timvp
02-21-2012, 02:33 AM
Another game, another hard fought win for the Spurs. Despite digging a few holes along the way, the Spurs went to Salt Lake City and came away with a 106-102 victory over the Jazz.
Early on, nothing was going right for San Antonio. They couldn't keep the Jazz out of the paint and grabbing any miss was a struggle. Thankfully, the Spurs caught fire from beyond the arc near the end of the first quarter to keep things close.
In the second quarter, the defense kicked in. The Jazz were held scoreless for four minutes, which allowed the Spurs to turn an eight-point deficit into a one-point lead. However, things fell apart in the third. The Jazz went on a 13-0 run to start the period and went up by as many as 11 points.
But these never-say-die Spurs battled back and tied the game going into the final stanza. In the fourth, neither team led by more than four points until Richard Jefferson hit the clinching three-pointer with six seconds left to give S.A. a five-point advantage.
Once again, the Spurs could have easily folded a number of times. And once again, they just kept scratching and clawing until they put the finishing touches on their 11th straight victory. While it wasn't always aesthetically pleasing, I loved the heart and composure the team illustrated throughout.
http://oi41.tinypic.com/nzg411.jpg
http://oi44.tinypic.com/2rmy1zt.jpg
Tim Duncan A-
I thought this was quietly one of Tim Duncan's best games of the season, all things considered. The Jazz threw an endless brigade of physical bigmen at Duncan yet he just kept battling and battling and battling. On offense, while those aforementioned bigs kept Duncan away from his go-to spots on the court, he still authored timely points when the Spurs needed him most. In pick-and-rolls, he was doing a better job than usual of finding open space. And with as much hacking as the Jazz were doing, it's a minor miracle he had only one turnover. Defensively, Duncan was also strong. Al Jefferson got his points but Duncan slowed him down enough while also constantly protecting the rim. Utah arguably has the most talented group of bigmen in the league yet Duncan powered his team to victory despite not having any size next to him to help carry the load. Job well done.
Tony Parker A
Tony Parker's consistency and poise from possession to possession was magnificent tonight. No matter the time or score, he kept creating good shot after good shot. Parker's sticktoitiveness is the main reason why the Spurs were able to continue to bounce back and, ultimately, get the win. His playmaking out of pick-and-roll sets was special and his defense was very good in the second half; Jazz point guards only had two field goals in the final two quarters. This season, there have only been ten games in which a player has at least 20 points, ten assists and ten free throw attempts while on the road. Three of those ten games are Parker's last three outings.
Richard Jefferson D+
For the first 44 minutes of the game, Richard Jefferson was horrible. Defensively, he was a turnstile. He had one good block but he was otherwise a mess. Offensively, he was 0-for-4. To the shock of probably even Jefferson himself, Pop went back to him to close out the game -- and Jefferson actually delivered. First he hit a long two-pointer to put the Spurs up by four points with 3:47 remaining. Then he got a steal in transition with the team only up by two with 1:46 left. Finally, his dagger three-pointer with six seconds remaining was the game's biggest shot. While Jefferson didn't come close to completely redeeming his poor play, it's undeniable that he was huge down the stretch.
DeJuan Blair C+
The good: DeJuan Blair scored efficiently around the basket. His post defense was surprisingly good. He drew a pair of charges and was a lot more alert than normal regarding his team defense responsibilities. The bad: Blair still isn't rebounding -- two defensive boards in 27 minutes is unacceptable. Even worse, he wasn't even boxing out his man. His transition defense also left a lot to be desired. On offense, sloppiness led to four turnovers and a couple other miscues. Overall, Blair seemed more mentally engaged than usual and his effort was commendable, however he really needs to clean up his game and get back to rebounding if he's going to truly be an asset.
Danny Green D
Danny Green just never found any sort of rhythm. On defense, he was placed on a lot of different Jazz players but he had little impact. Green had trouble navigating around screens and wasn't doing a particularly good job of staying in front of his man. Offensively, he didn't get many touches and made questionable decisions when he did get his hands on the rock. Add in a turnover that led to a dunk and a couple bad fouls and it was definitely a night to forget.
Matt Bonner A-
Matt Bonner took being Matt Bonner to an extreme tonight. Bonner is known for his three-point shooting: he drilled 5-of-6 from deep. Bonner is known for being weak on the glass: he had one rebound in 31 minutes. Bonner is known for disappearing when the times get tough: he didn't even attempt a shot in the final 17 minutes of the game despite having 20 points up until that point. Beyond Bonner being Bonner, I was really pleased with his defense on the low block. He was physical, held his ground and avoided cheap fouls. And even though he wasn't rebounding, he was boxing out to the best of his abilities. The Spurs are now 11-1 all-time when Bonner has at least five three-pointers.
