Stop and smell the roses

[Brutalis]

Def not taking anything for granted. I just feel like I'm visiting here taking in the sights and memories, and that it's about to all be over with. The end of a great movie or book.

[GSH]

Great post. But I would way prefer 1978 George Gervin over Danny Green and 1994 David Robinson over Dejuan Blair. And then I could actually enjoy the smell of these roses of which you speak. Until you make that happen, I will dwell in my own personal coccoon of pain.

Look, I don't want to start a fight with you, or the legions of people who are likely to take offense... but:

The 1978 George Gervin never won a Championship. The 1978 Spurs were also 2nd in the league in PPG, but they outscored their opponents by an average of 3.4 points. This team has outscored opponents by an average of 7.2 points. That's a world of difference.

I know you're saying that you'd like to see the team stacked at every position, and all the way down the depth chart. A Spurs All-Star team. That's not going to happen in the age of free agency. As teams go, this one is pretty stacked, and a lot of fun to watch. And it's a LOT better than it was before the late-season personnel moves.

If you've been around long enough to remember the 1978 George Gervin, then you remember how nervous fans were at every step of the '99 playoffs - and that team only lost 2 games in the post-season. If you can't enjoy this season, then you still wouldn't enjoy it if the Spurs did have Gervin and Robinson.

[ace3g]

so according to Stephen A. Smith on ESPN, the playoffs for the Spurs start in the 2nd round, and he believes that Pop won't use his 10 man rotation from that point on (was just preserving the big 3) and the bench won't avg 20 minutes a game. Guess he doesn't realize that Manu, Neal, SJAX, and Splitter come off the bench...

[manufan10]

so according to Stephen A. Smith on ESPN, the playoffs for the Spurs start in the 2nd round, and he believes that Pop won't use his 10 man rotation from that point on (was just preserving the big 3) and the bench won't avg 20 minutes a game. Guess he doesn't realize that Manu, Neal, SJAX, and Splitter come off the bench...

That's probably because he hasn't watched a Spurs game all season, tbh.

[Mel_13]

I don't know if the Spurs are going to win the Larry O'Brien this year. (In fact, if either Andrew Bynum or Erik Spoelstra ever gets a clue for four games out of seven, the odds are probably still against that.) But now is the perfect time for Spur fans to, for just a moment, stop worrying about the championship (and the last six minutes of game 4) and appreciate what's going on in front of their eyes.

There's still a tough road ahead: maybe they can sustain it, maybe they can't. But no matter what happens in the weeks to come, the last 25+ games we have been witnessing probably the best the San Antonio Spurs have ever been. Ever. Not only have they been dominating, they've been beautiful, playing the best team ball of the last 30 years of the NBA. (The last non-bad team that distributed minutes like this was probably the 1982 Hawks. The last championship team that went this deep was the 1975 Warriors.)

Yeah, two of the Big Three are no longer in their primes. But the minutes they are on the court together is still like watching three mindreaders at work. And every other member of the team absolutely takes their cues from them.

The Spurs bench is a Swiss Army Knife, a collection of multifunctional tools able to adapt to any situation. Or they're a chef's e rack, with Chef Pop mixing up the nightly bouillabaisse . . . okay, done with the metaphors.

It doesn't seem to matter who they throw out there, as long as they're in the Silver and Black. (I think I saw Sequ hit a three against the Warriors.) That's a testament to Pop, who obviously gets his share of credit, and R.C., who really doesn't. In fact, I'd argue R.C. deserves Executive of the Year more than Pop deserves Coach.

This obviously isn't going to last forever, but hopefully will make it another twelve wins. And even if it doesn't, I wanted to be on record as saying, damn this is fun no matter what.

Great post, ShoogarBear.

I've been enjoying the ride for a while now...especially after it became apparent that the Spurs were not going to break up the Big 3 to rebuild. I fretted about this at first, with visions of becoming a team full of aging stars that could no longer compete for a le. A team stuck in no mans land...too good for the lottery and not good enough to contend.

Then I had a moment at some point...I can't tell you exactly when but it was one of those vintage nights where the Big 3 shined and all felt right again. In that moment of splendor I realized something terrible. I realized that the day was coming when I would no longer get to see nights like this. The Big 3 would go away and all I would have was memories captured on film and placed on a medium of media. The starting over I used to so strongly desire now terrified me.

It was then that I made the decision that I would take whatever good I could get out of these final seasons and let the rest fall by the wayside. No matter the situation, I would shrug off all the bad just to have those small glimpses of good that I knew I needed to appreciate while there was still time. Little did I know that somewhere along the way the Spurs would do something improbable in my mind...they would once again become contenders. They would find the pieces to help them rise from the ashes and go once more unto the breach.

