Snubbed the Wrong Way

At 7 o'clock last night, the All-Star reserves were announced. Usually, this is a source of considerable stress for me. It never ceases to amaze me how often coaches, who are presumably knowledgeable and unbiased (the votes are anonymous and they don't get to vote for their own players) get it so wrong. You expect this from the fans, who for years could not cast enough votes for Yao Ming and Vince Carter. A great number of fans can be (how shall I put this delicately?) dumb as rocks.

I expect more from the coaches. The American people and the good fans in the ever-expanding international market expect more from the coaches. Each and every year scores of people around the world feel as though their guy was snubbed and some undeserving bum took his spot. This is usually the night where I shout from the internet equivalent of a rooftop about how a player I like got screwed by the powers that be.

Trust me, nothing would make me happier than to write a scathing article about how much more I know about basketball than the average NBA coach. There's only one problem; this year's All-Star reserves actually make sense to me. For the first time ever, the coaches may have gotten it right!

It is hard to disagree with their choices in the frontcourt.

In the West we have Tim Duncan, Zach Randolph, LeMarcus Aldridge and David Lee. All of them have All-Star caliber numbers. The teams they represent have winning records (the Spurs, Grizzlies, Trailblazers, and Warriors would be in the Playoffs if the season ended today) and all of them are integral pieces to their respective teams. The case could be made for Al Jefferson or Marc Gasol being a reserve but justifying who they would replace would be tricky. 

In the East we have Tyson Chandler, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Chris Bosh, and Paul George. Bosh is still one of the best players on the best team in the East.  Chandler's defensive presence has almost singlehandedly made the Knicks a legitimate contender. Noah has 20 double-doubles already. Deng (who leads the league in minutes played) has carried the Rose-less Bulls to 25 wins. George has taken his game to another level in Danny Granger's absence. The second year forward is averaging almost 17ppg and 8rpg and the guy hit nine 3-pointers in that Pacers/Pelicans game.

Like most Brooklynites, I  thought that Brook Lopez was having a good enough season to be a reserve. Unlike most Brookynites, I am not outraged by his exclusion. The way I see it, Noah, Chandler and Bosh are all better big men than Lopez is right now. You could make the case that he is having a better season than Garnett, but the fans made that decision.

Stephen Curry's omission could be the most controversial. He is averaging almost 21 ppg, 7apg, 4rpg and is currently ranked third in the league in 3-PT%. Curry has stepped up his effort defensively and has remained (almost) injury-free for the first time in his career. The Warriors have the fifth best record in the West and Steph Curry is unquestionably the catalyst for their success. I am a big fan of his but, which one of these guards should he replace?

Can an unbiased fan seriously see him taking Paul, Bryant, Westbrook, Harden, or Parker's spot?

Tony Parker is a Hall of Famer

The year was 2001.  The San Antonio Spurs were taking on the Seattle Supersonics in Seattle and I was watching the game from the relative comfort of my first apartment.  Before tipoff, the commentators were discussing the generic keys to victory for both teams.  Of course, the point guard matchup came up.  The Spurs' rookie from France (the youngest player to ever start for the Spurs) would be guarded by "The Glove" Gary Payton, whom had made the NBA's All-Defensive team nine times.  The talking heads bantered back and forth and chuckled while making inane comments like,

"This will be a rude awakening for the young kid from France."

"It's gonna be a long day at the office for Tony Parker."

After a missed jumper by the Sonics, Parker got the ball and took off.  Payton nearly tripped over his own feet trying to keep up.  The kid seemingly made it from one end of the court to the other in less than 2 seconds, with Payton far behind him.  On the next possession, the young kid from France got the ball at the 3-Point line. "The Glove" was in front of him in that famously low defensive stance.  Parker dribbled hard with his left, then crossed over right and flew past him for another layup.

I'll never forget that crossover.  At that time guys like Allen Iverson, Steve Francis, and Jason Williams were turning the crossover dribble into an art form.  They were masters of using their great handles, low center of gravity, head fakes, and quick first steps to get by their defenders.  This was something completely different.  There was no trickery.  No great ball handling.  Just pure speed.  Parker was standing upright and blew by the best perimeter defender in the NBA. He was the fastest guy I had ever seen and watching him play was like watching Usain Bolt run.

The kid was a blur.

Tony Parker's game has grown and developed throughout his illustrious 11 year career.  Shot blockers and charge takers set their sites on him so he developed the "tear drop floater" which has become his signature move.  Slower defenders would sag off him once he got within 20 feet of the rim so he developed a consistent outside shot.  Parker is still as fast as ever and makes a living attacking the rim.  He regularly ranks in the top 5 in points in the paint, a distinction normally reserved for giants like Shaquille O'Neal or Dwight Howard.  In 2005, Parker finished the season shooting over 54% from the field.  That was the first time since 1975 that a point guard had ranked in the top 3 in field goal percentage.  Tony Parker plays the game without fear and seeing him get knocked to the floor has become so commonplace that we take for granted how tough he is.  He ranks 3rd among active players for free throws attempted per 48 minutes in the Playoffs.

Tony Parker has been instrumental in the 3 championships he has won with the Spurs but for whatever reason, his greatness is not recognized by most fans outside of Texas.  Perhaps it's because he came into the league when it wasn't cool to be French.  Perhaps it's because he plays with the Spurs.  Perhaps it's because he made People's list of the "100 Most Beautiful People".  Perhaps it's because he was married to Eva Longoria and still felt the need to sleep with Brent Barry's wife.  Some people cannot root for a player that they are jealous of.  Others have a tough time divorcing a player's greatness on the court with their behavior off of it.

