Grades: Spurs @ Blazers - Feb. 21

[timvp]

In an attempt to avoid wearing down his stars, Pop decided to bench Tim Duncan and Tony Parker tonight against the Trail Blazers. With Manu Ginobili and Tiago Splitter already sidelined due to injury, extending the winning streak to 12 games appeared to be a tall task.

And it was. Extremely tall. When the final buzzer mercifully sounded, the Blazers had a 137-97 victory. The Spurs, on the other hand, had their first loss of the Rodeo Road Trip.

Early on, the Spurs gave their fans a glimmer of hope. When Richard Jefferson hit a three-pointer with 5:04 remaining in the first quarter, San Antonio took a 20-19 lead. The Blazers called a timeout and responded by scoring the game's next 22 points, essentially ending the contest in the first quarter.

The Spurs will try to start a new winning streak in Denver on Thursday in the final leg of the Rodeo Road Trip.

http://oi42.tinypic.com/2u5b2vl.jpg

http://oi43.tinypic.com/2zips1j.jpg

Kawhi Leonard F
F is for future, as in Kawhi Leonard seems to have a bright one. Despite the ugly game, Leonard showed off some impressive skills. On offense, his ballhandling ability -- particularly in the open court -- is a definite plus for a small forward. We even saw Leonard run a few successful pick-and-roll sets. The rookie utilized power-dribbles in the halfcourt to get into the lane and finish -- let's hope we see more of that in actual contests. His instincts and quick reflexes shined when it came to rebounding and getting deflections on the defensive end. I'm still not exactly sure what the Kawhi Leonard finished product will look like but I'm excited to see him continue to grow.

Cory Joseph C
C is for see, as in what could the Spurs have seen in Cory Joseph to use a first round pick on him? I'm not quite ready to give up on him but it's a bit troubling that he doesn't appear to have anything resembling an above average NBA talent. Joseph isn't a good athlete. He's not fast. He doesn't have great vision. He's not a supreme ballhandler. He doesn't play great defense. He's not extraordinarily long. He doesn't have natural scoring instincts. He gets little elevation on his jumper, which is shot with a slow release and little rotation on the basketball. I asked a Spurs scout earlier this season what they saw in Joseph and the scout told me that they really liked his leadership abilities and that he had the mental makeup of a successful point guard. That's nice and all but I'd feel better about his long-term prognosis if he showed some sort of potential on the court.

James Anderson B
B is for bungle, as in what James Anderson did with this opportunity. And, for that matter, what he did when he was around the rim. I liked the explosion he showed going toward the basket but he just couldn't finish. From beyond the arc, Anderson wasn't much better. It's been reported that his agent is "encouraging" the Spurs to trade him. Teams that were potentially interested won't be picking up for the phone based on what they saw tonight. One thing I noticed in his extended minutes against the Blazers is Anderson has trouble stopping and starting. Perhaps that's due to his multiple foot surgeries over the years.

Eric Dawson C
C is for congratulations. Eric Dawson, NBA Player. That's a title that can never be taken away. As for his actual play, it was iffy. On one hand, he didn't really pass the eye test. He's smallish for a big, doesn't look overly strong and doesn't move very well. He's stiff and his reaction times are slow. When rebounding, Dawson didn't jump high or show very good timing. On the other hand, he remains a mildly interesting prospect because he has a bit of range on his jumper, looks to have good touch around the basket and showed some awareness on the defensive end. Is he an NBA player? Unlikely. But the good news is that I didn't see any singular fatal flaw. It might be worth testing him out next to Duncan. If Dawson shows a willingness to bang on D and is able to hit the 15-footer on offense, he might be worth a spot as the team's fifth big.

Danny Green F
F is for free throw line, as in the place where Danny Green needs to end up more often. He's not a very good finisher so he should really go to the basket looking for contact. Due to a lack of fluidity or coordination, I don't think he's ever going to make anyone forget about Tony Parker when it comes to scoring around the rim. But Green has enough dribbling ability and athleticism to get to the line much more than he has so far this season. Tonight, he did that well. Let's hope it carries forward.

DeJuan Blair D
D is for defensive rebounding, as in what DeJuan Blair fails to do these days. He went from being an elite rebounder to averaging less defensive rebounds per minute than Matt Bonner. Compared to last year, his defensive rebounds per minute are down 31.5%. Compared to his rookie season, he's down 36.7%. I know I've harped on it all season but Blair simply doesn't bring enough to the table to compensate for such a huge drop in his bread and butter stat. More D boards should be his No. 1 focus in the second half of the season.

