timvp
07-19-2008, 07:01 AM
First of all, this game was difficult to watch -- literally. Apparently online streaming video is a new concept in Salt Lake City and the result was a video connection that repeatedly buffered to the point of ridiculousness. I eventually had to open four instances of the stream and just hop from one to the next as they died. It was a hassle but I was able to watch about 90% of the game.
As a team, the Spurs summer league team played really well. It was easily their best game of the summer leagues. In their first game at Rocky Mountain Revue, they beat the hometown Utah Jazz 82-57. While it's true that the Jazz team wasn't too talented, the Spurs just thoroughly beat Utah down. Defensively, the Spurs were pretty darn cohesive, considering the circumstances.
-Alright, now this looks like a first round draft pick. George Hill was a totally different player in this game. Looking back at his work in the Vegas league, it's obvious he didn't have his legs at all. In Vegas, he rarely used his speed, didn't push the ball and looked embarrassingly overmatched when trying to finish at the basket. In this game, it was a totally different story. His speed in the open court was impressive. He finished in a variety of ways around the basket -- even after contact. And while he still struggled with his jumper, the shots were much closer. Defensively, he was still really aggressive and was the main reason why the Spurs defense was hard to score against. He can pressure the ball using his quickness and length, which gets the other team out of sets. He also made a couple of great rotations. For the game, Hill finished with 21 points on 6-for-14 shooting. I was really impressed by how he controlled the game on both ends of the floor and it was obvious he was the best player on the court. The aspect I like about him is that he doesn't get flustered. Even when he was 0-for-123425235 in Vegas, he kept playing defense and kept running the plays. Those are the type of players who play well under Pop. Now, he still has a lot to prove in terms of his outside shooting, ability to finish against athletic bigs and his playmaking skills ... but this was a gigantic step forward compared to what he showed in Vegas. Hopefully he can finish off summer league strong and get his confidence high going into training camp.
-Ian Mahinmi had by far his worst game in summer league. He just didn't show up. Team defense wise, I thought he was decently attentive and had a few highlight plays but he wasn't rebounding and he zoned out a few times. If I didn't know better, I'd think Mahinmi is bored of this level of competition. Offensively, he was pretty weak for the most part. He'd score if he got the ball in good spots but struggled mightily creating anything for himself. On a whole, this summer league experience has had a lot more negatives than positives for Mahinmi. The hope was he'd show he was one of the better young bigs in the game and would be ready to step into a substantial role on a championship caliber team. He can still get there but he hasn't shown to be anywhere near a shoo-in at this point. Luckily for Mahinmi, it'll be a whole different ballgame when he's lining up next to Tim Duncan and he's basically being ignored for 48 minutes a night.
-James Gist was decent but it was a step down from what we've seen out of him. He looks gassed, which is to be expected considering he just played his fifth game in five nights. He still had energy but not the boundless amount of energy he has shown up to date. He still had a few very nice plays and led the team in rebounding with six. Gist continues to look like a guy who has a chance to help right away as a rookie. Considering his skillset is almost exactly what the Spurs are lacking, hopefully Pop and co. give him a chance during training camp and preseason. There is absolutely no reason for him not to be on the 15 man roster.
-Malik Hairston was again a little bit better. His defense was much, much better. He made a few rotations that had the bench and coaching staff giving him a standing ovation. He still has a ways to recover from his horrid start to summer league but he's inching his way toward a training camp invite. Offensively, his jumper seems to have deserted him, yet he's a very good finisher around the basket ... at least on the summer league level. Once he jumps towards the basket, he's going to finish whether someone contests the shot or not. I'm not sure he's done enough to make the roster this year but he's at least improving on a daily basis.
-Tolliver continues to show range. Green played poorly and was ball hogging more than usual. Powell had a few promising moments but he'll probably end up in Europe for another year.
