You can cry foul all you like. Did Derek Fisher, haunt of Spurs fans’ dreams, foul Brent Barry on the last possession? Darn tootin’.

Cry all you like. All you’ll be is bitter. And, likely, needing some tissues.It does seem a bit convenient that the man who hit the shot with .4 also hit the Spurs player with the ball with 2.1.

It does seem a bit convenient that the man who watched the play (and, inexplicably, did nothing about it) was the same who was suspended for threatening to fight Tim Duncan after throwing him from a game for, well, laughing.

Please, do yourselves all a favor, and put all of the ironies to bed. The Spurs, as Johnny Luden of Y! Sports writes, didn’t deserve to win.

Sure, he stole my thunder. Should I have written this earlier? Yes, but, in fairness, I could’ve told you this would happen with about five and a half left in the fourth. The Spurs, plain and simple, didn’t play well enough to win the game.

The idea that they had to even run an inbounds play for Brent Barry, that we’re even discussing his name as a subject of late game theatrics, made me check my watch, just to make sure it wasn’t 1995. Brent’s had a heck of a two game stretch, but if Manu and Tony aren’t going to be even close to good enough, there’s no reason to even fly back to L.A.

The Spurs, amongst their littany of problems on Tuesday night, couldn’t make anything from downtown, where, in Game 3 they had devoured the Lakers (10-18 3PT). Last night, ice cold (7-24), and largely, open. There’s no specific tally of this, but from my own count, they missed at least four, considerably open three’s (2 from Barry, 1 from Ginobili and Bowen) that would’ve either tied or given them the lead in the fourth.

Duncan, despite gaudy final numbers, missed far too many chipees. Granted, it’s hard to knock on 29 and 17, but when you miss 16 shots, I think it’s fair to say, he should’ve played better.

After a certain amount of time, we all have to stop saying the Spurs are the better team. In my mind, I believed it for quite a while. I figured, chalk Game 1 up to a lack of legs. Game 2 is also a wash, being in L.A. Game 3, what I expected. But, for Game 4 to go the way it did, with the Spurs having to fight, claw and scratch to only get either tied or within three shows the true difference.

Are the Lakers head and shoulders better than the Spurs? No, likely not. But, after a while, that “better” team would stop missing layups (ahemmm….Tim Duncan, Tony Parker) and would actually hit open three’s (ahemmm…everyone not named Tim Duncan or Fabricio Oberto).

Maybe, it’s time for the Spurs to get younger, a process which may start as soon as Thursday night.

To the City of Angels they go.  And no, the Spurs aren’t squaring off for a seven game series with the Clippers.

No, the Spurs are facing the revamped, restocked L.A. Lakers.  The same Lakers that stole Pau Gasol from Memphis, the same Lakers that easily dispatched of the Jazz and Nuggets, the same Lakers that have found successful niche roles for Ronny Turiaf, Luke Walton, and Sasha Vujacic.  Yes, them.

The Spurs, on the other hand, come in to this series as basically the same team thats lost its last three series against L.A.  Sure, Parker and Ginobili are better, but the offense runs the same.  Bench names may have changed, but bench roles are still the same. 

Without much further ado, the breakdown of the starting lineups.

PG Tony Parker vs. Derek Fisher

Tony Parker, first and foremost, is the better, quicker player.  That said, never underestimate what Fisher is capable of.  He’s a better defender than I’d imagine you’d give him credit for, and, he will more than once, more than twice, more than thrice hit a three that makes you want to pull your hair out.  Dude can bomb, and has a hear the size of a lion for hitting big shots.  Parker is going to need to keep Fisher on his heels by taking it to the hole as often as he can, exploiting his glaring advantage in the area of speed.

SG Manu Ginobili? vs. Kobe Bryant

First of all, I’m not so certain Ginobili will be back in the starting lineup, though it was a successful combination in the last five games of the Hornets series.  That said, these two won’t be matching up much, only when Manu has the ball.  If it’s even possible for a star of Kobe’s level, he’s an underrated defensive performer.  On the other side, he’ll be shadowed by Bruce Bowen, his foil and archnemesis for years now.  Sure, Bowen’s lost a step, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be able to pester the hell out of Bryant.  Kobe will get his, there’s no doubt of that—what Bowen has to attempt to control is how he gets it.  Then again, Kobe of today isn’t Kobe of yesteryear.  He passes more, he shares the ball, and doesn’t look to take over the game every single time he gets the ball.  The old strategy of, let Kobe be the ballhog he’s proven to be, might not prove as effective as it once was.

SF Bruce Bowen vs. Vladimir Radmanovic

Bowen will be living in Kobe’s shorts, so read up one if you want that review.  One other thing about Double B, he’s going to need to hit those corner three’s, consistently.  He’s almost always open, no matter how many he makes, so his consistency from long range will go a long way in determining how successful the Spurs are.  VladRad isn’t much of a serious factor on this team.  He plays his requisite starter minutes, 20 or so per game, and unless he’s particularly hot, he usually yields to the Luke Waltons and Ronny Turiaf.  Still, like Peja in the last series, Vlad Rad can get hot from deep, and isn’t one to be ignored.

