San Antonio Spurs News

Rest still not in cards for Duncan
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March 18
San Antonio Express-News
 
"That grand plan Gregg Popovich had to rest Tim Duncan on more second nights of back-to-backs more than ever before? Scrap it, for now. The Spurs found themselves in such a situation Wednesday in Orlando, coming off a hard-earned victory in Miami in which Duncan approached a normal workload. In a perfect world, it would have been a perfect opportunity for Popovich to rest him. The tightening Western Conference playoff race, combined with the injury to Tony Parker, have made it virtually impossible for Popovich to sit Duncan and Manu Ginobili, his 30-something stars, as much as he'd prefer. "Our schedule and the situation we're in now have made it so he and Manu have to play a little bit ..."
Carter, Magic bury Spurs' win streak
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March 18
San Antonio Express-News
 
"For the better part of four weeks, the Spurs have commenced on a long, slow climb toward above average. During that time, they have progressed from a team on the cusp of being out of the playoffs, to a team solidly in the playoffs, to a team perhaps capable of scaring people once they get there. All this has occurred as planned, but totally off schedule. "We never really got the team put together the way we usually do," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "It took about a month-and-a-half longer than usual to become a good basketball team." On Wednesday, the Spurs were reminded how far they still are from being great. With Tim Duncan enduring one of the worst nights of his career, and with ..."
Spurs looking to recapture their magic
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March 17
Orlando Sentinel
 
"If there was an NBA team that the Orlando Magic modeled themselves after, it would be tonight's guest, the San Antonio Spurs. Magic General Manager Otis Smith, long an admirer of the four-time champions, can point to the Spurs' businesslike approach to the way they've surrounded a great big man ( Tim Duncan) with sharpshooters through the years. While Orlando is also building on the back of Dwight Howard and reached the NBA Finals last season, San Antonio no longer looks like a challenger to the defending champion L.A. Lakers in the West. We look at the 5 reasons why the Spurs have been struggling this season to avoid the No. 8 seed (and a first-round match against the Lakers): Aura, era ..."
Popovich gratified by Jefferson's effort
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March 17
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Spurs forward Richard Jefferson is relatively certain he's playing better now than he was earlier in the season. After all, he's getting plenty of positive feedback from coach Gregg Popovich. "Pop is only cussing me out once or twice a game now, instead of five or six," Jefferson said. "So that's encouraging." In reality, Popovich has been thrilled with what Jefferson has been producing in three games since rejoining the starting lineup. He had his third solid effort in Tuesday's 88-76 victory at Miami, notching 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting and snaring eight rebounds. More encouraging, meanwhile, was the manner in which Jefferson got his final two field goals. With the Spurs struggling to ..."
Spurs' defense turns up Heat
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March 17
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Manu Ginobili, knock on wood, seems back to being Manu Ginobili. Richard Jefferson, just maybe, is starting to look like Richard Jefferson. But if Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had to choose the most encouraging sign from his team's suffocating 88-76 victory over Miami on Tuesday, it would be this: The Spurs' defense is beginning to look like the Spurs' defense. "Nothing good can happen, playoff-wise, if you can't play 'D'," Popovich said. Tuesday's victory at AmericanAirlines Arena, the Spurs' ninth in their last 11 games, provided the blueprint for how Popovich would like his team to play. The Spurs jumped on the Heat early, strangling the life from them while allowing only 14 points in the ..."
Spurs' situation with Splitter reminds of Scola
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March 17
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The most efficient Western Conference big man in March has been Houston's Luis Scola. In nine games, he has made 58.9 percent of his shots and averaged 23.6 points and 13.6 rebounds, keeping alive the Rockets' fading playoff hopes. Scola is better known in these parts as the best draft pick the Spurs never signed. Every time he has a big game — a 44-point explosion against the Nets, or 30 points and 14 rebounds vs. the Spurs — he picks at the scab of a wound that won't heal. Now the Spurs face the prospect of another summer like 2007, when they traded Scola's draft rights to the Rockets, along with total bust big man Jackie Butler, for Vasillis Spanoulis and a 2009 second-round pick. Tiago ..."
Stretch won't be day at the beach for Spurs
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March 16
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The Spring Break revelers were already out en masse long before the Spurs' charter plane touched down here Monday afternoon, engaged in a bass-bumping, beer-bonging beach bacchanal that will go on for the better part of the month. The Spurs, meanwhile, are in Miami this week for a more businesslike purpose. Aware tonight's game against the Heat marks the start of their season's decisive stretch, the Spurs bused directly from the airport to AmericanAirlines Arena for a practice session before checking into their hotel. "This is when the regular season is really going to get decided," guard Manu Ginobili said. "We want to climb a little bit more in the standings. It's very important to start ..."
Jefferson says he's best alongside Ginobili
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March 16
San Antonio Express-News
 
