Grades: Spurs vs. Suns - Apr. 15

[timvp]

It had been a few games since the Spurs had looked completely in rhythm. However, the malaise cleared early on Saturday night when the Spurs blew the doors off their contest versus the Suns. Within three and a half minutes the Spurs were up by double-digits and the never looked back. San Antonio's easy 105-91 victory keeps the team in a virtual tie with Oklahoma City atop the Western Conference.

While this was an impressive victory over a team desperately seeking out wins to make the playoffs, it should be noted that the Suns had played the previous night in a grueling match against the Rockets. Additionally, Steve Nash only played six minutes due to pain in his right hip. That said, the Spurs picking up a restful win against one of their toughest opponents remaining on their schedule is a definite plus.

Next up is a Californian back-to-back-to-back that begins against the Warriors, ends in Sacramento and has the Lakers in the middle. It'll be interesting to see how Pop and the Spurs decide to attack this threesome of games.

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Tim Duncan A
Coming off one of his better contests of the season, Tim Duncan followed that up with another fantastic performance. When the Spurs were destroying the Suns early, it was Duncan swinging the wrecking ball. In the game's first five minutes, Duncan had 11 points and four rebounds on 5-for-5 shooting from the floor. He had it all working offensively -- from the outside jumper to the dribble-drives to the hoop and from the post moves to the power finishes at the rim. Defensively, Duncan flustered Marcin Gortat into one of his worst outings of the year. If it wasn't for a flurry of sloppy play in the second half, it's difficult to imagine Duncan playing much better. Let us pray that he can stay healthy heading into the playoffs.

Manu Ginobili B-
By the time Manu Ginobili got on the court, the Spurs were already up by 17 points. For good measure, Ginobili handed out two assists within his first minute of action to help complete the mercy killing. From there, he mostly went through the motions. Ginobili had a few good passes, a couple strong takes to the basket and played solid defense on a handful of possessions. It wasn't the most spectacular night from the Argentine ... but obviously that was understandable given the circumstances.

Tony Parker A
As great as Duncan played, I thought it was actually Tony Parker who set the tone. He came out focused and in attack-mode from the very first play of the game. After a lot of indiscriminate floating in his last two outings, he was razor sharp on both ends of the court on Saturday night. On offense, he picked apart the Suns with his passing at first and then added scoring once their defense started playing him for the assist. Defensively, he was aggressive in one-on-one situations and also dropped into the paint to provide strong help-defense and aid on the boards. All in all, this was a great bounce-back affair by Parker.

Kawhi Leonard A
In the third quarter against Memphis, Kawhi Leonard showed signs of overcoming the rookie wall. Versus the Suns, Leonard looked even better. He entered the game 0-for-6 on three-pointers in the month of April but was able to drain all three of his long ball attempts. The rest of his offense was crisp. He moved with purpose, dropped off a few quality passes, crashed the offensive boards and overall just looked much more confident. On defense, Leonard might have been even better. His length and anticipation made him a menace on the perimeter and he also helped protect the rim. In all aspects, it was just a very strong outing by the rookie.

DeJuan Blair A-
After getting benched for the entire second half of the Grizzlies game, DeJuan Blair was back in the starting lineup and he responded with one of his better first quarter showings of the season. He was all over the court on defense. He chased Channing Frye off the three-point line and also rotated to break up a handful of plays. Blair was also physical in his boxing out and rebounding. It's not a stretch to say it was one of his best quarters of defense of the season. Offensively, he ran the court extremely well and kept things simple when he got the ball. Outside of the first quarter, Blair had a few sloppy possessions and didn't play nearly as well … but that first quarter gave a glimpse of how Blair is capable of playing when he's fully engaged both mentally and physically.

Danny Green B+
Offensively, Danny Green basically just shot threes and made ill-advised passes. Thankfully, some of those ill-advised passes ended up with positive results. However, that didn't stop Pop from giving him a few death stares along the way. Defensively, though, Green was an asset. He did much better work against Shannon Brown than he did the last time these two teams clashed. He also flew in from off the ball to get deflections and grab contested boards. Green didn't play in the second half but I assume it was a matter of Pop giving him some well-deserved rest since Green is the only player on the team who has played in every game.

