Tag: Player

McDyess: No regrets about time with Spurs

By Mike Monroe
mikemonroe@express-news.net

Sitting at his locker an hour before what became the final game of his 16-year NBA career, Spurs power forward Antonio McDyess winced.

He was trying to maneuver his back into a position that eased the twinge he still felt on the left side of his neck and down his left shoulder and arm — the result of a Game 3 injury that had left his arm totally numb.

Seeing his quest for comfort, a teammate asked the team’s oldest player how he felt.

“Not great,” McDyess replied.

Later, Grizzlies star Zach Randolph would lay an elbow to McDyess’ head and make things even worse, and force him to the bench to receive attention from the team’s medical staff.

As he stashed the last items from the locker in a travel bag, McDyess reflected on his two seasons in San Antonio, adamant he had made up his mind to retire and without regret for having chosen the Spurs over other teams that vied for his services in the summer of 2009.

“This was not at all how I wanted it to end, but signing here was one of the best things I did in my career,” he said. “I wouldn’t trade these two years for the world, one of the greatest times of my whole career. I just wish we would have gone farther.”

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is going to miss McDyess, as a player and person, but will respect his decision.

“We’re not going to fight him,” Popovich said. “If he does retire, as much as a player, we would miss him more as a person. He’s one of the finest human beings I’ve ever been associated with. He commands huge, huge buckets of respect from his teammates, just from the way he conducts himself. He’s just a wonderful man. So if he does retire, we’ll really miss him in that leadership role.”

The highlight of McDyess’ final season in silver and black was a buzzer-beating tip-in that gave the Spurs an 89-88 victory over the Lakers at the Staples Center on Feb. 3.

His final basket as a Spur, a perfect 20-foot jumper from the top of the key, gave his team its only lead of the second half of Friday’s elimination game in Memphis.

“This was one of the most enjoyable seasons I’ve ever had but disappointing we couldn’t go farther than the first round,” McDyess said.

When the Spurs were blown out in Game 4 at Memphis, he called out his teammates for being timid, including himself.

“I think that first game at home kind of set the tone for the whole series,” he said. “We weren’t aggressive, and the Grizzlies were ready to play us, and we should have taken that to heart when they said they wanted to play us. They came out exactly like a team that wanted to play us, and we were just taking their punches and weren’t coming back at them.”

INCREDIBLE, SHRINKING R.J.: After making 44 percent of his 3-point shots and averaging 11.0 points per game, starting small forward Richard Jefferson was benched for the entire second half of Friday’s Game 6 — scoreless for the second time in the series.

After making 5 of 9 3-pointers in Games 1 and 2, Jefferson made only one of his next eight. He averaged just 6.5 points in the series and by its end was strictly a spectator. He played only 10 minutes and 13 seconds of Game 6 — all in the first half.

Only seven times in his 10 seasons had Jefferson failed to score, and two of those came in the series against the Grizzlies.

Instant analysis: How the Grizzlies claimed Game 1

Here’s a look at how Memphis charged into the ATT Center and claimed the first playoff victory in franchise history.

Game analysis: On the first offensive possession of the game for Memphis, Marc Gasol went inside to take a 2-foot lay-up. Game on for the Grizzlies, who led the league in points in the paint during the regular season. They struggled early getting those easy shots in the paint, but had Gasol and Zach Randolph wore down the Spurs as the game progressed. They finished by combined for 15 of Memphis’ 31 points in the fourth quarter.  

How the game was won: Even with their success inside, the Grizzlies relied on outside shooting to pull out the victory. Shane Battier took advantage of a late rotation by Tony Parker to drain a 24-footer from deep in the left corner with 23.9 seconds left to give the Grizzlies the lead for good. Several hours later, his second child was born in Houston. How good of a day was it for Battier?

Player of the game:  Randolph was a player who the Spurs didn’t have an answer for throughout the game. He finished with 25 points and 14 rebounds, flummoxing the Spurs with his post play with an occasional jumper thrown in for good measure. Randolph scored at least 21 points in every game against the Spurs this year, picking up Sunday where he left off during the regular season.

