Tag: Atlanta

By the numbers: How the Spurs beat the Jazz

Here’s a look at some of the more meaningful numbers in the Spurs’ victory over Utah Saturday night.

0 – Times that Utah led in Saturday’s game.

1 – Previous career games where Manu Ginobili has recorded a .900 shooting percentage in a game with at least 10 shots before Saturday night’s 9-for-10 shooting effort. The previous time came on Nov. 21, 2003, against Atlanta.

3 – Tiago Splitter’s blocked shots against Utah, matching his career high. It was previously set on Nov. 10, 2010, against the Los Angeles Clippers.

7 – Manu Ginobili’s consecutive baskets to start the game.

7 – Consecutive 3-pointers by the Spurs in the second quarter to blow the game open.

15.78 – Kawhi Leonard’s rebounds per 48 minutes after four games. It’s the highest rebound-per-minute ratio on the team.

+20 — Tim Duncan’s plus-minus against the Jazz. He was minus-27 against Houston Thursday night.

33.8 — Utah’s field-goal percentage through three periods.

17,769 — Attendance for Saturday’s game at the ATT Center. It was the smallest crowd the Spurs have played before this season and their first non-sellout.

Spurs weren’t a part of the hardest hardline owners

Spurs owner Peter Holt has been walking a tightrope as the primary NBA owner in the labor negotiations because of his role as the chairman of the league’s labor relations committee.

That role has led many to believe he would be David Stern’s biggest ally once a collective bargaining deal is taken to the other owners.

And it might explain why the Spurs who were most forceful about turning down a recent compromise that was championed by Stern.

The Indianapolis Business Journal, citing league sources, indicated the Spurs weren’t included among the owners who sent a letter to the labor relations committe who were strongly opposed to Stern’s offer of a 50-50 split in the basketball related income with the players. 

Owners for Indiana, Atlanta, Charlotte, Denver, Memphis, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Portland and Sacramento said in the letter that they believe a 50-50 revenue split would have been a bad deal for the owners.

The players did not not approve the deal anyway, leading to an extension of the lockout earlier this week.

Jordan Crawford says he can be better than Michael Jordan – seriously

Maybe it was his while in college school that emboldened Jordan Crawford in a special way.

But on the , the Washington Wizards guard has some pretty lofty career aims. Namely, to be the greatest to ever play the game.

Crawford continued that line of thinking in a recent interview with the Washington Post, where he flatly predicted he will be the greatest player that has ever played the game — including Michael Jordan.

“I don’t tell nobody, but I feel like I can be better than Michael Jordan,” Crawford told the Post, with a straight face. “When I’m done playing, I don’t want people to say, Michael Jordan is the best player. I want that to be me. That’s how I am. That’s how I was built.”

Crawford was the 27th pick in the first round of last year’s draft by Atlanta. He was traded late in the season to the Wizards, where he averaged 16.3 points in 26 games last season. 

His dunk over James created a firestorm when Nike tried to confiscate the tape. Thanks to You Tube and below, the tape has made itself into the public domain.

But pulling on Superman’s cape in the form of saying he will be better than Jordan is another thing.

I applaud him for dreaming big. But he better not hope that Jordan gets the comeback itch at the age of 48.

Because if he does, I bet I know the first place that “His Airness” will be looking to once he restarts his career.

Here’s the video of Crawford dunking over James way back when.