Gary Neal B
For the second straight game, three-pointers were kinder to Gary Neal than two-pointers. He's 8-for-16 on threes in those two games and only 1-for-11 on twos. Despite his overall struggles from the field, I thought Neal was a net positive. On defense, outside of a few mistakes, he was much better than usual. I liked his effort on the boards throughout. Offensively, he had a couple ugly turnovers and he was having trouble dribbling against Utah's aggressive defenders … but he stayed aggressive and kept competing.
Kawhi Leonard B+
On offense, Kawhi Leonard grabbed offensive rebounds and pushed the pace a few times. Other than that, he wasn't of much help. But defense was a different story. He was a disruptive force all night long. Leonard had numerous deflections and he was successfully playing the passing lanes. The rookie leading the team in rebounding while limiting his mistakes in a hostile environment shows very good growth.
James Anderson A-
Considering James Anderson hadn't played a meaningful minute in two weeks, he was much better than expected. He entered the game and went straight to work. It would have been understandable if he was passive but instead the opposite was true. He stepped on the court and acted like he belonged from his first seconds on the court. For a deep bench player, Anderson is proving to be quite useful.
Cory Joseph B+
When Pop put Cory Joseph in the game, I thought he was crazy. Utah is a tough place to play. Earl Watson is arguably the best defensive backup point guard in the league. Despite those obstacles, Joseph produced. It wasn't pretty but you can't argue with the results: he had three assists in four minutes and each of his three assists resulted in three-pointers by Bonner.
Pop A-
Without Manu Ginobili, Tiago Splitter and TJ Ford, Pop was still able to put together a workable rotation. He avoided small ball and instead kept his lineups as big as possible, which was important against these paint-oriented Jazz. Pop's decision to put in Joseph worked out. Pop's decision to put a struggling Jefferson back into the game paid off. Going to Anderson provided a bit of a spark. Playing Neal and Leonard extended minutes was the right call. The only thing I can second guess are the 38 minutes Duncan played. Then again, if Pop doesn't it play him that many minutes, the Spurs likely don't win.
Early on, nothing was going right for San Antonio. They couldn't keep the Jazz out of the paint and grabbing any miss was a struggle. Thankfully, the Spurs caught fire from beyond the arc near the end of the first quarter to keep things close.
In the second quarter, the defense kicked in. The Jazz were held scoreless for four minutes, which allowed the Spurs to turn an eight-point deficit into a one-point lead. However, things fell apart in the third. The Jazz went on a 13-0 run to start the period and went up by as many as 11 points.
But these never-say-die Spurs battled back and tied the game going into the final stanza. In the fourth, neither team led by more than four points until Richard Jefferson hit the clinching three-pointer with six seconds left to give S.A. a five-point advantage.
Once again, the Spurs could have easily folded a number of times. And once again, they just kept scratching and clawing until they put the finishing touches on their 11th straight victory. While it wasn't always aesthetically pleasing, I loved the heart and composure the team illustrated throughout.
http://oi41.tinypic.com/nzg411.jpg
http://oi44.tinypic.com/2rmy1zt.jpg
Tim Duncan A-
I thought this was quietly one of Tim Duncan's best games of the season, all things considered. The Jazz threw an endless brigade of physical bigmen at Duncan yet he just kept battling and battling and battling. On offense, while those aforementioned bigs kept Duncan away from his go-to spots on the court, he still authored timely points when the Spurs needed him most. In pick-and-rolls, he was doing a better job than usual of finding open space. And with as much hacking as the Jazz were doing, it's a minor miracle he had only one turnover. Defensively, Duncan was also strong. Al Jefferson got his points but Duncan slowed him down enough while also constantly protecting the rim. Utah arguably has the most talented group of bigmen in the league yet Duncan powered his team to victory despite not having any size next to him to help carry the load. Job well done.
Tony Parker A
Tony Parker's consistency and poise from possession to possession was magnificent tonight. No matter the time or score, he kept creating good shot after good shot. Parker's sticktoitiveness is the main reason why the Spurs were able to continue to bounce back and, ultimately, get the win. His playmaking out of pick-and-roll sets was special and his defense was very good in the second half; Jazz point guards only had two field goals in the final two quarters. This season, there have only been ten games in which a player has at least 20 points, ten assists and ten free throw attempts while on the road. Three of those ten games are Parker's last three outings.
