Quick Grades: Spurs @ Magic - Nov. 28, 2012

[timvp]

Tim Duncan A
Dominant interior defense. Deadly efficiency on offense thanks to patience and smarts.

Manu Ginobili A
Outside shooting looking better and better. He has taken great care of the ball of late.

Tony Parker A
Offensively, he remains on fire. He’s hitting difficult shots and making near flawless decisions.

Danny Green B+
Good rebounding. Mostly solid defense. Jumper looked crisp once again.

Gary Neal B+
Became a one-man scoring machine for a stretch. Defense uneven but mostly positive.

DeJuan Blair C+
His D wasn’t very good early on. His O mostly consisted of unbridled energy.

Tiago Splitter B-
Again didn’t build off of a great performance. Didn’t pick up his aggression level until garbage time.

Boris Diaw B+
Turned down open shots but made up for with defense, rebounding and more remarkable passes.

Nando De Colo C-
Got the PG gig in both halves. Didn’t take advantage. Poor scoring, iffy passing. D actually pretty good.

Matt Bonner Inc.
Pulled down his first contested defensive board of the season. I guess that’s a start.

Cory Joseph Inc.
Continues to look much more like an NBA player than he did last season.

James Anderson Inc.
Not horrible but also not showing any intriguing qualities.

Pop B
Probably could have played TD and TP a few less minutes but that’s about the extent of my nitpicking.

[racm]

If de Colo still shows he can't shoot CoJo should get more minutes.

[dallasmaverickslose]

Get a life timvp. Seriously.

[Morg1411]

Thanks timvp!

[timvp]

Get a life timvp. Seriously.

Thanks for the suggestion :tu

[elemento]

Thanks tim

Too bad Nando is not taking advantage of the PT he is getting. Patty got a DNP. That was a surprise.

[007nites]

Timmy is going for DPOY this year.

[racm]

Thanks tim

Too bad Nando is not taking advantage of the PT he is getting. Patty got a DNP. That was a surprise.

Pop's resting Patty for tomorrow.


Timmy is going for DPOY this year.

I'm surprised he doesn't have one...

[Seventyniner]

Get a life timvp. Seriously.

Next time, try:

timvp's life F
Posts grades immediately after a big blowout. Has no life.

[Libri]

Timmy is going for DPOY this year.

Unfortunately, he will be snubbed.

[DPG21920]

Any talk of the big 3 sitting tomorrow? Is is Pat Stacks time!

[xtremesteven33]

TIMVP should get paid more money than any other writer on the spurs ive read. Just sayin

[DMC]

TIMVP should get paid more money than any other writer on the spurs ive read. Just sayin

So he should make more than 10 dollars an hour then?

[team-work]

Get a life timvp. Seriously.

That's more or less the message I'd like to send you timvp. A casual fan like me just look at your quick grade and game thoughts, and can pretend to be an expert on the Spurs. Thanks indeed!

[jestersmash]

Nando de Colo continues to be a huge jump shooting liability. Once opposing teams start to catch on, his passing lanes off the pick and roll may get clogged up. His overall 3P% is surprisingly decent (37.5%), although it really doesn't feel like it (I would never have guessed 37.5% prior to checking his stats page). A handful of his 3 point makes have come during garbage time (this assertion isn't stat-supported, I'm just going by casual observation) so 37.5% is perhaps a little deceptive.

IIRC Bruno said De Colo is a competent shooter and proved as much in Europe, so hopefully it's just rookie jitters or something. But damn, some of his meaningful 3 point/2 point jump shooting attempts have looked just awful. Wide right. Wide left. There's no consistency.

Gary Neal goes into a shooting slump and it's almost always because his shots are too short or (sometimes) too long. They're rarely far left or far right. I'm never worried about Gary trying to shoot his way out of a slump because his shot is so fundamentally sound. Although then again, Gary Neal is possibly one of the best pure shooters in the NBA so this may not be a fair comparison.

Anyways I'm hoping this is just rookie jitters + a lack of consistent shot attempts per game. Obviously accelerating de Colo's development isn't really a huge priority this season because he's a 3rd string guard who will likely see little to no minutes during the playoffs, but it'd be a shame to see his terrific court vision rendered useless by an inconsistent jump shot.

