San Antonio Spurs

[johnphil7]

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congrats spurs!!

[koontz_circle]

Roger Mason Jr. are 5 out of 5 from the three point line. how perfect is he? i hope he'll carry his slight of hand to the playoffs.

Parker for the buzzer!

[kamikaze426]

another close game this time daog na sad.

[lunateec22]

Parker is owning. Kudos to the Sixers also for playing their A-game against the tough Spurs team.

[tackielarla]

Oh yeah.

Mason’s sharpshooting keys prolific 3-point night
Mike Monroe

Twenty-four hours after a shooting performance he preferred to forget, Roger Mason Jr. had to be force-fed his first 3-point attempt in the Spurs’ game Saturday at the AT&T Center against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Point guard Tony Parker knew Mason’s 1-for-11 outing Friday against the Grizzlies was an aberration.

So, with the Spurs out to an 11-4 lead, Parker passed up an open lane to the basket to give Mason a look from one of his favorite spots, in the right corner.

By game’s end, Mason had made all five of his 3-pointers in a 108-106 Spurs victory that would have been impossible without the team’s 15-for-26 (57.7 percent) long-range shooting. Only once all season have the Spurs been more accurate beyond the arc, a 10-for-16 (62.5 percent) outing five days earlier, against Milwaukee.

Mason’s perfection on 3-pointers Saturday slid him past teammate Matt Bonner into second place in the NBA in 3-point accuracy, despite Bonner’s 3-for-5 night from beyond the arc. Mason has made 47.5 percent of his 160 3-pointers; Bonner 46.8 percent of his 94.

Mason trails only Suns forward Jason Richardson (48.5 percent) in 3-point accuracy.

Mason accepted his six 3-point misses in Memphis as a challenge.

“You have a rough night and it tests your character, tests your will,” he said. “You know there is going to be another opportunity, and I wanted to come out and have a better night, and I was able to do that.”

Parker made certain he had a good look at his first 3-point attempt.

“That first one I made, Tony was looking at me the whole way,” Mason said. “He wanted to get me started early, so he gave me a quick shot, and that kind of set the tempo.”

Bombs away: The Spurs made eight 3-pointers in the first quarter, matching the franchise record for one quarter. Mason and Bonner made three apiece, and Parker and Manu Ginobili each made one.

Bonner had the only 3-point miss in the period.

The long-range largesse turned out to be a mixed blessing.

“Everybody was making them,” Bonner said, “and it felt like we couldn’t miss a shot that whole quarter. It’s easy to get high on our shooting and think we’re just going to keep making them, but the law of percentages says we’re not. That’s when defense comes in.”

Key deflection: Lost in the elation that followed Parker’s game-winning shot Saturday was the steal that gave the Spurs their opportunity.

Manu Ginobili’s deflection of Andre Miller’s pass bounced off the leg of the Sixers’ Andre Iguodala and into Parker’s hands.

“Miller made the pass,” Ginobili said, “and I was lucky enough to deflect it off (Iguodala). It just dropped off his body and bounced off his leg, right to Tony.”

[tackielarla]

Spurs don't want to rest on laurels after close wins
Jeff McDonald

MIAMI — The Spurs' flair for the dramatic of late has made for some must-see TV. Not every player, however, is enjoying the constant thrill of narrow victory.

“We are getting used to this,” Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said after Tony Parker's buzzer-beating 15-footer gave the Spurs a 108-106 victory over Philadelphia on Saturday night. “We don't like it, but we're getting used to it.”

The late-game heroics were made necessary when the 76ers overcame a 21-point deficit to nearly steal the game down the stretch.

If nothing else, it fit into a recent pattern of the Spurs giving fans their money's worth in the fourth quarter.

Since Christmas Day, the Spurs have also beaten Phoenix on a 3-point buzzer-beater by Roger Mason Jr. and survived a double-overtime clash with Memphis. Had Tim Duncan not missed a shot to tie in a Dec. 30 loss to Milwaukee, that game likely would have gone overtime, too.

Reflecting on his team's recent performances — which, by the way, have pushed the Spurs back into first place in the Southwest Division — Ginobili refused to grade on a curve.

“Three of the last four wins were like this — at the last second, or a lucky bounce,” said Ginobili, whose team faces Miami tonight at American Airlines Arena. “It means we are not playing that well. We are winning, but we can't be satisfied.”

A good year so far: Two games in, it's been a nice start to the new year for Duncan.

After going 7 for 20 in a loss to Milwaukee in the Spurs' final game of 2008, Duncan is averaging 23 points while making 19 of his 26 shots in back-to-back victories to start 2009.

This despite playing on a sore knee after colliding with Memphis' Rudy Gay on Friday night.

