Bleacher Report - Articles by Kent Calhoun

San Antonio Spurs' Reign of Basketball Brilliance is Over

Kent Calhoun — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 05:33:53 -0400

Spurs Reign of Basketball Brilliance is Over: King Duncan is Gone

A strange thing happened in Dallas, Texas, the San Antonio Spurs played a basketball game with only two players: King Duncan and Knight’s Champion: Sir Tony Parker. Spurs remaining court jesters provided no comedic relief.

The aged King Duncan has played 14 equivalent seasons, including playoff games, and his Reign of Brilliance is now over.

The San Antonio Spurs fall into years of NBA mediocrity began during the third quarter of game four of the First Round 2009 Playoffs in Dallas, Texas.

In the third playoff game, Spurs scored the fewest points in their playoff history. This fourth game was to be the victorious response to the Dallas Maverick’s embarrassing whipping of the Spurs. Yet it was not to be. After losing game four to Dallas, it's all over!

The signs of King Duncan’s decline were there long before his knees and Ginobli’s ankle problems became regular Spur excuses for losses:

1) worst March record in over a decade,

2) a winning record over only one of seven Western playoff teams,

3) losing consecutive two games to the Oklahoma Thunder, fifth worst team in the NBA at that time,

4) from February 27, 2009 to April 7, 2009—winning only 11 of 22 games,

5) falling asleep in the second half with Old Man Syndrome—regular four to six minute non-scoring droughts, and

6) choking important game-winning foul shots.

In game four, the two Spurs played an inspired first half barely clinging to 55-51 lead.

This four point lead required Sir Parker score 31 points matching a 31 years old Spurs’ record by George “The Iceman” Gervin. What would the second half demand from Sir Tony?

Dallas fans knew this game was over before the second half began.

In the third quarter, Spurs collapsed immediately!

Spurs relinquished more than a half-time lead with a 9 point deficit, they ended an Era of Brilliance beginning with an NBA Championship that included four NBA titles over a nine-year span.

The Spurs could muster only 23 second half points without Parker’s scoring. Even with Parker, only an anemic 35 second half points scored! Duncan and Parker had no chance playing with a cast of clowns!

Spurs court jesters had the best seats, but they should have sat on the court instead of running around like crazed clowns fleeing a tiny circus car. Mavericks may have tripped over a seated jester aiding the ailing King Duncan and Sir Tony Parker, who physically jousted in athletic combat.

Spurs court jesters, soon to be junior high coaches in Loser, Alaska are Bonner, Udoka, Mason, Thomas and Gooden.

These “professionals” pathetically played 76 minutes, threw up 16 shots and made 0 as in zero! Remaining jesters? Not one scored more than seven points! King Duncan tallied 25 and Sir Parker had 43- still not enough as the Spurs lost 99-90!

What most NBA players and fans knew by the end of this game—this series, King Duncan’s reign, the future years of Spurs basketball dreams—IT'S OVER!

Popovich took the Spurs out to a steakhouse the night before that game. Smart move! Did the Maverick’s pay the tab? Popovich threw a party for a departing King, he knew after game three- it’s all over!

Popovich never realized it takes up to 24 to 72 hours to fully digest meat; and burning protein-based calories always slows peak athletic performance. Popovich should have taken players to the foul line with a basketball, especially King Duncan. A dozen missed foul shots could have provided a margin of victory.

Was Popovich's party apologizing for his poor coaching decisions: playing Duncan 30 of the first 36 painful minutes against New Orleans on March 29th in a losing effort? Making Duncan and Parker remain on the court with a 23 point lead against the Mavericks until six minutes remaining in game 2? Dozens of other similar poor decisions?

Over 81 percent of those who read my Why the Spurs Will Fold in the Semifinals disagreed with my analysis made over a month ago. A 96.5% of my readers expected the Spurs to win the First Round! Most felt the Spurs would win the Western Conference Semi-finals. We were both wrong! Spurs will never get that far. It’s over!

Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobli should retire at the end of this season, instead of embarrassing themselves like punch-drunk boxers hit in the head one too many times.

King Duncan and Manu Ginobli will leave with love, dignity, and undying respect of all NBA fans, players and San Antonio's citizens.

Hail King Duncan—Thank You for your Reign of Brilliance, but it's over, yes very sadly, it's over.

Broken Spurs: What's Wrong? How To Fix It!

