With the race for first place in the Western Conference playoffs being over for the most part, San Antonio Spurs fans are starting to turn their attention to the teams currently in the seventh, eighth, and ninth spots in the playoff race, hoping for the best matchup for the Spurs.

There are three teams battling it out for the right to face the Spurs in the first round in the playoffs, and each team presents its own challenges -- the New Orleans Hornets, Memphis Grizzlies, and Houston Rockets.

Granted there are plenty of games left in the regular season and these three teams may shuffle in playoff positioning. So let's take a closer look at these potential first round foes.

Hornets -- currently in seventh place:

No one in the NBA can run a team like Chris Paul in my opinion. He is a nightmare to guard off the dribble even with him being slowed down with a knee brace. He can absolutely shred defenses when he is at full strength. The Hornets also have smallish but skilled big guys with David West and Carl Landry.

But the key word there is "small." The Hornets aren't big enough down low to be really competitive in a seven-game series with the Spurs. West, Landry and Emeka Okafor are a nice trio but they'll get beaten up on the boards by the Spurs' bigs. If the Spurs are fortunate enough to land the Hornets in the first-round, I think it would be over in five games.

Grizzlies -- currently in eighth place:

Estamos conscientes de que los San Antonio Spurs siguen obteniendo el primer lugar en la liga de la NBA con un impresionante récord de 57 juegos ganados y tan solo 14 derrotas en lo que va del año.  Es cierto, definitivamente hemos sido la envidia de muchos equipos esta temporada, en especial para uno de nuestros mas grandes rivales, Los Lakers de Los Angeles, un equipo que tomando en cuenta su grande lista de campeonatos, no le a ido tan bien esta temporada.
 
Pero lo importante aquí es, que deben de hacer los Spurs para no dejarse caer de la buena racha que han tenido este año. Analicemos lo siguiente:

Lesiones: Si claro lo sabemos que es casi imposible prevenir una lesión en una cancha de baloncesto. Pero, también resultaría contraproducente el tener a uno de nuestros mas valiosos jugadores lesionado en plenas eliminatorias. Sabemos que actualmente, Tim Duncan se encuentra lesionado debido a un esguince al tobillo izquierdo y debido a esto se le a incrementado su tiempo sobre la cancha a Splitter. Hasta ahorita se desconoce cuanto tiempo durara Duncan fuera de la cancha pero esperemos que esta lamentable lesión se torne en una gran oportunidad para que Splitter nos demuestre su destreza.

Tiempo sobre la cancha: El manejo sobre cuanto tiempo se le otorga a cada jugador sobre la cancha siempre es esencial. Tomando en cuenta que Duncan estará fuera del juego debido a su lesión, sin duda alguna, estaremos viendo mas de DeJuan Blair, Antonio McDyess, Steve Novak, y claro Tiago Splitter.  En mi opinión Popovich a manejado muy bien el tiempo de cada jugador hasta ahora. Aun así creo que será un reto para el, saber suplir la puntuación de un valioso jugador con la de 4 jugadores de la banca.

Rendimiento: Hay que ser justos y no dejar caer todo el peso sobre la banca. En una situación como esta también se espera mas de otras estrellas de la cancha. Esto significa que también esperaremos que tanto Manu Ginobili como Tony Parker ayuden al rendir y contribuir mas durante estos juegos.

En esta situación la pregunta para nuestro plan de ejecución no será "¿Quien le colgara el cascabel al gato?", si no, "¿Como le colgaran el cascabel al gato?", ya que por fortuna contamos con un buen equipo y solo se trata de manejar bien el tiempo sobre la cancha, rendir mas y a la vez evadir al máximo extremo una lesion.

Wilson Chandler hit a go-ahead jumper with 29.3 seconds remaining and the Denver Nuggets (43-29) beat the San Antonio Spurs (57-14) 115-112 at the Pepsi Center.

The Spurs played their first game since losing Tim Duncan indefinitely to a left ankle sprain in Monday night's night win over the Golden State Warriors.

Rookie center Tiago Splitter got the start in place of Duncan and had a quiet night, scoring four points and stayed on the bench after picking up his fourth foul with 5:37 left in the third quarter.

It's time to look at the numbers that stood out in this Spurs' loss.

88.5 - The Spurs shot 23-of-26 (88.5%) from the free throw line, including 4-of-4 from Richard Jefferson. The Nuggets had a huge edge on free throw attempts but did not take advantage of it, making only 25-of-39 (64.1%) of their foul shots.

57.1 - The Nuggets shot very well from the beyond arc, making 12-of-21 (57.1%) three-point goal attempts while the Spurs went 13-of-32 (40.6%) from behind the arc.

50.6 - Denver connected on 39-of-77 (50.6%) shots from the floor while San Antonio made 38-of-88 (43.2%) of their field goal attempts.

45 - The Spurs won the rebounding battle, outrebounding the Nuggets 45-42. 

