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Tag: San Antonio
Dollars for Diaw: A Spurs’ equation
Column by Buck Harvey
Before the series with the Thunder, here is what one Spurs’ staffer thought was the best way to keep Boris Diaw:
Win.
Give Diaw both a ring and a sentimental reason to want to return.
After the series with the Thunder, here’s what another in the organization wonders:
Will anyone else want to commit big dollars to a guy who went scoreless in Game 6?
It’s the power of the last impression, and all of this will figure into the Spurs’ summer. While they know they will eventually reach agreements with Tim Duncan and Danny Green, Diaw is something else entirely.
Exactly how much is he worth on the open market?
These are the questions of every summer, since the art of basketball management is financially based. DeJuan Blair is an example.
The Spurs have been disappointed with him at times. He got emotional this season when he was demoted, and he gained some weight. As the Spurs like to say about players who aren’t in tune with their way of doing things, he wasn’t pulling the rope.
Blair seemed to recover late in the season, and staff found him working out at surprising hours in the practice facility. But the bottom-line incentive to bring him back is the salary cap’s bottom line. Blair is ?under contract for a little more than $1 million next?? season, and that’s the kind of value that eases other concerns.
What’s tougher to determine is how much to pay someone such as the veteran European player, Erazem Lorbek. Obtained in the Kawhi Leonard trade, Lorbek shoots nearly as well as Matt Bonner and does most other things better.
They like him. At 28, Lorbek is at an age where he should come to the NBA if he is ever going to. But money will determine what happens this summer, and, again, once they establish Duncan’s salary, this begins with Diaw.
From the day he arrived after a buy-out in Charlotte, Diaw was priceless. Diaw knows the game, and he’s clever enough to pass and big enough to defend the post.
He had a 12-rebound game against the Clippers, as well as a 16-point one. He banged with Blake Griffin while also becoming a snug fit between Duncan and Leonard.
Had the Spurs advanced to the Finals, then maybe another team would have wanted to steal a healthy 30-year-old with his kind of versatility. Anything beyond the mid-level exception will be out of reach of the Spurs, and, besides, a ring and sentiment only go so far in this business.
At his age, Diaw is facing what is likely his last chance to cash in.
But then came the Thunder series. As adaptable as Diaw is, he struggled to stay on the floor when Oklahoma City went small. He was hesitant to take the 3-point shot the Thunder were giving him, and when Diaw opted to drive instead, he was ineffective with either the shot or the pass.
He ended with five turnovers in the final two games — when he had only three in a stretch of seven consecutive games in the postseason.
Were other teams still thinking he was worth, say, a $35 million deal? What happened in Charlotte will leave doubt, too. And even those impressed with his stint with the Spurs might wonder if he was happier in San Antonio than he would be elsewhere.
There’s only one city where he can live with Tony Parker, after all.
The Spurs hope all of this is part of the equation. They thought Diaw was remarkable, especially since the stretch-four position is new to him. Diaw was 9 of 18 from behind the 3-point line this postseason, for example; in his previous 39 playoff games with other teams, he was only 4 of 29.
So how much better would Diaw be if Gregg Popovich gets him in November instead of March?
The Spurs hope they will be able to pay to see that.
bharvey@express-news.net
Twitter: @Buck_SA
Spurs 120, Thunder 111: Game 2
By Tim Griffin
Gregg Popovich wanted some nasty Sunday night. The Spurs coach got an extended dose of it two nights later.
Tony Parker erupted for a season-playoff high 34 points and eight assists to lead the Spurs to a gritty but convincing 120-111 victory over Oklahoma City in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals Tuesday night at the ATT Center.
The victory extended the Spurs’ 20-game winning streak, making it one of the four longest in NBA history. It is the league’s longest victory including games at the end of the regular season and extending into the playoffs.
It also is the longest in the NBA since Houston won 22 consecutive games in the 2007-08 season.
But it wasn’t easy. Oklahoma City pulled within 99-93 on two foul shots by Westbrook with 5:40 left.
The Spurs answered with a pivotal 8-3 run including four points from Parker to help put the game away.
Manu Ginobili scored 20 points for the Spurs, including 10 in the fourth quarter. And Kawhi Leonard and Tim Duncan both notched doubles with Leonard producing 18 points and 10 rebounds and Duncan adding 11 points, 12 rebounds and six assists.
Kevin Durant led Oklahoma with 31 points and James Harden added 30 before fouling out in the final minute of play. Russell Westbrook chipped in with 27 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. But the rest of the Thunder roster produced only 23 points.
