A Couple of Questions for Mark Jackson

By: Scott Horlbeck

I used to talk back to my mom when I was little. I was a smart ass, and it drove my parents nuts – especially my dad. Whenever I did it, he would shoot me this terrifying glare and I’d freeze. It was like an antelope spotting a cheetah in the distance. There’s that two second pause, and then BOOM, you’re off and running. I never really knew where I was going. I just took off once I saw the glare. But I never got away. He was too fast.

I needed to adjust.

So one day, I decided to try something new. Dad comes home from work, Mom tells Dad how I’ve been acting, glare, pause, AND WE’RE OFF!!! Except this time, instead of running around aimlessly like an idiot, I went for the bathroom. I darted out of the kitchen, took a hard right – 10 feet later, my drawers were down and I was plopped on the toilet.

My Dad was frozen. He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t drag me off the seat, what if I was “going?” He was helpless. Like a dog who’s favorite toy had just rolled under the couch. He had no play.

I knew the bathroom was the unspoken safe zone, and that all “bathroom activities” exceeded the importance of any punishment. So if I could make it to the bathroom before he caught me, I’d have him beat.

* * * * * * * *

When something isn’t working, you adjust. In my case, I was never going to out run my Dad.
I had to adjust. I had to do something different because my original plan wasn’t working.

Last night, Mark Jackson kept running aimlessly, and he kept getting caught.

I don’t even care about the blown 16 point lead. We saw that coming from a mile away. I don’t care about Jefferson’s missed free throws, and I don’t care about the over-the-back call on Landry. Those things happen. Guy miss free throws and refs make bad calls. I want to talk about the two overtime periods, and how Mark Jackson made ZERO adjustments to what the Spurs where doing, over and over and over.

Question 1:

“Why is Bogut starting OT? The Spurs are going to PnR him to death!?!?”

Spurs: Parker-Green-Ginobili-Leonard-Diaw
Warriors: Curry-Jack-Barnes-Green-Bogut

The Spurs are going small. With Diaw at center, all five Spurs can shoot the three. There going to space the floor, run PnR’s with Parker and Diaw, and look to find open shooters. Jackson knew that. Hell, everyone knew that. Yet he starts Bogut, the single worst pick-and-roll defender on the team.

1st OT:

4:45: Jack hits jumper (108-106)

Spurs first possession: Parker comes off a baseline Diaw screen, Bogut doesn’t step out, Parker misses jumper (lucky)

4:06: Barnes hit three (111 – 106)

Spurs second possession: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Parker goes left, Diaw pops to the top of the key, pass to Diaw, Bogut closes out late, Diaw misses jumper. (lucky)

3:30: Barnes misses corner three

Spurs third possession: Transition, PnR with Parker and Leonard, Parker doesn’t use screen, Jack gets beat, Bogut is playing off Diaw, has a chance to alter Parker’s shot, doesn’t move. Parker hits it.

3:24: Parker makes short jumper (111-108)

2:49 Green misses short jumper

Spurs fourth possession: Parker swings to Giniboli at top of the key, Ginobili gets Green on the pump fake, drives middle, kicks to Diaw in right corner, Diaw hits three.

2:28: Diaw hits corner three (111-111)

*So far, Bogut has not closed out/gotten beat on all four of the Spurs possessions in OT

2:07: Green turnover

Spurs fifth possession: Transition, Parker pushes, bounces pass to Green for lay-up

2:00: Green makes lay-up (111-113)

1:48: Curry misses long jumper

Spurs sixth possession: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Parker goes left, Bogut doesn’t step out, Parker misses jumper. (lucky)

* 5/6 now

1:15: Curry makes fast break lay-up (113-113)

Spurs seventh possession: Leonard posts up Jack and hits shorts jumper

1:02: Leonard hits short jumper (113-115)

48.3s: Curry misses long jumper

Spurs eighth possession: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Park goes left, dribbles back to right elbow, Bogut doesn’t step out, Parker misses jumper (lucky)

28.7s: Parker misses jumper

20.3s: Jack makes driving lay-up (115-115)

* 6/8 (are you kidding!?!?!?!?!!?)