Kent Calhoun — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 23:37:42 -0400

Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Spurs last night 96-95, winning their first road game against a team with a winning record this year. Thunder has the fifth fewest NBA wins this season; but 10 percent of their wins include two victories in three weeks against the Spurs.

Why did the Spurs lose these games?

The Spurs have lost nine of their last 18 games and remain mired in losing mediocrity. What will it take to jump start Spurs on the road to victory? I have suggestions.

Warning: If you are a Spurs fan, you will not like them anymore than previous articles which predicted their current run of losses!

1) Some Spurs and Coach Popovich have lost the Will to Win!!!

Players are not playing as a team but pointing fingers in game huddles. I am tired of Popovich and Duncan shrugging their shoulders with generic responses like “it’s just a game” and “we are struggling now.”

These responses declare Spurs do not know why they lost and will repeat losses! Think defense. Think poor coaching. Not worn-out excuses!

The next time Pop or Duncan offer apathetic responses, I wish a reporter would yell “WAKE UP! DO YOU WANT TO WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP OR NOT? Then play like you want to win again!”

Spurs are one game away from losing first round home court playoff advantage. Only injured Ginobli expresses fire in the belly determination to win. Ginobli and Parker are the heart and soul of the Spurs. Duncan is the muscle.

2) Bench Duncan Earlier & More Often - Think a new “Twin Houses Defense”

Keep two of these three players on the court at all times and rotate them on a performance basis: Thomas, Duncan, and Gooden. Spurs are soft in the gut and allow too many late game layups and short jumpers down the lane, like recent Hornets and Thunder losses. Duncan is getting worn down too early.

Expect Gooden to foul out! So what? Gooden and Thomas will relieve pressure on Duncan with their defensive presence.

Opponents score too many points in the paint. Thunder broke the Spurs with a 10-0 late run. The Spurs won championships on defense – it’s not there now. Beefing up the lane is a start and pulling guards inside the three point line will tighten the inside defense.

3) Better Player Coaching

Last night the Thunder won their first road game against a playoff team this season! Why? Poor Spurs coaching.

Tim Duncan played an excellent game for 36 minutes and hit 9-of-12 shots from the floor, but missed 4-of-7 shots from the free throw line, an old Spurs nemesis. This is Duncan foul shooting when he was exhausted. Why? Poor coaching!

Gooden and Thomas played well! Thomas hit 1-of-1 from the field and got three rebounds in seven minutes. Gooden had four points and two rebounds in nine minutes. They had 25 percent of Spurs offensive rebounds in 16 minutes combined time! Are these reasons to sit them out the rest of the game running Duncan’s bad knees into the ground with 36 minutes? Hey Coach: I’m talking to you!

4) Better Team Coaching for Second Half OMS – Old Man Syndrome

The Spurs have five regular players over 30 years old and have scoring droughts regularly in the second half. Every team knows about the Spurs OMS use it to beat them. How? They simply drive down the lane like the Hornets and Thunder.

From 10:17 to 5:37 remaining in the game, the Thunder scored six points off layups, and 10 total points before Popovich called a timeout – after four minutes and 17 seconds without a Spurs point!

The drought lasted four minutes and 40 seconds without a single Spurs point.

Duncan was on the bench the first six minutes in the fourth quarter during the Thunder's 10-0 run that won the game! Gooden should have been on the floor with Thomas for defense preventing the six points off Thunder layups!

Pop should have rested Duncan much earlier in the game instead of playing him 30 of the first 36 minutes!

Pop's coaching lost the Spurs this game! Pop constantly misjudges his player's skills and underplaying solid players like Gooden and Thomas.

5) A New Spurs Attitude: A “We-Are-Not-Losing-Anymore!!!" Attitude

Expectations define attitudes and attitudes determine actions. If you expect losses to occur, you have a bad attitude and new losses will happen. Life tends to gives exactly what you expect.

Winners win because they expect to win, and losers lose because they expect to lose. When Spurs expect to win, they will play like it!

The Spurs are multimillionaire players; have they grown complacent? Losing two games in a row to a team 20 games below .500 emphatically answers “Yes!”

How motivated can Parker be with $64 million and Eva Longoria at home?

Spurs are professionals. Spurs are expected to play hard to win all games against losing teams like the Thunder. When they do not, articles like this are written by fans who want them to bring back the glory days of past NBA Championships.

6) Spurs must create better Three-Point Shot Selections

Spurs are 28 percent on three-point shots for their last two losses and 31 percent over the last nine games. Ball rotation has been slower resulting in poor three-point shot selection.

