SAN ANTONIO - A great part of my job here at News 4 WOAI is shooting the Spurs games. I get the chance to see and hear things most fans will never see or hear.
The last time I reported back to you after a game, I talked about the pre-game workout that Dejuan Blair goes through. A bunch of you asked what he does during that workout. I'm going to break down as much of the workout I can for you without giving away anything that might be thought of as “trade secrets” by the Spurs.
The theory behind the Spurs pre-game workouts is to get a player to practice the shots he will see in the game. At 4:30 Blair is out warming up, shooting jumpers and when Ian arrives at 4:45 they get started. They'll start with free throws then move to baseline jumpers and then more jumpers from the elbows. They'll go through some drills to help them finish under the hoop (they have two Spurs "interns," as one of the coaches calls them, banging with them down low) and some two on two drills with Blair and Ian working on their passing and shooting down low.
All of this takes about 45 minutes. Like I said last time, Blair walks off sweaty and out of breath. It's always the most fun part to watch of the pre-game shootaround.
Overheard praise for Manu Ginobili
The biggest thing I heard was an assistant coach for the Knicks talking about Manu. He didn't call him by his name. Instead, he called him "Argentina."
The coach was talking with a few people and the subject changed to Manu's expiring contract. One of the non-Knicks employees offered that Manu would be a great fit for D'Antoni's system.
The coach thought that a team could get him away from San Antonio, but they'd have to overpay him and thats where teams would balk with Manu's injury history.
However, he also offered that for a non-max contract player Manu "is the best - and worth every penny if he's healthy."
