Grades: San Antonio Spurs at New Orleans Pelicans – Game #77
Devonte’ Graham and the Spurs beat the Pelicans (Photo via Twitter)
Even though the 2023-24 campaign is coming to a close and there is no postseason in sight, the San Antonio Spurs are still playing like a team that wants to win. On Friday night, the Spurs battled once again and came away with another victory. This time, it was a 111-109 win over the Pelicans in New Orleans.
The Spurs limped out of the gates. The offense sputtered throughout the first quarter and then their defense struggled in the second quarter. At halftime, the Pelicans had a ten-point lead, 61-51.
At that point, the Spurs could have simply rolled over and died. They were playing without Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, Keldon Johnson, Cedi Osman and Dominick Barlow. But instead of waving the white flag, the good guys persisted and found their footing in the third quarter.
Entering the final period, the score was tied at 86-86. The two teams battled back and forth until a Victor Wembanyama three-pointer with 3:25 remaining gave the Spurs a six-point lead, 105-99. From then on, San Antonio was able to author enough key plays to hold on for the win.
Overall, it was yet another solid showing. The Spurs as a whole and Wembanyama specifically are using the final days of the regular season to build winning habits. I don’t see that as anything but a good thing.
Stats: Spurs at Pelicans
Spurs at Pelicans – Final Grades
Victor Wembanyama
With San Antonio’s offensive attack weakened due to the amount of firepower on the sidelines, the Pelicans sent a lot of help whenever Wembanyama got the ball. It took a while for the rookie to figure out how to attack but eventually he made New Orleans pay for that tactic. Even though he missed all six of his first half field goal attempts, Wembanyama kept battling and eventually exploited the Pelicans strategy with pinpoint passing and perimeter jumpers. Importantly, he also limited his mistakes and was patient with the ball. Wembanyama only scored 17 points but his offensive impact was still gargantuan. Defensively, he was really good. He dominated on the boards and became more and more stingy in the paint as the game went along. The timing when Wembanyama went for blocks was off and he was obviously tired at times — but, all in all, it was another awesome performance by the rookie.
Grade: A
Malaki Branham
Branham had an adventurous outing. Offensively, he did most of his work from beyond the three-point line. He shot all his perimeter jumpers with confidence, which is especially important for him. While he was extra sloppy with the ball — particularly when he was dribbling in a crowd — Branham made up for some of that by being more impactful on the defensive end. He drew a couple offensive fouls and his energy out on the perimeter was much more notable than usual.
Grade: B+
Tre Jones
This wasn’t a typical Jones-like showing. With the Spurs running their sets through Wembanyama, Jones wasn’t asked to do much playmaking. Although his passing could have been better and he could have pushed the pace more consistently, he was efficient in scoring 14 points. In his last 12 games, Jones is shooting 52.6% from three-point range on 3.2 three-point attempts per game. If he ever becomes a legitimate marksman from deep, that’d be a game-changer.
Grade: B
Julian Champagnie
The game against the Pelicans was like the culmination of Champagnie’s evolution into a more well-rounded player. Even though he was only 2-for-7 from three-point land, that didn’t stop him from being very productive. Defensively, he was extremely active and led the team with four blocked shots. He also did good work on the boards and in one-on-one matchups. Offensively, he was 4-for-4 from two-point range. Champagnie had a few athletic finishes at the rim. Usually, he misses at the rim when he tries to finish with athleticism. In this game, it all came together for him.
Grade: A-
Sandro Mamukelashvili
The good: Mamukelashvili clearly has a high basketball IQ and plays with an impressive amount of feel. He knows where to be and he looked like a natural fit next to Wembanyama against the Pelicans. The two players were feeding off each other like they’ve played together for years. Smart movement and hustle allowed Mamukelashvili to put 15 points on the board. Defensively, he had more than enough effort and was able to make a few plays on that end. The bad: The main question with Mamukelashvili is whether he has the footspeed to survive defensively at the NBA level. We saw a couple times where a New Orleans player was able to blow right by him for a layup. Mamukelashvili also needs to be more confident about shooting three-pointers and prove he can be accurate from deep.
Grade: B+
Zach Collins
I thought this was quietly one of Collins’ best games of the season. Offensively, he took the ball to the rim with power and anger. His physical finishes in the lane were vital to San Antonio’s cause. Collins also added a three-pointer, a handful of brainy passes and only turned the ball over one time in 27 minutes. Defensively, he was also really good. His hustle in transition was better than I’ve ever seen it. Collins was also rebounding and being strong in the paint.
Grade: A
Devonte’ Graham
The Spurs needed some bulk scoring in New Orleans and Graham answered the call. He poured in 20 points in 25 minutes. While his shooting accuracy wasn’t the best, he oftentimes bailed the team out by making something out of nothing. Graham also passed the ball well and kept the tempo elevated. Defensively, while he got overwhelmed sometimes, his activity on that end translated to a few positive possessions.
Grade: B+
Blake Wesley
Wesley missed all three of his shots and turned the ball over four times. His decision-making on the move left a lot to be desired. He was second-guessing himself and the Pelicans were taking advantage. Wesley’s defense was also nothing to write home about. Thankfully, the second year guard was able to salvage some of his value by passing well in the open court. He was doing a good job finding shooters when the Spurs had numbers.
Grade: C-
Sidy Cissoko
I didn’t see much NBA-level skill from Cissoko during his six minutes of action. He has good court vision but the rest of his offensive repertoire looked rudimentary. Defensively, he had active hands but it would have been more helpful if he moved his feet faster.
Grade: C-
Pop
A lot of good stuff from Pop against the Pelicans. He put the ball in Wembanyama’s hands early and often to make the Pelicans pay for double-teaming. His out-of-timeout plays were really good. Pop’s rotation was also good. Specifically, adding in lineups featuring both Wembanyama and Collins worked — and giving extended minutes to Champagnie and Graham turned out to be the right calls.
Grade: A-