Stephen Jackson C
The good: Stephen Jackson's defense continues to be a positive. He's reading plays well (Jackson has nine steals in the last four games) and the Suns had little success when they went at him. Jackson's rebounding in his time with the Spurs has been at a career-high rate and it was strong again Saturday night. Offensively, he knocked down his first look (a three-pointer) and got to the free throw line. The bad: He now has 11 turnovers in his last four games. Jackson's shooting continues to be off; he's shooting just 38.6% from the field and 32.6% on three-pointers so far with the Spurs. Jackson is a work in progress who has a lot of kinks to iron out but he's already showing a lot of intangibles that should help the team going forward.

Gary Neal C-
When Gary Neal was looking for his own shot, he did well. Otherwise, it was a struggle. While his ball-handling was acceptable, he had a difficult time with his timing and with his passes. Defensively, Neal was so bad at times that he actually got benched in the middle of a blowout. It looks like Pop is getting tired of Neal's defensive mistakes so if Neal wants to be a part of the playoff rotation, he better step it up soon.

Boris Diaw B-
Boris Diaw didn't check into the game until midway through the third period. By then, the Spurs already had a 25-point advantage. The rest of the way, Diaw did decent work. His passing was again a strength and he nailed his lone three-point attempt. (After missing his first five three-point attempts with the Spurs, Diaw has connected on his last three from deep.) Defensively, he was mostly a positive. His quick hands and feet resulted in a few takeaways. Diaw also showed the ability to switch off onto smaller and faster players.

Patrick Mills C-
The growing pains for Patrick Mills continue. In his first couple games with the Spurs, it seemed like he would never miss. Now, things aren't coming nearly as easily for Mills. Not only is he missing shots, his attempts are often questionable. In addition to his five misses, he had four turnovers in his 16 minutes of work. While he racked up three assists, none of his passes were especially noteworthy. The highlight of Mills' night was his play on the defensive end. He applied great pressure and really hustled. Since the defenseless Neal is his competition at the backup point guard position, Mills would do well to concentrate on making a difference on the defensive end.

Tiago Splitter C-
Tiago Splitter hasn't had many bad games in recent weeks but I just didn't like the way he played against the Suns. Robin Lopez repeatedly bumped him out of position and out-battled him far too often. Lopez is a decent player but Splitter should get the better of him. That just didn't happen on Saturday night. I also thought his rolls to the basket were a step slow and his running of the court appeared to be more labored than usual.

James Anderson B
As the season has progressed, James Anderson looks like a better and better athlete. I don't know if he wasn't in shape to start the season but he wasn't jumping or moving nearly as well to begin the year. Anderson didn't hit a shot against the Suns but I liked his aggression and he also dropped off a few fine passes. Defensively, I thought he was the only bench player who kept his intensity throughout.

Matt Bonner C+
Outside of a flying* one-handed dunk and a rebound, Matt Bonner didn't do much right or wrong. In the non-structured environment of blowouts, Bonner looks like a fish out of water.
(*very generous use of the word)

Pop B
Pop managed minutes very well and didn't panic when the Suns made a couple runs. Only Jackson played more than half the game. I thought that Pop was going to change the starting lineup after he shuffled it to begin the second half against the Grizzlies … but he didn't. And with as well as the Spurs played coming out of the gates, there's no way to disagree with the results.

[jjktkk]

Thanks for the writeup Tim.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

James deserves more minutes, but it's just impossible for him to get them

if we had more games left, I'd even say Anderson deserves a look at some backup guard minutes alongside Manu, at Neal's expense.
He is giving it 100% on both ends, every minute he gets.
Sucks he probably going to end up yet another wasted spurs first round pick that ends up producing for another team

[anonoftheinternets]

...
Outside of a flying* one-handed dunk and a rebound,
...


Video of said dunk:

TdkHzUOjwOI

[TMTTRIO]

Manu seems to be going through the motions a lot during the last several games and not doing much out there. Even the one where he had a great game he didn't start doing anything until he yelled at Bonner and they desperately needed it. I wonder if he's just thinking about trying to get to the playoffs healthy or if this is what we'll see in the playoffs?

[spurs10]

Thanks for the grades!

[ForeignFan]

that looked like a layup to me... but best save his energy

[vander]

not to mention that the suns were getting layups at will with Taigo "protecting the rim", and usually with a free throw afterwards.

[nickdaquick]

24 TO's concerns me. They had some extremely sloppy stretches. Hopefully this will get resolved as the season finishes up.

[pgardn]

I really liked Bonner's assessment. I was trying to explain it to my wife as she likes Bonner and his seemingly humble nature.

