timvp
10-11-2012, 03:40 AM
For the first time since June, the Spurs played against another NBA team. In a much less stressful environment, San Antonio defeated the Atlanta Hawks in preseason action by a final score of 101-99 thanks to a Nando De Colo game-winning jumper with less than a second remaining. With the Big 4 sitting out (Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and Matt Bonner), the Spurs got enough from the role players to get the W in front of their home fans.
Kawhi Leonard
Preseason hasn’t been kind to Kawhi Leonard so far. He was mediocre in the first outing and was straight up bad tonight. It seems like he’s trying to do too much. While he’s a good ballhandler for a small forward, he got in trouble trying to take it one-on-five. Leonard also stagnated the offense at times by holding the ball and forced a few shots. He was best when penetrating and quickly passing to the open teammate when the defense collapsed on him. Defensively, Leonard didn’t make a noticeable impact. Overall, I’m not too worried yet. Going from a role player to more than that is difficult in the NBA and Leonard is experiencing those growing pains. Plus, he didn’t look good last year in preseason either; he's someone whose game is better suited for the structure of real NBA competition.
Danny Green
Danny Green had a few highlights (namely a block in transition in addition to FINALLY hitting a three-pointer) but I’m still waiting for that spark. He was best last season when he brought infectious energy to the table and was in perpetual motion. In the first two preseason games (and in the scrimmage), Green is doing a lot of standing around and watching. He’s not talented enough to turn into a spot-up three-point shooter who also plays satisfactory defense. It’s obviously still early but I’m anxiously awaiting the return of that fire.
Cory Joseph
I’ve been high on Cory Joseph all summer and he got a great opportunity tonight when he was placed in the starting lineup. Unfortunately, the results were underwhelming. To begin the game, Joseph looked exactly like he looked last season: timid, unsure and too frightened to impose his will. The Spurs fell into a hole early mostly because Joseph was doing a poor job of initiating the offense. He wasn’t penetrating or creating -- just haphazardly running the motion sets late in the clock. Eventually he snapped out of it and got back to the attacking style that has caused the massive improvement in his game. When Joseph got going, he illustrated a strong pick-and-roll game -- both in terms of slashing to the hoop and finding the open man -- and very good defensive skills (he’s particularly adept at drawing offensive fouls against bigmen setting screens). All in all, it was probably a step back. Joseph really could have taken a huge leap forward tonight but he showed that those rookie warts haven’t totally vanished yet.
Eddy Curry
The enigma that is Eddy Curry remains tantalizing. In the first half, he looked dominant at times. He was running the court extremely well, rebounding with enthusiasm and staying mentally engaged at both ends. Perhaps the most tantalizing moment of them all was when he beat Al Horford off the dribble on his way to a score. Curry hasn’t done something like that in an NBA game in a long, long time. In the second half, I wasn’t nearly as impressed. His transition defense was horrid, he missed a few rebounds that bounced right to him and he turned into a black hole on offense. Curry had a few positive moments in the final two quarters but they were sporadic. Add both halves together and the picture remains murky. What do you do with him if you’re the Spurs front office? Sometimes he absolutely looks like an NBA level player. Other times he looks like too much of a raw specimen to ever truly help a championship-aspiring team. Right now, it’d be difficult to let him go but it’d also be difficult to figure out a scenario in which he’ll help the team on a consistent basis.
Derrick Brown
Derrick Brown’s statistics look encouraging but I continue to not like what I see from him. Defensive is the most glaring disappointment. Although he’s very long for a combo forward, his length is negated out on the perimeter because he’s not quick or light on his toes. When playing on the interior, he doesn’t have the strength to hold his position. On offense, he likes to catch the ball outside of the paint and face up. The problem is he has no ball skills and no jumper. Maybe he’ll prove me wrong in the upcoming games but nothing about Brown really stands out as a major strength. Add in the fact that he doesn’t look as athletic as he was last season and it’s safe to say I’m not a fan right now.
Nando De Colo
After playing shooting guard in both the scrimmage and the first preseason game, the coaching staff changed things up and let De Colo play point guard against the Hawks. By the end of the game, I was convinced that point guard is his truest position in the NBA. The vision and timing De Colo demonstrated in the open court and in pick-and-roll sets were extraordinary. When you boil it down, he simply looks like a player who should have the ball in his hands. His nine assists begin to tell the story of just what kind of passer this guy can be down the line. While his ballhandling isn’t great for a point guard, he’s a long 6-foot-5 so he’s able to use his body to shield the ball. Early on, defense was an issue (especially against Jeff Teague) mostly due to being too jumpy and reacting to every juke. Eventually, De Colo settled down and actually came up with a handful of strong defensive plays in the second half. Oddly enough, even though he hit the game-winning jumper, his jumper is the aspect I liked the least. When he shoots it off the dribble, he fades backwards and gets very little arc on the ball. He also doesn’t have a high release so it’s easy for a defender to bother him. De Colo’s standstill jumper uses too much elbow and it’s a slow release. Working with Chip Engelland should do him a world of good.
