Rockets @ Spurs - Dec 21 - Preseason Game Blog

[angelbelow]

Oh my

[timtonymanu]

Love to see Cory get the back-up point position. The only reason why I think he will end up in Austin or not get a lot of playing time is because he missed most of training camp. Splitter was benched last year because of that. I hope Pop doesn't do that to Joseph.

[Fireball]

word that is the strongest part of his game

and he shows some other stuff too ... floater ... passing

[MaNu4Tres]

Neal> Joseph> Ford for the back-up PG minutes in big games. IMO

[Nathan89]

wheres kawhi

Giving Green an opportunity to take his minutes.

[Spurs Brazil]

Leonard needs to be more agressive

[ElNono]

Pop with the ultra-defensive lineup... where are the points going to come from here? TJ Ford?

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

"won't go for leonard" urgh

[Gospursel]

CJ > Ford
Hassell >Lawal

[Fireball]

Pop with the ultra-defensive lineup... where are the points going to come from here? TJ Ford?

ultra-defensive lineup and Ford in one sentence ... nice :lol

[024]

leonard having a hill esque start with the spurs.

[Manufan909]

I didn't think a scrub could score with Lawal and Cassell there. Aren't they both shot blockers, or just Lawal?

[ElNono]

ultra-defensive lineup and Ford in one sentence ... nice :lol

Just saying... TJ Ford, Danny Green, Kawhi, Hasell, Lawal

[Nathan89]

Love to see Cory get the back-up point position. The only reason why I think he will end up in Austin or not get a lot of playing time is because he missed most of training camp. Splitter was benched last year because of that. I hope Pop doesn't do that to Joseph.

Joseph has no chance of playing. He would have to be significantly better than
Ford to do so.

[LakerHater]

Williams puttin on a show!

[ElNono]

Hasell or Lawal need to post up

[Ice009]

TJ Ford is playing trash ball.

[Nathan89]

When Leonard dribbles he does a little shake move and never goes anywhere. He doesn't even attempt to.

[ElNono]

Oh shit... Phantom of the Opera in

[ChuckD]

Kawhi is going to make the team. Green needs minutes to be evaluated.

[NRHector]

TJ Ford is playing trash ball.I miss George Hill :depressed

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

lol the maskman

[ace3g]

Lawal with another TD ban shot attempt...

[Gospursel]

Just saying... TJ Ford, Danny Green, Kawhi, Hasell, Lawal

I actually thought the best defensive line up during that stretch at the end of the third was Splitter, Hassell, Anderson, Green, and Joseph

[Manufan909]

Hasell or Lawal need to post up

Lawal just did... and it appears he isn't very good at it. Or he's just trying too hard to get on the team. Hopefully him and Hassell both are signed for all those b2b2bs and 4 games in 5 nights.

[ElNono]

Lawal just did... and it appears he isn't very good at it. Or he's just trying too hard to get on the team. Hopefully him and Cassell both are signed for all those b2b2bs and 4 games in 5 nights.

Posting up doesn't necessarily mean taking the shot... just establish position and play some inside-out game

[ElNono]

Good drive by Cow-hi

[ace3g]

there we go Leonard, attacks the basket and gets to the line

[Ice009]

Kawhi doesn't look interested at all.

[Spurs Brazil]

Finally Leonard attacking. Need to see more of this

[Manufan909]

Lawal didn't walk!!! smh

[tmtcsc]

Leonard has lethargic body language.

[angelbelow]

Kawhi doesn't look interested at all.

Isn't that his constant expression though. He either looks like hes bored out of his mind or hes about to cry.

[LakerHater]

3 & 1!!!

[Spurs Brazil]

Green 333333333 and one

[LakerHater]

4 point play!!

[The ADMIRAL 50]

man that zeller shot was bad. too bad, its nice seeing someone that tall in a spurs uniform, not like he would play inside anyways though.

cory joseph has looked very solid from what i have seen.

[bklynspursfan]

New guy here... Man I wish we had bigs to defend like our 2's and 3's do...

[ElNono]

Welp, let's hope we're ready for monday... tbh, Manu still has ways to go and I didn't like the production of the starting lineup at all.

[Fireball]

Green looks much better than last game ...

[Ice009]

Leonard has lethargic body language.

Yeah, that's what I was getting at. Seems to me he doesn't seem into it. His defense is good, but overall he seems disinterested. I would have thought he'd play harder and show more energy.

[Spurs Brazil]

CJ looks better than I expected. I like the young guys on D. Let's see if they can help on the other end too

[Nathan89]

Isn't that his constant expression though. He either looks like hes bored out of his mind or hes about to cry.

