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The part about Nazr is very interesting to me. It seems like Rasho might be back as the starter once again.
Spurs showcase newcomers Van Exel, Finley, Oberto
Web Posted: 10/23/2005 12:12 AM CDT
Johnny Ludden
Express-News Staff Writer
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/b...r.39d0832.html
If there was any question as to whether the Spurs' newcomers would be ready to immediately contribute, it might have been answered Saturday night.
Michael Finley, Nick Van Exel and Fabricio Oberto combined for 35 points off the bench as the Spurs lost to the New York Knicks 96-90 at the SBC Center.
Tony Parker led the Spurs with 21 points in 30 minutes.
Oberto (10 points, six rebounds) brought the crowd — and his teammates — to their feet with a between-the-legs pass to Finley, who was standing behind him in the corner. Finley made the open jump shot for two of his 15 points.
Van Exel (10 points, four assists) later threw a wrap-around pass to Oberto, who laid the ball through the rim as he was fouled.
Despite their influx of talent, the Spurs showed they haven't lost their willingness to share the ball. On one fourth-quarter possession, they made seven passes until Oberto sprang free for a layup.
"We are all starting to play better together," Manu Ginobili said. "We still need to get to know each other better, but we are making some progress. We're on the right track."
Lineup change?: Nazr Mohammed missed the game after flying to Kentucky a day earlier to be with his wife, who is ill. He also missed three games from Oct.12-15 after the birth of his son.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said Mohammed's absence and preseason struggles — he got lost in some of the team's sets during Thursday's victory against New Orleans — means it's "up in the air" as to whether he or Rasho Nesterovic will start the Nov.1 opener.
"Nazr's had kind of an up-and-down camp," Popovich said. "He's just had to make sure everything is OK at home. He's missed a decent portion of what he didn't get last year, even though he played pretty well for us in spurts in the playoffs last season. He's just behind a little bit."
Because Mohammed joined the team midway through last season, the Spurs were hoping to use the preseason to get him more acclimated to their offense.
His absence "affects everything," Popovich said. "His familiarity with what we're doing, getting the system down. Come playoff time, you make so many adjustments that everything isn't exactly what you did in training camp. If you didn't have training camp, you don't have the base.
"Sometimes he was on the fly trying to do something in the playoffs that he hadn't practiced very much. Considering that, he did a heck of a job."
Ginobili OK: Ginobili played despite having to leave practice a day earlier after he was kneed in the left thigh. "Nothing serious," he said.
Homecoming: Malik Rose wasn't the only Knicks player glad to be back in San Antonio. Sam Houston graduate Steven Barber is trying to make New York's roster.
Knicks coach Larry Brown started Rose and Barber because of their local ties.
Rose received a loud ovation when he was introduced before the game. He committed a couple of early fouls, knocking Tim Duncan out of bounds and running over Bruce Bowen for a rebound, drawing laughs from both.
Barber, who worked out at the Spurs' practice facility for a week this summer, had seven points in 19 minutes. Rose had four points and five rebounds but missed all six of his shots.
Well-dressed man: Finley is regarded as one of the NBA's best dressers. But that doesn't mean he necessarily agrees with the league's new dress code.
"I can understand why the league is trying to do it, but I don't think clothes improve our image," Finley said. "You can put a monkey in a suit, and it's still a monkey."
Finley almost always wears a suit to games. When he was in the fourth grade, his basketball coach made him wear a tie.
"I had two ties, two shirts and two pairs of pants I just rotated," Finley said. "Any game we went to during the year, he said he wanted us to look like we're about business.
"College was a little tough because I couldn't afford it. But as soon as I got enough money to wear a suit every game, I did."
Finley's Chicago-based tailor, Willie Scott, has asked Finley to recommend him to any player in need of expanding his wardrobe to meet the dress code. Scott, coincidentally, used to play professionally in Ginobili's hometown of Bahia Blanca, Argentina. Ginobili was a ball boy for the team.
Overheard: Veteran official Luis Grillo, in calling a foul on Finley: "Finley, No.4, hit (Eddy Curry) in the head first, then flops." Said Popovich, "You've got to tell them he flops, too?"
