Game Grades: Spurs @ Houston, Final Preseason Game 2017-2018

[raybies]

Well Preseason is wrapping up and I think this has been one of the more fun preseasons we've had in awhile. I think as the season is about to begin we need to start getting in form for the grueling run and hopefully another shot at GS.


Pau Gasol F: I'm not sure if this guy was hungover or what but his defense was brutal, his offense was brutal, he had no lift on his rebounding, he routinely gave up layups or worse he fouled. I'm not sure what Pop sees in him at this point. He has to know he is awful and if he doesn't.... (exhales) I dunno, You'd think with someone playing as awful as Pau did today and as a starter no less, would lead to some L's but somehow we were dominant. I guess the team knowing they have to pick up his slack leads to a more focused group? Anyways I feel this horse is dead and I petition to not even mention him in grades unless he has a good showing; this way we can just see how many good games he has total.

LMA A: Honestly, he's looking like an All Star right now. I'm not sure if it's the volume or just the spots he's getting it. But with Kawhi out, we need someone to carry the bulk of the scoring heading into the season. The thing that has impressed me the most about him is his improved passing out of the double team. If he can do that, I'd consider him a transcendent star cause that's the only thing holding him back from being great. His defense is fine, and he's bullying in the post. I give him an A and not an A+ cause he started fading on Harden instead of taking it the rim.

Anderson A-: Kyle is starting to look like a rotation caliber player and could be primed for a breakout season with Leonard out. He is much more aggressive to start and he's been pretty efficient. He's not out of control for the most part and is finishing around the rim or finding the open man. I'm really looking forward to what he can bring to the team and more, how consistent he can be.

Green A: He played alright. He finished at the rim pretty well but the most interesting thing about his performance tonight was that he had a career high in assists if I'm not mistaken. I'll need someone to check that, but he played well.

Patty D: I really didn't notice Patty tonight. He had some turnovers and was invisible for the most part but I won't give him an F cause only Pau deserves that tonight.

Joff A: He really showcased that soft baby hook tonight. Definitely looks better than Pau and at a fraction of the cost. Start Joff crew here.

Forbes B-: Played really well on D but was MIA on offense. Don't know what it is about him that he plays like a madman when he's on the outside looking in and when he's in, he clanks it. Might just be me but that's what I've seen.

Gay A: I just love how he's been playing thus far. The knock on him was the heroballing and iso plays but he's really been playing in the flow of the offense and letting his shots come to him and really just picking his spots to shoot wisely. He could really blossom here imo. And I say that cause I think he could regain his player prowess as he gets back into shape. But it doesn't look like he's lost much at all. He'll look stiff at times but the elevation seems about the same. I think it's just about getting comfortable again and one game at a time.

Manu A: It was a good game for Manu considering. He still looks remarkable at 40, today at least.

Paul Inc: Played great D and showed something on O. But unless a wing gets hurt this season, he's gonna be mostly relegated to cleanup time and situational purposes. I really like this kid.

White Inc: meh

Bertans Disappointment: Grade says it all.

[SAGirl]

Pretty good game evaluation.
Appreciated.
I don't disagree with anything. We watched the same game. :toast

[cutewizard]

:lobt2:

[coachmac87]

Gay stroke looked beautiful.....really hope he becomes a better 3pt shooter in this system..

That would be huge for him and the Spurs tbh

[YGWHI]

Thanks for the grades!

[Spurtacular]

Anderson A-: Kyle is starting to look like a rotation caliber player and could be primed for a breakout season with Leonard out. He is much more aggressive to start and he's been pretty efficient. He's not out of control for the most part and is finishing around the rim or finding the open man. I'm really looking forward to what he can bring to the team and more, how consistent he can be.



Still lacks assertiveness/awareness at times. On that one play he set up Green for the open (missed) three in the corner, the open layup was there.

[BillMc]

Cheers for the grades my friend,:toast

[Darius Bieber]

Always been a fan of Gay tbh. Clutch ass motherfucker.

[Mr. Body]

Anderson already was a rotation caliber player. Only now he's looking like he can score.

Gay is highly skilled. He'll be a big asset off the bench.

Bertans looks like he doesn't belong in this league. He's a skinny-ass non-rebounding one-trick pony who doesn't do that trick all that well.

[DMC]

I saw the highlights, didn't realize San Antonio was even playing. They never mentioned San Antonio, just Houston. Oh then casually "But San Antonio ended up winning"

Every year it gets worse.

[Em-City]

Agree on the grades, great work.

I also got frustrated when L.A. didn't keep backing down on harden, and I'm wondering why he didn't stay aggressive down the line, but overall the signs are positive.

I also don't really want to hear too much more about the gasol situation. I think his role is going to be a 20 min minute sponge for the regular season before we go small for playoffs anyway, so not worth fussing about

[Play Boban]

Well Preseason is wrapping up and I think this has been one of the more fun preseasons we've had in awhile. I think as the season is about to begin we need to start getting in form for the grueling run and hopefully another shot at GS.


Pau Gasol F: I'm not sure if this guy was hungover or what but his defense was brutal, his offense was brutal, he had no lift on his rebounding, he routinely gave up layups or worse he fouled. I'm not sure what Pop sees in him at this point. He has to know he is awful and if he doesn't.... (exhales) I dunno, You'd think with someone playing as awful as Pau did today and as a starter no less, would lead to some L's but somehow we were dominant. I guess the team knowing they have to pick up his slack leads to a more focused group? Anyways I feel this horse is dead and I petition to not even mention him in grades unless he has a good showing; this way we can just see how many good games he has total.