"When it comes down to it, Richard Jefferson doesn't care if he starts or comes off the bench for the Spurs. His only request of coach Gregg Popovich: As much time alongside Manu Ginobili as possible, please. "I think Pop is still trying to find that magic, to get everybody on the same page," Jefferson said before Monday's practice at AmericanAirlines Arena. "Playing with Manu definitely helps." It is no coincidence that Jefferson's best seasons came in New Jersey with Jason Kidd setting him up. He hopes to create a reasonable facsimile with Ginobili, the closest player to Kidd the Spurs have on their roster. Jefferson, who has struggled for much of his inaugural season with the Spurs, ..."
Red Rocket firing on all cylinders
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March 15
San Antonio Express-News
 
"In Matt Bonner's head, he is always open, the basket is always as wide as the Gulf of Mexico, and every ball feels textbook-perfect leaving his hand. "In my head, I'm never missing," the Spurs' sweet-shooting center/forward said. "They're all going in." Of course, what happens in the head doesn't always jibe with what happens on the hardwood. Bonner learned as much earlier this season as he struggled to come back from a broken shooting hand, and came perilously close to falling out of Gregg Popovich's plans altogether. At one point in January, Bonner — the Spurs' most reliable 3-point shooter — clanged 10 straight tries from distance. Afforded a final chance to get right — and aided by a ..."
New signees don't expect many minutes
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March 15
San Antonio Express-News
 
"When rookie point guard Cedric Jackson signed a 10-day contract with the Spurs six days ago, he didn't really know what to expect from his impending stint in silver and black. Certainly, he didn't expect this. Signed primarily so the Spurs could evaluate him for the future, Jackson has totaled 23 minutes, 22 seconds in the past two games, lopsided victories over Minnesota and the Los Angeles Clippers. "I wasn't too sure (what to expect)," said Jackson, a former Development Leaguer who enjoyed consecutive 10-day tours with Cleveland earlier this season. "I was really focused on trying to learn the terminology. I made a lot of mistakes, but that's part of the learning process." Against the ..."
How one bracket changed the Spurs
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March 15
San Antonio Express-News
 
"San Antonio didn't see Tim Duncan as anything special the last time Texas played Wake Forest in the NCAA tournament. Then, in 1996, the Spurs were doing well with a healthy David Robinson, and they were in no position to draft the promising Wake Forest junior. What followed did matter. Duncan squeezed past UT then, only to later lose to Kentucky. The winner of Texas and Wake on Thursday will meet the same fate in New Orleans. With that elimination, with another Final Four denied, Duncan had more motivation to stay in school — and enter the draft when the Spurs weren't doing so well. These are the changing paths that no one sees coming as office brackets are filled out. Lives are rerouted, ..."
Inside scoop: Spurs call Parker's injury "devastating"
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March 14
The Oklahoman
 
