Calm Down

[mabber]

First off, I know you guys are excited, mad, sad, whatever, but stop posting wildly and starting new threads for every single thought that pops into your brains

About The Game

Props to the Mavs. Dirk was awesome. The Mavericks are a very good 4th quarter team. If you've watched them during the streak, they've been terrific at coming back in games.

Some game thoughts:

1. Dirk guarded Duncan better than Duncan guarded Dirk.

2. Duncan needs to get more than 7 boards in 40 minutes.

3. Duncan plays much better when there's a big on the floor (for example, Oberto) than when Pop goes small. Pop needs to watch tape and see that.

4. Tony did a good job penetrating and ballhandling tonight. His stats weren't flashy, but he was solid and did a good job on defensively for the most part.

5. Manu looks great. Sure he had a couple critical bad moves (shooting too early in the shot clock, a key turnover, etc) but he has so much will to win, it's amazing to watch.

6. Oberto did a great job in the first half getting himself free (plus the Mavs were ignoring him a bit).

7. Barry+Beno = 0-for-12? If the Spurs were showcasing them for a trade, this didn't help.

8. Finley freakin' kills the Spurs offense. I hated that post up crap in the 4th.

9. Last play of the game, if I was on the sidelines, Tony would have penetrated and dished to Manu for 3. Manu was on fire and Tony did a great job drawing the defense in the lane with him. The Bowen play wasn't bad, but it wasn't my first choice.

10. Bowen did a good job on Howard. I know Josh still got his, but he played him really well. Bowen also switched off onto to so many other people Terry, DHarris, Dirk etc. I thought he was really solid defensively.

11. The Spurs need someone to help with the rebounding. I don't know if that's Corey Maggette, or if they should try to make some other deal. But they really aren't going to make it far in the playoffs with this core of rebounders. I know that part of the problem is that the Spurs went small for long stretches, but honestly, the centers aren't good rebounders really either.

12. Memo to Beno: You aren't Allen Iverson or Kobe, so stop trying to break records for shot attempts.

13. Dirk freakin' awesome.

That's it.

I agree with all but #9. Good post!

While having Bowen shoot the potentially tying 3 pointer is not ideal. The play did get him a WIDE OPEN 3 pt attempt in an area he's usually purdy good from. The Mavs were not going to let Ginobli get a good look at a 3 pointer on that play and Pop knew it.

I will give even more props to Bowen for the job he did on Howard. I was impressed (even though I know Bowen is a great defender). Putting Bowen on Howard is their best chance. They just have to live with Dirk getting more points but it's better than the alternative as Bowen can only slow down Dirk while no one other than Bowen can hang with Howard.

Also, that's the best I've seen Ginobli play in a long time. He had a really good game.

A player like Oberto hurts the Mavs in the first half just about every game. They adjust at half time and that's usually the end of it.

Lastly, I know I don't see all the Spur's games so this is based on just the dozen or so I've seen but y'all need another backup point guard.

[VaSpursFan]

Remind me never to praise Beno again. He is the worst player in NBA history as far as running plays at the end of quarters. If he doesn't turn it over, he's forcing a shot that he never in his life would make. If he's not doing that, he's shooting with too much time left on the clock.

X 1,000,000 @ Beno shooting the ball TWICE before he should have at the end of the half. His job was to waste all the time and the Spurs get a final shot. Somehow he shot fast enough to get blocked, get the ball back, miss again and then have Oberto tip it in.

The guy has the basketball IQ of a donut.

this is perhaps the best assessment of beno. if we see this, why doesn't the coaching staff see this and keep this dood planted on the bench. and if i see another barry, beno backcourt, i'm gonna scream. everytime we have a lead in the third and pop puts this ass lineup in, we lose the lead and the game. POP, is it really that difficult to stagger minutes so that 1 of the big 3 is always on the court for the entire 48 minutes...WTF????

[Cherry]

It's more than 6 months since I last signed up here. Despite the slow internet connection after the last earthquake in Taiwan in December, I felt the need to support the team and the fans after 3 bitter losses. For a distinguished team such as the Spurs, it's natural that the fans always have high expectations, and the anger when the team doesn't meet the expectations are understandable. But I truly believe Duncan & Co. have the most distaste for losing, and they will come back strong. It's too early to tell whether the championship is out of reach. Of course, there's much work to do.

a real fan

[Dalhoop]

And really, what is so scary about these Mavs? Good team on a hot streak? yes. Great team? That remains to be seen.