Spurs were over 40 percent until the most recent 18 game interval. Mason is ice cold, scoreless against the Hornets in 22 minutes.

Prediction: Spurs will prove to their fans they have the hearts of a champion by defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers (36-1 at home) for Cleveland’s second home loss of the year!

Five Reasons Why Crippled Hornets Stung Spurs

Kent Calhoun — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:00:47 -0400

The crippled New Orleans Hornets, missing two starters and their sixth man, beat a healthy San Antonio Spurs team 90 to 86.

Why did the Spurs lose to a team with 50 percent of its top six players missing?

Tyson Chandler, the Hornets' dominant defensive player and shot blocker, did not contribute his nine rebounds and nine points per game; Hornets three-point specialist, Peja Stojakovic, did not score his 14 points, nor did he pull down his typical four rebounds a game; James Posey, the Hornets' sixth man, did not score his nine points a game nor add his four rebounds.

So, again, why did the Spurs lose? Here are my five reasons:

1) Defensive weakness: Spurs gave up too many second half critical points in the paint.

The Spurs contested most inside paint shots, yet this resulted in many fouls shots. Popovich stated, “The Hornets were more aggressive and wanted to win the game more.”

Chris Paul and the Hornets exploited the tiring Spurs in the second half because the Hornets believe the Spurs are “weak inside the paint,” and occasionally don't contest shots. Without the defensive presence of Gooden, the Spurs cannot stop the Hornets paint penetration.

When Gooden was in the game during the first half, the Spurs shut down the paint effectively, forcing outside shots—exactly what the Hornets forced the Spurs to do in the second half!

Pop took Gooden out of the game, replacing him with Udoka, Hill, and Thomas. These moves, offensively and defensively, weakened the Spurs, allowing Paul to penetrate at will.

2) The Hornets shut down the middle in the second half, not allowing the Spurs penetration in the paint.

From 8:15 to 4:01 remaining in the third quarter, the Spurs looked very tired; they began taking only long range jumpers without pushing the ball inside for higher probability shots.

The following is an actual shot-distance sequence during the 4:14 time frame:

Parker 19’

Parker 21’

Ginobli 23’

Finley 26’

Duncan 8’ (blocked)

Ginobli 25’

Ginobli 26’

Not one layup!

The Spurs looked exhausted, all due to taking long jumpers and failing to push the ball inside. The Spurs did not score the rest of the third quarter.

Why do the Spurs fall asleep so often during the third quarter? Is it harder for them to warm up after a rest at halftime? Maybe they need warm-up bicycles to flex their muscles, or large doses of Centrum gray vitamins.

3) “Old Man Syndrome”: Spurs score zero points in the final eight minutes of the third and fourth quarters

After chucking several shots from the cheap seats (see above), the Spurs took a total offensive nap.

For 4:45, the Spurs did not score a point, including the final four minutes of the third quarter. This resulted in only 16 points scored in the third quarter.

The Spurs repeated their OMS drought at the end of the game.

With 3:40 remaining in the game, the Spurs fell asleep again, going scoreless until 25 seconds were left.

Few teams will beat a strong playoff contender by going scoreless for that amount of time.

4) Hornets shot lights out at the free throw line, making 32 of 33.

Hometown NBA officiating gave the Hornets some crucial, game-changing foul shots.

This attests to the Hornets' overall aggressive penetrating the paint and drawing fouls. The Spurs shot well from the foul line, yet with a dozen fewer foul shots.

Chris Paul is now a superstar; he gets “phantom foul calls” no one sees but homecourt officials. Paul got six to eight foul shots on fouls I never saw. Maybe you saw them? I did not.

5) Poor player substitutions by Popovich hurt the Spurs defensively and offensively. Gooden should have played more minutes; Mason, much less!

Did anyone see Drew Gooden play last night? What did you think?

Gooden played solid defense and scored on four of five shots from the field. Gooden’s presence with Tim Duncan sealed off the paint, and prevented Chris Paul and the Hornets from inside penetration, yet only in the first half!

Mason played 22 minutes and never scored a point! Is Mason there for his defense?

Then why did Defensive All Star Bruce Bowen sit out the entire game?

Pop blew it on his two decisions: not enough minutes for Gooden, too many for Mason.

Udoka replaced Gooden and played 22 minutes, connecting on 1 of 6 from the field, and played no better defense than Gooden. Thomas, Hill, and Udoka went a combined 1 for 9 from the field yet played twice the minutes of Gooden.

