The Underrated Spurs

They are so good.. Props to the pop

 

It's funny how many people are acting as though the Grizzlies were garbage instead of giving props to the Spurs for out gameplanning and then out playing them.

 

And Tony Parker is the most underrated player on the team. The most underrated player of his generation and maybe of all time.

At any point in the season he probably wouldn't have cracked most people's top 3 or even top 5 PG list. Even prior to the next season, everyone will have Chris Paul as the best PG in the game, in their season preview articles.

After this game, how can there be any doubt that he's the best PG in the league?

 

the media still thinks pual was better this season ( all nba first team). Thats kinda embarrasing if u look at how good parker was and how he completely destroyed paul on their matchup

 

I used to HATE their style and their boring players. But, the way they run their organization, the way their players give in to the team concept and the way they are coached, you have to respect them. I enjoy watching them now. My clouded vision of what basketball is supposed to be (high-flying dunks, going past your opponent, flash) was not allowing me to enjoy what basketball is really about.

To think, the Memphis team that beat the Spurs a few years back has gotten A LOT better. Yet, Spurs swept them. So, it seems as though instead of going backwards, this Spurs team has improved.

It's unheard of, really.

 

Really underrated. The Spurs used their scouting and the draft to get their core, bring in young players that fit their MO + used free agency to get the right veterans in. What makes them great is they keep their core intact and have a system and coach they believe in and stick to. This allowed them to bring in underrated talent through trades, the draft or FA who do well. Many role players do well with the Spurs, which is a credit to everybody in that organisation. I've almost never heard of any player complaining about playing time or anything of that nature. It's the way they deal with players and also the mentality and system they have, which makes it easy for them to have players who buy into that and also to replace players. As a result, the Spurs have never had a short term vision that made them look for quick upgrades, i.e. star players. It takes patience and a good relationship amongst all the people in the organisation, but also having the same vision and sticking to it.

 

How are they underrated? Half a decade without a final appearance after those titles

 

This is what great coaching can do...They took away the #1 option for the Grizzlies...which was ZBo and Gasol in the post...Zbo was totally ineffective in this series, and without the ability to get the front court going, Memphis lost quickly(eventhough most of the games were close...till down the stretch)

The Spurs have the ability to take out the #1 option of any team. If the Heat do advance, they will make sure that Lebron is only a jump shooter and nothing more...The Spurs will have a rotation of Diaw and Kawhi on Lebron, Green on Wade, Parker on Chalmers, Duncan on Bosh, and Spilter on Haslem

 

The aren't, they were the 2nd best team in the west last year. However they wouldn't be in the finals without Patrick Beverly.

 

Since drafting Duncan in 1997 they have had 50+ wins every year except for the 1998-99 season where only 50 games total were played. That sustained excellence is almost unheard of, and yet they would barely get any mentions year to year.

 

I dont fully understand why people think that the Spurs couldnt play well against the Thunder...The Spurs were up 2-0 on the Thunder, and were completely decimating their opponent...but then OKC just got hot...Things like that happen...

 

I disagree. I think they would still beat the Thunder.

Plus luck always plays a part. Thunder probably don't beat the Spurs last year if Ibaka and Perkins don't go 18/20 in a game.

 

The Spurs have the ability to slow down many teams because they are fundamentally sound defensively and have solid front court players.
But they don't perform magic. They'll slow down the Heat, but the idea that they'll take LJ out of his game is ridiculous.

Nor are they underrated.

the reason they are being "discounted" is because they had one of the easiest paths to the Finals you've seen in a while.

You have to take back and look at things objectively. For one, absent a Westbrook injury its not clear they are in the Finals. Possible, but history and perspective says not probably.

For two, the Lakers were trash who only even made the playoffs the last day of the season and then trotted out a lineup that included starters who were in the dleague just weeks before.

Cindarella's are nice, but the Warriors were who they were. A solid first round opponent, but a below par second round opponent (which Denver would have been, too had they won, just both teams, like the Rockets, played a style that could generate wins in the regular season while being exposed in the playoffs). Replace Warriors with Rockets and its the same thing. Nobody honestly thinks the Rockets would have been some awesome team to beat on the way to the Finals. Up and coming, sure, with interesting young future star players, yes. But the Warriors series was only as close as it was because Curry was so hot (and even when he cooled, had been so hot recently that he required special attention).

And finally, that gets us to the Grizzlies. Who themselves beat a ridiculously overrated Clippers team (which subsequently fired their coach, btw), then took out a Thunder squad that is still confused about how to play post Westbrook injury. How may HOF players are there on the Grizzlies? How many times had they played in the WCF before? The best thing about the Grizzlies was their coaching (despite being obviously outcoached against the Spurs)... and the organization is still scratching their heads about whether they want to bring their HC back. Uh... yeah.