We need more intensity.

[ElNono]

Joseph looks like a straight up vato

[NRHector]

Joseph looks like a straight up vato

:lol

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

lol

[024]

lawal giving pop excuses not to play him.

[DesignatedT]

Wish we had Terrance Williams.

[tim_duncan_fan]

No D-League for Cory Joseph, thanks.

And I still like Danny Green.

[The ADMIRAL 50]

hassel wants it the most out of the lawal, zeller, hassel group. you can tell he cares, upset when he makes a mistake, emphatic high fives to free throw shooting teammates, etc.

[Budkin]

LOL Preseason choke.

[ElNono]

Green with the move that will land him on the Toros

[bklynspursfan]

no offense at all

[bbarry]

kiwi!!

yawn too ez!!

[LakerHater]

Overtime???

[Budkin]

Leonard!!!

[NRHector]

:wow open season

[ace3g]

I guess Kawhi needs the stakes to be high before he hits a shot.... which is a good thing

[Nathan89]

He doesn't even crack a smile.

[LakerHater]

Kiwi!!!

[tim_duncan_fan]

Kawhi!!!!!!!!!!!111111!!!!!!!

[Spurs Brazil]

Leonard clutch!!!!

[024]

leonard finally makes one!

[Libri]

I hope that gives him a lot of confidence.

[Fireball]

Kawhi with the game winner ... could not make a shot earlier ... confidence builder I hope

[angelbelow]

We need more intensity.

Lol theres your excitement. Double fist pump but little to no facial change.

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

yes kawhi!

[bbarry]

damn all yall streams lagging. lol

[Manufan909]

New guy here... Man I wish we had bigs to defend like our 2's and 3's do...

Welcome.:toast

Did anyone think Dragic was fouled at the end? My stream started stuttering the last few minutes?

[Robz4000]

Got my blood pumpin! Great way to set up the start of the season.

[ElNono]

Somebody tell Kawhi a joke

[Ice009]

Kawhi with the Gary Neal type jolt! Exactly what he needed.

[Fireball]

Kawhi -17 ... how did that happen?

[NRHector]

Welcome.:toast

Did anyone think Dragic was fouled at the end? My stream started stuttering the last few minutes?

yeah but who cares

[The ADMIRAL 50]

Welcome.:toast

Did anyone think Dragic was fouled at the end? My stream started stuttering the last few minutes?

honestly i think it was just great d and contest from joseph, with kawhi there to help as well. definitely nothing to complain about if your dragic, especially in a buzzer beater situation.

[ace3g]

we need a gif of that game winner

[DesignatedT]

I know Kawhi hasn't had many shots go down but I was under the impression that his form was worse than it is. I don't think him developing a nice jump shot is far off. His shot isn't too bad looking.

[Fireball]

Welcome.:toast

Did anyone think Dragic was fouled at the end? My stream started stuttering the last few minutes?

You have to be a superstar to get a call in the last seconds of the game ... refs let you play it out

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

You have to be a superstar to get a call in the last seconds of the game ... refs let you play it out

well, he did get called for "travel".

[The ADMIRAL 50]

You have to be a superstar to get a call in the last seconds of the game ... refs let you play it out

exactly. just saw the replay again and i'm standing by my first take, perfectly played d by joseph

[Nathan89]

Kawhi needs a lot of work in all aspects of his game.

[LakerHater]

we need a gif of that game winner
Preseason gif?? http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/images/smilies/confusedshrug.gif



http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/images/smilies/basketball.gif

[Gospursel]

Cory Joseph will stick around as the third string PG, right? I keep hearing about him getting sent to Austin...

[FkLA]

Kawhi needs a lot of work in all aspects of his game.

This. Most of yall nlggas need to be realistic and realize hes only like 19. I dont think he will have much of an impact this season.

[Spur|n|Austin]

we need a gif of that game winner

Why's that?

[urunobili]

He's been playing under "too much" control (Kawhi I mean) his shot is flat and needs a higher arc. Good for his confidence to hit that shot and for the ones hating, remember Hill was HORRID on preseason and Summer League and started ballin' when the games mattered. Just saying.

[tim_duncan_fan]

This. Most of yall nlggas need to be realistic and realize hes only like 19. I dont think he will have much of an impact this season.

He's already the 4th best defensive player on the team at the least.

[Sense]

This. Most of yall nlggas need to be realistic and realize hes only like 19. I dont think he will have much of an impact this season.

He's 20, and I don't know if you've realized this but we aren't exactly stacked at SF, so whether you like it or not.. he's going to get playing time.

