Blue-Lightning
04-23-2014, 09:51 PM
In lieu of seeing that Timvp no longer posts around here, I'll fill in for a game:
Tim Duncan
In the first half Duncan looked spry and capable, doing a decent job of protecting the rim and scoring a few buckets. The second half was a different story with Timmy going basically silent, leaving any backcourt work to Tiago Splitter.
Grade: D+
Tony Parker
Parker's jumpshot was good and his drives were working quite well during the first and second quarters. Unfortunately, like so many others he simply disappeared in the third. Worse still was Parker's defense, and it truly was atrocious. Whether it was Harris or Calderon, Parker showed that he was capable of being slow to his man at every possible opportunity. Parker essentially played decent offense for one half of the contest - everything else was poor.
Grade: D-
Manu Ginobili
One of the few Spurs to have a good showing, he basically kept the team viable for three quarters. A hot hand kept the three pointers raining in, and though he had six turnovers, several of these were due to teammates not following the script. Good defensive contests meant that Ginobili was about as efficient as a player can be in the minutes he received, minus the missed free throws.
Grade: B+
Kawhi Leonard
You could point to a few goals he scored in the second half. You could point to a few defensive plays to which he contributed. Most of these would, however, have taken place in garbage time, and were essentially meaningless. During any point that could possibly be considered a contest, Kawhi was a warm body on the floor. He will desperately need to improve his play in future games, and needs to regain the intensity necessary for he and so many other players.
Grade: F+
Danny Green
A few buckets were not worth the poor defense Green showed tonights. Like so many others, Green simply did not contribute anything meaningful to the game. He didn't close out on shooters, he didn't rebound, he didn't spread the floor with the threat of threes. I guess you could give him the gift that he didn't do much to hurt the team.
Grade: F+
Tiago Splitter
Splitter did fairly well tonight, in that he was able to play effective defense against Nowizki in the first half. Using his size and a surprising intelligence, he was able to get a hand in the face of so many jumpers without leaving himself vulnerable to bogus fouls. At the same time, he was good on the boards while playing with Duncan, though overwhelmed without the Hall of Famer on the floor.
Grade: C+
Boris Diaw
Again, it was as if so many players were simply going through the motions... and Boris Diaw was no exception. Slow movements, lackluster aggression, and poor execution was a distressing sign of apathy that plagued Diaw and others. While on the court, Diaw was there; and that is about all one can say.
Grade: D
Patty Mills
His shooting continued to be atrocious, his offensive playmaking was disruptive rather than helpful, and defensively he allowed Dallas to do whatever the hell their guards wanted. At least he was able to identify Ginobili as a player to pass the ball to. If these descriptions seem overly harsh, that's because this was an overly poor showing by the team. Mills must improve or the Spurs will be greatly disadvantaged every time Parker needs to rest. As opposed to Leonard though, at least he was willing to shoot, even if poorly.
Grade: D-
Marco Belinelli
His stats don't look too bad. His play was a different story. Marco hit a few shots, he attempted a few drives, but at each important point during the game, he managed to play small. Belinelli pulled one of those tricks where he somehow contributed to the score without contributing at all to a possible win. It is amazing to see how poorly the bench is playing thus far in the series, their ranged shots becoming a farce, and Marco is no slouch in helping the cause.
Grade: C-
Corey Joseph
In his brief stint on the floor, Joseph did well enough. What else is there to say?
Grade: C+
Popovich
God only knows what he could have done to convince so many that lethargy is a poor strategy. When Parker places such terrible defense, Leonard and Green disappear, and most of the bench plays like a Timberwolves D-League squad, what more is there to do? The Mavs didn't play all that well, yet they scored at will. Why? The defense was just disgusting; the rebounding horrendous. With little aggression there, and he coaching professional, grown men, I don't know what Popovich can do except shot the film tomorrow and remind these veterans what it takes to win a playoff series. Maybe he could have gone to Ginobili sooner in the third... that's all I've got.