Richard Jefferson A
A is for astonishing, as in an adequate adjective to describe Richard Jefferson's drop in ability to finish. The last two season, Jefferson was actually one of the most dangerous players in the league when given an open driving lane to the rim. Nowadays, he simply has zero ability to drive to the basket and score. None. Even when he gets a step on his opponent, it's like he's allergic to actually going up strong. He looks for every opportunity to stop dribbling and pass it. I know he's at an age where swingmen tend to deteriorate but I've never seen such a sudden loss of a go-to skill. If Jefferson didn't become a somewhat reliable three-point shooter, he'd be unplayable.

Gary Neal B
B is for better, as in what Gary Neal is this year compared to last year. Yeah, last year he had really pretty shooting percentages. But Neal being forced into playing point guard has forced him to expand his game. Once everyone is healthy, Neal will be a much more dangerous weapons because he'll be able to do more than just catch and shoot. Roger Mason, Jr. didn't react well to playing point guard. Neal, though, has used it as an opportunity to stretch his limitations and become more well-rounded.

Matt Bonner C
C is for Canada, because I don't understand why Matt Bonner thinks he's Canadian. Yeah okay the Raptors drafted you and you played there a few seasons. But they didn't want you anymore and gave you away. You've been in San Antonio for what feels like forever. Stop trying to become a Canadian citizen and whining about how FIBA won't let you play for Canada. It's annoying.

Pop A
I'm fine with Pop resting his stars. Duncan just played 38 minutes against a very physical team. Asking him to travel and play the next night against a team that likes to get up and down the court with wiry athletes is asking for trouble. And without Duncan, Ginobili and Splitter, there's no way you run Parker out there. He probably could have kept it close but the reward didn't outweigh the risk. Parker has hit the floor a lot recently, even for his standards. He's played 122 minutes in his last three games and has gone to the free throw line 33 times. Going forward, there isn't even another back-to-back until March 17th, so it's not like Pop is suddenly going to start surrendering left and right. Coming into this season, we all knew Pop was going to be conservative with minutes in this condensed schedule. This was just an extreme, yet necessary, example.

[mathbzh]

:toast
I believed you would not have much to write about and you found a way... good job.

[ElNono]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/df/C_Is_for_Corpse.jpg/200px-C_Is_for_Corpse.jpg

What these Spurs looked like after that 1st quarter... :lol

[Dex]

http://forum.i3d.net/attachments/offtopic-english/943204586d1269775174-english-spam-thread-i-see-what-you-did-there.jpg

[UnWantedTheory]

Great job at turning a sour night into something I can stomach. I especially loved the breakdown and grade for Matty tonight. No one reaks of patriotism quite like he.

[Aztecfan03]

Kawhi Leonard F
F is for future, as in Kawhi Leonard seems to have a bright one.

You scared/confused me there for a second.

[SA210]

Pop F

[BanditHiro]

lol RJ being outscored by CJ

[jjktkk]

Thanks for the grades and writeup Tim. :tu

[UnWantedTheory]

On a serious note, I understand we just had a turrible hurtin' put on us, but to blame Pop is ridiculous. Resting TD and Tony was a good call. I was also interested to see how the young ones reacted, despite my utter disappointment in the results.

[2centsworth]

Very well done.

[maverick1948]

Eric Dawson C
C is for congratulations. Eric Dawson, NBA Player. That's a title that can never be taken away. As for his actual play, it was iffy. On one hand, he didn't really pass the eye test. He's smallish for a big, doesn't look overly strong and doesn't move very well. He's stiff and his reaction times are slow. When rebounding, Dawson didn't jump high or show very good timing. On the other hand, he remains a mildly interesting prospect because he has a bit of range on his jumper, looks to have good touch around the basket and showed some awareness on the defensive end. Is he an NBA player? Unlikely. But the good news is that I didn't see any singular fatal flaw. It might be worth testing him out next to Duncan. If Dawson shows a willingness to bang on D and is able to hit the 15-footer on offense, he might be worth a spot as the team's fifth big.