38 - San Antonio had a good inside game, outscoring Denver 38-32.

• Spurs.com talked about the newest San Antonio Spur Danny Green and March Madness:

A rush of emotion surged through Green. After six humbling weeks in the NBA’s Development League, after a passport misplaced in the mail cost him a job in Italy, after months of doubt and discouragement since his release from the Spurs, he’d secured a second chance. “I was so excited,” Green says, “I almost jumped out of the moving van.”

The timing of the call: perfect. March has almost always been Green’s month. At North Carolina, he made it to four NCAA Tournaments, his Tar Heels advancing deeper each year. In 2009, he reached April, and celebrated as no current Spur has -- with a national championship.

• OpposingViews.com discussed how the NBA isn't a big man's league anymore:

But, as the rest of the league is proving, you can win without a franchise center, and increasingly, without any center at all. The two best teams over the past decade—the Spurs and Lakers—both lost future Hall-of-Fame centers early in the decade, but neither missed a beat, combining for four championships after the departures of David Robinson and Shaquille O’Neal. Since Robinson retired in 2003, the Spurs have gone through a revolving door of centers, winning a title in ’05 with Rasho Nesterovic and another one in ’07 with Fabricio Oberto/Francisco Elson. This season, the Spurs have the best record in the league with Duncan, who’s played most of his career as a power forward, at the center position. It hasn’t been a big leap for him, as he’s controlled the paint on defense for San Antonio for most of his career. The difference is, this time Duncan’s the only big guy on the floor—all of the Spurs’ other starters stand 6-foot-7 or shorter.

• Harlem Globetrotter's legend Meadowlark Lemon said he would build an NBA team around San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan:

"I'm a fan of Shaq. But Tim Duncan? That's the man I like, says Lemon, who's currently on a media tour promoting his new memoir called Trust Your Next Shot: A Guide to a Life of Joy.

"If I was going to build a team around two players, those are the two I would build it around. Jason Kidd is a pure point guard if there is such a thing. And Tim Duncan's fundamentals? Love them." (usatoday.com)

Hit the jump to how you can win free tickets to the upcoming San Antonio Spurs-Portland Trail Blazers game in San Antonio, the Spurs and power rankings, and more

On this episode of the Spurscast, Jeff and I talked about the week in San Antonio Spurs basketball. As usual, we went over our positives and negatives of the week, including Matt Bonner continuing to struggle, and Steve Novak and Tiago Splitter having good games against the Charlotte Bobcats.

Before the break, we also discussed whether the Spurs or Richard Jefferson were to blame for Jefferson's decline over the season.

Our topic of the week was whether or not the Spurs should start resting members of the big three to have them fresh and ready for the playoffs, while other Spurs players, like Splitter, get some important minutes. Listen to our takes and then give us yours in the comments and we'll read them on our next show. 

We finished up with some latest news, including the signing of Danny Green.

The Spurscast. The original Spurs podcast.

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Music: "Wild Side" Motley Crue

Just when San Antonio Spurs forward Steve Novak found his way out of a losing culture with the Los Angeles Clippers and onto a winning team earlier this season with the Dallas Mavericks, things were about to turn south quick.

Novak had just enough games as a Maverick to get comfortable, but he'd have to readjust quickly. He was waived and with no suitors initially, Novak turned to the D-League to try to play his way back into the NBA with the Reno Bighorns.

After two games, and averaging 18.5 points on 64 percent shooting from beyond the arch, the Spurs came calling with a 10-day contract in hand.

Novak was officially signed on February 8, and in his first game in silver and black, on the road against Detroit, he hit a three-pointer in the one minute of playing time he received, possibly a sign of things to come.

On February 22nd, Novak's stay in San Antonio was extended with another 10-day contract. At the time, I chalked it up to having another non-rotation three-point shooter that could play some spot minutes while James Anderson was working his way back into shape.

Many in San Antonio thought Novak would not make it past his second 10-day contract with Matt Bonner coming back from injury and Anderson well on his way back,

Boy, were we wrong.

On March 4, Novak found out he would be in San Antonio for the remainder of the season. The guessing and hoping that he might be around for longer than 10 days was over, and now Novak could exhale and let himself get comfortable again.

"It was great (to be signed for the remainder of the season). It would be tough to find a better place, that's for sure." Novak said on Monday night. " I was very happy. You know I was with Dallas, then I was released and picked up here. If I would've picked a spot, I couldn't pick a better one."

According to Novak, part of what makes San Antonio the ideal landing spot are the 13 other guys he shares the Spurs locker room with. He said the players made him feel welcomed and at home when he joined the team in February.

SAN ANTONIO SPURS (57-13) vs. DENVER NUGGETS (42-29)

With Tim Duncan out indefinitely, the San Antonio Spurs will look to inch in closer to wrapping up the top seed in the Western Conference when they visit the Denver Nuggets tonight.