Let's get more minutes for Gooden, more than the 19 minutes he played last night! This will increase his endurance and get him playoff ready!

As previous articles have stated, the Spurs will rise and fall on the performance of Gooden and Ginobli, who played smart and played hard last night. The Spurs played a strong first half and came out with an expected weak third quarter.

The Spurs fall flat a lot, particularly after a strong first half and against teams with winning records. This fact spoiled a strong first half from Gooden and his defensive presence inside.

At the end of the game, the Spurs ran out of gas, despite two heroic three-point shots in seven seconds to make the final score appear closer than it actually was.

All in all, a good effort spoiled with drowsy periods of OMS.

For the Spurs to reach the NBA Conference Finals, they must avoid playing New Orleans before confronting the LA Lakers. Expect the Spurs to extract revenge against New Orleans in the final game of the season.

Five Reasons the San Antonio Spurs Will Fold in the Conference Semifinals

Kent Calhoun — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 07:10:00 -0400

Most basketball fans know the Spurs are the NBA’s oldest team, but fans seldom consider the full repercussions of how advanced age affects a total team’s athletic performance.

1) The Spurs play “soft, half-court basketball.”

Spurs do not exert a sustained consistent energy level of effort the entire game. The NBA schedule favored the Spurs against the LA Lakers in 2009, who had to play the Spurs twice on the second game of road back-to-backs. Lakers won one of two and 2009 series.

During the March 12 game's second half, Kobe Bryant drove thru the entire Spurs team, turned in mid-air looking backwards in disbelief no Spur had come within two feet to touch him!

Kobe smiled at the Spurs while dropping the ball into the basket knowing they had ran out of gas.

Lakers took home court advantage in the Western Conference Finals with an easy seven point win. Spurs won’t be in the 2009 finals, not if they face New Orleans first.

During the Tim Duncan/Spurs era, the Spurs have adopted a game plan of not losing games opposed to trying to win each game. When the LA Lakers, Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers are on the court, it is unmistakable those teams are there to play hard-nosed basketball and are seriously determined to win each game.

2) Manu Ginobli and Tim Duncan are constantly injured due to old age.

Their injuries are placing too much pressure on Tony Parker to carry the Spurs scoring load without consistent points from his teammates. Parker has been injured this year too.

Ginobli is all heart with no brain. The “Argentine Comet” is at the end of his meteoric career because he does not play intelligently by getting himself injured. He is an accident-prone overly emotional player.

You don’t foul Dirk Nowitzki in the seventh game of a Western Conference Finals, when you have a three point lead with less than 20 seconds on the clock.

Ginobli couldn’t resist temptation. He fouled Dirk on a layup. Spurs lost their second overtime game during the 2006 Western Conference Semifinals to the Dallas Mavericks.

Ginobli’s “Bonehead Play of the Decade” cost the Spurs the 2005/06 NBA Championship against the Miami Heat. Spurs had dominated the Heat that year winning by an average of 10.5 points a game in two easy wins.

3) Spurs suffer Old Man’s Syndrome (OMS).

Spurs seldom win important overtime games because their legs are shot. This also explains why the Spurs often have droughts of not scoring in four to eight minutes spans during the second half against stronger teams like the Hornets, Lakers or Magic after resting at halftime. In the 2003 Semifinals, Spurs lost a 16 points late second half lead at home due to OMS.

The Spurs are a fading memory of a good, not great, team that won four championships over the last decade. The Spurs benefited by defeating weaker college-level Eastern Conference teams, and the megastar ego clashes between O’Neal and Bryant.

The Western Conference consistently had the NBA’s strongest 8 teams, but none were great teams before 2006.

(NBA officiating in Los Angeles was blatantly atrocious stealing at least one outright NBA Championship from Sacramento. Even Ralph Nader called for congress to investigate NBA game officiating in Los Angeles.)

4) The Spurs miss critical game-winning foul shots.

Second half fatigue results in missed foul shots, the easiest points in basketball. Last week, the Spurs lost an 80-77 game to the Celtics after they choked 0 for 6 (Parker 0 of 4) at the charity stripe in the final two minutes. Purely fatigue.

Tim Duncan is a great candidate for the “Hack-a-Shack”. Duncan often chokes critical fourth quarter foul shots and he has very weak hands. A pass into Duncan will immediately draw double teams late in games. A slap at Tim’s hands produces a loose ball turnover or two less-than-70%-accurate foul shots.

