This past week the San Antonio Spurs went 1-1 to finish off the Rodeo Road Trip at 6-3. The Spurs still hold the number one seed in the NBA with a five game lead over the Boston Celtics in the East, and a six game lead over the Dallas Mavericks in the West.

The Spurs last game was a loss in Chicago and put the team at 46-10 for the season. With only 26 games left before the playoffs, the remaining focus for the team will be to improve their defense, lockup the number one seed and marginalize players’ minutes as much as possible.

In the words of Rafiki "It is time" to begin Views From The Couch volume 12. 

Is Skip Bayless onto something?

After the Spurs loss to the Bulls, the following morning ESPN's Skip Bayless tweeted: 

Biggest concern about Spurs: Manu NBA MVP 1st 2 months. Last 6 weeks: awful by his standards. Injury? Age? Slump?

This was a very good question, so I wanted to dig in and figure out if Skip was onto something. I dug up all the stats on Manu from the last 6 weeks. This covers a 20 game span beginning January 9 against the Minnesota Timberwolves and ends on the last game February 17 in Chicago.

On this episode of the Spurscast, Jeff and I did a quick rundown of the San Antonio Spurs Rodeo Road Trip and, as always, listed some of our positives and negatives of the games, including Gary Neal shooting his way out of his slump.

We also talked about the upcoming trade deadline and some of the possibilities with the Spurs, although Jeff and I doubt the Spurs will make any moves until after the trade deadline.

To close out the show, we discussed the topic of the week, All-Star weekend and how DeJuan Blair, Gary Neal, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili did.

The Spurscast. The original Spurs podcast.

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The San Antonio Spurs have decided to extend Steve Novak's stay in San Antonio. They announced today that they have signed the 6-10 forward to a second 10-day contract.

Novak, a 6-10 forward, appeared in five games for the Spurs, averaging 2.6 points in 4.3 minutes per game, while shooting .444 (4-9) from the field and .429 (3-7) from three-point territory.

Prior to joining the Spurs, Novak appeared in two games with the Reno Bighorns, averaging 18.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in 29.5 minutes, while shooting .684 (13-19) from the field and .643 (9-14) from three-point range.

With Novak on board for another 10 days, the Spurs now have two non-rotation three-point threats with Novak and Chris Quinn, who they could call on late in games to hit some clutch threes. One thing is apparent, the Spurs don't want to lose another playoff series due to shots not falling from beyond the arch.

For more on Novak, read Jeff Garcia's interview with him after a recent Spurs road game. 

In December, Project Spurs asked our readers whether or not the San Antonio Spurs would be able to continue their hot streak into 2011.  Well the poll results are in, and by the most lopsided of margins, the fans clearly believe the Spurs can parlay their 2010 play into stretch-run success.

96.5% of respondents answered yes, to the question of whether or not the Spurs could continue their hot streak, to 3.5% who answered that they could not.  While it seems that some NBA analysts are not certain that the Spurs are for real, the fans are convinced, and I tend to agree.  

The Spurs are in uncharted territory: off to the best start in franchise history and one of the best starts in NBA history.  With such unprecedented results, predictions are difficult, but it is hard not to be optimistic.

This season the Spurs have proven time and time again, on the road and at home, that they are able to beat anyone in the NBA on any given night.  And while the offense has stagnated slightly over the past twenty games or so, the team finds ways to win - a championship quality.  

The readers message is clear: the Spurs will continue their charge for another ring.

With 113 votes cast, here are the results...

By now, you've read all about it in the morning edition of your daily newspaper and heard all about it on ESPN. But how does the blockbuster trade of Carmelo Anthony to the New York Knicks affect the San Antonio Spurs, if at all?

The Spurs have a 3-0 season series lead against the Nuggets, but consider this. One of the wins was a 113-112 nail-biter. That game, Anthony scored 31 points to go with nine rebounds. Another of the wins, Anthony was out with an injury.