Gary Neal
Free to play his natural shooting guard position, Gary Neal was quite impressive. Offensively, he relentlessly looked to generate points. While his “looking” usually resulted in him taking the shot himself, he also authored a number of surprisingly good passes. It seems that the time he has spent at point guard has made him a more well-rounded player -- even when he’s back at shooting guard. Defensively, Neal was good. It’s amazing what happens when he’s able to play his natural position -- he goes from a horrible defender at point guard to adequate at shooting guard. Regrettably for him, it’s doubtful that Neal will see much time at shooting guard this season unless there’s an injury or an unforeseen slump.
Josh Powell
Out of all the training camp invitees, Josh Powell has easily been the best player. Although it’s likely that he’s playing well over his head (he’s just not as good as he has looked so far in silver in black), give him credit for peaking at an opportune time. On the low block, Powell is pulling off Olajuwon-ish moves. When he’s not scoring, he’s finding teammates with perfect passes. On defense, he’s strong on the post and is using his athleticism to alter shots. If an outsider witnessed just the first two preseason games and the scrimmage, they’d assume Powell is far and away the best bigman on the team. That’s how well he has been playing. It’s not going to last but I can’t fathom how the Spurs can let him go as long as he keeps playing this well.
Stephen Jackson
There’s not much to report in regards to Stephen Jackson. His outside stroke looks silky smooth. He’s still getting touches in the low block. His defense is a work in progress as he gets back into basketball shape. I guess the most significant Jackson-related development is the fact that he’s playing like a total team player. That self-absorbed, high usage gunner who played in those colorful uniforms between 2004 and 2011 appears to be dead and buried.
Boris Diaw
Was it my imagination or did Boris Diaw get even skinnier from the first preseason game? He’s almost legitimately in good shape right now. As a result, he’s much quicker to the basketball and is more agile on the perimeter. He wasn’t too involved on either end tonight but his passing was splendid, per usual, and he wasn’t afraid to mix it up in the paint -- even though he has less padding to throw around.
Tiago Splitter
Tiago Splitter didn’t play in the first half but logged 13 minutes in the third and fourth periods. (Body-wise, he looked different. I couldn’t pinpoint the difference right away but I think he’s skinnier and less muscular up top compared to last season.) Splitter’s first outing of preseason was a mixed bag. He moved rather well, especially defensively, and had no problems running the court. Splitter’s passing was also a positive. The rest of his offensive game, though, wasn’t pretty. His post-up moves were weak and his picks weren’t creating any space -- mostly due to poor timing between him and the ballhandler.
Wesley Witherspoon
I continue to like Wesley Witherspoon as a D-League prospect. He looks the part of an NBA swingman and he has a feathery touch from the outside with a high release point. Add in really good athleticism and it’s a package that will hopefully land in Austin.
DeJuan Blair
DeJuan Blair only played nine minutes but he made the most of it. On defense, he’s much more involved. Since he’s so much lighter than previous years, he’s able to defend pick-and-rolls better and step out on the perimeter and challenge jump-shooters. I even saw him grab a couple contested defensive rebounds -- and that’s something that’s been missing since his rookie season. Offensively, the story was the 20-foot jumper than he buried. Yes, DeJuan Blair took and swished a 20-footer. I watched him in warmups and he was draining shot after shot from beyond 18 feet. If Blair legitimately adds a jumper to his arsenal, that changes everything. Let’s hope that he continues to take and make that shot.
Tyler Wilkerson
The one invitee who didn’t get a legit look tonight was Tyler Wilkerson. I’m still hoping the Spurs give him at least one long look before deciding to waive him.
Pop
-Obviously, the decision to give De Colo a look at point guard was the story of the game coaching-wise. With four other legit point guard options on the roster (five if you count Ginobili), testing out De Colo seemed like overkill -- but it turned out to be the right call. However, now the decision on who to go with just got a lot more difficult for Pop.
-Is Splitter feeling some sort of backlash? Pop recently talked about being disappointed that Splitter missed the beginning of camp once again. In the first game he’s active, Splitter doesn’t play in the first half. Was that a coincidence or a subtle message? Probably the former but there may be more to it.
-I liked that Pop pulled the plug early on Leonard. It just wasn’t working. On the other hand, I’d like to see Green be given a chance to rediscover his groove. This zombie version isn’t going to be useful as is.
-Holding out the Big 4 was totally acceptable. However, it’ll be interesting to see how Pop uses the rest of the preseason. Duncan, Ginobili and Parker all appear to be in very good shape so they don’t need too much more game action. The more pressing issues are to select a backup point guard and to figure out who is going to make the cut. If I had to guess, we’ll see the whole team once or twice more in the rest of preseason but otherwise Pop will use the games to figure out these other issues.