Player of the game II: If Randolph was Batman for the Grizzlies, Gasol was a pretty effective Robin as he ripped the Spurs for 24 points and nine rebounds and even added three assists and two blocked shots for good measure. Gasol hit his first five shots before missing a 13-footer with 8:24 left in the third quarter. He finished by hitting his last four field-goal attempts en route to a 9-for-10 shooting effort.   

Most unsung player: Memphis point guard Mike Conley harrassed Parker to a struggling offensive game and added 15 points and 10 assists for good measure. Conley did a nice job getting the ball inside to his big players and providing tough defense.

Quote of the day: “They beat me up down there, but I expected it. This is the San Antonio Spurs and they are a physical team. They know how to get things done,” Randolph on San Antonio’s defensive efforts.

Quote of the day II: ”If you are writing a movie, it’s a pretty good Hollywood ending,” Shane Battier on his game-winning shot and having his second child born on the same day..

Stat of the game: The Spurs produced only 13 assists. Five of them came on their first five baskets of the game. They produced only eight assists over the final 44 minutes of the game. Those 13 assists matched their lowest single-game total of the regular season, notched against Dallas on Nov. 26.

Stat of the game II: Parker converted only 4-for-16 from the field (.250 percent). It was his worst playoff shooting game since he shot 3-for-15 from the field (.200 percent) against Dallas on May 19, 2006.

Curious stat of the game: Tim Duncan had a double-double effort with 16 points and 13 rebounds. The Spurs have lost the last four playoff games where Duncan has notched a double-double. During the past regular season, the Spurs were 23-4 in games where Duncan had a double-double.  

Injuries: Manu Ginobili still is listed as doubtful for Wednesday’s Game 2 with a sprained right elbow. Memphis guard Tony Allen was briefly sent to the locker room with a strained right calf muscle after colliding with Parker, but he returned to the game. Randolph complained about a headache after the game, but should be ready to go in Game 2. 

One losing streak starts, another one continues: Memphis snapped a 12-game playoff losing streak with the defeat. The Spurs saw their playoff losing streak stretch to five, when the four losses from the Phoenix series last season are added. It matches the longest losing playoff losing streak of the Gregg Popovich/Tim Duncan era set earlier with the final four games of the 2004 Western Semifinals against the Lakers and the first game of the 2005 first round against Denver.

Walking in Memphis, as well as celebrating: After playing 417 games with the Grizzlies and seeing the franchise drop all 12 playoff games, Battier understands how excited Memphis fans will be after their upset  victory in Game 1.  ”I’m happy for the city. I know Beale Street will be a fun place tonight,” Battier said. “Most of these guys don’t understand the history and the heartache the city has gone through in the playoffs.” 

What it means: Ginobili can’t get healthy fast enough for the Spurs. San Antonio’s offense bogged down without one of its prime penetrators in the lineup. His enthusiasm and energy were missing, as well as his ability to provide clutch plays in late-game situations. The Spurs are now 1-5 without him in playoff games he has missed because of injuries.

The numbers say: Teams that win first games in the series have gone on to win 320 of 408 (.784 percent) best-of-7 series. The Spurs have won two series in the three preceding seasons after losing Game 1. They lost homecourt advantage in the first game, but can win it back quickly enough in Memphis over the weekend — providing they can win Game 2 on Wednesday. But considering the way the Grizzlies dominated them in the paint, this is going to be a long, bruising series.

Instant analysis: How the Spurs evened the series

Here’s a look at how the Spurs turned around after a struggling first half to claim a gritty 93-87 victory over Memphis Wednesday night. 

Game analysis: After struggling defending Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol in the paint in Game 1, the Spurs did a better collective effort against the Grizzlies’ “Twin Towers,” limiting them to 23 points after they scored 49 points in the playoff opener.  The Spurs took a collaborative approach as almost every San Antonio big player rotated against them, with a key finishing effort by Antonio McDyess on Randolph down the stretch.   

