Quick Grades: Spurs @ Pacers - Nov. 23, 2012

[timvp]

Tim Duncan A+
Destroyed Roy Hibbert again. Monster on the boards. Played at extremely high level all night.

Manu Ginobili B
Started off slowly but progressed as game advanced. Key in the comeback. Played HARD throughout.

Tony Parker A+
God-mode for most of game. Extremely smooth throughout. Best game of the season.

Danny Green C-
Horrible for a vast majority of the game but bounced back with a huge seven-point stretch in fourth.

Gary Neal B+
Above average defensively. Got multiple contested rebounds. Under control on offense.

DeJuan Blair B-
Supplied energy. Actual production was lacking.

Tiago Splitter C+
Quiet and passive for part of the evening but had big moments here and there.

Boris Diaw C
Bad on the boards and wasn’t shooting. Saved his best plays for the end.

Matt Bonner B+
Decent to good position defense but didn't rebound. Seemed to jumpstart the team on O.

Nando De Colo Inc.
Intangibles not apparent tonight.

Patrick Mills Inc.
Used his speed well but passing and playmaking lacking

Pop B+
Weird rotations and lineups but eventually found groups that could pick apart the Pacers.

[Splits]

You forgot Bonner.

[playblair]

bonner changed the tide of the game .... bonner comes in pacers get 24 second shot clock violation .... bonner = defense

[Brazil]

Splitter is frustrating tbh

[Spur|n|Austin]

Thanks brah

[Brazil]

Thanks brah

ur welcome scrah

[DMC]

Tim is in Finals mode. He's one of the best players in the league right now. Bet he gets no love though.

[Spur|n|Austin]

ur welcome scrah

I was talking to LJ. What's a scrah?

[Brazil]

I was talking to LJ. What's a scrah?

willy ? I had no idea

[Thomas82]

Tim is in Finals mode. He's one of the best players in the league right now. Bet he gets no love though.

+1 He should be getting some early season consideration for MVP. If nothing else, he should be in the running for Western Conference Player Of The Month.

[elemento]

Happy for the BIG 3 ! They finally played as an authentic BIG 3. Even though the bench played like shit and the 3-pointers were not falling, I liked the 91% from the FT line.

The 19 offensive rebounds the Pacers got worries a bit though.

[benefactor]

It's really crazy to see Duncan playing like this. I can remember years past where I was convinced he was done(I know, I know). I said I would never underestimate him again but there is no way you could have convinced me of what we are seeing now. Truly special.

[pjjrfan]

Putting Tim on West in the final 5 minutes sealed the deal for the Spurs, West either couldn't get the ball and when he did had a hard time getting his shot off he even missed 2 freebies before that West looked like he was going to carry the pacers.

[Spur|n|Austin]

willy ? I had no idea

Sarcasm. That's rich.

[Thomas82]

It's really crazy to see Duncan playing like this. I can remember years past where I was convinced he was done(I know, I know). I said I would never underestimate him again but there is no way you could have convinced me of what we are seeing now. Truly special.

+1

[racm]

It's really crazy to see Duncan playing like this. I can remember years past where I was convinced he was done(I know, I know). I said I would never underestimate him again but there is no way you could have convinced me of what we are seeing now. Truly special.

Time machine? Fountain of youth?

[benefactor]

36 yr old Duncan's per 36 numbers are just ridiculous. I know they will come back to earth eventually but it's still pretty mind blowing for his age.

[ducks]

duncan is easily an allstar right now

[letmk]

As bad as Manu's shot is looking, he compensates with his relentless attacking. If only he can find his shot back, we would be in great shape.

[ducks]

manu three point shot looks horrible

[racm]

36 yr old Duncan's per 36 numbers are just ridiculous. I know they will come back to earth eventually but it's still pretty mind blowing for his age.

TD's per 36 numbers have remained the same throughout his career. He's only at ~30 mpg, only a bit more than last season.

[Darius Bieber]

We better pray to God, Allah, Buddha, Nature, and/or Science that Timmy continues this amazing season with no serious injuries.

[timvp]

duncan is easily an allstar right now

Top four MVP candidate thus far.

[ducks]

melo,duncan, durrant and then james IMO

[timvp]

TD's per 36 numbers have remained the same throughout his career. He's only at ~30 mpg, only a bit more than last season.

Similar but not the same, IMO. His per-minute stats right now are demonstratively better than at any point since at least 2005.

[racm]

Similar but not the same, IMO. His per-minute stats right now are demonstratively better than at any point since at least 2005.

Career high in blocks and defensive rebounds per 36. Also leads the entire NBA in defensive rebounding rate.

[benefactor]

TD's per 36 numbers have remained the same throughout his career. He's only at ~30 mpg, only a bit more than last season.
You should probably check again. He's averaging 21/12/3. He hasn't done that since the 2005 championship season.

[SpurSpurSpurs]

We better pray to God, Allah, Buddha, Nature, and/or Science that Timmy continues this amazing season with no serious injuries.

^This.

[benefactor]

Beat me to it.

[racm]

You should probably check again. He's averaging 21/12/3. He hasn't done that since the 2005 championship season.

:lobt:

[ducks]

manu plays hard all the time
unfortunally he somtimes has very bad turnovers imo and gets hurt IMO

[benefactor]

ducks with the "trying to compliment Manu but I can only go so far" goods per par.

[jesterbobman]

Isn't there a myth about Merlin aging in reverse?(May be misremembering, been a while since I've read Arthurian legends)It could be the source of Duncans agelessness.