5) Popovich is an over-rated one-dimensional defensive coach.

Despite his impressive win/loss record, Spurs win only .500 against winning teams. Pop’s coaching strength knows when to rest his players, but he no longer has that luxury since his starters are often injured or exhausted.

Pop’s weaknesses are a failure to counter opposing offensive plans with effective player match ups (or altering his defensive game plan) and personality/player conflicts.

His shoddy treatment of Malik Rose, the Spurs last true power forward, was emotionally based poor decision-making that cost the Spurs key playoff games, and very likely an NBA Championship in 2004!

In 2004 the Spurs won the first two home games of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Lakers. Tony Parker scorched the Lakers averaging 25 points a game. Coach Jackson readjusted his defensive plan and Parker would not score 20 points again.

Pop could have readjusted Parker’s offence with picks, screen and rolls after Jackson jammed the lane shutting down Parker’s dribble penetration. Or Pop could have added Malik Rose to the lineup to counter Karl Malone's lane defensive presence.

Pop did nothing as Rose idly sat on a seat rudely ignored by his coach. After winning 17 games in a row, the Spurs were shocked losing four games in a row!

Popovich was clueless and could not counter Coach Jackson's new defensive scheme shutting Parker down. Pop showed arrogance and ignorance by not playing Rose, known for his instant energy.

Malik Rose, as center, led the Spurs single-handedly with 15 points and hard-nosed defense against Shaq in his prime, and Bryant Lakers tandem in a 117-120 OT loss. Parker and Duncan sat on the bench the entire game!

Despite his heroics, Pop did not let Rose play in the Lakers Conference semifinals! Why, after Rose had played so brilliantly against the Lakers that year? Only Pop knows.

When one Spurs starter is injured, an inconsistent bench means overall team performance plunges. The Spurs have lost their ability to compete at the NBA’s highest level except for brief periods: just one or two games per series.

Spurs barely have won seven of their last 14 games, including a one point win tonight over the lowly Golden State Warriors, a team that has not beat them at home in over a decade.

When the San Antonio Spurs lost last Sunday to the Houston Rockets, they had a losing record over their previous 13 games, with 13 games remaining.

Now with 12 games remaining, and seven on the road, the Spurs will likely end the season with 55 to 57 wins, yet with two possible losses to New Orleans going into the playoffs.

If the Spurs do not meet New Orleans in the playoffs, they might make the Conference Finals, but that seems very unlikely unless Ginobli plays smart (for the first time in his life) and Drew Gooden gets much more serious playing time. These two players hold the keys to the success for Spurs 2009 playoff efforts.

How Do the San Antonio Spurs Spell "Miracle" in 2009?

Kent Calhoun — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:43:56 -0400

It will take a San Antonio Spurs “miracle” to beat the LA Lakers in the playoffs this year. A miracle only accomplished by avoiding the physically stronger New Orleans Hornets and not facing the dominating Lakers until the Western Conference Finals.

In 2008, the Spurs defeated both Western Conference teams with heavyweight athletic centers—Phoenix and New Orleans—while the Lakers cruised through lightweight un-notable centers of Denver and Utah.

The physical pounding on Tim Duncan by Shaquille O’Neal and Tyson Chandler, a ridiculous NBA travel policy, combined with a well-rested and more talented Lakers team, easily defeated the Spurs. This was the result NBA officials had wanted to see.

The Spurs have great difficulty matching up with the New Orleans Hornets and suffered three away losses of 18, 19, and 22 points. While Chris Paul and Tyson Chandler may be contained, no Spurs player can stop David West from scoring at will.

The Spurs losses were actually much worse than indicated, approaching 30-point deficits before mercy prevailed by resting the starters.

A Spurs 2009 “miracle” is possible only if a late roster addition plays with Texas-chainsaw-murderer intensity to rebound and score like an all-star. The improbable “miracle” is spelled “G-o-o-d-e-n,” an athletic power forward.

Drew Gooden, a 6’10” inside banger, possesses playoff experience with the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2007 NBA Finals against the Spurs.

Gooden’s experience under former Spurs assistant Mike Brown allows a seamless transition into the Spurs defense since Cleveland played a similar defense.

However, there are three big “If’s.”

1) If Gooden can remain injury free in the playoffs.

2) If Gooden slows down West and

3) the Lakers’ Lamar Odom.

West and Odom were two physical forces Spurs found unstoppable in 2008. If Gooden can achieve these three things, then a Spurs miracle is possible.

