Why the Spurs Are the Most Dangerous Team in the West
TDEven if there are six teams in the West playing plus-.600 ball right now, it’s really just a two-horse race. You’ve got the 32-8 Lakers who have obviously put together the best first half of anyone in their conference bar none. And you’ve got the one team capable of knocking off L.A.: the Spurs.
It’s not just that San Antone edged the Lakers in their first meeting this season 112-111 on that crafty Roger Mason, Jr. leaning 20-footer, in which he drew a foul on Derek Fisher. It’s that the Spurs are really the only team who are capable of, and know how to stop the triangle offense.
That’s step one in the Beat L.A. Blueprint. ESPN Analyst/Kevin Martin’s basketball guru/IMG Academy basketball genius David Thorpe and the guys at Forum Blue & Gold point out a couple key moves to beating the Lakers:
* Keep the Triangle on one side of the floor.
The Celtics did this in the Finals last year, preventing the ball from rotating to the weakside.
Yes-forcing the triangle to stay on one side of the floor is always a smart plan defensively. It helps define help positions while allowing those helpers to stay more stationary, as opposed to moving from help to strong side positions. In short-it allows players to know with more alacrity that they are the helpers on a particular possession. So it ends up bottling Kobe and Pau on slashes/cuts to the paint, as helpers are already there.
Like Boston, San Antonio plays superb team defense. (Editor’s Note: Thanks to Ranger John, we realized the stats previously mentioned here were from a previous season… But the point still holds true that they play great team D. The Spurs are leading the League in defensive rebounding percentage at 77.6%, which measures how many defensive boards they grab out of the total rebounds possible. They also give up the fewest free throws per night of any team on a per game basis. Overall, they’re ranked fifth in total defense in the NBA.)
* Keep the ball out of Bynum/Gasol’s hands
This isn’t just because of what Bynum did last night. It’s because the Triangle runs through the big fellas. Kobe’s going to get his no matter what, so it’s almost a better idea to force him into taking a ton of shots, while keeping him off the stripe as best possible.
In their only matchup, San Antonio didn’t do a great job keeping L.A.’s twin towers from scoring, but they did hold them to a total of eight rebounds combined.
* Don’t turn the ball over against L.A.’s bench
Phil’s energy guys really like to get out and run. It’s never a good idea to turn the ball over, but L.A.’s second line will really make teams pay. San Antonio is best in the NBA right now, turning the ball over only 12 times per night.
* Pull L.A.’s bigs away from the basket
Tim Duncan’s 18-foot bank shot forces either Bynum or Gasol to stay with him wherever he goes on the floor. But it’s not just TD’s jumpshooting that could pull L.A.’s bigs away from the rim, thereby making their defense incredibly vulnerable. When Fab Oberto plays, Popovich likes to use him to run pick-and-rolls out by the three-point line. With Manu Ginobili or Tony Parker able to knock down a 20-footer consistently, the guy guarding Oberto has to help and hedge on the perimeter.
Do you think this blueprint works to beat L.A.?
Source: Forum Blue & Gold
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:28 am
dapro says:
Sounds like a good plan but the Spurs execute their game plan better than any other team in the league
They don’t alter their game plan they force teams to adjust to them
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:30 am
Toan says:
Well it has good points but you forgot to mention that they also need to score some buckets to win games…so if manu parker and duncan or at least 2 of them don’t go off offensively i don’t see them beating L.A.
but it would definitely be a great series
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:31 am
rangerjohn says:
um while i love the spurs coverage, and the idea that the spurs are a good choice to beat hte lakers (i agree) there is some fact checking needed, the spurs are not 2nd in the league at 41.9% opp fg %, they are 19th at 45.52% and they are not 3rd at 88.4 ppg, they are 4th at 93.7 ppg.
fact check, good stuff other wise
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:34 am
the_don_mega says:
@dapro is right… everybody knows this stuff already… it just boils down to execution and teamwork… with that said… the Spurs would be a nice example
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:34 am
K Dizzle says:
Great plan. Unfortunately, you still gotta play the games. Last playoffs, both teams were shorthanded and the last game had too many wierd plays to be considered a foreshadowing of anything.If Manu’s healthy and Bynum gives that inside force or at least another big body to put on TD then it’ll be a great series. Don’t sleep on the Hornets though….
