Chinook
01-07-2017, 11:49 PM
Overview:
This was a ho-hum game. The Spurs beat up on a much weaker opponent missing their second-best player. It’s only notable for me because a) I have to pretend to care so I can get these grades out and b) the team has had its recent difficulties putting away the teams they’re supposed to blow out early. This game began the same way, while the Spurs getting down by as much as five in the first quarter and not taking a permanent lead until there were 15 minutes left in the game.
It never felt like a game the Spurs would lose, but it wasn’t all that dominant until the second unit’s front court took over. The Spurs went on a 20-6 run in about five minutes straddling the third and fourth quarters to put Charlotte away.
This was a midnightpulp (http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/member.php?u=5430) special game, with the back court totaling 24 points on 35 shots. The front court carried the team, but at least the Spurs managed to hold Charlotte’s guards 43 points on 55 possessions. There was hardly an advantage for the Hornets on that end. On the flipside, both back courts scored well, but the Spurs were too efficient with their bench bigs combining for 36 points on 14 possessions. That more than made up the final margin.
Box Score:
STARTERS
MIN
FG
3PT
FT
OREB
DREB
REB
AST
STL
BLK
TO
PF
+/-
PTS
L. Aldridge (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2983/lamarcus-aldridge)PF
34
5-9
0-1
5-6
5
6
11
3
0
1
0
2
+3
15
K. Leonard (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/6450/kawhi-leonard)SF
33
7-18
3-10
2-2
0
2
2
3
0
1
2
2
+2
19
P. Gasol (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/996/pau-gasol)C
20
2-7
1-2
0-0
1
4
5
3
1
2
0
2
+5
5
T. Parker (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/1015/tony-parker)PG
25
1-8
0-2
0-0
0
4
4
2
0
0
0
3
+5
2
D. Green (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/3988/danny-green)SG
21
2-6
2-4
0-0
1
3
4
4
1
1
1
0
+1
6
BENCH
MIN
FG
3PT
FT
OREB
DREB
REB
AST
STL
BLK
TO
PF
+/-
PTS
D. Bertans (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/6426/davis-bertans)SF
18
5-6
4-5
7-8
0
1
1
2
1
0
0
2
+19
21
D. Dedmon (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2580913/dewayne-dedmon)C
23
6-6
0-0
3-4
1
9
10
1
2
1
0
5
+5
15
D. Murray (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/3907497/dejounte-murray)PG
4
0-2
0-0
0-0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
-1
0
P. Mills (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/4004/patty-mills)PG
19
6-14
1-5
0-0
0
2
2
1
2
0
1
1
+13
13
M. Ginobili (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/272/manu-ginobili)SG
20
1-7
1-3
0-0
1
1
2
4
1
1
0
3
+19
3
J. Simmons (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2579466/jonathon-simmons)SG
19
1-6
1-2
0-0
0
2
2
5
1
1
1
1
+15
3
K. Anderson (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2993874/kyle-anderson)SG
4
0-0
0-0
0-0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
-1
0
D. Lee (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2772/david-lee)PF
DNP-LEFT KNEE CONTUSION
TEAM
36-89
13-34
17-20
9
34
43
29
9
8
7
21
102
40.4%
38.2%
85.0%
Grades:
LaMarcus Aldridge – B-plus: I’d’ve given him an A or A-minus for this game prior to his most recent run. The standard has been raised. Still, the guy played like a star in many ways. He scored efficiently, made his free throws and rebounded at a strong clip (including some contested boards). What stood out to me was his defense on the perimeter. Dude was willing to go out well past the three-point line and trust that his teammates had his back. It’s a given to think of D as smalls being able to trust bigs will protect the rim. But the opposite of that is still important.
Kawhi Leonard – B: Kawhi’s comeback block on Hibbert was his best play, though him going off to start the game helped it as well. He wasn’t efficient and wasn’t special in any other category. But he also didn’t have to be all that great. Didn’t love his D on MKG, but if there’s anyone on the Hornets you’re okay will going off it’s him. So just meh all around.
Pau Gasol – C-plus: I think he actually played good D tonight. He didn’t shoot very well and was mostly forgettable given that Dedmon out played him and got most of the minutes after the first sub. On the bad side of meh, but better than his five points would suggest.
Tony Parker – C: Missed an open man for the first time in weeks, according to Sean. He didn’t have it going tonight. Pop didn’t over play him, and Tony didn’t hurt the team too much outside some bad decisions to shoot. Hoping this was a dud and not a sign that this is start of his descent to Earth.
Danny Green – B: Shot 50 percent on threes again. Was flirting with a triple-double at the beginning of the third. I think he knew that, because he started assist-hunting. If there’s one thing the Spurs don’t need, it’s Danny passing up open looks. His play-making was actually on point, and his D and rebounding were on par with his really good games. But he contributed to the stagnant offense by not being the release valve he’s supposed to be.