"How concerned are the Spurs that point guard Tony Parker will miss most of the remainder of the regular season? Coach Gregg Popovich called the injury "very deflating." Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili both used the word "devastating." When rumors surfaced that Larry Brown had contacted the Clippers whether they might want his services it caused a stir in Charlotte. Many believe Brown was merely formulating a backup plan in case Michael Jordan's bid to purchase the Bobcats fell through.?Cleveland received a scare when an MRI revealed Antawn Jamison has a cyst with fluid behind his knee. Acquired in a trade a month ago, Jamison said he's played with it all season, won't need surgery and doesn't ..."
Spurs roll against Clippers, whoseventh in a row
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March 14
Los Angeles Times
 
"George Hill was a scorer and distributor for the San Antonio Spurs, and then a player-coach briefly as well. Hill had 14 points and a career-high 11 assists to help the Spurs beat the Clippers for the 16th straight time, 118-88 Saturday night. With the Spurs up by 25 midway through the fourth quarter, Coach Gregg Popovich called timeout and handed the clipboard to Hill, who had exited the game for good with 2:41 left in the third. "Sometimes it's good to let the players do some of the coaching," Popovich said. "It makes them think a little bit and really gives them confidence in what we're doing as a group. "[Hill] didn't really draw up a play. He was showing [newcomer] Cedric Jackson ..."
Luxury cruise savored
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March 14
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The shot clock was dwindling late in the third quarter Saturday, the seconds ticking to zero in Matt Bonner's head. Caught behind the basket, he had no choice but to try, for the first time in a live game, a shot that he'd attempted "a thousand times" at the YMCA growing up in Concord, N.H. Over the backboard, nothing but net. "That's the life of a shooter," Bonner said after he scored 21 points in the Spurs' 118-88 victory over the hapless L.A. Clippers. "Some nights, they all go in. Some nights they all miss. "Tonight was a good night." It was a good night for most everybody in silver and black. The Spurs hit 51 of 87 shots - narrowly missing their best shooting performance of the season ..."
Mason's 3-point nightmare ends
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March 14
San Antonio Express-News
 
"It had been three games since Roger Mason Jr. had seen a 3-pointer fall, so when his 25-foot jumper hit the bottom of the net with 9:51 left in the Spurs' 118-88 victory over the Clippers, he grabbed his head with both hands and looked towards the ceiling of the AT"
Will Hill answer Pop's call to be like AJ?
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March 14
San Antonio Express-News
 
