stats

["hironaka@xxxxxxxxx"<hironaka@xxxxxxxxx>]

Here is more raw data about the Texas chainsaw weekend.

The San Antonio Spurs have held NBA opponents to an 
abusive .423 on 2-point attempts. To put that mark in 
perspective, even Antoine and the Celtics can count on 
hitting .453 inside the arc this season.

As expected, the Spurs dominate the NBA by a wide margin 
in blocked shots (7.2). If ever Antoine feels tempted to 
employ his patented "NO LOOK SHOT", which he's bricked at 
least four times from all over the court in the past two 
games, this would be a tempting scenario. Walker has to 
dig deep and play smart against the likes of Tim Duncan 
and the Houston PF rotation.

Which team is number two in blocked shots? That would be 
Houston (6.5), which is also third in the NBA in rebounds 
per game. These three Texas games are going to be a 
daunting challenge.

Did you guys know that San Antonio (#2), Dallas (#3), 
Houston (#7) all rank near the top of the league in FG% 
defense? 

Dallas is 17-2 at home, San Antonio is 14-3 and Houston 
is 13-5. 

Versus these Texans, Tony Battie will face some form of 
mismatch every minute of every night. He'll have to play 
out of his mind and be one of the heroes, in order for 
the captains, Delk and company to pull out a victory.

No jumping off the bandwagon, though. 

As we head down to the land of capital punishment, our 
2003 Celtics team are tied for second with Sacramento 
(and Detroit) for fewest road losses (7). 

Bring 'em on and lets see what happens. The New Orleans 
win takes a ton of pressure off. No one expects us to 
win, and just one dubya would constitute a breakthrough 
compared to last year.

Boston has shown improved offensive decision-making for 
two games last week, and then our defense finally caught 
up on Wednesday. I hope out Celtics can put both together 
this weekend.

Joe Hironaka

p.s. If Sundouche plays at all this weekend, I want him 
to shoot the ball without hesitation. Every game Leo's 
boy plays in, he'll catch the ball at the top of the arc 
and then freeze like a Popsicle. Shooting being the 
discernible talent he has on either side of the floor, he 
damn well better release those open shots right off the 
catch. Every defense gives him that first try, and he 
just freezes every time. Taking that shot is especially 
valuable against these kinds of defenses and shot 
blockers. There really is such a thing as being "too 
unselfish" - especially when you suck at every other 
aspect an NBA center needs to have success in the league. 
In the case of SunDogg, its either a problem of stupidity 
or bashfulness. He was a lot more assertive in the 
preseason, and he's a great shooter IMO.

***



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