[ace3g]

While De Colo is still in a slump, he gradually (from the looks of it) becoming more comfortable with the adjustments he is working on with Chip. You can see it on the court, he is taking shots he wasn't earlier in the season; I think he is real close (1-2 games) to having a break out shooting game.

[timvp]

Nando de Colo continues to be a huge jump shooting liability. Once opposing teams start to catch on, his passing lanes off the pick and roll may get clogged up.
Tonight the Magic were the first team who actually defended NDC like he couldn't shoot. The results weren't pretty. Once that scouting report gets around, he'll either have to knock down a couple shots or he won't be able to play at all.

[racm]

De Colo has the same problem as the Timberwolves' Shved. Both were good shooters in Europe but are struggling to adapt to NBA defenses and pace.

[DesertSpur50]

Nando de Colo continues to be a huge jump shooting liability. Once opposing teams start to catch on, his passing lanes off the pick and roll may get clogged up. His overall 3P% is surprisingly decent (37.5%), although it really doesn't feel like it (I would never have guessed 37.5% prior to checking his stats page). A handful of his 3 point makes have come during garbage time (this assertion isn't stat-supported, I'm just going by casual observation) so 37.5% is perhaps a little deceptive.

IIRC Bruno said De Colo is a competent shooter and proved as much in Europe, so hopefully it's just rookie jitters or something. But damn, some of his meaningful 3 point/2 point jump shooting attempts have looked just awful. Wide right. Wide left. There's no consistency.

Gary Neal goes into a shooting slump and it's almost always because his shots are too short or (sometimes) too long. They're rarely far left or far right. I'm never worried about Gary trying to shoot his way out of a slump because his shot is so fundamentally sound. Although then again, Gary Neal is possibly one of the best pure shooters in the NBA so this may not be a fair comparison.

Anyways I'm hoping this is just rookie jitters + a lack of consistent shot attempts per game. Obviously accelerating de Colo's development isn't really a huge priority this season because he's a 3rd string guard who will likely see little to no minutes during the playoffs, but it'd be a shame to see his terrific court vision rendered useless by an inconsistent jump shot.

Agreed. De Colo is an excellent passer, but what makes people like Manu and Nash dangerous passers is that they can create their own shot. Players will sag off Nando and go under screens if he has no outside shot, whereas you have to fight through screens with Nash type players. Without the entire package there isn't much of a threat.

[ace3g]

I don't know about Shved, but De Colo is having his shot restructured by Chip. So while I'm sure De Colo is also adjusting to the pace, there are other factors.

[dunkman]

Thanks timvp, most of us do appreciate the reports of the games.

[Boomersgold]

Nando de Colo continues to be a huge jump shooting liability. Once opposing teams start to catch on, his passing lanes off the pick and roll may get clogged up. His overall 3P% is surprisingly decent (37.5%), although it really doesn't feel like it (I would never have guessed 37.5% prior to checking his stats page). A handful of his 3 point makes have come during garbage time (this assertion isn't stat-supported, I'm just going by casual observation) so 37.5% is perhaps a little deceptive.

IIRC Bruno said De Colo is a competent shooter and proved as much in Europe, so hopefully it's just rookie jitters or something. But damn, some of his meaningful 3 point/2 point jump shooting attempts have looked just awful. Wide right. Wide left. There's no consistency.

Gary Neal goes into a shooting slump and it's almost always because his shots are too short or (sometimes) too long. They're rarely far left or far right. I'm never worried about Gary trying to shoot his way out of a slump because his shot is so fundamentally sound. Although then again, Gary Neal is possibly one of the best pure shooters in the NBA so this may not be a fair comparison.

Anyways I'm hoping this is just rookie jitters + a lack of consistent shot attempts per game. Obviously accelerating de Colo's development isn't really a huge priority this season because he's a 3rd string guard who will likely see little to no minutes during the playoffs, but it'd be a shame to see his terrific court vision rendered useless by an inconsistent jump shot.

