TacoCabanaFajitas
11-17-2013, 12:03 AM
Game at a Glance
In one of the most un-Spurslike games you will ever witness, and after 3 1/2 quarters of lackadaisical play and uninspired basketball, it looked as if the Spurs had finally overindulged in coasting and would pay for it with a loss to the Utah Jazz in a half-empty Energy Solutions Arena. Fortunately, the lights came on in the 4th quarter and Tony Parker led the team back from a 15 point deficit and to a 9-1 record to start the year, thank goodness Gordon Hayward went 5-23 from the field.
Player & Coach Grades
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Tony Parker
http://www.spurstalk.com/tp12.png
From tipoff, Tony Parker terrorized the Jazz in the paint and was the only Spurs player in rhythm in the 1st quarter. Sadly, that rhythm was all but gone in the second half, particularly the 3rd quarter when TP had trouble finishing in the open court and at the rim which resulted in multiple turnovers and held the Spurs back from taking the leda He was a magician with the ball when the game was on the line, and gashed the Jazz interior defense repeatedly in crunch time. On a night where no other Spurs player could find their groove, Parker was able to string together just enough big plays to turn the tide in the Spurs favor. The turnovers have got to come down, and his free-throw woes shouldn't continue too much longer.
Final Grade: B+
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Tim Duncan
http://www.spurstalk.com/td12.png
Last years miracle season looks like it really was Duncan's final year at a superstar level of play. It's tough to see a guy I grew up rooting for and studying look this lethargic, but I guess it happens to everyone. His lift was a bit better, but it's obvious he still isn't trusting his shot outside of the paint. Timmy continued to look a step slow on his drives, but was able to create enough space inside to get his shot off and score a few points. The best part of his game this year has been his defense inside, but against Favors, Duncan looked lost and overwhelmed throughout the evening. The Jazz big man threw an array of spins, up & unders, jump shots, and hook shots that left Timmy with no chance. He did have a few moments when the Spurs made their run, namely 3 big blocks on what should have been Utah layups, but it didn't make up for 20-18 game he gave up.
Final Grade: C-
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Tiago Splitter
http://www.spurstalk.com/ts12.png
Tiago Splitter was a vital player in allowing the Jazz to out-rebound the Spurs 16-7 on the offensive glass. Kanter bullied Tiago after the first few minutes of the game saw Splitter dominating the Jazz inside. His feel for the game, particularly in the paint, has been at elite levels so far this year but not last night. He was unable to find space to operate on offense, get position to rebound on defense, and didn't grab an offensive board until 3 minutes remained in the 3rd quarter, mostly due to him not even jumping to compete on the glass. Poor effort led to poor results.
Final Grade: D+
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Kawhi Leonard
http://www.beyondperimeters.com/kl.png
Seeing as he doesn't display much emotion or let on to what is going on inside his head, I can only go by what I see so far this season. What I see is a player coasting to the max, and looking uninterested and lazy on defense for 90% of the games. Kawhi was unquestionably more harm than good in last nights game, when he wasn't giving up open 3PA's to Richard Jefferson, he was looking clumsy with ball in traffic, at one point even attempting to finish in a crowd of FIVE Jazz defenders. While his intensity was much improve after entering the game again with 7 minutes left in the 2nd quarter, his first positive play didn't occur until he stopped a Utah lob with 1:50 left in the 3rd quarter. It's almost safe to say that Leonard isn't ready to take the next step this year, and is possibly buying into the hype around him. Let's hope he stops coasting on talent, and buying back into his work ethic.
Final Grade: C-
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Danny Green
http://www.spurstalk.com/dg12.png
Green may have been one of the few Spurs that appeared interested in playing hard last night. From the beginning of the game, he was contesting every Hayward shot and was the sole reason the Utah Guard was unable to establish a rhythm. Danny fought hard through every screen, and was determined to let no shot go uncontested. His aggressiveness on offense was there, but with the rest of the team out of rhythm and running almost no offensive sets, Danny was largely quiet until Pop subbed him out. With the game on the line, Green found himself open twice for corner 3's and hit the bottom of the net both times to give the Spurs the lead. Great game, Spurs probably wouldn't have gotten back in the game without him.