Dewayne Dedmon – A-plus: Sean at the end said that Dewayne was “looking like Moses”. I don’t quite know what he meant, but there was definitely something biblical about the way Dedmon played tonight. His finishing was excellent, as the box score shows. His rebounding was great as well. I absolutely loved his D. The contests and steals are wonderful, but he was tremendous at smothering guards on switches, even helping out LMA a couple of times. That he could do that and still come back to the paint to protect the rim shows a rare range. Five fouls in 23 minutes is bad, but honestly, I can’t imagine this not being one of his top three games of the season, so I’m not going to withhold the plus.
Davis Bertans – A: It started off with him doing things that weren’t shooting. He had a very easy monster jam, and that’s something that probably only Simmons can do with that ease. He used that athleticism on the defensive end as well, blocking a shot (which wasn’t credited to him) and diving in front of the Hornets center for a steal. I loved that he made his free throws. You can see exactly where he’s going to go if he can just reach his potential. He could be more Korver than Bonner if the team lets him. If only he’d rebound like a big.
Patty Mills – C-plus: Well, he was better than Tony, so that counts for something. He was inefficient but not horribly so, and he was at least aggressive. He had a nice little run to get the Spurs back into the game after Charlotte made their only serious attempt to win in the first quarter. Didn’t get killed on D by anyone in the Hornets back-court. So not horrible. Just not good.
Manu Ginobili – C-plus: He doesn’t fail because his only bucket was a huge three to tie the game at the end of the third. He didn’t do a whole lot of right for the rest of the game. His fouls were gambles trying to steal rebounds. You don’t hate those when you aren’t giving up a ton of FTs. Dude also carried an elite plus-minus in large part because of who he started the court with. But he still made some plays to help him out.
Jonathon Simmons – B-minus: He was pretty much the mirror image of Manu tonight, so he gets the almost same grade. His penetration was much better than Manu’s, and he played great D on Marco to keep him out of the plays. That made up the difference. He made some stupid passes and missed a dunk. So this was short of solid. But I’ll give him some credit for handling a guy that the Spurs have had issues guarding recently.
DeJounte Murray – INC: Dude has a nice assist and a dumb TO, both on lobs to Dedmon. I love that Murray is trying to be unselfish. Learning to do that now while he’s still not physically ready to score consistently score against NBA athletes will only help his game in later years.
Kyle Anderson – LOL (INC): Dude fumbled away his only used possession by dribbling the ball off his foot. Who’s the chode who said Kyle was a great offensive player? :lol :lol :lol :lmao
Pop – B-plus: Gotta give him credit for making changes that helped the team get out of their funk. The Hornets weren’t really a big challenge, but he’s often pushed wrong buttons (in my opinion) in recent games. Loved him sticking with Dedmon and Bertans. Didn’t love leaving Green on the bench.
This was a ho-hum game. The Spurs beat up on a much weaker opponent missing their second-best player. It’s only notable for me because a) I have to pretend to care so I can get these grades out and b) the team has had its recent difficulties putting away the teams they’re supposed to blow out early. This game began the same way, while the Spurs getting down by as much as five in the first quarter and not taking a permanent lead until there were 15 minutes left in the game.
It never felt like a game the Spurs would lose, but it wasn’t all that dominant until the second unit’s front court took over. The Spurs went on a 20-6 run in about five minutes straddling the third and fourth quarters to put Charlotte away.
This was a midnightpulp (http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/member.php?u=5430) special game, with the back court totaling 24 points on 35 shots. The front court carried the team, but at least the Spurs managed to hold Charlotte’s guards 43 points on 55 possessions. There was hardly an advantage for the Hornets on that end. On the flipside, both back courts scored well, but the Spurs were too efficient with their bench bigs combining for 36 points on 14 possessions. That more than made up the final margin.
Box Score:
STARTERS
MIN
FG
3PT
FT
OREB
DREB
REB
AST
STL
BLK
TO
PF
+/-
PTS
L. Aldridge (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2983/lamarcus-aldridge)PF
34
5-9
0-1
5-6
5
6
11
3
0
1
0
2
+3
15
K. Leonard (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/6450/kawhi-leonard)SF
33
7-18
3-10
2-2
0
2
2
3
0
1
2
2
+2
19
P. Gasol (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/996/pau-gasol)C
20
2-7
1-2
0-0
1
4
5
3
1
2
0
2
+5
5
T. Parker (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/1015/tony-parker)PG
25
1-8
0-2
0-0
0
4
4
2
0
0
0
3
+5
2
D. Green (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/3988/danny-green)SG
21
2-6
2-4
0-0
1
3
4
4
1
1
1
0
+1
6
BENCH
MIN
FG
3PT
FT
OREB
DREB
REB
AST
STL
BLK
TO
PF
+/-
PTS
D. Bertans (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/6426/davis-bertans)SF
18
5-6
4-5
7-8
0
1
1
2
1
0
0
2
+19
21
D. Dedmon (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2580913/dewayne-dedmon)C
23
6-6
0-0
3-4
1
9
10
1
2
1
0
5
+5
15
D. Murray (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/3907497/dejounte-murray)PG
4
0-2
0-0
0-0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
-1
0
P. Mills (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/4004/patty-mills)PG
19
6-14
1-5
0-0
0
2
2
1
2
0
1
1
+13
13
M. Ginobili (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/272/manu-ginobili)SG
20
1-7
1-3
0-0
1
1
2
4
1
1
0
3
+19
3
J. Simmons (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2579466/jonathon-simmons)SG
19
1-6
1-2
0-0
0
2
2
5
1
1
1
1
+15
3
K. Anderson (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2993874/kyle-anderson)SG
4
0-0
0-0
0-0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
-1
0
D. Lee (http://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/2772/david-lee)PF
DNP-LEFT KNEE CONTUSION
TEAM
36-89
13-34
17-20
9
34
43
29
9
8
7
21
102
40.4%
38.2%
85.0%
Grades:
LaMarcus Aldridge – B-plus: I’d’ve given him an A or A-minus for this game prior to his most recent run. The standard has been raised. Still, the guy played like a star in many ways. He scored efficiently, made his free throws and rebounded at a strong clip (including some contested boards). What stood out to me was his defense on the perimeter. Dude was willing to go out well past the three-point line and trust that his teammates had his back. It’s a given to think of D as smalls being able to trust bigs will protect the rim. But the opposite of that is still important.
