My Keys to the Spurs-Kings series

Duncan has looked better the last few games, more mobile and aggressive, closer to the real Duncan. With who and how do you see the Kings guarding him?
 
striker said:
Duncan has looked better the last few games, more mobile and aggressive, closer to the real Duncan. With who and how do you see the Kings guarding him?

I see Shareef, Miller, and Thomas all splitting time to guard him, but honestly, it really doesn't matter that much.
 
Dont know if this has been discussed, but if/when Bibby gets hot do you see the Spurs having Bowen guard Bibby? That would be a nightmare for Mike.
 
Not a question of stopping him. Question of how the Kings will try and what degree of success will they have. Will the Kings try to play him straight up and hope he doesn't go off too much and doesn't get the Kings' bigs playing him in too much foul trouble or will the Kings bring help defense and hope that doesn't disrupt their defense too much and leave other Spurs with good looks?

The Spurs will have similar match-up problems and decisons to make with Artest and particularly Bonzi on the blocks.
 
Bibby_10 said:
Dont know if this has been discussed, but if/when Bibby gets hot do you see the Spurs having Bowen guard Bibby? That would be a nightmare for Mike.
Yes, we will see this sometime in the series. At the same time, this will leave Parker to guard either Bonzi or Artest -- not a good matchup for the Spurs.
 
starks - Let's leave the nicknames, derogatory or not, out of the equation okay?
 
My key for Spurs-Kings series is to sit back, relax and enjoy the games. Win or lose it is a great accomplishment just to be in the playoffs after all the ups and downs this season gave us. If we win I will be exicited, if we lose I will be proud we made it this far :)
 
Hmmmm...I was thinking this morning of how the Kings are going to possibly try and pull a rabbit out of their hat here...and this thought came to me-

Do you think...possibly...maybe...that Adelman will play a little more of Corliss and Potapenko? A big man in Vitaly to help guard the paint and spend some hard fouls on Duncan, and a man with a lot of playoff experience (and a ring to boot) in Corliss.

I just know that Adelman doesn't like to tip his hand whatsoever when it comes to the playoffs, and I can easily picture him trying these lineups in practice in preparation for a matchup such as this. Especially with Martin, Hart, KT, and Garcia playing so wishy-washy...a backup plan, at the very least, would be great. I hope we see it.
 
KingCookie said:
Hmmmm...I was thinking this morning of how the Kings are going to possibly try and pull a rabbit out of their hat here...and this thought came to me-

Do you think...possibly...maybe...that Adelman will play a little more of Corliss and Potapenko? A big man in Vitaly to help guard the paint and spend some hard fouls on Duncan, and a man with a lot of playoff experience (and a ring to boot) in Corliss.

I just know that Adelman doesn't like to tip his hand whatsoever when it comes to the playoffs, and I can easily picture him trying these lineups in practice in preparation for a matchup such as this. Especially with Martin, Hart, KT, and Garcia playing so wishy-washy...a backup plan, at the very least, would be great. I hope we see it.


I don't see RA expanding his rotation in the playoffs, if anything I see him tightening it up and only playing Garcia 3 to 5 minutes per game. I'm a Corliss fan, I think he could help this team and think he should be getting 10 minutes per night, but I just don't think it will happen--can't wait to see how it plays out!!!
 
While it is true that the Spurs are beatable, that is a BIG task. The good news is that out side of Dallas the Kings are about the best match up in the West. Here is how I see the match up going IF the Kings are going to win.

Parker- yes too quick for Bibby and for Hart as well. He will get his UNLESS the Kings do what they did in the last game and that is throw lots of doubles teams at him to force the ball out of his hands. If not The Kings are in for a few longs nights in a short series. Good news is that on the other end of the court Bibby can get his against Parker, especially if he continues to get the great screens that Brad, Kenny, and Reef give him.

Ginobili- The guy loves to penetrate but with Bonzi on him Kings can force him to take outside shots, and cough up the ball on penetration. At the other end of the court Bonzi should be able to post up on him at will.

