FINDING THE SILVER LINING

 I have to start out by saying that I love the Spurs and will continue to support them no matter what!

That being said, I do have some questions about what is currently going on with them. As I thought about the situation following the Houston last several thoughts  kept popping into my head.  As you might have guessed they all seem to be connected to cliches. Regardless of that, I need to get theses thoughts out so that I can continue to support my Spurs.

The first cliche that tumbled around in my head is the "jumping on/off the bandwagon" cliche. This year as a diehard Spurs fan I have seen a lot of people become fans as their record remained good. But isn't it fun to see how fast they jump off as the Spurs go on a extended losing streak.   Isn't it nice to clear the rift raft out before the playoffs?

In line with the people who are jumping off the bandwagon are those wo enjoy "kicking a dog when its down." I am amazed at not just people but articles that have taken glee from the fact that the Spurs are losing now.  Someone once said that a true test of charactor is how you act when you lose. I believe the truest test is how one acts one someone else fails. While I see all of the people circling around to try and make a kill, I remember that "It's not over till it's over." I also remember that God does not like ugly.

Now for the ranting part. Spurs, what are you thinking about?!!!   I have been too and I have watched a lot of games through the yrears.  From my observation, starting with the Portland game, it seems like the Spurs players are not focused on playing right now.  I equate this with the Third Quarter Collapse syndrome.  The Spurs seem to play best in the third quarter if they were behind 5-10 points at the half. I think they actually paly worse when they are ahead at the half. This seems to be what is happening for the season. They were so far ahead, the sense of urgency was taken away from them. Especially when facing the teams that are fighting for playoff positioning.

Thinking about that last sentence has helped me put the Houston and Boston loses into a little better perspective. Boston like us has been at the top for most of the year but now has lost their status as the team to beat. It was more important to them to win than it was for us. In Houstons case, they are fighting for their chance to be in the playoff, so their motivational drive was even higher than Boston's. I hope that when the playoffs start, the Spurs remember what they are fighting for.

To close I would like to present two final cliches. First, "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger!" and "It is always darkest before the dawn!" Both of these cliches support how I feel about this current losing streak. Even though it hurts, it will help the Spurs stregthen their defense and become a better more forcused team for the playoffs.

If you are stilling reading at this time, thank you for allowing me to get these thoughts out of my system. Now I am ready to continue to cheer for my Spurs.

                                                  GO! SPURS! GO!

To Trade or not to Trade?

After the recent posts of Tony Parker's interview with the French Interview, I decided to express my thoughts on the Tony Parker situation.  I want to make it clear that I feel that trading Tony is one of the worst things that the Spurs could do!

That brings me to the question of  "What is best for Tony Parker?" In reviewing the comments made whenever a trade for Tony was suggested(not just on PTR but around the web), I believe Tony is heading into a new win situation. If he is not traded and the Spurs do not win the championship, a lot of people will blame him. If the Spurs win the championship, they will not have the money to pay Tony what he deserves.

A San Antonio Express News writer was one of the first to propose trading Tony in the Spring of 2010. He was surprised at the number of non-negative remarks he received. So was I. Tony has done a lot for the Spurs and can continue to do so in the years to come. One of his most important aspects is that he knows Pop's system and can work with Pop. If you remember, the big problem that Devin Harris and Jason Kidd had with Avery Johnson, was not wanting to follow his play calling. How many of the top PG's currently in the NBA would fit into and follow Pop's system?(Please comment). Also consider how many have 9 years of experience in the playoffs with three finals appearances. Experience does make a difference. I feel that the Thunder was a better team than the Lakers but their lack of experience hurt them. A lot of people stated that Tony has only done so well because of Timmy and Manu. Tony agrees. But that is true across the NBA now. There must be at least 2 or 3 All Star level players on a team for them to go deep in the playoffs(or as the 2004 Pistons illustrated a team full of mid-level talent willing to work hard together).