"A presumed victory over the Knicks was looking iffy in the fourth quarter on Wednesday and the Spurs' emotional leader had seen enough of missed defensive rotations. Rookie learning curve be damned, DeJuan Blair, guilty of that most grievous of Spurs mistakes, found his face full of enraged Argentine. Manu Ginobili's message, delivered nose-to-nose at max volume: Get your head in the game. As the Spurs head into the stretch run of this season of unmet expectation, they will need that sort of leadership. It is yet another reason he is the Spurs' MVP, something team captain Tim Duncan likely understands in his Spock-like way. "He's a fiery kid," Duncan says of Ginobili. "I think he holds ..."
Wolves nowhere near 'top, top shape'
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March 13
Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
"He still has 16 games to play this season, and it's a commitment that Al Jefferson takes seriously. But it's understandable, too, that the Timberwolves' most visible player has already begun thinking about the summer -- and, believe it or not, next season. "I'm going to try to bring my game to another level," Jefferson said before the Wolves' eighth straight loss, 103-85 to the Spurs. Jefferson, whose 13 points Friday weren't enough to prevent Minnesota from falling for the 14th time in 15 games, hopes to do that with the help of Idan Ravin, a trainer who works with some of the NBA's elite players. Ravin spent much of this homestand meeting the Wolves, at the request of team president for ..."
Jefferson breaks out, sparks Spurs
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March 13
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Hours before his team took the floor at the Target Center for tipoff of Friday's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich announced plans to use his 23rd different starting lineup of the season. Richard Jefferson, admittedly shaken after his first scoreless game in six years, would replace Keith Bogans at small forward. Popovich's rationale? "Because I want to," he said. In fact, the decision was anything but frivolous. Rather, it was reasoned and nuanced, and after Jefferson's 19 points and nine rebounds helped the Spurs score an easy 103-85 victory, the veteran coach looked like a psychological genius. The Spurs' collective psyche was in fine shape after their ..."
Popovich will try to limit Ginobili's minutes
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March 13
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Spurs guard Manu Ginobili may be back in the team's starting lineup, but don't expect to see him logging the sort of minutes he played in the first two games since coach Gregg Popovich changed his opening lineup. Ginobili played 36 minutes, 53 seconds in his first start, at Cleveland, and 33:17 in Wednesday's victory over the Knicks. Mindful of keeping Ginobili fresh for the playoffs, Popovich would like to see the per-game number under 30 minutes, and Friday's blowout of the Timberwolves allowed him to play him only 27:44. "He may play a few more minutes a game, just because of the situation we're in," Popovich said. "He's a great player, and we need him on the court. So that might force ..."
Manu: Next two are must-wins for Spurs
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March 12
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Beginning with tonight's game against the Timberwolves at the Target Center, the Spurs have 11 games in 18 days, a stretch that includes four sets of back-to-back games and opponents like the Cavaliers, Lakers, Celtics and Magic. The Timberwolves and Clippers, Saturday's opponent at the AT&T Center, have only 39 wins between them and the Clippers are 13th and the Wolves 16th in the West. According to Spurs guard Manu Ginobili, that puts both weekend games in a special category. "Must wins, both," said the Spurs' emotional leader, back in the starting lineup since Tony Parker's hand injury put him on the shelf for four to eight weeks. "It's more about being mentally ready than physically ..."
Spurs' Hill can't think in terms of replacing Parker
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March 12
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The first time George Hill walked into the Target Center, he watched as an NBA arena morphed into a video arcade. Writing the most declarative sentence in a season-long campaign to gain All-NBA recognition, Tony Parker authored a 55-point performance that is tied for third highest in club history. On Nov. 5, 2008, the All-Star point guard befuddled the Timberwolves with a variety of drives to the basket that produced spinning layins, teardrop floaters and pull-up jumpers. When a close game was on the line, he confounded the Timberwolves from the perimeter, carrying the Spurs to a double-overtime victory. Afterwards, Hill swore he had seen Parker do the same thing many times. "Of course," ..."
Spurs' Hairston relishes opportunity
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March 11
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Called up from the NBA's D-League Austin Toros because Michael Finley no longer wanted a spot on the Spurs' bench, Malik Hairston on Wednesday made a bigger contribution than Finley had in months. Playing every second of the fourth quarter in the Spurs' 97-87 victory over the New York Knicks at the AT&T Center, the second-year swingman from Oregon scored four points, grabbed three rebounds, blocked one shot and made one of the game's pivotal baskets. Hairston hadn't attempted a crunch-time perimeter shot outside of the D-League all season, but he never hesitated when he found himself wide open with 3:04 left and the Spurs leading, 85-82. His perfect 18-foot jumper was one of the key makes ..."
Ginobili's surge continues in Spurs' win
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March 11
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Manu Ginobili doesn't presume to know what it's like to be Tracy McGrady. Ginobili has had injuries, but not a knee injury. He's had surgery, but not microfracture. He's missed months, but not an entire season. Still, after watching McGrady feel his way around the AT&T Center in a New York Knicks jersey Wednesday night, during what became a 97-87 Spurs victory, Ginobili could sympathize with what McGrady was going through. This is what it looks like when a former star is just trying to be a basketball player again. "He's coming from a way worse situation than me," Ginobili said. "It's not an easy spot to be." The same McGrady who once scored 13 points in 33 seconds against the Spurs ..."
Popovich says Ginobili starts out of 'necessity'
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March 10
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Some observers might have been surprised to see Manu Ginobili inserted into the Spurs' starting lineup in the wake of Tony Parker's fractured hand. Ginobili wasn't one of them. "It's not that I was expecting it," Ginobili said, "but there weren't many other options." Ginobili earned just his second start of the season Monday at Cleveland, scoring a season-high 38 points and making seven 3-pointers in the Spurs' 97-95 loss. In his only other start, Nov. 18 at Dallas, Ginobili left in the first quarter with a strained groin. After, he joked that he never wanted to start again. Had it not been for Parker's injury, which is set to keep him out six weeks, Ginobili would have gotten his wish. ..."
Spurs must find way to fill void on bench
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March 10
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The Spurs called Roger Mason Jr.'s number early in Cleveland, and they called it often. And with the game on the line late, coach Gregg Popovich called it again. In a sense, this is what Mason was asking for three weeks ago, when his agent requested a trade — more playing time, more shots, enhanced opportunity. He responded to more of all the above by going 0 for 8 from 3-point range in Monday's 97-95 streak-stopping loss to the Cavaliers, including a misfire off a designed play that could have tied the game in the waning moments. "I wanted a chance to make up for some easy shots I missed," said Mason, who finished with two points in 25:23. "It was one of those games that didn't bounce my ..."
Manu too good, and Spurs get too smart
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March 9
San Antonio Express-News
 
