Unc vs. Neph

Neph is a feisty one, having the advantage of being more energetic and optimistic about life.  He believes, for instance, that despite being weaker and less intelligent, he can actually win.

And for a second there, neph surprises you.  In the back of your mind you're thinking 'oh sh*t, what if he actually wins? I can't let a small boy beat me.'  But inevitably unc prevails, and you're just hoping that neph doesn't come to tears upon losing, because after all, it is a game.

If the Spurs make any moves this offseason, it has to be along the lines of acquiring a true PF or perhaps even a C and, if the latter, then move Wemby to the 4.  In crunch time, against a team like the Knicks, grizzled vets like Olynyk and Barnes, who are more or less there for show or 'locker room presence', aren't going to cut it.  Also, taking nothing away from Champagnie, who gets his fair share of rebounds(?), but he's like ultra 3-and-D, like no consistent threat in the post at all.

Now that we're in the Wemby Era, it's inevitable that teams are going to have to start valuing bigs again.  The problem is that, there's not even a lot of quality big men out there to begin with.

If you took every big in the NBA and suddenly made them free agents, there still wouldn't be enough to send one truly starter-worthy - against someone like Victor on top of that - to every team.  Part of the reason is because professional basketball has been valuing jumpshooting so much over the past few years that dudes have forgotten how to post up.  Look at someone like Mobley for instance.

ONE C + FOUR WINGS

San Antonio has an interesting makeup.  This is the only championship-level team I've ever truly seen or can remember that features a dominant C basically surrounded by a bunch of wings.  You may consider Champagnie a 4 or Fox a 1.  But fundamentally, let's say Wemby is surrounded by four SG/SFs.

The closest to this I can think of, off the top of my head, is the Shaq + Kobe Lakers.  And btw, shoutout to O'Neal, who I totally forgot to mention in that recent post where I was talking about generational players.  Dude was so dominant that teams would rather foul than let him get off a shot.

Like the present-day Spurs, that iteration of LAL would play a lot with the C holding down the middle and every other player, even the 4, on the perimeter.  But one major difference is that Lakers' squad having been mad tall.

In 2000, when they won their first championship, their shortest starter was Ron Harper, who's 6'6", and you could tell is like average NBA size and big for a PG.  Meanwhile De'Aaron Fox, who's listed at 6'3", actually looks smallish on the court.  And even later in the Shaq + Kobe years, yes, Fisher isn't tall, but he's built like a linebacker.  In fact, he's more muscular than anyone currently on San Antonio.

I'm not writing the Spurs off but just saying that, until Wemby puts on more weight, if they're going to continue to play this style maybe they need to get a bit bigger.  And you know, I'm not saying that with 100% conviction because apparently, even at their current size they're better than every other team besides the Knicks.

But again, unc versus neph.  All those bumps and pushes and shit, they're out there making contact with Anunoby and KAT and Robinson and Hart, and after awhile, that shit starts to wear you down.  Even Bridges, you know, don't sleep on those stringy niggas.  And I guess what I'm saying in summation is something along the lines of yes, if the Spurs players on average were like five years older, they'd be a better match for NYK.

THE SCAPEGOAT

Recently, I was talking about how Stephon Castle has never truly received the flowers he deserves.  And sure enough, it seemed like a couple of days ago, I came across some article singling him out for underperforming or whatever.  And again, what do you expect him to really do against unc, who are not just playing a regular game but locked in to win a championship?  As spectators, we're focused most on the player with the ball.  But what about all the contact that's made before he even gets the ball into his hands?

GIANNIS, ANYONE?

It's funny how the rhetoric around Giannis has shifted in recent weeks.  He went from being the most-covetable free agent in years, a superstar many thought would never hit the market, to now, when he's actually available, interest in him being "tepid".  But I could definitely picture him with the Spurs, as another wing basically.  People always say that he's "ball dominant", but I don't really see it like that, if there's other viable options to bring it up or whatever.

Another interesting prospect is Anthony Edwards.  Remember how he advertised himself to San Antonio earlier in the playoffs.  He's also bigger than just about anyone on the Spurs besides Kornet and Wemby, like he'd definitely be their biggest wing.  But would even that make a difference against unc?  And all things considered, Giannis needs to keep his ass home anyway.  This was the last season of tanking(?), now making it more understandable why the Bucks wanted to lose.

CONCLUSION

I already predicted, even while the WCF was still ongoing, that the Spurs aren't likely to beat the Knicks, so it's not like if I reiterated that point now I'm bragging.  But going as far as saying that NYK is the better team, well, they do have a clearly better bench, I guess.  But what it looks like more than anything is that they're just stronger.  And furthermore, that strength may be more attributable to age more than anything else.