Your San Antonio Spurs are undefeated! At this rate the Spurs are going to be the most entertaining team in the league, but don't expect any pundits to start saying that. Of course the defense wasn't up to the Spurs standard. Tonight the Spurs play their first divisional game against the Hornets. The Southwest Division has been, if not the best, one of the best divisions over the last decade. It's always good to beat divisional teams and tonight is the Spurs' first opportunity to do just that.
The Spurs are coming off of an impressive offensive performance, scoring 122 points in the opener. Can they keep up the pace against the pesky Hornets? Well, if BatManu has anything to say about it they will.
It was a year ago tomorrow that the legend of BatManu was born
Alright, I think some BatManu photos and videos are in order.
The Event:
The interwebs response:
Put together by our very own silverandblack_davis as was the first one
via uolesporte.blog.uol.com.br
via seriesandtv.com
via i38.tinypic.com
This is one of my personal favorites
via fresnobeach.com
via www.slamdumb.com
The Spurs response:
Nothing a little hand sanitizer won't clean off
The bat will not return
Even the Coyote got into the bat maina
Good times where had by all, well not the bat, but everybody else. Even PETA got into the fun by getting on to Manu for bludgeoning the harmless flying varmint. Of course Manu did have to get rabies shots, so he may not have had much fun either. Manu warned all the kids not to play with bats. The real question here being, why would any of them want to?
Speaking of flying varmints let's hope the BatManu and Company are ready to treat the Hornets to the same treatment the bat got, PETA be darned. The Hornets are a hapless franchise, there's no sense in giving them hope with a 3-0 start. As Halloween approches I think nothing would be more fitting of the holiday than for the Spurs to take care of their divisional opponents with BatManu leading the way. Chris Paul and the Hornets could use a good bludgeoning, on the court of course. We don't promote violence here at PtR, just emotional torment through mind tricks. On that note, let me wish everyone:
Awesome.
 San Antonio Spurs vs New Orleans Hornets Where: AT&T Center When: October 30, 2010, 7:30 p.m. Spurs Time Watch: CW35 HD
By the Numbers
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Lineups
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Lineups
Starters
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Matchup Analysis
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Intangibles | |
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Mojo | |
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Winner |
Starters
PG: This is a match up of two of the leagues best Poing Guards. Chris Paul is coming off of a 16 dime, 17 point performance in a 4 point win against the Bucks and a slightly less impressive performance against Denver scoring 18 while only having 7 assists. Meanwhile Tony Parker is coming off a 9 assit, 20 point game. Both guys were in the good double digit +/- in their first game, Paul only managed a +1 against the Nuggets. As much as people whine about Parker not being a passing PG, he still fits the Spurs system better than CP3, mostly because he's not a punk. French, yes, punk, no.
SG: Let's see, Manu Ginobili or Marco Belinelli. I'll go with the guy they call BatManu. I've got to admit, I've never even heard of Belinelli before. So, I'm giving Manu the edge.
SF: Rage matching up with Trevor Ariza. Ariza was such a disappointment in Houston that they traded him to a divisional opponent. He was a -12 against the Nuggets. I can see Ariza having a good night, but I'm not giving him the edge over Peanut.
PF: Battle of the little big men. This should be an interesting test for Blair. West is a whiney baby, but he's a solid offensive threat. He can hit the outside shot and once he does, he loves the pump fake and drive. Blair's size shouldn't be an issue in this match up. I'd like to see Blair use some of those new offensive skills to punish West on defense.
C: Timmeh should win this match up on veteran wiles. Okafor is a nice player. He's a very good defender and rebounder, but has a limited offensive game. Okafor is probably the one Hornet player I'd really like to see in a Spurs uniform.
Bench
Marcus Thronton, Jerryd Bayless and Peja do not make up the most intimidating bench. The Spurs will roll with McDyess, Hill and the rookie Anderson. This edge has to go to the Spurs, but they need to be careful, Thornton has given the Spurs issues in the past and Peja can still hit the outside shot.
Coaching
I'm not even sure who's coaching the Hornets these days. Oh, apparently it's Monty Williams. He got his first NBA win in the Hornets first game of the year. That's all you need to know. Edge: CIA Pop.
Intangibles
The Spurs have been in the heads of the Hornets since the Game 7 win in the Second Round of the 2008-09 Playoffs. In fact, they own so much space, there's been talk of renting some of it out. Oh, did I mention that BatManu will be playing for the Spurs tonight?
Mojo
BatManu
Prediction
The Spurs keep up the tradition of owning both the Hornets and small flying varmints.
Other Reading
Spurs
Hornets
Following Along
TV
CW35 - Channel 35 in San Antonio
Radio
WOAI 1200AM; Audio League Pass[streaming]
Online
As always, NBA league pass is recommended for those who are willing to pony up the cash. Almost every Spurs game will be broadcast there, which is especially helpful for those of us who aren't in the San Antonio area.
Please don't post links to illegal game feeds in the game thread. Links to illegal feeds are not permitted on SBNation, but you can probably find them out there on the internets if you're resourceful and desperate. You can also shoot an email to poundingtherockmail@yahoo.com(IMPORTANT: Please include your PtR username in the email for reference) for further assistance.