RealGM

When: 10:00 PM ET, November 9, 2012
Where: Sleep Train Arena, Sacramento, CA

Well I had a long day of delays and missed connections so this game thread going to lack my usual effort.

We're coming off a weak performance in LA and we really need a big win tonight.

Go Spurs!!

Doubt we lose this game.

Wow.. I feel like Pop's reading the board or something. Finally I got what I wanted. Blair started the game and mostly played with Duncan. Diaw plays with second unit alongside Splitter and alongside Duncan in some parts of the game. Bonner didn't play at all. Obviously there are still some chemistry issues especially with Blair back with the starting unit and Diaw with the second unit. There are times when they're misreading their teammates with passes. But the spacing is good and it looks like it just needs more time. Diaw still get the most minutes of the bigs despite coming off the bench. He finishes with a line of 9 points, 9 boards, 4 assists. I hope this experiment stays. I totally love it.

Pop wanted Green and Kawhi to bring energy to the starting lineup, nobody brings it more than Blair. Blair didn't finish with a good statline, but he was missing a lot of paint shots that he normally makes.

I thought overall the Spurs played good defense. Again, the defense only shows for about half the game. Our offense however, I feel like Manu and Parker needs to be more assertive. Parker, especially, has basically been playing distributor role for the last couple of games. I've seen an aggresive Parker that attacks the rim, this isn't it. Manu got stripped a lot today and he had a stretch there where he just turns the ball over and over again.

The great part, Duncan looks 25 years old. Patty Mills gave us a great lift off the bench. I'm also gonna say this again, I think Patty will eventually win the backup PG. Problem with Neal at PG is that he's still shooting the ball a lot and the shots he take are always from 20 feet or 3 pointers. Mills plays within the offense. He attacks the rim, when he's not, he space the floor at the 3 point line. And then on defense, Mills gets up on people like a small bulldog. Pop subbed Parker out for Mills late in the game seeing how Parker is supposedly with the flu or basically not playing all that well. Mills' impact on the game was evident.

Oh and Kawhi. He got his shot blocked at the rim on a drive to the basket I think 3 times. I'm really wondering how he played in San Diego, but it's getting clear that this isn't and IMO shouldn't be a part of his game. First, he's not a slasher. Second, he's not a great finisher. Most guys who can't shoot but athletic, they're usually slashers and already a pretty good finisher. Kawhi can neither shoot, slash, or finish. His ballhandling isn't special to begin with. Just because he's got huge hands, he protects the ball very well. But he's not gonna dance like Jamal Crawford or even like Gary Neal. His biggest value remains on the defensive end. Offensively, he's shown nothing more than as a corner 3 spot up guy, cut backdoor, and attack the offensive board for put backs. My disappointment comes from expecting all this so called improvements during the summer on the offensive end that have absolutely no result. I was really expecting a huge offensive improvement from Kawhi. Kawhi should go meet Hakeem Olajuwon. He's got a knack for making shots around the basket, he's got the body and athleticism to play in the post.

The team was sick, and I don't mean in the positive manner, I meant it literally. :/

I like Blair back in the starting lineup. Diaw looked great off the bench and him and Splitter are a solid duo.

I think diaw could help splitter out.
Splitter will score mostly off putbacks or spoon fed finishes.
Diaw is a great passer and could find splitter some offense as well as being able to shoot and can spread the floor.

Duncan and blair is our best rebounding tandem and Duncan has enough range to be respected and could free up some space for Blair.
We have led the western conference twice with Duncan and Blair maybe we should stick it out and give Blair another run.

Best case he develops a midrange game and some extra dimension to his game.
Worst case we showcase him off and some team gets interested and we can get something for him.