SI.com: Spurs' Ginobili 'getting better every day'

http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/nba_tracker/posts/23161

Finally, some good news for the depleted, struggling Spurs: Manu Ginobili is traveling with the team and progressing well -- perhaps ahead of schedule -- in his recovery from offseason ankle surgery, according to the San Antonio Express-News:

"I'm getting better every day," said Ginobili, who led the Spurs in scoring at 19.5 points per game last season. "But I still haven't practiced with the team or anything like that."

His rehab has progressed without setback. He can now plant and cut on the repaired ankle. The next stage will be to get him involved in some one-on-one and two-on-two drills.

After that comes conditioning work.

Officially, the timetable for Ginobili's return remains mid-December, with the hope he might be able to play earlier.

Asked Wednesday if there is a chance Ginobili might be able to suit up before the end of the month, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich did not say yes. But he also did not say no.

"I don't want to paint myself into a corner," Popovich said. "When he's ready, he'll play. That's the best way to put it."

RealGM: Steph Eyes Spot With Spurs

http://realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/55383/20081112/steph_eyes_spot_with_spurs/

If the New York Knicks part ways with Stephon Marbury, Marbury said that the San Antonio Spurs would be at the top of his list of preferred destinations, the New York Post is reporting.

"Who wouldn't want to play for San Antonio?" Marbury told The Post last night. "To play with Tim Duncan, who would complain about that? That's a great organization, they win championships. They have a nice system and I like (Gregg) Popovich as coach. I can play 1 or the 2. If I was a free agent, yeah."

Spurs general manager R.C. Buford has said he may look for a point guard after losing Tony Parker for a month.

Oh, God no.

I've heard of desperate times somehow relating to desperate measures, but I'm pretty sure Tim got his fill of playing with Marbury in Athens. And we all remember how that turned out.

FoxSports: NBA's Most Dominant Force? Injuries

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/8789668/NBA%60s-most-dominant-force?-Injuries

Our next turn takes us to San Antonio, where losing two of the league's best players happens.

The proud Spurs began this season without marvelous Argentine two-guard Manu Ginobili, whose ankle buckled during an Olympic skirmish with Team USA. San Antonio promptly lost four of its first five games, and the only triumph required a 55-point, double-overtime effort against from point guard Tony Parker against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Parker encountered a high ankle sprain of his very own in the next game.

So the Spurs, who were defeated by the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday and are registered at 2-5, will rely on Tim Duncan and spot-up shooters to keep their chins above Western water.

Unfortunately, the defense that has helped define San Antonio has been as untidy as Coach Gregg Popovich's beard. Through seven games, the Spurs were 22nd in field-goal percentage defense. And now that Parker and Ginobili are temporary goners (Parker for maybe 2-3 more weeks and Manu until mid-December), the Spurs have nobody with the off-the-dribble shake to break down defenses and find those stand-still jump shooters.

Expect more touches than ever for Duncan, whose ability to inspire double-team tactics should lead to more pristine looks for welcome newcomer Mason (14 points per game).

With 75 more games to play, it seems silly to dismiss the Spurs. But with the stunt doubles at Duncan's side, staying alive in the West may depend on the training room and the ARP machine.

NY Daily News: Spurs interested in Eddy Curry

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/knicks/2008/11/12/2008-11-12_danilo_gallinaris_back_future_up_in_air.html

CURRY COOKING: Eddy Curry met briefly with his agent, Leon Rose, before last night's game. Curry has been sidelined since the second game of the season with a bruised right knee. He is expected to be out another two weeks.

D'Antoni had removed Curry from the rotation before the Knick season opener.
There is interest in the center from the Spurs and Heat. Miami may be willing to trade D'Antoni favorite Shawn Marion, but a potential deal with Curry is complicated because their salaries don't match.

Express News: Hill and Mason find rhythm in Spurs' backcourt

http://www.wacotrib.com/news/content/gen/ap/BKN_Spurs_No_Name_Backcourt.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=0

By Colin Fly

MILWAUKEE — San Antonio's new starting backcourt of George Hill and Roger Mason Jr. sounds more like a pair of architects or investment bankers.

