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Leave the panicking to me.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/b...n.379156a.html
Spurs: Popovich opts for calm instead of panicking
Jeff McDonald
San Antonio Express-News
CHICAGO — The Spurs boarded their northbound charter flight Wednesday afternoon with a bit of unwanted baggage in the luggage compartment: A four-game losing streak, their longest in the regular season in seven years.
The Spurs haven't lost five in a row since the 1996-97 season, which they did on seven occasions during an injury-plagued 20-62 campaign. The reward for their freefall of 11 years ago?
Tim Duncan in the ensuing draft lottery, followed by four NBA championships in nine seasons.
This time around, the Spurs are hoping it doesn't come to that. They are playing for the present, and for the postseason.
"We'd like to be in the playoffs," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said, aware of the statement's obviousness.
As the losses have piled up this month, the Spurs have projected an air of calm. Popovich has continued to bang the drum of consistency, praising his team's compe ive fire, claiming more concern in whether the team is improving than in whether it is winning.
Yet the Spurs have also come to grips with the sobering truth: Even at 44-23, their passport to the postseason is anything but a rubber-stamp formality. Many more well-played losses, and they could soon find themselves in the unaccustomed position of fighting for their playoff lives.
That's because the Western Conference is overflowing with playoff contenders as never before. At this time last year, the Spurs' record was only three games better than it is now, yet they had already clinched a playoff berth.
This year's race for the postseason, by contrast, seems poised to push into April.
"It's like the playoffs have already started for a lot of us," Popovich said.
Thanks in part to their four-game skid, only the third of the Duncan era, the Spurs have dropped from first in the West to sixth.
Popovich, for his part, says he doesn't care about that little numeral in parentheses next to "Spurs" in the standings, so long as it is less than nine. Anything greater than eight leaves the defending NBA champions shockingly out of the postseason altogether.
The Spurs haven't hit that danger zone just yet. They are still closer to first place (two games) than ninth (four). Beat a few teams in a row, and the Spurs could be back atop the West, especially now that they and the red-hot Houston Rockets own identical winning streaks.
"It's a fine line between a win and a loss," point guard Tony Parker said. "We're having a bad period, lost a couple games in a row. But all the games we were in the game. That's why we can't get in a panic mode."
The Spurs are optimistic the road to recovery runs through Chicago. Tonight, they face a 27-40 Bulls team scrapping for its own playoff place in the weaker Eastern Conference.
Even before boarding that charter jet, the Spurs made strides to answer one of their more pressing questions. More often than not during their losing skid, the Spurs' bench has been unproductive.
In order to coax more punch out of his group of reserves, Popovich returned to an old starting lineup in a 93-91 loss to Boston on Monday. He sent sparkplug Manu Ginobili and newcomer Kurt Thomas to the bench, inserting Michael Finley and Fabricio Oberto in their place.
It was the same first five Popovich used during the playoffs last season, and for much of the first half of this campaign.
The result: Ginobili had 32 points, and a bench that had scored just 14 points in a loss at Philadelphia a game earlier had 52 against the Celtics.
Popovich so liked what he saw, he declared this to be the Spurs' starting lineup permanently.
In reverting to their old lineup, the Spurs hope to revert to their old selves.
They left San Antonio on Wednesday with some unwanted baggage in tow. They hope to leave it in Chicago for good.
"We are upset, of course," Ginobili said. "But we are really willing to change things and trust in our teammates, knowing we have the same team that won the championship last year. We still have our chances."
Leave the panicking to me.
as long as they don't have to face the hornets in the first round, they'll be okay.
Spurs have to be ready to face anyone to win the le... and they are more than capable to get it done.
I am seeing it the other way.
The Hornets is a good team alright, but they still need to beat the Spurs in 4 out of 7 games.
Playing against the same team for a 7 game max ? Playoff experience still comes into play.
Doesn't matter who the Spurs are playing if they are playing well, and it doesn't matter who has home court. Someone with home court is going to have to win two games in a row against them to open a series. That's a tall order when the Spurs are on.
The Hornets have Bonzi...that's not a good thing for Spurfan.
Sounds more like a plan, than a suggestion.But we are really willing to change things
I wonder what Pop has planed as far as changes.
I hope its to play the Big 3 together more.
Beat Chicago (easy), Sacramento (easy), and Dallas (harder), and they're right back in it...no worries...
By the end of the season, the Spurs will be in the top four seeds.
Go Spurs Go
Hornets are a lot younger and more athletic than the Spurs so I can see that being a difficult series. Even if the Spurs win it, it's not going to be a quick or easy series.
Same goes for if the Spurs have to play the Jazz. IMO, Right now the Jazz are probably the best team in the West.
Perhaps Pop shoud've opted for younger instead of older.
Bonzi is a Spur killer ...pray tht is not the matchup Spurs would be favored vs. anyone else (IMO)
LOL that panic button is funny but itz also funny that Suns fans think they turned things around with a home win ALL of the top teams in the west should win at home the road losses are the ones that hurt Like rockets failing to beat Boston after thety played Spurs the night before or the MAVS losing to a depleted Lakers team ...those kinda of losses could mean the differnce in HCA
I agree, certain players dominate the spurs and Bonzi is definitely one of them. I dont really understand how this happens, I think its just that some play styles work really well against the Spurs and its scary to watch.
Hornets would be dangerous IMO.
Yeah those young guys are just overflowing and they are not giving any of em a chance
It's amazing how someone, who seems to be such an avid Spurs enthusiast, can be such a blind apologist.Yeah those young guys are just overflowing and they are not giving any of em a chance
We need a top 4 seed. There is no way we will come out of the West without homecourt in any of the rounds. That's too hard of a task for any team in this league.
It's amazing how someone, who seems to be such an avid Spurs enthusiast, can be such a blind apologist.
Im still waiting on the list of young guys the Spurs gave up on.
Have yet to see it. Just ing and and nothing else is brought.
Just like they needed homecourt through out, just like they needed a number 1 seed.....
Just like the Mavs got out in the first round....
Sorry to break it to you but there are 4 solid contenders in the West (Lakers, Hornets, Mavs, Suns) other than the Spurs. Last year there were 2. We had to go through one without homecourt. We don't absolutely need homecourt to win a playoff series but to win three playoff series in the West without it would be a near impossible task.
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