Remember the Rockets beat 4 teams with 57+ wins, 2 with 60+ wins, all with at least one or more HOF or future HOF players en route to their second championship. The Spurs haven't come close to that yet. Before the Rockets even got the the Finals they had conquered Stockton, Malone, Barkley, KJ, Robinson, etc. The Spurs have played an aging Gasol and a confused Dwight... and? And outside of this board, nobody calls the 94/95 Rockets underrated. In fact, the outside world still views them as overrated.. because of the whole MJ not being there crap (nm that he was there that year or that he's not there now)

I don't even think Parker has been underrated. Maybe only slightly by the public... And maybe relative to his leadership skills. But let's not pretend like CP3 or Deron or Nash played their entire career with the guy many call the best PF EVER.

The Spurs are just showing what we've known for...well, forever with regards to the NBA. If you get a core group of HOF players together, including one of the absolute best ever, and have them coached by an all-time great type coach... well, that machine can just keep humming along. See Lakers (multiple times), Celtics, Bulls, current Heat (who will make their 3rd straight Finals appearance and definitely win multiple rings), Pistons (briefly), Rockets (briefly), etc. That's the way of the NBA.

The surprising thing is that the Spurs are back in the Finals at their past their peak ages. But as noted, they were being supplanted by the Thunder if not for injury.

That's not true. In Game 1 last year (which I went to), the Thunder had a 9 point lead heading into the 4th. They blew that game and still went on to win the series 4-2. The only game they never had a chance really was Game 2. The Spurs were rolling last year heading into that series. I mean playing just absolute beautiful beautiful basketball. And after the Thunder blowing game 1 it looked like they were well on their way. But that's the thing. The better team is the better team... it doesn't matter how well the Spurs were playing. KD and Westbrook (if healthy and remotely with his head on his shoulders) are headed straight to the HOF. Harden ultimately may, too. That's the difference between last year and this year. Last year they played a team with remotely comparable talent. This year, they haven't yet.

But that luck is completely different than injury luck, no? Because I can just say how unlucky they are to have Perkins be on the team otherwise. I mean in Game 1 last year against the Spurs, which they lost, Perkins was 1-4 in 28 minutes, and had 2 freaking rebounds. Granted, Perkins is not a good player, but that's horrible - had he at least played to his averages they might have won that game, no? Moreover, Westbrook was horrible that game (where Perkins/Ibaka were out of control). Bad luck again, no?

Luck of the Mavs stealing a playoff game from the Rockets as Michael Finley saves a ball while standing completely out of bounds, or an injury, is different, to me, than the luck of a player outperforming for a game.

I'm not trying to underrate the Spurs to prove the thread starter is correct. I'm just pointing out the obvious. The Spurs will be underdogs to the Heat in the Finals. Maybe not as heavy underdogs as I or others would have expected a month ago, but underdogs nonetheless. I won't be AMAZED if they beat the Heat. I can't tell if Wade is healthy or not, LJ still has his 4th quarter occasionally meltdown, and I think people give Spoelstra way way too much credit. But I have a hard time seeing it happen. A real hard time. If the Spurs do take down the Heat, I'll come back to this thread to eat my crow.

 

Parker is the second best PG. CP3 never had the opp to play with Duncan his whole career and he never had Pop.

 

Wouldn't say underrated, because people know how good they have been for so long. Overlooked would be a better word to describe them.

 

CP3 is a very good point guard, but I think the man does too much, and that limits his team. I always prefered a pg like Parker, who is a better scorer and has the same ability to make his teammates better. CP3 has Kobe syndrome, that his team has trouble getting in to a rythm because he controls so much.

 

Agreed, Tony Parker is way underrated. Easy to forget what he did the last time the Spurs won the championship. He may not rack up as many assist as CP3 or Rondo but he is argubaly the better overall player.

 

Sometimes its just hard to definitively say a team is better even at the end of the series. The Thunder were hitting contested shot after contested shot which was impressive and part of the team's skill. However, players on the Spurs like Danny Green had just an awful series. He's a fantastic 3 point shooter and he couldn't hit a single shot.

I think the Spurs are better this year (main difference is defense) and would have beaten the Thunder anyway. It would have been a great series. I find it ridiculous that people are just handing the western conference to the Thunder.

 

Are you insane? After he left New Orleans, it turned into a lottery team. He turned the Clippers from a lottery team to a playoff team. You greatly underestimate the impact of Chris Paul. Parker has had years to develop chemistry with his two HOF teammates to go along with a HOF coach. Skill wise CP3 is just better. A better ball handler, passer, better court vision.