The Mavs are not going anywhere, they have the best record in the league and are up in their division by a handful of games. I know that its early, but to think that the Mavs are going to "slow down" is sort of reaching a bit.

In almost two calendar months the Mavs have only lost three games ... TWO MONTHS ... THREE LOSSES. Add two winning double digit winning streaks and the Mavs seem to be playing like that have something to prove after last years loss in the Finals.

Try not to sell the Mavs short.

Now about the game last night. You can sit here at your computer saying things like "Its only Jan." and "The season is still young" but the truth is that any game between the Spurs and Mavs is a big game for both teams.

Any game that the two teams play has "playoff atmosphere". Although the Mavs didn't come out and say, the Spurs did "We needed this one and just didn't get it". Both teams knew that they needed this one.

For the Spurs it was all about the big three and Oberto even got into the scoring, for the Mavs Terry's shot didn't show up and only Dirk and Howard made it to double digits. Reading that recap, nine times out of ten, would indicate a Spurs win. But not this time.

Spurs fans will say that their players shots were off, Mavs fans will say it was DEFENCE. As a Mavs fan, I'm going with defense

The Spurs scoring was shut down after the half, not getting more the twenty points in either the third or fourth quarters. At the same time the Mavs offense accelerated as the game wore on, scoring fifty in the second half.

Even in a back-to-back situation, the Mavs got better as the game progressed. This points to the problem with the Spurs .. Outside of the three stars, they have nobody that anyone cares about.

For the longest time it was always the Mavs that was the better offensive team and the Spurs better at defense. The Mavs are now playing defense and getting stops when they need them ... late in the game.

The Spurs needed to make a big move in the off season and got Vaughn, Bonner and a pair of centers. The Spurs still need to make a move before the playoffs. The Mavs this season are better then the Mavs of last season ... and they took the Spurs out in the playoffs. Its not too late now, but it will be sooner rather then later.

Some posters here like to think that its the Spurs that need to make other teams adapt to the way the Spurs play. This is not realistic. At what position/positions do the Spurs have a player that creates match-up problems? The answer is none. So you have a fast PG .. Most teams in the west do nowadays (Terry/Harris, Nash/Barbossa, Davis, Paul, AI) and , so you have a dynamic SG/SF .. Again most teams in the West do (Kobe, T-Mac, Howard, Richardson, Allen, Mello) so you have a very good PF (AK-47, Dirk, K-Mart, Brand, Amare, KG).

The truth is that the things that the Spurs have, most of the other teams in the West have. Some of the teams in the West have more then "just three stars" (Dallas, Utah and Suns ... Denver may be close). The Spurs won because of their defense and in that teams are starting to catch up with the Spurs. By staying pat in the off season, the Spurs lost ground and now it is starting to show.

This is not to say that the Spurs will not make it into the playoff, they are far better them many teams out there, but they are not the best in the league, maybe not even in the third or fourth best. The Spurs have to ask themselves whether that will be enough, or if they want to be the best.

The Spurs will have home court in the first round and will no doubt dispatch whoever they face, its the second round that will be a problem.

[1Parker1]

Why does Barry drive the ball when he knows he can't finish?

Exactly. Brent needs to take that midrange game completely out. He should never attept those shots. He needs to stick to attempting 3 pointers...

[wildbill2u]

This I agree with. I hate him waiting for the double. I hate him trying to force a foul when he can easily just get a basket (and probably And 1). He isn't a good free throw shooter, so I don't know why he does weak moves just to go to the line. He's still strong and quick, just power to the rim.

Note that on most of those weak fouls, Tim still misses the close-in shot. He almost NEVER gets an "and one" because he's putting up weak .

He's not the Tim of old in so many categories. He should retire if he doesn't want to play hard and the Spurs can go lottery for his replacement.

[Manu_The _Best]

First off, I know you guys are excited, mad, sad, whatever, but stop posting wildly and starting new threads for every single thought that pops into your brains
...
That's it.