"No NBA coach designs smarter inbounds plays than Gregg Popovich, and he came out of a timeout Monday with another one. Everyone said so. But maybe even Popovich wondered as he headed to another bus, after another loss, if he had leaned too much on strategy and on the percentages. Maybe even Popovich wondered if he should have simply sat back and enjoyed the magic of Manu Ginobili. Mike Brown said he's seen variations of the play before, but he said he'd never seen one quite like this. There were nine seconds left, and the Spurs needed three points, and Ginobili's only previous mistake had been wearing a shoe one size too big. His toe had touched the 3-point line. Brown had seen this ..."
Another stubbed toe for Spurs
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March 9
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Manu Ginobili rose from his chair, grabbed his bags and headed for the nearest exit. This part of his night, at least, went better than the last time he departed Quicken Loans Arena. This time, he didn't limp. Still, Ginobili left Cleveland with more regrets in the aftermath of the Spurs' 97-95 loss to the LeBron-less Cavaliers on Monday. For one, he regretted his left foot — the one across from the right distal fibula that betrayed him here a season earlier — was an inch too long. "It sucks," Ginobili said. With Tony Parker missing the first game of what could be the rest of his season, Ginobili earned his second start and did everything he could to try and will the Spurs to what would ..."
Exam confirms Parker's hand fracture
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March 9
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Further examination of Tony Parker's injured shooting hand Monday revealed both the diagnosis and prognosis the Spurs had feared. Parker indeed has a non-displaced fracture of his fourth metacarpal and is expected to miss the next six weeks. Surgery will not be required. If he were to stick to that timeline precisely, Parker might return for the final three games of the regular season. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, however, indicated the timeline might be fluid, depending upon how Parker's body responds. "It might mean four to eight weeks," Popovich said before Monday's 97-95 loss to the Cavaliers. Parker injured the hand scrambling in Saturday's win at Memphis and returned to San Antonio ..."
Parker takes an element with him
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March 8
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Before he lost his point guard, as well as what he'd patched together, Gregg Popovich was open to humor. Asked about finally settling on a rotation that seemed to work, Popovich reacted with mock astonishment Saturday night. "We have a rotation?" he said. A few hours later in Memphis, his mood had changed. "Deflating," is the word he chose. Popovich's ever-altering personality was understandable this night, unlike some of the other nights. His players, especially the new ones, have wondered about both his emotional balance and his regular-season strategy. His 20 different starting lineups didn't always make much sense, with the Spurs sometimes playing too small and sometimes not letting ..."
Spurs' Bogans has stake in LeBron's status
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March 8
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The "will he or won't he" drama surrounding LeBron James' status is likely to last all the way until tipoff between the Spurs and Cavaliers tonight. There's little question how Keith Bogans wants the saga to wind up. He wants James to play. "He's one of the best players there are in this league, and I look forward to guarding the best players," said Bogans, the Spurs' designated defensive stopper. "It's fun." James, the NBA's leading scorer at 30 points per game, is battling a series of nagging ailments and sat out Cleveland's loss at Milwaukee on Saturday. If James is to play tonight, Bogans would get first crack at him. The 29-year-old guard/forward has had some defensive success of ..."
Parker out of sight, not out of mind
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March 8
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The Spurs' charter plane took off as scheduled from Memphis International Airport on Sunday, bound for Cleveland. That was the good news. The bad news for the Spurs was that their starting point guard wasn't on it. Tony Parker had already left town hours earlier, on a commercial flight going the opposite direction. Wearing a dark blue cast on his newly fractured right hand, Parker returned to San Antonio to be examined by the team's medical staff. The Spurs' trip to Cleveland, and perhaps the rest of their reason, will go on without him. "We'll find a different way to play and hope we can bide our time until he's back," Tim Duncan said. "Nobody's going to play like him, but we have to find ..."
Parker returns to San Antonio in cast, could miss rest of regular season
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March 8
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The Spurs' charter plane took off as scheduled from Memphis International Airport on Sunday, bound for Cleveland. That was the good news. The bad news for the Spurs was that their starting point guard wasn't on it. Tony Parker had already left town hours earlier, on a commercial flight going the opposite direction. Wearing a dark blue cast on his newly fractured right hand, Parker returned to San Antonio to be examined by the team's medical staff. The Spurs' trip to Cleveland, and perhaps the rest of their reason, will go on without him. "We'll find a different way to play and hope we can bide our time until he's back," Tim Duncan said. "Nobody's going to play like him, but we have to find ..."
Spurs' Ginobili will be in demand
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March 7
San Antonio Express-News
 columnist Mike Monroe
"When the Hornets made a fourth-quarter run at the Spurs in Friday's game at the AT"
Parker's latest injury his worst this season
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March 7
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Tony Parker's season-long re-enactment of the Book of Job took its most serious turn yet Saturday when he left the Spurs' 102-92 victory at Memphis with a broken right hand. Parker fractured his fourth metacarpal while scrumming for a loose ball in the final seconds of the second quarter. For all intents and purposes, the injury will cause Parker to miss the rest of the regular season - after the game, coach Gregg Popovich said his starting point guard would be out "about six weeks." Parker, who had previously missed games this season with sprained ankles, plantar fasciitis, a strained hip flexor and food poisoning, is scheduled to return to San Antonio to have his hand re-examined by team ..."
Trade goes through, and it's Mason's turn
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March 7
San Antonio Express-News
 columnist Buck Harvey
"They are saying six weeks, and that doesn't count the time it takes to regain touch. That floater in the lane doesn't work as well with a brace or a bruise. So do the math, and Tony Parker becomes this season's Manu Ginobili. Nearly every Spur used the same word to describe a night when they won a game and lost a teammate. "Devastating," they said. They were finally feeling better about their chances, and now they feel worse than ever. But of all of them, no one was more confused than Roger Mason Jr. After all, no one stands to gain more now. The box score stated that Saturday night. Mason played three minutes in the first half, and he was lucky to get that. He didn't play a second in the ..."
Ginobili factor in NBA free agency
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March 7
San Antonio Express-News
 
