My Spurs Players Postseason Performance Reviews

[johnnyjohnnyjohnny]

Granted, the season is not over and this is just a review up to this point. I realize that we may be looking at our final game, Tomorrow or we may still have some fight left in us. Either way, I know this board will be dead as a doorknob after our final loss of the season, so in case that comes Tomorrow I want to get this out now.

Tim Duncan = A
He's had a few games where he may not put up the scoring numbers that we'd like to see from him, but he affects the game in so many other ways. His rebounding numbers have been phenomenal, he blocks shots and he demands the attention on both ends of the court. He's a completely different player in the playoffs.

Tony Parker = A
As badly as I want to knock him, he's had some brilliant games. He's also been our second most consistent player, which I do realize isn't saying very much. I don't think he has been the defensive liability in the playoffs that so many other PG's have been. Ok, maybe in that New Orleans series, but name me one PG in the league that could stop Chris Paul?

Bruce Bowen = B
We do not expect Bruce to come in and set the stat sheet on fire. We ask him to come in and guard the Steve Nash's, Chris Pauls and Kobe Bryants of the NBA. In round 2, Pop made a key decision to move Bruce to Peja and that IMO was the single greatest change to help us win that series. Without him, we'd be fishing already.

Brent Barry = B
Yeah, I really am grading him on 2 games and a bunch of 'what ifs'. What if Barry got Jacque Vaughns + Finley's minutes against New Orleans? Could we have finished the series in 6 games? 5? Would we have lost to the Lakers in 4 games? Brent has hit big shots, made key passes and has not made many mistakes.

Kurt Thomas = B
Without Kurt, we may not have made it out of that Phx series. Oberto could not be asked to guard Shaq or Amare, he also logged key minutes in the New Orleaans series. He can also nail the medium range jumper. I've found myself asking many times in this Lakers series... "Where's Kurt?" Especially in Game 4 when our rebounding was atrocious. Kurt is our 2nd best rebounder.

Manu Ginobili = C
Some games he would grade an A and others he would grade an F. As the a member of our big 3, his consistency has lead me to the saying "Live by the Manu, Die by the Manu" and I think if you compare our record when he plays well to our record when he plays poorly you will see exactly where I'm coming from. I would love to see him penetrate first, shoot second. I would also like to see him play better defense.

Michael Finley = D
He's hit big shots, but not enough to justify being a starter. If we knew what Barry was still capable of, I think it would have been good to give him a share of Finley's minutes throught the playoffs. There's really not much to say about Finley, at this point we really don't expect much from him... and he lives up to those low expectations.

Fabricio Oberto = D
It is really hard for me to give Fabricio this high a score., so please allow me to justify. He is a horrible defender, he makes a lot of stupid mistakes like 3 second penalties on both ends of the court, he often brings nothing to the offense. However, he has made more passes to get Tim Duncan easy baskets than any player on this team. I would almost like to see us get the ball to Fab more often for just that reason.

Ime Udoka = D
Ime has had a few good games, but I hesitate to say that we benefit much when he's on the court. It may have something to do with the 2nd string lineup that he generally plays with. I expected a Bowen like defensive effort from him, but he seems to make a lot of defensive assignment mistakes, especially in transition defense. He is a good 3pt shooter, and I think he does have a place on this team., but in a close playoff game his numbers should be limited to 10-12.

Robert Horry = F
One of my two least favorite players this year. His shot has been off and from behind the 3pt arc and within. If he grabs an offensive rebound, he doesn't even look to see if the lane is clear for an easy basket, settling for to pass it out and reset instead. Despite his offensive woes, he continues to jack 3's with wreckless abandon. I'd almost rather see him work inside out. Get a few easy points in the paint and move it out to the arc. I will give him credit for playing good defense against West and Odom, but I don't think it changed the outcome of games. I will admit, a part of me did wanted to see him take the big shot to end game 4 instead of Barry.

Jacque Vaughn = F
Not only my least favorite player for the Spurs, but my least favorite player in the history of the NBA. Some like to say he is a good defensive point guard, but I don't see it. Some like to say he doesn't make mental mistakes, but I beg to differ. I'd love to have had Barry play every non-blowout game JV minute in the playoffs.

Bonner, Stoudemire = NR
Not enough playing time to grade.

Greg Popavich = B
Coach Pops plays the playoff game of chess better than any coach I've ever seen. Few coaches make the game to game adjustments that Pop makes. He demands a lot from his players and is not afraid to bench even the biggest star for stupid play. I have questioned some of his lineup moves leading into the playoffs and during the playoffs. (Really, why no Kurt Thomas in the Lakers series?). I feel that he conceded some crucial games leading to the playoffs, that if we would have won gives us home court advantage in the West.

Team Grade = B
We dominated the Phx series, and barely made our way through the Hornets series and really have our backs to the wall down 3 games to 1 against the Lakers, with two more games left in Los Angeles if we're to take it to 7. I know nobody remembers who finished 2nd place, but I am proud of this team making it to the Western Conference Finals. I've felt for the last 2 - 3 years that we need to get younger and draft players who can play for us immediately and this is my chance to point and say 'see, I told you so' but it is what it is. However this season ends, I think this team laid it all out on the court and gave us fans something to be proud of.


All that said, let's go Spurs... 7 games to go. We can do this!

[DBMethos]

Nice analysis.

My grades:
A - Duncan, Parker, Bowen
B - Thomas, Barry, Pop
C - Oberto, Udoka, Ginobili
D - Horry, Finley
F - Vaughn

Defense - B
Offense - D
Overall - B

[ShowtimeFan]

I have not watched all the Spurs play off games, but as far as them against the Lakers, BOTH your grades are right on!