[urunobili]

He's 20, and I don't know if you've realized this but we aren't exactly stacked at SF, so whether you like it or not.. he's going to get playing time.

agreed. Pop played Anderson at the 3 some today.

[Obstructed_View]

You have to be a superstar to get a call in the last seconds of the game ... refs let you play it out

I imagine the coaches would have kicked the referees to death if they forced overtime with a last second call.

[mexicanjunior]

Kawhi needs a lot of work in all aspects of his game.

Yep...outside of his panic game winner at the end, he just looks like a guy out there. He is still young though, could turn into something at some point but right now Green seems to be more of a player. Shame we gave up a solid rotation guy for someone that looks like he needs seasoning in Austin before being a real contributor.

[Tuddy]

He needs to just keep on working on spotting up this year - save all his energy for his D

[ace3g]

Caption:

http://i.cdn.turner.com/dr/nba/teamsites/release/spurs/sites/spurs/files/imagecache/local_image_gallery_default/111221_97.jpg

[Fpoonsie]

Preseason gif?? http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/images/smilies/confusedshrug.gif



http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/images/smilies/basketball.gif

:lmao

Nice.

[ElNono]

http://i.cdn.turner.com/dr/nba/teamsites/release/spurs/sites/spurs/files/imagecache/local_image_gallery_default/111221_97.jpg

Kawhi: What do you call 15 mexicans in a van?

[LakerHater]

http://209.160.24.97/ds_img_direct.php?i=2275415lu9x.jpg&t=8&d=1fjdcjav7c&x=360&y=480&l1=169&l2=61

[GSH]

My daughter came home from college and took me to the game tonight, as an early Christmas present. Sometimes things look different in person, so I'll share a few observations:

First, I want to disagree with TIMVP about T.J. Ford. Last game he said that Ford looked like a pylon on defense. I think "matador" would be a better description. There were several occasions where standing still like a pylon would have been much more useful. I watched Ford play several times in college, and when he was in Milwaukee and Toronto. This isn't the same T.J. Ford. He always had strong points and weak points. Tonight - no strong points.

Cory Joseph, on the other hand, was a pleasant surprise. His court vision looks very good, and he keeps the offense moving, and makes timely passes. (Unlike Ford, who often couldn't seem to make up his mind until it was too late.) One of the most difficult things about last season was the way the offense would stagnate when Parker left the game. I didn't see that happening with Joseph, which is a big plus. He has plenty of room to improve, but I feel a lot better about him on the floor with the second team than the T.J. Ford I saw tonight.

On the first few possessions, I was really excited about the way Blair was handling Scola. Fronting him, denying him the ball. But, once again, his attention just seemed to drift after a few minutes. He got a couple of nice gambling steals, but he gets torched trying that more often than he gets the ball. Also, when he was running down the court on defense, my daughter leaned over and said, "He looks like someone running in house slippers, trying to keep them from coming off." Needless to say, he was late for the party a few times. I think that it's known as "taking a play off". He might as well start picking out decorations for the dog house.

Danny Green is probably going to the Toros. But, in fairness, there were several occasions where he got left holding the bag for his teammates' mistakes. I felt kind of sorry for him. Several plays looked bad, that just weren't his fault. He'll do well in Austin. I just didn't see him as ready for prime time.

Other than the last shot, Kawhi Leonard was pretty much a non-entity. I spent some time just watching him on the court, and he definitely didn't make any sudden moves. When he was moving without the ball on offense, he didn't seem interested in making his defender work too hard. He was all curves, and no angles, and had to run out near the 3-point line a lot, before his defender would let him catch the ball. I just didn't see a lot of energy there. When you watch a 34 year old Manu come clean whenever he wants to, it's a little hard to deal with a lethargic 20 year old. And if you're looking for stop-and-pop, look somewhere else. As of now, he's not creating his own shot. I hope he picks it up, because I'm going to need something to make me quit thinking about how much I'd like to see George Hill in the game instead.

Gani Lawal, on the other hand, looked like he really wants a roster spot. That was one hell of a block he put on Scola. He made some mistakes, but his effort was good, and his performance was adequate. After the game, I was surprised that his stat line didn't look a little better. He's not ready for anyone's starting lineup, but I wouldn't mind seeing him make the team. If Lawal had been drafted by us, and had the guaranteed contract, I think people would be more positive about him, and would be debating whether Leonard was going to make the team.

Anderson and Hassell were forgettable, for most of their minutes. I've totally forgotten about Zeller. I wish I could forget about Dick. Bonner looks good in a suit.

[AFBlue]

Went to the game and saw everyone up close. My thoughts...