Add to that the Nuggets matched up extremely well with the Spurs before the Anthony trade. The Nuggets had a game changer in Anthony, a player capable of defending Tony Parker well with Chauncey Billups and a frontcourt with size that could cause some problems for the Spurs. The Nuggets bench also rivaled that of the Spurs, and with the Nuggets one game out of eighth place, the Spurs could have possibly been looking at a big hurdle in the first round of the playoffs.

Not to say that Denver didn't pull in some nice pieces and did well to get as much as they did for Anthony before he walked away this summer for nothing, but a contender they are no more. They are a much younger group and lost a lot of playoff experience and finals experience when they sent Anthony and Billups to the "Big Apple."

While the Knicks are improved and will make things interesting in the East, the trade possibly made the Spurs path to a fifth title a bit easier and took one obstacle out of their way.

But don't expect the Spurs to rest on their laurels, especially considering the talent in the Western Conference.

• While at the All-Star weekend, San Antonio Spurs' Tim Duncan said Tony Parker should have been playing at the All-Star game:

“I wish Tony (Parker) could be here. He deserves to be here, he’s had an excellent year so far. I think if he can grow a couple of inches the next couple of days, I’d trade (spots) with him.” (torontosun.com)

• Seems NBA oddmakers are still picking the Los Angeles Lakers over the Spurs despite the fact San Antonio has the NBA's best record:

According to oddsmakers at online sports book Sportsbook.com, the Los Angeles Lakers are +130 on the money line to win the Western Conference, making Kobe Bryant and Co. the favorites out West. Despite owning a league-best 46-10 record, the Spurs are +160 on the money line to represent the West in the 2011 NBA Finals. (thespread.com)

• Tim Duncan's Division I rebounding record has been snapped:

Move over, Tim Duncan. This NCAA record belongs to Morehead State's Kenneth Faried.

Faried snapped Duncan's modern-era Division I career rebounding mark with 12 boards in the Eagles' 71-65 victory over Indiana State on Saturday. (cbc.ca)

• Gary Neal talks about his first season in the NBA and with the Spurs:

• Express News' Tim Griffin speaks about the Spurs finally returning home after a long Rodeo Road Trip.

• The New York Times breaks down the Spurs' offense.

Hit the jump to read how to win free to the Spurs-Oklahoma City Thunder game this Wednesday in San Antonio, the latest grades on the Spurs, former San Antonian now playing in the NBA goes home, DeJuan Blair making an impact, Spurs on the NBA time traveler commercials, and more. 

Project Spurs' affiliate site Toros Nation, which covers the San Antonio Spurs D-League affiliate, Austin Toros, recently added Toros' player Michael Joiner to the writing staff.

If you have any questions for Michael or would like to comment on his posts, feel free to comment below or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we’ll be sure to get your questions/comments to him. Follow Michael on twitter @mjborn2win.

Toros forward Michael Joiner posted his latest post for our sister site, Toros Nation, from Dallas, where he and the Toros will take on former Spur Antonio Daniels and the Texas Legends.

Back after a commercial break. The new part of the season has officially begun. In this post, I will feature a few themes such as newness and homecoming. This afternoon we came together for the first time after being on the NBA ALL-Star break. It was competitive and good seeing one another again.

We have a total of 17 games left. That was news to my ears. Time passes quickly, right? Other things that are new is some music by Wiz, Bruno Mars, and other things. While writing this, I am watching at the all star game while busing to Dallas for our Monday night game against the Texas Legends.

I’m glad I get a chance to watch the game. It should be an exciting one. Shout out to my teammate Lance Thomas with his Gain Greene Adidas! Marcus Cousin represented the team well at the All Star game as well. I think he only missed two shots. (Ballin!)

For the full post, including his thoughts on how his Toros teammate Marcus Cousin did at the D-League All-Star game, read the full post at Toros Nation. While you're there, you can also read the full archive of his "on the road" series.

Hoy estaré repasando con ustedes los últimos cinco juegos de los San Antonio Spurs.