I don't think bruno actually watched De Colo play in the Euroleague. According to Eurobasket, in 11 games, whilst playing for Valencia, De Colo shot 27.8% from three and averaged 6.5 points per game in 18 minutes of playing time. That's exactly the De Colo that we saw play in the Olympics, so I don't see why we keep expecting him to 'find his shot'. For De Colo, 'finding his shot' equates to 6 points per game on a dreadful shooting percentage.

[swaggerjackson]

he does need to develop an outside shot just to maintain proper spacing, but also he is getting thrown into the fire here. I think the plan was probably to bring him along slowly. If Jax and Kawhi were not injured we probably wouldn't even see Nando but in the last two minutes. I think he was always a long term project. Chip will help him out. Remember Parker's shooting before Chip. My God!

[ace3g]

The good thing about Nando is that his other skills have translated to the NBA, even his defense which hasn't been too bad so far.

[Poolboy5623]

Yeah, I think nando will be fine. He's no ginobili but he'll still make a good nba player, I do believe. Just give the guy time..it's actually a good thing he's gotten more minutes with the injuries..on the job training. Luckily the spurs are good enough to win, regardless of his play.

[wildbill2u]

Timmy is going for DPOY this year.

Nah, he's the comeback player of the year so far

[jiggy_55]

I have not watched the last few games, but what the hell is happening with our rebounding? And why have Tim's rebounding numbers been atrocious thest past 3 games, even in that Toronto game where we went to 2OT and he played 40+. I might understand the last 2 bad rebounding games due to the poor opponents and the game ending early, but it is worrying definitely.

[JRHernandez88]

Tim deserves an A+ for that 3 @ the buzzer tbh just saying

[ace3g]

It was good that Splitter played through after hurting his knee/leg late in the game.

[spurraider21]

The only reason Tim didn't get an A+ was his rebounding. Darn near awesome in every other category, plus don't forget style points with his 3

[Paranoid Pop]

I'm only watching the game now and I have to say that Neal is impressing the shit out of me, 2 minutes left in the first quarter and I counted 3 steals from him and some solid defense in general. If we had a real PG I think he could really challenge Green for starting SG.

[DanAu]

I think Teams have worked out that if they focus on removing Duncan from the rebounding equation, there really isnt much help...I mean Duncan cant do it himself if they crash the boards...it likely means that they arent scared of the Spurs transition game, I cant remember any fast breaks or tempo pushing this game by the spurs. If every Spurs offensive play is slow, teams can put more bodies on the offensive glass without fear of a quick score at the other end.

[Slippy]

Splitter's most meaningful mins was in garbage time but ya he was back to normal. Playing Duncan almost the whole of the first quarter didn't make sense to me or to Duncan. Spurs already had a comfortable lead after Manu came in shooting lights out.

Thank you Manu for "not sucking". The thoughtfull Spurs fan called Will Spurs must be grateful.

When Gary Neal gets shots from what the offense gives him. He is deadly. When he's running it, not so much.

[will_spurs]

I don't think bruno actually watched De Colo play in the Euroleague. According to Eurobasket, in 11 games, whilst playing for Valencia, De Colo shot 27.8% from three and averaged 6.5 points per game in 18 minutes of playing time. That's exactly the De Colo that we saw play in the Olympics, so I don't see why we keep expecting him to 'find his shot'. For De Colo, 'finding his shot' equates to 6 points per game on a dreadful shooting percentage.

That's not the whole picture, though. Check his stats from the Spanish league (at the bottom of his wikipedia page: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nando_de_Colo). his shooting % are decent (or more than decent in some years). And re: ppg you can't compare Europe/FIBA games with NBA games. With the help of Chip I see no reason why he couldn't get to the level of ~47% FG and ~38% 3P, which would be respectable.

Nobody said he'd be an All-Star, but right now he's steadily progressing towards a position in the rotation. And I'm quite sure Pop pays more attention right now to his D and court vision, which are much harder to learn.

[Seventyniner]

That's not the whole picture, though. Check his stats from the Spanish league (at the bottom of his wikipedia page: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nando_de_Colo). his shooting % are decent (or more than decent in some years). And re: ppg you can't compare Europe/FIBA games with NBA games. With the help of Chip I see no reason why he couldn't get to the level of ~47% FG and ~38% 3P, which would be respectable.