Earlier, the game turned ugly when Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks mucked up the pace of the game late in the third quarter when he chose to hack Tiago Splitter on five successive possessions.
Splitter made five of the 10 free throws. But the exchanges helped slow down San Antonio’s offensive pace.
The Spurs hit 60 percent from the field in the first three quarters, but hit only three of their first 12 shots to start the fourth quarter.
Before the game, Brooks said his team seemed to “play nasty” coming off losses, considering they had a 15-3 record during the regular season.
But that definitely wasn’t the case Tuesday night as the Spurs jumped to a quick 10-2 lead and never trailed.
The Spurs are clearly in the driver’s seat as the series returns to Oklahoma City for Game 3 on Thursday night. NBA teams that have lost the first two games on the road end up losing the series 94.8 percent of the time.
And the Spurs have notched an incredible road streak during the second half of the season. When Popovich has utilized his complete roster, the Spurs have won 24 of their last 25 on the road.
tgriffin@express-news.net
Updates by Joe Alexander
The Spurs built a big lead and held off the Thunder down the stretch for a 120-111 victory and 2-0 series lead.
Tony Parker led the Spurs with 34 points and 8 assists. Manu Ginobili had 20 points including a big 3-pointer late when the Thunder were making it close. Kawhi Leonard had 17 points and Tim Duncan had 11.
The Spurs led by as many as 22 points.
Fourth quarter: Tony Parker has 32 points. His jumper gives the Spurs a 107-96 lead with 3:39 left in the game. Thunder timeout.
Tim Duncan makes both free throws. He has 11 points and 10 rebounds. The Spurs lead 101-93 with 5 minutes left.
The Thunder have tightened up the defense in the fourth quarter. The Spurs’ shooting percentage is dropping. The Spurs still lead 99-91 with 5:40 left in the game.
The Thunder aren’t going away. They cut the Spurs’ lead to 95-85 with 9:37 left in the game. Spurs timeout.
Third quarter – Spurs 92, Thunder 76: The Spurs are still shooting 60 percent — that’s just not normal this far into the playoffs. Tim Duncan has 9 points and 9 rebounds. Manu Ginobili has 10 points off the bench. Tiago Splitter, thanks to lots of trips to the free-throw line, has 8 points.
Tony Parker has 26 points and 7 assist and has moments when it looks like he’s playing against a D-League defense. The Spurs lead 80-64 with 3:52 left in the third quarter.
Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard are up to 10 points each. Boris Diaw just made a driving basket. The Spurs lead 68-52 with 8:22 left in the third quarter. Thunder timeout.
Halftime – Spurs 55, Thunder 44: The Spurs are efficient on offense, shooting 57.9 percent with 6 turnover (14 first-half turnovers last game). Tony Parker has 17 points. Kawhi Leonard, Tim Duncan and Danny Green have 7 points each. Total rebounds are about even, but the Thunder had 10 offensive rebounds. Otherwise this would be on the way to a blowout right now.
Tony Parker has 17 points and 5 assists. The Spurs lead the Thunder 49-40 with 2:54 left in the half.
In the last three possessions the Spurs got back-to-back pick-and-roll baskets followed by a Stephen Jackson 3-pointer. The Spurs lead 42-29 with 7:07 left in the half. Thunder timeout.
The Spurs are holding the Thunder to 37.5 percent shooting. The Spurs lead 35-29 with 8:52 left in the half.
First quarter – Spurs 28, Thunder 22: Tony Parker has 10 points. Kevin Durant has 12. The Spurs have only 3 turnovers. The Spurs lead by six at the end of the first quarter. This looks like a good pace for the Spurs.
Tony Parker has 10 points in the first 8 minutes of the game. The Spurs lead 19-11 with 4:17 left in the first quarter.
Danny Green is looking better tonight. He has a basket and a 3-pointer in the early going.
Tony Parker has 4 points and an assist. The Spurs lead 10-2 and notably are not turning the ball over early. The Spurs lead 10-2. Thunder timeout.
Spurs starters: Tony Parker, Danny Green, Kawhi Leonard, Boris Diaw and Tim Duncan.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was asked before tonight’s game if Manu Ginobili can continue to play as many minutes as he did in Game 1:
“He’s probably never done that before. So I don’t know how to answer that. He’s had a lot in the tank because he hasn’t had to do that very often, but it’s playoff time, and there are no back-to-backs. So my guess would be that minutes aren’t a problem.
The Spurs play the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight at 8 p.m. at the ATT Center in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals.
Join Jeff McDonald and Tim Griffin for a live game chat (below) beginning at 7:30 p.m.