From Wednesday's Bee:
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/14250823p-15067408c.html
Ailene Voisin: Artest, Wells can't do it alone
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PDT Wednesday, May 3, 2006
SAN ANTONIO - The words came from the heart, that massive vital organ that resides inside Ron Artest's muscular frame, but also from the head. Just think about this for a minute. Just think about those final three minutes, actually.
Three crucial Spurs possessions.
Three Spurs layups.
Three more opportunities for the Kings to complete the comeback, to match the Spurs score by score, to prolong the intrigue by forcing overtime and, in the end, slipping out of the AT&T Center on Tuesday night having completed another improbable, impressive effort against the NBA champs. They were so close, so close to doing what Mike Bibby's Kings did against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2002, the case can be made that this highly unpredictable, best-of-seven encounter is going the distance - on to Sacramento and right back to San Antonio for a finale Sunday.
"Not to take anything away from San Antonio," Artest said, "(but) I don't think they're a better team than us, have better talent than us. They were a better team than us tonight. We had a chance, had a chance to win. On the other hand ... we didn't give ourselves a chance to win. We had a chance to get control of the game, and we let San Antonio get control of the game."
Pause.
"We'll get better."
But will he get enough help? Will anyone other than Bonzi Wells come to Artest's aid?
Even in a street fight, three against two is unfair, and in Tuesday night's relatively civil affair, Artest and Wells essentially were double-teamed, outnumbered by the Fab Foursome of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and Bruce Bowen.
Duncan overpowered inside, the single coverage provided by Brad Miller, Kenny Thomas and Shareef Abdur-Rahim not remotely as effective as it was in Game 4. Parker and Ginobili benefited from high screens and pick-and-rolls, creating openings against a slower-rotating Kings defense and the vise-like grip of Artest. Bowen - and Brent Barry, for that matter - once again sprinted to the corners and repeatedly capitalized on clean looks at the basket, often in transition.
And those three pivotal Spurs possessions?
Duncan reached up for an easy layup.
Bowen darted in from the left side and found no resistance underneath.
Ginobili, who had been struggling all series against Artest, gained a fleeting, critical measure of revenge when he beat the Kings' best defender on the right wing, then drove for another layup.
"To be a good team," Artest noted, "you have to help your teammates. I can't guard two people. We didn't do a very good job. When someone gets past you, someone else has to provide help, like we did the other night in Arco."
So if you're the Kings?
So if you're the Spurs?
Same situation Friday, in this sense: Game 6 means everything.
Given that this matchup has been as physically challenging and contentious as the Spurs' coaches anticipated, the last thing the champs want is a seventh game. True, they hold the historical advantage, with 84 percent of teams that win Game 5 ultimately prevailing in a series. But, in another historical sense, they have far more to lose than the Kings. Who wants the embarrassment of being the latest No. 1 seed dethroned by a No. 8?
These Kings, though, have proven this much: They concede nothing.
They punch back. They can take a hit and get back on the feet. They punish in the low post and, particularly Artest, can score in a variety of other ways. Imagine if Bibby hadn't faltered (3-for-12 shooting), Miller had been as forceful as he was the other night, and Thomas and Abdur-Rahim had been more effective against the 6-foot-11 Duncan, who scored from inside and outside and intimidated around the basket?
"No matter who wins," Geoff Petrie said before the game, "they're going to feel like they've been in a major scrum. But you have to beat them. They're not going to give it to you."
The tweaking continues, of course, though the areas of emphasis generally remain the same. Harass Duncan with aggressive single coverage, and the quick, occasional double. Prevent the penetration of Parker and Ginobili. Stay with the perimeter shooters, refusing to allow Robert Horry, Barry and Bowen the opportunities that swing both games and series. Slow the Spurs in transition. Dominate the boards.
In other words, play the near-perfect game.
In the words of Artest, be better than the Spurs, at least for another night.