After six teams in seven years, Gooden risks a punch drunk boxer’s fate: staying longer than his skills should allow.

“I’m ready to find a home,” Gooden has said. “I think I’ve been a casualty of the business, now of basketball. It’s seems like almost the game has turned into fantasy basketball, but reality.”

The Spurs may not win with Gooden, but they have no championship chance without him.

Winning teams know how to beat the Spurs: wear Tim Duncan down and watch the Spurs fold. The Spurs are just a .500 team playing against teams with winning records.

Gooden is an athletically stronger body than Duncan and may front Paul Gasol and O’Neal, taking pressure off Duncan. A workman’s game with 13.1 points and 8.7 rebounds, Gooden may fill in nicely for the oft-injured “Argentine Comet,” Manu Ginobili, at the end of his meteoric career.

Lakers head coach Phil Jackson has the highest winning percentage by far in NBA history, and a record-tying 9 NBA Championship rings. Jackson built his Lakers to beat the Spurs.

Jackson’s coaching strategy is simple: build a team to beat the most powerful team in your conference then neutralize an opposing team’s strengths in the NBA Championship Finals.

After the Chicago Bulls lost to Detroit in the 1989 Eastern Conference Finals, assistant coach Jackson built complex game plans around superstar players like Michael Jordan, O’Neal and Kobe Bryant.

In 2008, Jackson failed to win his record 11th Championship ring in a career that began with the Bulls’ first three-peat NBA Championship, dethroning the Detroit Pistons in 1990.

The Spurs suffer from OMS—“Old Man Syndrome.” A few Spurs actually fought in the Alamo. Duncan is 33 next month, Ginobili 31. Kurt Thomas and Michael Finley are 36 and Bruce Bowen is 37.

The 2009 Spurs’ new starters are Roger Mason, Jr. and Matt Bonner. Both are young three-point experts yet neither a power forward. The “baby” of the team, Tony Parker, is a seven-year veteran at 26.

The Spurs are the NBA’s oldest team and regularly lapse into OMS, a four-to-eight minute fourth quarter scoreless span. Look at the Spurs’ one-point home victory over the Lakers this year.

The exhausted Lakers were playing a back-to-back when the Spurs suffered OMS, blew a double-digit fourth quarter lead to fall behind. Mason, a replacement to “Big Shot” Bob Horry, bailed them out on Derek Fisher’s game-gifting foul.

NBA hierarchy hates the colorless Spurs and boring “team” basketball. There is no megastar on the team and San Antonio has a tiny TV market. Advertisers drop national ads when the Spurs play.

After the Spurs won a seven-game series in New Orleans, the Spurs plane mysteriously stalled for hours on the runway. The Spurs played the game one with the Lakers less than 20 hours after being in New Orleans! NBA scheduling stupidity strikes again!

The Spurs held an eight-point lead, until a typical four minute fourth quarter OMS lapse gave LA the game.

The Lakers have the best coach in NBA history and Bryant, the best NBA player for the last decade and greatest fourth quarter player in NBA history. The team has NBA officials in their pockets salivating for a Lakers-Celtics rematch.

Spurs have Geritol, a “maybe” miracle, and a very over-rated head coach.

Can the Spurs win the 2009 NBA Championship? Only if the Spurs “Remember the Alamo” and the word “miracle” is spelled “G-o-o-d-e-n.”

Even then, their championship chances look slim to none. LA plays the Spurs on a back-to-back tonight in SA. Expect the tired Lakers to win anyway.

NFL's Most Important Game in History / Eulogy to the First Superstar Quarterback

Kent Calhoun — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:45:55 -0500

There are pivotal events in sport history when the participation of one exceptional athlete changes the game and how it is played forever. Babe Ruth changed baseball dynamics forever; he was the first athlete to ever hit 30, 40, 50, and 60 home runs in a single year.

NFL founder George Halas saw his life transformed by his sport on a frozen football field one unforgettable day by a rookie tailback who not only changed how future games would be played, but the very shape of the football itself.

Prehistoric NFL days are numbered before December 12, 1937: the average NFL team passed the ball less than once a quarter; many games concluded as single digit affairs and run defenses dominated the day.

Before that day, football was often a boring scrum of indistinguishable muddy jerseys piled together to see how far a ball could be shoved up the field until its carrier was subdued. The quarterback had two functions: hand the ball to the tailback, then block for him. There were three basic plays: run left, run right, and run up the middle, then repeat whatever just worked.

