If you missed yesterday’s game between the Mavericks and Spurs, you made the right decision. The game had absolutely zero playoff implications. But the game did generate some controversy, as referee Joey Crawford revealed one of his lifelong secrets: he hates Tim Duncan. Crawford ejected Duncan after two technical fouls, one of which came while Duncan sat on the bench. After the game, he shed some more light on the situation.

“He looked at me and said, ‘Do you want to fight? Do you want to fight?” If he wants to fight, we can fight. I don’t have any problem with him, but we can do it if he wants to. I have no reason why in the middle of a game he would yell at me, ‘Do you want to fight?”‘

Maybe Crawford was checking to see if Duncan has a soul. Tim Duncan is known for lots of things but emotion isn’t one of them. . He definitely isn’t the personality that gets T’d up twice in a game. But regardless of his personality, he’s still seven feet tall. Joe Crawford isn’t. Crawford is 55 years old, bald, and short. Had this brawl happened, I would have loved it. Duncan may be a gentle giant but he’d still stomp Crawford.

For the most part, NBA referees are a pretty obscure bunch. They don’t get the fame that NFL referees do. I can name several NFL refs, most notable the Greek God Ed Hochuli. But NBA refs? I can only think of Dick Bavetta for all the wrong reasons. Maybe Crawford is just trying to get noticed. As annoying as the Spurs can be, it’s the referee’s job to call the game fairly. He shouldn’t have a vendetta against Duncan and he sure as hell shouldn’t be challenging him to a fight.

In yesterday’s epic useless Spurs-Warriors tilt, some history was made in the Yahoo box score. Because nothing is funny about a 37 point Spurs win, the guys over at Yahoo Sports decided to have a little bit of fun. In the postgame box score, Robert Horry was the target. I’ve seen “DNP-Coach’s Decision” or “DNP- Injury.” But “DNP- Old Age” is a new one.

Horry was actually sitting out the game due to an “abdominal contusion,” according to TrueHoop, a blog over at ESPN. But because statisticians rarely get the chance to have a little fun, they decided to say Horry’s age was the reasoning behind his ass on the bench. After all, he’s 36 years old.

But when you look at Horry’s career stats, you get the feeling that Yahoo is on to something. Horry stats have all declined since coming over to San Antonio. But his stats were never very good to begin with. It’s just his knack for hitting clutch shots that keeps him employed. In his 16th season in the league, Horry’s numbers have never been worse. His field goal percentage is a career-low 34%, his scoring has tumbled to a career-low 3.7 points a game, and his three point shooting sits at a mediocre 32%.

So why is he employed? Because other than Michael Jordan and Reggie Miller, Robert Horry might be the most clutch shooter in the last 15 years. It doesn’t matter what uniform he’s wearing. Whether it’s Houston, Los Angeles, or San Antonio, Horry has earned the nickname Big Shot Rob for a reason, even if he’s as old as dirt.

Over the next month until opening night on October 31, I?ll be previewing one NBA team a day. Starting in the Eastern Conference, I?ll be starting with my lowest ranked team and continuing to the best, then switching conferences. Enjoy.

Big Fundamental Needs Help from Ancient Supporting Cast
There’s few players more valuable than Tim Duncan. And there’s few backcourts better than Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Together, they form one of the best trios in the NBA and will be the reason the Spurs are right in the middle of it come playoff time. But aside from that, the Spurs have some question marks. They have to replace a pair of centers in Nazr Mohammed and Rasho Nesterovic. And the rest of their team is old enough to file for social security. The Spurs need to make sure they keep a balance between youth and experience because that was a big thing that did in the Lakers’ championship team. They all got old together and became washed up together.

Overview
Unless you’re a Spurs fan, you, like me, probably hate Manu Ginobili. He’s a great player but I can’t think of anybody more annoying. It’s still amazing to see him posterize everybody in sight because he’s just a 6′6″ Argentine. Then there’s Duncan, whose bank shots and predictable moves have gotten stale to me. Somehow, Duncan’s scoring output has dropped for five years straight but that’s more of a credit to Tony Parker’s emergence as one of the best point guards in the league. Parker, not Duncan, led the team in scoring with 19 points a game. The Spurs’ supporting cast is among the league’s oldest. Bruce Bowen, Michael Finley, Brent Barry, and Robert Horry will come off the bench. They’re all pushing 35 years old. The Spurs aren’t as athletic as Dallas or Phoenix and I think that’s starting to catch up to them. Read the rest of this entry »