Grades: Spurs vs. Jazz – Preseason Game #3
Stephon Castle looks to stay hot in Miami (Photo via X)
The San Antonio Spurs, playing without Victor Wembanyama, won their second consecutive preseason game against a Utah Jazz team that entered the contest with a 3-0 record. This back-and-forth affair wasn’t decided until San Antonio’s offense got rolling in the final stanza to put the game away.
The Spurs, who are now 2-1 in the preseason, are expected to have Wembanyama back in the lineup when they finish the preseason with a two-game road trip.
Stats: Spurs vs. Jazz
Spurs vs. Jazz – Final Grades
Chris Paul
Sure, Paul missed six of his seven shots from the field. However, his passing, playmaking and overall offensive orchestration is such a breath of fresh air on this team. He thinks the game at a high level and he’s able to create easy shots that haven’t been seen in San Antonio in quite a while. Hopefully he can stay healthy during the regular season because Paul will be fun to watch — particularly with Wembanyama.
Grade: B+
Harrison Barnes
It’s not time to sound the alarm but Barnes has looked pretty stiff in preseason play. He dropped a couple of threes against the Jazz and, like Paul, he makes the correct, savvy play most of the time. But, yeah, I’m waiting to see more dynamic movements out of the 32-year-old.
Grade: C
Jeremy Sochan
Sochan was a ball of energy. Thankfully, most of the energy translated to positive plays. He was deadly in transition and I liked his physicality and athleticism when finishing at the rim. Defensively, he was more intense and more burly, which resulted in the best defense we’ve seen him play in the preseason to date.
Grade: B+
Julian Champagnie
Champagnie continues his red-hot shooting. He has let if fly in exhibition play and the results have been great. His stroke is extra smooth right now and I don’t have a problem with his shot-selection. His defense wasn’t as good today as we’ve seen previously but it looks like Champagnie is locking down that starting gig. Well, until Devin Vassell returns, that is.
Grade: B+
Zach Collins
This was Collins’ preseason debut — and it was mostly underwhelming. He missed all six of his three-pointers on his way to unfurling 13 field goal attempts in 20 minutes. He also didn’t rebound or defend the rim at a notable level. The good news: Collins authored some physical plays in the paint that made it look like he was healthy following offseason shoulder surgery.
Grade: C-
Keldon Johnson
Johnson had a slow start to preseason play but picked it up tonight in a big way. His combination of electricity, enthusiasm and hustle allowed him to pour in 20 points in 23 minutes. Even though he’s slimmer, Johnson is still really strong and it looks like he has a chance to take a leap as a high level finisher in the paint. I also thought his defensive focus was much better tonight.
Grade: A
Tre Jones
The most interesting subplot of the game was Jones getting minutes alongside Paul. Clearly, the coaches wanted to take a look at that combination. I thought it looked like that small backcourt has a chance to work well going forward. Jones excelled as a secondary playmaker and he was an even bigger pest than usual on the defensive end. Jones and Paul are both tough enough to survive against most backcourts in the association.
Grade: A-
Blake Wesley
It’s going to be tough to keep Wesley out of the rotation. His open court speed is such a game-changing attribute that the coaches will likely try to include it in their game-to-game recipe. Wesley is also playing really good defense and his overall offensive aggression was very helpful on this night.
Grade: B+
Stephon Castle
Castle continues to impress. The rookie legitimately plays like a veteran. His patience and poise when attacking the basket is something you simply don’t see from teenagers. His passing looks to be better than advertised, his three-point shot looks ahead of schedule and he might already be an above average defender. There’s a lot to like about Castle — and the season hasn’t even started yet.
Grade: A-
Sandro Mamukelashvili
Mamukelashvili is making a strong push to be in the rotation. He’s hitting threes as a fiery clip, his ball-handling and passing are sublime for a big, and his court sense is reliably advanced. Mamukelashvili does give some of it back on the defensive end — but, then again, everything just flows better when he’s on the court.
Grade: A-
Sidy Cissoko
I’d classify this as a step forward for Cissoko. His stats don’t blow you away but he played with confidence offensively — and that’s not something we see very often from the second-year forward. If he can become a competent shooter and scorer, the rest of Cissoko’s game looks like it can eventually become NBA level.
Grade: B+
Riley Minix
Minix is another guy who is making the most of his opportunities. Yes, his production came in garbage time but he’s clearly a multifaceted scorer who operates with an impressive amount of silkiness on the offensive end. At the very least, Minix’s shooting stroke is wet enough that the Spurs should figure out a way to keep him around.
Grade: A-
Harrison Ingram
Ingram had a slick pass and a couple solid defensive plays in his limited time during garbage minutes.
Grade: B
Pop
I like that Pop used a preseason game to test out the Paul and Jones alignment. Most of the distribution of minutes was fine but I personally would have liked a longer look at Castle, especially playing with starters.
Grade: B