The Laws of Manu

Not many people know this, but one of Friedrich Nietzsche's favorite reads was "The Laws of Manu," an ancient Indian text which foretold the rise of an Argentine guard who would be instrumental to the success of the San Antonio Spurs in the 2005 Western Conference Finals, not to mention very handsome. Some Brahmin scholars believe these prophesies have been realized in the person of Manu Ginobili (above left), who led the Spurs' offense on Monday, scoring 28 points off the Phoenix Suns.

The Spurs were not able to sweep Phoenix--Suns Amare Stoudemire and face-masked Joe Johnson brought the offensive frenzy. Of the 24 teams who've been down 3-0 in a seven-game series, none have ever come back to win the series. By winning Game 4, the Suns are already in a notable minority (only 10 teams in that position even won game four).

That being said, we predict the Spurs will take Game 5 tonight in Phoenix. Speaking over the weekend, Stoudemire implied that his goal going into the end of the series was simply not to get swept. The desire not to get completely dismantled is a powerful motivator; with the threat of utter devastation no longer hanging over the Suns like a, you know, little thundercloud, they're once again vulnerable to the sense of futility that seemed to dog them in Game 3 of this series.

Game 5 starts tonight at 8 pm (CST) on ESPN. We're thinking of going to watch it at the Tavern, but would love to hear some other suggestions. The last time Austinist was at the Tavern, we ended up stuck next to a guy who muttered, "We're killing ourselves, we're killing ourselves," over and over. Not a Suns fan. Just a garden-variety malcontent.