Seattle vs San Antonio Details: Who: (23-24) vs (32-18) Where: Key Arena When: Thursday, Feb 5th, 7pm TV: TNT Projected Lineups: PG: Antonio Daniels/Luke Ridnour SG: Ray Allen/Ronald Murray SF: Rashard Lewis/Vladimir Radmanovic PF: Vitaly PotapenkoVladimir Radmanovic/Reggie Evans C: Calvin BoothJerome James/Vitaly Potapenko Coached by Nate McMillan PG: Tony Parker/Charlie Ward SG: Hedo Turkoglu/Manu Ginobili/Devin Brown SF: Bruce Bowen/Ron Mercer/Hedo Turkoglu PF: Tim Duncan/Malik Rose C: Rasho Nesterovic/Kevin Willis Coached by Greg Popovich Injury List: Nick Collison: shoulder, season. Brent Barry: broken finger, on IL. Injury List Sean Marks: left patella tendinitis, on IL. Jason Hart: left patella tendinitis, on IL. Alex Garcia: right knee contusion, on IL. Analysis: On paper, picking a winner here is not that hard. San Antonio own perhaps the best big man in the world, while Seattle struggle with Eddy Curry. Seems like the final rights to me. However the Sonics seem to play better against the top teams. They have notched wins over Sacramento and the Lakers this season, and were foiled on a last second winner by Dallas. However that does not automatically ensue the Sonics will play hard, as they continue perhaps their toughest stretch of the season. San Antonio have not been at the top of their game recently, but still remain among the frontrunners in the league, and still boast perhaps the deepest rotation going around. Still, you'd rather play them now than as the season winds to a close. The bad news? Seattle still have them twice more after this game. Playoff Time Two years ago, these teams met in a first round playoff match up of the first and eighth seeds. It ended up going to five games, after Tim Duncan and David Robinson both missed games through injury, and Rashard Lewis wasn't fully recovered from a shoulder injury sustained a month earlier. Tony Parker emerged and both Duncan and Gary Payton posted playoff triple doubles in what was an exciting series. [quoteright]"His mobility for his size makes him tough. He can shoot outside. He can put the ball on the floor. One on one, he's tough to stop, especially when he's got position on you. You have to be aggressive. He's a big body, but he gets away from physical play. Physical play distracts him. Still, you can do all of that and it may not be enough." - Vitaly Potapenko on guarding Tim Duncan.[/QUOTERIGHT] Key Factors: - Double Duncan. He's going to get his 20 and 10, that much is apparent, but make them harder for him to get. Double him as soon as he recieves the ball, get a body on him every time a shot goes up, and rotate smartly to avoid giving up too many open jumpers out of the post. It is a lot easier said than done, but it is the way to play if you want to beat the defending champs. - Contain the rest of the team. Obviously the entire offense revolves around Duncan, but containing guys like Parker and Ginobili is one step towards pulling the win. When Duncan is on, the Spurs are hard to beat, but when his teammates are also on, they are unbeatable. Teams can get too Duncan-conscious sometimes, giving up open looks to the aforementioned guys, plus Bowen Turkoglu and Mercer. Keeping a body on cutters too is also vital, as well as Nesterovic, as Duncan is a superb passer for a man his size. - Get the ball in Ray's hands. He'll create for others and he'll score himself, but Seattle need to counter San Antonio's inside dominance from the perimeter. Duncan and Nesterovic will guard the basket, and Ray needs to show why he's a worthy All Star. Daniels and Lewis need to continue their good form too, as will Radmanovic; these guys can't afford to have off-nights against the Spurs. Key Matchup: Vitaly Potapenko vs Tim Duncan For a perimeter orientated team like the Sonics, Tim Duncan is their worst nightmare. He torched them in their earlier match-up this season, posting 27 and 20, and only the most optimistic of fans would have faith in Seattle's abilities to stop the two time MVP. Enter Vitaly Potapenko. Nicknamed the Ukraine Train, Potapenko has played 30 minutes a game for the past three, and has put up numbers around the 10 and six mark. However it's his physical presence and willingness to put his body on the line that is the most valuable part. Although obviously coach McMillan will have to use all his big men on Duncan to avoid foul trouble, Potapenko will likely get first crack, and will look to bully him into taking bad shots and not getting good position down low, both akin to a painful death for opposing big men. At the other end, Potapenko will have to knock down the open jumper that presents itself and make Duncan accountable so he can't clog the lane and crash the defensive glass at will. X-Factors: Reggie Evans - not big enough to start, but his hustle, interior toughness and rebounding prowess will be vital in chipping away at Tim Duncan inside, as always the key to San Antonio's success. Malik Rose - has been in coach Popovich's doghouse all season long, but he's still an energy guy capable of racking up the points in rebounds inside. Tough and mobile around the basket, he could cause trouble for Seattle inside. <font size="1">Player photos and logo images courtesy of NBA.com </font>
Great preview Sir Des, really good breakdown of how the game will go. I agree on double teaming TD, containing him alone will be too difficult. Heck containing him at all is difficult all on its own. I'm glad Malik is back in the game. I look forward to him outboarding the rest of 'em. Well not Duncan but his hustle will be a pleasure to see again. It's possibly the only exciting play I see. The Sonics don't have enough size but Rashard and Ray will probably carry the offensive end. Hopefully they can handle the awesome defense of the Spurs. Good luck to both teams, I want Sonics to take this, I think they'll give the Spurs a hard time, but won't take it. Spurs by 7.