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:39 am
rangerjohn says:
dizzle, your not comparing bynam/ariza to manu again are you?
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:41 am
JCARR says:
The Spurs style of play disrupts the opposing teams. The Spurs are slow paced team who run their offense every play, while the lakers like to run and create opportunities by using the triangle offense. The Spurs defense is also very well executed and doesnt allow teams to score many points. And the infamous Hack-a-(worst free throw shooter) that Popovich uses to his advantage also gives him an edge…. As much as I dislike the spurs and their flopping techniques they are always contenders in the West.
Popovich doesnt look at blueprints… I am pretty sure he has his own methods.
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:41 am
ticktock6 says:
Sleep on the Hornets, who cares. But Chris Paul may sneak into your bedroom and kill you while you’re doing it.
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:52 am
Dime Magazine says:
RangerJohn,
Thanks for the heads up. I made the knuckleheaded mistake of looking at the wrong season’s stats on ESPN.com. I fixed it.
Thanks again,
Andrew
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:00 pm
rangerjohn says:
andrew
no problem, just to bad they dont have those numbers this season. i think it really show how much of an impact bowen had on the starting line up last season, he is out this year and the numbers get significantly worse. DPOY at least one time i mean damn.
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:04 pm
alex says:
yes the spurs stands to have the most chance to beat LA in a 7 game series - because of all the reasons stated above, and because they have a coach capable of playing a chess match with Phil Jackson.
remember, the lakers won last year (against SA) by a margin of 8pts or less, and if the ref hadn’t swallowed his whistle on the brent barry - derek fisher play, it might have been a different story.
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:09 pm
LakeShow84 says:
The only reason the Spurs will even come close to seeing us is because Tim Duncan is the best big man of this generation..
Period..
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:13 pm
karizmatic says:
The blueprint works, but there are some minor problems. The first obviously you have to be talented enough to pull this off. The second I think this particular team relies on the triangle less than any other Phil Jackson led team since he started using the system. The second team rarely runs it and the first team doesn’t run it as much or with as much precision as say the 72-10 bulls. So just stopping or bottling the triangle will not necessarily stop this team. But it would help. The Spurs are the West dark horse to me though they are kind of hanging around playing under the radar.
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:16 pm
iannyb says:
Very interesting points and I have to admit they all make sense.As to derailing the Laker show I pray that they don’t and now any team has more issues as Kobe is now passing(at least for now). So let me see you stop me now. Go Bynum
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:30 pm
K Dizzle says:
@ ranger
you might need to stop lumpin all the laker fans together. I’ve never compared manu to bynum/ariza.
What I was sayin is that Manu wasn’t healthy last playoffs and Bynum wasn’t playin and Ariza just got back, so it’s two totally different teams with everybody healthy
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:50 pm
LAballer says:
lol..stopping the lakers..ha…i laugh at u..ha!
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:58 pm
doug says:
come on, one win against us this season and there the most dangerous team and have the formula to beat the Lakers. WOW!Anyone who saw that game knows it was decided by the officiating towards the end of the game, you can’t call D.Fish ticky tack foul on mason’s for the and 1 and than call traveling on ariza the next sequence when he was obviously pushed by Manu. Besides replay common sense tells you if a guy(Ariza) is moving in a straight line to the paint he’s not going to travel sideways, it was obvious that he was pushed causing him to move laterally. But I’m glad, I’m actually loving it. We play this cats again on Sunday and I’m sure we’ll see them in the playoffs. Kobe is licking his chops. He and MJ are the only players that i’ve actually witnessed play better when there angry. It should be entertaining.
January 22nd, 2009 at 1:06 pm
rangerjohn says:
doug, your wrong the spurs handled the lakers for 44 minutes, and the officials where not calling anything in the last 4 minutes until fisher got mason.
k dizzle, relax, i just love lumping lakers fans together, it makes for good sport
January 22nd, 2009 at 1:16 pm
Big Shot BOB says:
Ariza traveled on that play straight up. And TD was giving Bynum the business!!!
January 22nd, 2009 at 1:24 pm
thomasmmm says:
matt bonner will be the reason the Spurs win.