Grade: B-
The others didn't play enough to warrant a grade. I know it's not Timvp's, but hey, it's what you've got.
Tim Duncan
In the first half Duncan looked spry and capable, doing a decent job of protecting the rim and scoring a few buckets. The second half was a different story with Timmy going basically silent, leaving any backcourt work to Tiago Splitter.
Grade: D+
Tony Parker
Parker's jumpshot was good and his drives were working quite well during the first and second quarters. Unfortunately, like so many others he simply disappeared in the third. Worse still was Parker's defense, and it truly was atrocious. Whether it was Harris or Calderon, Parker showed that he was capable of being slow to his man at every possible opportunity. Parker essentially played decent offense for one half of the contest - everything else was poor.
Grade: D-
Manu Ginobili
One of the few Spurs to have a good showing, he basically kept the team viable for three quarters. A hot hand kept the three pointers raining in, and though he had six turnovers, several of these were due to teammates not following the script. Good defensive contests meant that Ginobili was about as efficient as a player can be in the minutes he received, minus the missed free throws.
Grade: B+
Kawhi Leonard
You could point to a few goals he scored in the second half. You could point to a few defensive plays to which he contributed. Most of these would, however, have taken place in garbage time, and were essentially meaningless. During any point that could possibly be considered a contest, Kawhi was a warm body on the floor. He will desperately need to improve his play in future games, and needs to regain the intensity necessary for he and so many other players.
Grade: F+
Danny Green
A few buckets were not worth the poor defense Green showed tonights. Like so many others, Green simply did not contribute anything meaningful to the game. He didn't close out on shooters, he didn't rebound, he didn't spread the floor with the threat of threes. I guess you could give him the gift that he didn't do much to hurt the team.
Grade: F+
Tiago Splitter
Splitter did fairly well tonight, in that he was able to play effective defense against Nowizki in the first half. Using his size and a surprising intelligence, he was able to get a hand in the face of so many jumpers without leaving himself vulnerable to bogus fouls. At the same time, he was good on the boards while playing with Duncan, though overwhelmed without the Hall of Famer on the floor.
Grade: C+
Boris Diaw
Again, it was as if so many players were simply going through the motions... and Boris Diaw was no exception. Slow movements, lackluster aggression, and poor execution was a distressing sign of apathy that plagued Diaw and others. While on the court, Diaw was there; and that is about all one can say.
Grade: D
Patty Mills
His shooting continued to be atrocious, his offensive playmaking was disruptive rather than helpful, and defensively he allowed Dallas to do whatever the hell their guards wanted. At least he was able to identify Ginobili as a player to pass the ball to. If these descriptions seem overly harsh, that's because this was an overly poor showing by the team. Mills must improve or the Spurs will be greatly disadvantaged every time Parker needs to rest. As opposed to Leonard though, at least he was willing to shoot, even if poorly.
Grade: D-
Marco Belinelli
His stats don't look too bad. His play was a different story. Marco hit a few shots, he attempted a few drives, but at each important point during the game, he managed to play small. Belinelli pulled one of those tricks where he somehow contributed to the score without contributing at all to a possible win. It is amazing to see how poorly the bench is playing thus far in the series, their ranged shots becoming a farce, and Marco is no slouch in helping the cause.
Grade: C-
Corey Joseph
In his brief stint on the floor, Joseph did well enough. What else is there to say?
Grade: C+
Popovich
God only knows what he could have done to convince so many that lethargy is a poor strategy. When Parker places such terrible defense, Leonard and Green disappear, and most of the bench plays like a Timberwolves D-League squad, what more is there to do? The Mavs didn't play all that well, yet they scored at will. Why? The defense was just disgusting; the rebounding horrendous. With little aggression there, and he coaching professional, grown men, I don't know what Popovich can do except shot the film tomorrow and remind these veterans what it takes to win a playoff series. Maybe he could have gone to Ginobili sooner in the third... that's all I've got.
Grade: B-
The others didn't play enough to warrant a grade. I know it's not Timvp's, but hey, it's what you've got.