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| I miss RJ and I wish the Nets never traded him away. Damn you Bobby Simmons and Yi Jianlian! |
Background on San Antonio
The Spurs are riding a season-high six-game winning streak right now with their last two wins, coming over Memphis and Philly, being on their annual Rodeo road trip, which is always their longest stretch away from home for the whole season. Their recent stretch of good play has gotten them into the 1st spot of the Southwest Division, two game above their cross-state rivals, the defending champion Mavericks and the Rockets. San Antonio was playing well even without Ginobili but, of course, they are a much more explosive team when Manu is in the line-up. The Spurs are a perennial contender, while the Nets couldn't be more the opposite. Uh oh.
Previous Game
As mentioned above, San Antonio is coming off of their 6th consecutive win as they beat the 76ers in Philly on Wednesday by the score of 100-90. The Spurs were led by Tony Parker who had one of his patented offensive outbreaks in which he scored 37 points along with eight assists. As it usually is with the Spurs, the win was a complete team effort as reserve forward Tiago Splitter scored 15 in 17 minutes off the bench while Gary Neal hit all four of his 3-point attempts en route to an 18-point effort.
The Nets' brutal losing streak was extended to five games with an awfully lackluster blow-out loss to the lowly Detroit Pistons last night. The Pistons swept the home-and-home series between the two teams as the Nets were basically out of the game by the middle of the 2nd quarter. Even the return of Marshon Brooks from his toe injury couldn't help a New Jersey team that seemed tired and disinterested at the Palace of Auburn Hills. The Nets are quickly fading and recently, the games haven't even been competitive for much more than two quarters. Uh oh.
Probable Lineups
SAS- Parker (PG), Ginobili (SG), Jefferson (SF), Blair (PF), Duncan (C)
NJN- D.Williams (PG), Morrow (SG), Sha. Williams (SF), Humphries (PF), She. Williams (C)
Three Keys to a Nets Victory
1. Make Ginobili show he can hit shots- Coming off of an extended injury to his hand, Manu's traditionally accurate shot might not be that effective in his first game back. The Nets need to make him prove that he can hit his long-range shots early so if his shot isn't there, the defenders can back off of him and make it harder for him to score points on the interior.
2. Rebound/Limit second chances- In their last loss to the Pistons, the Nets were outrebounded by 16 (not a typo) which gave Detroit more offensive possessions in addition to ending New Jersey possessions after only one missed shot. This helps to get rid of all offensive flow the Nets had at all and this was an absolutely necessary thing for the Nets in order to win last night's game. Like the Pistons, San Antonio has a few prolific rebounders, Like DeJuan Blair and Tim Duncan, that can cause havoc and create extra shot opportunities.
3. Limit turnovers- This is going to be a constant key for Nets wins because right now, many a Net possessions end with the ball in the opponent's hands on a fast break caused by a careless turnover. A good defensive team like the Spurs can, and will, cause turnovers but if the Nets can limit how many balls they cough up, then San Antonio will be a lot less effective on defense and they won't get the easy fast break shot attempts that the Nets normally give to teams.
The Spurs are on a hot streak with one of their best players returning from injury. The Nets are in a free-fall with multiple players still out due to injury. Spurs win 105-84.
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