Nice job by the Spurs. A win in Utah is always a good win. :tu
Tomorrow the Spurs play the "D-League All-Stars" in the Rocky Mountain Revue. I have no clue whether the Spurs are going to treat it as a regular summer league game or if they will simply use it as an opportunity to play the end of the bench. Find out for yourself at 5:30PM CST.
As a team, the Spurs summer league team played really well. It was easily their best game of the summer leagues. In their first game at Rocky Mountain Revue, they beat the hometown Utah Jazz 82-57. While it's true that the Jazz team wasn't too talented, the Spurs just thoroughly beat Utah down. Defensively, the Spurs were pretty darn cohesive, considering the circumstances.
-Alright, now this looks like a first round draft pick. George Hill was a totally different player in this game. Looking back at his work in the Vegas league, it's obvious he didn't have his legs at all. In Vegas, he rarely used his speed, didn't push the ball and looked embarrassingly overmatched when trying to finish at the basket. In this game, it was a totally different story. His speed in the open court was impressive. He finished in a variety of ways around the basket -- even after contact. And while he still struggled with his jumper, the shots were much closer. Defensively, he was still really aggressive and was the main reason why the Spurs defense was hard to score against. He can pressure the ball using his quickness and length, which gets the other team out of sets. He also made a couple of great rotations. For the game, Hill finished with 21 points on 6-for-14 shooting. I was really impressed by how he controlled the game on both ends of the floor and it was obvious he was the best player on the court. The aspect I like about him is that he doesn't get flustered. Even when he was 0-for-123425235 in Vegas, he kept playing defense and kept running the plays. Those are the type of players who play well under Pop. Now, he still has a lot to prove in terms of his outside shooting, ability to finish against athletic bigs and his playmaking skills ... but this was a gigantic step forward compared to what he showed in Vegas. Hopefully he can finish off summer league strong and get his confidence high going into training camp.
-Ian Mahinmi had by far his worst game in summer league. He just didn't show up. Team defense wise, I thought he was decently attentive and had a few highlight plays but he wasn't rebounding and he zoned out a few times. If I didn't know better, I'd think Mahinmi is bored of this level of competition. Offensively, he was pretty weak for the most part. He'd score if he got the ball in good spots but struggled mightily creating anything for himself. On a whole, this summer league experience has had a lot more negatives than positives for Mahinmi. The hope was he'd show he was one of the better young bigs in the game and would be ready to step into a substantial role on a championship caliber team. He can still get there but he hasn't shown to be anywhere near a shoo-in at this point. Luckily for Mahinmi, it'll be a whole different ballgame when he's lining up next to Tim Duncan and he's basically being ignored for 48 minutes a night.
-James Gist was decent but it was a step down from what we've seen out of him. He looks gassed, which is to be expected considering he just played his fifth game in five nights. He still had energy but not the boundless amount of energy he has shown up to date. He still had a few very nice plays and led the team in rebounding with six. Gist continues to look like a guy who has a chance to help right away as a rookie. Considering his skillset is almost exactly what the Spurs are lacking, hopefully Pop and co. give him a chance during training camp and preseason. There is absolutely no reason for him not to be on the 15 man roster.
-Malik Hairston was again a little bit better. His defense was much, much better. He made a few rotations that had the bench and coaching staff giving him a standing ovation. He still has a ways to recover from his horrid start to summer league but he's inching his way toward a training camp invite. Offensively, his jumper seems to have deserted him, yet he's a very good finisher around the basket ... at least on the summer league level. Once he jumps towards the basket, he's going to finish whether someone contests the shot or not. I'm not sure he's done enough to make the roster this year but he's at least improving on a daily basis.
-Tolliver continues to show range. Green played poorly and was ball hogging more than usual. Powell had a few promising moments but he'll probably end up in Europe for another year.
Nice job by the Spurs. A win in Utah is always a good win. :tu
Tomorrow the Spurs play the "D-League All-Stars" in the Rocky Mountain Revue. I have no clue whether the Spurs are going to treat it as a regular summer league game or if they will simply use it as an opportunity to play the end of the bench. Find out for yourself at 5:30PM CST.