"With the talent-laden free agent class of 2010 just months from availability, what are the chances a team may be willing to offer Spurs guard Manu Ginobili a contract big enough to lure him away from San Antonio? Depending on where the salary cap figure for the 2010-11 season is set - it is projected to be between $53 million and $54 million -- five teams figure to have at least $15 million in cap space to spend on free agents. Two more will have about $9 million and nearly $12 million. There will be plenty of talented free agents vying for all that money, led by the triad of All-Stars - LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Each of those superstars can sign with only one team, and ..."
Tim Duncan-Walt Frazier oddities in common
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March 7
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Here's a question that transcends trivia: Who was the best basketball player who survived Hurricane Hugo's 1989 devastation of St. Croix, the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands? If you're a knowledgeable Spurs fan, your knee-jerk response likely was: Tim Duncan. Indeed, Hugo's destruction of the swimming pool where Duncan trained when he was a teenaged Crucian swimming star often is cited as a factor in his making basketball the focus of his athletic pursuits. Duncan knew that Walt Frazier had made St. Croix his home after retiring from the NBA in 1979, but until he saw an article in the home section of the Feb. 10 edition of the New York Times, he was unaware that the legendary Knicks ..."
Parker breaks shooting hand, could miss up to six weeks
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March 7
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Tony Parker's season-long re-enactment of the Book of Job took its most serious turn yet Saturday when he left the Spurs' 102-92 victory at Memphis with a broken right hand. Parker fractured his fourth metacarpal while scrumming for a loose ball in the final seconds of the second quarter. For all intents and purposes, the injury will cause Parker to miss the rest of the regular season — after the game, coach Gregg Popovich said his starting point guard would be out "about six weeks." Parker, who had previously missed games this season with sprained ankles, plantar fasciitis, a strained hip flexor and food poisoning, is scheduled to return to San Antonio to have his hand re-examined by team ..."
Spurs' Parker suffers broken bone in right hand
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March 7
San Antonio Express-News
 