The part about Nazr is very interesting to me. It seems like Rasho might be back as the starter once again.
I'd give myself another kluby, but it was too easy a call.
Oberto could be starting as well
Rasho is built for the regular season. People during the playoffs forget that they are managed so differently than the regular season games. Also, with the additions of NVE, Finley, and Oberto, the Spurs need guys on the floor who know the system and Rasho definitely does.Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said Mohammed's absence and preseason struggles — he got lost in some of the team's sets during Thursday's victory against New Orleans — means it's "up in the air" as to whether he or Rasho Nesterovic will start the Nov.1 opener.
Did you see Rasho go up aggressively for the dunk and take the foul? Making the 2 previous free throws helped a lot. He also TOOK and made a big basket late in the game, which was nice to see, especially when he had missed his other two shots. Rasho is playing well.
If Rasho is playing better than Nazr, shouldn't he start?
Maybe just a ploy to try to get his trade value up?
Start Rasho
So you'd rather see Nazr start despite the fact that everybody agrees he's not playing well right now?
Way to be a fan of the team
I guess this puts to rest all the Rasho being traded rumors.
It's one thing to understand the system better than sombody else, it's quite another to actually perform in it. As long as we see aggressive/active Rasho, I think he'll start. If he regresses like he did last year to the point that he's playing like he's too intimidated/scared to step up and be an active part of the team on both ends of the floor, we'll see more Nazr and Oberto.
It's a shame about Nazr missing so much of the preseason. Given the flashes of promise he showed last year, I was looking forward to seeing how he could play in the offensive and defensive systems with a full camp under his belt to better familiarize himself with their intricacies.
Rasho definitely looks good and I don't see any reason why he can't start and be effective. The only problem I see is that he is being more aggressive, which is a good thing, but it's going to get him into foul trouble more quickly. I thought Oberto looked good. He seems to be acclimating quickly. His free-throw shot is smooth.
Angel and I can show Rasho a little finese ....
It is great to hear that THE MAN is getting in there and being alittle more aggressive....I am loving it!!!! It seems there will be some tweaking for the players to get their game, Nazr has time still. I do hope Nazr's wife feels better soon and congrtas on the new addition to their family.
Best wishes for Nazr's wife. I hope she feels better real soon.
I like Nazr over Rasho for starting at center. I don't think that Nazr does to well off the bench compared to if he is starting. Rasho on the other hand gives you the same if he is comming off the bench or as a starter.(not much) I don't see Oberto starting anytime this year unless there is an injury to Nazr.
"Nazr's had kind of an up-and-down camp," Popovich said.
This is working out exactly how I expected. The negative PR machine is churning and the Spurs will rally the fans behind the idea of letting Mohammed walk at the end of the season. Once the Spurs don't like you anymore or they realize they can't keep you, they'll float all kinds of negative stories to get the average fan on their side. See what they did to Malik Rose, Derek Anderson, Antonio Daniels, Avery Johnson and others.
With Mohammed in the "doghouse", that'll give Rasho a chance to start. That allows the Spurs to raise his value and ultimately trade him. Then they'll go with Oberto as the starter with Mohammed still "troubled". Mohammed will end up playing minutes in the playoffs, but by then his stock will be so low that the Spurs can either re-sign him cheaply or let him walk without any fan uproar.
Man, this Spurs franchise is a machine. They have this city and 99.9% of their fans in the palm of their hand.
Unluckily for them, some of us have cracked the code.
timvp, with such paranoia, you should be posting in the political forum!
I think the Nazr vs Rasho compe ion is extremely close, duh, each having different strengths and weaknesses. Neither has the talent to be anything but a "hustle" role player, and I think Rasho is gonna win the hustle contest. I've seen Nazr caught too many times in no-man's-land spectating shots rather than crashing the boards, and that has nothing to do with being new to the Spurs. A role rebounder who doesn't reflexively crash the boards on every shot ain't playing his role. That said, he's a better rebounder than Rasho.
I really don't care who wins the most minutes, just whoever helps the Spurs the most.
I'm glad they have the time to smear players while trying to win championships.