Passing was an afterthought, a weak capitulation reserved for desperate third down throws by the tailback, not the quarterback! More than three passes per game reflected team cowardice: avoidance to engage a more powerful enemy in elbow or fist to face combat.

Football was changed on December 12, 1937 in the NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field in a whippy Lake Michigan wind when a kid played against the most hardened veterans. This was the Great Depression with 30% unemployment. Men played football to prevent their families from starving. It was simple: play hard or you lose your job.

The game of football was no game; it was life or death combat violently contested by hard men with nasty attitudes. Men took great honor and evil joy giving pain, broken bones with game-ending concussions.

There were no post-game prayer meetings. Fisticuffs brawls under grandstands were commonplace. Alpha males measured team dominance not only by a score, but by the bloodied and broken body count left behind.

Shoulder pads were handkerchiefs and hardened cardboard stuffed into a jersey. A helmet was a leather scarf molded into a cap to protect the ears, like a wrestler head guard. Few rules meant players were punched in the face, kneed in the groin or elbowed to the forehead without fear of penalty. It also meant numerous interceptions were commonplace due to no pass interference rules.

To complain of broken bones was unmanly, a sign of weakness marking a player vulnerable to renewed violent assaults. Real men rejected face mask protection and played on both sides of the ball: offense and defense. Those courageous rare few were known as “60-minute men”.

The rookie played defense and years later he became the first player to ever pick off four inceptions in a single game; he also completed four touchdown passes in the same game. He led the NFL in passing, punting and defensive interceptions, all in the same year.

In later years, the skinny kid told of one violent defender who punched him in the face on every play. The rookie told his teammates not to block his attacker then flattened him with a ball throw full force into his face. The defender staggered, then collapsed face first and was dragged off the field for two plays. He returned continued to use this rookie’s face as a punching bag the rest of the game.

December 12, 1937, is the day Modern NFL Football was born. The wind had blown away the sun. The field froze solid with hardened razor sharp ice shards on a layer of Chicago concrete; a 15 degree temperature and minus 6 wind bone chill factor. This was flesh frostbite numbing football for those who never left the field.

The rookie had been visibly injured, no matter: he was 170 pounds of raw-boned Texas-tough beef jerky on a mission from God: he knew how the game would end that day for he had seen the future of football. At the end of that day a new era was born: the era of the Modern NFL Quarterback.

Bronco Nagurski and battle-scarred Bears fought tenaciously but couldn’t stop the Washington Redskins rookie, on a day still frozen in time. The Bears lost 28-21 after leading by seven points at halftime.

Sammy Baugh threw a balloon shaped football in perfect spirals with uncanny accuracy in a swirling icy Illinois wind with three third quarter touchdowns (55, 78 and 35 yards) and a game 335 yards while slipping and sliding on an ice rink in basketball shoes.

One of the Bears coaches summed it up best: “Baugh was a one-man team. He licked us by himself!”

Coach Halas did not embrace a passing game or losses gracefully. He adapted the T-formation, anointing a player named Sid Luckman his quarterback. Look at the Bears since that day; you will note their excellent running backs like Gale Sayers and Walter Payton, not their history of inept quarterbacks that still plague them even today.

In 1940, the Bears repeated as champions shellacking Baugh’s Redskins in the most lopsided NFL Championship Game ever played 73-0! Luckman threw the ball only six times with four completions for 102 yards. Halas had his running game restoration and his revenge. When you seek football revenge, always dig two graves.

In 1942, the Bears were expected to be the first ever NFL Championship three-peat. The undefeated (11-0) Bears were the NFL’s greatest offensive team in history. Dubbed Monsters of the Midway, Luckman and the Chicago Bears had mastered the T-formation outscoring opponents 376 to 84; everyone expected them to crush the Redskins again.

Sammy Baugh had a Texas Ranger’s memory of a 73-0 humiliating loss. Despite never having a great innovative coach, like George Halas, Baugh knew how to adapt a game plan using his attributes which included punting.

Baugh was a phenomenal punter; he averaged 51.4 yards a punt one season, still an NFL record. His passing accuracy peaked over 70%, an NFL record for 37 years, still second best today.

Sammy Baugh and the Washingtom Redskins bitterly fought the Bears and shocked them with a 14 to 6 NFL Championship victory. It is still one of the greatest upsets in NFL history.