“Timmy plays hurt, tired, every which way,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “He competes defensively, rebounding-wise every night. Some nights he defers offensively, some nights he's the key, but it all starts with him.”

Almost a Spur? Veteran center Dikembe Mutombo re-signed with Houston last week. Had it not been for a bit of Chinese intervention, there is a chance he might have wound up in silver and black.

Mutombo, the 42-year-old center and the second-leading shot-blocker in league history, told the Boston Globe that his choice came down to the Rockets and the Spurs. He said they were the only two teams to make him a firm offer.

“I wanted to play about 40-something games,” Mutombo told the Globe. “The only money that was on the table for me was San Antonio and Houston. Yao Ming talked to me about coming back.”

[marvel]

samot gyud unta kalig-on ang Spurs sa depensa kung nadayun si Mutombo nila. good thing Houston was able to snatch him once again, at least matimbangan na pud si Yao Ming. nindot to ang performance ni Mutombo last season. maayo unta ingon ato gihapon iyang dinuwaan para mosaka saka na gamay sa standings ang Rockets. kuyaw kaayo ang West, 9 teams ang nga gukod para sa playoffs.

[tackielarla]

Yeah. For now, the most glaring position our team needs is a 5. Timmy can't go at it alone, specially against the big men of the West teams.

[tackielarla]

Game Thoughts: Spurs vs. Sixers Jan. 4

Although it obviously wasn’t Spurs Basketball, the San Antonio Spurs were able to come out victorious on Saturday night against the Philadelphia 76ers. After leading 40-19 after the first quarter, the Spurs did just enough to hold on to win by a final score of 108-106.

With the game tied at 106 with about ten seconds to go in the fourth, Manu Ginobili got his hand on an Andre Miller pass and Tony Parker scooped it up. On the other end, Parker drove the land and fed Ginobili for a three-pointer that he missed. Thankfully, Parker grabbed the rebound and connected on an improbable buzzer beating fadeaway jumper from the baseline.

For the Sixers, Miller played extremely well. He sliced and diced San Antonio’s defense and finished 12-for-14 from the field. Andre Iguodala and Thaddeus Young were both impressive with how they used their athleticism to score at the rim. Although the Sixers were without Elton Brand due to injury, they might be a more difficult matchup for the Spurs without him.

Overall, the Spurs can’t be too happy with this win. The defense in the final three quarters was really bad. The offense after the first quarter wasn’t too impressive either. The Spurs will take the win but if they play like that against a quality team, they will get run out of the building.

Tim Duncan

34 minutes, 26 points, 12 rebounds, three assists
11-for-15 from the field, 4-for-8 at the line

Offensively, Tim Duncan was really good – especially in the first three-quarters. Going into the fourth, he was 10-for-11 from the field and was scoring in a variety of ways. In the final stanza, Theo Ratliff played him well and forced Duncan into tougher looks. On defense, Duncan wasn’t nearly as impressive. In fact, his defense over the last three quarters was extremely underwhelming. He wasn’t defending the pick-and-roll well and his help defense at the rim was missing in action. This was the second straight home game that Duncan has struggled defensively. If he doesn’t pick it up on that end of the court, the Spurs won’t be able to field more than a mediocre defense.
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Manu Ginobili

29 minutes, 21 points, three rebounds, two assists, three steals
8-for-13 from the field, 2-for-5 on three-pointers, 3-for-4 at the line

Manu Ginobili had a good showing. He only needed 13 shot attempts to score his 21 points and he also came up with the game-winning steal. Ginobili seems to be driving to the basket better and he’s not having as much trouble stopping when he’s going full speed. Over the last week, he has really picked up his defensive intensity. Ginobili is averaging 2.6 steals in his last five games and for the season he has a career-best rebound rate.
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Tony Parker

38 minutes, 15 points, ten assists, three rebounds, four rebounds
7-for-17 from the field, 1-for-2 on three-pointers

Tony Parker’s buzzer beating definitely had high marks for degree of difficulty. He also had another jumper with two minutes remaining that put the Spurs up by two. However, Parker didn’t play overly well on the whole. After a masterful first quarter in which he had five points and six assists, Parker seemed to take his foot of the pedal. For the Spurs to have kept their big lead early in the game, they needed a more consistent outing from Parker. And while his defense wasn’t solely responsible for Miller’s big game, he didn’t do much to curtail Miller. All in all, it was a very good start, a blah middle and a game-winning end for Parker.
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Michael Finley

35 minutes, 14 points, two rebounds
5-for-9 from the field, 4-for-6 on three-pointers

Michael Finley is making Pop look smart for giving him the starting small forward job. On offense, he’s been lighting it up as of late. In his last five games, he’s averaging 12.2 points on 53.3% from the field and 59.1% on three-pointers. Against the Sixers, he was again hitting his shots and he also mixed in a few good defensive possessions. Finley’s defense wasn’t nearly as good as we’ve seen previously but it also wasn’t one of the leading problems on the night.
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Roger Mason, Jr.

