For the Love of God, Popovich

The Spurs landed in the three spot. Previously, I said that I would prefer the Spurs to be the four or five seed rather than the three. However, at that time it looked like the sixth seed would either be the Hornets or the Jazz, both of which would provide difficult matchups for the Spurs. Turns out the Spurs will play the Mavericks. This is the best case scenario for the Spurs. At this point, we basically are comprised of two stars. We need Tim and Tony to have great games in order to win. Tim always crushes Dallas and the Mavs have no one to defend Tony. For this reason, the Mavs are the best possible matchup for the short-handed Spurs.

There is one area of concern. We need Tim and Tony to play. It’s as simple as that. I attended the Hornets, Spurs game last night and was extremely frustrated for about 47 minutes. I kept asking, “How are we supposed to win if our two best players are not playing?” Luckily, the Spurs won a game that they should not have and earned the three seed. However, the Spurs cannot count on luck to win a playoff series. We need Tim and Tony in the game. Last night Tim had a +/- of +21 and Tony had +15. This means that when Tim was in the game, the Spurs outscored the Hornets by 21 points. We won by seven. Therefore, when Tim was on the bench the Hornets outscored the Spurs by 14 points. How easy is this to see? Can someone forward this to Popovich? When Tim is in the game, we are infinitely better than when he sits on the bench. Tim and Tony played a combined 77 minutes last night. Chris Paul and David West combined for 95 minutes. If you were wondering why the Spurs almost lost, you can stop studying the box score. Here is your answer. Their best two players played 18 more minutes than our two best players. It’s as easy as that. If we are going to fare well in the playoffs, this trend must end here. Tim and Tony must play more minutes than they have averaged during the regular season. Popovich needs to go for broke. There are no back to backs in the playoffs, so playing Tim extended minutes should not be a concern. In addition, Tony Parker is 26. 26! Are you telling me he can’t play more than 34 minutes a game? He is a world-class athlete.

Keep an eye on the minutes column. If Dirk and Howard/Terry play substantially more minutes than Tim and Tony, this could translate into an extended vacation for the Spurs.