When he left the game after 16 years, he owned 16 NFL records and three still stand today. His last five punts averaged well over fifty yards as his legs neared forty years old. Baugh’s “forward pass” revolutionized the modern football.

Decades later, the rookie’s personalized playing style evolved into the West Coast Offense.

Only two people were unanimously elected to the first Football Hall of Fame in 1962: George Halas and Sammy Baugh. Baugh was the last surviving member of the inaugural class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Now 71 years and six days after a day after his forward pass became a game-changing tactical weapon instead of an act of desperation, Slinging Sammy Baugh has passed onto Heaven’s final field.

No doubt in heaven he will be restored vibrant youth and reunited with his high school sweetheart who loved and married him for fifty-two years.

Always humble, Sammy asked his football accomplishments not be mentioned when he died, but asked to be remembered as “a good cow man”.

As one cattle man to another, I apologize to you Mr. Baugh, for my many transgressions mentioning your football feats with your courage and leadership qualities. Yet our world desperately needs more people of integrity like you for inspiration, with less overpaid, under performing classless cartoonish NFL characters of today.

I thought of Sammy while watching the Dallas Cowboys receive a righteous whipping from the Philadelphia Eagles. I wondered if a few of them Dallas Cowboys might eventually grow up to be Baugh’s “good cow men.” DeMarcus Ware seems to be a "cow man", but only time will tell.

In the end, life never defeated Sammy Baugh, after 94 years, he simply ran out of time.

Dallas Cowboys' Lack of Leadership Creates Failure

Kent Calhoun — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 06:58:44 -0500

Leadership starts at the top of any successful organization and empowers others to succeed when individuals fulfill their responsibilities. No owner should EVER publicly criticize any player for any reason, as recently happened to Marion Barber by Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

Barber is one of the hardest power running backs in football, along with the Giants' Brandon Jacobs. Public criticism undermines each player's and the team's self confidence, creating a losing collective psychological perspective.

This one act describes the Cowboys' leadership void in a nutshell. Is this why Barber only ran the ball three times against Philly yesterday? There was no comprehensive offensive game plan yesterday. Players went through the motions without believing in the Dallas system. Winning requires belief and commitment—Dallas doesn't have that!

Without effective strong Dallas coaching leadership:

1) Most players play without passion and a clear focused understanding of individual responsibilities contributing to the team.

2) Collective confusion results in 10 penalties a game (as yesterday). False start Flozell Adams led the league in penalties.

3) There is no comprehensive game play—players run plays incorrectly, resulting in turnovers. Each play executes a tactic contributing to an overall game plan strategy.

4) The offensive line does not block basic stunts taught in Pop Warner football—no pocket protects the QB. Yesterday exposed poor pathetic Cowboy blocking and tackling.

5) No accountability—games are lost without the understanding of WHY the games were lost! This is why no adjusted strategic game plan preparation is executed next game.

6) Romo apparently suffers from panic attacks. He does not have a winner's confidence, and this results in two Romo turnovers, drops, and muffs per game.

I am a technical analyst with a degree in psychology and am regarded by many as one of the best analysts in my field of expertise. Dallas problems are easy to see, yet more difficult to analyze without looking at leadership beginning at the ownership level.

Yesterday Romo waved off the punt team beginning the third quarter. It was the right decision but would Bill Cowher have allowed his disobedient behavior? That shows the Cowboys' lack of leadership and discipline required to win!

Bill Cowher would be a kick-ass coach in Dallas, until a Super Bowl trophy sits in his hand. Wade Phillips is Mr. Nice Guy, and everyone knows where Nice Guys finish—you just saw it yesterday.

Dallas ex-head coach Bill Parcells was instrumental engineering the Dolphins' turnaround, one of the greatest in NFL history. Coach Parcells' strong influence was responsible for the excellent 2007 Cowboy record, but it has now run its course—2008 was all Jones, Phillips, and Garrett.

The Cowboy ownership believes hiring the most talented players will result in a Super Bowl victory—even without an effective strong coaching staff that demands rock-solid discipline from its players. A classic amateurish mistake. Look at the New York Yankees, who have not been in the World Series this century.

Success came too easily for Jerry Jones and Dallas the first few years he owned the Cowboys. Head coach Jimmy Johnson left after his leadership was undermined by Mr. Jones' derogatory publicly printed comments after a Super Bowl victory.

There is a reason why Dallas Cowboys have gone 12 years without a single playoff game victory: Leadership begins at the top of any successful organization, and sadly, Dallas simply doesn't have it.