32 minutes, 19 points, three assists, two rebounds
6-for-10 from the field, 5-for-5 on three-pointers

Bouncing back from a 1-for-11 performance, Roger Mason, Jr. proved once again why he was such a good offseason addition. He hit all five of his looks from beyond the arc and also made some good plays with the ball to keep the Spurs’ offense flowing. His defense was relatively decent, especially in one-on-one situations. After going through a stretch in which he didn’t play 30 minutes for eight straight games, Mason seems to have regained Pop’s trust. In his last six games, Mason is averaging 30.8 minutes per game.
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Matt Bonner

28 minutes, nine points, six rebounds, three assists
3-for-8 from the field, 3-for-5 on three-pointers

Matt Bonner seems to be slowly but surely getting out of his slump. Although he still had a sub par rebounding game, his six boards were the most he’s pulled down since he grabbed six boards against the Kings on Dec. 22. His trio of three-pointers were only the second time he’s reached that mark since the Hornets disaster. Against the Sixers, Bonner deserves credit for getting the Spurs off on the right foot. All three of his three-pointers came in the first quarter – with the first two coming in the first minute of the game.
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Bruce Bowen

18 minutes, four points, two steals
2-for-3 from the field, 0-for-1 on three-pointers

Bruce Bowen played decent defense out on the perimeter but had trouble keeping his man out of the paint. That led to him reaching more instead of him moving his feet and trying to turn the Sixers into a jumpshooters. On offense, Bowen continues to make the most out of his opportunities. When coming off the bench, Bowen is shooting 50.9% from the field and 51.6% from beyond the three-point line.
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Kurt Thomas

15 minutes, two rebounds, two assists
0-for-1 from the field

Kurt Thomas continues to be unimpressive after he seemed to have a breakout stretch of games. He didn’t rebound well against Philadelphia and wasn’t doing much in the pick-and-roll defense. Offensively, he did make a few good passes out of the low block. Overall though, Thomas hasn’t done much to prove to Pop lately that he deserves 15-20 minutes per night.
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George Hill

Six minutes, one assist
0-for-1 from the field, 0-for-1 on three-pointers

George Hill had a passive performance that led to Pop benching him in the second half. Hill seems to be struggling to find his place in the offense, especially when paired with Ginobili. His natural preference is to defer to Ginobili but Hill needs to stay aggressive enough to warrant his playing time. On the season, when Hill is paired with Ginobili he is scoring 12.1 points per 48 minutes. When Hill is on the court without Ginobili, he’s averaging 23.1 points per 48 minutes.
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Anthony Tolliver

Five minutes, two assists, one rebound
0-for-2 from the field, 0-for-1 on three-pointers

Anthony Tolliver played one of his typical games. Good effort on the boards, very good passing and very bad shooting. Tolliver has an important day coming on Wednesday. That’s the day the Spurs have to decide to either keep him and guarantee the rest of his contract or waive him. The fact that he’s still in the rotation points to the Spurs still trying to figure out what they should do.
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Gregg Popovich


I thought Pop did a decent coaching job. It would have been nice for him to find a way to correct the defensive woes within the game. Perhaps Bowen earlier could have helped. Hill at shooting guard may have evened out the athleticism advantage for the Sixers. But at least Pop limited the minutes for Duncan and Ginobili, which is something he hasn’t always done in tight contests.
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Offense

It’s tough to be too upset with the offense. Scoring 108 points should always be enough for the Spurs to win. On the game, they shot 53.2% from the floor, hit 15-of-26 three-pointers and had 27 assists compared to only 12 turnovers. The most glaring negative mark on the night was the free throw shooting. Only 14 attempts against a team without much of an inside presence isn’t nearly enough.

Defense

At times the Spurs defense was so bad that Mike D’Antoni would have blushed. The Spurs couldn’t keep the Sixers out of the paint and when they did get in the paint, the Spurs rarely contested their shot at the rim. As a result, Philadelphia shot a disgustingly high 54.4% from the floor. The Sixers were also able to get 19 assists while turning the ball over only eight times. Also damning for the San Antonio was Philadelphia’s 40-32 advantage on the glass.

Drive to Five

While the Sixers game was definitely not an illustration of championship level basketball, the win improves the Spurs’ record to 22-11. On Monday, the Spurs travel to Miami to take on the Heat. If they play defense like they did against the Sixers, Wilt’s 100 might not be out of reach for Dwyane Wade. Let’s hope they actually show up defensively and get back to Spurs Basketball.

Believe.

[tackielarla]

Spurs win again! Yoohoo!!!

91-84 vs the Heat!