Spurs Roundtable Week 2.5: Yogi Berra Now, Fat Lady Next?
Please enjoy some Spurs holiday poetry.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow, Gave luster of mid-day to objects below, When, what to my wandering eyes should appear, but...a team in the desert that can't play defense.
That team would be the Phoenix Suns, of course. When the two squads collide Christmas Day for a reprisal of this decade's one-sided "rivalry," it won't matter how well the guys in orange play. If the Spurs handle their business, and can overcome a 10 games in 16 days schedule that should have them dog tired, the Suns don't stand a doggone chance.
Not when Steve Nash has to guard Bruce Bowen because of his inability to keep Tony Parker from undressing him on the way to the basket. Now when Manu Ginobili can abuse both Nash and Richardson for an afternoon of wide-open three-balls and twisting lay-ins. As for Amare Stoudemire, who wants to be "the man," expect a future Hall of Famer who already is to expose his defensive idiocy.
The Spurs should be frustrated after an awful 10 days. They blew a 26-point lead against the league's worst team at home on lay-ups and dunks, and needed last minute heroics from Tim Duncan, Parker, and Ginobili to finish them. A pratfall against the Hornets, in which they surrendered a seemingly unshakable lead in the final minutes, may haunt them in April.
After that funereal collapse against the Hornets, how could the Magic not horsewhip them the next night?
As Yogi Berra said, "it's getting late early." Thankfully, the fat lady rarely arrives to gigs on time. If the Spurs win the rest of their games this week, and they should, topping the 20-win plateau will afford them a getaway car from that fatal opera.
The next three weeks will say a lot about the team's mettle. If it relies on meetings with the lowly Toronto Raptors, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Sacramento Kings to win. Maybe R.C. Buford and Peter Holt should invite Roseanne Barr to sing the National Anthem at the AT&T Center.
On second thought, how about that getaway car?
Here's this week's roundtable edition:
1. What was the most impressive thing about the team this week?
Robert Kleeman: For the Spurs, this year's All-Star dunk contest came two months early—against them. Jeff Green channeled Dr. J, and the Spurs defense paid tribute to Moses parting the red sea in that 109-104 sloppy win. While a win against the Thunder, whether by five or 40, is still a win, allowing a sorry-ass bunch of neophytes to rack up 58 points in the paint is one way to prepare for an early playoff exit.
Optimists will note the Spurs thrashing of the Kings tonight, in which Duncan and Parker sat the entire fourth quarter and Ginobili joined them a few minutes into it. A 107-97 beatdown of the talented, but going nowhere Raptors looks nice on paper, too.
How kind can I be when this team dropped a game it had firmly in hand? Two more baskets and the Spurs depart New Orleans with a win.
I can live with allowing 27 points in the fourth quarter, if six of those are two David West threes, and four are two Chris Paul to Tyson Chandler lobs. I cannot live with 4-20 shooting, and bricking all nine wide-open looks from behind the arc.
With inferior athletes and nagging age, the Spurs need to drill three-pointers, and lots of them, to have a prayer against New Orleans, which boasts a tandem that defends Duncan as well as anyone in the league. When those trey-bombs draw iron or smack air, the Spurs hopes go bye-bye.
I wouldn't blame the Spurs for losing to Orlando by a bunch had they taken care of business in New Orleans. Because they did not, I give them a "double F."
Claudio Cabrera: I can't say anything really impressed me. Were they supposed to beat Toronto and Oklahoma City? Yes, and they did. But they were also supposed to beat New Orleans and collapsed at the end.
As for Orlando, I expected them to lose one of those two back-to-back games so I wasn't shocked by the blowout loss. Despite the depth we now have in the backcourt and Bonner at Center, I still see us as a squad that hasn't changed from the previous years with scoring droughts that eventually lead to losses. That is what needs to improve, if it can even be improved.
Amanda Robertson: Tying our franchise record for three-point shots. It proves just how deep our team will be come playoff time or even just tough games. If we can't get into the paint, we can trust other players, such as Matt Bonner, Michael Finley, Roger Mason Jr., Bruce Bowen, and even Manu Ginobili to hit a big shot from behind the arc.
Also, Tim Duncan played his 1,000th regular season/playoff game (the NBA doesn't recognize playoff games in career totals, so technically he's only at 848). Congrats to Tim.
2. What area needs the most work? Where did the team struggle?
Robert Kleeman: They sucked this week. See above.
Claudio Cabrera: As I mentioned in the previous question, it all falls on staying awake. There were two games against Oklahoma City and in New Orleans where the Spurs fell asleep at the wheel and almost crashed in one, and did crash in the other. It's the same issue that probably prevented them from winning the Western Conference crown when they blew the 20-point lead in L.A. in Game One earlier this year.
It's a problem you don't expect with a veteran team, but it has plagued us and we haven't been able to figure out. So the area that needs the most work is our mental approach to the game.
Amanda Robertson: Tim needs help in the post. That's for sure. Matt Bonner is more of a shooter and rebounder, but really isn't doing anything defensively. We're suffering without Oberto, who has been absent due to a sore ankle, in games like the New Orleans one.
We had the chance to win that game, but they just kept penetrating in the final minutes. Same with our game against Orlando. We arrived in Orlando at 3:30 a.m., and no sleep means poor productivity. That's no excuse, though.