Actually, that's half true.

Mason is an avid reader of Architectural Digest magazine, and studied the subject while at the University of Virginia.

He even used to sneak into homes in Washington, D.C. with his brother, Frank, when he was younger.

"We probably weren't supposed to," Mason said.

Now Frank is the investment banker, and Mason is building a new future as a scorer with the Spurs missing superstars Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili due to injuries.

"My career has been windy," Mason said Wednesday night before San Antonio's 82-78 loss at Milwaukee. "Last year was really my first opportunity. I'd been in the league for three years, but I never averaged more than 8 minutes a game."

Then Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas got hurt, and Mason, who also spent time playing in Europe and Israel while rehabbing from major shoulder surgery, stepped in and averaged 9.1 points per game for Washington before signing with the Spurs in the offseason.

"It's one thing to get an opportunity, it's another thing to make the most of it," Mason said.

He's getting a bigger chance now. Parker will miss about a month due to a moderate left ankle sprain, and Ginobili hasn't played this season and isn't scheduled to be back from left ankle surgery until December.

"I was just getting used to Tony, and he gets so much attention, so it's pretty easy to play off him," Mason said. "Now he's out, so I've got to get used to playing with George a little bit more."

San Antonio used the 26th pick in this year's draft to take Hill, and while he's learning on the fly, he's also got a style all his own. He jams to Weezer's "Say It Ain't So" with his cousins to the video game "Rock Band" — not "Guitar Hero: World Tour" like Kobe Bryant has appeared in commercials for — and he's almost always the drummer.

"I like to play Rock Band — a lot," Hill said.

He's finding his rhythm on the court, too, after three seasons at IUPUI.

"Any time you come in and you have a player like Tony go down, it's always different, you can't be a Tony Parker, but I think it's just staying focused and doing what got me here," Hill said. "The only thing I think I want to accomplish is giving my team the best chance to win games, and I think that's what I'm doing right now."

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said Hill is taking advantage of his opportunity and that Mason is even more vital than his current average of 15.2 points per game.

"He's been of paramount importance to us because he's really been a scorer for us," Popovich said. "I think when we get healthy, his real value will show. It'll make us a pretty deep team I think. But at this point, he's saving us in certain situations — even games we lost — we would have been in worse shape without his contributions."

Popovich also said he's having fun teaching the younger players on his roster who have been forced to play important roles.

"It's like coaching Tony all over again to coach George Hill," Popovich said. "It always is fun because you get to go back and teach things that maybe you haven't had to teach in a while because that happened years ago. So starting at the beginning with some guys is a lot of fun."

Mason said Hill won't be another Parker, who gets his share of headlines off the court for his marriage to actress Eva Longoria.

"The one before him got the movie star girlfriend, then wife," Mason said. "Hopefully he's not too concerned about that."

The thing is Hill — who has a girlfriend — doesn't have to be like Parker, because in San Antonio's system, it's all about playing an assigned role and feeding Tim Duncan.

"They've been built around the Big Three — Tony, Manu and Tim," Mason said. "They get guys that not only can play basketball, but are high character guys, too."

Express News: Spurs fall short again

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Spurs_fall_short_again.html

MILWAUKEE — If Gregg Popovich had been awarded one wish walking into the Bradley Center on Wednesday night, it would have been this:

For the Spurs to play defense as well and as hard as they had the night before against New York.

If Popovich had been awarded a second wish upon leaving the Bradley Center some hours later, it would have been this: Eighty-three points.

That's all it would have taken.

One wish granted, one wish denied, the Spurs left Milwaukee on the wrong end of an 82-78 tally against the Bucks, their bid for the season's first winning streak rebuffed by one clank-filled stretch of the fourth quarter.

“If we can hold a team to 82 points, I'm thrilled, I'm jumping up and down,” Popovich said. “We ought to be able to win that basketball game.”

Richard Jefferson scored 19 points to lead a balanced list of five players in double figures for the Bucks, who overcame a nearly game-long deficit to break their three-game losing streak.

