Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot.  This game was served up on a silver platter for the Spurs and they managed to fumble it like a Minnesota Viking in the playoffs. 

I think perhaps Will Ferrell can describe my emotions on the current state of the Spurs season better than I. 

The Spurs hung around for most of the game, but once again the defense flagrantly failed in the fourth quarter, giving up 28 points to close the game; the most they had given up in any quarter all night.  Its a sad state of affairs when the team is incapable of closing out a game. 

Offensively, Richard Jefferson is a ghost.  He was brought in and paid far too much money specifically for the Lakers, to give us better matchup’s against their bigs.  In 33 minutes last night he finished 2 for 9 with 9 points and 2 (!!) rebounds.  I’m not sure whats going on with RJ.  He is getting good looks and high percentage shots, he just can’t knock them down.  At this point in the season though, the Spurs are committed to him like a bad marriage.  He simply has to find a way to knock down more shots and become a part of this team for the Spurs to be successful.

You have to like what you are seeing from Manu Ginobili.  He went 7 for 12 last night including 3 of 5 from beyond the arc, for 21 points and only 2 turnovers.  It feels like he is very comfortable out there for the first time in maybe 2 years, battling injury issues this season and last.  Between Gino, Tony, and Hill you have to be pleased with the guard play of the Spurs right now.

Tim Duncan and DeJuan Blair are clearly our go-to’s inside now.  The Spurs are actually running a lot of set plays through Blair now, which, with his athleticism, could be a very good move.  He finished with 11 points in only 18 minutes of play, though he was a little weak on the boards only pulling down 2 rebounds on the night.   This is a problem that seems to be developing with the Spurs.  We are consistently being beaten in rebounding.  Those are hustle stats that are simply about effort level.  I’m confident that as Blair evolves he will become a consistent force in this area.  While I’m on the subject I should mention that Antonio McDyess pulled down 18 boards last night and, while he is not an offensive juggernaut, he continues to be a valuable role player for this team. 

On top of McDyess’ 18 boards, Duncan tossed in 15 of his own and finished with 16 points on 8 of 17 shooting.  I think the Spurs really should have allowed the offense to run through Tim a lot more than they did.  Tim can, and did, run circles around Gasol on any given night.  I think the missing points were a combination of Tim’s and RJ’s.  Had they done what they needed to do, we win this game 9 times out of 10.

When the road trip started, I did not expect the Spurs to beat the Lakers, but as the injury situation developed (Lakers sans Kobe) I thought this was a very winnable game.  We move to 2 and 2 for the road trip and have what I think is the biggest game of the trip up next in Denver.  If we can win this one, we can conceivably run the table and finish 6 and 2.  The Spurs have got to figure it out on the road, with 20 of our 32 remaining games being played there.  This team has yet to gel, but if it happens soon, there is no doubt in my mind that they can make a run deep into the playoffs.

Thoughts?