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Spurs Head To Utah, Face Best Home Team In League

Needing a win to clinch a playoff berth, the Spurs begin a two game road trip tonight in Salt Lake City.  Game One of the trip finds them facing the best home team in all the land in Jerry Sloan’s Utah Jazz.  Then again, at 32-6 at home themselves, the Spurs aren’t much worse than the 34-4 Jazz inside of what used to be known as the Delta Center.  The Jazz come in winners of six of their last eight games, the most recent an easy destruction of the lottery bound Timberwolves. 

Playoff Picture 

The Spurs sit a half game out of the 1st place spot in the West, behind the New Orleans Hornets, coming into tonight’s action.  The Hornets face the Knicks at home tonight, a sure win, so long as Chris Paul, David West, Tyson Chandler, or Peja have a pulse by game-time.  Finally, the Spurs are only a game up on 3rd place L.A.  Kobe’s squad, after recently welcoming back Pau Gasol, play Dallas tomorrow night.

What To Watch For

The Spurs, as it seems usually round this time of year, are playing their best ball right now.  Can it be sustained against a team that’s as good as the Jazz are?  This game, like the rest of the short remaining schedule, is of utmost importance.  If a top 3 seed is desired, there is no such thing as a letdown game.  Carlos Boozer and Deron Williams, despite having great years individually, have never had great success against the Spurs.  Both have fared well, but find their numbers slightly under their averages.  Andrei Kirilenko torched the Spurs in the team’s last meeting (a 97-91 Utah victory).  AK-47 went 9-10 from the floor, finishing with 23 points.  Interestingly enough, he has topped 16 points only once since that January 28th game.  The Spurs need to find a way to keep him under control.  If Williams and Boozer are going to get theirs, so be it, but they can’t let the Utah reserves get off in a big way.

Spurs Crush Warriors 116-92

Boxscore

Highlights

I’m 100% certain, if I was an NBA player, and I couldn’t play for the Spurs, I’d definitely play for the Warriors.  If you’re getting run under Don Nelson, you have one job:  SHOOT!  It doesn’t matter how often, where from, or what the situation is.  Shoot.  And if you’re not making the shots, don’t worry, just keep shooting.

The one thing you’ve got to love about playing the Warriors–just as soon as they’ll shoot themselves into the lead, they’ll just as quickly shoot themselves out of a game.  No doubt about it, that happened last night.  The Warriors shot slightly over 37 percent from the field for the game, and if you haven’t seen the boys from Golden State yet this year, last night’s shooting display likely won’t get you in front of the tube to see them again any time soon.

Time after time (and this is nothing new for them), Warrior guards named Davis, Ellis, or Jackson fired up poor shots from all over the floor, usually with very little time taken off the shot clock.  Teams that don’t play defense (many times, Sean Elliot referred to the Warriors D as a shot buffet for the Spurs) and take bad, long jumpers way too often do not win in the NBA.  Maybe you can surprise a team here or there if you get hot, but you can only beat a team with smoke and mirrors for so long.  Not only that, but the Warriors have no one on the inside.  Biedrins plays center, but can’t stay with guards driving to the basket, nor can he guard post players like Tim Duncan.  Further, he doesn’t, nor does Al Harrington or any other “big” on the team, come over to help once an opponent has gotten by his man.  Help defense, as a concept and an action, doesn’t exist in the Bay Area.

*I’ve never seen Tony Parker get so many easy layups.  I honestly don’t know the last time I’ve seen it come so easy for TP.  Jumpers were available.  Pull-ups, floaters, chip-ins.  No one, and I mean no one, got in his way.  Good to see Tony’s ankle looking so strong, but let’s not get nuts over a good game against a bad defensive team.

*Kurt Thomas didn’t play much (under 7 minutes) because of matchup problems.  Expect to see him more against Utah.

Good News:  The Spurs have won 20 consecutive home games in a row against the GS Warriors.

Bad News:  The Spurs have little (if any) room for error down this stretch run. 

