Neues » fectly fits into t

SAN ANTONIO -- Tony Parker is still thankful for the role players who helped carry San Antonio to its last NBA title in 2007. There was Robert Horry, a seven-time champion and official finals good-luck charm if there ever was one. Michael Finley, who was hitting 3-pointers at a much better rate in those playoffs than he did in the regular season that year. Fabricio Oberto, who probably never had a play called for him but found ways to get things done. The Spurs had a Big 3 then, the same one that they have now. But three is rarely enough, and thats been proven once again in these NBA Finals. Kawhi Leonard and Boris Diaw have been exactly what San Antonio needed in this matchup against the Miami Heat, and might be the two biggest reasons why the Spurs are one win away from their fifth NBA championship. The Spurs lead these finals 3-1, and will look to end Miamis reign in Game 5 at home on Sunday night. "If you want to win championships, obviously you need a Big 3," Parker said. "But you need your role players to play great too. And every time we won championships in the past, the Big 3, we played great, but we had great role players. ... If you want to go all the way, you need the whole team to play great." Thats what the Spurs are getting. Parker is leading the Spurs in scoring, Tim Duncan is leading in rebounding and the Western Conference champions are outscoring Miami by 62 points so far with Manu Ginobili on the floor -- so yes, the Big 3 is doing its part. But when the Spurs took control of the series by winning Games 3 and 4 in Miami, Leonard led the charge by averaging 24.5 points on 68 per cent shooting. And Diaw has 23 assists so far in the series, more than anyone else and none probably better than his behind-the-back offering out of the post that set Tiago Splitter up for a dunk in Game 4. Theres already talk that Leonard could be in line to win MVP of the finals. In an absolutely not-shocking development, he wanted no part of that talk. "It feels the same for me as any game going into it," Leonard said of the anticipation level for Game 5. "All Im thinking about is playing. Im not worried about what if we win or lose, and we just want to go out and play." Such is the Spurs way. The makeup of a player who perfectly fits into the San Antonio system has remained unchanged for the better part of two decades. He values team play over any individual accolade. He never says too much, particularly about himself. He stays in the moment, avoiding the urge to look ahead or behind. Leonard and Diaw meet all those characteristics. "San Antonio is playing great," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Theyre moving the basketball. Theyre exploiting where were normally good, so we have to do a better job. Even when weve made adjustments, theyve still been able to stay in a rhythm and a flow." Its hard to remember now that Diaw couldnt get minutes with the 2011-12 Charlotte Bobcats -- a team that finished with the worst record in NBA history -- in part because then-coach Paul Silas was frustrated with Diaws penchant for passing the ball instead of taking shots at times. So the Bobcats waived him late that season. The Spurs picked him up and in Game 4 of these finals, Diaw had more assists (nine) than shots (six). Go figure. "He really has a high basketball IQ," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of Diaw. "I think he raises the level for everyone. At the defensive end, hes pretty heady, not the quickest guy in the world, but really smart. Does his work early and understands whats going on. At the offensive end, he can score inside and out, and he passes the ball really well. Hes a consummate team sort of guy." Diaw is just the third player to have a game with at least nine rebounds and nine assists during these playoffs, with Oklahoma City stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook being the others. For his part, Diaw said hes never cared about scoring. If the team scores, thats good enough for him. "Its just moving the ball, playing with everybody," Diaw said. "There is nobody really just watching. Everybodys involved, and everybody gets the ball at some point. So its been good." Good, indeed. One more win, and these Spurs officially become great. Will Hernandez Jersey . The St. Louis Cardinals were scheduled to arrive in Boston in time for a workout on Tuesday afternoon. Much of Mondays discussion focused on Bostons lineup considerations as the series progresses, specifically when the venue shifts to St. Alec Ogletree Giants Jersey . Showing more spark after not taking enough challenging shots on goal in their 1-0 loss Friday night, the Bruins had 18 shots in the first period after managing just 25 in the entire opener. Luke Glendening cut Bostons lead to 2-1 at 13:20 of the second period before Milan Lucic scored late in the second and Zdeno Chara added a power-play goal early in the third. http://www.nygiantsfanatic.com/c-91-giants-kyle-lauletta-jersey.aspx .com) - Jenny Boucek is the new head coach of the Seattle Storm. Nate Solder Jersey . There, I saw a teenaged boy with tears in his eyes, being consoled by strength and conditioning coach Randy Lee. Lorenzo Carter Giants Jersey . The 24-year-old right winger has one assist in nine games this season with the Sabres. In his career, he has three goals and six assists in 43 NHL games.London, England - Five-time Wimbledon champion and top- seeded Serena Williams was stunned by Frenchwoman Alize Cornet in a third- round match on Saturday. The 25th-seeded Cornet beat Williams 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 to match a personal-best at a Grand Slam by advancing to the round of 16. She also reached the fourth round at the 2009 Australian Open. The win was the second straight for Cornet against Williams, but her first in 14 career matches against Top 20 opponents at a Grand Slam. After the match on Court 1 was halted by rain in the third game, but Williams comfortably captured the first set following a lengthy delay. However, Cornet stormed out to a 5-0 lead in the second and closed it out with a forehand winner. Cornet continued to pressure Williams serve. The American saved four break points in the opening game of the third set, but Cornet converted a fourth break point in the fifth game to go up 3-2. Williams was broken again to trail 5-2 before netting a backhand on match point. Cornet, who also beat the womens world No. 1 at Dubai in February, will next play Eugenie Bouchard. The 13th-seeded Canadian defeated 20th-seeded German Andrea Petkovic 6-3, 6-4. Former Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova dodged the rain playing under thhe roof on Centre Court and posted a 6-3, 6-0 win over American Alison Riske.dddddddddddd The fifth-seeded Russian, who was 17 when she beat Williams in the 2004 final at the All England Club, got off to a wobbly start, as she was broken in the first game and fell behind 3-1. However, she recovered to claim the final 11 games of the 69-minute match. Sharapovas next opponent is sixth-seeded German Angelique Kerber, who battled back to defeat 24th-seeded Belgian Kirsten Flipkens 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. The wet weather eventually forced two of Saturdays scheduled matches to be suspended due to lack of daylight, including the marquee matchup between 2013 Wimbledon runner-up Sabine Lisicki and Ana Ivanovic. Lisicki, seeded 19th, was leading the 11th-seeded Ivanovic 6-4, 1-1 when their match was halted. Also stopped was a third-round bout between Yaroslava Shvedova and Madison Keys, with Shvedova holding a slim 7-6 (9-7), 6-6 advantage on the American teen. Both matches will resume on Monday. Third-seeded Romanian Simona Halep did advance with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Switzerlands Belinda Bencic. The French Open runner-up will next face Kazakhstans Zarina Diyas, who beat former Wimbledon finalist Vera Zvonareva 7-6 (7-1), 3-6, 6-3. Blackhawks Jerseys Store Cheap Wild Jerseys Cheap Red Wings Jerseys Cheap Maple Leafs Jerseys Penguins Jerseys Store Capitals Jerseys For Sale Blues Jerseys Store Cheap Kings Jerseys Adidas Lightning Jerseys Stars Jerseys For Sale Cheap Predators Jerseys Ducks Store Sharks Jerseys For Sale Cheap Sabres Jerseys Rangers Jerseys For Sale ' ' '