January 22nd, 2009 at 1:24 pm
GEE...From pasadena to medina says:
Spurs will always have the formula as long as they have Duncan, Tony and Manu.
Most def. if anyone can beat the Lakers it’s the Spurs.
or
The Rockets with all players healthy lol (SHUDDUP AND STOP LAUGHING HATERS LOL)
January 22nd, 2009 at 1:59 pm
Sccob says:
I’m laughing at you Gee. Houston ain’t beating nothing with Mr. Softee down low…
January 22nd, 2009 at 2:10 pm
doug says:
RangerJohn, I expected you to say that and ofcourse if we would’ve have won the officiating would have been”atrocious”. Everyone in this forum knows your bias empowers your ignorance. But it’s cool we might see you guys again in the play-offs and we’ll show you again like we did last year in the playoffs. You guys just make sure you don’t lose any more games to crap teams like the Bucks, Wizards and Sixers. Because you guys aren’t even a lock for the playoffs yet, theres other scrubs in the west nipping at your heels. We’re like five games ahead of the second closest team.
January 22nd, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Ansonious says:
I hate the Spurs more than any other team in the NBA and yet I do have to ask is there any team that is as solid as them out there? No the spurs have good rotation, solid defense, thay can jam in your paint, make the wide open shots that every team seems to give them on a daily basis, and I would say the only thing that hurts them is the fact they have Matt Bonner. As a Suns fan I still say fu__ em but seriously who’s going to stop them?
January 22nd, 2009 at 2:30 pm
jl90 says:
the spurs shouldnt have even won the first game against the lakers. im not even a lakers fan and im saying that the end of that game was complete bull.
January 22nd, 2009 at 2:37 pm
fallinup says:
Haha. Lakers and Spurs fans. You know damn well that come the playoffs you’ll be hoping for the other team to lose so you don’t have to meet em. Then, when they do meet…you’ll be at the edge of shitting bricks for the whole series.
We already know LA will be there. But you’d be a fool to think the Spurs aren’t dangerous and couldn’t pull off 4 wins.
January 22nd, 2009 at 3:48 pm
LakeShow84 says:
Any team in the playoffs is dangerous if they gel at the right time.. Especially the Spurs but we’ve seen all their tricks.. Well not Mason Jr with the flailing leg foul but im sure we can work around that..
But us losing out West this year??
LOLOLOLOLOLOL naaaahhhhhhhhhh..
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:03 pm
doug says:
Ansonious you definitely sound like a spurs fan to me, maybe you are a spurs fan and you just don’t know it. I mean be truthful, “who’s going to stop the Spurs?”That’s as ridiculous as it gets. I can give you a couple teams Lakers, Hornets, Hell I can even see the Blazers beating them.
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:07 pm
doug says:
Fallin up, the Lakers want to see these cats in the playoff trust, Kobe looks forward to the moment of beating these cats again and again. I don’t know what your talking about. We’re talking about the 09 Spurs right?LOL The one’s that lost to the buck,sixers and the Wizards i.e the bottom feeders in the east. The same line up that lost to the Lakers 4-1 in the playoffs last year.LOL.man please, that’s definitely coming from a place of hate.
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:26 pm
GEE...From pasadena to medina says:
I’m serious.
Scoob. You will believe!
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:31 pm
Bill Bixby says:
@ Doug
Dude. I swear, these fanboys can’t see logic. You’re straight dumb to think that the Spurs couldn’t wiggle 4 games out of a Playoff series against anyone. Including your all mighty lakers. I guess the game that the Spurs won didn’t count right?…or the fact that in your quest to call me a “hater” that you didn’t mention that LA has lost to some bottom feeders as well. Like Sactown, the clippers, and Indiana.
Idiots stop pounding your homer ass chests and see a little logic at times. Spurs vs. Lakers in the playoffs will be one hell of a series. And if both are clicking and healthy, you’d be hard pressed to determine a winner until the very end.
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:36 pm
fallinup says:
hehe. I R Bill Bixby. (tryin’ out a new name)
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:58 pm
sunit says:
funny how the gameplan doesnt include anything about ‘kobe’….you can keep the triangle in a corner if you want…but how do you stop mamba from going buckwild on you
January 22nd, 2009 at 5:00 pm
Ian says:
doug
sorry but i have to say all the laker fans today and spurs fan for that matter have posted smart posts but yours isnt good at all
1.the article says best chance at beating the lakers. arent they???
