NBA – Lakers beat San Antonio Spurs but at a very high cost

Winning is everything. At least that’s the story that they want to sell us when we get so excited watching our favorite teams compete. And although it is true, that on some instances the scenario is win or go home (the NCAA tourney, the NFL postseason, etc.) sometimes you could take a lose or two just for the sake of continuity and to play it safe. The Lakers were able to break a streak of 5 losing games but at doing so they not only defeated the San Antonio Spurs 102-93, but they also paid a very high cost for that win. Andrew Bynum, the 23-year-old center injured his rickety right knee and could easily be out for a couple games.

On the previous two entries we were covering both the Boston Celtics and the Atlanta Hawks decision to sit down their starters on the last games of the postseason. Yes, on the one side, that meant that the Celtics gave up the No. 2 seed on the East to the Miami Heat, which would happen to play all of its star filled rooster to barely outplay the Atlanta Hawks bench.

Yes, there is an upside and a downside to every decision one makes. On the one side, the Hawks have rested its star players but that hasn’t kept the Hawks from loosing its 5th straight game and although they have a healthy rooster, it’s not the most motivational season finale ever. They have certainly got to not only feel rested but extremely motivated if they want to make it pass the Orlando Magic in the first round. Let’s not forget that the Magic dismissed the Hawks in 4 straight games exactly on year ago, during the NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs first round.

Now, The LA Lakers, had to win this next games if they wanted to secure the No. 2 seed. We are certainly not second guessing Phil Jackson’s decision to play all of his starters against the San Antonio Spurs. But considering that the Lakers had already secured a spot on the Playoffs and that, on the other hand, Gregg Popovich had rested all of his starters, perhaps it wouldn’t have hurt to play it safe and sit down Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol and yes, one Andrew Bynum.

The Lakers were guided once again by Kobe Bryant who scored 27 points but got into foul trouble early in the game. Lamar Odom scored 23 points as the Lakers struggled to hold off the Spurs backup players. Popovich rested stars Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker and let them watch the game with their civilian cloths on. He had no reason to risk it: the Spurs had the Western Conference’s top seed already secured.

For the Lakers, Spaniard Pau Gasol had 17 points and 17 rebounds, showing once again that he could be a decisive force down the stretch. With this win, the Lakers have almost secured the No. 2 seed in the West. All they need is either a win at Sacramento or a loss by the Dallas Mavericks.

Gary Neal scored 16 points and Matt Bonner had 13 for the Spurs. Yes it is not a good sensation, to close the regular season with a losing streak, but heck, motivational wise, it was certainly a booster to see that for a moment there, the Spurs backup players were really giving the two-time defending champions a very hard time.

NBA – San Antonio Spurs crush the Miami Heat

The Spurs point-guard, the talented Tony Parker, was expected to be out for a complete month after he suffered a calf injury last week. According to his head coach Greg Popovich, the Spurs French-star speedy comeback was due to a

NBA – The San Antonio Spurs are having a brilliant start

The San Antonio Spurs are experiencing one of their best starts ever. At 17-3, the Spurs are first in the Southwest Conference, and as of press time, they hold the best record in the Nation. With a winning percentage of .850, the Spurs have had a stronger start than the National Title contender, Boston Celtics, at 16-4 and a .800 winning percentage, and the Defending Champions the LA Lakers, that have recorded 14 wins and 6 defeats so far this season.

But is this early success from the San Antonio Spurs legit? It’s a bit hard to say. Tony Parker, despite his personal problems and the filling of his divorce with tv-star Eva Longoria, has been quite fantastic in the Spurs last games. As a matter of fact, Parker was responsible for 19 points in the Spurs 109-84 bashing of the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday.

Their almost perfect record is not really fair to the fact that the Spurs are one heck of a fighting team. Their success so far this season could be defined by an overwhelming drive: they just won’t give up. Here is a fact: The Spurs have fallen behind by 15 or more points in 4 games this season, and yet, have found their way back into a winning game. The Spurs 25-point win over the Hornets is their largest winning margin of the season.

And they were quite brilliant later in the second quarter when shooting from outside the perimeter. It seems like this is a very good winning formula for the Spurs. San Antonio has won each and every of their last 7 games in which the team 10 or more 3 pointers. And it seems that both Spurs strongest players, Tim Duncan and Tony Parker are really hitting it off this season.

There is just one big issue when it comes to assessing the Spurs early success. They still have not played some of the strongest teams in the country, and it is hard to asses their game until they take a game against, let’s say, the LA Lakers with Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant on the starting 5, or the Boston Celtics with Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen on the floor. Sure enough, they defeated the Chicago Bulls 103-94 early in November, and defeated the Orlando Magic 106-97 at San Antonio, but it really is hard to predict whether the team is actually as good as it sounds.

Now, the Spurs have been quite brilliant playing straight up. Surprisingly enough, the team has also been quite successful when it comes to playing Against The Spread. As of press time, the Spurs ATS record sits at 12-7-1, for a very respectable 63.2 percent of success when taken on straight bets. The team is just slightly surpassed by the Dallas Mavericks when it comes to wagering against the spread among the best teams in the Southwest conference. As of press time, the Mavericks as 12-6-2.

The Spurs are 9-2 at home and 8-1 on the road. The Spurs have had a strong start and have had a good series of wins during the last 10 games. At 8-2, they are still very well off. Let’s just wait and see if they can keep up this rhythm into the postseason, where it matters most.

NBA – San Antonio Spurs and Tony Parker’s divorce

Sometimes sport can be dramatic. Heck, most good games are all about the drama. About quenching the most excitement in the final moments of a game. A couple of plays, a couple of shots towards the end of a game could change history. Yes, sometimes that’s all you need to make for an epic game.

Sports have a tendency towards the fairy tale as well. Most of us who follow professional and collegiate sports from a bettor’s perspective, tend to have somewhat of a soft spot for Cinderella Stories. It’s not just that the underdog has a better payout, but also a matter of seen the little team make it to the Final Four, or watching the Saints win their first Super Bowl, or any other epic upset.

Then there is the case where sports stars turn their personal life into somewhat of a dramatic circus. And there’s plenty of names we could throw in here. But heck, for the sake of brevity lets just stick with Vicks, OJ’s, Favre’s, Maradona’s, Jame’s and other drama kings, to make up for another interesting cast of Days of Our Lives. And here is where Tony Parker’s story gets interesting.

Just four years after his fairy tale wedding in Paris, Eva Longoria and Tony Parker have filed for divorce. Yes, the usual suspect: irreconcilable differences. Parker has won three NBA Championships with the San Antonio Spurs and Eva Longoria is part of the starring cast of TV hit series Desperate Housewives. Don’t you worry too much though; they had their prenuptial agreement squared out before filling for divorce.

Longoria, at 35, is 7 years older then Parker. The couple didn’t have children. The actress was seen regularly in front row seats during the season, but recently here absences had been more noticeable by the gossip magazines. There where some rumors about there been trouble in paradise.

Despite the rumors and the scandal that the news has arrived, Parker has had a very positive attitude towards the whole issue. He is crunching in very good numbers this season. His 13.5$ salary is enough to keep him motivated and so far in the last five games, Parker has averaged 30 minutes of game time for 20 points per game and almost 7 boards. It seems like he is taking his stress back into the basketball court. And it is giving good results for the San Antonio Spurs.