How the game was won: The Spurs turned on the defense down the stretch, allowing Memphis to score only one basket during a span of nearly four minutes late in the fourthh quarter when their 12-4 run put the game away. And after a struggling team performance from the foul line earlier in the game, George Hill sank six foul shots in the final 5:08, including four in the final 12.3 seconds to ice the victory.  

Player of the game:  Manu Ginobili could barely lift his right elbow with a bulky brace attached to it, but still provided another memorable performance playing through an injury. His 17 points Wednesday night really don’t do justice to his influence as he also provided seven rebounds, four assists, four steals and blocked a shot for good measure. His shooting numbers weren’t good but the surge of energy he provided to his team helped give them a lift they desparately needed. He finished with a team-best plus-16 in plus/minus.

Player of the game II: After scoring only two points in the first half,  Hill gave his team a lift by scoring 14 of his 16 points after the break. He was clutch from the foul line and also hit a couple of crucial 3-pointers that helped him turn around his game after a struggling 1-for-5 start from the field in the first half. Hill also provided five rebounds, four assists and two steals as he gave the Spurs a lift off the bench. The Spurs are a better team when Hill is provided a boost from the bench rather than starting. They missed that lift in Game 1.   

Most unsung player: McDyess had a struggling start in the first three quarters as he looked lost at times trying to contain Randolph and Gasol. But the Spurs’ oldest player provided a lift down the stretch as he forced Randolph to miss his final three shots — a 2-foot layup, a 6-foot jumper and a 3-foot layup as the Spurs pulled away to the victory.

Quote of the day: “Manu is Manu. He could be in a body cast and he’s still gonna make plays,” Memphis forward Shane Battier on the return of Ginobili to the Spurs’ lineup 

Quote of the day II: ”Memphis, they love to play physical. They’re like the old Utah. They’re going to foul and grab and they’re great at it,” Spurs guard Tony Parker on the Grizzlies’ physical defense.

Quote of the day III: “They clogged the paint up. They came at us from the weak side every time. They said, ‘Well, if you guys are going to beat us, you’re going to beat us with something else,”‘  Gasol, on San Antonio’s defensive strategy in Game 2.

Stat of the game: Memphis shot 39.8 percent from the field Wednesday after shooting 55.2 percent from the field in Game 1. Since 2004, the Spurs  have limited playoff opponents to less than 40 percent shooting in 15 games. They are 14-1 in those games.

Stat of the game II: Randolph and Gasol combined to hit 7-for-23 from the field (30.4 percent). They hit 19-for-25 from the field (76 percent) in Game 1.

Curious stat of the game: San Antonio had 19 turnovers in the game, compared to 15 for Memphis. But the Spurs turnovers led to 13 Memphis points, compared to 26 points coming from Memphis’ miscues.

Injuries: Ginobili returned to the lineup despite a sprained right elbow. He was not as effective as normal, but still helped lead San Antonio to the victory.

Turning around the first-game struggles: The Spurs have lost six consecutive Game 1 in the playoffs. They are 3-3 in second games after those early losses.

Regular season vs. playoffs: After hitting 47.5 percent from the field and averaging 103.7 points per game during the regular season, the Spurs are hitting 42.0 percent from the field in the playoffs and averaging 95.5 points per game after two games with the Grizzlies. Memphis is shooting 46.5 percent in the playoffs and averaging 94.0 points in the playoffs, compared to 47.1 percent and 99.9 points in the regular season.

What it means: San Antonio grabbed a crucial victory that evened the series. But the young Grizzlies leave San Antonio with homecourt advantage as they head home for what undoubtedly will be the biggest game in franchise history on Saturday night at the FedExForum with a chance to snatch control of the series.

The numbers say: After splitting the first two games of a playoff series, the Spurs are 12-13 in those series (48.0 percent) in their previous history. But since 2003, they have won seven of their last nine series after starting 1-1.