Lakers-Spurs Game One Thoughts
Quick-hitters:
- Awesome. Time Warner just aired a commercial touting their awesome picture quality.
The commercial (and the channel it aired on) was snowy…when there was actually a picture. In fact, my entire High Definition lineup is now out.
You rule, Time Warner!
- Current rebate-o-meter: $1,350. I got some spending cash in the mail today :D.
(I also have $500 in rebates or so that need to be filed by next week. :P)
- During the Dodgers-Reds game earlier tonight, Vin Scully mentioned that STL Cardinals’ 1B Albert Pujols “took out the whole Padres’ battery” tonight.
I thought he meant it figuratively!
- Tim Duncan was nearly unstoppable. Tony Parker played great for three quarters (there’s an APB out on him now; where did he go in the fourth?).
Manu Ginobili? Next question.
As soon as the Spurs got out to their twenty point lead, I couldn’t help but start wondering if the Spurs were just going to sweep the Lakers right out of the playoffs. Duncan was ridiculously efficient (if one can be “ridiculously efficient”), and Tony Parker carved the Lakers up. Most importantly, as TNT analyst Doug Collins pointed out, the Spurs did not have a dry spell in the first half. Really, the Spurs could easily have been up by double figures at the half.
Predictably, thanks to the announcer hex, the Spurs cooled off and the Lakers made their push. Not surprisingly, the push was led by the MVP. Even at the end of the third, when the Spurs still had a seven point lead, I thought the Spurs were in control of the game. Little did I expect the Spurs’ drought to extend into the fourth. Did you see that stat late in the fourth? The Spurs went 5-for-25 with 7 TOs??? The San Antonio Spurs?
As far as the officiating is concerned…next question :P. To say Kobe got away with a few things would be a slight understatement. And didn’t Manu get absolutely mauled on the second to last Spurs’ possession, or are playground scrums perfectly legal now? Speaking of Manu, I’ve never seen so many “What, me?” looks in a single game! Even Michael Finley had that look on one play! Maybe I’m just not watching Spurs’ games closely enough.
Excellent point by Kenny Smith in the postgame show: (paraphrasing) You don’t know how many times you’ll get an exceptional performance by Kobe, but you know the Spurs will bring their game consistently. If we replayed this exact game 100 times, the Spurs probably win 75% of the time.