2.u blame the officiating with the call but i didnt see u do the same when CRAWFORD didnt call the foul on barry that even u cant deny thats a 2-2 series who know what happens
3. excuse me u say whos basing this on one game and then come around and talk about 1 spur loss to philly???? what didnt the lakers lose to indy??? so which one is it either one game counts or it doesnt cuz u posted 2 diff things.
4.lol at the lakers want the spurs and kobe loves to beat them again and again go ask kobe what team made his grown ass cry like a bitch.
5. who cares if kobe is pissed he doesnt play better who made that up he takes more shots and yells at his teammates when hes pissed so yeah ill take it.
fallinup
its true what u said post 26
January 22nd, 2009 at 5:04 pm
Ian says:
more on 6
u think duncan is gonna care if kobe is pissed
January 22nd, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Ian says:
in fact if u arent supposed to lose to teams that arent better than u arent the lakers supposed to be undefeated????
January 22nd, 2009 at 5:28 pm
rangerjohn says:
doug, its ok i think we are sufficiently telling you that you are an idiot apparently.
i find it really funny how lakers fans cry about masons foul call because he “kicked his leg out” when kobe is the #1 in the league at pulling that shit, or flailing his amrs and hitting players in not even the slightest of shooting motions.
i mean do you really think people are going to feel sorry for lakers when they get cought with their very own shit? i mean its like saying that fisher out flopped manu on a play, i mean damn man go find someone elses beer to cry in.
January 22nd, 2009 at 6:02 pm
LakeShow84 says:
Damn i cant let you all eat up my fellow Laker fan Doug like this lol
And i will wittle away at Ian because he is so anti-laker lol plus i love the list
1) They said the most dangerous team in the West.. I took offense to that shit too.. San Antonio is not dominant this year.. Even with everyone back they are BARELY putting together wins.. I expect them to gel towards the end of year but they are thin in the front court and dont have a good backup PG.. I dont even need to get into our depth..
2)We talkin shit about that last SEQUENCE of calls.. The fake leg whip.. then they took the ball from our hands with that BS travel call.. If we blow out the Spurs or come back and steal that game in SA we probably wouldnt be having this discussion..
3) yyeeeaaaaahhhhhh this Basketball i know one game hurts but its STILL one game.. i looked at it like we were on the Spurs court, we were being beat up all game and we still showed the poise and TOUGHNESS to battle back against a defensive team and ALMOST steal the win but then we had our nuts ripped off and thrown back to LA.. but we are still the most talented team in the L.. If we had no playoff experience i wouldnt put too much in that but our whole team has playoff experience..
4)What cryin got to do with anything?? yeah im sure because Kobe cried 4-5 years ago about losing a chance at history he would NEVER want to play the Spurs again.. rriiiggghhhhttt the most competetive cutthroat player in L afraid of going against team he has ALREADY beaten time and time again.. even since the crying incident….
5)THE WHOLE LEAGUE KNOWS YOU DONT PISS OFF KOBE.. so yes Poppovich cares.. Duncan cares (read any article about what he thinks about Kobe), Ginobli cares and since there is no more super dirty D from Bowen.. THE WHOLE SPURS ORGANIZATION CARES..
Bottom line we are even deeper than last year and we blew through them.. Yeah they have Ginobli now but they are a year older and we are a year fresher.. Yes the Spurs are the biggest threat out west to dethrone us.. But i liken it to a Pitbull going against a werewolf..
Yeah the pits tough but WE TOO DAMN BIG..
January 22nd, 2009 at 6:25 pm
Ian says:
lakeshow
lol what is up
lets keep going then
1
thats the title but if u read the first parag u can read best chance at beating the lakers and the title suggest is that the spurs can sucker punch anyone not expecting it i know u understood that u just wanted to answer me lol.