Watching the game was pure hell. If I had to take a silver lining from the game it would be Dawson. (Leonard gets the gold) Dawson in his first appearance on the court did look really stiff and scared. But in the second half when he began to loosen up, he looked really good. Not at the top of the NBA centers, but I have seen backups who were not near as good. I would love for Pop to send CJ to the Toros when Ford comes back and keep Dawson. With 5 bigs we would not have this problem of worrying about losing one. I think against Denver, Dawson will see more minutes than Blair. He has something to prove to Pop and the only way Pop can see him is on the court. Once the AS break starts, Dawson will be able to work out with the team and get valuable knowledge of the Spurs system at the high level.

I say keep him and give him the chance to prove himself. Get the 2nd 10 day contract ready.

One more thing KL is for real.

[Sense]

You didn't try with these grades :P

[Spursfanfromafar]

Excellent writeup on a dour day, when everything lived upto expectations - the team selections, the bad defeat etc..except for Kawhi Leonard's continuing striving for excellence and maturity.

[Darkwaters]

I read ESPN's write-up on the game. I love how they try and make it sound like this game was anything except a sacrificial fly.

[Hoops Czar]

Corey Joseph deserves D fot there's the door.

[mathbzh]

Pop F

As in "F u Stern"?

[Kewni Leonard]

As in "F u Stern"?

As in this was a fucking awful decision by him.

[UnWantedTheory]

As in this was a fucking awful decision by him.

You were an awful decision. Quit your bitching.

[Kewni Leonard]

You were an awful decision. Quit your bitching.

Cool avatar, bro.

[UnWantedTheory]

Cool avatar, bro.
Grassyass

[iManu]

Cocaine is a wonderful drug.

Just kidding, LJ. :D

You had me feeling real stupid there for a second when I read Kawhi had an F, and I even went back and looked over the line, again.

As always, I agree with all of your grades... :toast

Except maybe Jeffersons... :hang

I really did not expect him to ever get another A, and I think the only way he can help the Spurs right now is if he's on the opposing team.

[ego]

As in "F u Stern"?

I agree with this comment. I give a A++ to Pop

[SpurNation]

Thanks for the creative write up. Did not get to see the game.

I was curious to see what the newbies and second year group would do knowing they were going to get a lot of time.

Kawhi rising to the challenge did not surprise and I wish I could have seen that.

Anderson choking away yet another opportunity to showcase did not surprise me.

Not sure why people expect Joseph to be anything he hasn't already shown.

Eric Dawson...a D-league transplant produces as well as DeJuan Blair (a two and a half year vet?) Blair equates F no matter how you look at it. Failure, Fraud, Freak and Forget about it.

Jefferson gets a D for "Deception" of what 9 mil a year player is suppose to do.

Game was what it was for Pop...a A for...A throw away game; Lets see who can up their game; Going to start settling on rotations; Maybe somebody I can get ready in time for playoffs post player that can earn time away from Blair; From here on out Danny Green starting experiment is over; Please hurry back T.J. so Neal can play his role more effectively; If Manu can get through the season and playoffs without getting injured again I'll stop drinking wine; Tim Duncan I wasn't lying when I said when you retire so will I since it's been you all along that has made me look great while enjoying the ride.

[benefactor]

It's official...Kawhi Leonard is the SF we have all been looking for.

[Capt Bringdown]

Shocking how bad the decision to sign RJ turned about to be. What a waste.

[mountainballer]

Pop: A+

a good coach needs to react, when he sees that his (star) players are weary. Pop knows Tim and Tony long and well enough to be able to judge their condition.
with two core player already out with injuries, he needs to be careful about the players health even more.

props to Pop to make a clear cut decision before the game. other coaches might have played them for some minutes to see how they do and how the game develops and then trow in the towel. a better coach just keeps the fighter out of the ring, if he feels the fighter isn't 100% fit.
I also think that it much less hurts the players confidence to call it a loss before the game and play it like a pre season game. it's even a bit like a statement. look, we can afford to drop games. can you?

Lol at all the morons on this board going crazy about this decission. same guys would bash Pop even more, if Tim or Tony get hurt in such a game, or, if the game is lost despite playing Tim and Tony, they would call him incompetent for NOT resting them.

[Old School 44]

Cory Joseph C
C is for see, as in what could the Spurs have seen in Cory Joseph to use a first round pick on him? I'm not quite ready to give up on him but it's a bit troubling that he doesn't appear to have anything resembling an above average NBA talent. Joseph isn't a good athlete. He's not fast. He doesn't have great vision. He's not a supreme ballhandler. He doesn't play great defense. He's not extraordinarily long. He doesn't have natural scoring instincts. He gets little elevation on his jumper, which is shot with a slow release and little rotation on the basketball. I asked a Spurs scout earlier this season what they saw in Joseph and the scout told me that they really liked his leadership abilities and that he had the mental makeup of a successful point guard. That's nice and all but I'd feel better about his long-term prognosis if he showed some sort of potential on the court.

