The OFFICIAL DET VS SAN Thread-Spurs 2005 NBA Champions

[Andrew]

yeah, I remember that....if Starks had even had a subpar shooting display then the Knicks would have got the win....it was funny at the time because up until that point in his career, Starks was Mr. Clutch in NY....I think after that game, his NY career was basically over....Knicks brought in Allan Houston and Starks' Knicks days were numbered....

Not quite, he was the regular starter at SG for the next two years. Once Houston signed in 1996 he became the sixth man and had a couple of good seasons before being traded to Golden State in the Sprewell deal in the hurried offseason prior to the 98/99 lockout season. But his stock did fall somewhat - he impressed a lot of people with his play in the 1993 ECF, he even made the All-Star game in 1994.

[The X]

true....I knew he played a 6th man role, but wasn't sure how long for....but his stock did drop after that game....it seemed like he lost his aura or something....

[#12]

I think it'll be slightly better than that Rockets-Knicks 7 game series about 10 years ago....now that series was ugly....

nahhh. That would of been fun to watch!! You got the legends of Hakeem, Drexler, and Ewing. The Knicks were also very entertaining to watch back then too!

In the 2005 NBA Finals, all you got is Duncan....he shows no emotional. The only hope is Manu Ginobli.. I hope he entertains the fans

[The X]

I think it'll be slightly better than that Rockets-Knicks 7 game series about 10 years ago....now that series was ugly....

nahhh. That would of been fun to watch!! You got the legends of Hakeem, Drexler, and Ewing. The Knicks were also very entertaining to watch back then too!

In the 2005 NBA Finals, all you got is Duncan....he shows no emotional. The only hope is Manu Ginobli.. I hope he entertains the fans

trust me, I watched it....it was terrible....and Drexler didn't join the Rockets I believe until the season after in which they beat the Magic 4-0....the Rockets starting lineup that year for Dream, Thorpe, Horry, Maxwell and Kenny Smith....and I believe Sam Cassell was a rookie that year....Clutch City

Manu will do his job, but it seems once again the NBA Finals are a letdown after such great playoff matchups....always seems to be the case for some reason....

[The Game]

yeah, i still consider it a bore-o series.

the san antonio series receieved the WORSE POSSIBLE RATINGS for a basketball game.

detriots rating was only good because of the laker drama. shit, BORE-O SERIES OF THE MILLENIUM

Stop watching the nba and wait for the entertainers basketball classic.

[dinocarlo]

San Antonio Spurs - 2003 NBA Champions
Detroit Pistons - 2004 NBA Champions

Would anyone else consider this as a boring series?

No, it will be a competitive one. Most of the match-ups are even, except that the Spurs have a deeper bench and the Pistons have an advantage at the center position.

Besides, their games during the regular season were both fun. To recap:
Dec. 3 - San Antonio def. Detroit 80-77
http://www.nba.com/games/20041203/DETSAS/recap.html
Mar. 20 - Detroit def. San Antonio 110-101 (Hey, these 2 teams, after all, are capable of having high-scoring games. )
http://www.nba.com/games/20050320/SASDET/recap.html

It's really hard to predict who will win at this point... meantime, let's just wait and enjoy this long 7-game series and let these two champions battle it on the court and decide who's the 2005 NBA champions!

[Matt]

tommorow when i have some time i would like to dig through the old posts and see how many people actually predicted this matchup at seasons start and then again when the playoffs started. i may be wrong but i think i picked the pistons to make the finals when the season started. i know for a fact i picked the spurs and i wont be changing that now.

you'll find that I, predicted a San Antonio vs Detroit finals series. Man my predictions own I might have even picked SAS as champions, or Detroit, i can't remember. But, I'm sticking to Detroit winning. I think they'll play their best of the playoffs thus far.

