Game Thoughts - Spurs @ Warriors - January 24th

[Cry Havoc]

I've been busy recently so I was only able to catch about 4 quarters of action over the past two games.. As such, I don't feel it acceptable to grade players based only on the effort I saw, so I thought I would share some of the things I noticed in my time watching the game yesterday. I'll try to keep the format relatively similar to game grades, but with less of an emphasis on the "grade" and more what kind of effort I saw from each player.

Tony Parker - Say what you want to about his propensity to dribble a lot -- you aren't a true Spurs fan if you can't appreciate the attitude that Tony projects on the court. Last night, he was incredibly aggressive and went after the defense, taking whatever they gave him and multiple times going up against several post defenders at once. His foot was on the gas most of the game. He also had three steals on defense and was quick to pick up lazy passes from the Warriors.

Manu Ginobili - Well, he still shot under 50%, but is there any doubt that Manu is getting his shooting touch back? His shots simply looked more fluid last night. His pull up 3 in transition may not be on Pop's playbook, but it was good the instant it left his fingertips and looked as smooth as glass. 20/4/7 tonight for Manu, a fantastic game from what I saw of him.

Richard Jefferson - A lot of people are probably going to disagree with me here, but I absolutely loved RJ's play last night. He was constant hustle on both ends of the court. After starting 1-7 shooting he kept his confidence up and hit his final 3 shots to finish 4-10, and his 4th quarter buckets really took the wind out of GS's sails. But even more impressive were his closeouts on the other end. He got burned a couple of times, but he was always looking to pressure the shooter into rushing his shot. I'll take a game like this 9 out of 10 nights from RJ.

Tim Duncan - And then there was silence. All of Spurs fandom was collective holding it's breath as the best player in franchise history -- perhaps THE franchise, in many ways -- crumpled to the court. But he looked fine, if a bit wary in the 2nd half, and went for 16/7/3 with a couple of steals and a block, and more shot alterations in only 27 minutes of play. Duncan may not record as many blocks as Dwight Howard, but if they kept alterations as a stat, Duncan would be in the top 3 every single year of his career, even playing 29 minutes per game.

DeJuan Blair - Just not his game. However, even as his stats don't jump off the page, I still saw some pretty impressive things from DB tonight. His passing for a big man is absolutely phenomenal -- I think he had more than his assist total shows last night, because I distinctly remember at least two passes he made that were absolutely perfect and led to easy buckets for the Spurs. I think this guy is a keeper, he looks to have a ton of upside.

Bench - George Hill and Gary Neal both had really nice games. I loved our mid-range shooting throughout this contest, and it was driving the Warrior announcers crazy. Tiago Splitter even gave us some good minutes and scored 7 points with 6 boards. He just needs to hit his FTs. Antonio McDyess was awesome tonight. 14/10 in just 25 minutes of action, and his jump shot was absolute butter. Great defensive pressure from 1st and 2nd units tonight, forcing the Warriors into a lot of tough shots.

Popovich coached a solid game as usual. Can't argue with giving Blair some rest after playing him so much recently. Tiago on the floor soaking up minutes in exchange for points and rebounds was good.

General thoughts:
Well, the Warriors played a very lax/lazy defense, choosing to give us shots from 15-20 feet out rather than to play us tight and risk getting burned. Instead, the Spurs crushed that strategy by drilling shot after shot. Offense looked great, defense looked acceptably decent for most of the game.

That said, I'm a little concerned about a couple of things. First, I don't like how few guys on our team manage to fight through screens -- it's a good thing our D rotation is so good, because otherwise we'd get burned a lot.
Secondly, this team has been starting very slowly as of late. It's letting teams get confidence out of the gate and it forces us to burn more energy late-game to win. This wasn't a very strenuous affair, but I would like to see the Spurs build up some 20 point leads if our starters are going to play 30+ minutes.
David Lee went off on us. I'm not sure if that was by design, as we really limited Monta Ellis, but the fact is we need to find a way to guard post players a little more effectively.

