Grades: San Antonio Spurs vs. Chicago Bulls – Game #21
Tre Jones couldn’t lead the Spurs past the Bulls (Photo via Twitter)
Same old, same old for the San Antonio Spurs. When the smoke cleared, the Spurs were handed a 121-112 defeat by the Chicago Bulls. San Antonio has now lost 16 straight games.
It was the same pattern: The Spurs got up by double-digits in the first half while looking like a competent basketball team. In the third quarter, things fell apart. This time, the Bulls outscored the Spurs 35-20 in the third.
In the fourth quarter, the Spurs were able to hang around for a while. Eventually, though, Chicago’s veteran know-how and San Antonio’s inexperience combined to tilt the game in the Bulls direction.
All in all, as has been the case, there were stretches of solid play. But, yeah, the losses are getting old at this point.
Stats: Spurs vs. Bulls
Spurs vs. Bulls – Final Grades
Victor Wembanyama
Against the Bulls, Wembanyama became the youngest player in NBA history to notch a 20-point, 20-rebound game. He also added four assists and four blocked shots for good measure. As those numbers suggest, Wembanyama was extremely active and very impactful on Friday night. He was particularly dangerous on the offensive glass and defended the rim really well. Wembanyama was much more careful and mature than usual on both ends of the court. It wasn’t all good for the 19-year-old, however. His shot-selection could have been better and he’s now 1-for-11 on three-pointers in his last three games. And while it may sound ridiculous to criticize someone who pulled down 20 boards, there were more defensive rebounds out there for him to get. But, overall, the rookie definitely played well enough for the Spurs to win.
Grade: A-
Devin Vassell
We haven’t witnessed Vassell be shy much this season but he got off to a very slow start versus Chicago. In the first quarter, he shot only one time. As the game progressed, Vassell tried to get more involved — but with mostly negative results. He looked good when attacking the rim but forced too many three-pointers and missed all but one of his nine attempts from deep. Vassell had some quality passes and had a handful of positive defensive possessions but, in general, his level of play left a lot to be desired.
Grade: C-
Keldon Johnson
The good: Johnson was 6-for-11 from three-point range. Half of his three-point bombs came in the first quarter, which helped the good guys get off to a strong start. Johnson also totaled five assists without committing a turnover in 35 minutes. The bad: Johnson didn’t attempt a two-pointer. That’s … not acceptable. Even if his threes are finding cord, he has to continue to drive to the basket. Defensively, Johnson had some horrendous moments in transition. He has to play with more effort and smarts at that end if he wants to not be a bottom tier defender in the NBA.
Grade: C-
Jeremy Sochan
Sochan was back in the starting lineup but it looks like the coaching staff told him he no longer has point guard duties. However, without a true point guard on the court, Sochan still found himself doing point guard things. Yes, it was as awkward as it sounds. Defensively, I thought Sochan played really well. He played a focused, heady brand of basketball on that end. Offensively? It was mostly a mess. He had a few good passes but turned it over five times and looked out of sorts when trying to call his own number. But, thankfully, his defense was good enough that it made up for a good portion of his offensive struggles.
Grade: C
Malaki Branham
It was a tale of two halves for Branham. In the first half against the Bulls, he was 3-for-3 from the field and he looked like a natural fit in the starting lineup. In the second half, he was 0-for-3 from the field and struggled at times on the defensive end. Branham hasn’t shot the ball well this season — his field goal percentage (41.7%) and three-point percentage (29.9%) are down compared to his rookie season. For him to stick in the starting five, he’s going to have to knock down shots like he did in the first half.
Grade: C
Tre Jones
Jones had one of his best games of the season. The moment he stepped foot on the court, he changed things for the better. Scoring-wise, he was uber aggressive. Jones was a menace in transition and didn’t hesitate to launch open threes. His playmaking was excellent and he took care of the ball. On defense, he hustled relentlessly and even provided much-needed help on the boards.
Grade: A
Zach Collins
In Pop’s latest lineup experiment, Collins was sent to the bench. He actually played really darn well. After a lot of uneven play recently, he was nearly flawless against Chicago. He hit four of his five shots from the floor and he grabbed ten boards in 23 minutes. Collins was oftentimes the focal point of the offense when he was on the court and responded with authoritative moves and crafty passes. He even limited his mistakes — both in terms of turnovers and fouls.
Grade: A
Doug McDermott
In the fourth quarter, it was McDermott who was providing the Spurs with hope. After a slow start to the game, San Antonio’s sharpshooter went 3-for-3 from three-point land in the opening minutes of the final period to keep the Silver and Black in it. It turned out that McDermott’s shooting wasn’t enough but that quick blitz in the fourth was enough to classify this as an above average outing for him.
Grade: B+
Cedi Osman
Last game, Osman started at point guard and was a key cog in the wheel. This game, Osman only played ten minutes. That was long enough for him to launch seven field goal attempts. His overall impact was minimal though due to inefficiency on offense and a few mistakes on defense.
Grade: C+
Julian Champagnie
Champagnie played only six minutes. In that time, he had a block and three fouls. I also was unimpressed by a few of his rebounding attempts.
Grade: C
Pop
Well, I liked this starting five better than the one that featured Osman on point guard. Eventually, Wembanyama will be a center. If Pop thinks that time is now, I don’t have a problem with that. Sochan and Branham in the starting lineup is also advantageous when looking at the big picture. In the small picture, this looked like a really good opportunity to get a win. Unfortunately, Pop and company couldn’t get it done.
Grade: C