Have the Spurs finally collapsed? Will the Spurs miss the playoffs this year?

[WayOutWest]

Everyone was ready to proclaim the Suns road kill after thier bad streak of games.  Now the Spurs are in the midst of losing 3 of their last 4 games.  Should they be written off, will they miss the playoffs all together?  I wouldn't make such claims which is why I don't think the Suns should be fitted for a pine box either.

[Derek Bodner]

I wish my team could collapse into a .688 winning %.

[Reality]

^ And 1 game out of the Division and Conference lead.

A glaring but fixable problem for the Spurs has been the streaky three point shooting of Michael Finley along with Ime Udokas last couple games.  Below be a partial why Ime has been off.  Also the return of a fresh Brent Barrdog dropping some trey bombs seems to be just what the doctor ordered.

SAN ANTONIO ? The San Antonio Spurs today announced that Ime Udoka returned to San Antonio this morning due to tarsal tunnel syndrome in his right ankle. Udoka received anti-inflammatory shots today which are designed to decrease the inflammation in the ankle.

Udoka will miss the remaining two games on the Spurs current three-game road trip. He is expected to be available when the Spurs return home to take on the Boston Celtics on Monday, March 17.

[westkoast]

Everyone was ready to proclaim the Suns road kill after thier bad streak of games.  Now the Spurs are in the midst of losing 3 of their last 4 games.  Should they be written off, will they miss the playoffs all together?  I wouldn't make such claims which is why I don't think the Suns should be fitted for a pine box either.

The Suns were placed in a pine box last week because they lost 4 of 5 at home and completely changed up their team.  Or as the TNT commentators were calling it "Suns Plan B".  That is not quite the same as a core group of guys hitting a few hot teams and skidding.  You are not exactly comparing apples and apples when you speak about both those teams over the last 2-3 weeks.

Collapsing into a 68% winning pct looks really awesome on paper but if any team dips right now they are going to lose some footing.  That goes for every single team in this conference from top to bottom.  Obviously the Spurs won't miss the playoffs but they did drop a seed by losing those last few.  If the playoff started today they would have PHX instead of Dallas.  Now wouldn't that be a heck of a first round match up???  That is how crazy the WC playoffs are going to be this year.  Last year's WCF is just a first round match up now 

[rickortreat]

All the WC teams contending are already in the playoffs, as a single loss can affect the seedings.  Not only that, but all the teams are playing harder now that they can see the finish line.

It isn't of immediate concern, since the Spurs have shown the ability to turn it on.  However, if they continue to stumble, one has to wonder if maybe they're not the team that they were.

This tough stretch of games has had all the top teams facing each other, one has to win and the other has to loose. Teams that aren't building momentum now should be regarded with suspicion.

It's not enough to beat the teams you should, it's also being able to beat the teams that you think can challenge you.  A good team makes sure it beats the team that's challenging it to get inside their head. You stay on top, partly through better play and partly through psychological warfare.  Once the lesser team gains confidence that it can beat the former top team, that top team looses that edge.

It's hard to think the Spurs deserve the top spot in the power rankings, when Houston has won 20 straight, and Boston is beating everyone else.

[westkoast]

All the WC teams contending are already in the playoffs, as a single loss can affect the seedings.  Not only that, but all the teams are playing harder now that they can see the finish line.

It isn't of immediate concern, since the Spurs have shown the ability to turn it on.  However, if they continue to stumble, one has to wonder if maybe they're not the team that they were.

This tough stretch of games has had all the top teams facing each other, one has to win and the other has to loose. Teams that aren't building momentum now should be regarded with suspicion.

It's not enough to beat the teams you should, it's also being able to beat the teams that you think can challenge you.  A good team makes sure it beats the team that's challenging it to get inside their head. You stay on top, partly through better play and partly through psychological warfare.  Once the lesser team gains confidence that it can beat the former top team, that top team looses that edge.

It's hard to think the Spurs deserve the top spot in the power rankings, when Houston has won 20 straight, and Boston is beating everyone else.

They haven't had the top power ranking spot in 2 weeks I believe.  Houston is and will be on top of the rankings for the next two weeks.

WOW you also failed to mention before they lost 3 they won 10 in a row.  So including that one other victory over the last 4 games they went 11-3.  Still a much better streak then the Suns have been able to put together.

[Lurker]

A few other factors...

The Spurs play 18 games in the month of March...8 in the first 12 days.

The Spurs play 6 back-2-backs in March and have played 3 already.

The 3 losses have been on the road to Denver (who the Spurs have eliminated 2 years in a row), Phoenix (who "rebuilt" their team just to match up better with the Spurs) and New Orleans (who is trying to prove they belong with the big boys). 

The one that concerns me the most is the Hornets. This team has destroyed the Spurs twice.  For whatever reason the Spurs just don't matchup well with the Hornets this year.  The Nuggets were beat by the Spurs a few days later in SA and in the 2nd night of a b2b.  The Suns were super motivated and IMO wouldn't be able to put that kind of energy and emotion into 6 or 7 games.