I will now show her your writeup as you got the point across much better than I did, which is more a sign of my incompetence attempting to explain Bonner.

Ginobili has been really, really slow footed defensively. It continued. He is now better against bigger stronger guys as he can use the Italian/Argentinian ability, some would call it flopping, to draw offensive fouls.

[angelbelow]

Thanks for the grades.

Splitter had trouble with Lopez the last time we played the Suns as well. I didn't catch the game but I'm not surprised to see this. But last time Lopez routinely out muscled Splitter and deliberately tried to get under his skin by being overly physical.

Despite this being a blowout, I was hoping to see some of over key players log some more minutes. I know the 2nd b2b2b is coming up but Pop is guaranteed to be resting his players throughout series of games.
-If cardio and conditioning is Splitter's problem, this was a perfect game to get him in better shape.

Everyone in the starting lineup had at least +23.. rare sight.. but it looks like they really took care of business and put this game away early.

[Mugen]

not to mention that the suns were getting layups at will with Taigo "protecting the rim", and usually with a free throw afterwards.

You need to not be alive anymore, tbh.

[Josepatches_]

7 rebounds and 1 block in 15 minutes is not so bad.

[Spurs da champs]

The funny thing is I never see lopez do that to anybody but splitter. Tiago need to man up and quit being so soft.

[jestersmash]

James deserves more minutes, but it's just impossible for him to get them

if we had more games left, I'd even say Anderson deserves a look at some backup guard minutes alongside Manu, at Neal's expense.
He is giving it 100% on both ends, every minute he gets.
Sucks he probably going to end up yet another wasted spurs first round pick that ends up producing for another team

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. He had a couple of explosive moments in the 4th quarter -

www.youtube.com/watch?v=avh8brEd6YI#t=1h9m9s

He showed pretty good elevation on an attempted offensive rebound here as well -

www.youtube.com/watch?v=avh8brEd6YI#t=1h18m44s

It'd be a shame to just let him go without trying to uncover his full potential as a regular rotation player, but Gary Neal and Danny Green have played too well and have too much "pull" with Pop due to past performance to justify Anderson stealing any of their minutes.

[EVAY]

One thing I keep obsessing about, Timvp, is the relative flatness of the Spurs coming out of the half time.

After playing brilliantly in the first half, Tim looked pissed to be on the floor, and the problem I keep noticing when our big three are on the floor at the same time was ultra-apparent. This time it was Manu who ended up on the out looking in in terms of scoring (it has been Parker in the last few games), but it was completely noticeable that not everyone was involved in the offense.

Pop was clearly angry at the lackadaisical effort to start the half, and then Tony seemed to sort of pick up the slack and Tim got over his funk or whatever it was, but the problem was there.

The Spurs cannot seem to start the second-half with energy and focus. Time and time again, and it is gonna hurt us badly in the playoffs I fear when we aren't going to have the same kind of cushion we had in the is game. Pop won't change anything if he has been doing it this way for years...my question is whether or not you think the players themselves might begin challenging one another to come out with some fire.

Let's face it, too...the size of this win had as much to do with Phoenix being out of gas as it did with our prowess.

[ElNono]

thanks

[wildbill2u]

I noticed that Leonard sacrificed a couple of easy layups on breakaways to give teammates a chance to score. Blair got one gift.

Great attitude and team spirit for a rookie to give up chances to pad stats. Ya gotta like this kid.

[therealtruth]

I noticed that Leonard sacrificed a couple of easy layups on breakaways to give teammates a chance to score. Blair got one gift.

Great attitude and team spirit for a rookie to give up chances to pad stats. Ya gotta like this kid.

Yeah I think the assist is always the right play to make in that circumstances. It makes two guys happy.

[TD 21]

Gary Neal C-
When Gary Neal was looking for his own shot, he did well. Otherwise, it was a struggle. While his ball-handling was acceptable, he had a difficult time with his timing and with his passes. Defensively, Neal was so bad at times that he actually got benched in the middle of a blowout. It looks like Pop is getting tired of Neal's defensive mistakes so if Neal wants to be a part of the playoff rotation, he better step it up soon.

I'm not sure he got benched, so much as Redd appeared on the verge of turning back the clock and was simply overpowering him, so they went to Anderson, who matches up much better with big, power wings. Once Redd went out, Neal returned and finished the game.

