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I could go either way really, I have no problem with Spurs playing Lakers first round.
I bet the Lakers get up for this game because Portland a potential first round opponent and they've been very shaky lately.
I could go either way really, I have no problem with Spurs playing Lakers first round.
If Portland loses to LA & OKC and the Spurs beat Minnesota on Monday, then we would be guaranteed at least the 7th seed before we even play the Mavs.
So with that said I will definitely be hoping for a Portland loss tomorrow.
If you guys have "no problem" playing the Lakers in the first round, then..I honestly don't know what to say. Foolish arrogance/blind optimism? We won the most recent regular season game against them. It means something but I feel like ST members are highly overrating the win.
The Lakers are playoff/championship proven, just like the spurs. Why on earth would you guys so nonchalantly be OK with the lakers first round? It's absurd.
Maybe there are some of you who harbor the mentality of "Oh I just want to 'get it over with', if we lose to the lakers we 'would've lost to them anyway' later"
That's hogwash, in my opinion. Time and time again, parker has proven to be our "Laker killer" and we need to give him time to get back up to speed. That's precisely why we want to avoid the Lakers 1st round at all costs.
Before tonight's game.
Asked on a scale of 1 to 10 how bad he wanted to face the Lakers in the opening round, Popovich simply answered, “Minus-5.”
this.
Why are we so afraid to play them in the first round?
We beat the out of them twice this season.
Gotta go through them eventually.
(I will grant you that the NBA/refs will not allow them be ousted in the 1st round w/o a herculean effort by the opponent)
I think Pop actually wants LA at this point. Probably figures we'll have to get through them eventually anyways, and it'll be better to catch them with Bynum still coming back from injury--so why not get it over with? Not saying this is smart or not, but it is gutsy.
never will I root for the lakers---under any cir stance.
And also, this. Kobe's going to get about 10 times his fair share of free throws in the playoffs by virtue of being "kobe."
I shudder to think of a Lakers vs OKC matchup. 60% of the points for both teams will probably be made at the free throw line by kobe bryant and kevin durant.
ill cheer for the lakers to jump off of a cliff the lakers
I don't think Parker's PF is going away any time soon.. maybe next season with enough rest.. but then again, there's the NT calling ..
I think no other team will get the Spurs to focus more and play their best BB than the Lakers. That's all we can ask of the team, to play its best.. hopefully, it will be good enough. None guarantees asked, none give. Its just a game folks.
Because they'll likely take the Spurs in 4 or 5 easy if Parker's not nearing 100% (which he won't be by the time the series starts). At least the Spurs would have a puncher's chance with the big three healthy in a potential later series against them. Avoiding the 8-seed is an absolute necessity for the Spurs, and they better play these next 2 games like game 7 of the Finals.
Go Lakers tomorrow!
Even though this is clearly Pop's dry humor there's some truth behind his words. Phil already laid the ground work for Artest. Manu will get mugged and calls won't be made, facing the Lakers in the first round is like facing Goliath with infinite ammo and 99 lives
Best case senerio for Spurs: Lakers beat portland and then Portland beat okc on monday and Spurs win out. We will be 6th seed and hopefully draw Denver or Utah 1st round
FTL!
I'd rather the Spurs play the Lakers in the first round. If the Spurs lose, they will get a better draft pick. If they win, other teams will send them fruit baskets for knocking the Lakers out of the POs.
I don't think people realize how different the lakers have been without bynum.
The lakers have a +135 five man combination with bynum. Four of their five best 5 man combinations are with bynum.
their others without him are good, but the spurs combinations are similar.
Without Bynum, the lakers are not nearly as big.
I think the lakers are pretty hurt. Odom, kobe, and gasol have traded off injuries all year. Bynum might not be able to go even during the playoffs.
I agree with your assessment if you think Bynum is going in the playoffs, but otherwise I think the Spurs are not far off with Hill and parker back, even limited. Parker is not going to get better than he will be during the first round.
Yeah I'm really hoping we can get the 6th seed. If we can win our 1st round series, It's not impossible to think that we would face the 7th seed with HCA in the 2nd round considering how close the west is this year.
Nobody wants to face the Lakers in the first round, even if Kobe isn't even 90%. They've got homecourt, ref reputation, and one of a combination of talent, length, and experience. However they have looked vulnerable as of late.
Imo Playoffs are a whole different beast so I'm expecting LA to ante up - remember that Cleveland swept the two game regular season series against the Spurs in the same year that San Antonio swept 'em in the Finals.
Bryant is going to play, after sitting out the last two games. Call this reading into it too much if you will, but is this an indication that the Lakers (or maybe him specifically) would rather face the Trail Blazers than the Spurs in the 1st round? To put it another way, would they rather face anyone else in the West than the Spurs in the 1st round? I think they would. I'm not suggesting the Lakers or Bryant fear the Spurs, but if they had their druthers, I think they'd rather not face a team as experienced and talented as this one, particularly when they've hit their stride.
Deep down, I think the Lakers know that there's not nearly as much separation between the two teams as the standings indicate. Unlike a young team like the Thunder or the Trail Blazers, the Spurs aren't going to be just excited to be in the playoffs and they're not going to be in awe of the Lakers.
Bryant said in a recent interview (I'm fairly certain he wasn't asked about the Spurs, just the West in general) that he (to paraphrase) doesn't know why people continue to sleep on the Spurs.
I agree with this. I think people are forgetting or underestimating the fact that Bynum probably won't be fully recovered by the first round of the playoffs.
I think the Spurs has a better chance of beating the Lakers if they go against them before they get healthy again, even though the Spurs aren't completely healthy either. At this moment, I believe the Spurs are playing well enough to beat the Lakers.
That said, we can't really predict how the teams are going to look a few weeks from now. A lot of things can happen, including injuries in the last games of the season or at the beginning of the playoffs.
So what? We will have to more than likely play them anyway. Might as well get it over with now while we are playing good.
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