PF Tim Duncan vs. Lamar Odom

Again, this is a matchup that may be changed.  Duncan could be on Gasol, or stay on Odom.  I’d imagine Duncan will be on Gasol on defense, though matching up with Odom’s quickness could be particularly difficult.  At 6′10″, Odom, when he wants to be, is a handful for opposing defenses.  He can handle the ball, shoot, take you off the dribble, or even back you down.  Not to mention, he’s long as hell, so while he may not be blocking a ton of shots, you can bet he won’t make it any easier for Ginobili and Parker to get their layups.  Duncan, on the other side, needs to go back to being the Duncan he was in the opening round.  Maybe not hitting game-tying three’s and scoring 40 points, but he can’t have any more of these dud performances.  Both Odom and Gasol are long defenders, but enough is enough already.

C Kurt Thomas vs. Pau Gasol

Gasol has been the difference for this team, no questions asked.  That’s not to downplay the transition Kobe’s made, or the play of the bench, or the return of Derek Fisher.  Those are all important contributors, but what kept this team atop the Western Conference was a mid season heist they pulled off, yielding a former All-Star center.  The Big Spaniard fits quite well into the triangle offense they run out there, and can do a bunch of things that should give the Spurs fits.  Like Odom, he also doesn’t block a lot of shots, but is long, and can play down there.  He can also spread the floor with a jumpshot, and, additionally, knows where to be.  In other words, you’ll often find him in the right spot cutting for a dunk, cutting for a layup.  At least thus far, Gasol has shown he grasps the spacing concepts of his new offensive system.  Thomas will have his hands full as well, though he’s proven he’s up to the task.  Rebounding, on both sides, and occassionally hitting that 15-20 foot jumper are his sole tasks.

The Big 3 did its thing, no doubt about that. 

Duncan wasn’t ever dominant in Game Seven, but he was Duncan—steady, sturdy. 

Ginobili started off slow (and stupid, with two early turnovers that nearly exploded blood vessels in Popovich’s brain), but hit a handle of three’s in the the second and iced the game at the line in the fourth. 

And TP, all he did was hit the biggest jumper of the season.  Coming off a wide open miss from Pargo that would’ve tied the game, Parker stepped around a pick, hand in his face, and calmly nailed a jumper to put the Spurs ahead, for good this time, at 85-80.

But, what made the difference, what made the difference all series, was the play of the bench, who ever was on it. 

After playing more than two minutes in a game only once in the first three, Ime Udoka took over for Michael Finley, and didn’t look back.  In the final four games, Udoka hit a remarkable 65% of his three’s (11-17), none more impressive than the three of three he canned in game six.  Also, lest we forget how Udoka had to either guard Chris Paul, Jannero Pargo, or Peja Stojakavic while on D.  He grabbed some big offensive boards, and, had that huge block on Pargo in game six.  Nice job.

Kurt Thomas, brought in to rebound and play tough defense, did just that.  While no one will confuse the angry, former TCU star as Dennis Rodman, Thomas did his part, even if no one really noticed.  In the clinching game, Thomas grabbed seven rebounds, five which were offensive.  Oh yeah, he only played a shade over seven minutes.

Even Finley, the bannished Fin-Dog, came up with some big play.  After seeing his minutes diminished over the last five games, Finley came in to game seven, and calmly drilled two three’s in what turned out to be the decisive third quarter.

All things considered, the Spurs do have a fighting shot against L.A. in the Western Conference Finals, no doubt about that.  But, they’ll need more than Duncan, Parker and Ginobili to have it.

I hate to even say it, but the Spurs played the like more experienced team. 

The Hornets will certainly have their shining day, just not this day, not this year.  Chris Paul is of another world, Byron Scott could be the best coach not talked about on SportsCenter (other than when he wins an award), and the rest of that team (really, only the other starters and Jannero Pargo) is constructed perfectly around their superstar.  Do they need a bench?  Certainly, but New Orleans’ flaws are for another day.

On this night, what seemed to plague the Hornets was the lack of anyone that could rely on something other than the previous games in the series as a sort of, “OK, I know what to do here, give me the ball”.  Content to ride out Pargo’s hot streak, the Hornets seemed to become very stagnant on offense, inexplicably letting the offense run through Pargo’s hands.  Which, despite his hot shooting, meant that no one else, on most offensive trips, touched the ball.  That’s a problem on most teams, particularly those with Chris Paul on them.  One way or the other, the Hornets did get some good looks, and certainly didn’t play poorly, just not well enough.

The Spurs on the other live to fight again.  According to Tony Parker after the game during an interview on TNT, the Spurs had already packed their bags—they’re heading to L.A. tonight.  Far as they should be concerned, the pressure’s off them in the beginning of the series.  Win one of two on the road, take care of business at home, and let the rest of chips fall where they may.

Though, if the Spurs plan on getting run out of the Staples Center like they did in the Hornet’s gym three out of four games, this one could be over in what likely amounts to a Los Angeles minute.

Here’s to a day off.  Here’s to fighting to play for another day.  And here’s to at least one more road trip.

Some people might have you believe Robert Horry’s convenient back door screen of David West was, shall we say, a bit slimy. Other might call it “a good basketball play”, knowing West has back issues and Tony Parker needed to get the hoop anyway.

Take a look for yourself, then call it what you like.

Listen at the end, you can hear the crowd cheering “Horry, Horry”. Is it a problem that the same guy that hip checked Steve Nash last season also gave a hard pick to David West? I don’t think so. But, is it a coincidence? Defnitely not. Horry, while he may not be scoring or rebounding or blocking shots like he once did, always finds a way to have some impact on a series. Even if it doesn’t show up in the boxscore as nothing more than a simple tick mark under the F in the boxscore.