Final Grade: B+
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Manu Ginobili
http://www.spurstalk.com/mg12.png
Manu just never really got it going last night. He had several bad turnovers, his timing was way off for the entire game, and it was just a sloppy game all around for the El Contusion. His effort level is there, but the results aren't. The only redeeming piece of his game last night was his work on the boards, pulling down 9 and leading the team on the glass. If you were looking for a play that summed up his night, look no further than Duncan's pass to Manu in the corner and the ball bouncing off of Manu's hands and into the crowd.
Final Grade: C-
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Marco Belinelli
http://www.beyondperimeters.com/mb.png
In 12 minutes of action, Belinelli didn't show much of anything. The Spurs offense was a complete trainwreck, so it's hard enough for Marco to manufacture offense in a system he barely knows on a good night, when the team is stumbling all over itself he really has no chance.
Final Grade: INC
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Boris Diaw
http://www.spurstalk.com/bd12.png
I believe in Boris. The playmaking and determination he is currently playing with may be enough to offset Duncan's poor start to the season. Boris played tougher defense on RJ than Kawhi, did work once again from every spot on the court, ran the floor well, and abused the smaller Williams in the post. His play in the 3rd quarter was a major catalyst to the Spurs comeback, and was the teams only player producing in the quarter. It's to the point now where you can almost pencil him an for an A grade every night
Final Grade: A
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Patrick Mills
http://www.spurstalk.com/pm12.png
The effort was definitely there, but not the results. After praising his ability to direct his energy and not find himself out of position, Mills repeatedly guessed wrong on defense and found himself in terrible spots during his 10 minutes on the court. We all know how confident he is in his game though, so any slump should be short lived.
Final Grade: C
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Jeff Ayres
Saw limited action and didn't do much of anything. At one point I found myself thinking the unthinkable..."When is Bonner coming back?"
Final Grade: INC
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Pop
http://www.spurstalk.com/gp12.png
I wasn't a fan of Pop's rotations last night. When Danny Green was the only Spur giving max effort in the 1st quarter, Pop decided to pull him and bring in Manu and what was worse was that Green continued to ride pine while the rest of the team was playing at half-speed. He made the same mistake when he let Diaw sit on the bench when it came time to close out the game and with Splitter not making an impact on either end of the floor. If not for Gordon Hayward having a historically bad night, the Spurs would've dropped this game by 20.
I've seen a lot of Spurs slumps and dips in energy during my time as a fan, but I can't remember one where the effort levels were so far down for so long. I'm hoping the team is under instruction from Pop to not push things too hard, but if they're not then I'm not sure where that leaves the situation. It seems crazy to question the coach and team when they're at 9-1, but it feels like they should have a much worse record, luckily they've played some young teams looking for their own identities.
Final Grade: D+
---------------
Offense
The Spurs started 0-6 from 3 and things didn't really get better until Tony took over in the 4th quarter. When the team did run offensive sets, the passes were coming too early, and the cuts were coming too late. The well oiled machine we have become used to witnessing was reduced to a clunky device some guy could build in his garage on a weekend. Individual efforts from Diaw and Parker were the only saving grace.
Final Grade: D
---------------
Defense
Some may view holding the Jazz to 82 points at home as a major accomplishment, but the an off night from Hayward should get more credit than the Spurs' defensive effort. Leonard should be able to take over the game at times with his freakish ability and skill level on D, but instead was responsible for Richard Jefferson looking better than he ever did in a Spurs uniform in helping Utah build a big first half lead. The Spurs came up with just enough hustle plays late to get separation, but against almost every other team in the league, this is a double-digit loss.