2
u can talk shit about that sequence if u talked the same way on the barry play which i guess u didnt
3
i wasnt sayin one game hurst or not i was sayin doug said it didnt in one post and then kinda said it did on another to prove a point u cant do that so i have no idea what u r tryin to tell me here
4
i bring it up because all the lakers fan try to bring up 08 as an excuse to say they can woop us anytime la thought so till that shit happened. a chance at history please bro
5
lol at that opening line kobe has been pissed for ever and what the whole league doesnt care hes been pissed since 04 and what has happened nothing.
does it matter what one player says on camera about another player do u think duncan and manu go into the locker room think oh oh kobes pissed we suck we cant beat him yeah rightttttt
January 22nd, 2009 at 6:54 pm
LakeShow84 says:
Oh we can do this! and it all makes sense now.. Ur a spurs fan.. But at least u aint a Celtics fan..
1)I think we will be expecting the Spurs to bring it.. they always do.. we would never be caught blindsided by a team that has humbled us like they have before.. They been our top competetion in the West ever since Timmy came into the L.. And yes Fluck Sacramento..
2)And i said Barry’s shot was ONE play.. and he launched what?? 27-30 foot shot?? come on now.. they call a foul on that and we have reason to riot.. And plus Barry leaned for the contact.. you really want to make that call??
3) That was directed at Doug doo.. dont trip lol
4)it wouldve been 4 chips in a row for us so it was History.. shit i cried.. and it aint woops you guys anytime.. but in a 7 game series you know you sweatin more than me..
5)And no hes been trying to prove a point since 04.. You seen him pissed when he got suspended for the slap on your boy Manu and the dirty player talk.. you seen him pissed in the playoffs during that Colorado shit (please dont mention the finals that year either)..
And no Manu and Duncan aint talkin about we suck we cant win but they damn sure got it in they heads that this man can single handily murder us if he is given the chance.. and you know this as well.. ESPECIALLY with no one to really hold him in check..
January 22nd, 2009 at 7:05 pm
LakeShow84 says:
Yo RangerJohn
For the record last time Kobe tried that flailing shit on u guys he got suspended..
You guys got a win.. See the difference??
January 22nd, 2009 at 7:17 pm
Ian says:
lol lake i cant go on cuz i have go out but before i leave
1.sacto wasnt in the same league as the spurs and lakers for that many years but they were the best in 2003 they DID get robbed they sure as hell can riot.
2.barry was fouled not shootin but he shoulda gotten 2 shots comon put kobe in that situation ull be pissed like hell.
3. cool
4.u say 4 in a row bro lets talk about 5 in a row
03 ring
04 fishers play
05 ring
06 dirks and one
07 ring
now thats as close as u can get so dont u cant say it your series in 03 hurt like our 04 06 series thats as close as they go.
5. trust me the lakers think the same way about duncan and like u said to me AND U KNOW IT.
to bad doug didnt get to read all this stuff lol before id leave but ill check it later on tonight hehehehehe.
lakeshow doug ranger take care fellas c u in the wcf lakers hehehe
January 22nd, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Ian says:
when u say no one to hold him lets hope pop is just saving bruce for the playoffs we need that mfker.
January 22nd, 2009 at 7:31 pm
rangerjohn says:
laker,
kobe does that shit ALL THE TIME! the leg kick out is patented by him so i guess your arguement should be that mason took a copyrighted move from the lakers and koe, so sue him
January 23rd, 2009 at 3:37 pm
LakeShow84 says:
Ouch on the 06 series lost to Dallas..
Talk about a bought series.. Dirks and1 where HE stepped on Duncans foot and got the call was comedy in it highest form.. But if ginobli just lets Dirk dunk it and make their FT’s its a game..
And i was in the Barry situation last year in the finals when punk ass Pierce flopped on a drive in our Arena with under a minute left and they called a foul on Kobe which put pierce at the line.. And then i have to hear about a historic comeback..
January 24th, 2009 at 2:58 am
Powerslave says:
Hope the Spurs beat the Lakers and a rematch of the 2007 Finals is born.
January 24th, 2009 at 3:11 am
Powerslave says:
Bruce Bowen will bite Mamba’s finger off in the playoffs
January 24th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
JACQUES_FFM says:
zaki_ffm@hotmail.de we can talk about NBA…..
January 26th, 2009 at 4:41 am
Jwill says:
Hahaha…thats why the Lakers just WAXED the Spurs last night