Tony Parker is consumed by one of his worst shooting slumps, his confidence is compromised amid a search for answers and he's dragging around a slow-healing, sore hamstring that's neutralized his impact on the court now for weeks.
But the San Antonio Spurs' star point guard isn't struggling to find perspective. Just pardon his delivery if it seems a bit awkward.
"You just have to keep pushing," Parker exhaled as he summarized a bevy of issues that have contributed to the Spurs' recent slide. "It's hard for me to complain. Hey, look at Derrick Rose. You always have worse around you. It's true. Obviously, I wish I felt better, but it's like that."
By no means was Parker taking a shot at Rose, the Chicago Bulls' former MVP sidelined indefinitely last week after undergoing his third knee surgery in 36 months. The point Parker was attempting to make is that no matter how rough it's been lately, he still has a chance to get his game and his team on track.
After a couple of days off to regroup from a relatively disastrous rodeo trip, the defending champion Spurs open a six-game homestand that starts Wednesday against Sacramento. The cooling-off period couldn't have come at a better time for San Antonio, which went 4-5 for the franchise's first losing record on its annual extended trek away from home that straddles the All-Star break.
While the rodeo took over San Antonio's home arena, the Spurs were a bit of a circus on the road.
The trip did end on a positive note: Consecutive wins in Sacramento and Phoenix removed some of the sting from four straight losses that left the Spurs hardly resembling the free-flowing, hot-shooting juggernaut that returned to the Finals to rip through Miami for a championship last season.
But a combination of nagging injuries and chemistry issues has knocked the Spurs off their game and forced them to scramble to secure their postseason position with 23 games remaining. San Antonio has been in seventh place in the West for weeks but holds a 3½-game lead on eighth-place Oklahoma City and a 4½-game edge over New Orleans -- two teams that have come on strong lately despite injuries.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich anticipated there would be days when his aging team might succumb to complacency after the mental and physical grind it pushed through to get back to the Finals and avenge a seven-game series loss to the Heat in 2013. During training camp, Popovich told reporters that the hardest challenge the Spurs -- anchored by Parker, 32, Manu Ginobili, 37, and Tim Duncan, 38 -- would face this season would be themselves.
"I'm worried for one reason: They are human beings," Popovich explained in September of the Spurs, who have won five titles since Duncan arrived. "They are going to feel satisfied."
Satisfaction gave way to soreness months ago.
The Spurs spent much of the first two months of the season without key role players Patty Mills (shoulder) and Tiago Splitter (calf), then lost both Parker (hamstring) and Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard (hand) for significant stretches throughout December and January. As a result, the Spurs emerged from the All-Star break having used 23 different starting lineups, second most in the league. Popovich continues to stick with his program to limit minutes among his core players and to routinely rest Duncan, Ginobili and Parker for games to preserve their bodies for the playoffs.
The primary problem this season, though, is that the injuries have prevented role players and backups from being regularly available the way they were in previous seasons. At 36-23 entering the homestand, the Spurs need to finish 14-9 to extend their NBA record of consecutive 50-win seasons to 16 in a row.
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We come out of the break feeling pretty good and just kind of stumble with some tough losses, games we could have and probably should have won. And that, in itself, is bothersome.
"-- Spurs forward Tim Duncan
Those types of records aren't important to San Antonio's veteran players and coaches. But getting back to recognizable standards of consistency and performance over the stretch run is the ultimate goal.
"It's very frustrating [because] we're not used to losing like this consistently," said Duncan, one of the few key players to avoid an injury or a prolonged slump. "We come out of the break feeling pretty good and just kind of stumble with some tough losses, games we could have and probably should have won. And that, in itself, is bothersome. But there's nothing we can do about it. We'll take some positives."
Among those positives is that everyone is finally back and available. That's a start -- one that offers hope for another typical Spurs finish.
"It's been a weird year," Duncan continued. "We've got guys that have been in and out. We're trying to find a rhythm with everybody back. We don't do excuses. But we're going to continue to fight for our rhythm and fight to get us that feel we need, that consistency we need and try to get back to winning."
It's been a bumpy path along the way, with the traditionally steady Spurs operating at extremes. And Parker has embodied that instability.
In their first game out of the break, Parker had 21 points and a season-high 13 assists in a 119-115 loss to the Clippers that otherwise was an encouraging outing. Parker was feeling the benefits of his time off over the break, which included workouts with a team trainer while on vacation. But the next three games saw Parker shoot a combined 3-for-21 with 10 turnovers and reduced time in the fourth quarter.
Initially, Parker lacked his quickness off the dribble that allows him to get into the paint to create for teammates. Then, he couldn't knock down midrange jumpers against defenders who sagged off and dared him to shoot. Parker admitted he was still affected by the hamstring after missing seven of eight shots and finishing with two points for the second time in three games in last week's loss in Portland.
"I've never experienced a three-, four-game stretch like that," Parker said, sighing as he shook his head in disbelief. "We're not making shots. It starts with me. I'm not making shots, and everything is tough. I was excited after the Clippers game, even though we lost. But it was a great game and I felt good. Now, it's just struggle time right now. We've been so successful ..."
Parker never finishes that thought before he shifts gears and talks about staying positive. This level of adversity is rare for the Spurs. But they've maintained a team-first approach through hard times. They share the blame during struggles in much the same way they share the ball when they're successful.
Those principles were reinforced after the loss in Utah, which was followed by a players-only meeting. But a productive and festive shootaround two days later in Portland didn't resonate in the game, as the Spurs dug themselves into a 32-16 hole in the first quarter en route to a 111-95 loss.
"If we continue to do what we're doing, we're not going to be a playoff team," Spurs guard Danny Green said, sharing the theme from the team meeting. "We have to stay positive, buy into it and encourage each other. Right now, it's a snowball effect where a couple of things go wrong and guys are trying to do so much to make it up quickly, and end up making more mistakes on top of it. We're all getting on each other. Pop's getting on us, and it's hard to play when we're not the happy, fun team we were last year."
The Spurs' offense is the least efficient it's been in 11 seasons, and Parker's scoring average of 13.8 points a game is the lowest since his rookie season. But the defense has come around the past two games, with San Antonio scoring 24 points off turnovers in a win at Sacramento and holding Phoenix to a franchise-low 24 points in the first half of a 101-74 victory against the Suns.
"It seems odd to say that, but I was encouraged that we're getting back to the way we play," Popovich said. "We do it together. We don't have people to give the ball to and say, 'Go score.' We don't do that. We don't have anybody like that. We've always done it for each other. We don't know who's going to score or that type of thing. We got away from that and we're trying to get back to it."
Midway through the rodeo trip, Popovich told reporters Parker is essential to that process, so much so that, "If he's not the Tony Parker of past years, we're not going anywhere."
Meanwhile, Parker is working desperately to regain that spark.
"I don't think just suddenly I became bad," Parker said. "I've not been the same since my injury, but I'm not going to use that as an excuse. I just have to find a solution, even if I'm not feeling great. I have to do my part. I know it. I've struggled before in my career, but never like that. Hopefully, I'll get it back."