 At a time in the season where the Spurs are used to coasting, or at least gliding, into one of the top three spots in the West, this year’s playoff push looks to be anything but easy.  The Spurs finish with 6 of their last 8 contests against teams with winning records.  In that mix, the Utah Jazz pop up twice, along with a home visit from the Suns and a swing out to the Staples Center for Kobe (and possibly Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol) and the Lakers.  Not an easy task, especially considering the Spurs are in a virtual dead heat for first, and only a game and a half separates them and the 6th seed Rockets. 

 However, if the 20-game home winning streak doesn’t sit well with you, there’s a likely reason for that–the Spurs haven’t beaten the Warriors this year.  Most recently, they lost a barn burner in OT in January, and before that, without Tim Duncan (remember that monster game that Matt Bonner had?), in December.  The Warriors come in having split their last 10 contests.  The last time they won more consecutive games?  March 7th to the 12th.  It’s certainly been a while.

Some Things To Pay Attention To:

*First of all, everything.  This is a possible playoff match-up, and given the shame Don Nelson bestowed upon the Mavs last year, Spurs fans better hope their team takes heed to the potential danger the Warriors present in a playoff series.

*Michael Finley.  Dude has been scorching as of late.  After going through a horrendous stretch of failing to score in double figures in 10 of 12 games, Fin-dog has gone nuts over the last four contests (19.5 ppg on 69% shooting).  Maybe it’s the impending return of Brent Barry (he’s done light work outs and shooting drills, nothing too serious as of yet), or maybe it’s the simple fact that he was embarrassed by how old he looked.

*Quietly, if there’s such a thing for him, Baron Davis is putting up one of the best (if not, the best) seasons of his entire career. The former UCLA Bruin is pouring in over 22 points per, 2nd in his career.  Assists hover near 8, and more importantly, turnovers haven’t been this low over a full season since his sophomore year.  However, above all, the oft-injured PG has played in 73 games.  For those of you counting, that’s by far the most since he played all 82 the first three years of his career.

A few thoughts as we wrap up to half…

*Wonder why the Rockets are winning without Yao Ming?  Defense.  It starts with two guys, Dikembe Mutumbo and Shane Battier.  Statistically, they’re nothing to write home (or away, for that matter) about, but they lock down.  Battier on Ginobili, but more importantly, Deke lurks in the paint on nearly every drive.  You add the thickness of Luis Scola and then Rafer Alston as a decent defender, you’ve got a pretty good five out there.

*Some things never change-Bobby Jackson is an elevator, just going up.  That’s all he’s done, that’s all he’ll ever do.  With Sac-town, with New Orleans, and now with Houston. 

*Bruce Bowen is routinely getting beat, whether by Tracy McGrady or otherwise.  The most embarrassing, and   obvious…a baseline drive that didn’t even have a move attached to it, simply a baseline shimmy, and before you know it, Number One in red is a blur, gone for the dunk.

*Michael Finley just hit a 3 from the corner.  Good first half, 5-6 from the floor.  He’s played great lately, over 16 ppg last 3 contests.  His shooting, with Bowen so streaky and no Barry around yet, really helps this team out, and not just in the obvious way on the scoreboard.

Halftime:

*This just in:  Jacque Vaughn is the best point guard in the world.  You don’t get any cooler than the basket-at-the-buzzer-sprint-into-the-locker room maneuver.  Where he thought he was going, who the hell knows.  By the time he got to the end of the tunnel, he probably realized that the rest of his team was still on the floor, seeing as how the half had ended under five seconds ago.  Likely, he just wanted to avoid the swarms of autograph seekers, and get ready to mentally prep for the second half, and explain to Damon Stoudamire why he doesn’t have a job any longer.

*66 points in the first half, not bad.  You know that the defense will get better from the Rockets, but, with that will also likely come an improvement in how the boys from Houston are shooting.  Rafer Alston and Tracy McGrady are a combined 6 for 24 from the floor.  Expect that to go up.  Also, Michael Finley likely will miss more than one shot in the second half. Ginobili needs to get off.

