't hit a free throw. On top of that, the Thunder put Fisher on Splitter and Splitter couldn't score in the paint against the chubby point guard
Then the next season, Splitter became unplayable against the Heat.
And once Splitter was freed from meanie Pop, what did he do? Nothing. No coach ever got him to play again as he sat out with a variety of vague injuries. It's not like Splitter went on and became Kevin McHale once freed from Pop's shackles
Not to argue against myself but the player that you and the original poster I quoted should have been pointed to was George Hill. Pop benched Hill just because he was a rookie -- and went on record stating so. Saying Pop should have played Hill was a valid criticism ... one that I said was a mistake at the time and still looks like a mistake in retrospect.
Meh, there's always a young player somewhere in the system that complainers can point to as the ship is sinking as being the savior who wasn't given a chance. Any season in which the Spurs don't win a championship, there's always the complaints that Wunderkind X didn't get a shot.
And, honestly, it's not just Spurs fans. It's all NBA fanbases. They all do the same thing.
So you think rookie Cory Joseph would have made a difference? Did you watch that guy play?
Seriously though, honest question, do you put any stock into San Antonio's ability to develop players or do you think they are such amazing drafters that all their players are ready to go from Day 1? I mean, it has to be one or the other. Personally, I think they draft well but they also develop well. And that development usually means a season in the G-League so the young player can get adjusted to the professional lifestyle, learn the system and lead a team without the full blown NBA pressures right out of the gates.
Speaking of Walker specifically, I watched quite a few of his Austin games this year and he never looked ready. He was favoring his knee for a lot of the season and even when he stopped favoring it as much, his numbers were never too impressive and the team didn't respond to his play.
Still a good prospect but a savior for this year he is not.
But to answer your question, I've said before that one of the few things the organization currently does well is draft and develop. Obviously, I didn't think Walker was able to contribute from the get-go without even considering his injuries to start the season. I never pegged him as a savior either, I just stated that it'd be nice to have his skillset (considering it's vastly different from Mills / Forbes/ Beli) in this series when Denver's wings are overwhelming them with their athleticism...
I just disagree with the Pop Suckers' notion that 1st year development is a black/white subject, meaning Lonnie absolutely has to be in the G League for the entire season and that giving him even regular spot minutes during the regular season wouldn't be fair to Pop & Pop Sucker guys like Mills, Forbes, and Beli....
Lma is an f
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