"It's the season of the broken shooting hand for the Spurs. Starting point guard Tony Parker on Saturday suffered a fractured fourth metacarpal on his right hand late in the first half of the Spurs' game at FedEx Forum against the Memphis Grizzlies. It is the very same injury that Spurs forward Matt Bonner suffered in December. Bonner missed 15 games with the injury."
Hornets fall victim to Spurs again
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March 6
New Orleans Times-Picayune
 
"The messages on the dry erase board in the Hornets' dressing room Friday night were simple yet forceful. "Nail your man; be active; Keep Ginobili and Parker out of paint; Contest all shots; 1 on 1 'D'; Help the helper; Talk!!" The keys to victory proved difficult to attain once again against the San Antonio Spurs, who took a 102-91 victory in front of an ESPN national television audience. Spurs point guard Tony Parker opened the scoring for San Antonio with two layups, and he had four more in the first half and five in the game for his 20 points. Ginobili was working outside mostly, going inside occasionally but doing the bulk of his damage (16 points) from distance, and four other ..."
Former Spur back in S.A. to face charges
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March 6
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Alvin C. Robertson, a former Spurs guard, returned from Arkansas to San Antonio on Friday evening after being extradited in connection with a local sex-trafficking case, officials said. Robertson, 47, arrived by plane around 6:30 p.m. and was taken directly to the Bexar County Central Magistrate to see a judge who would set his bail, officials said. Robertson, who was a guard with the Spurs from 1984-1989, faces one count of sexual assault of a child. The charge stems from an incident last March in which a 14-year-old girl alleged she was kidnapped from a homeless shelter in the 400 block of North Hackberry Street, an arrest warrant affidavit says. Robertson and six other people, who also ..."
Popovich mum on giving Duncan rest
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March 6
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Friday's game at the AT"
Spurs eye managing Alamo Stadium
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March 6
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Alamo Stadium's future could be as a pro soccer, entertainment and high school sports facility managed by Spurs Sports"
Parker, Spurs stop Hornets
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March 6
San Antonio Express-News
 