Richard Jefferson D+
For the first 44 minutes of the game, Richard Jefferson was horrible. Defensively, he was a turnstile. He had one good block but he was otherwise a mess. Offensively, he was 0-for-4. To the shock of probably even Jefferson himself, Pop went back to him to close out the game -- and Jefferson actually delivered. First he hit a long two-pointer to put the Spurs up by four points with 3:47 remaining. Then he got a steal in transition with the team only up by two with 1:46 left. Finally, his dagger three-pointer with six seconds remaining was the game's biggest shot. While Jefferson didn't come close to completely redeeming his poor play, it's undeniable that he was huge down the stretch.
DeJuan Blair C+
The good: DeJuan Blair scored efficiently around the basket. His post defense was surprisingly good. He drew a pair of charges and was a lot more alert than normal regarding his team defense responsibilities. The bad: Blair still isn't rebounding -- two defensive boards in 27 minutes is unacceptable. Even worse, he wasn't even boxing out his man. His transition defense also left a lot to be desired. On offense, sloppiness led to four turnovers and a couple other miscues. Overall, Blair seemed more mentally engaged than usual and his effort was commendable, however he really needs to clean up his game and get back to rebounding if he's going to truly be an asset.
Danny Green D
Danny Green just never found any sort of rhythm. On defense, he was placed on a lot of different Jazz players but he had little impact. Green had trouble navigating around screens and wasn't doing a particularly good job of staying in front of his man. Offensively, he didn't get many touches and made questionable decisions when he did get his hands on the rock. Add in a turnover that led to a dunk and a couple bad fouls and it was definitely a night to forget.
Matt Bonner A-
Matt Bonner took being Matt Bonner to an extreme tonight. Bonner is known for his three-point shooting: he drilled 5-of-6 from deep. Bonner is known for being weak on the glass: he had one rebound in 31 minutes. Bonner is known for disappearing when the times get tough: he didn't even attempt a shot in the final 17 minutes of the game despite having 20 points up until that point. Beyond Bonner being Bonner, I was really pleased with his defense on the low block. He was physical, held his ground and avoided cheap fouls. And even though he wasn't rebounding, he was boxing out to the best of his abilities. The Spurs are now 11-1 all-time when Bonner has at least five three-pointers.
Gary Neal B
For the second straight game, three-pointers were kinder to Gary Neal than two-pointers. He's 8-for-16 on threes in those two games and only 1-for-11 on twos. Despite his overall struggles from the field, I thought Neal was a net positive. On defense, outside of a few mistakes, he was much better than usual. I liked his effort on the boards throughout. Offensively, he had a couple ugly turnovers and he was having trouble dribbling against Utah's aggressive defenders … but he stayed aggressive and kept competing.
Kawhi Leonard B+
On offense, Kawhi Leonard grabbed offensive rebounds and pushed the pace a few times. Other than that, he wasn't of much help. But defense was a different story. He was a disruptive force all night long. Leonard had numerous deflections and he was successfully playing the passing lanes. The rookie leading the team in rebounding while limiting his mistakes in a hostile environment shows very good growth.
James Anderson A-
Considering James Anderson hadn't played a meaningful minute in two weeks, he was much better than expected. He entered the game and went straight to work. It would have been understandable if he was passive but instead the opposite was true. He stepped on the court and acted like he belonged from his first seconds on the court. For a deep bench player, Anderson is proving to be quite useful.
Cory Joseph B+
When Pop put Cory Joseph in the game, I thought he was crazy. Utah is a tough place to play. Earl Watson is arguably the best defensive backup point guard in the league. Despite those obstacles, Joseph produced. It wasn't pretty but you can't argue with the results: he had three assists in four minutes and each of his three assists resulted in three-pointers by Bonner.
Pop A-
Without Manu Ginobili, Tiago Splitter and TJ Ford, Pop was still able to put together a workable rotation. He avoided small ball and instead kept his lineups as big as possible, which was important against these paint-oriented Jazz. Pop's decision to put in Joseph worked out. Pop's decision to put a struggling Jefferson back into the game paid off. Going to Anderson provided a bit of a spark. Playing Neal and Leonard extended minutes was the right call. The only thing I can second guess are the 38 minutes Duncan played. Then again, if Pop doesn't it play him that many minutes, the Spurs likely don't win.