Nobody said he'd be an All-Star, but right now he's steadily progressing towards a position in the rotation. And I'm quite sure Pop pays more attention right now to his D and court vision, which are much harder to learn.

The problem with those numbers is that they are above-average for an NBA guard. I haven't seen anything from NDC to show me that he has that in him. I would lower my expectations to 44% FG and 34% 3P. That would still be enough of an improvement, though, to not allow opponents to sag off of him at every opportunity.

[Capt Bringdown]

Not exactly stellar competition, but with our injuries, an impressive win.

[FromWayDowntown]

The thought that the Spurs could end up with 9 (or even 10) road wins by the end of November is pretty remarkable.

Think about it this way: the Spurs have 9 road wins this morning; the rest of the Southwest Division (collectively) has 10 road wins this season.

[silverblackfan]

Accurate grades. I am impressed with this team's performance without KL and SJ. Neal has been surprisingly good at SG now that his defense is improving.
I also think that Jacque Vaughn has his work cut out for him. I was remarking last night that the Spurs bench could beat the Magic's starters. They just look like a lot of odds and ends right now.

[Gagnrath]

Accurate grades. I am impressed with this team's performance without KL and SJ. Neal has been surprisingly good at SG now that his defense is improving.
I also think that Jacque Vaughn has his work cut out for him. I was remarking last night that the Spurs bench could beat the Magic's starters. They just look like a lot of odds and ends right now.


Mainly because thats what they are, I'm not sure how but in the hopes of adding a second start to play along side Howard, for years the Magic were trading for guys who were over-rated, washed-up, or system guys. They also got some other filler added in here and there. After trading Howard for picks and spare parts, that is all that was left.

[jestersmash]

I'm only watching the game now and I have to say that Neal is impressing the shit out of me, 2 minutes left in the first quarter and I counted 3 steals from him and some solid defense in general. If we had a real PG I think he could really challenge Green for starting SG.

Neal's always had a "gunner" mentality on offense and I have no problem with it (even though I know there are a handful of spurs fans who cringe when he pulls up and shoots semi-contested 3 balls going 1 on 1, for example). I think every team needs at least 1 "selfish/gunner" type to keep the offense fresh and varied.

His defense, historically, has left much to be desired, but recently I've seen flashes of really solid, aggressive defense from Neal. He's staying in front of his defender a little bit better and he'll "bob" in and out of his opponent's personal space to keep him guessing. For example, he'll occasionally close the gap significantly with aggressive defense. This, of course, gives the opponent a small time window to just dribble and blow past him, but it never happens because Neal smartly pulls back immediately. He'll get up in an opponent's face for just a moment and pull back immediately. It's enough to fluster the opponent but not long enough for the average opponent to take advantage of Neal getting too aggressive.

Tony Parker actually has been doing the same thing (notably against Chris Paul in one or both of their meetings) with great success.

I agree with timvp that Neal's defense overall was a bit uneven during this game, but I think we definitely saw flashes of very good defense and this should be really encouraging to spurs fans. Obviously Neal has a huge chip on his shoulder right now because it's a contract year and you get the sense (just listen to his postgame comments with Sean and Andrew) that he's really trying to prove himself to earn a lucrative contract.

[spurs10]

Get a life timvp. Seriously.

Suck a tailpipe. Seriously.

[AaronY]

I really look forward to these. Don't listen to da h8rz

[silverblk mystix]

It was good that Splitter played through after hurting his knee/leg late in the game.



Knock on fucking wood. I am half-expecting a report that Splitter is out for 6-8 weeks any second now.

[spurs10]

Spurstalk is a blessing to Spursfans. I greatly appreciate the efforts of timvp and Kori. The Quick Grades and the Game Thoughts are the best source of information anyone will find ^%*$ing anywhere on the San Antonio Spurs. As Nei Young once said, although he was singing about a car, "long may you run!"
Go Spurs Go!!!!
:flag::flag::flag:

[Slippy]

OK, Pop playing Tim heavy mins in the first and he not wanting to come off makes a whole lot of sense now with the big three being rested for the miami game.

[DMC]

LJ should do the quick grades now for the Miami game.