Lastly, I have to wonder if the Spurs players are getting somewhat comfortable with the regular season. We're #1 in the league, and at this point we're just trying to win games without sustaining any injuries. The look of this team has become one that's pacing itself -- perhaps why we aren't blowing teams out from the first quarter. When you watch the ball movement, you really do get the idea that the Spurs are just a class above the rest of the NBA right now, save 3-5 other elite teams. I hope we can keep a killer instinct going after March, because this team is probably going to hit 50 wins relatively soon, as we saw with the Patriots what happens when a team relaxes even for an instant.

38-7. Going for 39 Wednesday night. Go Spurs Go.

[urunobili]

Cry with the goods :tu

[DrSteffo]

Thank you OP, very good post. Hope you can find time to do the game grades too soon.

[Manu-of-steel]

Thanks, Cry Havoc. Nice observations.. I have noticed for the past several games, TP was really aggressive, especially at the first few minutes of the game..

[honestfool84]

:tu thanks for the Game Thoughts. nice read since i missed the game last night.

[Penya]

Manu's the one who turns on that killer instinct. And I have no doubt he'll do it.

[mingus]

i hope Pop runs more plays for RJ like he did last night. RJ needs to be involved in the game. sometimes our offense goes away from him, but they need to run a play for him every 1/5 times down the court. to many times he goes quarters without touching the ball.

[Agloco]

Richard Jefferson - A lot of people are probably going to disagree with me here, but I absolutely loved RJ's play last night. He was constant hustle on both ends of the court. After starting 1-7 shooting he kept his confidence up and hit his final 3 shots to finish 4-10, and his 4th quarter buckets really took the wind out of GS's sails. But even more impressive were his closeouts on the other end. He got burned a couple of times, but he was always looking to pressure the shooter into rushing his shot. I'll take a game like this 9 out of 10 nights from RJ.

Yeah I agree here. It's all about timing with Dicky J. If he shows up in the fourth like last night and he stays aggressive on the defensive end, I've got no problem with him going 4-10.

[Fireball]

i hope Pop runs more plays for RJ like he did last night. RJ needs to be involved in the game. sometimes our offense goes away from him, but they need to run a play for him every 1/5 times down the court. to many times he goes quarters without touching the ball.

and it should not be 3 pointers, but some 2s instead ... he showed often times that he can hit the long range 2 off the dribble ...

[TheSpurglar]

Manu Ginobili - Well, he still shot under 50%, but is there any doubt that Manu is getting his shooting touch back? His shots simply looked more fluid last night. His pull up 3 in transition may not be on Pop's playbook, but it was good the instant it left his fingertips and looked as smooth as glass. 20/4/7 tonight for Manu, a fantastic game from what I saw of him.

Was at the game last night, and I think Manu woke up after the foul was called on him that led to three free throws for Dorrell Wright. Manu ended up drawing the same foul on Wright later in the game, Wright got pissed about it, and Manu took it as a challenge from that point on. He was really aggressive and unafraid to shoot after that. The only thing my buddies and I were surprised by last night were the missed free throws.


DeJuan Blair - Just not his game. However, even as his stats don't jump off the page, I still saw some pretty impressive things from DB tonight. His passing for a big man is absolutely phenomenal -- I think he had more than his assist total shows last night, because I distinctly remember at least two passes he made that were absolutely perfect and led to easy buckets for the Spurs. I think this guy is a keeper, he looks to have a ton of upside.

In warm-ups Blair was popping a mid-range jumper (I use the term loosely, it was almost a set shot) that he hit late in the game. He was hitting it pretty consistently, and it looks like something he's trying to incorporate into his game. He was also clowning around with Duncan quite a bit. They seem to have a nice rapport out there.


Tiago Splitter even gave us some good minutes and scored 7 points with 6 boards. He just needs to hit his FTs.