The Bucks outscored the Spurs 14-2 to start the fourth quarter, transforming what had once been a 13-point Spurs lead into a narrow Milwaukee victory.

The Spurs had a chance to tie with five seconds left, but Tim Duncan's short hook missed.

At 2-5, this is the Spurs' worst start since going 2-13 to open the 1996-97 campaign. Wednesday's loss marked their third of the season by five points or fewer.

“The whole thing is frustrating now matter how you look at it,” said Duncan, who led the Spurs with 24 points.

Less than 24 hours removed from a hard-earned 92-80 victory over New York, accomplished with injured guards Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili inactive, the Spurs ran headlong into a reality check in Milwaukee.

For the second game in a row, the Spurs held an opponent to a season scoring low. This time, they couldn't score enough for it to matter.

“We're a little challenged offensively right now,” Popovich said.

This is what life will look like for the Spurs with two of their three top scorers sidelined. They will have to fight and claw and scratch and defend, defend, defend just to stay in games.

And sometimes, perhaps often, it won't be enough.

Up until the fourth quarter, Wednesday appeared to be one of those nights when it would be enough.

The defensive energy the Spurs used to suffocate the Knicks the night before carried over, as the Bucks — playing their fifth game without leading scorer Michael Redd — shot below 38.6 percent for the first three quarters.

The Spurs did not trail from the 10:23 mark of the first quarter until the 8:25 mark of the fourth, when Jefferson swished a 19-footer to put Milwaukee ahead 63-61.

“San Antonio isn't at full strength, but they're a very disciplined team,” Jefferson said. “They're going to win a lot of games at half strength.”

No matter how hard the Spurs might have wished it, this wasn't destined to be one of them.

Ahead by 12 points at the half, and by six entering the fourth quarter, the Spurs suddenly went cold from the field. And the Bucks suddenly couldn't miss.

Milwaukee's Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, a rookie from UCLA making his first career start, had eight points in the fourth quarter, while Ramon Sessions had nine.

When Andrew Bogut dunked home Sessions' lone fourth-quarter miss with 5:24 to go, it gave Milwaukee a 69-61 lead.

That cued Duncan, who totaled 14 of his points in the game's final 41/2 minutes to help keep the Spurs in wishing distance. Michael Finley, who finished with a season-high 19 points, hit a 3-pointer with 12.3 seconds left to pull the Spurs within one.

Sessions missed the second of two free throws at the other end, giving Spurs a shot to tie. But Duncan's hook was short, and Jefferson hit two clinching foul shots at the other end.

“The bottom line is we made enough plays to win the game,” Duncan said. “We just didn't do it in time.”

Yet another case of too little, too late. It was, however, encouraging to see the Spurs come out strong for once.

For the first time this season, the Spurs found a comfort zone, then they let themselves fall asleep in it. This is one of those lessons that seems to be learned every season.

Still, every win without Parker and Ginobili is crucial, and the Spurs should've had that one in their back pocket.

Express News: Spurs' life Without Parker

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Spurs_life_without_Parker.html

The Spurs played their first game without Tony Parker on Tuesday, but it won’t be their last. Here’s a look at the Spurs’ schedule the next four weeks, the length of time Parker is expected to miss with a left ankle injury.

Today at Bucks: Tough turnaround after facing running team night before.

Friday vs. Rockets: Unlike Spurs’ Big Three, Rockets’ Big Three are all healthy.

Sunday at Kings: Catching them at right time — Kevin Martin just got hurt.

Monday at Clippers: No time to rest — Clippers now have Baron Davis and Marcus Camby.

Nov. 19 vs. Nuggets: Spurs don’t have Parker, but Denver has Chauncey Billups.

Nov. 21 vs. Jazz: Utah went 5-1 without Deron Williams, who made debut Tuesday.

Nov. 24 at Grizzlies: Memphis boasts Rudy Gay and a perfect record at home.

Nov. 26 vs. Bulls: Fans miss out on chance to see top pick Derrick Rose face Parker.

Nov. 28 vs. Grizzlies: Memphis is only 1-5 on road this season.

Nov. 29 at Rockets: No time to rest before facing Ron Artest, Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady.

