The difference between the Spurs and the Rockets ¡£¡£¡£

That's what my fortune cookie said @ Kim Son after the game tonight.

 

And the Final Jeopardy answer is...........The difference between the Spurs and the Rockets?



Alex, Who are Tim Duncan and Greg Popovich?

 

The Spurs know they must the feed the ball to their bigman when they want to and have to win a close game.
But look at our dear ballhog backcourt twins, in the game vs Wolves, thank God dear SF3 was fouled out on the clutch moment and C.M played some 60 minutes and the exhausted greedy can only give the ball to Y.M when he can hardly drive down to the basket.
In today 's game, with a health and foul-trouble-less gaurd combination, things returned to the same.
period.

 

Below is a post I made in the game thread near the end of the game, slightly edited.


Note the difference between the Rockets and Spurs: when the Spurs need a bucket, they force-feed Duncan. They have an identity, they know what they want to do first and foremost. Go to Duncan first, then as the possession evolves perhaps the shot winds up elsewhere, with an open 3 or a drive down the lane, etc; but the effort is always to give it to Duncan FIRST, and of course he often comes through and hits the big baskets.

Contrast that with the Rockets: during the crucial stretch of the first 6 minutes of the 4th quarter (when the game was basically decided), Yao barely touched the ball. Everyone else was scrambling around, looking for their own shots, and usually ending up with bad shots, or in turnovers. You can say the Rockets lost their composure, but really, the problem is that they have no "composure" to conform to, no identity as of yet. What are the Rockets when they DO play with composure? Are they a team that looks for Yao first and foremost? Sadly, not yet, and so you can't really blame them for "losing composure" because they don't have a defined "composure" to adhere to in the first place.

 

i think ginobili makes the biggest difference between the rockets and spurs. if i remember correctly, the only games the rockets have won against the spurs have been when ginobili was injured. that was the pre-season game against the spurs, and the game from dec 2002.

 

Considering the Spurs have the league MVP, their overall talent level is superior to ours. They are deep and experienced. Imagine the luxury of having Ginobli coming off the bench! Imagine a team so good that Rose sometimes sits for games at a time!

In addition, they are beautifully coached, playing non-stop suffocating D. They don't beat themselves and each player knows his role. Having Duncan is a lot like having our having Dream to bail us out during his glory days. It makes up for a lot, and results in winning those up-for-grabs games down the stretch.

I love the way they play and see them repeating as champs.

D R

 

Yeah, the difference is that the Spurs don't suck...

 

Basketball IQ:

Parker >>Francis
Ginobili>>Mobley
Bowen>>Jackson
Duncan>>>>>>>>>>>Cato
Yao>Rasho

 

LOL. I would disagree with your comment, A Trai, but it's still pretty funny

 

I think most league types would agree that the difference between Yao and Rasho is definetely bigger than the difference between SF and Parker. BTW, why you hating on Francis like that for? The guy is a great talent, just move him to the 2 Guard spot, and watch Francis light it up

 

I am not sure whether SF3 at the 2 is the answer. He is not a great spot up shooter and is never a great outside threat.

The reason that I don't want SF3 go is mostly a sentimental one. I think that he needs to dominate the ball to shine and really is a great fit for the east conference.

 

LOL

Basketball IQ

Go . . . . . .it has replaced PO TEN TIAL
as the buzz word of the day

Rocket River

 

the difference is pure execution. We do not consistently execute, especially in crunch time. It's either untimely scoring droughts, not recognizing defenses, not getting the ball to the dominate/hothand, missed layups, going to the rack and intentionally drawing fouls and then missing the free throws.......that is what it is...

The spurs are more disciplined and whoever said it, know their roles. They rarely miss open Js!

 

The differnces are that Duncan can actually score every time his team needs it, Duncan doesn't give up offensive rebounds, and Duncan actually player real Defense by blocking shots and stopping his man.

Yao, on ther hand was getting pushed around by Rasho freaking Nesterovich, gave up a ton of offensive rebounds, and when Ginobli drove the lane he wanted like the p***y he is wanted to draw the offensive foul by flopping instead of blocking the shot like a man. When a shot was put up and an offensive rebound was gotten by the spurs, Yao was looking at steve like it was his job to get that board. No Yao, big men actually rebound in the NBA.

 

Yao>Rasho

Not disparaging Yao. I think he's a great talent, and will be a stud at the offensive end. I don't think he'll ever be quite as big a stud on the defensive end or rebounding because of quickness issues.