Tiago had a pretty good game, but he needs to learn to finish a little stronger. A lot of his misses could have been makes, and a lot of his free throws could have been and 1's instead. As opposed to Blair, he looked a little lost and awkward during warm-ups, like he wasn't sure what shot to take even in a relaxed setting. It was great to see him get so much time though. Once he learns to finish a little stronger I think he'll see more minutes and more looks from his teammates. After his misses you could see his positioning and potential to score was still solid, but his teammates just weren't looking to him as much.


Offense looked great, defense looked acceptably decent for most of the game.

Defense in the first quarter sucked, then was solid throughout the game except for a stretch at the end of the third quarter after the Spurs got their first (it seemed like) double-digit lead where they kind of relaxed and let the Warriors have their way for a while again. Problem for the Warriors was the Spurs had their way pretty much all game, so it didn't amount to much.


David Lee went off on us. I'm not sure if that was by design, as we really limited Monta Ellis, but the fact is we need to find a way to guard post players a little more effectively.

I've gone to quite a few Warriors games this year, and they NEVER go to David Lee as much as they were in this game. I get the feeling from some of Lee's comments that he might have a little beef with the Spurs. He roasted Blair, but Duncan did a pretty decent job on him. He missed quite a few shots that Duncan challenged. And I don't know if it was seen on any broadcasts, but he and Duncan shoved each other a few times during the game. Nothing major, but it seemed a little chippy between Duncan and Lee, just as it seemed between Wright and Jefferson/Ginobili from time to time. As an aside, Blair could really use a lesson on the way Duncan gives up ground but maintains proper position to challenge shots. It's amazing to watch in person.

[urunobili]

Manu screwed his personal best 44 str8 FT big time by missing not only the first one he took but way too much from what he has us used to...

[Doctor J]

Well done, Good read!

I just disagree with your assessment of RJ.

Keep up the good work!

[Cry Havoc]

Was at the game last night, and I think Manu woke up after the foul was called on him that led to three free throws for Dorrell Wright. Manu ended up drawing the same foul on Wright later in the game, Wright got pissed about it, and Manu took it as a challenge from that point on. He was really aggressive and unafraid to shoot after that. The only thing my buddies and I were surprised by last night were the missed free throws.



In warm-ups Blair was popping a mid-range jumper (I use the term loosely, it was almost a set shot) that he hit late in the game. He was hitting it pretty consistently, and it looks like something he's trying to incorporate into his game. He was also clowning around with Duncan quite a bit. They seem to have a nice rapport out there.



Tiago had a pretty good game, but he needs to learn to finish a little stronger. A lot of his misses could have been makes, and a lot of his free throws could have been and 1's instead. As opposed to Blair, he looked a little lost and awkward during warm-ups, like he wasn't sure what shot to take even in a relaxed setting. It was great to see him get so much time though. Once he learns to finish a little stronger I think he'll see more minutes and more looks from his teammates. After his misses you could see his positioning and potential to score was still solid, but his teammates just weren't looking to him as much.



Defense in the first quarter sucked, then was solid throughout the game except for a stretch at the end of the third quarter after the Spurs got their first (it seemed like) double-digit lead where they kind of relaxed and let the Warriors have their way for a while again. Problem for the Warriors was the Spurs had their way pretty much all game, so it didn't amount to much.



I've gone to quite a few Warriors games this year, and they NEVER go to David Lee as much as they were in this game. I get the feeling from some of Lee's comments that he might have a little beef with the Spurs. He roasted Blair, but Duncan did a pretty decent job on him. He missed quite a few shots that Duncan challenged. And I don't know if it was seen on any broadcasts, but he and Duncan shoved each other a few times during the game. Nothing major, but it seemed a little chippy between Duncan and Lee, just as it seemed between Wright and Jefferson/Ginobili from time to time. As an aside, Blair could really use a lesson on the way Duncan gives up ground but maintains proper position to challenge shots. It's amazing to watch in person.

Great post. Always nice to see insight from stuff that's not put on the TV.