This is working out exactly how I expected. The negative PR machine is churning and the Spurs will rally the fans behind the idea of letting Mohammed walk at the end of the season. Once the Spurs don't like you anymore or they realize they can't keep you, they'll float all kinds of negative stories to get the average fan on their side. See what they did to Malik Rose, Derek Anderson, Antonio Daniels, Avery Johnson and others.
With Mohammed in the "doghouse", that'll give Rasho a chance to start. That allows the Spurs to raise his value and ultimately trade him. Then they'll go with Oberto as the starter with Mohammed still "troubled". Mohammed will end up playing minutes in the playoffs, but by then his stock will be so low that the Spurs can either re-sign him cheaply or let him walk without any fan uproar.
Man, this Spurs franchise is a machine. They have this city and 99.9% of their fans in the palm of their hand.
Unluckily for them, some of us have cracked the code.
What an incredibly stupid list of statements. The negative PR machine has a life of its own, and it's mainly the fans' reaction to the players, not to things the organization says about the players.
Malik wasn't the same after signing a big contract, and there was STILL a huge outcry when the Spurs traded him. The Derek Anderson trade was a huge black eye for the team, so it seems odd that they would have orchestrated such a fiasco. The only reason the Spurs didn't get rid of Daniels earler is because he was friends with Duncan, and the Spurs started AJ for years while everybody else said he couldn't play.
If they are a machine because of the above, they are a rather inept and lucky machine.
Maybe Pop's just trying to light a fire under Nazr. He's made critical comments to the press about Parker before and I don't think Parker's about to get dumped. Fact is Nazr has to improve or he isn't worth keeping anymore than Oberto's making and maybe not that much.
Dude missed most of camp and didn't look all that great when he did play.
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
or maybe some fans like to live in the past and dont see the decline of players but make all kinds of excuses as to why players are moved. Malik Rose, Derek Anderson, Antonio Daniels, Avery Johnson...with the exception of AD the rest of those players were declining and too expensive. Please tell me you dont think any of those players were worth their salaries. Dam Timvp you have really lost you objectivity. But then again maybe you didnt have any to begin with.
This is working out exactly how I expected. The negative PR machine is churning and the Spurs will rally the fans behind the idea of letting Mohammed walk at the end of the season. Once the Spurs don't like you anymore or they realize they can't keep you, they'll float all kinds of negative stories to get the average fan on their side. See what they did to Malik Rose, Derek Anderson, Antonio Daniels, Avery Johnson and others.
With Mohammed in the "doghouse", that'll give Rasho a chance to start. That allows the Spurs to raise his value and ultimately trade him. Then they'll go with Oberto as the starter with Mohammed still "troubled". Mohammed will end up playing minutes in the playoffs, but by then his stock will be so low that the Spurs can either re-sign him cheaply or let him walk without any fan uproar.
Man, this Spurs franchise is a machine. They have this city and 99.9% of their fans in the palm of their hand.
Unluckily for them, some of us have cracked the code.
I expect pathetic statement like yours today from a immature person like mouse but I thought you were better than mouse. I guess mouse is just rubbing off on you.
Last night was my first live game of the new season. I thought:
Fin shot too much from outside (in fact most of the Spurs didnt take it to the rim enough);
NVE looks even slower than I thought he would;
Barry also got beat on defense alot;
Oberto looked good but allowed too many easy layups;
Tim wasnt really into the game but seemed to wanna take on Malik one on one;
Malik is even more out of control as a Knick than he was as a Spur
Last edited by GoSpurs21; 10-23-2005 at 01:30 PM.
Can't you just admit that Rasho has played better than Nazr- that Rasho has had a good training camp and Nazr's hasn't been as good as was hoped- and that Rasho has earned his starting job back. There is a reason why Rasho with one less year in the league has started in twice as many games as Nazr has.
If you look at the box score, for about the same minutes, Fin took twice as many shots as either Brent or Nick. I bet Pop just wants to Michael to get comfortable, and won't let him take that many shots during the season.
timvp laid out the plot. Soon enough we will be hearing about how Mohammed doesn't say o to his teammates in the lockerroom or double parks his ride at the SBC Center.
Mohammed the Malcontent™ has begun.
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