Boxscore

As if it wasn’t enough to get the ball back, score and get fouled after that Dirk Nowitzki block on Ime Udoka, the Dirk “left leg and ankle” injury was absolutely icing on the cake. I’ve torn my ACL, so I don’t wish that on anyone, trust that. While I’m happy that Dirk went down, I’m also a bit upset by it as well. Simply, when a team’s best player goes out, there’s certainly not as much room for bragging rights. Deep down, while the win might come a bit easier, you know you’d rather beat them with their best. Something likely sticks out from that series against the Suns last year, with no Amare or Diaw at the end.

Either way, the Easter Sunday victory was a resume builder, to steal a NCAA phrase. The Spurs last victory over a playoff team? Oddly enough, these same Mavericks, 97-94 just under a month ago.

The turning point in the game, obviously when Dirk went down with an impending knee injury, was unnecessarily accentuated by the tempers of Avery Johnson and Jerry Stackhouse. After a few straggling possessions, Stack decided to put Manu in a choke hold, and, in his defense, Coach Johnson got called for a tech. Nice job, way to keep the composure. That’s the difference between most of these “flavors of the year” teams and the Spurs. The Spurs maintain composure and don’t often beat themselves. Stupid things like ridiculous technicals, or wrestling moves just don’t dethrone them.

Notes

• Jeff Van Gundy is easily the most entertaining color analyst on planet earth. After the Stackhouse-Manu confrontation, JVG proposed that the NBA institutes a “cage match” rule, where the players are forced to fight, in a steel cage arena. Later, he defended Stackhouse’s throttling of Ginobili’s neck, asserting, “he was just using it to brace himself to get up.
• Ime Udoka’s jumper towards the end of the game, giving him 7 points, was a true testament to how far he’s come. After not playing that much all game, and not shooting too much either, Udoka took the ball on the wing, up faked, and still stepped in rhythm to hit a 15-20 foot jumper to essentially ice the game.
• Ginobili, as I’ve said all season, is just unbelievable. 2 for 8 in the first half, he’s never deterred for long periods of time. Finishes the game 6-15 from the floor, with 26 points, 8 boards and 6 dimes. Not only that, but he’s made 35 FTs in a row. Oh yeah, he’s not bad on D either. That last steal of Terry to finish the game, that was Manu. And his back court mate? 4 of 21 from the field, and largely absent.
• I know that Jason Kidd’s never been an offensive player, but if he wants to help the Mavericks, he has to at least be willing to shoot. Things are bad on two obvious levels. First, Johnson often opted to play Tyronn Liu instead of Kidd, looking for more offense. Second, Kidd would catch a swing pass, and immediately pass the ball to the next option, without even allowing the defense the option to think of collapsing.

Boxscore

Highlights

Color me bitter, but something stinks to high hell when a team’s two superstar big men have five fouls with at least five minutes left in a game, play the remainder of the contest, and don’t foul out. Or, maybe that stench just comes from leaving the stove on too long after mom’s home cooked meal.

Amare Stoudemire, Shaquille O’Neal. Both had five fouls. Both committed questionable acts, likely worth of fouls. Neither fouled out.

Is this why the Spurs fell short for the second game in a row, possibly sending a slight panic through Spurs nation? Seeing as how the Rockets don’t figure to lose this decade, and the Mavericks represent the seven seed, losing should come at a premium at this point in the season.

In short, the Spurs weren’t able to seal the deal because Tim Duncan had trouble converting layups, Kurt Thomas, despite a great game, missed a pivotal (and, might I add, wide open) jump shot with just over a minute left, and the Spurs couldn’t get a call. Those are listed, in fairness, in order of relevance.