I don't have either hang up. In my opinion, great athletes don't have to be guys that you would want to drink a beer with or have date your kid sister.  An athlete's greatness is measured by what they accomplish in their given profession.  Tony Parker has accomplished a great deal.  He is a 4 time All-Star who has scored over 13,000 points and played in over 140 Playoff games.  He is currently the Spurs' all-time assist leader in both the Playoffs and the regular season.  Parker is 2nd only to Tim Duncan in Spurs all-time Playoff scoring and could surpass the future Hall of Famer one day.

Another great, yet equally unpopular champion famously said,

"To be the man, you gotta beat the man.  Whoooooooooo!"

I think that Ric Flair is on to something.

Throughout Parker's career, he has performed well against the best point guards the league has to offer.  He has outdueled guys like Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, Chris Paul, Chauncey Billups, Stephon Marbury and Derek Fisher.  When asked what the key would be to defeating the Spurs in '05, Phil Jackson said that the Lakers would have to keep Tony Parker out of the paint to win the series.  They couldn't and as a result didn't.  Tony Parker absolutely dominated Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2007 Finals and became the first European-born player to win the Finals MVP.

Tony Parker has shown no signs of slowing down, literally or figuratively.  This season has been his finest as a pro.  He is clearly the best player on what is arguably the best team in the Western Conference.  Last night, he outplayed Chris Paul, whom many consider to be the best point guard in the world.  Parker should go on to have many more years of playing at a high level.  I hope that when all is said and done, people will appreciate just how special he was and put that young kid from France in the Hall of Fame.

Sizing up the Spurs

In every major sport with a postseason tournament, much is made of "getting hot at the right time".  Conventional wisdom says that to win in the postseason, a team needs to be firing on all cylinders.  If that is in fact the case, the San Antonio Spurs should be sitting pretty.  They won 21 of their final 23 regular season games while resting players and avoiding injuries.  Any concerns of being rusty or out of sync once the Playoffs began were quickly laid to rest.  They swept the Utah Jazz by an average margin of 16 points in what more closely resembled a layup drill than a Playoff series.   Hot may not be a strong enough adjective to describe just how well they are playing right now.  Perhaps sizzling would be more accurate.

This is, of course, no accident.  The Spurs are a well coached, deep team that does many things well.  They have the unusual distinction of leading the league in both Field Goal percentage and 3-Pt Field Goal percentage.  Defending a team that consistently drains 3's while getting dozens of easy layups is no easy task.  The dynamic duo of guards Tony Parker and Manu Ginobli may be the best 1-2 punch in the business.  While a bit long in the tooth, Tim Duncan is still a great player who is healthy in May for the first time in years.  Gary Neal, Dejuan Blair, Kawhi Leonard, Matt Bonner, Danny Green, Stephen Jackson, and Tiago Splitter are all solid players who know their role and rarely play outside of themselves.  Poppovich preaches ball movement and collectively these guys pass the rock better than any team I have ever seen.

Could this team win it all?  Absolutely.  Do I think that they will?  Not necessarily.  The Spurs are not without their weaknesses.  Basketball is all about matchups and San Antonio does not match up well with some teams in the Western Conference.  Here are some of the weaknesses that could prove to be their undoing;

Suspect Interior Defense
This comes down to size.  Right now the Spurs have two 7 footers on their roster; Tim Duncan and Tiago Splitter.  Duncan is still a serviceable defender but not the dominant force he was 10 years ago.  Tiago Splitter is still young and gets into foul trouble early and often when defending quality big men.  Matt Bonner is tall (listed as 6'10") but a non-factor defensively due to his lack of strength and quickness.  Heavy D (Dejuan Blair) gives a ton of effort but is a very undersized center at 6'7".  Teams with quality low post players like the Grizzlies or Lakers could pose problems for San Antonio.

Difficulty Facing Good Shot Blocking
The Spurs shoot a lot of jump shots but their dribble penetration is what gets them going.  The Spurs guards getting into the paint is what creates spacing for their outside shooters. Teams that can keep Tony Parker and Manu Ginobli out of the paint tend to give this team trouble.  The Lakers, Grizzlies, and Thunder have great shot blockers who could make life difficult for this Spurs' offense.  

Difficulty Facing Efficient Offenses
San Antonio likes to get out and run in transition.  They also like to shoot a lot of 3-Pointers.  The way to stop a fast breaking team is to make shots.  The way to stop a 3-Point shooting team is to make shots while using up the shot clock.  When you control the clock while scoring, you take away both fast break baskets and possessions.  3-Point shooting teams like the Spurs need a lot of possessions to be effective.  Teams with efficient offenses like the Lakers, Grizzlies, or Clippers could disrupt the Spurs' offensive rhythm.

San Antonio matches up pretty well with the remaining teams in the East (Miami, Boston, Indiana, and Philly) but getting out of the West will not be easy.  The Lakers, Clippers, Thunder and Grizzlies all pose different matchup problems for them and the road to the Finals will be a difficult one for this very talented team.  A fifth championship for Duncan and Poppovich would add to their already impressive Hall of Fame resume.  A fourth championship most likely guarantees (deservedly so, in my humble opinion) first ballot status to Tony Parker and Manu Ginobli.  The Spurs' next series will start Tuesday and the real test begins.