Spurs ninth possession: PnR with Parker and Diaw, as Diaw comes up so set screen, Green switches with Bogut and takes Diaw (FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!! AN ADJUSTMENT!!!!!!!!!!! IT ONLY TOOK 4 MINUTES AND 42 SECONDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Before switch:

After switch:

Warriors smartly foul with 5 seconds left (foul to give). Spurs call time out. Giniboli misses long jumper. 2^nd OT.

Recap: Of the Spurs NINE overtimes possessions, SEVEN of them involved Bogut. SEVEN!!!!!! You think that was an accident? You think Pop didn’t know what he was doing?

I don’t think so.

So I ask again, WHY WAS BOGUT IN THE GAME???

Question 2:

“HE’S STILL IN!?!?!?!? YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING….WHERE IS CARL LANDRY??? IS HE ALIVE??? DOES ANYONE KNOW???”

Spurs: Parker-Green-Ginobili-Leonard-Diaw

Warriors: Curry-Jack-Barnes-Green-Bogut

Spurs second possession of 2^nd OT: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Parker goes left, Bogut doesn’t step out, Parker misses jumper. (lucky)

* 8/10 (it’s getting ridiculous)

3:37: Barnes hits three (118-115)

Spurs third possession of 2^nd OT: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Park goes left, Bogut shows (OH MY GOD HE DID SOMETHING), Parker spins by him, lay-up.

* 9/11 (I have no words)

3:17: Parker makes lay-up (118-117)

3:00: Green gets fouled. Makes both free throws. (120 – 117)

Spurs fourth possession of 2^nd OT: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Parker goes left, Bogut doesn’t step out, Parker hits jumper.

* 10/12 (……….)

2:40: Parker makes jumper (120-119)

2:26: Over the back foul on Green. Green fouls out. Landry comes in. (That’s what it took for Mark Jackson to put in Landry)

Spurs fifth possession of 2^nd OT: Parker passes to Diaw at top of the key, Bogut is eight feet off, Diaw takes one dribble, hits jumper.

*11/13 (Look at the space, it’s unbelievable)

2:13: Diaw makes jumper (120-121)

2:00: Landry turns it over

Spurs sixth possession of 2^nd OT: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Diaw sets high screen

Parker drives at Bogut, Bogut back pedals, Parker hits short jumper

*12/14 (hahahaha)

1:49: Parker hits short jumper (120-123)

1:27 Jack goes 1-2 from the line (121-123)

*Kent Bazemore checks in for Bogut (After nine minutes of OT, Jackson finally takes out Bogut, unbelievable)

1:06: Green makes three (121-126)

1:00 Curry makes two free throws (123-126)

32s: Curry makes lay-up (125-126)

Spurs seventh possession of 2^nd OT: PnR with Parker and Diaw, Parker goes right, Bazemore and Barnes trap Parker, Barnes then retreats back to Diaw. Parker drives and missed lay up. (It’s not like the Warriors could have been doing that for the last nine minutes or anything)

8s: Parker misses lay-up

3.8s: Bazemore makes lay-up (127-126)

And you know the rest.

Spurs call timeout. Warriors leave their huddle apparently not knowing whether they’re staying or switching (coaches fault), Jack switches, Barnes doesn’t, Bazemoe has to leave Ginobili to cover Diaw, and Ginobili hits the game winner.

Recap: Parker went 5-8 on PnR’s in the fourth quarter and OT’s. Jackson kept Bogut in until 1:27 of the 2^nd OT. Of the Spurs 16 fourth quarter and OT possessions, eight of them were Tony Parker PnR’s. Two were Diaw jump shots. All 10 of those of those involved Bogut.

Jackson ran around aimlessly until he got caught. He never switched it up, he never adjusted, and he never tried anything new. He just kept running around without any sense of direction or purpose. Who knows, maybe a sharp right turn towards the bathroom (pulling Bogut) and it would have been an entirely different game.