What about Rita929
The game is evolving, and so are the players we bring in each year, constant change.
What don't we know? The goal is the same it's just being done by fresher guys. I remember the first couple years I felt DRob was going to be soon gone and being thrilled to have seen him in his prime. Defense still wins rings and SA will as they have been for a long time be defense minded.
The '84 Celtics gave up 105 points a game, but had the third best defensive efficiency in the league and won a le with defense.
Stern's new rules may change the tempo, and they may change how defense is played a bit, but they won't prevent teams from playing great defense.
Techinically speaking...Spurs basketball died last year when we defeated the Suns by outrunning them...
I wouldn't use the word died though...evolved is more like it, the Spurs became more versatile and skilled on offense, we could play more than one way, and we did so. This year we just had a weakness, we had it last year too...but it wasn't until this year that someone figured out how to exploit it.
Spurs basketball historically also usually had a decent sized SF(Elliott, or 2g's that could play SF Hedo, Jack) and mobile bigman(David Robinson)...
Died? No.
Evolved and certain elements in need of refuel? Yes.
Yes.
TD needs to play the five and the Spurs need to get a versatile four man that can play low or on the perimeter. He also needs to be able to play the three when the Spurs need to go big.
I think finding that player will determine if the Spurs will win another championship. The respect Dirk Nowitzki is receiving this year is sickening. If, and it's a big if, he wins a championship, you won't even be able to breathe on him without being called for a foul. The Spurs need a player that can matchup with Dirk well enough to make him work on defense and make him feel uncomfortable on offense. Lamar Odom comes to mind. Someone that has similar size and a similar game to Odom would work. Of course, combing Europe for another Andre Krilenko would fit the bill, talent wise and financially.
The long three is a quick fix. You need a player that can play the four and the three to completely solve the problem, imo.
Ian has the size and the athletic ability. I wonder if he can be groomed into the player the Spurs desperately need.
Spurs basketball isn't dead. At least I hope not.
And they'd still be playing if Pop had any balls. This whole thread may as well be led the Gregg Popovich Society rally thread.The Spurs will adjust but remember, the Spurs only lost 19 regular season games (team record) in this new era. They lost one more game than Detroit, who doesn't exactly play non-traditional ball, nor do the Heat.
The entire concept of winning a 62 reg. season wins, yet being rendered totally useless in a playoff series while not trying your reg. season formula once, is baffling
Spurs basketball isn't dead. You don't forgot how to play defense and run pop's season, however flawed it might be sometimes. The spurs are not mentally fragile like some teams. The talent will always be there. It's now a matter of regrouping, practicing harder, getting in some key pieces to aid on both ends of the court (hint to spurs management: long THREE), and come back strong in 06/07.
The only practice this team needs is for their dumbass coach to realize what got them 3 les and 63 wins in the regular season this year. ing moron.
It would have been helpful if the Spurs didnt have two centers who were inept at what they do to help you.
Only dead for this year...
Spurs ball isn't dead and it isn't about being boring or exciting, i believe you can play a run and gun style of play and still play good D. The problem for us is we have alot of old guys who can no longer, or never could move their feet and in the playoffs you're as strong as your weekest link.
When any combination of Barry, Horry, VanEx are on the floor are defense is a joke, Finley's no much better but he did some things well and at least scored some points to make up for his bad D. The scheme still works, it's that the personnel can't run it properly. The FO is to blame for this because they should have traded barry right after we signed Fin, he was expendible at that point and we could have brought in a young guy who would have had the whole season to adjust to spurs bball.
So go start the "Nazr > Dirk" thread.And they'd still be playing if Pop had any balls. This whole thread may as well be led the Gregg Popovich Society rally thread.
The Spurs may have opened a Pandora's Box that led to their own demise -- if you bring in international players, can the international game, itself, be far behind?
The Spurs brought in great foreign players to play Spurs (NBA Playoff-style) basketball. But what followed may be a case of unintended consequences, i.e., blowback.
Next thing you know, the NBA legalizes zone defenses (except for the dominant shot-blocker under the basket kind like the Spurs have). Everbody but your shot-blocker can play a zone. Vlade Divac lives.
Foreign players are notoriously un-physical and typically weak at man-to-man defense. So the NBA outlaws hand-checks and calls touch fouls -- even in the playoffs. In other words, FIBA is breaking out all over the place.
Coaches with a Euro up-and-down style like Mike D'Antoni flourish. And the NBA sees that it's entertaining. So we can expect more.
It's the future of basketball, so get used to it.
But for the contrarian point of view, we turn to Tim Duncan -- "FIBA sucks," I believe he said.
Would Spurs Basketball have died if Manu doesn't F up at the end of Game 7?
According to the people who don't scoff Manu for that idiot move, that F up was within the limits of Spurs Ball cuz it was "Manu's nature".
I never said he was. Only that Spurs basketball > small ball.So go start the "Nazr > Dirk" thread
Funny thing, we started Nazr on the way to a le last year and I believe Amare averaged about 8 more PPG than Dirk, so why didn't we change our D to 'match up' with Stoudemire?
Dance with what brung ya.
Yes, and if the opposing team HAS a real center, you better have one on your own team to play him. I hope all small ball fans (POP INCLUDED!!!) are watching the Heat game number 6. Would you like to have TD/Horry/Bowen/
Manu/Parker against them now or some other lineup with TD at PF position might be a LITTLE bit better?
The funny thing is we're going to get to see how the Spurs system really matches up with the Mavs, because the Heat are running the Spurs D 24/7/365 in the playoffs.
so shaq's gonna guard dirk?
Dude I hope the Heat ing bukkake the mavs. It's already a given they will make Phoenix look like a WNBA team. But if they face the mavs? I hope they ing bukkake them. Tokyo Style.
Where did you see that?so shaq's gonna guard dirk?
Who guarded Dirk in the Spurs system earlier this year when the Spurs won two games with Tim and Nazr playing side by side?
For the 5000th time. The Spurs system wouldn't have ing shut Dirk down. It would have prevented Dallas from being +25 on the offensive glass for the series, and it sure as would have prevented 60 PPG for Dallas in the ing paint.
Yes, but is Tim Udonis Haslem, or is Nazr supposed to be Haslem?
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