Quick Takes from Behind the Bench v. Rockets

by janieannie on Feb 2, 2012 3:56 AM CST in Scenes from the Season

I sat behind the Spurs bench tonight, not the best place to view a game if you're only 5'2" tall and a certain 6'6" shooting guard is sitting in front of you (on a three inch cushion), but I wanted to post just a few quick pics. The first is for all you fans of Matt Bonner as he grabs a crucial rebound late in the game, on his way to a team high 10 for the night.

And this one is just for the women of PTR, a new photo of Sparkles (I refuse to call him by his other nickname).

And finally, the real reason for doing a post at all - a close up look at Manu's left hand. He spent part of his time on the bench working his fingers with his thumb, one at a time, with a tiny resistance band. The scar actually looks better than it appears in the photo. Being Manu, he didn't sit still long enough for a good shot of it. He is obviously ready to play, in his mind, and was very involved in the game, talking to coaches, watching replays on the bench monitor (more on that in the next paragraph), encouraging teammates, studying stats, but seldom smiling.

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The bench computer monitor sits on the end of the scorers' table and faces the row of assistant coaches who sit behind Pop and his top assistants. Closest to it is Coach Engelland, who keeps notes on the plays. I had always thought the monitor showed real-time plays and the same replays we see at home or on the lighthouse in the arena, but after seeing it, it does not appear to be connected with what is shown on the lighthouse. The monitor shows replays on about a 3 to 5 second delay - and several plays were shown more than once from different angles. Plays can be analyzed instantly by Engelland and Chad Forcier. It seemed to be used mostly when play had stopped for either timeouts or free throws. I'm doing a bad job of explaining what I observed, but I found it very interesting.

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first! does it look like Tims smiling?

by RJSpurs20 on Feb 2, 2012 4:26 AM CST via Android app reply actions

Can you hear what they are saying? I would pay to hear what they say to each other.

Usually what the Spurs do on the off-season is frutrating and mind boggling, but with a shirt in july that says "NBA champions" im totally okay with what the Spurs are doing.

by Spurs4life on Feb 2, 2012 4:49 AM CST reply actions

I could not hear because of the very loud PA system in the arena, even though I was sitting on the second row.

I’ll be back in the same seat for the Philly game in late March. I must admit I can see the game much better from my baseline seat.

I had always been curious about what Pop was saying to the bench guys during games when he appears to walk down the bench and get in their faces when the guys on the court screw up. He is actually doing some teaching, explaining to the young ‘uns how to do it correctly – he didn’t appear to be angry, just intense.

"Ginobili. . .He's weaving, he's throwing up triple axels in sneakers, he's willing the ball into the basket. It's Cirque du Soleil with refs." Dan Oshinsky / KENS 5

by janieannie on Feb 2, 2012 10:42 AM CST up reply actions

On the contrary, you did a great job of explaining what is almost war games like.

by indiancharlie on Feb 2, 2012 7:44 AM CST reply actions

I know the NFL guys do this sort of thing from a perch high above the field. My guess is it takes a lot of coordination with Fox Southwest camera guys (who are all over the arena) as well as the director of the broadcast.

"Ginobili. . .He's weaving, he's throwing up triple axels in sneakers, he's willing the ball into the basket. It's Cirque du Soleil with refs." Dan Oshinsky / KENS 5

by janieannie on Feb 2, 2012 10:44 AM CST up reply actions

Nice work JA! I always learn something from your posts. Also, I don’t know if you can see this, but your post on Tim’s Punisher knee brace was one of our top viewed stories over the last week!

by Big50 on Feb 2, 2012 9:03 AM CST reply actions

I was going to metioned that. There were articles in TBJ, Ball Don’t Lie and an analysis of the BDL article on The Gothic Ginobili.

"Manu Ginobili is the ultimate human cheat code, the password to the rim."
-Alex Dewey

by Edg5 on Feb 2, 2012 2:15 PM CST up reply actions

At least they gave us credit for the photo.

"Ginobili. . .He's weaving, he's throwing up triple axels in sneakers, he's willing the ball into the basket. It's Cirque du Soleil with refs." Dan Oshinsky / KENS 5

by janieannie on Feb 3, 2012 5:18 PM CST up reply actions

I also learned how many of those NBA towels they go through in a game. A large duffle bag, about 1×3×3 feet, was brought out for each half of the game. There are two containers of Gatorade with cups as well as a coller with bottles of water and Gatorade. And the trainers know who likes what when they come out of the game.

I’ll start watching that monitor a little more. I can see it from my regular seat. At times it appeared to be showing the TV feed – commercials appeared. I never realized how much “work” was happening on and around the bench.

"Ginobili. . .He's weaving, he's throwing up triple axels in sneakers, he's willing the ball into the basket. It's Cirque du Soleil with refs." Dan Oshinsky / KENS 5

by janieannie on Feb 2, 2012 10:45 AM CST reply actions

Another thing that surprised me was the large number of small children (about ages 4 – 6) who were sitting in some very high dollar seats. One family with two small ones sat in the coveted four seats that are available at the end of the scorers’ table. Another family of four had the four front row seats closest to the basket by the Spurs tunnel. Cost for four: $6,004 plus ticket fees. I’m guessing these are corporate seats. I hope the kids appreciate the magnitude of their experience.

"Ginobili. . .He's weaving, he's throwing up triple axels in sneakers, he's willing the ball into the basket. It's Cirque du Soleil with refs." Dan Oshinsky / KENS 5

by janieannie on Feb 2, 2012 10:50 AM CST reply actions