Nice Preview "Sir Des"..I agree they cant put 100% focus on Tim..Because if Gino or parker or Hedo get hot..Its going to cause serious problems..Lets not forget that Bowen can stroke it from downtown too..I think that sonics are going to have to Rebound Big and not allow Tim..Malik..and Rasho from getting second chance basket's...The spurs are going to HAVE to defend the perimeter...But all in all..I think it should be an intresting game!
Sonics will need to double Duncan every chance they get, everyone knows Sonics are thin on the inside, If they give Duncan the chance to go one on one with any of their defenders he could go off for 40. Double down on Duncan and make Manu, Parker, Hedo, Bowen beat you from the outside. Malik Rose has to be a factor in this game, He has the body to have an impact against the Sonics frontline. Spurs meanwhile will need to guard Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis tough, If they let either go off It will be a very tough game for S.A to win. I expect Bowen will be given the assignment to guard Ray.
Only 40? More like 50. You saw what he did to the non-presence of Orlando earlier this seaosn... 47 points, and that's his current season high. I believe Bowen will stick with Rashard, because he seemed to have some success last time he had to guard him - Ray's going to score no matter what, so have your best defender not named Duncan on their second, more containable option. The Sonics will definitely be playing an outside game tonight, and at the SBC Center, it's not an easy way to beat the Spurs. Duncan will only miss about 2-4 minutes of action the entire game, so they must know it's critical to take advantage of every second he's gone. I call the Spurs by 10.
Goddammit, I did it AGAIN. Someone put the team names in the order they're supposed to be in, lol. San Antonio @ Seattle works a bit better. That changes my prediction. Spurs by 6.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Crossover:</div><div class="quote_post">Only 40? More like 50. You saw what he did to the non-presence of Orlando earlier this seaosn... 47 points, and that's his current season high. I believe Bowen will stick with Rashard, because he seemed to have some success last time he had to guard him - Ray's going to score no matter what, so have your best defender not named Duncan on their second, more containable option. The Sonics will definitely be playing an outside game tonight, and at the SBC Center, it's not an easy way to beat the Spurs. Duncan will only miss about 2-4 minutes of action the entire game, so they must know it's critical to take advantage of every second he's gone. I call the Spurs by 10.</div> Lets not forget Manu is a pretty good defender..and thrives off of going against the stars of this league....I say keep bowen on rashard force him to have a bad shooting night..No way will he COMPLETLEY shut him down..But he will hassle him into a bad night..Tony must pass the ball this game..He MUST gets his team mates going..I noticed this and i been saying it for ages..When TP passes the ball..And gets near 10 assists the team win..Why.?..Because he gets TD going..He gets Manu going...Soon the whole bench..Hedo..Horry..etc..are all in the flow of the game..and i think TP has got to realise this...Or come play-off time....it WILL hurt us.He's got to learn he cant be trigger happy...Otherwise the flow of the game is not there!
Seattle is third best in points per game whereas San Antonio surrenders a league low 83.3 points. Something is bound to give tonight. Seattle is much like the rest of the league, they have no answer for Duncan. I think he'll pull them to a victory like always, but the Sonics will put up a fight. If Ray Allen has a great game, it could be a close one. Spurs by 7
Oh yeah, I was right tonight. Spurs win by 6, 96-90. Rashard's missed free throw was huge. It forced the Sonics to need a second possession rather than just one, where a three could've tied it. Duncan was big, as usual, but Ginobili really played well tonight. He and Bowen were in Ray's face the entire time, making things as hard as possible for him. I'm disappointed with Malik Rose again, though. Missing all those gimme shots. Ginobili got to the rack a lot in the second, but nothing wanted to fall for him. Good game tonight, and now it's off to Sacramento and Phoenix for games tomorrow, respectively. And I'm so glad the Spurs are a good road team.
Was a good game, certainly made up for that horrible one that was showed before this. Duncan again could not be stopped in the post, Hedo was knocking down some threes, attacking the basket well. Manu also hit some big time threes and played great defence late in the 4th quarter. Spurs NEED to beat the Kings tomorrow The record against the elite teams is very poor If there was ever a must win game for S.A The game at arco is it.
I agree..We MUST win tommorow..For 3 reasons..My personal satisfaction is one..To show we can compete with the top/top teams in the west..So that no one thinks the Spurs are fake this year!
Ahhhh come on man ....The Kings are playing very good B-Ball right now...Not to mention we are at home .... But i do agree , this is a big game tonight ...The Kings need to win to keep things interesting in the West .....0-6 against the elite teams in the west ??? Lets just hope the Kings keep that streak going ... Go Kings~
Sounds like it was one tough battle, great effort for the win guys. Hope this keeps up, now this is what basketball is all about, close wins, those mean hard earned, well fought battles for the victory. As far as the game against the Kings go, I hope you guys win, it'll show them that you mean business. They're probably your most likely opponent if you make it to the NBA Conference Finals or even in the playoffs, them or my Timberwolves. Either way I hope you do well against them, good luck and show them what you're worth.
Yo Thanks Magic..Yea i really want to see the SPURS go hard in This one..It would be nice to take down one of the top teams...In the west..It should be an exciting game...Spurs clamp down defense..and Kings fast paced offense should provied for a great game..Go have fun SPURS..Your fans are behind you all the way!
Actually, the Spurs are 0-8 against the elite teams of the West, and 1-10 if you add Indiana and Detroit.
