We're less than a month away from the NBA playoffs, and the Spurs are currently sitting at 6th. To be fair, they could either be a 1 seed or an 8 seed entering the playoffs, so the seeding alignment doesn't matter as much as the things Popovich harps on: health and playing well at the right time.
Riding a 3 game winning streak, I'd say the latter is getting taken care of (in no small part thanks to Duncan and Manu). The team is also getting fairly healthy. Parker is about 100%, Udoka recovered nicely from the tarsal tunnel syndrome in his right foot that cost him two games, and Ginobili is playing with energy without overexerting himself.
The two variables are Robert Horry (knee contusion against Sacramento) and the recently resigned Brent Barry (still out with his calf tear). It's safe to assume that Horry will be back soon and that, for some godforsaken reason, Pop will let him shoot 1-6 in case he hits one big shot...meaning Bonner and Oberto will see more pine time, especially since Kurt Thomas has looked decent.
The shooting guard slot is far more intriguing. Barry provides the shooting that the notoriously streaky Finley, to be blunt, doesn't always do. Finley is 10-33 in his last 5 games including an 0-7 crapfest against Dallas. Thankfully, Udoka has shot 11-20 in this winning streak, and Bowen has held his own to make up for the lack of shooting that Finley and Barry are supposed to provide.
So, the million dollar question is this...if other teams go small, which wing players do you roll with? Ime has to be in there (he's the only wing capable of playing the 4 spot, and he proved it against Dallas), and obviously Manu is in the bunch. Bruce will be on the court come playoff time, meaning Finley and Barry will be sharing minutes based on who is shooting best on any given day. Do you roll with a Brent Barry recovering from injury, or a Michael Finley who shows up to 1 out of every 3 games?
Personally, I roll with the hot hand. As for Jacque Vaughn and Damon Stoudamire...take Vaughn in a heartbeat and never look back.
1 comment:
Post a Comment