Where a good no call happens.
Yes, there was contact.
Yes, the shot was altered as a result.
No, the whistle should not have been blown, and thankfully wasn’t.
To have done so would have taken the outcome of the game out of the hands of the players, and into the whistle of the officiating. At this level, and this far into the postseason that simply cannot happen.
The Spurs had 47 minutes and 57.9 seconds prior to that possession to change the outcome of said game. They couldn’t.
And someone tell me this, while Brent Barry was having a great game coming off of the bench(23 pts), what in the world was he doing with the ball in his hands with the game on the line. The lineup for San Antonio in that last possession had Finley, “Big Shot” Bob Horry, Duncan, and Ginobili. This is the last guy I want with the ball there.
And whatever happened to “home team plays for the tie, road team goes for the win” philosophy? They couldn’t have dumped it in to Duncan? Who on LA would stop that guy close to the basket?(Hell, another three point attempt couldn’t have been worse.)
So the Lakers are up 3-1. And the Spurs have plenty of reasons to blame themselves for it. Start with blowing a 20 point third quarter lead in Game 1, continue with Ginobili’s battles through pain making him a non factor for three of four games, and quite frankly the Lakers have outhustled the Spurs and made the effort plays that decide a series winner(ahem, offensive rebounding).
But don’t think this series ends tommorow night. I just can’t see the Spurs rolling over and dying, there’s too much talent and a lot more pride in these guys to see them going any way but quietly.
Some Eastern Conference material……
Isn’t it great to see teams win on the road? The Conference Finals have seen as many road team wins(3) as in all of the Conference Semis. Oh, not really on Eastern note….sorry.
Is it me, or have the Celtics been flat ever since racing out to a big lead in game 3 on Piston soil? I wonder if they felt like it was “mission accomplished” after that win and didn’t perform in Game 4 as a result. A dangerous attitude that is against Detroit, especially since they’ve already taken a game on Boston’s floor in this series.
Doc Rivers just won’t give up on Sam Cassell will he? A part of me can’t blame him after he saw some flashes of his old brilliance in this series. The guy has hit clutch shots in the postseason for several clubs going back to day OJ was in a low speed police chase in his white Ford Bronco. Doc…pssst, find time for Eddie House. Just sayin’.
I know we tend to bitch about annoying PA guy for the Bandits, but the guy doesn’t hold a candle to the Palace’s “Mason”. I’d stay away from Pistons games if I lived in Michigan, and I love hoops.
Stuckey has filled in admirably for the hobbled Chauncey Billups. But make no mistake, Billups will be needed to push the Pistons past the Celtics. He’s probably the Piston’s best clutch shooter.
Joe Dumars….Isiah Thomas. Backcourt mates in as players. So how do two guy’s front office careers go to completely opposite ends of the spectrum?? I mean, no one would have noticed if Isiah drafted Milicic. He’d be just another pile on the scrap heap.
And by the way Brent, I thinks your old man would have nailed that shot(underhanded too).
