Spurs opponents are shooting nearly 47%, which is 20th in the league during that time.
What's the reason for the Spurs drop off in FG% D?
Not enough Rasho?
It could be. Rasho is good at rotating on D. Nazr still doesn't get it. To me Bowen hasn't been himself. Guys are putting up big numbers on him. Sure he isn't going to stop or own guys on opposing teams night in and night out. However, it just seems more often now.
i don't think bowen's intensity or defense has gone down a notch or two - he is still contesting every shot, he has just faced some great players who were hitting their shots. our d should bounce back soon enough as long as they keep at it. nazr does need to do something, anything to make up for his lapses though. missing rotations isn't the end of the world if you are helping duncan grab boards.
Ray Allen and Carmelo had good games against the Spurs(Bowen) in the last 10 days. But they aren't the reason the numbers have escalated.
I think FG% Defensive is a point of concern that has to be fixed before the postseason. As much as everyone makes fun of Dallas' D, they are holding opponents to 43% in the last 10 games (44% on the season).
bring on more sho
Yes our D has dropped, but our record during that stretch is 7-3. We seem to be playing just good enough to win. Bruce has played excellent D, but some stars has just gone off on him. He can't do much when his oppostion is making contested jumpers. Nazr defense has been suspect at times, but he has been steady for the most part at the center position. Tim's lack of lateral movement against quicker frontline players is a concern. It's also about playing better on offense. A bad possesion out of an offense set can lead to easy buckets on the other end especially against teams like Golden State, Phoenix, LA, Houston.Spurs opponents are shooting nearly 47%, which is 20th in the league during that time.
What's the reason for the Spurs drop off in FG% D?
Not enough Rasho?
The spurs need to take their D to the next level like they often do this time of year. You can't turn on the switch come playoff defensively (team defense). Ask Horry about the switch on offense.
Beno has been the primary backup point guard for the last ten games. But, but, but it's just a coincidence. Beno Udrih is the Michael Jordan of backup defensive point guards.
I know he likes stability, but Pop has to be more flexible with the rotation. The roster is loaded and on any given night one guy from the Nazr/Rasho or Finley/Barry duos is going to be the better choice -- and it won't always jibe with his preconceived notions about matchups.
Points allowed per 100 possessions:
Parker -- 99.5
Van Exel -- 102.6
Beno -- 104.7
I wonder if those who said that Beno is not only a better defender than Van Exel but also a better defender than Parker still believe that.
well before that it was van exel. he's not a better defender than beno is he?Beno has been the primary backup point guard for the last ten games. But, but, but it's just a coincidence. Beno Udrih is the Michael Jordan of backup defensive point guards.
Surely a combo of things but Duncan's defense continues to deterioate. He slams the ball against the upright about 5 times a game now. Easy put backs because he doesn't rebound boost the percentage, etc. Not putting it all on him certainly. But, this year he is an average defender at best.....not the excellent one of the past.
Do you all how bad 47% is for the Spurs?
Normally they hover around 40-41 when things are going good.
The Nets are holding opponents to 38% or so in their last 10.
They are close but I'd give the slight edge to NVE due to experience. Beno gets beat off the dribble and isn't always the fastest in his rotation.
First off, anyone who uses only FG% to determine individual defense is a fool. You can play the best defense possible against Kobe or Jordan, or even a lesser-tier shooter like Micahel Redd, and if they're on, forget about it, just be glad they don't get 50. "Being lit up" != "playing bad defense". Similarly, an Allen Iverson can be getting good looks and still go 6-20 and it doesn't mean you played great defense. So statistical arguments about individual defense are meaningless; you have to actually watch the game.
Having said that, Bruce's defense against Allen wasn't his best, but it wasn't horrible. And Allen was definitely hot. And he's got the quickest release in the game, so closing him out is tough.
The major problem with the Spurs defense I've seen is that the paint is no longer closed. Guards seem to be able to penetrate from the top of the key off PnRs a lot more, a mortal sin in Pop's system. And it seems that other forwards are having a much easier time getting into the paint. Maybe that's a result of less Rasho. Horry has also had more than a few lapses on interior defense. I'm thinking that the Spurs' biggest need isn't the "long 3" but an athletic 4.
It just makes you appreciate even more what an old, creaky David Robinson was still able to accomplish.
Let's see, Kori sets 'em up, and timvp knocks 'em down?
The Rowan and Martin of SpursTalk!
Tim anchors the defense, and he's clearly not doing that as well as past years, either due to PF or due to policy of keeping Tim from getting injured.
Nazr of course is totally counter-productive on defense, and if he's not scoring nor getting RBs as in vs Sonics, why TF isn't Rasho in there more? He can't do any worse than Nazr's zero contribuion.
Remember a few games where "Razr" was giving us a big double double? Where's that gone?
Spurs have given up a lot of points in the paint this season, and lost the paint a lot vs nearly always winning the paint and RBs last season.
And it's not "just one game" as the homer's love to whine.
It's this whole month of March and before.
I think the Champions are bored, resting on their laurels. They won't "stoop to conquer" during the season. It's a very common problem of Champions and a major obstacle to repeating.
Bad RBs, mediocre defense, just bad hustle all around.
And, also, as BigVee correctly points out, Tim Duncan isn't Tim Duncan these days.
Too bad Rasho doesn't rebound and is too soft offensively. If he played 38 minutes a game, the Spurs would be setting FG% defense records.
I think lately its been their transition defense. Unless the spurs are gearing up to play Phoenix, it doesnt seem like they have the same mindset to get back in transition from game to game, and thats where teams have been killing us. Ive noticed a lot of confusion about who picks up who when running back on defense as well, causing horrible mismatches and over-rotating which frees up the lane and wide open jumpers. Other than that, the Spurs need to shore up their pick and roll defense and not allow so many mismatches from switches like a Parker on a Nowitzski. Personally, i'd rather see more 'hedges' ran than switches.
If this keeps up, we may be seeing Ian Mahinmi maybe a year earlier than the plan.
Tim was damn good looking, very mobile, really sprinting down court, these past 2 or 3 games. But his aggressiveness on defense was still kinda like Andrei K. Rather stepping into the penetrator's path, trying to alter the shot, he let's the penetrator by and tries to block the shot.
Of course, Nazr just back-peddles down the paint and right out of play, even out of bounds. Nazr loves his body, won't put it on anyone else's body. The "Nazr manoevre", quickly becoming a legend.
Nazr is only averaging 4 rebounds per game in his last five. So I'm not sure that his stellar rebounding numbers are still something to brag about.
As far as Bowen goes, lots of times when his man has a lot of points, it isn't because bowen hasn't guarded him well and turned him into the baselines for the bigs to pick up. He's done his job by slowing their star up, but if the big doesn't practice the system and pick him up, Bowen's man is gonna show bigger numbers than we're used to.
By the way, It's not just defense. How many recent games did we lose the rebound war as well?
Less Rasho, more Horry. Horry is not a very good defender or rebounder.
Manu also seems to have dropped his defensive intensity.
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