CJ's a "Friend/Family" signing. RC's personal connections with the Longhorns got the better of him with this signing.

I agree with Pop resting Tony and Tim. I rather Portland get this hollow victory rather than have Tim and Tony run themselves ragged on the second night of a tough, travelling, back to back, only to still lose. No need to give the struggling Blazers any additional confidence.

[foodie2]

I'm fine with Pop resting his stars. Duncan just played 38 minutes against a very physical team. Asking him to travel and play the next night against a team that likes to get up and down the court with wiry athletes is asking for trouble. And without Duncan, Ginobili and Splitter, there's no way you run Parker out there. He probably could have kept it close but the reward didn't outweigh the risk. Parker has hit the floor a lot recently, even for his standards. He's played 122 minutes in his last three games and has gone to the free throw line 33 times. Going forward, there isn't even another back-to-back until March 17th, so it's not like Pop is suddenly going to start surrendering left and right. Coming into this season, we all knew Pop was going to be conservative with minutes in this condensed schedule. This was just an extreme, yet necessary, example.

This. I just got up and read the butthurt threads about Pop and it made me laugh. Good grief--it's one game. And if we don't get the #1 seed in the west, we've seen that it makes absolutely zero difference.

[Xevious]

I feel sorry for the Portland fans who actually paid to go to this game.

[TJastal]

CJ's a "Friend/Family" signing. RC's personal connections with the Longhorns got the better of him with this signing.

I agree with Pop resting Tony and Tim. I rather Portland get this hollow victory rather than have Tim and Tony run themselves ragged on the second night of a tough, travelling, back to back, only to still lose. No need to give the struggling Blazers any additional confidence.

I hate to break it to you, but Pop just gave the blazers all the confidence they could ever hope for, both starter and bench alike, the whole damn team basically got a shot of juice lol....

[polandprzem]

4zLlIdZikDk

[TJastal]

I feel sorry for the Portland fans who actually paid to go to this game.

Don't forget about those spurs fans in the Portland area who also paid to see this abortion of a game; they got screwed even worse since the spurs won't be coming back unless it's for a playoff matchup. I can just imagine some poor kid who was looking forward to this game for weeks in his brand new Duncan/Parker jearsy that he just got for his/her birthday. He/she gets to the game and finds a guy named Eric Dawson is playing in Duncan's place. Kid was probably broken hearted.

[Stringer_Bell]

It's official...Kawhi Leonard is the SF we have all been looking for.

Getting kind of existential here, but...watching Kawhi play is fun because it looks like most of the game he's playing is only happening in his head. Like he's playing a game all to himself and the other players just happen to be on the court. Dunno if that makes sense, but if it does, then it's easy to recognize how much of a badass he is. He's a baller.

[MmP]

Richard Jefferson situation is increidible. Seeing old game from him in NJ makes you really wonder what happened to the guy. Is it the wrong sistem? Is he at a low confidence level? How can any player go from good to absolute scrub?

[Bruno]

I've a mixed feeling about resting Tim and Tony for this game. They surely have played a lot lately but Spurs will have soon a long home stand with no b2b. Playing them and resting them were both legit choices. At least, it didn't happens at home in front of a lot of Spurs fans.

The last game of the RRT is winnable. Both Nuggets and Spurs have injuries trouble but Spurs should be way more flesh. Nuggets have a complicate b2b with a game @Clippers today and only 22h30 between tipoffs. If Spurs win this game, Pop will surely be reassured that he made the good choice against Portland.

[TDMVPDPOY]

we got 2 of canadas finest talents on the team who are bonafide scrubs

blair is the biggest ballhog on the team and a scrub who seems to not jump for anything besides his own circus shots, this guy is like rj, wtf happen to these idiots...ur supposeed to get better after pops 2yr tuition, but they got worster each season

[jag]

Kawhi F. Baby - The F is for Future

[acoelho1]

I only saw the 1st half but I loved what I saw from KL. Wallace was trying to bullying him down low and KL showed his toughness and I loved it when he ripped the ball from Wallace as he was trying to post him. This guy is going to be one hell of a defensive players. Only 20 yrs old and his ceiling looks above Bowen in terms of defense.