We were running on old legs and it showed. Dwight Howard harassed Tim the entire night. That blocked shot in the first quarter was a slap to all Spurs' fans faces. The Spurs just did not have a good week. But with the seemingly "easy" schedule coming up, I'm looking forward to seeing Thomas and Oberto take on some defensive responsibilities.
3. Which player(s) deserve special recognition for their performances this week?
Robert Kleeman: I have to give Kurt Thomas and Matt Bonner kudos for some gutty performances this week.
Bonner clanged 12-15 shots against the Hornets and was not much better from the field the next night in Orlando. He fired up every open shot the defense allowed, and if he ever wants to become a playoff contributor, he must learn to do that without hesitation.
Most nights, those wide-open shots will fall, but some, they won't. He and the Spurs emerged from a mini-shooting slump Saturday against the free-falling Raptors.
He also grabbed eight rebounds in the Hornets game and played some exceptional post defense on David West. Bonner, overmatched as he was, stood his ground and harangued West into some tough looks.
He has earned his starting role and the respect of his teammates.
With Fabricio Oberto out, Thomas played his most minutes this season against the Raptors and pulled down 12 boards. After an offseason injury that forced him to miss training camp, I expected he would need to time to get into game shape. He needs to be precise, astute, and a beast on the boards for the Spurs to have a shot at another championship
Claudio Cabrera: TP9. He just continues to play All-Star caliber basketball and would be an MVP candidate if it weren't for his short injury early in the season. He scored 20 points in three of the four games this week and faced three quality guards in Calderon, Nelson, and Paul. His jumpshot has made him virtually "unguardable" and that was on display this week.
Amanda Robertson: Tony Parker. He had good nights in bad games. Simple as that. In the Hornets game, Tony had 20 points, Orlando; he sunk back down to only nine points, but hit the Raptors full strength with 22 points. About the Toronto/Spurs game, Pop had this to say:
"Tony orchestrated a wonderful game for us. It's tough for a point guard between scoring and getting others involved. He made great decisions and spearheaded the win for us.''
With Manu Ginobili finally 100 percent, our backcourt duo is back and ready to get going.
4. Gregg Popovich faces a guard glut, maybe the deepest he has ever coached. With his rotation far from set, what lineups should the Spurs use to start, and who should finish games alongside Parker, Duncan and Ginobili? Also, with Bowen and Udoka contributing scant offense, can the Spurs continue winning with a three-guard lineup to start and close games?
Robert Kleeman: The most important thing, to me, is that Popovich finds consistent minutes for Hill and Mason. These two players, with Ian Mahinmi on the injured list and no timetable for return, and Anthony Tolliver not ready to translate his hustle into pro production, represent the Spurs youth movement.
Where the hell might this team be had it not selected Hill with the 26th pick, considering the team forfeited its 2009 first rounder in the Thomas trade? I do not care to guess.
Parker and Duncan are obvious starters, with Bonner's play earning him a lead off role. Popovich can say that Ginobili will start "in perpetuity" hundreds of times, and it does not change the need to keep him in a reserve role. ZZ Pop tried Manu in a starting role and saw quickly that his bench could not hit the side of a barn without its All-Star anchor.
Ginobili can enter a game and change it in ways no one else can. Since Finley relies on conditioning and rhythm, he needs to start so that he can get his offense going early. Bench him, and you might a marked drop in his production.
Older players need to see the floor earlier than younger ones and with more consistency.
So, starters: Parker, Finley, Bowen, Duncan, and Bonner
Reserves: Ginobili, Mason Jr., Hill, Udoka, Thomas, and Oberto
As much as I like Mason in early, I would like to see him come off the bench with Ginobili for a few games. Maybe that works, maybe I am an idiot (there's no maybe about it).
Of course, none of this wonderful backcourt depth matters if the Spurs cannot solve that frontcourt scoring depth problem all three of us have bemoaned.
Claudio Cabrera: This is tough. I'm of the thinking that you still start Bowen at the SF position and bench Finley. I also think you bench Mason for Ginobili and keep the old lineup.
So what does that leave? C Bonner PF Duncan SF Bowen SG Ginobili PG Parker. On the bench you will have Roger Mason Jr., George Hill, and Finley. I think Udoka falls out of the rotation.
As for winning with this lineup, I think it's possible as we have proven, but defense needs to be more of a focus. Have we been playing it? Yes. But I also think having another scorer moved to the bench helps a lot. Bowen may be old, but he's better than Finley is on defense.
Who should we finish games with? As great as Bonner has been, we need a shot-blocker and if Ian Mahinmi doesn't become a factor, Thomas or Oberto need to be in there at the end with Duncan. I think Mason, Ginobili, and Parker should finish out the game to provide both offense and solid defense. I think that's a formidable fourth quarter lineup.
Amanda Robertson:
STARTING:
PG - Tony Parker
SG - Roger Mason
SF - Bruce Bowen
PF - Tim Duncan
C - Matt Bonner
It gives us the perfect combination of defense with Bowen/Duncan and offense with Parker/Bonner. Mason will come out, hit some good shots early and maybe contribute a steal.
FINISHING
PG - Tony Parker
SG - Manu Ginobili
SF - Michael Finley
PF -Tim Duncan/Kurt Thomas
C - Matt Bonner
Ginobili will terrorize the opposing defense by penetrating, and will play some suffocating defense of his own. Throw in Michael Finley for some experience and shots, and Thomas can be trusted for solid defense and stable offense when open.
