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Excellent Article!
An infusion of new blood has given the old Spurs a little pick-me-up this season.
Spurs feeling chipper with infusion of new guys in lineup
Art Garcia, NBA.com
There's a kid-like skip in the giddyup of the old-gun Spurs these days. It even shows in their quick draws -- at least judging by Manu Ginobili's manual dexterity around flying rodents.
Bat rejections aside, though, San Antonio's mainstays needed a little pick-me-up. Now they have it.
"They're excited about the new faces and the addition of talent, the athleticism," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of the enduring trio of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Ginobili. "New faces always bring a different sort of outlook. We had a very good summer on paper and now we have to see if it translates into good team play as the year progresses."
The Spurs were after a summer facelift a little more permanent than Botox, so owner Peter Holt opened his wallet, a noteworthy move for a franchise that guards the bottom line as much as the baseline.
A scorer in his prime (Richard Jefferson), a playoff-hardened vet (Antonio McDyess) and a rookie steal (DaJuan Blair) joined a core that was virtually untouched. Last-season's surprise trio -- Roger Mason, Matt Bonner and George Hill -- remain valuable contributors but don't have to carry nearly the same burden.
Don't forget, the Spurs were good last season. Just not good enough. They picked up another Southwest Division le, but that means little in the Alamo City. (All the division les are listed on one banner at the AT&T Center.) The first-round exit at the hands of the upstate Mavericks had a built-in excuse -- Ginobili was injured -- but the Spurs' front office knew that bringing back the same group, even healthy, wouldn't stack up with the league's elite.
The Spurs didn't need a culture change. More like a culture adjustment.
"You should never get tired or bored of winning, but I think they knew that they needed something," Jefferson said. "In the past, they always had enough. With other teams in the league getting better and younger, I think the Spurs for the first time in 10 years felt like they needed to make some key additions.
"The lift is more of the team and the players like what was brought in. We all get along. We're all on the same page."
The Spurs opened with a statement rout over New Orleans before being ambushed in Chicago. All the good vibes and good press -- this columnist picked San Antonio to win it all -- goes only so far. At some point, adversity promises to strike, bat-like.
Even if these Spurs are better equipped to deal with an injury or a losing skid -- or rabies -- there's something to be gained for going through all that. Jefferson, for one, is actually ready to see what happens when life hands the Spurs lemons.
"You look forward to it because that's when the season starts," he said. "It's no different than the playoffs. The playoffs don't start until you lose your first home game. Now it's a matter of really playing.
"Once that first hiccup comes and you have to man up, you have a three-game losing streak with Boston and Cleveland back-to-back on the road in front of you, that's when you see what you're made of."
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Quotable
"While I don't think Manu has any interest in stomping on bluebonnets, burning pecan trees, or spitting on the Alamo, I think he should recognize how important these creatures are to our area."
-- San Antonio brewer Scott Metzger on Mexican free-tailed bats, recognized as the official flying mammal of Texas. Ginobili swatted one to its demise on Halloween. Metzger brews Freetail beer.
Excellent Article!
I love him putting in the bat.
Nice read. Much fresher than rehashed takes where a leading question for Pop turns into an entire article about something Pop is doing with the team.
Hey look!
Wonderful read!
Ah, yes! Winning.
DaJuan
Awesome Scott the brewer sooner with the big time quote. Congrats
What do you see wrong with the picture?
Exactly what I was thinking-which one doesn't belong?
Lol you haters.
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