He's going to be a part of the playoff rotation, he just probably won't get more than 10 mpg backing up Parker. But even if he were playing about as well as he's capable of playing, I'm not sure that would change much, if at all. Green is simply a bigger, more athletic, energetic, better all around player. And with the way this team scores and the inevitable increase in minutes Parker and Ginobili will see in the playoffs, Neal's offense should become less necessary.

But like I've said all along, even if Neal becomes a 10 mpg guy and Blair is dropped from the rotation, they're still going to be important. If you're going to go through four rounds, particularly when you're not a team that plays your top three guys 40-45 minutes in close playoff games and are injury prone, you need contributions from 11-12 guys. Look no further than the Mavs last season, who needed contributions from Mahinmi and Cardinal in Finals games. They'll come games when the offense stalls and key guys just don't have it, when Neal's scoring and Blair's energy will come in handy.

[Dex]

I'm not sure he got benched, so much as Redd appeared on the verge of turning back the clock and was simply overpowering him, so they went to Anderson, who matches up much better with big, power wings. Once Redd went out, Neal returned and finished the game.


Watching Neal trying to check Redd was almost comical. Redd looked like he had a solid foot height difference on Neal, and you can't give one of the best shooters in the last decade that much clearance.

[DMC]

Blair gets an A-? Wow.

[100%duncan]

Thanks dude/

[therealtruth]

I wonder if the Suns would consider Redd for Anderson.

[Mel_13]

I wonder if the Suns would consider Redd for Anderson.

Neither player can be traded, so no.

[Ditty]

I wonder if the Suns would consider Redd for Anderson.

Spurs would be dumb to do that. Anderson actually has a future, and hopefully it's still with the Spurs.

[Obstructed_View]

Spurs would be dumb to do that. Anderson actually has a future, and hopefully it's still with the Spurs.

Anderson has a future, and it's with any team but the Spurs.

[Splits]

Anderson has a future, and it's with any team but the Spurs.

Spurs should have picked up his option. It was cheap and would have given him security to not worry about his future and go out and play. Bad move by the FO imo.

[Legacy]

Thank you. :toast

[Legacy]

I like Anderson, too, BTW. ;)

[Spur|n|Austin]

One thing I keep obsessing about, Timvp, is the relative flatness of the Spurs coming out of the half time.

After playing brilliantly in the first half, Tim looked pissed to be on the floor, and the problem I keep noticing when our big three are on the floor at the same time was ultra-apparent. This time it was Manu who ended up on the out looking in in terms of scoring (it has been Parker in the last few games), but it was completely noticeable that not everyone was involved in the offense.

Pop was clearly angry at the lackadaisical effort to start the half, and then Tony seemed to sort of pick up the slack and Tim got over his funk or whatever it was, but the problem was there.

The Spurs cannot seem to start the second-half with energy and focus. Time and time again, and it is gonna hurt us badly in the playoffs I fear when we aren't going to have the same kind of cushion we had in the is game. Pop won't change anything if he has been doing it this way for years...my question is whether or not you think the players themselves might begin challenging one another to come out with some fire.

Let's face it, too...the size of this win had as much to do with Phoenix being out of gas as it did with our prowess.

Tim didn't seem to be pissed out there, he seemed pissed that his first three passes to start the half were turnovers, mostly the fault of the receiver. I do have to agree with your observation of their flatness to start second halfs.

[Spurtacus]

Nice write up. I missed the first half due to work but caught the second. Splitter got abused by Lopez especially on the glass. Not fun to watch. The second team without TP & Manu did another poor job of running the team.

[venitian navigator]

I've seen lot of posts here saying they like Anderson.
I also like the player 'cause I think that his assumed skills were perfect for our team.
The point is that his main skill, I mean shooting, is the one that he never showed since he's been back from his injury and mostly that relòegated him on the bench.
That said, a lot of people here are saying that his future can't be in San Antonio.
Frankly, I think that S.A. could stiull be the perfect place to him to stay, despite his and his agent ideas...
Here he has a solid organization that can help like no other to coming back to his old self.
A team that is not so deep as one could think, in time, with his guards (Green is a FA this year, manu is becoming old, Neal is everything but a starting player at nba level 'cause his absoulte lack of defense, De Colo is totally unproven and lacks some skills).
A team that has the best possible trainer for helping him is having back his shooting touch maybe thanks to diferent tecniques (Hegelland).

