When the Phoenix Suns-San Antonio Spurs round began, I was half-expecting and half-hoping that the Spurs will win. When the Spurs won Game 2, I was crossing my fingers and saying to myself to just give the Tim Duncan & Co. a win in Arizona. And they won, so, I was very confident that they'll eventually win the series. During the clash between the Suns and the Spurs, I was also checking other round 1 matchups and was particularly looking out for the Dallas Mavericks-New Orleans matchup. My mind was already set that the Hornets will face the Spurs. As far as I know, the CP3-powered Hornets are better than the Suns this season.
I'm not expecting the Spurs to win this series easily because obviously the Hornets are giving them a hard time but I'm very hopeful about them winning this series. =) The Hornets now leads the series to 2-0. That was expected since they have homecourt advantage. But I think there is something or maybe someone in the Hornets lineup that gives me goosebumps everytime I check the live scoreboards. The Spurs weren't looking as sharp as they should've been on the past two games on both ends. CP3 & his allies were just better, faster, younger, and all the positive -er I could ever think of.
"We're definitely a little shocked. They are playing extremely well. If one person's not going, someone else is stepping up," said Spurs Kurt Thomas. The hope that the Spurs will come out of 0-2 deficit now depends on their performance at the AlamoDome.
The Spurs have set the bar so high that different NBA teams have drastically changed their lineup just to better matchup against the defending champions. And as I see it now, no other team has matched up really well against the Spurs than the Hornets. I dreaded their 3-point prowess but now they are so good defensively. The Spurs, on the other hand, are struggling on both ends. The Hornets must've really messed up with their rotation and their defensive strategy.
The Spur that is obviously suffering from the Hornets' sting is Duncan. Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker aren't their usual selves, too. I think Mr. Mike Finger is right again, some has to step up against this stingy Hornets. Coach Pop and the rest of the Spurs still have a few days to prepare a gameplan before the Hornets pay a visit at the AT&T Center on Thursday.
“We’re fine,” said coach Pop regarding Duncan's fever and Ginobili's injury.
Game 5 is in progress and the San Antonio Spurs lead by four points. Manu Ginobili, the Spurs' top scorer for the first half, has 15 points. David West, on the side of the New Orleans Hornets, started hot with 22 points.
During Games 3 & 4, the San Antonio Spurs showed the New Orleans Hornets what made them the defending NBA Champions - defense. From a 0-2 deficit, the Spurs bounces backs and ties with the Hornets to 2-2. “We are in a different situation now, but we have to try to do it the same way,” said Spurs' guard Manu Ginobili. As the series shifts back to the Big Easy, winning for the Spurs won't come easy. The Spurs' effective approach to the Hornets' stiff defense and surging offense is to play stiffer defense and not stopping Chris Paul. Yes, you heard me right [I actually heard this from one of the commentators] the Spurs aren't stopping CP3. Instead, they'll be stopping everybody else. Surely, CP3 can't win the game by himself. Very clever move from Spurs' coach Gregg Popovich. The question now is, will the Spurs hear each other out for this approach with the L-O-U-D crowd that is sure to fill the New Orleans Arena today? We'll see!..
KB24 is M-V-P. So, what?! The LA Lakers won't easily get a win at the EnergySolutions Arena where the Utah Jazz rule. And they [Jazz] have really proven that with a 104-99 win against the Lakers on Game 3. Carlos Boozer provided a stunning double-double with 27 points and 20 boards [I think he's turned into a monster]. "I tried to stop thinking so much out there. My teammates were waiting for a big game out of me and I was too," said Boozer. Mehmet Okur [??] added 22 points with Deron Williams following him with 18 points and 12 assists. The Jazz definitely played their best. And the EnerySolutions' crowd? They're much like the crowd of Planet Orange [Phoenix Suns], they're very LOUD! The reason why I still have a question mark on Okur was because he wasn't brilliant on last season's playoffs. I just can't believe that it's really him that's playing exceptionally well or just a doppelganger. I really don't know. Despite the Jazz' win, the Lakers still lead the series to 2-1. I'd love to see the Jazz win this series and the Spurs too.
But as far as I can see KB24 & Co. are giving the Jazz a hard time specially during the first two games. “We competed very hard, much better than we did over there," said Jazz coach, Jerry Sloan. So, basically the Jazz are experiencing what the Spurs are going through. But what can I say, the four teams that are left in the Western Conference semis are among the best this season. It's just amazing how tough the West is and that the top four teams are the ones left vying to get to the Finals.
When the Phoenix Suns-San Antonio Spurs round began, I was half-expecting and half-hoping that the Spurs will win. When the Spurs won Game 2, I was crossing my fingers and saying to myself to just give the Tim Duncan & Co. a win in Arizona. And they won, so, I was very confident that they'll eventually win the series. During the clash between the Suns and the Spurs, I was also checking other round 1 matchups and was particularly looking out for the Dallas Mavericks-New Orleans matchup. My mind was already set that the Hornets will face the Spurs. As far as I know, the CP3-powered Hornets are better than the Suns this season.
The Spurs have set the bar so high that different NBA teams have drastically changed their lineup just to better matchup against the defending champions. And as I see it now, no other team has matched up really well against the Spurs than the Hornets. I dreaded their 3-point prowess but now they are so good defensively. The Spurs, on the other hand, are struggling on both ends. The Hornets must've really messed up with their rotation and their defensive strategy. The Spur that is obviously suffering from the Hornets' sting is Duncan. Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker aren't their usual selves, too. I think Mr. Mike Finger is right again, some has to step up against this stingy Hornets. Coach Pop and the rest of the Spurs still have a few days to prepare a gameplan before the Hornets pay a visit at the AT&T Center on Thursday. “We’re fine,” said coach Pop regarding Duncan's fever and Ginobili's injury.