Wasn't David Lee the guy that RJ teabagged earlier this year? I bet that has a lot to do with his ire. Players like that piss me off. He's got the talent to go for 18-9 every night. What, he needs to get pissed off to play well? That's ridiculous, and makes me think they don't have enough passion for the game.

[Doctor J]

Manu screwed his personal best 44 str8 FT big time by missing not only the first one he took but way too much from what he has us used to...

Looks like he exchanged his freethrow shooting accuracy with that of 3 point shooting... In the last few games when he was not able to hit threes, he was perfect from the freethrow lne. Tonight, it was reverse.... Just a thought.

[gsmith78]

Did anyone catch Dice's comments with Land and Elliott at the end of the game? Maybe I mis-heard things since I was on my computer at the same time, but I believe he said that DB was in the dog house due to his defense and that is why Tiago saw so much time. I didn't notice any huge amount of defensive lapses last night on Blair's part and in fact just watching as a fan I thought he had a pretty solid game. Did anyone else watching with more of a critical eye on the game see many missteps on Blair's part during the game that may lend credence to the comment about being in the dog house?

Whatever the reason, it was nice seeing Tiago get some minutes along with the rest of the bigs. If he could finish at the rim a bit more regularly I think those passes from Manu and Tony will start finding him a lot more often. He had 2 chip shots tonight that I recall that should have dropped but he didn't quite have the right touch on the shots, but all in all he seems to be feeling more comfortable on the court.

[Cry Havoc]

The worst part about Tiago's game (I think most will agree with me) is that you KNOW if we traded him elsewhere he would suddenly start averaging 16 and 8. :pctoss

[Doctor J]

The worst part about Tiago's game (I think most will agree with me) is that you KNOW if we traded him elsewhere he would suddenly start averaging 16 and 8. :pctoss


I agree... like Scola... Beno Udrich...

[TheSpurglar]

Did anyone catch Dice's comments with Land and Elliott at the end of the game? Maybe I mis-heard things since I was on my computer at the same time, but I believe he said that DB was in the dog house due to his defense and that is why Tiago saw so much time. I didn't notice any huge amount of defensive lapses last night on Blair's part and in fact just watching as a fan I thought he had a pretty solid game. Did anyone else watching with more of a critical eye on the game see many missteps on Blair's part during the game that may lend credence to the comment about being in the dog house?

I didn't hear the interview, but Pop did have the quick hook on Blair early in the game. Lee was lighting him up out there, and Pop had Duncan defending the awful Andris Beidrins to start the game, so I could see Lee's production as the reason for Blair's early benching. But to be honest, while Tiago had his moments defensively, there were quite a few times that Lee broke him down and scored pretty easily too. Duncan and Dice were really the only guys limiting Lee at all from what I saw. I will say that Blair seemed to play much better after the half.

[TheSpurglar]

Wasn't David Lee the guy that RJ teabagged earlier this year? I bet that has a lot to do with his ire. Players like that piss me off. He's got the talent to go for 18-9 every night. What, he needs to get pissed off to play well? That's ridiculous, and makes me think they don't have enough passion for the game.

Yeah, it was Lee. That's probably it. Honestly, the only reason Lee isn't a 20-10 guy right now is that the Warriors don't go to him as much as they should. He's basically their 3rd and sometimes 4th option most nights. With the guards they have and Lee's mobility, they should really use the pick 'n roll more.

[Dice]

I didn't hear the interview, but Pop did have the quick hook on Blair early in the game. Lee was lighting him up out there, and Pop had Duncan defending the awful Andris Beidrins to start the game, so I could see Lee's production as the reason for Blair's early benching. But to be honest, while Tiago had his moments defensively, there were quite a few times that Lee broke him down and scored pretty easily too. Duncan and Dice were really the only guys limiting Lee at all from what I saw. I will say that Blair seemed to play much better after the half.

I recall one of the assistant coaches getting in his face after coming to the bench and you could tell Blair was frustrated. I think maybe they had a specific game plan for how they wanted him to play Lee and he wasn't holding to it.