I firmly believe that a healthy Spurs team can win it all...but if for some reason they don't, I will still remember this year forever. Hopefully they can make that memory even sweeter by delivering five to the case.

I've been there since the beginning of last season. Enjoy the journey and don't worry about the destination. No matter where it ends, I'm going to savor whatever Tim and Manu have left in the tank.

[cheguevara]

they ain't no roses yet just carnations for now. beating a ty jazz team in round 1 does not amount to much IMO.

Spurs haven't proven yet. The roses come in June

[Interrohater]

This OP is poetry. The Spurs play like they all have beautiful minds. I can see the little graphics of angles and advanced mathematics flying around their heads. Seriously, maybe one of the highest BBIQ teams in awhile.

[TJastal]

This OP is poetry. The Spurs play like they all have beautiful minds. I can see the little graphics of angles and advanced mathematics flying around their heads. Seriously, maybe one of the highest BBIQ teams in awhile.

Tim Legler agrees.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/scoreboard

Funny that all it took was a couple of passes and the jazz players were just running all over the court in a total state of confusion while the spurs just patiently waited for the perfect breakdown. I don't know if this is a product of the jazz being that bad and undisciplined or the spurs that good, but I suspect it's a little of both.

[Fabbs]

I don't know if this is a product of the jazz being that bad and undisciplined or the spurs that good, but I suspect it's a little of both.

Lot of both.
When the Jazz completely upped their D effort in their run it was night and day.

But the Spurs reupped theirs just in time. The SJax tip leading to the Manu layup was

[admiralsnackbar]

POTY candidate

Word.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

I'm only posting here to add one more person who

earned this Spur by being an original member of Spurstalk.com

And to say that this team will rip the asshole out of an elephant.

[Keepin' it real]

they ain't no roses yet just carnations for now. beating a ty jazz team in round 1 does not amount to much IMO.

Spurs haven't proven yet. The roses come in June

This post shows that you're missing the OP's point ... entirely. Or at the very least, you disagree with his point.

Personally, I'm savoring the 1st round sweep. Feels a whole lot better than last year's first round, that's for sure. Never take anything for granted.

[Venti Quattro]

This OP is poetry. The Spurs play like they all have beautiful minds. I can see the little graphics of angles and advanced mathematics flying around their heads. Seriously, maybe one of the highest BBIQ teams in awhile.

They have discovered the Spur equilibrium and deserve to be Nobel Laureates. Such a classy team

[baseline bum]

That might be the giest thing I've ever read on here

"advanced mathematics"

You can't do ODE in your head? Did you get double digits on your Wonderlic son?

[J.T.]

better then those colts teams huh

Ducks still massively butthurt that Peyton Manning won those 2008 and 2009 MVPs over Philip Rivers

[Spurs Brazil]

Great post.

This run has been fun, especially after the Jax trade

[Drachen]

I'm only posting here to add one more person who

earned this Spur by being an original member of Spurstalk.com

aaaand another.

Also, lol at people arguing past the OP since it flew right over their head.

[UnWantedTheory]

I've been rolling & bathing in the roses all season. Great post.

[Manu20]

You know you are a spoiled Spurs fan when you see other teams play and think to yourself what is wrong with their offense?? lol

[z0sa]

It's funny how few 'fans' wanted to do that at the start of the season.

[Yuixafun]

You know you are a spoiled Spurs fan when you see other teams play and think to yourself what is wrong with their offense?? lol

That was me watching the Knicks vs Heat on Sunday

[objective]

Everything has been, well, wonderful since RJ got canned and the new pieces brought in.

It's almost like I've been living in a dream world, where I was getting everything I've ever wanted the Spurs to do these last few years.

Get RJ out of uniform. Play Splitter more and now with Diaw, Bonner and Blair are on the back burner. Play young guys over busted old scrubs (Finley, Udoka, Centerpiece, Mason, RJ) . . . and here the Spurs are, starting Leonard and Green.

I've felt a soothing calm ever since Blair was removed from the starting line-up, that combined with wretched RJ being gone, has made this last month or among the most pleasant I've ever had as a Spurs fan.

[Quiet Strength]

This season has been awesome. Watching the young guys develop.. getting rid of rj and getting sj back.. duncan stepping it up to a level we havent seen in several years. This team has been fun to watch. Hopefully they finish with a

[stéphane]

Had to post just to acknowledge Shoog's post.

I raise a child now and am getting married so it's been hard to watch Spurs ball in the middle of the night.
But right now, it's so beautifull, it's like I want to be drawn in there and play with these players who play as one.
It's touching and beautifull, that's true basketball.

[Jimcs50]

When the Spurs are in LA for next two series, they can smell the roses, cuz there are a ton of them around LA.

Nice post Shoog. I forgot about you, since I have been on a hiatus for the last 4 years or so. Good to see you again.