I’m not one to gripe about referees. I leave that to Mark Cuban. But, the officiating for home teams in the NBA is deplorable. Are the Spurs privy to the home recipe? Of course, but that doesn’t make it any better. In baseball, football, whatever, it’s not nearly as bad. For some reason, refs seem to almost play to the crowd, content to satisfy the whims of an unbiased, unpartisan group of individuals that all happen to be conveniently chanting in unison while wearing the same colored pinnies.

Two examples of what I’m crying about…

First, with about a buck forty left, Amare truck sticks Kurt Thomas, though, curiously, Amare of five fouls is given the benefit of the blocking call, Thomas receives the whistle. On the play, which no broadcaster talked about, Thomas clearly was there in time, was above the restricted area, and wasn’t sliding underneath Stoudemire. Call goes against the Spurs.

Second, a few plays later, Ginobili drives the lane, recklessly as he is want to do, and gets clobbered by O’Neal. Mike Breen, calling the game for ABC, opines that Shaq was clearly going straight up, thus, the no-call. Without any hostility, Jeff Van Gundy interjects, to assert that, in fact, O’Neal was moving forward, and even if not, was angling himself towards Manu, thus making him guilty of the foul. Unfortunately, striking broadcaster banter doesn’t change officiating.

Do these examples suggest the Spurs were barred from a victory because of two plays? Certainly not. But, that’s not to say those calls weren’t a giant roadblock. Winning games in the Western Conference against top teams is hard enough on the road, throw in the added difficulty of playing 5 on 7, and you’ve got yourself a difficult task. Better hope you win home court.

Boxscore

Highlights

The Spurs may have coasted over them last year in the first round, but, don’t sleep on the Nuggets this season. Though a 10:30 east coast start time likely has the tendency to do just that to fans, Denver’s worst enemy is themselves. The Nuggets may not be a playoff team right this second, they soon could be, and with the way the tight Western Conference is breaking down, they could ruin someone’s season in that first round. Spurs fans should hope the Nuggets don’t make it, trust me.

Talent isn’t an issue, and it wasn’t last year. AI and Melo combine to average over 50 points a contest, and there’s no telling when one or the other or both will absolutely go off. Take tonight, for example. Iverson takes over the first half, and Carmelo recovers from a 1-7 FG 1st half to drop in a casual quarter century. Final product? A 13 point victory over the second hottest team in the league coming in (sorry, Houston’s too damn good right now, 17 beats 11), and only two of your starters score over 8 points. Guess who those two fellas were…

Talk all you want about J.R. Smith or Eduardo Najera. The two bench buddies had good games, no doubt there, but this team’s strength doesn’t come from either of those two specifically, but in that they have several of those “guys” that can go off at any point to help out the big boys. Some nights it might be, gasp!, Camby. Others, it could even be Mizzou’s finest, Linas Kleiza, who didn’t even score in this game, but has bombed for 41 earlier in the season. Throw in a healthy K-Mart, and solid contributions from the two-headed “intangible” (codeword: no one better on roster) PG behemoth of Chucky Atkins and Anthony Carter, and you’ve got a squad.

The issue, whenever there has been one, has been a lack of effort, or some sort of internal problem. Carmelo and JR suspended. K-Mart not fully healthy. Players (insert who ever you’d like here, all apply) not giving full effort for full games. Whatever the situation, whatever the problem, it’s nearly always been internal.

For the Spurs, a loss, while uncommon in these parts, isn’t a big deal. Don’t let it turn into a slide though. A rough stretch doesn’t even begin to describe the patch of games coming up. Phoenix, Denver again, New Orleans, Detroit, and Boston all in the next week plus. Strap it on, the road ahead could get bumpy.

Boxscore

Highlights

Destruction, twice over.

This time, the Spurs simply put it to the Nets. It wasn’t pretty, for either side actually, but, then again, that’s Spurs basketball.

The Nets got off to a pretty good start, with 25 points in the first 15 minutes. For the next 33, the Spurs held the Nets in a chokehold, smothering them to a paltry 55 points the rest of the way while only shooting 37% for the game.