[mingus]

and it should not be 3 pointers, but some 2s instead ... he showed often times that he can hit the long range 2 off the dribble ...

yup. one of Pop's failures offensively this year has been not creating one on one opportunities for RJ. when RJ catches the ball in the mid-post and faces up, he's highly effective at getting to the rim and making something happen, usually getting to the line. he can also face up and hit the mid-range jumper. instead all he has is that one designed alley oop play, which teams are already figuring out. RJ has other offensive tools that for whatever reason Popovich doesn't utilize. they should be utilized too. i'd rather RJ catch the ball in the scenario i just mentioned than Manu jack up threes like there's no tomorrow and make 1 one of them--which has happened quite a bit of late.

People will bitch and moan about RJ regressing, but they neglect the fact that Pop has not utilized him properly. yeah, i realize out record is godly and everything, but that doesn't mean that there aren't valid criticism that can made.

[Cry Havoc]

I recall one of the assistant coaches getting in his face after coming to the bench and you could tell Blair was frustrated. I think maybe they had a specific game plan for how they wanted him to play Lee and he wasn't holding to it.

Yeah, I remember that. Blair was probably gambling too much on D, as he usually does.

[Mugen]

If Dejuan isn't able to utilize his quickness advantage that he has against most bigs, then he really becomes a subpar defender.

If he isn't able to grab steals or deflections then he usually ends up getting one torched 1 on 1.

quicker bigs like Lee who can also shoot tend to give Blair a lot of problems. that's why i think he has more success against true bigs like Bynum who have limited mobility.

[Brazil]

Thanks Cry Havoc ! great game thoughts !

Maybe you should remove the grades of your games breakdown: people are spending more time analyzing the game than arguing with grades !



Not related to spurs player but I would be glad to have your thoughts guys regarding Dorell. I was impressed by his stats (didn't see the game but he is in my fantasy teams) he put 18 pts, 7 rebs, 9 assists (holy cow), 1 stl, 1 blk only one turnover !! Who was guarding him ? His plays were as good as his stats ?

[igruex]

Lastly, I have to wonder if the Spurs players are getting somewhat comfortable with the regular season. We're #1 in the league, and at this point we're just trying to win games without sustaining any injuries. The look of this team has become one that's pacing itself -- perhaps why we aren't blowing teams out from the first quarter.

Spot on, I get the same feeling. However seems to me that Pop wants them to pace themselves except for certain periods of the games when he ask to improve greatly the intensity, specially on defense. As long as the competition (Dallas-LA) struggle they are more than ok with this scheme.

The games we threw away against ORL-NYK-NOH could very well support the case.

[igruex]

Maybe you should remove the grades of your games breakdown: people are spending more time analyzing the game than arguing with grades !


Good point.

[duncan228]

Tim Duncan - And then there was silence.

Frightening moment. This team may not rely on Duncan as it used to, but getting through the Playoffs will be hard, if not impossible, if he's not able to be as close to 'Playoff Duncan' as possible. Glad he seemed okay and hope we don't have a scare like that again, with Duncan or anyone else.

Thanks for the write-up, appreciate the time. Nicely done. :tu

[Mel_13]

Frightening moment. This team may not rely on Duncan as it used to, but getting through the Playoffs will be hard, if not impossible, if he's not able to be as close to 'Playoff Duncan' as possible. Glad he seemed okay and hope we don't have a scare like that again, with Duncan or anyone else.

Thanks for the write-up, appreciate the time. Nicely done. :tu

It would definitely be impossible. That scene gave me a sick feeling.

[urunobili]

It would definitely be impossible. That scene gave me a sick feeling.

I completely lost my cool yesterday after that...

[Pauleta14]

Maybe you should remove the grades of your games breakdown: people are spending more time analyzing the game than arguing with grades !


:nope

I like reading people arguing about the grades, it's actualy funny and quite interesting...

:toast