[lukeridenour]

i dont have a lot of time to seperate our players into different grades but i will say that horry, finley, vaughn all deserve Fs. everyone else is at least a C for effort.

horry, perhaps, its not his fault as his age has caught up. vaughn is trash, finley im disappointed the most. his game has dropped off so much since dallas. it really amazes me how far hes dropped.

[HarlemHeat37]

Duncan- A..we couldn't have asked for more from him..it would have been an A+ if he hadn't struggled against NO, but his double teams opened it up..his defense and rebounding is always there and even better in the playoffs..gets extra points for the 3 vs. the Suns..

Parker- A-..I thought he disappeared at times and didn't look as good sometimes(compared to the usual Tony Parker) but I'm extremely happy with his playoffs..he keeps improving, especially his playmaking for teammates..

Bowen- A-..shut down Nash..shut down Peja..making Kobe work for his points..his offense has been a lot better lately..I love Bruce, nothing more he could have done in these playoffs..

Kurt Thomas- B..had a great series vs. Phoenix..looked good at times vs. NO, even though he had to defend a much quicker and younger David West..helped tremendously on the boards in every series..I wanted to get him a ring though, but you can't always get what you want..

Brent Barry- B..I mentioned in the other thread, I thought he should have had more minutes since the NO series..there's no reason he shouldn't be getting Finley's minutes, he's better than him in every aspect..

Fabricio Oberto- C-..he plays with no balls, which is the reason he's so low..offensively, he's great..nothing else you can ask from him there..he made his shots, he made some great passes..

Manu Ginobili- C-..just embarrassing, especially after the solid regular season..when you're being hyped up by most people all year, you should be able to bring it in the playoffs, injured or not..the inconsistency is terrible..what's even worse is the decision making when his shot is off..like johnny said, his defense has fallen off too..

Ime Udoka- C-..provided a big + with his scoring in many of the games..fell back down to Earth in the Lakers series..

Micheal Finley- D..just terrible..if he can't shoot, he doesn't bring anything..maybe the worst passer in the NBA..the only reason I don't give him an F is because he made the game-tying 3 vs. Phoenix..

Jacque Vaughn- incomplete..what did we expect from him? we all know that he isn't a good player..

Robert Horry- F..he doesn't get an F-, because he played nice D on Odom..

Damon Stoudamire- F-..what a waste of a signing..I can't wait until I don't have to see him on the bench next year..

team grade- F..no title..

[Blame Rasho]

I will wait until the season is over before handing out grades...

[pad300]

Duncan- B+ Two very strong series (LA, PHX), one (relative) let down (NO).

Parker- A- Has brought good play to every series so far. Has held his own against the best pg in the league (CP3) and beat a former MVP (Nash). Has not completely overpowered Fisher, otherwise would be an A.

Bowen- A..shut down Nash..shut down Peja..Kobe working just about as hard as he ever has...

Kurt Thomas- B..stong vs. Phoenix..Useful against NO... Against LA his matchup would have been Bynum; No Bynum = No Play.

Brent Barry- B We should have used him more, earlier. He should have been given a much earlier opportunity to steal minutes from Finley and Vaughn. This might well have been a better grade had he been given the opportunity.

Fabricio Oberto- C+ Offense has been smart, some especially nice passing with Duncan. Defense has been an embarrassing but semi-effective blend of veteran savvy and flopping. Given he'd been having to match up against much better athletes (West, Odom) thats acceptable. Stronger boardwork would raise this grade sharply.

Manu Ginobili- D..I cannot give Ginobili a passing grade, just because of this series. We don't need 30 ppg. If we had 12 consistently we'd likely be winning this series 3-1 ...He has had injuries, but this is simply not good enough to make the grade...

Ime Udoka- B- Decent vs PHX, was a top reserve vs NO (as in we don't win the series w/o him), Isn't a very good matchup with a fast lakers team. Has been our best small ball PF (better than Finley)

Micheal Finley- E Offense = Defense = Putrid. Not bringing anything on either side of the floor vs. LA and NO...Stick a spork in him, he is done.

Jacque Vaughn- C..Did as well as expected. Agree that he isn't a good player. Acceptable 3ed PG...

Robert Horry- D Offense = Putrid, Defense = Decent, What do you expect from a 38? year old who has missed so much of the season...Stick a spork in him, he is done.

Damon Stoudamire- Incomplete..he can't do anything if he sees no burn.
He really on was signed to stabilize things while Parker was injured. We might have been better off to suck it up and sign a D-league point who wouldn't have demanded a guaranteed contract...

Bonner, Demarr, Mahinmi, - Incomplete...no burn..Didn't scare the paying customers while wearing their suits...

Popovich. C+ Great series against PHX, Took to long to switch Bowen from Paul to Peja against NO, Very slow to take minutes from Vaughn and Finley to give to Barry

team grade- D..no title.. Have given a good try though[/quote]

[UThinkUrSoGood]

Ok, maybe in that New Orleans series, but name me one PG in the league that could stop Chris Paul?

Deron Williams, well at least that's been the case in the regular season this year in their head to head match ups

[Donald Kaufman]

team grade- F..no title..

Cold hard truth.

But I agree 100%. No title = wasted season.

[johnnyjohnnyjohnny]

LOL, let's be honest. We're not going to win it every year fellas. This franchise has spoiled us fans. When you're at the top of the mountain, there's nowhere to go but down... and it's not like we hit rock bottom. We are still one of the 4 best teams in the league this year, that is not an easy feat.

[HarlemHeat37]

the reason I'm not as angry as I would have been years ago, is that I realize how difficult it is to win a title..you can't win every year..but like you said, we've been spoiled, and more importantly, I wanted to see a repeat..if a team has realistic chances at a title and is favored to begin the year, it's an "F" grade IMO..