Dec. 2 at Warriors: Golden State’s Monta Ellis out at least another month.

Dec. 3 at Nuggets: Altitude won’t be fun after playing previous night.

Express News: Coach Tim Making Presence Felt

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Coach_Tim_making_presence_felt.html

By Mike Finger

In a few years, Jacque Vaughn will be looking for work as an NBA coach. The competition among cerebral, well-liked former players will be fierce and the openings will be in short supply, but Vaughn already is pretty sure he won't have to worry about beating out one potential applicant.

“Timmy (Duncan) has no chance,” Vaughn said. “He doesn't have nearly enough patience for it.”

If he ever had the patience to begin with, nights like Tuesday ensure it won't last long. As the Spurs and their guests spent much of the evening trying to prove that a sexual harassment trial wasn't necessarily the ugliest chapter in New York Knicks history, Duncan watched a patched-together crew of no-name rookies and creaky-kneed old-timers make the wrong cuts, miss the open man and fumble away entry passes.

And then?

Coach Tim made a few adjustments.

Gregg Popovich did his share of tinkering, too, but even he admitted he can't do as much with his words as Duncan can. Popovich said Duncan is “the biggest reason we've got a comfort level out there,” and the fact that the Spurs have any kind of a comfort level at all without Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili is a story in itself.

But the other news is that as the Spurs have limped to their worst start in the Duncan era — a 1-4 skid they finally ended with a 92-80 victory at the AT&T Center on Tuesday — Duncan has reeled off one of his best stretches as an on-court member of Popovich's staff.

He's taken George Hill aside and reminded him about the importance of moving without the ball. He's been in the ear of Anthony Tolliver and barking orders on defense. He's pointed at Roger Mason Jr. and waved him in the right direction. He's taken control of timeouts, and, on at least one occasion against the Knicks, gathered his teammates around him for extra instruction after Popovich was finished with them.

This is no longer the lead-by-example MVP. This is now the lead-by-telling-you-you'd-better-dang-well-hedge-on-that-next-screen-or-you're-going-to-be-running-extra-wind-sprints Popovich-in-training.

“Five years ago, I don't know if Timmy would have felt comfortable doing that kind of stuff,” said Vaughn, the 11th-year backup point guard who's doing his own share of mentoring in the locker room these days. “Now, with this team, it's kind of a necessity.”

And it's not as though Duncan's teammates are the only ones who are noticing. Before Tuesday's game, when someone asked Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni about the Spurs' early-season struggles, D'Antoni responded by saying, “You know Popovich and Duncan will eventually figure it out,” as if the power forward was as much responsible for coming up with a solution as the head coach.

This seemed perfectly reasonable when talking about the Spurs, but it's still unique. That quote wouldn't have made as much sense, for instance, if another coach had subbed the words “Popovich and Duncan” with “D'Antoni and Marbury.”

Duncan has as much influence on his organization as any player in the league, and while that's not a recent development, the way he's exerted it has evolved. In the preseason, Duncan was a regular fixture in the coaches' huddles at the start of timeouts, and an hour before Tuesday's tipoff, he was conducting an impromptu film session with Mason and Hill in the locker room.

Popovich said it's Duncan's empathy, more than anything else that makes him an effective leader.

“He allows people to feel comfortable,” Popovich said. “He doesn't make them feel foolish.”

Sometimes he toes the line, though. After Hill didn't complete a move to the basket early in Tuesday's game, Duncan scowled and snapped at him. Repeatedly this season, Duncan has told Hill to fake high before cutting low.

Later, after Hill made a cut in the second half, Duncan walked over to him again. And this time, he congratulated his rookie point guard on following instructions.

Hill, who was expecting another lecture, couldn't believe it.

“I didn't even realize I did it,” Hill said. “It just kind of soaked in, I guess.”

Coach Tim would take some satisfaction in that comment, which has implications for Vaughn and his job search, too.

He might end up with some competition yet.

Express News: Spurs break through at home

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Spurs_break_through_at_home.html

Mike D’Antoni walked into the AT&T Center for the first time as coach of the New York Knicks on Tuesday morning, and the memories came flooding back.