The Spurs (57-13), already have clinched a playoff berth and own a big lead in the West will play without Duncan who landed awkwardly after scoring early in the first quarter Monday night and did not return in a 111-96 win over the Golden State Warriors. An MRI taken on Tuesday confirmed he sprained his left ankle.

Duncan will stay in San Antonio for rehabilitation during the team's three-game road trip that begins tonight, but the Spurs are unsure how much time he will miss. 

After Duncan left Monday's game, rookie center Tiago Splitter recorded his first double-double with 10 points and a season-high 14 rebounds.

It's likely Splitter will start in Duncan's place after doing so against the Charlotte Bobcats. Another player who could see additional minutes during Duncan's absence is forward DeJuan Blair, who did not play last Monday due to a sprained wrist but is expected to play for this game.

The Nuggets (42-29) are fifth in the West but are four games behind fourth place Oklahoma City. They are 10-4 since trading Carmelo Anthony to New York and have limited their opponents to 94.7 points per game in that span.

Denver defeated Toronto 123-90 last Monday night for their seventh straight home win -- the last three were by an average of 34.4 points.

Ty Lawson led seven Nuggets in double figures Monday with 23 points and handed out eight assists. Lawson is averaging 16.3 points and 8.1 assists in 10 games this month. He entered March averaging 10.3 points and 3.9 assists.

• After losing to the San Antonio Spurs and other top NBA teams, Dallas Mavericks' Tyson Chandler is says either the Mavericks shape up or they will endure a long summer:

“I told guys, ‘We can call it a summer real early or we can buckle down and get things together’,” Chandler said.

He was referring to the Mavericks’ defense. Or the lack thereof during the stretch in which they were picked apart by the Lakers, Spurs, Blazers and Grizzlies, among others. (dallasnews.com)

• Mavericks' Jason Terry says losing to the Memphis Grizzlies is a tougher loss to bear than losing to the Spurs:

• DallasNews.com is putting on "March Menace" where Mavericks can vote on which player has been the biggest menace to the Mavericks. Tim Duncan and Bruce Bowen were nominated and went head-to-head. Seems Duncan is the bigger menace to the Mavericks than Bowen. Duncan "won" with 258 votes to Bowen's 213.

• Former NBA coach Don Nelson says he was almost the Spurs coach:

In the wake of the Webber debacle in 1994, with Nelson realizing his time in Oakland was short, Spurs general manager Gregg Popovich -- a former assistant coach to Nelson -- offered his old boss the coaching job.

"I begged him to keep Chris Webber and to let me go,'' Nelson said. "I said keep Webber, keep the player, get a new coach and release me. I told him I had the job. And (he) wouldn't do it. As a result, Popovich is still coaching, with four titles. I could have had Tim Duncan.'' (mercurynews.com)

Hit the jump to read about how you can win free tickets to the Spurs-Blazers game in San Antonio, Tim Duncan receiving a nomination to be a spokesperson, Celtics fans watching the Spurs every move, and more.

As you all know, last week I had an opportunity to speak with basketball great Bill Walton in New York City at a basketball round table.

In case you missed it, here is what he had to say about San Antonio Spurs' Manu Ginobili:

"Manu Ginobili is more than capable of being the best player in any game. In any game he can be the best guy. What he has been able to do coming from Argentina, I mean truly, he is the epitome of true greatness in the globalized, changing world that we all live in today," said Walton to Project Spurs. 

Click HERE to read Walton's complete thoughts on Ginobili.

However, during the roundtable I had an opportunity to get his thoughts on which teams will make it to the 2011 NBA Finals. Check out the video of Walton answering my question and what he thinks about the Spurs chances coming out of the West.

Also, here is more video of Walton talking about basketball in general including the NCAA Tournament, BYU's Jimmer Fredette, the Boston Celtics, and more.

The San Antonio spurs have announced that an MRI today revealed that Tim Duncan does have a sprained left ankle.

Spurs forward Tim Duncan had an MRI today which confirmed that he has a sprained left ankle. He will not accompany the team on its upcoming three-game road-trip (Denver, Portland and Memphis). Instead he'll remain in San Antonio for treatment and rehabilitation. A timeline for his return has not yet been determined.

With Duncan sitting out against the Bobcats, Tiago Splitter started and also played a bigger role stepping in for Duncan last night. In those two games, he's averaged nine points, 10 rebounds, two steals and had a blocked shot against Charlotte, with his biggest contribution being a double-double last night.

Expect to see more of Splitter while Duncan is out. The increase in minutes and role for Splitter, while it comes because of an unfortunate injury, is also a welcome one. Splitter has struggled throughout the season save for a few bright spots, but he know looks to be grasping the Spurs system and his role.

That will only help, considering one of the only weaknesses this season has been interior defense and the playoffs are right around the corner. The loss of Duncan could also mean added minutes for DeJuan Blair, Antonio McDyess and Steve Novak.