[TJastal]

I only saw the 1st half but I loved what I saw from KL. Wallace was trying to bullying him down low and KL showed his toughness and I loved it when he ripped the ball from Wallace as he was trying to post him. This guy is going to be one hell of a defensive players. Only 20 yrs old and his ceiling looks above Bowen in terms of defense.

TBH

The one play that stands out to me (between these two) was Wallace bullying Leonard out of the way for an offensive put back (1st half I believe). Don't know if he just caught Leonard napping but it was a bit disturbing to watch.

[TDMVPDPOY]

green, kl > ja+rj+cj

2 these guys know what they are doing when there shots aint falling, attack the rim

as for the other 3 guys usually are explosive can beat there man of the dribble, but they dont attack the rim

[TDMVPDPOY]

TBH

The one play that stands out to me (between these two) was Wallace bullying Leonard out of the way for an offensive put back (1st half I believe). Don't know if he just caught Leonard napping but it was a bit disturbing to watch.

funni thing was he didnt show any form of emotions on his face this game not gettin rattled in mental mind games....looks like another timrobot

[SpurNation]

Point being Leonard, a rookie, only 20, being able to produce the positives he produced against top talent. Of course as a rookie he probably will be outplayed by a top rated "experienced" player the majority of the time.

Amazing how people like to use the "look at what an experienced player did to a rookie" statement.

[peacemaker885]

“That’s what’s going to happen if you want to put some money in the bank for later.” - Pop on resting Tim and Tony.

“One loss isn’t going to do anything to us so we’re just going to keep moving on,” - Kawhi Leonard :toast

Thanks TimVP for always giving us the best after game grades and observations. Pop did the right decision.

[SpurYank]

There were more pluses than minuses in Pop's decision, even all the way up here on the east coast. Games in Utah, Portland, and Denver don't come on until late at night. Since I watch all the Sours game, it means going to bed way after midnight. Getting up at 5 a.m. 3 out of 5 workdays takes its toll. I was sound asleep before the first quarter ended.

Good move, Pop.

[CGD]

I really do think rj plays like he knows he's going to get amnestied this summer. His mind is already on possible new destinations.

[DPG21920]

People acting like it was some clear cut decision are the ones that make little sense to me. Sure, some fans go overboard with the stupid threads, but it wasn't some "duh that was easy" decision. These guys resting have been babied all year with minutes, Tim in particular. They aren't very far ahead of the Mavs despite an 11 game win streak. There is a ton of home games and rest coming up with the all-star break. It was not a clear cut decision and not a consistent one like when Pop apparently tried to push for the top record last season and Gino got hurt right before the playoffs.

The entire point is that it should have never come to the point where you are purposely throwing games mid-season. Sure, given the reality the Spurs have the only big 3 in the league that can't average more than 35 minutes per game without completely breaking down, I agree with Pops decision, but it should never have gotten to this point.

[Muser]

Kawhi is damn exciting, 20/10/5 against some decent defensive players.

[Muser]

Spurs need to beat Denver now though or this was completely pointless.

[Brazil]

Why Matt played only 6 minutes ? he needed to be rested too ?

[sabar]

I had this game marked as a loss anyways, I'm not too concerned over throwing it away. We should of lost the Clippers game as well, and I don't have high hopes against Denver. Just too many injuries right now. We've been lucky and playing above our heads, honestly.

[TDMVPDPOY]

this game was a automatic loss

but those bench fringe players didnt do shit to show that they belong on the team let alone more minutes to showcase to pop....

[wildbill2u]

Corey Joseph belongs in one of those leagues for short players. A really short player must have really exceptional skills to play against legitimate NBA players. It was pathetic to watch him being posted up time after time by any Blazer guard that needed a guaranteed score. They must have been doing rock, paper, scissors to see who got to take him down in the paint next.

Anderson got quite a few points on FTs. That is because he was so slow in getting to the basket he kept getting fouled. Several times his drive to the hoop and layup attempt got blocked because a defensive player caught up with him from benind and blocked his shot.

I don't see anything that would make the Spurs want to keep him after this season and if anyone wants him now, let him go before the trade deadline.

On Eric Dawson, TIMVP said he was brought up as a reward for sticking it out in the Toros for several seasons. For whatever reason, he did pretty well in a first outing against legitimate NBA players, including an All-star. Good job, rookie. Got yourself a highlight reel to show your grandkids if nothing else comes out of the 10 day contract.