Kawhi Leonard – B: Kawhi’s comeback block on Hibbert was his best play, though him going off to start the game helped it as well. He wasn’t efficient and wasn’t special in any other category. But he also didn’t have to be all that great. Didn’t love his D on MKG, but if there’s anyone on the Hornets you’re okay will going off it’s him. So just meh all around.
Pau Gasol – C-plus: I think he actually played good D tonight. He didn’t shoot very well and was mostly forgettable given that Dedmon out played him and got most of the minutes after the first sub. On the bad side of meh, but better than his five points would suggest.
Tony Parker – C: Missed an open man for the first time in weeks, according to Sean. He didn’t have it going tonight. Pop didn’t over play him, and Tony didn’t hurt the team too much outside some bad decisions to shoot. Hoping this was a dud and not a sign that this is start of his descent to Earth.
Danny Green – B: Shot 50 percent on threes again. Was flirting with a triple-double at the beginning of the third. I think he knew that, because he started assist-hunting. If there’s one thing the Spurs don’t need, it’s Danny passing up open looks. His play-making was actually on point, and his D and rebounding were on par with his really good games. But he contributed to the stagnant offense by not being the release valve he’s supposed to be.
Dewayne Dedmon – A-plus: Sean at the end said that Dewayne was “looking like Moses”. I don’t quite know what he meant, but there was definitely something biblical about the way Dedmon played tonight. His finishing was excellent, as the box score shows. His rebounding was great as well. I absolutely loved his D. The contests and steals are wonderful, but he was tremendous at smothering guards on switches, even helping out LMA a couple of times. That he could do that and still come back to the paint to protect the rim shows a rare range. Five fouls in 23 minutes is bad, but honestly, I can’t imagine this not being one of his top three games of the season, so I’m not going to withhold the plus.
Davis Bertans – A: It started off with him doing things that weren’t shooting. He had a very easy monster jam, and that’s something that probably only Simmons can do with that ease. He used that athleticism on the defensive end as well, blocking a shot (which wasn’t credited to him) and diving in front of the Hornets center for a steal. I loved that he made his free throws. You can see exactly where he’s going to go if he can just reach his potential. He could be more Korver than Bonner if the team lets him. If only he’d rebound like a big.
Patty Mills – C-plus: Well, he was better than Tony, so that counts for something. He was inefficient but not horribly so, and he was at least aggressive. He had a nice little run to get the Spurs back into the game after Charlotte made their only serious attempt to win in the first quarter. Didn’t get killed on D by anyone in the Hornets back-court. So not horrible. Just not good.
Manu Ginobili – C-plus: He doesn’t fail because his only bucket was a huge three to tie the game at the end of the third. He didn’t do a whole lot of right for the rest of the game. His fouls were gambles trying to steal rebounds. You don’t hate those when you aren’t giving up a ton of FTs. Dude also carried an elite plus-minus in large part because of who he started the court with. But he still made some plays to help him out.
Jonathon Simmons – B-minus: He was pretty much the mirror image of Manu tonight, so he gets the almost same grade. His penetration was much better than Manu’s, and he played great D on Marco to keep him out of the plays. That made up the difference. He made some stupid passes and missed a dunk. So this was short of solid. But I’ll give him some credit for handling a guy that the Spurs have had issues guarding recently.
DeJounte Murray – INC: Dude has a nice assist and a dumb TO, both on lobs to Dedmon. I love that Murray is trying to be unselfish. Learning to do that now while he’s still not physically ready to score consistently score against NBA athletes will only help his game in later years.
Kyle Anderson – LOL (INC): Dude fumbled away his only used possession by dribbling the ball off his foot. Who’s the chode who said Kyle was a great offensive player? :lol :lol :lol :lmao
Pop – B-plus: Gotta give him credit for making changes that helped the team get out of their funk. The Hornets weren’t really a big challenge, but he’s often pushed wrong buttons (in my opinion) in recent games. Loved him sticking with Dedmon and Bertans. Didn’t love leaving Green on the bench.