“Right there,” D’Antoni said, pointing to a spot on the arena floor. “That’s the scene of the disaster.”

Let the record show he was referring to Robert Horry’s infamous hip check of Steve Nash in the 2007 playoffs, back when D’Antoni was coaching the Phoenix Suns. He was not referring to the injury-plagued mess that had become of the Spurs’ November.

For one night, at least, the Spurs were able to remove the caution tape from around their home court. With injured stars Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili in street clothes — and with their team’s best hope for victory supposedly resting with them — the Spurs dug deep to beat the mercurial Knicks 92-80.

Tim Duncan scored 23 points while a pair of former starters — Michael Finley and Bruce Bowen — combined for 27 off the bench, as the Spurs won at home for the first time this season.

The Spurs (2-4) came in reeling from their worst five-game start in 12 seasons and facing up to four more weeks without their high-scoring guards.

They responded as they often have over the past several seasons, winding up their defense and setting it loose on the unsuspecting Knicks.

The Spurs held the Knicks — pinball wizards averaging 102.5 points per game — to their lowest scoring output of the season. New York (4-3) managed to shoot just 38 percent from the floor.

“It was out best defensive game of the year,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said, “and that’s the reason for the win.”

In some ways, Tuesday night was throwback night at the AT&T Center.

Without Parker and Ginobili, the Spurs’ offense looked straight out of 2001: Dump the ball to Duncan and get out the way.

He made 11 of 17 from the field, and dropped in 15 points in the first half.

Finley looked like he was back in Dallas again, finishing with 14 points.

Coming off the bench for the first time in a Spurs’ uniform, Bowen looked like he was back in Miami.

He responded with 13 points and three 3-pointers — including a back-breaker to put the Spurs up 87-75 with 2:50 to play.

Meanwhile, the Spurs’ once-vaunted defense — the foundation of four titles in 11 seasons — made its season debut.

Ahead 67-64 entering the third quarter, the Spurs held New York to just 16 points in the fourth.

“We got stops, and that’s San Antonio basketball,” said Roger Mason Jr., whose team had been giving up more than 105 points per game.

Throwback night, however, only went so far.

With his team playing for the first time since Parker sprained his ankle, Popovich trotted out a lineup he couldn’t have just two seasons ago.

George Hill started in place of Parker, the first Spurs’ rookie to do that since Beno Udrih in 2004-05. Alongside him in the backcourt were a first-year Spur (Mason) and second-year Spur (Ime Udoka).

Hill accomplished his most pressing mission.

He looked like an NBA point guard, finishing with 12 points and infusing the Spurs with some much-needed youthful exuberance.

The Spurs didn’t always play better Tuesday than they had in five previous outings. But, often, they played harder.

Snapshots from the fourth quarter bear that out.

It was Anthony Tolliver skidding across the floor for a loose ball.

It was Bowen sliding in to draw a charge on little Nate Robinson.

It was Finley — never paid for his defense — bodying up Quentin Richardson and forcing him into a traveling violation.

By night’s end, even D’Antoni was having flashbacks.

Some of the Spurs’ faces had changed. But the results looked awfully familiar.

“These guys are just tough,” D’Antoni said. “Been tough. Are tough. Will be tough.”

NYTimes: Knicks Let Spurs Slip Away in the Fourth Quarter

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/12/sports/basketball/12knicks.html?_r=1&ref=basketball&oref=slogin

By HOWARD BECK
Published: November 11, 2008

SAN ANTONIO — The dictionary does not have an entry or the proper spelling for the word Mike D’Antoni used to describe the horrors he has endured at AT&T Center. When prompted for his memories, he could only muster a nasty shriek: “Auuugghhhh!”

The San Antonio Spurs have that kind of effect on people. They ruined many springs for the Phoenix Suns and were partly responsible for D’Antoni leaving Phoenix for New York.

The Knicks are not the Suns and the Spurs are not exactly the Spurs at the moment, but the outcome Tuesday night was all too familiar — cool efficiency from Tim Duncan, timely shooting from Michael Finley and Bruce Bowen, and a 92-80 victory for San Antonio.

