Will Big Shot Bob bail out the Spurs tonight?

[rickortreat]

Elimination time for the Nuggets who did a great end-of-the-game choke in game 4.  Just like the Warriors last night, the Nuggets couldn't buy a bucket at the end of the game.  And just like in the Warriors game, the Spurs had no shortage of players capable of making three's at the end.

The Nuggets did everything they needed to do to win the last game except come to play in the 4th quarter.  How does a team manage to put up 27, 23, 23, pts. per quarter and then put up only 16 in the most important quarter of the entire season?

To be honest I blame Karl for this, in part because he hasn't played his subs enough and his stars are winded and tired after three quarters.  The big difference in this series has been the bench play of the Spurs.  When Parker and Duncan go out, the Spurs put in Horry and Finley along with Ginobli, and they score points.  The Nuggets put their bench players out and they miss shots.

It is a luxury the Spurs have to have ex-all stars to come off the bench.  A luxury and a significant asset.

The Nuggets have nothing going for them in this game except their pride and belief in themselves.  The Spurs should try to jump on them and blow them out right away.  It would be a serious mistake for them to let the Nuggets hang around or hold a lead in this game. 

[Reality]

Spurs will close it out i think.  I'm hoping for their "A" game from start to finish, altho you hardly ever get that from the Spurs anymore.  I'll take a hard fought win.

Extending while Phoenix closes will put San Antone on the road again while Nash and Marion are in the hot tub.  Most of us don't want to see that.

[rickortreat]

I think it's the Spurs to loose now.  If anything has made a difference it has been their defense against AI.  The Spurs have done a great job of keeping him off-balance and unable to be effective.

Karl needs to add a bit more structure to the offense, so AI has an outlet to give the ball to when they close off the lane on him.  AI drives, and gets a turnover, AI shoots from the outside and misses- another easy shot for the Spurs.

With all of that, the Nuggets are still competitive in the games. In game 1 when AI didn't make all those mistakes, the Nuggets were good enough to win.  In the games since, AI has been shooting poorly and hasn't adjusted well enough.

This is not something that AI can do on his own.  The entire Spurs team is focused on stopping him, and the entire Nuggets team has to use that to their advantage by having their players move to open spots for easy shots.  By now, Karl should know where the extra help is coming from in certain situations and just where the Spurs should be vulnerable. 

So far, only the Spurs made an adjustment after game 1 and it has worked for them.  It really is up to Karl to figure out how to use the pieces he has better.  The Nuggets should have enough talent to win, but they have to do a much better job of eliminating mistakes.

The Spurs control the tempo and limit opportunities.  This magnifies mistakes and hurts Denver's chances.  It appears that the Nuggets can't force an up-tempo game, unless they can execute more effectively, forcing the Spurs to keep up. 

The Spurs are in the driver's seat because they know they can come back on the Nuggets.  They know they can stop the Nuggets from scoring, and get shots for themselves.  It's up to Karl and AI to figure it out tonight, or they're going fishin'.

Spurs should be motivated simply by the next series, they can use the rest to let Big Shot Bob recharge his batteries. 

[Reality]

Nuggets offensive manuever that proved very effective was moving both passer and pass reciever at the same time.  As AI drove, Nene, Camby or Marshmello did continue to move, even while pass was in the air.
This was very effective, esp in 1st qtr of Gm 4.

However Spurs 4th qtr help D was absolutely ass kicking, for a spell it parrallelled 2005s amoeba team D.

Curiously George Karl has sat Reggie Evans the entire series.  He will play tonight and is known for being pesky as well as cheap.  If the Joey Crawford cousins continue to let the Denver bigs grope Duncan, that will suck.  However either way, i look for Duncan to have a breakout game.  Elson also had a very productive 18 minutes in Gm 4. 

[WayOutWest]

I'm glad some of you have finally caught up to the rest of the crew on this board.  It only took 4 games!

[westkoast]

I'm glad some of you have finally caught up to the rest of the crew on this board.  It only took 4 games!

LOL

Although I have to agree the discussions wouldn't quite be as fun or back and forth if Rick did not root for the underdog team.  I think we have had some good debates on both teams.

[rickortreat]

Nuggets offensive manuever that proved very effective was moving both passer and pass reciever at the same time.  As AI drove, Nene, Camby or Marshmello did continue to move, even while pass was in the air.
This was very effective, esp in 1st qtr of Gm 4.

However Spurs 4th qtr help D was absolutely ass kicking, for a spell it parrallelled 2005s amoeba team D.

Curiously George Karl has sat Reggie Evans the entire series.  He will play tonight and is known for being pesky as well as cheap.  If the Joey Crawford cousins continue to let the Denver bigs grope Duncan, that will suck.  However either way, i look for Duncan to have a breakout game.  Elson also had a very productive 18 minutes in Gm 4. 

THAT is the play the Nuggets must run continuously.  It is the only way to confuse that type of defense, or catch players out of position.  IT should be more common, since it is the primary advantage on offense to decide where and when to shoot.  Misdirection and concealment are good tools, so is speed.  It is no problem for the passer, provided he knows where the receiver will be.

I don't understand why the Nuggets don't run 5 different plays based on this, each designed to give one of the players a high-quality open look. I thought Karl was supposed to be an offensive genius.

[westkoast]

Nuggets offensive manuever that proved very effective was moving both passer and pass reciever at the same time.  As AI drove, Nene, Camby or Marshmello did continue to move, even while pass was in the air.
This was very effective, esp in 1st qtr of Gm 4.

However Spurs 4th qtr help D was absolutely ass kicking, for a spell it parrallelled 2005s amoeba team D.

Curiously George Karl has sat Reggie Evans the entire series.  He will play tonight and is known for being pesky as well as cheap.  If the Joey Crawford cousins continue to let the Denver bigs grope Duncan, that will suck.  However either way, i look for Duncan to have a breakout game.  Elson also had a very productive 18 minutes in Gm 4. 

THAT is the play the Nuggets must run continuously.  It is the only way to confuse that type of defense, or catch players out of position.  IT should be more common, since it is the primary advantage on offense to decide where and when to shoot.  Misdirection and concealment are good tools, so is speed.  It is no problem for the passer, provided he knows where the receiver will be.

I don't understand why the Nuggets don't run 5 different plays based on this, each designed to give one of the players a high-quality open look. I thought Karl was supposed to be an offensive genius.

Alot his of his prior offensive success came in the form of the pick and roll with Payton/Kemp.