Game 37: San Antonio 109, Oklahoma City 108 OT
The two biggest story lines coming out of last night’s game were Ginobili’s out of bounds dive to save the ball and the game and DeJuan Blair.
Lots to smile about tonight
Photo by Bryan Terry
What can you say about Blair’s game? It was stupendous. The last rookie to post a 20-20 game? One Mr. Tim Duncan.
Ginobili’s play perfectly personifies why he’s such an amazing basketball player (and athlete), and why we love him so. He can play a perfectly mediocre to horrible game for 52 1/2 minutes, failing to even record a field goal; but then with one leap out of bounds and amazing pass to an open teammate in the corner, he can make the play of the game. He’s all hustle, heart, and head. His devotion to winning is second to none.
But the story of the game for me was Tony Parker. After Tuesday’s win over Los Angeles, Parker casually let it slip that he has plantar fasciitis . This is no little thing. Plantar fasciitis hurts and severely limits mobility. All season we’ve been wondering if something was wrong with Parker, as he seemed to lack his usual quickness and explosiveness. Now I’m shocked that he’s even playing at 75% capacity.
I’ve had plantar fasciitis. It effectively ruined my ultimate frisbee “career” (don’t laugh; at the highest level of competition, ultimate frisbee is filled with superb athletes and ruthless competitors). It’s hard to describe the pain; it’s like a needle being pushed into the bottom of your foot and heel with every step. It just fucking hurts. What it limits the most is quickness and change of direction. Sound like somebody we know? And even more than the pain is the thought of the pain, and the chance of the pain, causing just the slightest of hesitation before making any sudden movements. That momentary pause is enough to completely destroy the effectiveness of a player who relies on quickness and movement.
The other major downside of plantar fasciitis? There’s really no cure, no way to heal it, save for rest. Lots and lots of rest. Without taking some serious time off, Parker ain’t getting that anytime soon. A game off here or there probably won’t help much. So this is the Parker we will probably have for the rest of the season.
With that in mind, I was very happy with the game he played against the Thunder, especially in the first half. Parker came out firing, scoring at will, and orchestrating the offense with a maestro’s touch. It was vintage Parker. He carried the Spurs out to a 19 point lead, which settled at 12 at the half. He was unguardable.
The second half was a different story, as he seemed to grow cold and lost his will and/or ability to drive to the net. A lot of this must be attributed to the Thunder defense. But this should also be expected from someone suffering from plantar fasciitis. Once you get warmed up and start moving, the pain can start to dissipate, as the tendon loosens up. But with prolonged rest or inactivity, the tendon will tighten up and begin hurting again. It makes perfect sense that Parker would start the second half in pain. This is also something to watch going forward: can Parker stay warm and loose into the second half?
This is a development with season-long implications, and is something we should keep an eye on from here on out. If last night’s game is any indication, it may be manageable, and we still may be able to get enough of Parker to seriously compete at the level we want.
Looking Forward:
We have another tough back-to-back looming with a game Friday against Charlotte and Saturday against Memphis, both on the road. Both teams have been playing very well of late and will present great tests for us. Charlotte is a great defensive team, and this could be a classic grind it out/wear them down game. Memphis is, in my mind, probably the biggest surprise of the season. They’re over .500, Zach Randolph of all people is having an all-star caliber season, and they just seem to be getting it. They’ve put together some pretty impressive wins over the last month. Neither of these games is to be taken lightly. It will be interesting to see what Pop does with the rotation. Will he sit some veterans for either of the games? Will he give some lesser used players some more chances? Both game are immensely winnable, yet very losable.
The win against the Lakers coupled with the win against the Thunder feels like the beginning of a turning point in the season. We’re starting to get it; we’re starting to trust each other; we’re starting to play Spurs basketball, which is winning basketball. It’s a long corner to turn, but we’re starting to see the other side.