I have no concerns about the starting unit. Tim, Tony and Manu are all on the same page and are individually executing in regular season form. Even though I can't stand the way Jefferson moves on the court (apathetic w/ no fire), he picked his spots and hit his shots. Blair continues to get torched defensively (except for the steals), but he works well with the starting unit offensively.

Off the bench is where it gets shaky. Anderson probably showed the most of the regular reserves, but he just wasn't consistent on either end. Splitter was awful...I mean awful on offense. He was indecisive, and when he did commit it was weak. I thought this guy would be used to facing double teams and putting the team on his shoulders, but as it looks right now he's a defensive rotation piece and nothing more. Leonard showed next to nothing for 47:55 and then he finally grew a pair. I liked that last shot, but the others were flat and bad. He was far too passive and timid in every aspect of the game. Hopefully its just taking him soe time to find his place, but he doesn't look ready. Speaking of passive...TJ Ford is clearly still trying to figure things out. When he was actually decisive and took a shot, he looked good. It just didnt happen very often. Which is why he was outplayed by the guy who leads the next group...young guns that showed sone heart and game, but who probably won't be seen again barring injury.

Corey Joseph was assertive and decisive offensively, while being aggressive and solid defensively. You can tell he's got the leadership qualities and instincts to be a lead guard, and his defensive intensity was consistent. I'm excited about his potential down the road and hope he has fun picking up the system and growing in Austin. Another guy that I thought brought the intensity was Gani Lawal. I'm not sure what his offensive game consists of, but he battled for boards and seemed aggressive defensively. As far as undersized PFs go, Blair better watch his back.

The others...Green did what he does well (nail open Js) and what he doesn't (create for himself or others), Hassell showed intensity limited minutes and Zeller didn't stand out.

I saw mostly what I expected to see, but there were a few underwhelming players (Splitter, Leonard) and a bright spot or two (Joseph, big 3 ready).

[5in10]

I thought Anderson looked great on both sides of the court. He continues to impress me. Leonards passiveness is something I didn't expect but it's probably nothing to worry about, he's young, and will learn. There were times when gh3 was too passive last year as well in his 3 season. Several of his shots were in and out...I would like to see some post up plays for him/more slashing/ and more aggression with the ball. Cory Joseph continues to look great to me. A true point guard, good awareness,and he just competes on that defensive end. Our future is bright. Oh, and tiago can look good one game on offense and the just look good awful the next. Need to see more from him. He Looksgood on d though...random thoughts done.

[Dex]

I think people are being pretty harsh critics of Leonard. Anyone who was expecting him to come in and be some sort of offensive juggernaut are going to be bound for disappointment, because that's not his game. He was drafted to be a defensive force and a rebounder, and I think he has done that pretty well. His rotations are crisp and he's been in the right place for the most part. He's also done a good job helping on the glass, and doesn't seem to make a lot of bad decisions. He does seem to be passive on the offensive end of the court, but a) I don't think he's expected to take a lot of shots and b) it's preseason, so I doubt he is pressing too hard to get his shots in, but is rather letting everyone try to show what they've got. At least his jumper has shown to be better than advertised (even though he had a tough time shooting tonight) and he still stepped up and delivered in the clutch. You have to admire that.

He's obviously not interested in going out there and trying to be KG, but that's what happens when you are coming into a complex system with three well established veterans and you've had a handful of practices, one scrimmage, and two games to figure it all out. Give the kid time.

Keep in mind that he is still a rookie coming fresh into the Spurs system, and the "first-year" rule is going to apply to him more than ever, because he's only gotten a week and a half so far to learn the system and play in camp. He probably will be shaky out of the gates, and he certainly isn't going to step right in and fill Hill's shoes (tbh, that pressure is on Neal), but I still think he has the tools to fill a huge need for the Spurs in the future.

[The_Worlds_finest]

How can anyone be harsh on Cow-hi when he drilled a game winner second game in....

[buttsR4rebounding]

Caption:

http://i.cdn.turner.com/dr/nba/teamsites/release/spurs/sites/spurs/files/imagecache/local_image_gallery_default/111221_97.jpg

My momma told me not to accept blow from strangers...what's your name?:hat

[benefactor]

Caption:

http://i.cdn.turner.com/dr/nba/teamsites/release/spurs/sites/spurs/files/imagecache/local_image_gallery_default/111221_97.jpg
"I had planned on playing with more intensity...but I got high."

[NFO]

Hopefully last night was a sign of things to come

Bonner had a DNP :rollin

Well one can only hope at least. :lol

[Dex]

Hopefully last night was a sign of things to come

Bonner had a DNP :rollin

Well one can only hope at least. :lol

Pop was scared he might injure himself and not be available for the regular season.