Bowen- Never a threat inside this is the guy the Kings can cheat on defense BUT you have to watch him and be able to rotate back when he gets the ball outside. Assuming they keep him on Ron at the other end this could be a foul fest, Ron has to give up the often and make Bowen work, Also I think Ron can take him off the dribble but he ought to be trying to get the ball against him down low.

Duncan- What can any one really do about Tim? So far this season (and in the past) the Brad/Reef combo has done ok in regular season, but this is NOT the regular season. Good news for the Kings is that Tim may still be slowed up a bit from the recent injury. Not sure if Brad still remembers how to play physical but light and stupid fouls will kill him when he had the assignment to guard Duncan. Kenny gets beat every time help defense is a must with Kenny on the floor, and expect to see Kenny’s min come more often with Tim out. Good news is that both Kenny and Reef should be a little quicker than Tim and Reef might get him into foul trouble. It is also like Pop to switch up assignments sending Tim out to guard Brad and leaving Naz to guard the paint. This is bad news for Brad… but again if Brad plays SMART he might fish Tim into some fouls and by keeping him out of the paint help offset the rebounding deficit the Kings are sure to face.

Mohamed- The guy is probably the week link here… and that is NOT the good news. Because Tim creates the miss match and pulls Brad on doubles Naz will be free to roam the paint at will UNLESS Reef/Kenny and Brad can make their rotations with out a hitch. On the defensive end he can block shots but I’m not sure he can guard Reefs post up game. IF he comes out of the paint to guard Brad, Brad ought to get his mid range and 3 point shots off nicely.

First glance would seem to give a big advantage to the Spurs bench: Horry, Van Exel, and Finely all certified King killers and Barry and this group has the most experience of any bench in the NBA. BUT you could say the same thing with a Bench made up of Bill Walton, Jeff Horececk, Bill Lambier and Vinny Johnson… point being ALL these guys are old. I would not bet on them not having enough in the tank for one more run, BUT the Kings bench gets a HUGE advantage in terms of age and quickness. Martin can take Nick the former Quick and my not guard Nick as well as say Bonzi can but it will be fun to watch. Finely will get most of his time against Ron and possibly Corless or Garcia… again the trick is to make Finely put the ball on the floor! He can NOT beat Ron or Cisco on the dribble but if you let him take jumper tings will be ugly! Horry… Who knows. I would have given him up for dead 3 season ago but he always seems to be there. In general he is no match for Reef down low and even against Kenny should be relegated to out side shooting. Don’t let him get a game winner off and things ought to go well. On defense Horry will do his usual poking and prodding trying to use physical play to make up for his slow footedness, Kenny has to keep his cool as will Reef… the BIG enemy with Horry is your own head when he gets by with a grab, or poke. Barry? Hmmm not much of a defender anymore so his whole purpose is the spread the floor. As with Finely make him put the ball on the floor and you can cheat off him for the double teams IF you can rotate back BEFORE he catches the ball.

In the end Spurs spread the floor better than any team in the game, and they have to to get the offense in motion. Parker and Ginobili count on penetration and getting the ball to TD and Naz down low so they can work. Solid perimeter defense, double teams and quick rotations are a MUST. Kings can expect to get out rebounded, but can minimize the impact by crashing the boards on the defensive end and shooting a high percentage on the other. The Spurs do like to run so getting them in to the half court will help, and the fact that the Kings are younger might be a factor in later games. The longer this series runs the better for the Kings, youth will be served!

As for the Kings offense as usual it starts with ball movement. Fortunately for Mike all season he and the team have been coping with pressure defense that will not be new for him. Passing the ball, and getting the high percentage shot will help make up for the poor rebounding we have seen all season. Let Ron work down low but Ron HAS to pass out of the double teams BEFORE they form and then magic can happen because that means SOMEONE is open. Brad HAS to take the open shots when he gets them… love the passing but love his mid range even more. And guys PLEASE do not fall in love with the 3 point shots ESPCIALLY when you are down!
 
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