Team Weakness

[co_laper]

I'd like to see if this holds up through out the season or it gets fixed.

2 games out, no Splitter yet, and this is what I think is obvious from this Splitter-less roster.

Length and shotblocking is a problem. Blair as a starter is too small. I think he deserves 24-30 minutes a night but atleast half of those minutes has to be againts backups. And really, I hope he gets back to focusing on his rebounding. I can't prove it, but I really feel like he's more focused on his offense and getting his shots so far. Is that just me?

Perimeter defense needs to be more consistent. Right now, we only play like 2 quarters a game where the perimeter defense is good. The other 2 quarters we play is just simply awful. It's inconsistent. I can say that the defense last night againts Hornets was good in the 4th quarter, but that 3rd quarter is ****.

Small ball lineup. I really hope this is temporary. I was never a fan of small ball. I know injuries to Bonner and Splitter has forced us to play Jefferson at PF again for a long period of time, but I really hope this doesn't continue.

[Nolan]

I hate the small ball stuff too.

Right now the defense has me worried. But i'm going to start getting really worried until I see how we play with Splitter on the floor. I really hope his length, shot blocking and rebounding will fix some of our problems.

[Donald Kaufman]

Blair is not starter material. Not yet anyway. I think Dice is a better option as he can make long range jumpers and stretch the D. Plus he crashes the boards.

I want to see us with Splitter before I fully judge this team.

[co_laper]

Yeah, right now after 2 games, I think McDyess has better chemistry with the starting unit because of his shooting ability. It'd be better if Blair and Hill bring that energy from the second unit. Damn I really hope Splitter is good. I don't see how we can fix this interior defense issue if Splitter isn't the guy.

[Frankie23]

Haven't seen the first 2 games. I think i would be able to watch tonight game. Seems like we can finally see Splitter on court.. Or maybe against the Suns..
We should watch him 5-10 games so as to judge him the right way cause he won't be at 100%..
I have high hopes on him. I heart Pop saying that they want to have Dejuan playing with the vets to help him in his learning process..Everybody knows he is short and there were a lot of people saying he will be in beast mode this year, so, i don't think that's the real problem. I think his 1:1 defense and rotations are not very good yet and he probably had 2 bad nights.. Let's be patient with the 21 years old guy..
I read that Neil had a good game against NOH.. We will need his scoring and 3-pointers.
Pop, how about:
Tony/Hill
Neil/Manu
Jefferson/Anderson
Duncan/Blair
Dice/Splitter
As first and second unit, finishing the game with: TP, Manu, RJ, Tim, Tiago..

[co_laper]

Game 3 is same thing again. Lucky for us, the defense in the 4th quarter was good and our offense didn't suck.

Weakness? Again, it was perimeter defense. We can't contain Gordon from getting to the rim. Our pick and roll defense is bad. Tiago didn't play enough minutes to really show us how he can impact this team yet. Blair again shows he's not ready to be a starter. Right now, I think Blair needs to be benched. I don't care who starts (Dice has been the best), but Blair just needs to come off the bench. This experiment isn't working right now.

[Frankie23]

Agree. Yesturday, in the 1st quarter Spurs played really bad, though we ended up tied at 26 because of shooting. We can rely on that..

There are 3 things that are working though..

1- Richard Jefferson!
2- The contribution of Gary Neal and James Anderson. Not only in the offensive end, but in the defensive intensity. Yesterday the second unit showed much better defense than the starters..
3- Few minutes, but still enough to show that Tiago is a good pick and roll defender. Glad to see him on court and high hopes are still there for him!

[co_laper]

Let's add turnovers to this list after the Phoenix game.

[Nolan]

Let's add turnovers to this list after the Phoenix game.

We're averaging 17.3 turnovers per game. The only teams that average more turnovers than us are Washington, New Jersey, Charlotte and Minnesota...

[inquisitive]

If JR Smith keeps it up in Denver, they might end up cutting him loose. I think the Spurs are the only team that can keep him under control and have him play with discipline. He is a great perimeter defender which the Spurs are lacking in right now. Stay tuned to the JR Smith saga.

[co_laper]

I really doubt they just cut him loose. Even as a headcase, I think he has value and teams are willing to offer something. Atleast an expiring contract if JR Smith isn't one.