Final Grade: D
In one of the most un-Spurslike games you will ever witness, and after 3 1/2 quarters of lackadaisical play and uninspired basketball, it looked as if the Spurs had finally overindulged in coasting and would pay for it with a loss to the Utah Jazz in a half-empty Energy Solutions Arena. Fortunately, the lights came on in the 4th quarter and Tony Parker led the team back from a 15 point deficit and to a 9-1 record to start the year, thank goodness Gordon Hayward went 5-23 from the field.
Player & Coach Grades
---------------
Tony Parker
http://www.spurstalk.com/tp12.png
From tipoff, Tony Parker terrorized the Jazz in the paint and was the only Spurs player in rhythm in the 1st quarter. Sadly, that rhythm was all but gone in the second half, particularly the 3rd quarter when TP had trouble finishing in the open court and at the rim which resulted in multiple turnovers and held the Spurs back from taking the leda He was a magician with the ball when the game was on the line, and gashed the Jazz interior defense repeatedly in crunch time. On a night where no other Spurs player could find their groove, Parker was able to string together just enough big plays to turn the tide in the Spurs favor. The turnovers have got to come down, and his free-throw woes shouldn't continue too much longer.
Final Grade: B+
---------------
Tim Duncan
http://www.spurstalk.com/td12.png
Last years miracle season looks like it really was Duncan's final year at a superstar level of play. It's tough to see a guy I grew up rooting for and studying look this lethargic, but I guess it happens to everyone. His lift was a bit better, but it's obvious he still isn't trusting his shot outside of the paint. Timmy continued to look a step slow on his drives, but was able to create enough space inside to get his shot off and score a few points. The best part of his game this year has been his defense inside, but against Favors, Duncan looked lost and overwhelmed throughout the evening. The Jazz big man threw an array of spins, up & unders, jump shots, and hook shots that left Timmy with no chance. He did have a few moments when the Spurs made their run, namely 3 big blocks on what should have been Utah layups, but it didn't make up for 20-18 game he gave up.
Final Grade: C-
---------------
Tiago Splitter
http://www.spurstalk.com/ts12.png
Tiago Splitter was a vital player in allowing the Jazz to out-rebound the Spurs 16-7 on the offensive glass. Kanter bullied Tiago after the first few minutes of the game saw Splitter dominating the Jazz inside. His feel for the game, particularly in the paint, has been at elite levels so far this year but not last night. He was unable to find space to operate on offense, get position to rebound on defense, and didn't grab an offensive board until 3 minutes remained in the 3rd quarter, mostly due to him not even jumping to compete on the glass. Poor effort led to poor results.
Final Grade: D+
---------------
Kawhi Leonard
http://www.beyondperimeters.com/kl.png
Seeing as he doesn't display much emotion or let on to what is going on inside his head, I can only go by what I see so far this season. What I see is a player coasting to the max, and looking uninterested and lazy on defense for 90% of the games. Kawhi was unquestionably more harm than good in last nights game, when he wasn't giving up open 3PA's to Richard Jefferson, he was looking clumsy with ball in traffic, at one point even attempting to finish in a crowd of FIVE Jazz defenders. While his intensity was much improve after entering the game again with 7 minutes left in the 2nd quarter, his first positive play didn't occur until he stopped a Utah lob with 1:50 left in the 3rd quarter. It's almost safe to say that Leonard isn't ready to take the next step this year, and is possibly buying into the hype around him. Let's hope he stops coasting on talent, and buying back into his work ethic.
Final Grade: C-
---------------
Danny Green
http://www.spurstalk.com/dg12.png
Green may have been one of the few Spurs that appeared interested in playing hard last night. From the beginning of the game, he was contesting every Hayward shot and was the sole reason the Utah Guard was unable to establish a rhythm. Danny fought hard through every screen, and was determined to let no shot go uncontested. His aggressiveness on offense was there, but with the rest of the team out of rhythm and running almost no offensive sets, Danny was largely quiet until Pop subbed him out. With the game on the line, Green found himself open twice for corner 3's and hit the bottom of the net both times to give the Spurs the lead. Great game, Spurs probably wouldn't have gotten back in the game without him.
