Been waiting for their down fall for a long time now and still waiting. Don't know when but they will finally have a true rebuilding year.
Spurs are 1-11 vs the NBA's top 7 and 32-1 against everyone else. Doesn't sound like a real contender to me. IMO, Clippers are more likely to make the Finals than the Spurs.
The Spurs are just trying to get to the playoffs healthy. They're record against the really good teams is poor because they rarely attempted to play them at full strength. They're constantly shuffling guys in and out of the rotation. I don't think they can be considered a favorite over OKC, but I still think they're the second best team in the West by the time the playoffs roll around.
Agreed, though a lot will come down to match-ups. I honestly think the Rockets are one of the few teams the Spurs don't want to face in the playoffs. I'd take my chances with the Spurs over Clippers and Warriors however. Probably the Blazers, too. I'd take HOU over SAS, POR and probably GSW but not OKC and probably not LAC. Barring major trades OKC should be favored over every team. Suns and Grizzlies could give some of the top team major fits. The west is good this year. It's nuts. Should be lots of fun come playoff time.
Interesting generalization, but I cannot agree. From watching, I can tell you that in 3 losses to the Rockets, 2 to OKC, 2 to Portland and 1 against the Pacers, this was NOT the case. Spurs were trying to win and couldn't close the sale. All of their Big 3 played extended minutes and Pop wasn't experimenting for the sake of experimenting. He was coaching to win. Sure, Manu missed the 2nd half against the Rockets tonight but longtime Spurs-killer James Harden didn't play at all. The fact is Pop's system will beat inferior teams, usually chewing them up and spitting them out. But when the opponent is talented or (more specifically) has very talented individual players, the Spurs' wrinkles show and they fail.
I don't think you can really extrapolate much from tonight's game. Green, Leonard and Splitter were all missing. They were missing them against OKC too.
Weren't people expecting Leonard to develop into a star this season? Looks like he's the same exact player which is a good complimentary player but nothing more.
100% agree with this. I don't know why people last season were saying he was going to be the successor to Duncan. He doesn't have the motor or the fundamentals and basketball IQ of Duncan. He's an average to above average starter, but not a star.
WOJ : Manu Ginobili will miss three-to-four weeks with a strained left hamstring, the Spurs say. 1-29-14
At least they'll be "healthy" come playoff time? <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>MRI reveals strained left hamstring for Manu Ginobili, Spurs say. Out 3-to-4 weeks.</p>— Jeff McDonald (@JMcDonald_SAEN) <a href="https://twitter.com/JMcDonald_SAEN/statuses/428643073048838144">January 29, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
^ Hooooly sh**, at least Splitter is expected back in the next few days. Oh wait, I forgot that he sucks
