**Except maybe in the playoffs. Please God, no.
Aaaaarrrrrrrggggggggggghhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!
Ok. Deep breath. Let’s just get that out of the way up top.
I hate playing the Jazz. Boozer always seems to have a career night against us; they are tough and physical, fouling hard and often, so that as the game wears on, the refs adjust to their physicality and stop calling them for fouls (though apparently Tim Duncan is no longer allowed to touch other players); and they execute flawlessly. The thing us, up until this year, even though I hated playing them, the Spurs had them figured out. We all know the stat: they hadn’t won a game in San Antonio since 1999. But this year something changed, and they have our number. We just can’t get it done. We went on a 25-0 (25 to zero!!) run and still lost by 7 points. The Jazz have had a pretty hot and cold season, but against us, they are a scorching 4-0. To put it another way, the Jazz account for 25% of our losses.
I’m sure most readers by now are aware of the article published in Argentina in which Ginobili says he does not expect a contract extension, and that he’s quite sure he’ll be a free agent. At the two sites linked, there are quite boisterous conversations being had about what this means, what we should do, and the fate of Ginobili and the franchise. (Updates here and here.) My feelings on Ginobili are well documented, and it would kill me to see him go. But I’m going to refrain from overreacting; this could really mean a number of things, including nothing. We know what we have with Ginobili, and we know he’ll play his ass off for the Spurs, regardless of any extenuating circumstances. You need look no further than tonight’s game to measure his value to our team. He sparked the team in the first quarter when we literally could not score, and he was by far our best player on the court.
Duncan, on the other hand, was not our best player on the court. He may have been one of the worst, in all honesty. I really think the pressure of getting to 20,000 points was affecting him, as he was pressing the whole game, missing shots he always makes, and just not playing his usual brand of smart, efficient basketball. Of course, in the great ironies of ironies, Duncan fouled out of the game (how often does Duncan foul out?) stuck at 19,999. I’d laugh if I wasn’t so pissed about the game. I guess we’ll have to wait until Friday night at Houston; I don’t think the Rockets are going to hold him scoreless.
Looking Forward:
One half of the season behind us; the important half in front of us. I hope to be back early Friday with a mid-season report. Right now we sit at 25-16, projecting us to a 50-win team…barely. Luckily, we don’t have to play the Jazz anymore, so that should help the win column. Sadly, while 50 wins will most certainly get a team into the playoffs, in the Western Conference a 50-win team could be as low as a 6 or even 7 seed. We definitely need to play better.
In the short term, the Rockets come to town Friday night. Playing the Rockets is always a low-scoring, defensive slog. I expect the same Friday…and I expect a win to kick off the second half of the season in proper form.
