• Welcome to OGBoards 10.0, keep in mind that we will be making LOTS of changes to smooth out the experience here and make it as close as possible functionally to the old software, but feel free to drop suggestions or requests in the Tech Support subforum!

Official 2013-2014 NBA Thread: TIMOTHY THEODORE DUNCAN #5

Part of the reason the Spurs balled out is how Pop managed the lineup.
 
Fuck Your Couch said:
Pop/Spurs organization are on the cutting edge of regular season minutes management as well.
Click to expand...

Have you seen any articles about this? I'd love to read them.

Also, this year it felt like Pop's hand was forced a little bit w/r/t to minutes management. Injuries to Parker, Splitter, Leonard, and Ginobli all forced them into a lot of rest. Of course, those injuries could have been pretext for extra rest, but I trust them when they say those guys were actually injured all year.

It's also another example of injury luck. Lose a bunch of players for various parts of the regular season? No problem, just make sure they'll all healthy at the same time in May/June.
 
When you rest all your best players more than any other team and you also develop a superior bench getting lots of meaningful game minutes. Pop punts on entire games if the schedule is particularly brutal but still churns out the best record year after year.

This is like when the Spurs started taking corner threes before everyone else. Will trickle down to the rest of the league.
 
After seeing the NBA playoffs to completion, I believe with the benefit of hindsight that the second best team in 2013-2014 was ______________________.
 
Fuck Your Couch said:
When you rest all your best players more than any other team and you also develop a superior bench getting lots of meaningful game minutes. Pop punts on entire games if the schedule is particularly brutal but still churns out the best record year after year.

This is like when the Spurs started taking corner threes before everyone else. Will trickle down to the rest of the league.
Click to expand...

And by "punt" you mean he runs out mostly bench players which gives them experience against other teams' starters and prepares them for long stretches of productivity like they had in the playoffs.
 
The whole coach-up-the-bench thing doesn't really apply to the Heat. When you've got HOFsters and former All-Stars coming off the bench then it's just about minutes management. And it's not like Bosh, Wade, et al played like garbage because Spo ran them ragged. This isn't a Thibs-type thing. I think it's more of a personnel issue than a coaching issue.

Also, I think that Shot Doctor bro in San Antonio is for real. Noticed that several of those role players have identical looking jumpers.
 
Fuck Your Couch said:
When you rest all your best players more than any other team and you also develop a superior bench getting lots of meaningful game minutes. Pop punts on entire games if the schedule is particularly brutal but still churns out the best record year after year.

This is like when the Spurs started taking corner threes before everyone else. Will trickle down to the rest of the league.
Click to expand...

Totally agree about the back-ups. I've long thought that Pop's genius is in creating/nurturing useful bench players. RC Buford rightly gets credit for strong drafting, but I can't help but wonder if any GM benefits more from their head coach. Maybe Gar Forman and Tom Thibodeau? Even then... RC Buford wins because he can draft Patty Mills and Pop turns him into a guy who scores 19 pts per 36 minutes. Wut?
 
Duncan played more regular season minutes than anyone else on the Spurs: he ranked #102 in the league. He played 2158 minutes; Durant led the league in regular season minutes with 3122.

By the way, Durant also led in playoff minutes with 815. Duncan was the top Spur (#4 overall) with 752 (32.7 mpg). He played 4 more games than Durant.
 
JuiceCrewAllStar said:
The whole coach-up-the-bench thing doesn't really apply to the Heat. When you've got HOFsters and former All-Stars coming off the bench then it's just about minutes management. And it's not like Bosh, Wade, et al played like garbage because Spo ran them ragged. This isn't a Thibs-type thing. I think it's more of a personnel issue than a coaching issue.

Also, I think that Shot Doctor bro in San Antonio is for real. Noticed that several of those role players have identical looking jumpers.
Click to expand...

I just heard about this dude the other day. What a fucking boss. I vaguely remember reading last week that some other NBA teams were going to come calling for him. Maybe GSW for Steve Kerr's staff? Can't remember.
 
These Finals have to be the killshot to the LBJ = MJ talk, right? Michael never got boat-raced in a series in his prime.

"The Spurs didn't just beat the Heat, they beat them down." Stephen A. Smith
 
A couple of good articles about Pop/Duncan/Spurs today (as you might expect). A lot was made about how Pop best adjusted to hand check and changing defensive rules (which led to the corner jumpers and the pick and roll offense). How Duncan transformed into the pick and roll player he is today (as opposed to playing with his back to the basket). How Parker's friendship with Diaw was a key in picking him up for a song and Diaw's willingness to get back into shape. How Ginoboli accepted a 6th man role because he realized it gave him more plays going to him (since he's usually in when Parker is out). How Duncan/Parker/Ginoboli all accepted less money to make it all work.

It is the rare "the good guys finally won one" stories in pro sports.

Now, does Tim exit while he's on top?
 
The LBJ=MJ was always dumb, given the differences between today's salary-cap era and the 1990's NBA. IIRC, Michael Jordan's salary alone put the Bulls over the 1998 salary cap, and the rest of their players combined would have put them over as well. No one talks about it, but they were partly a dynasty because they could spend insane amounts of money.
 
qcdeac said:
Pop has had some well-publicized events around managing regular season minutes: DNP-old age for Robert Horry years ago and more recently for Duncan. Also, last year the Spurs got fined for sending the Big 3 home before their game at Miami. IIRC, the Spurs were in that game in the final minute.
He definitely ramped it up this year though, with no starter averaging over 30 minutes a game. 1st time that's happened since the NBA/ABA merger in the 70s.
Click to expand...

So dumb. How can you be fined for roster management?
 
palmab03 said:
by doing it in a marquee matchup that's televised that someone paid a lot of money to televise and someone else paid a lot of money to advertise during
Click to expand...

Yep. Smart roster management but the fines are deserved.
 
bigdoublezero said:
Agreed. If you want to compare the coaches, it should be on a macro level. The Spurs' entire 13-14 campaign was a coaching adjustment after losing it all last year. Pop pulled the right strings all year to put them in a position to dominate; Spo didn't. Checkmate.
Click to expand...

Donks who post stuff like this?

You're one of us now.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top