Basketball: Big test continues for Spurs' big men
Web Posted: 10/24/2007 10:52 PM CDT
Jeff McDonald
Express-News Staff Writer
ORLANDO, Fla. — Shaquille O'Neal hit a jump hook over Fabricio Oberto. He coaxed Oberto into a foul and completed the three-point play. Once, he lowered his shoulder and sent Oberto skidding to the floor.
Another foul on Oberto.
On the surface, Tuesday night's preseason matchup against O'Neal and the Miami Heat wasn't a great experience for Oberto, the Spurs' starting center.
But at least he still had his health.
"The first time I played him, as a rookie, I injured my ankle," Oberto said. "So this was better."
Better, but only barely.
Playing for the first time since straining his left quad earlier this preseason, O'Neal torched the Spurs for 14 of his 17 points in the first quarter and sat out the second half of what became a 104-87 Spurs victory.
Members of the Spurs' frontcourt have little time to fret their O'Neal-induced misfortune. There are other large men looming: Orlando's Dwight Howard today and Houston's Yao Ming on Friday.
By week's end, the Spurs will have faced three of the top big men in the NBA not named Tim Duncan. Fresh off scaling Everest, Kilimanjaro and Pike's Peak await.
For Oberto, Duncan and Francisco Elson, it is a grueling gauntlet with which to conclude preseason play.
Duncan, for one, can hardly wait.
"The preseason is about compe ion," Duncan said. "Sometimes, it's better when the top guys play. If you can get 15 or 20 minutes against top-notch compe ion, you only better yourself."
If O'Neal was the measuring stick, Oberto and Elson were beaten upside the head with it Tuesday.
Oberto drew the unenviable assignment of guarding O'Neal to start the game. Six and a half minutes in, O'Neal had nine points. Oberto was on the bench with three fouls.
Elson replaced Oberto but wasn't in the game for 40 seconds when O'Neal dunked on him.
Duncan had the most success in slowing the man they call "The Diesel."
With Duncan stationed to him for a good part of the second quarter, O'Neal managed just three points. Duncan, however, did struggle on the offensive end, waiting until the second half to record his first field goal and finishing with seven points.
In a sense, O'Neal's early outburst was to be expected. When healthy, O'Neal is still the most dominant low-post force in the league. After sitting out two games, he was certainly rested for the Spurs.
As Duncan put it afterward: "Shaq did Shaq things."
Whether Howard can do Howard things or Yao can do Yao things remains to be seen.
Those players, too, pose a sizeable preseason challenge for the Spurs' big men.
Howard, a 6-foot-11 powderkeg, will attack with his freakish athletic gifts — who can forget his airwalking alley-oop dunk over Duncan to beat the Spurs last season?
Yao, meanwhile, will attack with freakish size — at 7-foot-6, he is the tallest player in the league.
Yet to Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, the remainder of the preseason isn't just about a battle of big men.
In his view, it was a breakdown of the Spurs' entire team defensive concept that allowed O'Neal his ballistic first quarter. Mending that malfunction will be one of Popovich's top priorities before the season opens against Portland on Tuesday.
After O'Neal's initial barrage, the Spurs began to double-team him with guards and wings. All too often, however, the cavalry arrived too late to help.
"I don't think our team defense was very good in its rotation," Popovich said. "It's good to learn those things in the preseason."
Popovich can thank O'Neal for the lesson. Beginning today, Howard and Yao will be happy to help as well.
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I hope this wasn't posted yet either.
With the number of finesse teams without traditional centers we have faced in the Western Conference since the demise of the Lakers, could this become a problem if we face Houston in the playoffs or O'Neal in the Finals? It seems we are no longer built to battle a traditional center.
Where's Rasho when you need him?If O'Neal was the measuring stick, Oberto and Elson were beaten upside the head with it Tuesday.
Oberto drew the unenviable assignment of guarding O'Neal to start the game. Six and a half minutes in, O'Neal had nine points. Oberto was on the bench with three fouls.
Elson replaced Oberto but wasn't in the game for 40 seconds when O'Neal dunked on him.
In truth: the problem for the Spurs is they need Duncan to guard these guys but they don't want to risk it initially. He defends Shaq, Yao... better by far than Oberto or Elson.
... or Rasho.Where's Rasho when you need him?
In truth: the problem for the Spurs is they need Duncan to guard these guys but they don't want to risk it initially. He defends Shaq, Yao... better by far than Oberto or Elson.
When the Lakers beat the Spurs in 2004 Rasho had one illusion of a good game, the first, when he fronted Shaq and Jackson the Great failed to adjust on the entry pass for the entire game. After Jackson adjusted in game 2 on the entry pass angle Rasho was totally worthless.
Thank God that he's in Toronto!Where's Rasho when you need him?
and 4 points!
Ostertag might still be availible.
Dwight Howard is a fluke [/jeffdrums]
Gee, I seem to remember sitting AT game 5 and watching Shaq held to only 11 points. And even the greatest of Rasho haters admits he does an amazing job when he matches up with Yao. The Spurs chose to have no one to do that. It worked in 2007 because of whom they ended up playing against in the play-offs. It remains to be seen if it will work in 2008.
Re Shaq: Run that fat boy into the ground. By the 4th quarter he's sucking wind and fouling.
He couldn't run a full game when he came into the league and he damn sure can't do it at his current age and physical condition.
Oberto gets better the more games count.
I'm happy with Elson's rebounding. His rate has been pretty consistent throughout the preseason.
Bonner needs another look in the next game.
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