[DesignatedT]

Pop: A+

a good coach needs to react, when he sees that his (star) players are weary. Pop knows Tim and Tony long and well enough to be able to judge their condition.
with two core player already out with injuries, he needs to be careful about the players health even more.

props to Pop to make a clear cut decision before the game. other coaches might have played them for some minutes to see how they do and how the game develops and then trow in the towel. a better coach just keeps the fighter out of the ring, if he feels the fighter isn't 100% fit.
I also think that it much less hurts the players confidence to call it a loss before the game and play it like a pre season game. it's even a bit like a statement. look, we can afford to drop games. can you?

Lol at all the morons on this board going crazy about this decission. same guys would bash Pop even more, if Tim or Tony get hurt in such a game, or, if the game is lost despite playing Tim and Tony, they would call him incompetent for NOT resting them.

:tu

[Cant_Be_Faded]

People need to stop giving the spurs credit for drafting well, if it really seems like we have drafted two straight busts. I was high on Anderson, but he seems to have no offensive rhythm to his game to speak of.
Back in the last draft thread, towards the end of the first r round I was laughing at the potential plight out Cory Joseph, because a player of his caliber had absolutely no business l leaving college early. None. As a Texas fan I was irate, then when three Spurs drafted him, my spurs homerness kicked in, and I started to think maybe I was wrong about Joseph, maybe there is something there if the lauded Spurs FO picked him.
He really looks exactly like he did in college...he was solid in college but nothing that screamed NBA talent.

Like I said in the game thread, I in the spurs defense, there really wasn't too much to work with that late in the insanely weak 2011 draft. Maybe if Jordan Hamilton our Norris Cole had fallen to us. But there just was not much to pick, so in that respect you can't fault the spurs too much

[Mal]

While clicking to open this thread I thought "what, a grades for this shit", but after reading I am more like "i know what you did there"

[polandprzem]

Go figure

[loveforthegame]

Leonard was so impressive. It was awesome to see him go out there and take charge of the team. He wasn't fazed by anything and just kept doing his thing.

I thought Dawson had a rough start but did pretty well considering who he was up against and what he had to work with. I'd like to see what he can do next to Duncan though and not how he looks anchoring the team defense by himself. Assuming they're really giving this guy a chance that is.

[Reck]

Most biased grades ever.

[bus driver]

I dont know how to take jefferson's 4 points in 19 minutes.

as in it was only 19 mins or 4 fucking points

[TJastal]

I dont know how to take jefferson's 4 points in 19 minutes.

as in it was only 19 mins or 4 fucking points

I took it as why on earth does Pop still start him.. or even play him at all with all the wing depth on the team now. If Leonard isn't starting in his place by the end of the season Pop needs his head examined.

[Spur|n|Austin]

It's so awesome that we have so many potential NBA coaches here on ST! Pop better watch his back, some posters who think they could coach this team better may soon be taking his job!

[Nathan89]

DeJuan Blair D
D is for defensive rebounding, as in what DeJuan Blair fails to do these days. He went from being an elite rebounder to averaging less defensive rebounds per minute than Matt Bonner.

Standing reach:lmao

[will_spurs]

On Eric Dawson, TIMVP said he was brought up as a reward for sticking it out in the Toros for several seasons. For whatever reason, he did pretty well in a first outing against legitimate NBA players, including an All-star. Good job, rookie. Got yourself a highlight reel to show your grandkids if nothing else comes out of the 10 day contract.

Every time I see a player being called up to the top league I think of Kevin Costner's character in Bull Durham and how amazed the minor league players are to finally meet someone who was "in the Show". To have played in the NBA, with the big guys, if only for one game... those few minutes must validate a whole life of effort and sacrifice.

[Whisky Dog]

What did I miss with this whole Bonner wanting to be Canadian thing?

The guy is white as snow and is from a state that is basically Canada so just give it to him if he wants it

[phxspurfan]

It's official...Kawhi Leonard is the SF we have all been looking for.

Indeed. It's a problem this team's had for years. Too bad now they need a PG and bigs.

[said7]

Richard Jefferson situation is increidible. Seeing old game from him in NJ makes you really wonder what happened to the guy. Is it the wrong sistem? Is he at a low confidence level? How can any player go from good to absolute scrub?

The guy is terrible. This was the perfect game for him to put the team on his back and at least make it close. He looks like hes constantly scared. Unreal.