For the spurs, I also think that is in their best interest to sign him with a contract of his rookie level of money (little more than 1 million per year) maybe for something like two -three years so having his bird rights...they could, as I, still see a very good and young combination of wings at the two and three with him and Leonard.
He could agree 'cause it's frankly difficult that in next year market, full of F.A.'s and of players of more than decent level coming from the draft, he's gonna get a better offer than the money of his third rookies contract year...and after all, till now, he just showed some signs uf uprising, but still nothing so "important" to turn some heads from other nba managements...

[Ditty]

Anderson has a future, and it's with any team but the Spurs.

I still think depending on what happens on Danny Green this summer will depend on if Anderson has a chance to come back, or not. If Green walks this summer for more money, or PT, hopefully the Spurs can offer Anderson a one year deal, and with a full training camp, and summer this time around, he won't start off the season bad, and out of shape like this year. He's shown alot of improvement since the beginning of the year especially his passing, and his defense when he trys, his 3 point stroke will eventually come back to him. I would hate for the Spurs to give up on a 23 year old with alot of upside, we'll see what happens this summer.

[Obstructed_View]

I still think depending on what happens on Danny Green this summer will depend on if Anderson has a chance to come back, or not. If Green walks this summer for more money, or PT, hopefully the Spurs can offer Anderson a one year deal, and with a full training camp, and summer this time around, he won't start off the season bad, and out of shape like this year. He's shown alot of improvement since the beginning of the year especially his passing, and his defense when he trys, his 3 point stroke will eventually come back to him. I would hate for the Spurs to give up on a 23 year old with alot of upside, we'll see what happens this summer.

Unless Anderson wants to leave a lot of money on the table, he's not going to be a Spur. He's an unrestricted free agent and the Spurs aren't allowed to offer him any more than the value of the option that they didn't pick up.

[Obstructed_View]

Tim didn't seem to be pissed out there, he seemed pissed that his first three passes to start the half were turnovers, mostly the fault of the receiver. I do have to agree with your observation of their flatness to start second halfs.

He threw the first one about 30 feet in front of Parker. The second one he tried a cutesy one-handed pass behind Leonard instead of just securing the ball, and the third one he just fumbled out of bounds trying to throw back to Ginobili. I agree that's the reason he looked pissed, and I also agree with the flatness in third quarters, but in no way were any of those three turnovers the fault of anyone but Tim Duncan.

[elemento]

Bringing Anderson back wouldn't make any sense. If the Spurs liked him at least a little bit, they would have picked his option but they simply refused to do it. You don't give up on a player so quickly if you think the player has talent or has a future in your franchise.

Anderson will struggle to find a spot in the NBA for the min in the next season if he plays the way he does here in SA.

[will_spurs]

Bringing Anderson back wouldn't make any sense. If the Spurs liked him at least a little bit, they would have picked his option but they simply refused to do it. You don't give up on a player so quickly if you think the player has talent or has a future in your franchise.

Anderson will struggle to find a spot in the NBA for the min in the next season if he plays the way he does here in SA.

I wouldn't say so. I would have preferred if the Spurs has picked up his option but this being said, I think the reasoning was as follows:
- the Spurs decided to forfeit Anderson's season based on how he showed coming back from injury
- they weren't sure they liked him
- they potentially needed the extra money this summer
- they thought that since they had already taken the decision not to play him much, they could always keep him for roughly the same price if need be, and that no team would really overpay a player who's barely shown anything in the NBA

Right now I can't really see another franchise taking a flier on Anderson.

[vato loco]

It had been a few games since the Spurs had looked completely in rhythm. However, the malaise cleared early on Saturday night when the Spurs blew the doors off their contest versus the Suns. Within three and a half minutes the Spurs were up by double-digits and the never looked back. San Antonio's easy 105-91 victory keeps the team in a virtual tie with Oklahoma City atop the Western Conference.

While this was an impressive victory over a team desperately seeking out wins to make the playoffs, it should be noted that the Suns had played the previous night in a grueling match against the Rockets. Additionally, Steve Nash only played six minutes due to pain in his right hip. That said, the Spurs picking up a restful win against one of their toughest opponents remaining on their schedule is a definite plus.

