timvp
03-13-2012, 12:36 AM
In a game that had all the intensity of a preseason contest, the Spurs coasted to a 112-97 victory over the visiting Wizards. The Spurs built their lead in the first half with fantastic passing and then held on in the second half with Tony Parker doing the heavy lifting.
In the first two quarters, the Spurs tallied an amazing 23 assists. Specifically, the high pick-and-roll was giving the Wizards fits.
As for Washington, while they have a lot of talented players, the mix just isn't going to work. There's too many players who are only looking out for their own stats on that team.
The Spurs end their seven-game homestand on Wednesday against the Magic. A win would give the Spurs a winning record on the homestand and would be their first pair of consecutive wins since their 11-game winning streak was halted.
http://oi43.tinypic.com/snlx8o.jpg
http://oi42.tinypic.com/e0irus.jpg
Tim Duncan B-
Tim Duncan didn't break a sweat on a night that saw him post a very solid stat line. Defensively, I wasn't very impressed. There wasn't much effort and Duncan had a first row seat to JaVale Mcgee putting up even better numbers. That said, should he even be blamed for keeping it in first gear? The Spurs were never in danger of losing so perhaps Duncan was better off just going through the motions. On offense, he basically got whatever he wanted. He added solid screens, a few nice passes and finished his 28 minutes without a turnover.
Manu Ginobili B
Offensively, it was another fantastic night for Manu Ginobili. In the first half, Ginobili was just toying with the Wizards. When he attacked, it was a matter of whether he wanted a layup or to setup one of his teammates for a wide open look. Ginobili also finished without a turnover while dropping off seven dimes. Defense, though, continues to be an issue for the Argentine star. While he was improved compared to the Clippers game, Ginobili was lacking both in his closing out on shooters and his ability to stay in front of drivers. The Wizards scored 49 points in the 19:50 Ginobili was on the court. Over the last two games, the opponents have scored 129 points in less than 48 minutes he's been on the court. It's not time to panic but it's definitely something to keep an eye on going forward. Oh, and Ginobili left this game with another injury. Thankfully, the early reports indicate the injury was minor -- just a case of muscle tightening.
Tony Parker A
In the first half, Tony Parker was breaking down the Wizards defense mostly via the pass; all seven of his assists were in the opening two quarters. After halftime, the Wizards adjusted their defense and Parker took advantage by scoring at will. He hit his last eight shots from the field and is now shooting 65.6% from the floor over his last four games. Defensively, he was solid against John Wall -- especially early. Parker's only major weakness on the night were turnovers. In his last seven games, he has at least three turnovers in each.
Richard Jefferson D
It's getting difficult to find things Richard Jefferson does well. He has missed 14 of his last 16 shots from beyond the three-point arc -- and is only two for his last ten on two-pointers. Defensively, Jefferson alternated between being bad and really bad against the Wizards. Finally, in the third quarter, Pop had enough and benched him for poor defensive play. If everyone could stay healthy long enough for the coaching staff to reevaluate the rotation, Jefferson's starting gig could be in danger.
DeJuan Blair C
DeJuan Blair posted a double-double … but I wasn't very impressed. Many of his rebounds came after missing easy shots right at the rim. Defensively, he was beaten down the court a few times and became a spectator in most loose ball situations. Blair had a few nice layups and pulled down a couple impressive rebounds but all in all he hurt more than he helped.
Kawhi Leonard B+
On defense, I thought this was Kawhi Leonard's best effort in a while. He did a much better job of staying in front of his man, although his closeouts on shooters remained a step late. On the boards, I thought he was great. He picked his spots well and grabbed numerous contested rebounds. Offensively, he relied too much on three-pointers against such a porous defense but he helped out by running the court hard and making smart cuts to the rim.
Matt Bonner B-
Against a team with a gaggle of young bigs, all Matt Bonner needed to do tonight was be Matt Bonner. His presence alone made it nearly impossible for the Wizards to figure out how to defend the pick-and-roll. None of their bigs wanted to help off of Bonner and that opened up the lane for the other players to score. Other than that, Bonner didn't do much. He didn't make an impact on the glass and his defense wasn't anything to write home to New Hampshire about.
Gary Neal C+
In his first game as the permanent backup point guard, Gary Neal had trouble with his own shot. However, Neal made up for his lack of scoring by passing the ball well. His penetration-and-kick game was surprisingly good and he played a key role in getting Tiago Splitter going. (Although to be honest, I didn't really like the omen of both Neal and Roger Mason, Jr. going 1-for-5 this game … since Mason's career didn't exactly take off after he became San Antonio's full-time backup point guard.)
Tiago Splitter A
This was Tiago Splitter's best post-injury game by far. He was moving really well, making good decisions and had a few beastly post moves. And even though it sounds greedy, if Splitter took his time just a little bit more, he could have easily hit all nine of his field goal attempts. Defensively, I thought he was mostly good. Overall, he rebounded well, passed the ball well out of the post and his energy level stayed consistently high. Let's hope we see more of this going forward.
Danny Green B-
With Ginobili in the starting lineup, Danny Green was the player who saw his minutes suffer. It looks like it's Pop's plan to move Green down to the tenth player in the rotation. Versus the Wizards, Green came out and hit his first shot -- a three-pointer. But after that, I wasn't too impressed. His two misses were on ugly attempts in the lane where a more coordinated player could have simply finished with a layup. Defensively, Green was good compared to his teammates … but that's not saying too much.
Pop A-
I actually really liked Pop's rotation, especially considered the hodgepodge lineups he has thrown on the court lately. Starting Ginobili makes sense because the starters have struggled too much this season. Neal and Ginobili on the court to run the backup point guard is the way to go. Leonard as the main swingman off the bench is the right move. If Ginobili plays against the Magic, we should get an even better idea of what Pop is thinking in terms of his rotation going forward.