"Since the Spurs won their first NBA championship in 1999, every subsequent season has included a winning streak of at least six games. This season's benchmark for sustained success remains two five-game winning streaks, so before their Friday night game against the New Orleans Hornets at the AT"
Spurs can build lead on ailing Hornets
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March 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The timing of the NBA schedule can be cruel. Since the Spurs defeated the Hornets on Monday at New Orleans, they had three days to freshen veteran legs and treat nagging wounds. Sandwiched around one light practice session on Wednesday, point guard Tony Parker applied more ultrasonic rays to sore muscles in his left hip; power forward Antonio McDyess iced his hyperextended left knee; small forward Keith Bogans introduced his dislocated left ring finger to the adjacent middle finger, thanks to elastic tape that attached them for support. For the Hornets, the Spurs' opponent in tonight's game at the AT&T Center, one more disheartening loss, administered Wednesday by the Grizzlies, further ..."
Spurs steeled for March march
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March 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"When Tony Parker looks ahead at the Spurs' schedule for the rest of March, he is like a kid with fingers covering his face while watching a horror movie. He really doesn't want to peek. He just can't help himself. "I think in a week we have like Oklahoma (City), Atlanta, Cleveland, the Lakers and Boston," Parker said. "It's going to be tough." The Spurs do indeed play all those teams — playoff clubs, all of them — between March 21 and March 28. Before the season ends, the Spurs must play nine games against the top three teams in each conference. In all, the Spurs play nine of their remaining 16 games in March on the road. There are still five sets of back-to-backs left before the calendar ..."
Spurs can build lead on ailing Hornets
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March 5
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The timing of the NBA schedule can be cruel. Since the Spurs defeated the Hornets on Monday at New Orleans, they had three days to freshen veteran legs and treat nagging wounds. Sandwiched around one light practice session on Wednesday, point guard Tony Parker applied more ultrasonic rays to sore muscles in his left hip; power forward Antonio McDyess iced his hyperextended left knee; small forward Keith Bogans introduced his dislocated left ring finger to the adjacent middle finger, thanks to elastic tape that attached them for support. For the Hornets, the Spurs' opponent in tonight's game at the AT&T Center, one more disheartening loss, administered Wednesday by the Grizzlies, further ..."
Spurs' Ginobili, Blair have on-court symbiosis
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March 4
San Antonio Express-News
 
"When the Spurs dealt away Fabricio Oberto in June, Manu Ginobili figured he not only was losing one of his best friends and a fellow countryman. He was losing his favorite pick-and-roll partner. "I played with Fabri for over 10 years," said Ginobili, who first met Oberto when they were teenagers in Argentina. "He knew exactly how I wanted the screens. He had a passion for setting screens like I've never seen." Surprisingly, it hasn't taken Ginobili long to find Oberto's pick-and-roll heir apparent. He wouldn't be surprised if he found out that rookie DeJuan Blair has Argentine blood in his veins, too. "I think we enjoy playing together, and we're beginning to get to know each other," ..."
Spurs' Parker might not play for France
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March 4
San Antonio Express-News
 
"So far this season, Spurs guard Tony Parker has missed games with sprains to both his ankles, plantar fasciitis in his left foot, a strained hip muscle and food poisoning. He chooses to look at the bright side of all this. "I think I've already had everything," Parker said. "The percentages have to be with me now." Given his season-long bout with seemingly every page in the New England Journal of Medicine, Parker is beginning to think maybe he shouldn't press his luck this summer. Parker said Wednesday he hasn't yet ruled out playing for France in the FIBA World Championships in August, but for the first time strongly hinted he is considering skipping them. "I think it's finally catching ..."
Jefferson might earn redemption in playoffs
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March 3
San Antonio Express-News
 
"The seeds of Michael Finley's discontent were sown the day the Spurs traded for Richard Jefferson. Finley knew his role would shrink. What he couldn't see was his drop in offensive efficiency after a sprained ankle put him on the shelf far longer than he thought necessary. Finley's departure changes nothing about Jefferson's importance. If the Spurs are to make noise in the playoffs, he still must be a major contributor. Gregg Popovich knows this, one reason he vigorously defends Jefferson from suggestions his struggles account for the Spurs' current spot in the Western playoff structure. "I think the biggest struggle he has is you (media) guys, who try to make it a bigger deal than it ..."