Next up is a Californian back-to-back-to-back that begins against the Warriors, ends in Sacramento and has the Lakers in the middle. It'll be interesting to see how Pop and the Spurs decide to attack this threesome of games.

http://dailyelements.com/apr14box1.jpg

http://dailyelements.com/apr14box2.jpg

Tim Duncan A
Coming off one of his better contests of the season, Tim Duncan followed that up with another fantastic performance. When the Spurs were destroying the Suns early, it was Duncan swinging the wrecking ball. In the game's first five minutes, Duncan had 11 points and four rebounds on 5-for-5 shooting from the floor. He had it all working offensively -- from the outside jumper to the dribble-drives to the hoop and from the post moves to the power finishes at the rim. Defensively, Duncan flustered Marcin Gortat into one of his worst outings of the year. If it wasn't for a flurry of sloppy play in the second half, it's difficult to imagine Duncan playing much better. Let us pray that he can stay healthy heading into the playoffs.

Manu Ginobili B-
By the time Manu Ginobili got on the court, the Spurs were already up by 17 points. For good measure, Ginobili handed out two assists within his first minute of action to help complete the mercy killing. From there, he mostly went through the motions. Ginobili had a few good passes, a couple strong takes to the basket and played solid defense on a handful of possessions. It wasn't the most spectacular night from the Argentine ... but obviously that was understandable given the circumstances.

Tony Parker A
As great as Duncan played, I thought it was actually Tony Parker who set the tone. He came out focused and in attack-mode from the very first play of the game. After a lot of indiscriminate floating in his last two outings, he was razor sharp on both ends of the court on Saturday night. On offense, he picked apart the Suns with his passing at first and then added scoring once their defense started playing him for the assist. Defensively, he was aggressive in one-on-one situations and also dropped into the paint to provide strong help-defense and aid on the boards. All in all, this was a great bounce-back affair by Parker.

Kawhi Leonard A
In the third quarter against Memphis, Kawhi Leonard showed signs of overcoming the rookie wall. Versus the Suns, Leonard looked even better. He entered the game 0-for-6 on three-pointers in the month of April but was able to drain all three of his long ball attempts. The rest of his offense was crisp. He moved with purpose, dropped off a few quality passes, crashed the offensive boards and overall just looked much more confident. On defense, Leonard might have been even better. His length and anticipation made him a menace on the perimeter and he also helped protect the rim. In all aspects, it was just a very strong outing by the rookie.

DeJuan Blair A-
After getting benched for the entire second half of the Grizzlies game, DeJuan Blair was back in the starting lineup and he responded with one of his better first quarter showings of the season. He was all over the court on defense. He chased Channing Frye off the three-point line and also rotated to break up a handful of plays. Blair was also physical in his boxing out and rebounding. It's not a stretch to say it was one of his best quarters of defense of the season. Offensively, he ran the court extremely well and kept things simple when he got the ball. Outside of the first quarter, Blair had a few sloppy possessions and didn't play nearly as well … but that first quarter gave a glimpse of how Blair is capable of playing when he's fully engaged both mentally and physically.

Danny Green B+
Offensively, Danny Green basically just shot threes and made ill-advised passes. Thankfully, some of those ill-advised passes ended up with positive results. However, that didn't stop Pop from giving him a few death stares along the way. Defensively, though, Green was an asset. He did much better work against Shannon Brown than he did the last time these two teams clashed. He also flew in from off the ball to get deflections and grab contested boards. Green didn't play in the second half but I assume it was a matter of Pop giving him some well-deserved rest since Green is the only player on the team who has played in every game.

Stephen Jackson C
The good: Stephen Jackson's defense continues to be a positive. He's reading plays well (Jackson has nine steals in the last four games) and the Suns had little success when they went at him. Jackson's rebounding in his time with the Spurs has been at a career-high rate and it was strong again Saturday night. Offensively, he knocked down his first look (a three-pointer) and got to the free throw line. The bad: He now has 11 turnovers in his last four games. Jackson's shooting continues to be off; he's shooting just 38.6% from the field and 32.6% on three-pointers so far with the Spurs. Jackson is a work in progress who has a lot of kinks to iron out but he's already showing a lot of intangibles that should help the team going forward.

Gary Neal C-
When Gary Neal was looking for his own shot, he did well. Otherwise, it was a struggle. While his ball-handling was acceptable, he had a difficult time with his timing and with his passes. Defensively, Neal was so bad at times that he actually got benched in the middle of a blowout. It looks like Pop is getting tired of Neal's defensive mistakes so if Neal wants to be a part of the playoff rotation, he better step it up soon.