[SPURSX3]

keep your fingers crossed WOW, crack a huevo, light a candle, do whatever you want, but the SPURS are still going to be tough to beat come playoff time....

[Laker Fan]

Wow wasn?t suggesting the imminent demise of the Spurs, X3. He was merely taking a shot at guys like me and others who made the assertion, an assertion I still stand by, that the Suns downgraded when they traded for Shaq, and doing so in a rather silly way given his normally high Bball IQ.

11-3 over the last 14 with a little skid after going 10-0 doesn?t even remotely compare to the Suns going 7-7 over the same stretch, especially when you look at the total non-factor Shaq was last night, 14 minutes, 9 points, and 4 boards, while getting sat down early with 5 fouls. In other words, the Suns won that game because they are better than the 8th seed Warriors, (and STILL lost to them earlier), over that same period they are 4-7 against playoff teams. Last night demonstrated what a liability he is against quicker teams, and teams that have good slashers, his only option was to foul. The Spurs went 5-3 over the same stretch against playoff teams.

Nice try WOW, the Suns ARE NOT BETTER with Shaq, and there is as of yet no evidence that they will get better, they have Houston, Detroit and Boston on the road coming up and they need to go 2-1 over that stretch to maintain just 6th seed.

[westkoast]

Wow wasn?t suggesting the imminent demise of the Spurs, X3. He was merely taking a shot at guys like me and others who made the assertion, an assertion I still stand by, that the Suns downgraded when they traded for Shaq, and doing so in a rather silly way given his normally high Bball IQ.

11-3 over the last 14 with a little skid after going 10-0 doesn?t even remotely compare to the Suns going 7-7 over the same stretch, especially when you look at the total non-factor Shaq was last night, 14 minutes, 9 points, and 4 boards, while getting sat down early with 5 fouls. In other words, the Suns won that game because they are better than the 8th seed Warriors, (and STILL lost to them earlier), over that same period they are 4-7 against playoff teams. Last night demonstrated what a liability he is against quicker teams, and teams that have good slashers, his only option was to foul. The Spurs went 5-3 over the same stretch against playoff teams.

Nice try WOW, the Suns ARE NOT BETTER with Shaq, and there is as of yet no evidence that they will get better, they have Houston, Detroit and Boston on the road coming up and they need to go 2-1 over that stretch to maintain just 6th seed.

Actually last night was a perfect example of him slowing them down.  They were tied when he hit the bench.  Once he went to the bench and the middle opened up they got a lot better looks and pushed the lead all the way up to 14 at one point.

[Laker Fan]

All the better to make my point 'Koast, he had a negative impact on last nights game, I daresay he would have cost them the game had he remained on the floor, GS can run all day, and you slow down their opponent, they can be a force. Against teams that don't know the meaning of the word defense, like the Suns, the situation ideal for them. Worst thing that could have happened for the Warriors is Shaq's foul trouble. But GS is an exception, teams like LA, SA, and UT can feast on such a situation, hence, Shaq is a downgrade from Marion, especially in a series.

[rickortreat]

The Suns beat the Spurs with Shaq, didn't they?

That was what the trade was all about.

To give Phoenix the inside presence to deal with the big teams that can rebound out West.

The Suns still have a lot of work to do, but they will be ready when playoff time comes.

The Spurs are loosing even though they have Parker, Manu and Duncan all playing. They were playing better earlier on, but seem to have lost something, and are even moving in the wrong direction on point differential. Maybe it's just a hiccup, but it could be there are chinks in the Spurs armor.

They have a tough match up tonight with the Pistons, and get to visit the Sixers tomorrow. Now we'll see how much better the West is than the East right?

[westkoast]

The Suns beat the Spurs with Shaq, didn't they?

That was what the trade was all about.

To give Phoenix the inside presence to deal with the big teams that can rebound out West.

The Suns still have a lot of work to do, but they will be ready when playoff time comes.

The Spurs are loosing even though they have Parker, Manu and Duncan all playing. They were playing better earlier on, but seem to have lost something, and are even moving in the wrong direction on point differential. Maybe it's just a hiccup, but it could be there are chinks in the Spurs armor.

They have a tough match up tonight with the Pistons, and get to visit the Sixers tomorrow. Now we'll see how much better the West is than the East right?

No rick..they didn't get Shaq to beat the Spurs in THE REGULAR SEASON.  They've beat SA in the regular season with Marion before.  It was for the playoffs.

[Lurker]

And what good does Shaq do for the Suns against the Spurs if they don't meet in the playoffs?

[WayOutWest]

Wow wasn?t suggesting the imminent demise of the Spurs, X3. He was merely taking a shot at guys like me and others who made the assertion, an assertion I still stand by, that the Suns downgraded when they traded for Shaq, and doing so in a rather silly way given his normally high Bball IQ.

Exactly.  IMO the post-Shaq slide was a hiccup, the Suns will begin to gel.  The Suns IMO are better suited for playoff basketball with Shaq.  Obvioiusly they are not as fast as they used to be but IMO they are fast enough and now have some beef in the middle.  Even if he just occupies space in the lane, Crypt-Keeper-Shaq will be the difference maker for the Suns.