Kawhi Leonard
Preseason hasn’t been kind to Kawhi Leonard so far. He was mediocre in the first outing and was straight up bad tonight. It seems like he’s trying to do too much. While he’s a good ballhandler for a small forward, he got in trouble trying to take it one-on-five. Leonard also stagnated the offense at times by holding the ball and forced a few shots. He was best when penetrating and quickly passing to the open teammate when the defense collapsed on him. Defensively, Leonard didn’t make a noticeable impact. Overall, I’m not too worried yet. Going from a role player to more than that is difficult in the NBA and Leonard is experiencing those growing pains. Plus, he didn’t look good last year in preseason either; he's someone whose game is better suited for the structure of real NBA competition.
Danny Green
Danny Green had a few highlights (namely a block in transition in addition to FINALLY hitting a three-pointer) but I’m still waiting for that spark. He was best last season when he brought infectious energy to the table and was in perpetual motion. In the first two preseason games (and in the scrimmage), Green is doing a lot of standing around and watching. He’s not talented enough to turn into a spot-up three-point shooter who also plays satisfactory defense. It’s obviously still early but I’m anxiously awaiting the return of that fire.
Cory Joseph
I’ve been high on Cory Joseph all summer and he got a great opportunity tonight when he was placed in the starting lineup. Unfortunately, the results were underwhelming. To begin the game, Joseph looked exactly like he looked last season: timid, unsure and too frightened to impose his will. The Spurs fell into a hole early mostly because Joseph was doing a poor job of initiating the offense. He wasn’t penetrating or creating -- just haphazardly running the motion sets late in the clock. Eventually he snapped out of it and got back to the attacking style that has caused the massive improvement in his game. When Joseph got going, he illustrated a strong pick-and-roll game -- both in terms of slashing to the hoop and finding the open man -- and very good defensive skills (he’s particularly adept at drawing offensive fouls against bigmen setting screens). All in all, it was probably a step back. Joseph really could have taken a huge leap forward tonight but he showed that those rookie warts haven’t totally vanished yet.
Eddy Curry
The enigma that is Eddy Curry remains tantalizing. In the first half, he looked dominant at times. He was running the court extremely well, rebounding with enthusiasm and staying mentally engaged at both ends. Perhaps the most tantalizing moment of them all was when he beat Al Horford off the dribble on his way to a score. Curry hasn’t done something like that in an NBA game in a long, long time. In the second half, I wasn’t nearly as impressed. His transition defense was horrid, he missed a few rebounds that bounced right to him and he turned into a black hole on offense. Curry had a few positive moments in the final two quarters but they were sporadic. Add both halves together and the picture remains murky. What do you do with him if you’re the Spurs front office? Sometimes he absolutely looks like an NBA level player. Other times he looks like too much of a raw specimen to ever truly help a championship-aspiring team. Right now, it’d be difficult to let him go but it’d also be difficult to figure out a scenario in which he’ll help the team on a consistent basis.
Derrick Brown
Derrick Brown’s statistics look encouraging but I continue to not like what I see from him. Defensive is the most glaring disappointment. Although he’s very long for a combo forward, his length is negated out on the perimeter because he’s not quick or light on his toes. When playing on the interior, he doesn’t have the strength to hold his position. On offense, he likes to catch the ball outside of the paint and face up. The problem is he has no ball skills and no jumper. Maybe he’ll prove me wrong in the upcoming games but nothing about Brown really stands out as a major strength. Add in the fact that he doesn’t look as athletic as he was last season and it’s safe to say I’m not a fan right now.
Nando De Colo
After playing shooting guard in both the scrimmage and the first preseason game, the coaching staff changed things up and let De Colo play point guard against the Hawks. By the end of the game, I was convinced that point guard is his truest position in the NBA. The vision and timing De Colo demonstrated in the open court and in pick-and-roll sets were extraordinary. When you boil it down, he simply looks like a player who should have the ball in his hands. His nine assists begin to tell the story of just what kind of passer this guy can be down the line. While his ballhandling isn’t great for a point guard, he’s a long 6-foot-5 so he’s able to use his body to shield the ball. Early on, defense was an issue (especially against Jeff Teague) mostly due to being too jumpy and reacting to every juke. Eventually, De Colo settled down and actually came up with a handful of strong defensive plays in the second half. Oddly enough, even though he hit the game-winning jumper, his jumper is the aspect I liked the least. When he shoots it off the dribble, he fades backwards and gets very little arc on the ball. He also doesn’t have a high release so it’s easy for a defender to bother him. De Colo’s standstill jumper uses too much elbow and it’s a slow release. Working with Chip Engelland should do him a world of good.