Nothing against the Nets is too serious, this team is hard to watch, hard to take serious. Here’s a team in the eighth spot in the East, at what is now eight games under .500. Consider that at five games under, the Sacramento Kings are all the way in the 11th spot in the West.

Notes:

• The more I see Kurt Thomas, the more I like of him. The guy does just what they need: rebound. Case in point, first minutes of the game, only a few possessions in, Thomas had already grabbed two offensive rebounds. He only played 18 minutes, but almost certainly should be seeing several more as time continues, as Popovich is already trusting him with the starting role, only five games into his Spurs career.
• On the other hand, the more I see of Damon Stoudamire, the more I look at my calendar and hope its time Brent Barry can re-sign. Stoudamire just doesn’t do it for me. First of all, he doesn’t look like he gets the system, which initially led to a lack of aggressiveness, passing up shots, not moving on offense. Now, he seems content to just shoot, bombs away (1-8 FG against the Nets, 4-20 FG over his last 5 games). Beyond that, he lacks quickness, and that’s not a real knock on Mighty Mouse, he’s several injuries (and prolific years) past his prime. Defensively and offensively, the rust shows, and maybe the Nets and extreme quickness of guards like Devin Harris, Vince Carter, and Richard Jefferson aren’t great baromators, but, I go on what I see. And I’m not in love with what I see.
• If only for a short while, Vince Carter looked vinsane, almost as if we were back in the Air Canada Centre and VC was late getting back from a UNC graduation ceremony. Maybe that’s just how I saw it, but Carter looked spry again, young again. Carter’s weakness over the years has been his reluctance to drive to the whole since the injury bug hit the lower half of his body. If only for one night, VC flew again. He took the ball to the whole all the time, driving relentlessly on Duncan and anyone else that got in his way.
• Devin Harris will get his chance to show people if he’s a franchise point guard in NJ. It’s pretty clear that this is his ship to captain. Already he’s claimed the starting spot from Marcus Williams (who has received heat from teammate Richard Jefferson for not always giving 100%), and in-game, the offense is his when he wants it.

This time, they meant it.

After narrowly being dealt two years ago at the deadline for J.R. Smith, Brent Barry actually is getting the axe this time. Though, the circumstances are certainly different.

As is the case with nearly all deals in the NBA, the salary cap had the final say. Brent Barry’s scheduled to have 5.5 mil come off the books, Elson to have 3 mil off. Thus, let’s find a guy that costs 8. Survey says…Kurt Thomas. Ding, Ding Ding!!! Tell the Spurs what they’ve won…

Well, you’ve won the right not to have that piece of trash, loaf, Frankie Elson on your ball club anymore!

In all seriousness, despite losing a great clutch shooter like Barry, this is a great deal for the Spurs. Sure, they give up a draft pick, but it likely wasn’t any good anyway. Further, Barry is still hurt, nursing his second calf injury this season.

In Thomas, you get an expiring contract, the best Duncan-defender in the league, a guy that can flat out board, and a man that can hit a 15 foot jump shot. Is he going to explode athletically over the court? Obviously not. But, he’s just about as close to what they needed for what they could realistically obtain.

Finally, this strikes me as funny because it is such a typical Spurs deal. We’ll trade two guys for another extremely unexciting, unflattering, boring player that does happen to fill a direct need but in no way, shape, or form should get anyone excited about his coming to San Antonio.

That’s the Spurs though.

My picks are bolded, send me yours at hosts@saspurscast.com.

Dunk Contest:

Rudy Gay
Jamario Moon
Dwight Howard
Gerald Green

3 PT Contest:

Daniel Gibson
Jason Kapono
Dirk Nowitzki
Steve Nash
Peja Stojakavic
Richard Hamilton

All-Star Game:

West, MVP Carmelo Anthony

Thing to watch: NBDL All-Star Game (2pm Saturday, NBATV)…Come on, you’ve gotta see Mahinmi play, consider it advance scouting.

Thing to avoid: Shooting Stars…Do you really want to see Bill Lambier back in short shorts, playing with Chauncey Billups again?