Lets take a look at the reg season stats

Det vs SAS

G- 35.2ppg vs 32.6ppg / 7.3rpg vs 8.1 rpg / 10.7rpg vs 10rpg
F- 29.2ppg vs 28.5ppg / 13.5rpg vs 14.6rpg / 4.8rpg vs 4.2rpg

that's extremely even, with Detroit's obvious advantage coming from the C position. Spurs bench is better though, it's deeper. Hopefully though we'll see some Carlos Arroyo in this series, he can create especially for the bigs.

[beau_boy04]

The script for this series could have not been better

2003 NBA Champions -- San Antonio Spurs
2004 NBA Champions -- Detroit Pistons
2005 NBA Champions -- ???

Starting lineup as follow:

Ben Wallace vs Nazr Mohammed
Rasheed Wallace vs Tim Duncan
Tayshaun Prince vs Bruce Bowen
Richard Hamilton vs Manu Ginobili
Chancey Billups vs Tony Parker

Insight:

I think the the Wallaces and Prince would present some very interesting matchup against Tim Duncan --- I'm really REALLY looking forward for this. And Manu vs Rip damnmmmm.


I LOVE THIS GAME!

[frAn]

spurs will win in 6games!

[Dick]

Pistons in six

[Dick]

Pistons in six

[Jackal]

I'm guessing Prince will be on Manu & Bowen will be put on Rip. If Billups overpowers Parker in the post look for Pop to put someone else on Billups.

The key will be to stop Rip & for Manu to stay under control. If he doesn't lose it too often, SA will win for sure.

In any case, I say SA in 6.

[El_Presidente]

San Antonio in 6. Why?

1. Billups isn't guarding a talented PG past his prime.
2. Bowen's specialty is guarding SHOOTERS(i.e. Kobe). Bowen's effectiveness suffers from guarding PENETRATORS(i.e. Wade). Guess which group Rip belongs.
3. Unlike today's Shaq, Duncan has a fundamentally sound array of moves that can frustrate Ben Wallace's steal poke and block attempts.
4. Detroit thrives on letting MVP players get their way but clamping down on the supporting cast. Hell, with a lineup like the Spurs, how the hell are you going to clamp it up.
5. The depth of the bench. San Antonio has enough 3 point shooters to bamboozle the Pistons when needed.

Well, that'smy opinion. Oh well, good thing I have Live and the WWE to keep me occupied for excitement.

[Jeffx]

This will be a very boring series....to much defense....TO BORING!!!

I say spurs in 7

Well... that's your opinion...

But for me this series is going to be really tough and it will be a bloody long series! San Antonio Spurs versus Detroit Pistons, top defensive teams in the leauge, deep bench, scientific and basic / straight-up basketball (basketBRAWL )

Ben Wallace vs Nazr Mohammed
Rasheed Wallace vs Tim Duncan
Tayshaun Prince vs Bruce Bowen
Richard Hamilton vs Manu Ginobili
Chancey Billups vs Tony Parker

San Antonio Spurs - 2003 NBA Champions
Detroit Pistons - 2004 NBA Champions

Would anyone else consider this as a boring series?

It's really hard to predict who will win at this point... meantime, let's just wait and enjoy this long 7-game series and let these two champions battle it on the court and decide who's the 2005 NBA champions!

For an old skool hoops fan like myself, this series is a dream come true. The Spurs & Pistons play basketball the way it's supposed to be played - hard-nosed defense and team-oriented offense. Give me a 75-71 chess match over a 138-135 track meet any day.

[Amphatoast]

spurs in 5

[baller status]

Spurs may win it in 6, but i wouldnt be surprised if they won it in 5

[Sauru]

i dont see why so many people think this will be a bad series. i actually think this will be a damn fun series to watch. i expect every game to be close with well played ball coming from both sides. i think people are too hung up on star power now and are WAY TOO CONCERNED with flashy play such as dribbles and dunks.

[shadowgrin]

There's no Wade to stop so that's a bonus.

Yea but theres a Ginobili. Add a 3 point shooter (Bowen). A consistent guy inside (Duncan) and a bunch of other talented players.

Don't forget Parker.

No matter how boring this will be, it will turn out to be a good series!
(I wish I could watch it because classes are coming in a few days. )

Spurs in 6.