This brings me to my next point. Could Tony do better on another team. I believe that Tony could do well with just  about any of the other NBA teams out there. As he stated in his interview, he plans to be in the best shape possible this year. Paired with another All Star, he could take a team deep into the playoffs(especially in the Eastern Conference). As stated above, Tony has 9 years of experience and knowledge of the NBA behind him. He is a hard worker. He knows how to work with other superstars. Which team, with what other star do you think Tony would do best with?

Now I have seen several comments that Tony no longer totally acts as a Spur. Unfortunately I would have to agree with those sentiments. I believe it started in 2007 and has gotten worse. I call it the "Longoria Effect". I think she is the "source" close to Tony stirring up all the rumours. She is the one who would benefit most from him moving to the New York or Los Angeles area.  

As a long time Tony Parker fan and a die hard Spurs fan, I would hate for them to part ways. But sometimes even the best of friends have to go their seperate ways.

If you haven't figured out bythe title, this is post focusing on the possibilities. I cannot say that I was unmoved by the Game 3 loss. I was very moved and upset with the loss. But on my way homee from the game, I realized that I was not discouraged.  The phrase "To dream the impossible dream" kept popping into my head.  It had been awhile since I had heard the song. I did some researching and have included the versions of the song I liked most.

  ">Jim Nabors

I would like to present this post for all those who believe in the San Antonio Spurs. Even though my head is telling me it is over, my heart is yelling "DO NOT GIVE UP!".

Where would we be if we did not dream about something that had never been done before.  I know for myself that I would not be where I am in life today if I had listened every time someone told me that it has never been done before. For the Spurs, the most recent example is the previous series. The number 7 seed had never beaten the number 2 seed before. If we did not belive we could win, why did we play?

">Luther Vandross  

The key, as many people have said before, is taking 1 game at a time. I would like to look at this challenge as not impossible just that it has never been done.

Yes, I know that no NBA team has every come back from a 3-0 deficit but that does not keep me from dreaming. For those who care several NBA teams have taken their series to 7 games after being down 3-0. So all that is left is to take the final step.

While researeching, I also came across this piece. (Music needs help but interesting story.)

">It Could never be done.

So I plan to support my Spurs as far as they dream they can go. I will be at Game 4 yelling until time is over. Hopefully, the Spurs believe in themselves enough to make it past Game 4. If not I will still support my San Antonio Spurs because they are the San Antonio Spurs and they will always be my team.

In the last two games, it seems like the Spurs have forgotten what defense means. I have some thoughts that  might help.     

     Deny the opposition the chance to score.

     Exertion

     Fortitude 

     Energy

     Never-failing necessity

     Sustained

     Effort    

While sitting at the Memphis game, I had a lot of trouble watching the Grizzlies just score at will.There were maybe 5 possessions at the beginning of the game and a few more in the fourth quarter where the majority  of the Spurs actually tried to keep Memphis from scoring. Allowing three players to score more than twenty points in the same game is unacceptable. If the Spurs defense is this lackadaisical next week in the first round, they will be getting another long summer vacation.

A brief Review of the History of the NBA Finals

More Specifically What teams get to the Finals

With the way the Spurs are playing, everyone seems to be concerned about the seeding in the playoffs.  As a person who strongly believes that you can learn a lot from history, I did a little research yesterday prior to going to the Warrior game.  I was looking for the answer to the following questions:

• What type of regular season record, does a team need to reach the Finals?
• What is the lowest seed to reach the Finals?
• Does the best record always win the Finals?
• What was the worst regular season record to win a Final?

In my research, I found out a lot of interesting little tidbits which I am now sharing with you. All of this information is from the NBA.com website under history. I just pulled it together to make it easier for me to understand. The chart of pure data and answers to the above questions are after the jump. Please note any errors in the chart are mine and I apologize for any math errors.

WARNING: This is 63 years worth of data.

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It is my goal to attend all of the Spurs home games this season. I have been working on this goal since October 2009. I nearly messed it up Wednesday night.  With the game starting at 7:30 pm, I was sitting at home undressed playing on the computer at 5:00 pm. The time by itself was not too late. The problem was my state of mind.

Several people have said or written that San Antonio Spurs fans have become spoiled. Thinking back over my time as a Spurs fan, I would have to admit that I could fall into that category this year.

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