Kori,

Good analysis, but, you are missing some very important points here:

I agree with points 1-4, and with you that “Duncan plays much better when there's a big on the floor (for example, Oberto) than when Pop goes small. Pop needs to watch tape and see that.” Pop didn’t see that last year in the Playoffs by benching Nazr and Rasho and we lost the SERIES 3-4…Tony did a good job compare to the others who didn’t produce anything, but he had only 4 assists vs. Terry’s 8, thus Terry was much more productive sharing the basketball and finding open men. In today’s NBA, 4 asts don’t count for anything, simply Tony failed in the second half as producing only 1 ast and he was LOST in most part of the 3rd and the 4th…he wasn’t that aggressive going to the FT line – only 3 FTs showed you, he was less aggressive than usual…Narry + Beno = 0-12 is a DISASTER for me – I have no idea WHY they are NOT playing (maybe considering the RUMOR they being offered for a trade???). Another thing is to criticize Pop: Getting Barry and Oberto involved in the starting lineup will help them be more motivated and give 100% - Barry deserves it since he was outstanding this season…Oberto PLAYED excellent when he was a starter, and I have no idea WHY Popovich put him to come from the bench – since he did that Oberto is giving us exactly S**T!!! Barry was benched in the last few games before the losing streak, for no reason, and he delivered NOTHING last night as well (wondering WHY he was benched after giving 100% prior)...Popovich needs to start Barry early in the game to keep him focused…

About Finley: I call him the “Goose Egg" – send FINLEY TO THE WAIVERS TODAY!!! He is USELESS...he was shining (by mistake) in only 1 game vs. Memphis...One game is NOT a barometer...In the Popovich's book of "who I like, and who I don't", compare to what he did in prior years [by ABUSING Malik Rose and Nazr Mohammed] Finley shouldn’t be playing at ALL, but just be a spectator…Nene – Finley got “his” minutes last night also, especially (and I agree with you!), that post up crap in the 4th…The truth is, Finley is finished. In addition, you are NOT mentioning anything about Horry? Horry is DONE WITH NBA as well…He needs to retire NOW. He CANNOT even shoot the ball…WHY he played so many minutes last night? Where is J. Butler? I have the feeling the Mavs are playing with us…They know they could increase the tempo at any second, and we simply couldn’t compete…I agree the Spurs need someone to help with the rebounding – Again to ask Pop, WHY J. Butler is NOT playing – he could get you the rbs you need (read more below about it)…

Now, you keep repeating that “Dirk freakin' awesome” – we all know that, but in sports, you play up to the point you’re allowed to by the opponent – in our case, The Spurs allowed Dirk to do whatever he wanted to…He looked like a hero, yes…Put Rasheed Wallace on him, I guarantee he won’t score 36…no way…The Spurs missed Elson to cover Dirk, I know, with Elson playing, Dirk wouldn’t score that many points…

The other important thing you are missing is the Spurs ARE OLD: In the past few years, Pop dragged this team into the ground, slowly and surely…WITH NO VALUABLE TRADES, NO VALUABLE PICK UPS and draft picks in the last few years, the SPURS HAVE a SMALL CHANCE NOW TO WIN A LE…This is NOT just 3 game LOSING streak for us to calm down – the Spurs SIMPLY don’t have the roster to compete with Dallas, Houston, the Suns and even Denver (AI + CA) right now. This is reality…Unless, the OLD DONKEYS in our team perform miracles, we are going to have a long summer this year – the Spurs MUST GET RID OF THE FOLLOWING: Horry, Finley, Vaughn, Beno, Williams, etc. and acquire young and athletic players….THE SOLE BLAME FOR THE WHOLE DISASTER, WITHOUT A DOUBT, is POP, who didn’t acquire the right personnel this year, neither drafted anyone valuable in the last few years - the Spurs didn’t rebuild and found themselves in trouble this year playing OLD DONKEYS – a result of a failed and ugly policy by a coach and a manager, who forgot the basic rules in the NBA…The Draft Picks are your life lines…too bad for Manu’s talent who doesn’t deserve this!!!