[galvatron3000]

Yea but theres a Ginobili. Add a 3 point shooter (Bowen). A consistent guy inside (Duncan) and a bunch of other talented players.

Ginobili isn't on Wades level. Bowen isn't a problem, not like EJ was and Duncan is easier to stop than Shaq.

you are right, Manu is a better outside threat and just as dangerous driving and getting bigs in foul trouble.

[Drex]

I think people underrate the scoring ability of these two teams. Ginobili is bound to make at least one cool penetration per game. Parker has the speed to make good plays. Duncan is a really underrated dunker (anybody remember his dunk on Big Ben this season?? ). Big Ben swat shots to the other side of the court. Billups with the clutch shots. Rip running all over the court...

[maes]

Er actually, according to an exhaustive statistical analysis, Ginbobli (during the regular season) was in fact on Wade's level, and even slightly better.

http://www.82games.com/clutchplay3.htm

"The facts though are he is very productive on offense (#6 in the league in points per minute during clutch stages), draws an incredible number of shooting fouls (#8 and the top perimeter player), knocks down the free throws (81%), creates his own shot (only 8% of his clutch FGM are assisted), holds his counterpart to sub-par performance (.342 eFG and only 1.9 Assists to 3.1 Turnovers), and while his +9 plus/minus doesn't seem like much, the Spurs have actually been -21 when he's off the court during crunch time, good for the #12 on/off or Clutch Roland Rating in the league. Did we mention that 60% of his crunch time shots are taken inside? "

[fgrep15]

Spurs in 5 or 6, I hope they win in 4.

Tim Duncan finals MVP.

[galvatron3000]

Er actually, according to an exhaustive statistical analysis, Ginbobli (during the regular season) was in fact on Wade's level, and even slightly better.

http://www.82games.com/clutchplay3.htm

"The facts though are he is very productive on offense (#6 in the league in points per minute during clutch stages), draws an incredible number of shooting fouls (#8 and the top perimeter player), knocks down the free throws (81%), creates his own shot (only 8% of his clutch FGM are assisted), holds his counterpart to sub-par performance (.342 eFG and only 1.9 Assists to 3.1 Turnovers), and while his +9 plus/minus doesn't seem like much, the Spurs have actually been -21 when he's off the court during crunch time, good for the #12 on/off or Clutch Roland Rating in the league. Did we mention that 60% of his crunch time shots are taken inside? "

you shouldn't have to even mention this, people who watch more than just a few teams know how good Manu is. Forget all the hype, the biggest difference is Wade has to take more shots and has to be that kind of pplayer for the team he plays on and Manu plays on a team that doesn't require him to be so dominate on the offensive end of the floor and there still and never has been a stat that justifies the way Manu plays the game. You can't keep a stat on that. Period!

[kevC]

Er actually, according to an exhaustive statistical analysis, Ginbobli (during the regular season) was in fact on Wade's level, and even slightly better.

http://www.82games.com/clutchplay3.htm

"The facts though are he is very productive on offense (#6 in the league in points per minute during clutch stages), draws an incredible number of shooting fouls (#8 and the top perimeter player), knocks down the free throws (81%), creates his own shot (only 8% of his clutch FGM are assisted), holds his counterpart to sub-par performance (.342 eFG and only 1.9 Assists to 3.1 Turnovers), and while his +9 plus/minus doesn't seem like much, the Spurs have actually been -21 when he's off the court during crunch time, good for the #12 on/off or Clutch Roland Rating in the league. Did we mention that 60% of his crunch time shots are taken inside? "

Very good. I like your posts maes they are usually very insightful.

I do agree Ginobili is on Wade's level but I must put Wade a little bit ahead (although Manu's not far behind.)

Oh btw, Spurs in 5 or maybe even a sweep.

[maes]

I can't disagree there, I'd also take Wade over Manu if making a team, because stats don't tell the whole story.

Wade has tons of intangibles. Leadership, charisma, People's Most Beautiful List