About the writer: Reach Ailene Voisin at (916) 321-1208 or avoisin@sacbee.com
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/14250823p-15067408c.html
Ailene Voisin: Artest, Wells can't do it alone
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PDT Wednesday, May 3, 2006
SAN ANTONIO - The words came from the heart, that massive vital organ that resides inside Ron Artest's muscular frame, but also from the head. Just think about this for a minute. Just think about those final three minutes, actually.
Three crucial Spurs possessions.
Three Spurs layups.
Three more opportunities for the Kings to complete the comeback, to match the Spurs score by score, to prolong the intrigue by forcing overtime and, in the end, slipping out of the AT&T Center on Tuesday night having completed another improbable, impressive effort against the NBA champs. They were so close, so close to doing what Mike Bibby's Kings did against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2002, the case can be made that this highly unpredictable, best-of-seven encounter is going the distance - on to Sacramento and right back to San Antonio for a finale Sunday.
"Not to take anything away from San Antonio," Artest said, "(but) I don't think they're a better team than us, have better talent than us. They were a better team than us tonight. We had a chance, had a chance to win. On the other hand ... we didn't give ourselves a chance to win. We had a chance to get control of the game, and we let San Antonio get control of the game."
Pause.
"We'll get better."
But will he get enough help? Will anyone other than Bonzi Wells come to Artest's aid?
Even in a street fight, three against two is unfair, and in Tuesday night's relatively civil affair, Artest and Wells essentially were double-teamed, outnumbered by the Fab Foursome of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and Bruce Bowen.
Duncan overpowered inside, the single coverage provided by Brad Miller, Kenny Thomas and Shareef Abdur-Rahim not remotely as effective as it was in Game 4. Parker and Ginobili benefited from high screens and pick-and-rolls, creating openings against a slower-rotating Kings defense and the vise-like grip of Artest. Bowen - and Brent Barry, for that matter - once again sprinted to the corners and repeatedly capitalized on clean looks at the basket, often in transition.
And those three pivotal Spurs possessions?
Duncan reached up for an easy layup.
Bowen darted in from the left side and found no resistance underneath.
Ginobili, who had been struggling all series against Artest, gained a fleeting, critical measure of revenge when he beat the Kings' best defender on the right wing, then drove for another layup.
"To be a good team," Artest noted, "you have to help your teammates. I can't guard two people. We didn't do a very good job. When someone gets past you, someone else has to provide help, like we did the other night in Arco."
So if you're the Kings?
So if you're the Spurs?
Same situation Friday, in this sense: Game 6 means everything.
Given that this matchup has been as physically challenging and contentious as the Spurs' coaches anticipated, the last thing the champs want is a seventh game. True, they hold the historical advantage, with 84 percent of teams that win Game 5 ultimately prevailing in a series. But, in another historical sense, they have far more to lose than the Kings. Who wants the embarrassment of being the latest No. 1 seed dethroned by a No. 8?
These Kings, though, have proven this much: They concede nothing.
They punch back. They can take a hit and get back on the feet. They punish in the low post and, particularly Artest, can score in a variety of other ways. Imagine if Bibby hadn't faltered (3-for-12 shooting), Miller had been as forceful as he was the other night, and Thomas and Abdur-Rahim had been more effective against the 6-foot-11 Duncan, who scored from inside and outside and intimidated around the basket?
"No matter who wins," Geoff Petrie said before the game, "they're going to feel like they've been in a major scrum. But you have to beat them. They're not going to give it to you."
The tweaking continues, of course, though the areas of emphasis generally remain the same. Harass Duncan with aggressive single coverage, and the quick, occasional double. Prevent the penetration of Parker and Ginobili. Stay with the perimeter shooters, refusing to allow Robert Horry, Barry and Bowen the opportunities that swing both games and series. Slow the Spurs in transition. Dominate the boards.
In other words, play the near-perfect game.
In the words of Artest, be better than the Spurs, at least for another night.
About the writer: Reach Ailene Voisin at (916) 321-1208 or avoisin@sacbee.com