Rebounding is concerning.

[Thomas82]

duncan is easily an allstar right now

Starting PF if you ask me.....Right now, my starters for the West are: C -Dwight Howard, PF- Tim Duncan, SF -Kevin Durant, SG -Kobe Bryant, PG -Chris Paul

[Thomas82]

Top four MVP candidate thus far.

How nice would it be if he ended up winning it!!??!! I believe he would be the oldest MVP in NBA history if he pulled it off.

[AusSpur]

Who gives a crap about all-star teams, I would prefer he keeps this up and makes the All NBA first team.

He is 3rd in the league in PER at the moment

[Johnny RIngo]

How nice would it be if he ended up winning it!!??!! I believe he would be the oldest MVP in NBA history if he pulled it off.

In order for that to happen, TD would have to keep up this level of production while upping his PPG to at least 20+. He'd also have to play at least 70 games this season and the Spurs would need to finish with the best record in the league. Very unlikely for all those things to occur. Still, this is the best Duncan's looked in years and we should all enjoy it as much as possible without getting caught up in all-star/all-NBA mumbo jumbo.

[SpurSwag]

i can't express how nice it is to see duncan performing at this level. Its so nice to see how hes' moving and actually dominating on both ends of the floor

[lakerhaterade]

Loved when Duncan took the ball back from West after failing to convert an easy layup. He slammed it and simultaneously took a major dump in the moufs of the ole Indiana faithful.

[Obstructed_View]

Starting PF if you ask me.....Right now, my starters for the West are: C -Dwight Howard, PF- Tim Duncan, SF -Kevin Durant, SG -Kobe Bryant, PG -Chris Paul

FYI, a center isn't required on that list, so you don't have to put two members of a team with a losing record on the all-star team. Emptystatz would be bummed about this new rule if he weren't on the Lakers where everyone will vote for him regardless of how many outcomes he fails to impact.

[Richie]

Didn't see the game but we gave up 19 offensive rebounds???? Shocking

[Fireball]

Very impressive game by the Spurs ... did not think they would get back from 17 down, but calmly and methodically they just did it. 20/22 from the FT line definitely helped ... Go Spurs!!!

[ManuTastic]

Duncan just amazing this year. While it would be an honor to be voted onto the All-Star team, and he deserves it (and Tony too), he doesn't need the hassle.

[DMC]

Loved when Duncan took the ball back from West after failing to convert an easy layup. He slammed it and simultaneously took a major dump in the moufs of the ole Indiana faithful.

I could see it in Hill's face "Damn, why did David have to piss them off by pushing Tony?"

[racm]

Isn't there a myth about Merlin aging in reverse?(May be misremembering, been a while since I've read Arthurian legends)It could be the source of Duncans agelessness.

Rebounding is concerning.

Doesn't he have a wizard tattoo?

I think the rebounding problem's apparent because everybody's contesting shots instead of boxing out.

[z0sa]

Tony Parker was in beast mode all night. He was getting his points from all over the floor. Too Tired Timmy ain't lookin' so tired. And Danny Green makes me want to vomit and punch the TV for three quarters then somehow comes through in the clutch... where the fuck was that shit vs OKC last season??

[racm]

James Harden asked to borrow it in the WCF then returned it in the Finals, tbh...

And Green was simply trying to shoot from beyond the arc - this season he's doing more like cutting to the basket.

[Russ]

Two keys to becoming a factor in the championship picture:

1. Our three-point %

2. Opponents FG %

Both need to be a LOW as possible in our wins.

Great win last night -- our 3pt % = 12% -- opp FG% = 41%. :)

[spurs10]

Loved the game, but is was amazing how many offensive boards the Pacers racked up. As Tim mentioned, good thing they "missed some lay ups."

[boutons_deux]

19 ORB and still lost :lol

[Bruno]

I wouldn't be against Pop giving Cory Joseph a try for the backup PG spot. I've been less than sold by what Mills and De Colo have done this year. Aside of that, the bench has been widely inconsistent this year. Spurs beat Celtics because of their bench and two days later, they almost lost the game against Pacers by themselves.

[ohmwrecker]

Manu needs a backiotomy.

[timvp]

I wouldn't be against Pop giving Cory Joseph a try for the backup PG spot. I've been less than sold by what Mills and De Colo have done this year.

Agreed. I think he deserves a few chances. Outside of Parker, CJ is probably the truest PG on the roster and the best defensively. He might not be ready for the bright lights but it's not like Mills and De Colo are setting the world ablaze.

[TD 21]

Top four MVP candidate thus far.

Top four? Top two.

[BackHome]

Manu played like a C player.

[100%duncan]

I thought Danny deserved a B. That 7 point spark was huuuuuuuuugeeeeeeee

[Obstructed_View]

Agreed. I think he deserves a few chances. Outside of Parker, CJ is probably the truest PG on the roster and the best defensively. He might not be ready for the bright lights but it's not like Mills and De Colo are setting the world ablaze.

Thirded. It remains a mystery why the Spurs draft certain guys and then refuse to throw them in the pool. I have a hard time believing in a disconnect between the people who evaluate the talent and the people who coach the team. I think you can teach CJ to run the offense and cover for his weaknesses more readily than you can cover for the defensive deficiencies of the other guys. At this point, Mills looks like a poor-man's Gary Neal, though De Colo still has some value to eat up random guard minutes .

[Obstructed_View]

Top four? Top two.

Yeah, aside from Lebron, I haven't seen anyone else in his zip code.