[dylankerouac]

Thanks for the write-up timvp, great read as usual. Thought I’d include some feedback from what I remember:

KL
Kawhi Leonard had a pretty good game and he did it with 43 minutes of play time. Pop was sending him a message and I’m glad Kawhi performed as well as he did. I’ve heard of the Kawhi Leonard and Gerald Wallace similarities in the past and the obvious thing I saw was their ninja-like ability on offense to head to the rim undetected while the ball is in the air and get themselves in position to snatch that rebound. Since both Kawhi and Gerald did this I’m actually surprised no one tried to box them out in some cases – wouldn’t that be an obvious thing to try to do to limit their second attempts?

CJ
I agree spot on with Cory Joseph. Every now and then he will put together a surprise drive and ram it into the opposing team but the one time I saw this in game he settled for a layup and I’m pretty sure it was a miss, which doesn’t help. If anything, Canada now has two reasons to be interested in Spurs games, hopefully the Spurs can cash in with that somehow.

JA
James Anderson and Gerald Wallace went after each other a few times, though each outcome involved Wallace seeming to get the better result. I think Anderson became too fixated in this rivalry and ended up trying to do too much which limited ball movement or any type of team play for the Spurs.

Eric Dawson
I thought Eric Dawson did great. Half of his rebounds were offensive rebounds. He showed he was more effective in a post-up game than Dejuan Blair with not as much effort – though he did seem gassed at times. He even ran what I thought was a surprise pick-and-roll set for Kawhi Leonard at the corner three spot. Dawson set the pick, it seemed to me like Kawhi took a second to figure out what happened and then he drove to the basket, I don’t think it ended up being points on the board but he was setting up a player for a score, what more could you ask from a big besides an effective post-up game. He also had a block. While he may not have moved well, showed bad timing with his jumps this was his first NBA game. How many players mention the speed of the NBA game being fast? Pop also did the smart thing about it too, instead of asking for too much, he played Dawson in the last four minutes of the first quarter, let him get over the situation and then called on him at the beginning of the second quarter after he’s had a moment to absorb the moment. I think with more playing time the game will slow down for him (that much should be guaranteed) and in this one outing he has showed a good amount of what he can bring to the team. What’s nice is that there is still room for improvement, while he may not be an absurd physical specimen he can still improve and perfect the things that he already does, which was more good than bad on this night. At some point there will be a scouting report on him and hopefully he doesn’t do too many detrimental things to offset what he brings. I hope he continues to get his chance to show some consistency.

DG
If Danny Green can get to the free throw line more often he would be amazing and his future would be even more promising.

DB
What is Dejuan Blair doing wrong with his rebounding? Is he not concentrating enough to get himself in good position for the rebound? Does he think the balls will just bounce his way? Or is the difference that he can no longer sneak into position to obtain rebounds because most of his work this season is in the low block? In years past Duncan was doing more work in the low block so it was easier for DB to go in and yank a rebound. If this is the case it would make sense that his rebounding would decrease when the team has him positioned in the low block for the majority of the minutes. This might also mean that he should be paired with someone who can bring it on the low block so that he can find himself sneaking in for some rebounds a la Leonard and Wallace.

RJ
I think RJ is mesmerized and watching the action on the floor instead to realizing that he can make himself part of the action. He may also see this experiment ending soon and doesn’t see the point in adding any more effort since someone will pick him up. If he did start to put in more effort though and the stat sheet reflected it how would that affect the Spurs chances to get rid of him? I guess it would be more likely for a trade to happen but his contract is probably still too expensive for any reasonable person to want for half a season’s change in his stats.

GN
Gary Neal continues to do good when the ball is in his hands. I think he had a turnover on the break when he was passing it to someone, maybe James Anderson or Green and Neal did a soft bounce pass that was quickly stolen by the lone defender between them. I’m just hoping he learns from this mistake.

MB
Almost had a full night of rest. Overall, I think his defense is getting better at least. Where would one go to obtain his defensive stats for the last few years?

Pop
I liked Pop’s decision. I was really surprised by the amount of new threads today with people complaining about ruining the win streak. To hear people on Spurstalk complaining about a win streak is ridiculous since fans on this site are usually interested in one outcome to the season, and it’s not a win streak. This team still has some things to clean up as evidenced by the young guns running the show for a night and the young players have tons of room to grow and they don’t have that opportunity when the team has to play within TP and Duncan all the time. If anything, this may have given TP and Duncan ideas about ways they can further utilize their teammates. It also gives the young guns more confidence when they try to dust off and use these moves again in a game situation. On a side note: I was really hoping they’d make it to 100 points but they just missed it.

