After a huge amount of melodrama, and then some shocking moves by contenders, we finally get down to business for the second game of our homestand. Our 2003 NBA Finals opponents are here headed by the protege himself, Avery Johnson. It has been nearly 4 years since Avery coached in San Antonio, let's make sure he doesn't feel too welcome.
We get the first of the new look teams tonight. The Nets (led by a man whose secrecy Pop has to admire) pulled the biggest trade coup I've ever seen. Getting a top 5 point guard is phenomenal in itself, but forcing your arch-rivals to overpay for a one dimensional scorer takes the cake. Granted, this gives them only one star to New York's two, but with rumors that Dwight Howard has told D-Will that he wants to play with him, it's possible for New Jersey to take its place among the contenders within the next 3 years. Much faster than anticipated judging from their 2009-2010 season.
I had a fun clip from the Conan show, but unfortunately, it killed any attempt I made at publishing this preview. I hope that I can email it to someone and get them to post this for me, because the editing tools have been quite finicky. In case you want to see the clip, here's the link. It's a jersey thing. Without further ado, here are the stats:
 San Antonio Spurs vs New Jersey Nets Where: AT&T Center When: February 25, 2011, 7:30 Spurs Time - Timezone Converter Watch: Fox Sports SW
By the Numbers
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Lineups
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Lineups
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Matchup Analysis
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Starters
PG: I went back and forth so many times on this matchup. I honestly don't know which Deron Williams is going to show up. Will it be the guy who is arguably the best point guard in the league? Or will it be the guy who was unhappy enough to get traded away? Deron has the ability to absolutely dominate this game, and point guards have decimated us the past two games. In spite of all this, Parker still needs to dominate Fisher
SG: I can hear the gasps of astonishment. But Manu is an all-star!!! Who is this Anthony Morrow that Jordan dares to give the Spur to? To be honest, I would have given this Spur to nearly anyone. Manu needs to start dominating playing halfway decent again and until he does, I'm not giving him the exclusive Spur.
SF: Jefferson was awesome last game, except the refs didn't like his new tattoo, so they called him for touch fouls against Durant. None of this defense against the NBA's leading scorer.
PF: Punishment for the slam dunk during the Rookie Game? All-star break not good for Dejuan? No one knows for sure, but he's going up against Kris Humphries who just happens to have ACLs. Blair doesn't, so he gets the Spur.
C: Timmy was angry last game against the Nets. He shut Lopez down. If he does it again, we win this game by 30.
Bench
The Nets have a guy who could average 30 points a game if he wanted to and has Maria Sharapova as a girlfriend. Travis Outlaw was the guy I hoped the Spurs would get before RJ 2.0, but I'm glad with the way it turned out. The Spurs, on the other hand have Stitches. It would be sweet if fans showed up with a bandage on similar to how they rallied around Manu in last years playoffs.
Coaching
Avery Johnson doesn't have Dirk to beat us with. Pop has plenty to be angry about...
Intangibles
We have a 19 game home winning streak. They are 4 - 25 on the road.
Mojo
I flipped a coin 5 times... it came up heads every single time. The mojo is with us
Prediction
If Williams decides to show up, and the Spurs take a break, we win this game by single digits. Otherwise, I expect a blowout with an &erson sighting.
Key(s) to the Game
Key 1 - The Nets don't excel at forcing turnovers, if we limit our unforced turnovers and move the ball this game is in our hands
Key 2 - I'd like to see Williams shut down. Too many point guards have been having their way with us because of that midrange shot.
Other Reading
Spurs
48 Minutes of Hell - Is there anything about this site that hasn't already been said?
Spurs Planet - Our old friend Wayne Vore is back.
Project Spurs - A different take on our same old boring Spurs
Spurs Nation - They're always so nice to us. Please be nice back
Nets
Nets Daily (SB Nation) - They're all excited for the coup they just pulled getting Deron Williams to New Jersey. Feel free to congratulate them
Following Along
TV
Fox Sports SouthWest
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.