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every dog has his day. game was a 20 point loss before pop waved the massenburg.
Take a look at the score one more time, no matter how disgusted you are. 102-71. All that score tells you is that the Spurs suffered a huge defeat by an incredible margin of points for an NBA Finals game.
However, it may be what it doesn't tell you that matters the most. It doesn't tell you that early in the first half Ben Wallace hit 18 footers. It doesn't tell you that in that same first half Chauncy Billups hit several buzzer beating and downright miraculous shots. It doesn't tell you of a foul or 2 that wasn't called and not only took away points from the Spurs, but led to easy scores for the Pistons.
It doesn't tell you that Lindsey Hunter - previously the worst shooter in the history of the post shot clock NBA playoffs - outscored every player the Spurs put out on the court; including a 2 time Finals MVP. It doesn't tell you that his sidekick off the bench McDyess seemingly scored a point for every one of his knee surgeries.
Any basketball game - even ones decided by 30 points - have key individual turning points. A looseball, a charge call, or a buzzer beater are all momentum killers or sparks depending on which side of the ball you're on. They can kill a team or they can ignite a team.
Make no mistake about it, if the Spurs don't fly up from San Antonio in time for game 5, they will lose another game. But before declaring that the Spurs are back to Charmin status, take notice of the rising tide of unlikely events coming together for the Pistons. Officiating will even out over the course of a series. McDyess will come back down to earth, but probably not before Lindsey Hunter leaves a crater in the ground. And Ben Wallace will once again pain the rim with 18 foot jump shots.
Sometimes you hit a Memorial Day Miracle. Sometimes Rober Horry's game winning 3 rims out. Sometimes .4 happens. The road to the Larry Obrien trophy takes a lot of heart, there's no denying that. But it also takes a lot of luck and the Spurs are due.
every dog has his day. game was a 20 point loss before pop waved the massenburg.
OUSTANDING POST MANNY!!! picked me up out of the dumps a little bit
one thing is in our favor
hunter can not play that well again
and dare I say prince will not be as a big factor either
TP MUST SHOW UP SUNDAY AND PLAY THE MOST MINUTES HE HAS YET IN A GAME THIS SERIES
Teams will find ways to make fortunate shots against a Prevent defense.
The Spurs made them way too comfortable out there. They need to be more physical and create a lot more havoc. If that means gambling a bit more, so be it... at least give them something to think about when they're telegraphing passes to each other.
you said the same crap after game 3
lets face it..the pistons have fiqured out the spurs defense and the pistons are shutting down the spurs guards.
funny how the pistons go home and suddenly figure things out. unfortunately for piston fan they have to win in sa. that means without their fans, their pyrotechnics and a loud black man on the mike.
they havent figured out jack, mother er.
tp showed up in game three
duncan and man did not
Let's wipe the Slate clean it now best of three. Look Forward lick the wounds and come out to battle. Bring the Spurs Spirit back and paly hard and smart ball I guess bring on the Inspiration they had when they played the SUNS>SCORE SCORE SCORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Admit it. Our loud black man announcer is better than your boring white boy announcer.
um, ok. re-read what you just typed and think about what has become of your life.
Our guy is boring as all , but your guy is ob b b b b b noxious. Only in Detroit would stuttering be considerd awesome.
You say that like its an accomplishment.Admit it. Our loud black man announcer is better than your boring white boy announcer.
your announcer sucks. he can't even properly pronounce most words and names.
ouch, good one
Its stupid to bring race into any of this and talk about announcers and meaningless like that. I'm more concerned with the Spurs transition defense and their passing and ballhandling.
Great post, Manny, btw!
whatever makes you feel better at night
fact is the spurs have no mental toughness and if they lose again in game 5..the pistons will win the le. they have something the spurs don't
GUTS
True to a certain extent.
But, that's basketball. Every game has its share of lucky bounces, great performance from unexpected players, unfavorable officiating. But, some would say you make your own luck. Your effort and energy factor in fortunate cir stances.
Would you say the same thing for the Pistons after game 2? Were there tough foul calls on Rip and Tayshaun in the first half that caused the ball to bounce in the Spurs' favor? The no-goaltending call on Tayshaun's lay up? A seemingly easy steal that landed in the hands of Robert Horry for an easy lay-up.
Of course, you shouldn't expect Ben Wallace to make three jumpshots in a game or for Lindsey Hunter to get hot and carry the offensive load for an entire quarter or a no call foul on an "easy" hack on Tim Duncan's arm. But, it happens. The luck was not with the Pistons in games 1 and 2. And, vice versa for the Spurs in the next two games. The Pistons definitely had a favorable whistle the last two games.
But, that's part of the game. And, in a 31 point pasting, the best realization you could have as a Spurs fans is that your team was simply outplayed. Knowing that your team is similarly able to blowout the Pistons and the fact you have two games at home should keep you positive.
Fans from both sides should just take it game by game, quarter by quarter, possession by possession.
and the pistons had mental toughness when they followed up a 15 point loss with a 21 point one? eh?
I agree that absolutely everthing came together for the Pistons last night.
It happens to all teams ( Spurs loss @POR ).
I disagree about the luck, since nobody can dispute the old saw:
"The harder I work, the luckier I get"
... and the Spurs "luck" totally depends on how hard they work, fuelled by courage in the face of extreme adversity, and desire.
( It's wonderful that Spurs will still pick up there multi-$100K paychecks for the month of June. )
Games3 and 4 2005 vs Psitons are eerily just like Games3,4,5,6 of 2004 vs Lakers. Defend Tim hard, and shut down the paint. GAMEOVER.
I was worried all season that whatever TF happend last May had not been corrected (one eg.: Spurs loss @MIA by losing both rebounds, paint, and Tim shutdown).
You can bet the Pistons will keep defending in Games5 and 6 just like they did in Game3 and 4. Any team executing the same tactics, and not all can, would get the same results.
I bet the Spurs, esp Pop and Tim, like May 04, will have no answer. Tim, esp, just has to stop the ty, weak play.
Mr Spurs Franchise has to find a way.
Pop just has to abandon the 4-down, because the 4 just stand there watching Tim getting beat to .
Go Spurs Go
they had it when they bounced back to win by 17 and 31..thats shows heart and toughness
pistons are at their best in these kind of situations..spurs are not
The Spurs have definetly had their share of bounces in the first 2 games. There's no deneying that. Detroit also missed a lot of interior shots, and while the Spurs have a great defense that wasn't all them.
The fact is that the Spurs D is not bad enough to allow Detroit over 90 points - or 100 for that matter - on a consistent basis. And Detroits D isn't good enough to stop the Spurs from getting to 80 on a consistent basis.
There's a median somewhere in there, and it's probably going to turn game 5 into the best game of the series.
the larger point is that homecourt is the difference in this series. for those of you who were spazzing out about the spurs getting homecourt during the regular season, congrats.
where did the pistons win those games? thank you.
Manny, you'd make a heck of a spin doctor on a presidential campaign! Contact a party leader of your choice and you're on your way to 2008.
I know you're trying to make us feel better, but freaky, lucky stuff happens when you hustle. The Spurs just flat out didn't play with any hustle, aggresiveness, or urgency. That's what lost them the game.
I know you're not blaming the loss on freaky stuff, just the margin of loss. But I think all that freaky stuff happens as a result of a team playing 48 minutes of urgent basketball, which builds confidence, which results in every player doing things he usually doesn't.
Bottom line, it's a result of the both teams' at udes during the game. If the Spurs come out with the same crappy, non-hustling team effort, then the same outcome will result, with new freaky, lucky shots and bounces.
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