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Help side defense
When you consider that in the closing minutes of Game 2, the Suns repeatedly chose to attack Duncan with Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire in a pick-and-roll situation, it's a fair question to ask.
The Nash-Stoudemire high screen action is one of the most lethal weapons in basketball, but the frequency with which Phoenix deployed it against Duncan was disarming for anyone who's watched the future Hall of Famer play defense since his days at Wake Forest. In his prime, few big men mul asked pick-and-roll defense the way Duncan could. He had both the intuition, reaction and agility to harass the craftiest ball-handlers, while simultaneously checking the screener. Duncan almost always seemed to guess right -- but it wasn't guesswork at all. Duncan's instincts guided his movement on the defensive end of the floor.
Wednesday night in Game 2, Duncan seemed ill-equipped to deal with the speed and precision of Nash and Stoudemire, and the Suns made the Spurs pay for that vulnerability. Time catches up with every athlete -- ask anyone who watched Willie Mays stumble around in centerfield in Shea Stadium during his twilight years. Duncan certainly isn't that desperate. Even at his most exposed, he's no worse than average for an NBA big man on the pick-and-roll. Still, his Game 2 performance clearly suggests that Duncan is no longer an asset in this capacity, at least not in the Spurs' current defensive scheme.
http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/pos...sive-liability
Help side defense
I've said that before, he is not a great defender anymore, he is really slow now, no doubt
"In the other end, Tim was named in the best defensive teams in the nba this year again and again. Duncan is really a great defender? I do not believe that. Not this year at least. "Chaning who" killed us from 3, when he wants and made those 3. Tim was defending him. He can not stop Frye?????????? Change that defense if Tim can not follow him, 3 points is the only one thing that "Chan..... " can hurt us
Tim run out of gas, in defense, he is slow, he has not got the legs to defend a quicker player like Amare or Chancho Frito at the 3 point line, he is slower than the rest in defense.That is a problem to solve"
I think calling him a defensive liability is a stretch, but he's not the defender he once was. The instincts are still there, but he's lost the speed and athleticism that made him an absolute lock-down defender before his knees started to degenerate.
Hmm, it couldn't be that Tim had 5 fouls and was trying to stay in the game.
Already a thread on this issue including this link and post.
http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=153560
All of which are reasons why Duncan needed better defenders around him - both on the perimeter and along the frontline.
Losing an elite perimeter defender like Bowen, without a semblance of a replacement, has been as detrimental to Duncan and the Spurs, as has been the decline in his defensive skills.
Most of us knew after another year giving of TD no help that this would bite us in the ass. TD is amazing even at his age but he can no longer be there to do everything himself.
Just another year where TD is expected to guard the paint all by his lonesome I suppose...
The FO has failed at this greatly for Tim Duncan most of his career.
Antonio McDyess has been pretty darn good the past three weeks.
Agreed, Dice has been comming around but he hardly gets played.
We really miss Bowen.
he's still a great post defender. he's slower than he used to be, but i wouldn't call him a liability
and yah, the FO owes TD one cuz he's bailed them out all those years without D Rob. i just wonder why spurs never kept nesterovic, mohamed or elson. none of them were great but they filled the paint well enough
This is why I can't understand getting rid of Ratliff.
hes still as good as it gets for defending most posts. but stoudemire is so damn quick that tim can no longer keep up with him. a'm'a''r'e'''' is like Tim's achilles heel
yah, ????
The FO has been negligent in not targeting/developing another player(s), who could help offset some of the skills Duncan has become famous for. The rebounding, shotblocking, post defense and low-post scoring are things that the Spurs primarily rely on Duncan for. At age 34, it's just too much of a load for him - game in and game out. Dice has come on, as of late. However, the fact is Duncan is still a "man on an island" against opponents.
It really sucks that Ian, for whatever reason, has not been able to see the floor this season. I believe he could've helped in some of these areas - and still do.
I'd like to see some video of other teams defending the Suns P&R. It seems like a quick, good shooting, excellent passing PG (Nash) and a tall quick excellent finishing , improving shooter, C/PF (Amare) would be a tough assignment for any team. I also seem to remember New Orleans killing us with that Chris Paul and David West/Chandler. And that was 3 years ago when we TD was younger.
Looking back on the Rasho for Bonner trade, I REALLY wish we had kept Rasho. He was slow and goofy but he could hold his own in the paint and pull down boards. That 2004 team didn't hold teams to the lowest PPG in NBA history for no reason.
not sure if you're agreeing or disagreeing. I thought Ratiliff did a good enough job when he got in the game this year even though it was moslty trash time. If you're not going to play Ian, why get rid of Ratliff. So now Dice is the only other length (and that's using the term loosely) that gets PT. Bonner as first big off the bench is reeeeedicorous.
I think TD is still a good post defender, but the Suns are putting the screen way out at the 3pt line. The small ball lineups are also exposing TD. When both teams go 1 post, 4 wings, thats TD and Amare matched up 1-1. TD can't rest on D, and we need him on offense.
We are also underestimating Amare. This is guy that could put up 30 on us easily, and that was 5 years ago when he wasn't as skilled and TD was still in his prime.
haha, 100% agreeing. i was one who actually thought the ratliff signing was quietly the best offseason move this season. that and bogans (but man was i wrong). always loved ratliff and getting him was better late then never
Such a stupid thread.
You're oblivious to the point here. You read the thread then go on a tantrum.
The point here isn't that Duncan is a liability defensively. The point here is the Spurs defense as a whole is more vulnerable when Duncan is guarding Amare in the pick and roll.
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