GT: Grizzlies vs. Spurs

[Nolan]

When: 8:30 PM ET, April 12, 2012
Where: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX



VS



Starting Lineups:

Grizzlies:
PG - Mike Conely
SG - Quincy Pondexter
SF - Rudy Gay
PF - Marreese Speights
C - Marc Gasol

Spurs:
PG - Tony Parker
SG - Daniel Green
SF - Kawhi Leonard
PF - Tim Duncan
C - DeJuan Blair

Well we're coming off a pretty bad loss to the Lakers to face a red hot Grizzlies team.

Go Spurs!!

[co_laper]

I think we win this game.

About last nite, I think it was somewhat to be expected that Lakers will kill us down low. Their size is their biggest advantage againts every team in the league. Without it, they won't be who they are. It proved what we already know, that our frontcourt isn't one of the league's best and basically we can't exactly rely on our defense to really shutdown anyone. We have an average defensive basketball team.

The thing that worries me most about last nite is the fact that we couldn't get our offense going. Seeing that we boast the league's best offense, it bothers me that our offense simply got shutdown. They cut off any penetration and when we do finally get to the paint, Bynum/Gasol's length alters the shot. Considering it's one of the league's top offense, we should've been able to score more efficiently.

Memphis and Boston cut off penetration by showing hard on the pick and forced the ball out of Tony/Manu's hand, resulting in 3 pointers. Lakers did it in somewhat a different but scarier way. They allowed Parker to get to the paint, but not get a shot off. He'll pass it to the perimeter, but no one is open.

I really hope our next game looks different. I don't know how, but it just has to. I just hope Kobe chucks the ball and misses.

As far as this game, I think Memphis now features a heavy dose of Rudy Gay instead of Zach. He's till coming off the bench too. So I don't think our frontcourt will get dominated again. Memphis frontcourt will do well, but not kill us.

Our offense should be just fine againts this team. Tony Allen is injured, no Battier, and their perimeter defense isn't what it was last year. They don't have as much length or shotblocking as the Lakers.

I fully expect our offense to again carry this team while doing a decent defensive job on Memphis.

[co_laper]

Btw, I heard Arenas has been playing well lately. I've always liked Arenas when he was his old self and blogging and everything. I'm looking forward to seeing him play again. It's been a while since he's having fun out there. It's just sad to see him hit rock bottom the last few years.

[SinJackal]

The officiating was BRUTAL in this game. God damn, talk about a flashback from game 6 all over again when the refs call 4 ticky tack, borderline phantom fouls right at the beginning of the 4th to try and handcuff the Spurs's defense for the rest of the game, then kept giving them more ticky tack fouls so they could march to the free throw line while they ignore the Spurs getting hammered all night.

The refs clearly tried to fix this game and failed due to the Spurs playing hard as hell in the 2nd half. Great 5 on 8 win tonight. Too bad we didn't get the win in Utah, or we'd be a half game ahead of the Thunder right now instead of back a half game, and that half game being in the loss column which would've been huge.

I also literally cannot believe that the refs did not see Parker get smashed in the face on that play where he had to go to the sidelines to get looked at. It was plain as day. . .there's no way they didn't actually see it. Grizzlies were playing jail ball all night, Spurs were playing normal NBA ball, and the Grizzlies still got more FTAs and less fouls called against them until the personal takes at the end.

[franktony]

Duncan played great ! He wanted to win this game badly, you could see it in his face. I loved his effort and the team's effort as well, especially down the stretch with so many BS calls against us.

Plus, it was nice the to sweep the Grizzlies. I don't know if you guys have the same impression, but some of them (Grizz fans) are really annoying and cocky.

Seriously, i don't fear them at all in the playoffs. They're different and we're different. Rudy Gay taking shots from Z-Bo and Gasol helps us but they don't seem to understand it.

Anyway ..happy with the bounce-back victory. Felt good.

[batmana]

The refereeing was absolutely awful. The foul on Tony and that blocking foul Bonner picked when Gasol literally ran into him in the paint while Randolph had two hands on Bonner's back pushing him into Gasol...

By the way, the Grizzlies don't bother me if we have to meet them in the playoffs (as long as we stay healthy). But I noticed one thing - they pose much more problems to us if they play Gasol and Speights (too much length, almost like Bynum and the other Gasol for LA) than if they play Gasol and Randolph. The guy we had no answer for in the paint last night was, interestingly, Speights.

[Ballings7]

Big win, especially after a horrible loss to LAL

And yes, Memphis isn't the same team as last year in the playoffs... still a threat and pretty well-rounded, but not as long or athletic without Young, Battier, and Arthur. Gay taking more shots on the perimeter def. will help us agaisnt them if we face them.

LA will still be difficult to beat despite no Odom and a bit of age on Pau/Kobe, still basically the same, and will be a tough series in facing them...

[Donald Kaufman]

We can't underrate this team. Their bigs are too tough to ignore, like a watered down version of the Bynum-Gasol tandem in LA, and we historically struggle against teams built like this. Tough to get boards when you're starting 6'7 Blair.

I think we match up better with Memphis this season than last, but still, if we can avoid these guys and the Lakers in the playoffs I think we'll be fine.

[co_laper]

I'm just afraid of teams who can shutdown our offense. We're not really a defensive team anymore. That's not exactly what we rely on, though I wish it is.

[Donald Kaufman]

OKC are good enough defensively to shut us down, they've got the right mix of players, they just never do. I don't know what it is.

The way the Lakers held us the other night was really impressive. Nothing would surprise me with those guys. They might get knocked out in the 1st round or they might go all the way. Neither would shock me.

[co_laper]

I agree, OKC has the tools to shut us down. I just don't know why they don't.

At the same time, Memphis shut our offense down last year too. We've met them four times this season and I'm not sure why they can't do it now. Last year, Memphis wouldn't allow Parker/Manu to get to the paint. 4 meetings this season and they're having an easy time getting to the paint.

My worry is that as teams get familiar with one another in the playoffs and everybody plays harder, the same issue will rise. When teams don't allow Parker/Manu to get to the paint, it results to open 3 pointers with the defender running extremely hard to run the guy off the 3 point line. So basically we're relying on three pointers, and worse, midrange shots (our worse part of the offense). Manu/Parker need to have success getting to the rim if we are to go anywhere. If there's a series in which Manu/Parker are not able to do that for two games in a row, i'm calling us to lose the series. Whoever that's againts.