Spurs, Ginobili still riding high
At another time, Manu Ginobili might have played it cool.
Is he surprised at how his San Antonio Spurs are duping the NBA world yet again? Shocked at how a team that was demoralized by its NBA Finals loss to the Miami Heat in June could bounce back to have a league-best 53-16 record? Or that they’re on a 13game winning streak that is the longest of the season by any team? Please. OK, well maybe … “There is a little bit (of surprise),” the Spurs super sixth man told USA TODAY Sports. We’re always up there, and you’d think, ‘OK, one year we’d have a bad one.’
“But we still stuck around, and we are always up there and very consistent, and we get 55 wins (in a) season. That’s remarkable to be able to do it for so long.”
Take it from the 36-year-old poster boy of the program. He would know.
The combination of Ginobili’s age and all those experiences have him feeling more reflective these days. He’s more appreciative of his playing days that seemed to be nearing an end. He’s more willing to admit his surprise at their latest chapter.
Ginobili was in a fight for his career nine months ago. His body was failing him, and his mind was more rattled than he could remember during the dynamic decade. The Finals were a new low, his strong outings in Games 5 and 7 not enough to make up for all the struggles or stop all those unfamiliar questions about his ineptitude during what was the worst season of his career.
He grieved over the loss of what would have been his fourth championship. He strongly con-
“I’ve been healthy. ... And I’m not thinking about my body. I’m thinking about the game.
Manu Ginobili
sidered retirement, then changed his mind. Then after signing a two-year, $14 million deal, the Argentine star had — as Spurs coach Gregg Popovich put it — the “first rest he has had in over a decade” when he took a rare pass on international play and “just lifted (weights) all summer.”
But for all the Spurs-driven talk about how the memory of the Finals loss haunts them still, the reality as the regular season nears its end is they are the nightmare that won’t go away for the rest of the league. And unlike last season, Ginobili is playing the part of Freddy Krueger again.
“I had a terrible season,” said Ginobili, who is averaging 12.5 points (on 46.8% shooting), 4.4 assists and 23 minutes a game. “I had a season where I had three tears in my hamstring, and I could never get in rhythm and it was starting to play in my head. This year, I had none (of that). … I’ve been healthy. I’ve been strong, and I’m not thinking about my body. I’m thinking about the game.
“Overall, I just sometimes look at this team, look at what we’ve accomplished, and say, ‘I’m 36, about to be 37, playing big minutes, playing well, enjoying the situation?’ I’m very lucky.”
Ginobili did miss eight games Jan. 29-Feb. 12 with a hamstring injury, but it was nothing compared with the time he missed during the last two seasons. He was out for 32 games in 2011-12 and 22 games in 2012-13, leading to questions about his future. That pendulum has swung. “Even before I signed for the two years, I thought, ‘OK, I want to sign for two years because I can and because they want me for two years, so I’m going to do it,’ ” he said. “But I wasn’t sure that I was going to play both, depending on how I felt. But after seeing how I feel and how I still enjoy (the game), I’m pretty sure I’m going to play ( both seasons).”
With the Spurs’ current winning percentage (.768) even better than their remarkable rate of success in these last 14 seasons (.702), it’s undeniable Ginobili’s bounce-back effort has played a major part. Yet as they showed in a recent win against the Golden State Warriors, the selfless sys- tem that was installed by Popovich years ago continues to work.
Because the Spurs had played at the Sacramento Kings the night before, Popovich pulled the “DNP-old” card and rested big man Tim Duncan and Ginobili. Then, they won while shorthanded.
Warriors coach and former ESPN/ABC analyst Mark Jackson said the Spurs continue to put on a clinic that the rest of the league is learning from the hard way.
“LeBron James is not in my locker room; Kevin Durant is not in my locker room,” he said. “If you’re committed as a team. If you’re committed (and) tied together to defend at a high level and share the basketball and could (not) care less who gets the recognition, we can accomplish it. So I think in that aspect, they make it more believable for the folks that don’t have either one of those guys.”
The Spurs’ motion offense means the players don’t matter nearly as much as the program, so the players who did suit up passed up the good shots in exchange for the great ones. Five players scored in double figures, with Parker the only one to reach 20. The Spurs’ defense held the Warriors to 40.3% shooting and forced 18 turnovers. Popovich expressed his pleasure afterward. In other words, same ol’ Spurs, even with the old guys on the bench.
But if the Spurs are to have their revenge, to overcome the psychological blow of those Finals to unseat the two-time defending champion Heat, Ginobili will need to be the super sub again when it matters most.
“I can remember calling games and sitting in the back asking Pop questions about his players, and one thing that stood out that he mentioned about Manu was, ‘He’s cut from the same cloth as (Los Angeles Lakers star) Kobe (Bryant),’ ” Jackson said. “And you sit there and go, ‘C’mon, let’s not get ridiculous.’ But you look at him, and he looked like a shot fighter at times in the past, but something on the inside — he continues to be great. He continues to get it done.”