My proposal for now - Starting Lineup: Tony, Barry, Bowen, Tim and Oberto – I would start Barry and Oberto for JUST 2 min. to motivate them and bring the energy we need as a whole…Then, Manu and Elson CAN come in and take most of the minutes in the 1st quarter…Getting Barry and Oberto involved in the starting lineup will help them be more motivated and give 100% - Barry deserves it despite he went cold in the past 3-4 games…Oberto PLAYED excellent when he was a starter, and I have no idea WHY Popovich put him to come from the bench – since he did that Oberto is giving us exactly S**T!!! Barry was benched in the last few games (before last night), for no reason, and he delivered NOTHING last night as well wondering WHY he was benched before after giving 100%...Popovich needs to start Barry early in the game to keep him focused…

Vaughn is simply NOT doing it…ANOTHER USELESS "GOOSE EGG" if you ask me...Get rid of him…

Give at least 17 min. to Bonner – he did deliver for the minutes he played…But, he is also a little sluggish and CANNOT move the same way the young and athletic Mavericks do…

Get involved Williams in this case – he also delivered when Popovich played him…Williams CAN play MUCH better than Horry and score some points for sure

Give minutes to J. Butler as well, at least 20 min. WHY the Spurs acquired him ANYWAY? To stay on the bench ??? Don’t understand Pop for that…J. Butler CAN rebound the Basketball – last year the second half with the Knicks his stat per 48 min, is the following :

Player AS/48 ST/48 TO/48 BK/48 OR/48 TR/48

Butler, Jackie 1.6 0.7 3.8 2.0 4.4 12.1

This stat shows you excellent rebounding capabilities 4.4 OR/48 (!!!) is almost the same as Dampier, and 2.0 Blocks per 48 shows you clearly, who can be the shot blocker for the Spurs as well!!! BLAME POP FOR NOT PLAYING HIM, OK!!!??? NOBODY ELSE!!! ONLY POP!!!

In the overall strategy the Spurs should get rid of (somehow) Finley, Horry, and Vaughn, immediately via trades or sending them somehow to the waivers or buying their contracts (whatever it takes)…

The Spurs need to locate strong and athletic PF or SF who can help them with rebounding, energy, and some scoring…The Spurs need to play Butler for 20 min. Also the backup PG problem still stands – Vaughn and Beno aren’t the answers…We need to bring young and fresh “blood” ASAP, if we want to save the season! Send this to Pop if you wish…Cheers!

GO SPURS!!!

[ChumpDumper]

Problem solved.

Rings for everyone.

[ManuTim_best of Fwiendz]

Heh after yesterday, I'm kinda glad we lost during january, instead of eeked out a complacent win, now it'll force the spurs to reevaluate and try to make some moves.

I'd prefer we win our last match with the Mavs in the regular season than now. We definitely have some weaknesses (at the 3 spot, rebounding lack of youth) that Pop and co would have ignored with that "glass half full" at ude ignoring the fact that the Mavs have all the edge.

[ponky]

Heh after yesterday, I'm kinda glad we lost during january, instead of eeked out a complacent win, now it'll force the spurs to reevaluate and try to make some moves.

I'd prefer we win our last match with the Mavs in the regular season than now. We definitely have some weaknesses (at the 3 spot, rebounding lack of youth) that Pop and co would have ignored with that "glass half full" at ude ignoring the fact that the Mavs have all the edge.

That game hardly ever matters because the teams usually sit their starters to prevent injuries, rest them up, etc. It's the third to last game of the season for both teams and depending on the records, they might play hard but I doubt it. A couple of seasons ago (maybe two?) I remember Pop sitting his starters on purpose and kind of making the Mavs' win meaningless on purpose...if the Mavs are good to go in the standings, I could see Avery doing the same thing.

[ManuTim_best of Fwiendz]

That game hardly ever matters because the teams usually sit their starters to prevent injuries, rest them up, etc. It's the third to last game of the season for both teams and depending on the records, they might play hard but I doubt it. A couple of seasons ago (maybe two?) I remember Pop sitting his starters on purpose and kind of making the Mavs' win meaningless on purpose...if the Mavs are good to go in the standings, I could see Avery doing the same thing.

Oops, I didn't check when it falls on the schedule, I guess it's right before the playoffs then.

With this rate of wins and losses, Mavs will probably get Homecourt advantage anyway. I mean, for one thing, Homecourt advantage didn't have any bearing on either teams in the WCSF, so I guess it really won't matter.