Como sabemos los Spurs se la pasaron de gira las ultimas dos semanas, jugando fuera de la cuidad, debido al famoso evento anual "El Rodeo", que se esta llevando acabo en el AT&T center, pero esto por su puesto, no fue obstáculo para los Spurs, ya que ellos siguen manteniendo su primer lugar en la NBA.

Comenzamos con el juego que tomo lugar el 9 de febrero en Toronto, Canada contra los Raptors que resulto ser bastante favorable para los Spurs, ya que salieron victoriosos siendo el marcador final de 111 a 100. Para este enfrentamiento fue Dejuan Blair quien se lucio aportando con 28 puntos, siendo esta, su aportación mas alta a un juego, en lo que va de la temporada. George Hill, nuestro favorito de la banca, también anoto un total de 18 puntos mientras Tony Parker y Tim Duncan anotaron 16 puntos cada uno. Lamentablemente quien resulto lesionado durante el ultimo cuarto fue Tiago Splitter, lastimandose el ligamento de la corva obligando así abandonar el juego.

Lamentablemente para los Spurs su buena racha de 4 victorias consecutivas comenzando desde el ultimo enfrentamiento ante los Lakers de Los Angeles, se rompió al enfrentarse ante los 76ers de Philadelphia el viernes, 11 de febrero. Tim Duncan fue nuestro mayor contribuyente en puntuación, anotando un total de 16 puntos mientras Gary Neal y Antonio McDyess aportaron 11 puntos cada uno. La puntuación final fue de 71 a 77, este claro, a favor de los 76ers.

Afortunadamente al siguiente día, sábado, 12 de febrero, los Spurs, salieron victoriosos al enfrentarse ante los Warriors de Washington. Quienes ayudaron hacer este triunfo posible fueron Tony Parker y George Hill contribuyendo con 18 puntos cada uno y Gary Neal con 16. El juego resulto ser bastante fácil para los Spurs ya que para medio tiempo, el equipo ya contaba con 72 puntos mientras los Wizards solo contaban con 45. Finalmente los Spurs ganaron 118-94 haciendo de esto una derrota penosa para los Warriors. 

The San Antonio Spurs' Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobii put on red jerseys last night instead of their usual black and white. However, the result wasn't much different than it has been for both players all season long, as they helped the Western conference All-Stars to a 148-143 victory.

It was Duncan's 13th All-Star game and Ginobii's second.

With Gregg Popovich at the helm for the West and with a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder this week in his sights, it wasn't too surprising to see Duncan limited to just over 11 minutes of playing time.

Duncan finished with two points and three rebounds in what could be his last All-Star appearance.

While Ginobili didn't have the best shooting night, he found a way to make his mark in true Manu fashion.

In 20 minutes off the bench, Ginobili finished with seven points, five assists, three rebounds and three steals. His assist numbers might have matched his points, but as usual, some players were caught off guard with his passes or fumbled them.

Popovich said he tried his best not to coach, but late in the game, when the score was close, he called a timeout and called plays specifically for a few of the West's players.

"You don't coach, it's hard not to coach," Popovich said in his post-game presser. "But you have to sit there and shut up because it's not about that." 

Apparently he and his coaching staff did just enough coaching to pull out the win late in the game.

For Popovich, coaching a team without an emphasis on playing defense will stop when he leaves Los Angeles today. He has see his share of these All-Stars again as the Thunder, Lakers and Heat all make trips to San Antonio. 

Now that the hoopla of All-Star weekend is over, it's time to get back to business for the San Antonio Spurs in the remaining 26 games.

But first, let's look at what happened for the team during the Rodeo Road Trip.

In the past, Spurs has always used the Rodeo Road Trip to fix a few kinks in their game, and prepare them for the stretch run.

Since 2003, the Spurs have a fantastic overall record on their rodeo excursion which has helped the team to bond more which is crucial in the long run. This year's road trip looked a lot easier than their previous annual tour away from San Antonio. A quick look at their nine road games and a 6-3 record seemed to be a modest bet --- six of their opponents on this recently concluded trip have losing records.