“We just weren’t sharp,” D’Antoni said after the Knicks let a close game slip away in a ghastly fourth quarter. “We had chances.”

This was, in fact, the best chance the Knicks have had in years to beat the Spurs. Their All-Star guards, Manu Ginóbili and Tony Parker, are out until December because of injuries. Their championship core is aging. They had lost four of their first five games.

But the Spurs ran their offense through Duncan, and he dominated the game without even trying. He finished with a near triple-double: 23 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists.

“He ain’t getting older, he’s getting better,” Zach Randolph said of Duncan. “He’s a tough player.”

Bowen and Finley, championship veterans who are now coming off the bench, hit critical 3-pointers in the fourth quarter as the Spurs (2-4) pulled away.

The Knicks (4-3), carrying the momentum of a three-game winning streak, were still high after Sunday’s victory over Utah. A win here would have cemented their progress. Instead, the Spurs gave D’Antoni nasty flashbacks and probably made him a little wistful for his old roster.

The Knicks converted just 38 percent of their field-goal attempts and are now 0-3 when they fail to score 100 points. They had a 4-point lead in the second quarter and a 6-point lead early in the third, but never found a way to break the game open against the Spurs’ still-stingy defense.

“Once you put them in a hole, they could’ve crumbled a little bit,” D’Antoni said. “But we just couldn’t get a lead, and it’s easier to shoot when you’re up than when you’re down.”

The Knicks fell behind by 7 points in the third quarter, tied the score at 64-64, then disintegrated. Bowen hit a 3-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer, igniting a 14-0 burst that put the game away. The Knicks opened the fourth quarter with five missed shots and three turnovers.

Jamal Crawford led the Knicks with 28 points, but he was held to one field goal by Bowen in the fourth quarter. Randolph was the only other Knicks’ starter to score in double figures, finishing with 15 points and 13 rebounds. But he missed 11 of his 18 field-goal attempts as he tried to match Duncan shot for shot.

So the Knicks wasted a rare chance to beat the Spurs in a rare vulnerable moment and lost to them for the seventh straight time.

At tip-off, the Spurs were nearly unrecognizable, with Roger Mason, Ime Udoka and the rookie George Hill standing alongside Duncan. Coach Gregg Popovich started Udoka over Bowen in attempt to spark the lineup.

Udoka did not make a shot until early in the third quarter, after missing his first eight. Mason hit his first shot in the final minutes of the period. But he finished with 7 points in the fourth.

The Spurs are again looking like a team in its twilight. But then, they are written off nearly every year at this time. D’Antoni knows them too well to believe it.

“If you also look at the banners, every two years they seem to put one up,” he said. “And this is the year that they don’t have one up there. You know that Popovich and Duncan will figure it out. And Parker will eventually get well and so will Ginóbili. And by the end of the year they’ll be there. That’s a sure thing.”

REBOUNDS

Danilo Gallinari’s back troubles have flared up again, casting doubt on his rookie season. Gallinari stayed in New York to have a magnetic resonance imaging test. Results were not immediately available. “His back just flared up again,” Mike D’Antoni said. “He was making progress, and then one morning he said he couldn’t put his pants on.” Team officials are hopeful that Gallinari can avoid surgery, but they cannot rule it out. “I’m worried about it at this point,” D’Antoni said. ... If there were any lingering doubts that Stephon Marbury has no future with the Knicks, D’Antoni dispelled them Tuesday when he activated Eddy Curry, who has a sore knee, rather than Marbury, to take Gallinari’s roster spot. “I just think it’s better that I’m going to play my guys,” D’Antoni said. “So there’s no reason to change course right now.” ... David Lee has a bone spur on his left ankle, a painful injury that might help explain his slow start to the season. Lee said the pain is manageable and that he does not expect to need surgery. But, he added, “I’m sure it’s not going to be real comfortable at times.” ... Although they are out of the rotation, Marbury and Curry were included on the All-Star ballot, which was released Tuesday. Jamal Crawford and Zach Randolph are also listed.