Final Grade: B+
---------------
Manu Ginobili
http://www.spurstalk.com/mg12.png
Manu just never really got it going last night. He had several bad turnovers, his timing was way off for the entire game, and it was just a sloppy game all around for the El Contusion. His effort level is there, but the results aren't. The only redeeming piece of his game last night was his work on the boards, pulling down 9 and leading the team on the glass. If you were looking for a play that summed up his night, look no further than Duncan's pass to Manu in the corner and the ball bouncing off of Manu's hands and into the crowd.
Final Grade: C-
---------------
Marco Belinelli
http://www.beyondperimeters.com/mb.png
In 12 minutes of action, Belinelli didn't show much of anything. The Spurs offense was a complete trainwreck, so it's hard enough for Marco to manufacture offense in a system he barely knows on a good night, when the team is stumbling all over itself he really has no chance.
Final Grade: INC
---------------
Boris Diaw
http://www.spurstalk.com/bd12.png
I believe in Boris. The playmaking and determination he is currently playing with may be enough to offset Duncan's poor start to the season. Boris played tougher defense on RJ than Kawhi, did work once again from every spot on the court, ran the floor well, and abused the smaller Williams in the post. His play in the 3rd quarter was a major catalyst to the Spurs comeback, and was the teams only player producing in the quarter. It's to the point now where you can almost pencil him an for an A grade every night
Final Grade: A
---------------
Patrick Mills
http://www.spurstalk.com/pm12.png
The effort was definitely there, but not the results. After praising his ability to direct his energy and not find himself out of position, Mills repeatedly guessed wrong on defense and found himself in terrible spots during his 10 minutes on the court. We all know how confident he is in his game though, so any slump should be short lived.
Final Grade: C
---------------
Jeff Ayres
Saw limited action and didn't do much of anything. At one point I found myself thinking the unthinkable..."When is Bonner coming back?"
Final Grade: INC
---------------
Pop
http://www.spurstalk.com/gp12.png
I wasn't a fan of Pop's rotations last night. When Danny Green was the only Spur giving max effort in the 1st quarter, Pop decided to pull him and bring in Manu and what was worse was that Green continued to ride pine while the rest of the team was playing at half-speed. He made the same mistake when he let Diaw sit on the bench when it came time to close out the game and with Splitter not making an impact on either end of the floor. If not for Gordon Hayward having a historically bad night, the Spurs would've dropped this game by 20.
I've seen a lot of Spurs slumps and dips in energy during my time as a fan, but I can't remember one where the effort levels were so far down for so long. I'm hoping the team is under instruction from Pop to not push things too hard, but if they're not then I'm not sure where that leaves the situation. It seems crazy to question the coach and team when they're at 9-1, but it feels like they should have a much worse record, luckily they've played some young teams looking for their own identities.
Final Grade: D+
---------------
Offense
The Spurs started 0-6 from 3 and things didn't really get better until Tony took over in the 4th quarter. When the team did run offensive sets, the passes were coming too early, and the cuts were coming too late. The well oiled machine we have become used to witnessing was reduced to a clunky device some guy could build in his garage on a weekend. Individual efforts from Diaw and Parker were the only saving grace.
Final Grade: D
---------------
Defense
Some may view holding the Jazz to 82 points at home as a major accomplishment, but the an off night from Hayward should get more credit than the Spurs' defensive effort. Leonard should be able to take over the game at times with his freakish ability and skill level on D, but instead was responsible for Richard Jefferson looking better than he ever did in a Spurs uniform in helping Utah build a big first half lead. The Spurs came up with just enough hustle plays late to get separation, but against almost every other team in the league, this is a double-digit loss.
Final Grade: D