Gary Neal
Free to play his natural shooting guard position, Gary Neal was quite impressive. Offensively, he relentlessly looked to generate points. While his “looking” usually resulted in him taking the shot himself, he also authored a number of surprisingly good passes. It seems that the time he has spent at point guard has made him a more well-rounded player -- even when he’s back at shooting guard. Defensively, Neal was good. It’s amazing what happens when he’s able to play his natural position -- he goes from a horrible defender at point guard to adequate at shooting guard. Regrettably for him, it’s doubtful that Neal will see much time at shooting guard this season unless there’s an injury or an unforeseen slump.
Josh Powell
Out of all the training camp invitees, Josh Powell has easily been the best player. Although it’s likely that he’s playing well over his head (he’s just not as good as he has looked so far in silver in black), give him credit for peaking at an opportune time. On the low block, Powell is pulling off Olajuwon-ish moves. When he’s not scoring, he’s finding teammates with perfect passes. On defense, he’s strong on the post and is using his athleticism to alter shots. If an outsider witnessed just the first two preseason games and the scrimmage, they’d assume Powell is far and away the best bigman on the team. That’s how well he has been playing. It’s not going to last but I can’t fathom how the Spurs can let him go as long as he keeps playing this well.
Stephen Jackson
There’s not much to report in regards to Stephen Jackson. His outside stroke looks silky smooth. He’s still getting touches in the low block. His defense is a work in progress as he gets back into basketball shape. I guess the most significant Jackson-related development is the fact that he’s playing like a total team player. That self-absorbed, high usage gunner who played in those colorful uniforms between 2004 and 2011 appears to be dead and buried.
Boris Diaw
Was it my imagination or did Boris Diaw get even skinnier from the first preseason game? He’s almost legitimately in good shape right now. As a result, he’s much quicker to the basketball and is more agile on the perimeter. He wasn’t too involved on either end tonight but his passing was splendid, per usual, and he wasn’t afraid to mix it up in the paint -- even though he has less padding to throw around.
Tiago Splitter
Tiago Splitter didn’t play in the first half but logged 13 minutes in the third and fourth periods. (Body-wise, he looked different. I couldn’t pinpoint the difference right away but I think he’s skinnier and less muscular up top compared to last season.) Splitter’s first outing of preseason was a mixed bag. He moved rather well, especially defensively, and had no problems running the court. Splitter’s passing was also a positive. The rest of his offensive game, though, wasn’t pretty. His post-up moves were weak and his picks weren’t creating any space -- mostly due to poor timing between him and the ballhandler.
Wesley Witherspoon
I continue to like Wesley Witherspoon as a D-League prospect. He looks the part of an NBA swingman and he has a feathery touch from the outside with a high release point. Add in really good athleticism and it’s a package that will hopefully land in Austin.
DeJuan Blair
DeJuan Blair only played nine minutes but he made the most of it. On defense, he’s much more involved. Since he’s so much lighter than previous years, he’s able to defend pick-and-rolls better and step out on the perimeter and challenge jump-shooters. I even saw him grab a couple contested defensive rebounds -- and that’s something that’s been missing since his rookie season. Offensively, the story was the 20-foot jumper than he buried. Yes, DeJuan Blair took and swished a 20-footer. I watched him in warmups and he was draining shot after shot from beyond 18 feet. If Blair legitimately adds a jumper to his arsenal, that changes everything. Let’s hope that he continues to take and make that shot.
Tyler Wilkerson
The one invitee who didn’t get a legit look tonight was Tyler Wilkerson. I’m still hoping the Spurs give him at least one long look before deciding to waive him.
Pop
-Obviously, the decision to give De Colo a look at point guard was the story of the game coaching-wise. With four other legit point guard options on the roster (five if you count Ginobili), testing out De Colo seemed like overkill -- but it turned out to be the right call. However, now the decision on who to go with just got a lot more difficult for Pop.
-Is Splitter feeling some sort of backlash? Pop recently talked about being disappointed that Splitter missed the beginning of camp once again. In the first game he’s active, Splitter doesn’t play in the first half. Was that a coincidence or a subtle message? Probably the former but there may be more to it.
-I liked that Pop pulled the plug early on Leonard. It just wasn’t working. On the other hand, I’d like to see Green be given a chance to rediscover his groove. This zombie version isn’t going to be useful as is.
-Holding out the Big 4 was totally acceptable. However, it’ll be interesting to see how Pop uses the rest of the preseason. Duncan, Ginobili and Parker all appear to be in very good shape so they don’t need too much more game action. The more pressing issues are to select a backup point guard and to figure out who is going to make the cut. If I had to guess, we’ll see the whole team once or twice more in the rest of preseason but otherwise Pop will use the games to figure out these other issues.