Rasho actually has a pretty high bball IQ, not as high as Yao's which is very high but high, just nowhere near the physical skills of Yao. If Rasho didn't have a solid bball IQ he wouldn't be in the league.

Francis on the other hand has makes great dunks, dribbles great and has the bball IQ of a doorknob.

 

btw of topic but here's a little article that mentions Parker from USA Today

TORONTO (CP) - Dr. Herb Greenberg has never seen Jalen Rose's crossover dribble or jump shot but he prides himself on seeing things others can't.

Greenberg has been blind since he was nine years old, yet when Toronto Raptors GM Glen Grunwald is pouring over game film and scouting reports, he'll often turn to the 74-year-old for his input on potential players. Greenberg is the founder of New Jersey-based Caliper International, a consulting firm that works with 25 pro teams - including the Raptors, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the New York Islanders and New York Mets - plus eight colleges.

Caliper performs personality tests on players and can offer a thumbs-up or steer-clear before the NBA draft, a trade, or a free agent signing.

While Greenberg wasn't involved in the Raptors' recent blockbuster trade with the Chicago Bulls, he has tested Rose - the key player in the deal - before.

"I can tell you with complete confidence that the Raptors will not be unhappy with Jalen Rose," said Greenberg. "He's very strong across the board, he's very self-confident, his self-esteem is excellent, he's one of those players who's going to give you the same game, game in and game out.

"You know what you've got."

Teams pay $265 US to have a player take a written test that lasts about two hours. The teams receive a detailed evaluation with a recommendation on whether or not to draft the player, plus keys to motivating that particular player.

Grunwald said the Raptors will test between 10 and 30 players heading into a draft, depending on where Toronto picks.

Both Morris Peterson and rookie Chris Bosh, the No. 4 pick in the 2003 draft, scored high, Grunwald said.

"It's one of the tools we use," said Grunwald, who spoke at a Caliper seminar here Thursday. "You have to look at it overall, you also have to do background checks, you have to interview the player, you have to watch him play, you have to watch tape.

"It's just one of the aspects of the evaluation."

The tests help determine a player's competitive nature, self-discipline and self-esteem.

But the tests can also send up a red flag.

"We don't have a Ouija board, we're not fortune tellers, I'm not going to tell you we predicted Latrell Sprewell would choke a coach," said Greenberg.

"But more often than not, if you see a kid has major self-esteem problems - there's a certain pattern that we look at which we call the lash-out factor - what happens is they bottle stuff up, take it and take it, at some point the pot boils over, and boom, there's an explosion."

The lashing out could be as seemingly innocent as fouling out too often or spending too much time in the penalty box. But it could also be a sign of something worse - alcoholism, drugs.

ut it's the success stories Greenberg relishes. In 2001, Caliper tested a handful of draft-eligible players for the San Antonio Spurs.

"I called up (Spurs coach Gregg) Popovich and said, 'Who is Tony Parker?' " recounted Greenberg. "He said 'Some little French kid, nothing much.'

"I said, 'Are you sure?' because he just jumped off the page at us. I said, 'Greg please look at him a little further.'

"They did draft him. . . and the rest is history."

The point guard led the Spurs to an NBA title last season. So why is he so special?

"He's a leader, smart as hell, a great decision-maker, a team player, loves to score but very happy to find the open man, disciplined, will give you the same game over and over again, self-confident, willing to make mistakes, but will bounce back," Greenberg said.

Just as Greenberg predicted.

"It's an extra ingredient when you invest as much as teams have to invest, particularly in their first-round picks," he said.
But it's the success stories Greenberg relishes. In 2001, Caliper tested a handful of draft-eligible players for the San Antonio Spurs.

 

Yeah that guy's beaten us and it makes me so mad!!! Ginobili should be some scrub yet he goes off for 20+ vs. the Rockets.

 

I actually agree with you...The Rox don't know or haven't grasped the team concept...It showed vs. the Fakers...

 

If you take out the 2 3 pointers from Pike and Padgett, the Rockets were 1 for 5 from 3 point range.

The Spurs were 7 for 18 from 3 point range. That Turkogolu guy was on fire from 3 point range.

It goes to show that JJ really is not a great shooter. Great shooters should not be going 1 for 5. Rockets really need to use Piatkowski more. I wouldn't mind seeing Padgett playing more especially if he can play behind the arc to give Yao another option to outlet to for a 3.