In the first two quarters, the Spurs tallied an amazing 23 assists. Specifically, the high pick-and-roll was giving the Wizards fits.
As for Washington, while they have a lot of talented players, the mix just isn't going to work. There's too many players who are only looking out for their own stats on that team.
The Spurs end their seven-game homestand on Wednesday against the Magic. A win would give the Spurs a winning record on the homestand and would be their first pair of consecutive wins since their 11-game winning streak was halted.
http://oi43.tinypic.com/snlx8o.jpg
http://oi42.tinypic.com/e0irus.jpg
Tim Duncan B-
Tim Duncan didn't break a sweat on a night that saw him post a very solid stat line. Defensively, I wasn't very impressed. There wasn't much effort and Duncan had a first row seat to JaVale Mcgee putting up even better numbers. That said, should he even be blamed for keeping it in first gear? The Spurs were never in danger of losing so perhaps Duncan was better off just going through the motions. On offense, he basically got whatever he wanted. He added solid screens, a few nice passes and finished his 28 minutes without a turnover.
Manu Ginobili B
Offensively, it was another fantastic night for Manu Ginobili. In the first half, Ginobili was just toying with the Wizards. When he attacked, it was a matter of whether he wanted a layup or to setup one of his teammates for a wide open look. Ginobili also finished without a turnover while dropping off seven dimes. Defense, though, continues to be an issue for the Argentine star. While he was improved compared to the Clippers game, Ginobili was lacking both in his closing out on shooters and his ability to stay in front of drivers. The Wizards scored 49 points in the 19:50 Ginobili was on the court. Over the last two games, the opponents have scored 129 points in less than 48 minutes he's been on the court. It's not time to panic but it's definitely something to keep an eye on going forward. Oh, and Ginobili left this game with another injury. Thankfully, the early reports indicate the injury was minor -- just a case of muscle tightening.
Tony Parker A
In the first half, Tony Parker was breaking down the Wizards defense mostly via the pass; all seven of his assists were in the opening two quarters. After halftime, the Wizards adjusted their defense and Parker took advantage by scoring at will. He hit his last eight shots from the field and is now shooting 65.6% from the floor over his last four games. Defensively, he was solid against John Wall -- especially early. Parker's only major weakness on the night were turnovers. In his last seven games, he has at least three turnovers in each.
Richard Jefferson D
It's getting difficult to find things Richard Jefferson does well. He has missed 14 of his last 16 shots from beyond the three-point arc -- and is only two for his last ten on two-pointers. Defensively, Jefferson alternated between being bad and really bad against the Wizards. Finally, in the third quarter, Pop had enough and benched him for poor defensive play. If everyone could stay healthy long enough for the coaching staff to reevaluate the rotation, Jefferson's starting gig could be in danger.
DeJuan Blair C
DeJuan Blair posted a double-double … but I wasn't very impressed. Many of his rebounds came after missing easy shots right at the rim. Defensively, he was beaten down the court a few times and became a spectator in most loose ball situations. Blair had a few nice layups and pulled down a couple impressive rebounds but all in all he hurt more than he helped.
Kawhi Leonard B+
On defense, I thought this was Kawhi Leonard's best effort in a while. He did a much better job of staying in front of his man, although his closeouts on shooters remained a step late. On the boards, I thought he was great. He picked his spots well and grabbed numerous contested rebounds. Offensively, he relied too much on three-pointers against such a porous defense but he helped out by running the court hard and making smart cuts to the rim.
Matt Bonner B-
Against a team with a gaggle of young bigs, all Matt Bonner needed to do tonight was be Matt Bonner. His presence alone made it nearly impossible for the Wizards to figure out how to defend the pick-and-roll. None of their bigs wanted to help off of Bonner and that opened up the lane for the other players to score. Other than that, Bonner didn't do much. He didn't make an impact on the glass and his defense wasn't anything to write home to New Hampshire about.
Gary Neal C+
In his first game as the permanent backup point guard, Gary Neal had trouble with his own shot. However, Neal made up for his lack of scoring by passing the ball well. His penetration-and-kick game was surprisingly good and he played a key role in getting Tiago Splitter going. (Although to be honest, I didn't really like the omen of both Neal and Roger Mason, Jr. going 1-for-5 this game … since Mason's career didn't exactly take off after he became San Antonio's full-time backup point guard.)
Tiago Splitter A
This was Tiago Splitter's best post-injury game by far. He was moving really well, making good decisions and had a few beastly post moves. And even though it sounds greedy, if Splitter took his time just a little bit more, he could have easily hit all nine of his field goal attempts. Defensively, I thought he was mostly good. Overall, he rebounded well, passed the ball well out of the post and his energy level stayed consistently high. Let's hope we see more of this going forward.
Danny Green B-
With Ginobili in the starting lineup, Danny Green was the player who saw his minutes suffer. It looks like it's Pop's plan to move Green down to the tenth player in the rotation. Versus the Wizards, Green came out and hit his first shot -- a three-pointer. But after that, I wasn't too impressed. His two misses were on ugly attempts in the lane where a more coordinated player could have simply finished with a layup. Defensively, Green was good compared to his teammates … but that's not saying too much.
Pop A-
I actually really liked Pop's rotation, especially considered the hodgepodge lineups he has thrown on the court lately. Starting Ginobili makes sense because the starters have struggled too much this season. Neal and Ginobili on the court to run the backup point guard is the way to go. Leonard as the main swingman off the bench is the right move. If Ginobili plays against the Magic, we should get an even better idea of what Pop is thinking in terms of his rotation going forward.