[TD 21]

I had no problem with the decision. I think he's handled the minutes recently about right. He rode Duncan, Parker and even Bonner hard to get the ones that were winnable throughout and they got them. The worst thing he could have done is played them a few less minutes in those games and lost them. But with the run they've been on, they were at the point where they could afford to tank one. And let's face it, they more than likely weren't winning that game anyway.

[therealtruth]

So how good is Dawson? Is he Blair with a jumper?

[dylankerouac]

So how good is Dawson? Is he Blair with a jumper?

From what I recall he shot one fifteen footer that he attempted and he made it. It also looked to me like he has an interest in playing post-up offense that isn't a put-back. So his game may be more well rounded, I don't recall Blair having success on the low-block this season.

[maverick1948]

Everyone asking about Bonner. He will be 32 in about 6 weeks. He, also, played a lot of minutes in the last 2 games. He will be playing heavy minutes against Denver. He has averaged 20 minutes a game this season. 6 minutes in a game that was gone at the end of the 1st quarter. The rest he got will help us to be fresh against Denver.

Almost 32 minutes for Dawson told Pop that he can play. Now to see what happens against Denver. Does he get minutes or not? I hope Pop gives Dawson the run to prove what he can do. He will only have 1 more game under this 10 day contract. A second 10 day would follow if he shows promise after getting some practice with the kiddie corp during the all star break. One thing, keep him away from RICHARD JEFFERSON.

[Calispursfan11]

Very creative writeup TIMVP. One of your best yet.

[BackHome]

After watching Cory play I now understand what all the mock draft have us taking a pg..

[GSH]

Kawhi Leonard F
F is for future, as in Kawhi Leonard seems to have a bright one. .


These grades were a stroke of genius. One of those times you read something and say, "I wish I'd thought of that." Trying to do in-depth analysis of this game would have been just as pointless as the game itself.

I think Jefferson deserved an "I" for Invisible. How in the hell could a veteran player, with what we've seen him do in the past, be such a complete nothing in a game like this? There was nothing holding him back. And he's been around long enough, and in enough tough games, that he should have been able to at least do something worth remembering. If you didn't know better, you would swear that he's been a career second-stringer all his life.

You know how some guys manage to put up some impressive stats while playing for a bad team? And people shrug off the numbers, because "he's the only guy on the team who can play"? That should have been Jefferson last night. He should have gotten some numbers just because, with his pedigree and experience (and salary), he should have been our best player on the floor.

The only other thing worth mentioning is that I've seen a lot of players who had a hard time finishing in their rookie seasons, but got a lot better the next year or two. George Hill had his problems finishing his rookie year. Blair, too. (He has problems, but he does finish MUCH better than in his first year.) Hopefully Green is in that same boat. He really is able to get himself some very good looks. He misses way too many of them, but there's reason to be hopeful. If he can improve that part of his game, there will be a lot less negative to offset the good things he does. Probably not this year, though.

[therealtruth]

These grades were a stroke of genius. One of those times you read something and say, "I wish I'd thought of that." Trying to do in-depth analysis of this game would have been just as pointless as the game itself.

I think Jefferson deserved an "I" for Invisible. How in the hell could a veteran player, with what we've seen him do in the past, be such a complete nothing in a game like this? There was nothing holding him back. And he's been around long enough, and in enough tough games, that he should have been able to at least do something worth remembering. If you didn't know better, you would swear that he's been a career second-stringer all his life.

You know how some guys manage to put up some impressive stats while playing for a bad team? And people shrug off the numbers, because "he's the only guy on the team who can play"? That should have been Jefferson last night. He should have gotten some numbers just because, with his pedigree and experience (and salary), he should have been our best player on the floor.

The only other thing worth mentioning is that I've seen a lot of players who had a hard time finishing in their rookie seasons, but got a lot better the next year or two. George Hill had his problems finishing his rookie year. Blair, too. (He has problems, but he does finish MUCH better than in his first year.) Hopefully Green is in that same boat. He really is able to get himself some very good looks. He misses way too many of them, but there's reason to be hopeful. If he can improve that part of his game, there will be a lot less negative to offset the good things he does. Probably not this year, though.

Good point. Alot of what causes trouble finishing is when you concentrate so much on getting to the basket and not focusing on finishing. Once you get comfortable and know you can get to the basket it becomes a little easier to just concentrate on finishing. That just takes experience.