Pro Quality. Fan Perspective.
Around SBN: If College Football Had a Playoff: #16 Troy @ #1 Alabama

D-rob1

Big50

Jul 16, 2008 Dec 14, 2009 78 1444

a fan of

Texas Rangers Major League Baseball Team

San Antonio Spurs National Basketball Association Team

Dallas Cowboys National Football League Team

Texas Tech Red Raiders NCAA Men's Football Division 1A Team

Texas Tech Red Raiders NCAA Men's Basketball Division 1 Team

USA Soccer Team

Dallas Stars National Hockey League Team

rss icon RSSUser Blog

Rankings...I know they don't matter, but...

I just took a gander at ESPN's NBA Power Rankings.  I know they are totally made up just to get the knuckleheads that comment over at ESPN.com to rack up the hits.  That being said I was wondering, where would I rank the Spurs at this point in the season?    Tim C. did a bang up job of giving the Spurs a first semester grade here and I think he was on for the most part.

ESPN has the Spurs ranked 11th overall in the NBA.  Teams like Utah, Denver and Houston are ranked ahead of them.  I don't think that I really have a problem with the Spurs ranking at 11th.   I think that 1/4 of the way through the season that this team is fine.  Could they be playing better?  For sure, but I'd much rather be ranked 11th and have a 12-9 record now then be dinged up and exhausted later in the year.

 

Ring627071030_2_medium

This is what they play for in San Antonio, not for ESPN's approval

Poll
Where do the Spurs rank in your mind at this point in the season?

  31 votes | Results

Continue reading this post »

2 comments  |  0 recs

Nuns_love_spurs-737575

Is God a Manu fan? This picture would suggest that He is.

6 days ago D-rob1_tiny Big50 6 comments 0 recs

Why?

After the Spurs went on a 5 game winning streak and all was right with the world, they have since dropped 2 games in a row and have not looked particularly good in doing so.  This leads me to wonder, "What is going on with all this crappy play and very un-Spurs like basketball?"  Having had the weekend to wonder and think about it I've come up with a theory or two.

 

Spurs-nuns_medium

How are the Spurs losing with fans like these?

 

When these Spurs were winning five games in a row, they were playing regularly.  5 games in eight days and 5 wins.  Then the Spurs are off for 5 days and come out extremely sloppy in the next two games.  The Celtics and the Nuggets took advantage of turnovers and poor offense. 

 

Theory 1

This Spurs team needs to gel.  Therefore when they play games regularly they will mesh more and be more effective.  When having almost a week off there will be more rust than with teams that have been together for many years.  Look for the Spurs to play well despite a couple of SEGABABAs in the month of December.

December Opponent Time Local TV Nat TV Radio
 Mon 07  @ Utah    8:00pm  My35 HD    WOAI-AM 1200
 Wed 09  vs Sacramento  7:30pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Fri 11  vs Charlotte  7:30pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Sun 13  @ LA Clippers    8:30pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Tue 15  @ Phoenix    8:00pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Wed 16  @ Golden State    9:30pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Sat 19  vs Indiana  7:30pm  My35 HD    WOAI-AM 1200
 Mon 21  vs LA Clippers  7:30pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Wed 23  vs Portland  7:30pm  My35 HD    WOAI-AM 1200
 Sat 26  @ Milwaukee    7:30pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Sun 27  @ New York    5:00pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Tue 29  vs Minnesota  7:30pm  FSNSW    WOAI-AM 1200
 Thu 31  vs Miami  6:00pm      WOAI-AM 1200

 

Who comes up with these schedules?! 


Theory 2

Pop is trying to figure out who to start, who to play and who to finish.  The Boston game was crazy.  The bench played more than the starters and Manu didn't play late in the 4th.  Once this team gets a good rotation down it will help with the continuity of the team.  Knowing your roll makes it easier for you to accomplish what you set out to do, like win.  Look for this team to improve when Pop gets a rotation set.

 

Greggpopovich_2_medium

Maybe it's time for the beard to make a comeback...

 

The Answer

All in all I like where the team is headed.  The defense is getting better, the rebounding is improving and if they can get the recent free-throw and turnover woes in check this team will look a lot better.  Don't forget, this team was 12-12 at this time last year, with similar injuries and much more team chemistry to rely on.

Two years ago the Spurs started off hot only to struggle later in the year.  This team is more athletic and younger, but mostly they are just new.  This team has a great foundation and just needs to square away a few things.  I look forward to a nice December and an even better 2nd half of the season.  It's early and way to soon to lose faith.

 

Spurs_medium

Sometimes we just need a hug...or a slap on the butt

9 comments  |  1 recs

Unofficial Spurs/Mavs Recap

That was a tough game to lose.  There are some really good signs from last nights game, but one thing that is really not good is the loss of Manu Ginobili.  I haven't heard if he's going to be out for an extended period or if everything was just precautionary last night.  Let's just hope that game last night didn't cost us more than a loss. 

On to the game....

The defense was pretty good last night.  You have to give credit to Dirk Nowitzki, he put up 41 points on some of the hardest shots anybody could make him take.  Matt Bonner and Antonio McDyess shared most of the duty guarding the large German.  McDyess seemed to handle Dirk the best.  48 MoH has a table of how it Nowitzki did against Bonner and SAM.  Bonner only gave up one more shot and deed seem to make Dirk work hard for his shots. 

Hhsanantspurs_medium

They worked hard, but came up just short

Continue reading this post »

24 comments  |  0 recs

Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. Should help in our rematch next week...or when ever it is.

about 1 month ago D-rob1_tiny Big50 3 comments 0 recs

This has the awesome Jefferson dunk. I must warn you, it's OTSTANDING!

about 1 month ago D-rob1_tiny Big50 0 comments 0 recs

Jerry is pretty vague, but it sounds like we've got some young players that are thought of pretty highly by someone out there.

about 1 month ago D-rob1_tiny Big50 0 comments 0 recs

Spurs team of the decade according to Sporting News. Not surprising. Pop coach of the decade.

2 months ago D-rob1_tiny Big50 15 comments 0 recs

Good read. I tend to agree that the Spurs should hold off on any more moves at the moment. That is, unless something super nice presents itself.

3 months ago D-rob1_tiny Big50 2 comments 0 recs

Distrubing Trend?

I am not a numbers guy.  I have a hard time taking all the stats y'all throw around here and making sense of them.  I do however love watching sports.  When my team is involved in a pivotal game I'll be there watching.  Having been a Rangers fan for 15 years or so I have not been this into baseball since the mid to late 90's.  That being said, I've noticed a disturbing trend recently, namely Ron Washington.

New_york_yankees_v_texas_rangers_kwxuqx3mudrl_medium

via www1.pictures.gi.zimbio.com

 

I have my doubts as to how much a manager impacts a team beyond the pitching change here and steal call there.  I could be wrong, but one thing I do know is that Wash seems to doing the one thing he should do well, poorly, at least lately.  When it's time for a pitching change he won't make it until it's to late.

Poll
Is Ron Washington doing a good job?
Yes, he just made a mistake or two
75 votes
No
18 votes
So-So, the Ranger could do better than Wash
48 votes

141 votes | Poll has closed

Continue reading this post »

27 comments  |  0 recs