Boris Diaw B-
Boris Diaw didn't check into the game until midway through the third period. By then, the Spurs already had a 25-point advantage. The rest of the way, Diaw did decent work. His passing was again a strength and he nailed his lone three-point attempt. (After missing his first five three-point attempts with the Spurs, Diaw has connected on his last three from deep.) Defensively, he was mostly a positive. His quick hands and feet resulted in a few takeaways. Diaw also showed the ability to switch off onto smaller and faster players.

Patrick Mills C-
The growing pains for Patrick Mills continue. In his first couple games with the Spurs, it seemed like he would never miss. Now, things aren't coming nearly as easily for Mills. Not only is he missing shots, his attempts are often questionable. In addition to his five misses, he had four turnovers in his 16 minutes of work. While he racked up three assists, none of his passes were especially noteworthy. The highlight of Mills' night was his play on the defensive end. He applied great pressure and really hustled. Since the defenseless Neal is his competition at the backup point guard position, Mills would do well to concentrate on making a difference on the defensive end.

Tiago Splitter C-
Tiago Splitter hasn't had many bad games in recent weeks but I just didn't like the way he played against the Suns. Robin Lopez repeatedly bumped him out of position and out-battled him far too often. Lopez is a decent player but Splitter should get the better of him. That just didn't happen on Saturday night. I also thought his rolls to the basket were a step slow and his running of the court appeared to be more labored than usual.

James Anderson B
As the season has progressed, James Anderson looks like a better and better athlete. I don't know if he wasn't in shape to start the season but he wasn't jumping or moving nearly as well to begin the year. Anderson didn't hit a shot against the Suns but I liked his aggression and he also dropped off a few fine passes. Defensively, I thought he was the only bench player who kept his intensity throughout.

Matt Bonner C+
Outside of a flying* one-handed dunk and a rebound, Matt Bonner didn't do much right or wrong. In the non-structured environment of blowouts, Bonner looks like a fish out of water.
(*very generous use of the word)

Pop B
Pop managed minutes very well and didn't panic when the Suns made a couple runs. Only Jackson played more than half the game. I thought that Pop was going to change the starting lineup after he shuffled it to begin the second half against the Grizzlies … but he didn't. And with as well as the Spurs played coming out of the gates, there's no way to disagree with the results.

http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/154/912/berneydidnotread.gif?1318992465

[Legacy]

http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/154/912/berneydidnotread.gif?1318992465



Probably 'cause you can't read. :rollin

[will_spurs]

Probably 'cause you can't read. :rollin

Lakers fan.

[Russo21]

A few things i love about the game is

for one, holding a team to just 91 points and under 40% shooting.

But how about our new guys, jackson diaw and mills, late season additions accounted for 7 of our teams total 12 steals. The didn't contribute much offensively but who gives a crap.

7 steals from our 3 newbies in limited playing time is pretty awesome. Well done guys keep it up. We need that defense and hustle to make it anywhere in the post season.

[JR3]

We need to get to the playoffs already. I notice Tim and Manu throwing the ball away simply because they are assuming stuff and going through the motions.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

Cuhruffle

[timvp]

^:lol I'll attempt to set a land speed record tonight, tbh.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

I just picture timvp with a three foot wide bowl full of empty shrimp peelings, propped on his belly, passed out once the final whistle blew

[Legacy]

Lakers fan.


Exactly! Dammit! :lol

[Mel_13]

The Bad: In addition to his tardiness, timvp passed up the opportunity to point out the T-Rex-like nature of Bonner's limbs, which forced him to dunk the ball with one hand (because his arms aren't long enough for him to grip the ball over his head with both hands).

timvp is aware that video evidence exists to the contrary:

http://i38.tinypic.com/10z1m51.gif

[therealtruth]

timvp is aware that video evidence exists to the contrary:

http://i38.tinypic.com/10z1m51.gif

You see how close he had to get to the rim to dunk two hands? The previous poster is right. For where Bonner took of from I don't think he could have done it with both hands.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

I just picture timvp with a three foot wide bowl full of empty shrimp peelings, propped on his belly, passed out once the final whistle blew

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/SSSquirrel/bart_tomacco_f.jpg

[Mel_13]

You see how close he had to get to the rim to dunk two hands? The previous poster is right. For where Bonner took of from I don't think he could have done it with both hands.

smh