LMA A: Honestly, he's looking like an All Star right now. I'm not sure if it's the volume or just the spots he's getting it. But with Kawhi out, we need someone to carry the bulk of the scoring heading into the season. The thing that has impressed me the most about him is his improved passing out of the double team. If he can do that, I'd consider him a transcendent star cause that's the only thing holding him back from being great. His defense is fine, and he's bullying in the post. I give him an A and not an A+ cause he started fading on Harden instead of taking it the rim.

Anderson A-: Kyle is starting to look like a rotation caliber player and could be primed for a breakout season with Leonard out. He is much more aggressive to start and he's been pretty efficient. He's not out of control for the most part and is finishing around the rim or finding the open man. I'm really looking forward to what he can bring to the team and more, how consistent he can be.

Green A: He played alright. He finished at the rim pretty well but the most interesting thing about his performance tonight was that he had a career high in assists if I'm not mistaken. I'll need someone to check that, but he played well.

Patty D: I really didn't notice Patty tonight. He had some turnovers and was invisible for the most part but I won't give him an F cause only Pau deserves that tonight.

Joff A: He really showcased that soft baby hook tonight. Definitely looks better than Pau and at a fraction of the cost. Start Joff crew here.

Forbes B-: Played really well on D but was MIA on offense. Don't know what it is about him that he plays like a madman when he's on the outside looking in and when he's in, he clanks it. Might just be me but that's what I've seen.

Gay A: I just love how he's been playing thus far. The knock on him was the heroballing and iso plays but he's really been playing in the flow of the offense and letting his shots come to him and really just picking his spots to shoot wisely. He could really blossom here imo. And I say that cause I think he could regain his player prowess as he gets back into shape. But it doesn't look like he's lost much at all. He'll look stiff at times but the elevation seems about the same. I think it's just about getting comfortable again and one game at a time.

Manu A: It was a good game for Manu considering. He still looks remarkable at 40, today at least.

Paul Inc: Played great D and showed something on O. But unless a wing gets hurt this season, he's gonna be mostly relegated to cleanup time and situational purposes. I really like this kid.

White Inc: meh

Bertans Disappointment: Grade says it all.
Porker: F, too lazy to even take the court. :wakeup

[r0drig0lac]

Anderson plays with no confidence, this disrupts his game because he seems to have the ability to do almost everything

[buujness]

Anderson plays with no confidence, this disrupts his game because he seems to have the ability to do almost everythingThat problem seems to have been alleviated if this preseason is any indication. He's moving with much more assertiveness so far.

[buujness]

Thank you for the grades! I generally agree, though I'm a bit higher on Forbes's performance. His 3-point shot wasn't falling, and he hesitated on one shot (which was the worst part of his night, really), but he looked good attacking off of the dribble. He still has work to do on his handle, I think.

Great game for the final game of the preseason. Hopefully they can keep it up into Wednesday.

[tholdren]

Still lacks assertiveness/awareness at times. On that one play he set up Green for the open (missed) three in the corner, the open layup was there.

He dribbled to spots and illogically picked up his dribble. Wtf.

[Spur|n|Austin]

Good grades, thanks raybies

[John B]

Thank you. Good grades. :bobo Where was Murray?

[8FOR!3]

Grades seem solid, was Green THAT good last night? I don't really know. I remember being impressed with Aldridge/Anderson/Joff/Gay. Obviously Ginobili did his thing too. Was hoping for more out of Forbes, his shots weren't falling but he made a couple of nice floaters.

[John B]

Still lacks assertiveness/awareness at times. On that one play he set up Green for the open (missed) three in the corner, the open layup was there.

Missed layup that he could've dunked. I'm rooting for Anderson. I think he's the X Factor because of his length and ability to create for others ala Diaw. I remember him mad at the GSW game and putting a fight. Spurs need him to make his breakout his contract year.

[Spurtacular]

Missed layup that he could've dunked. I'm rooting for Anderson. I think he's the X Factor because of his length and ability to create for others ala Diaw. I remember him mad at the GSW game and putting a fight. Spurs need him to make his breakout his contract year.

He needs to play to his strengths (including finishing within 10-13 ft of the rim) in this increasingly smaller league and stop being such a pussy out there.

[8FOR!3]

Seems like his length really bothers guys on the perimeter. Talking about Kyle

[spurraider21]

I saw the highlights, didn't realize San Antonio was even playing. They never mentioned San Antonio, just Houston. Oh then casually "But San Antonio ended up winning"

Every year it gets worse.
Fake news?

[DMC]

Fake news?

That's it Philo, bleed your salt across all forums.

[duncan2k5]

Seems like his length really bothers guys on the perimeter. Talking about Kyle

Fake news

[cd021]

Still lacks assertiveness/awareness at times. On that one play he set up Green for the open (missed) three in the corner, the open layup was there.

Anderson was solid tbh. I thought he balanced him looking for his shot with finding the open man he had three assists and had a couple more that should've been one. His length and anticipation caused a couple of deflections and a steal. He finished 5-6 with his only miss was a botched lay up. I really like his game.

[cd021]

Really impressed with Gay. Curious to see how he meshes with LMA and Kawhi sharing the floor with him.

[Chinook]

Anderson was solid tbh. I thought he balanced him looking for his shot with finding the open man he had three assists and had a couple more that should've been one. His length and anticipation caused a couple of deflections and a steal. He finished 5-6 with his only miss was a botched lay up. I really like his game.

Kyle was also great defensively, especially when he had the sidelines or baseline to help him. There was a play where he was one-on-one with Harden, and James kept trying to fake him out but eventually just had to pass it. They've come to respect that trying to dribble around Anderson is more likely to result in him picking your pocket that it is in a score.

[Spurtacular]

Anderson was solid tbh. I thought he balanced him looking for his shot with finding the open man he had three assists and had a couple more that should've been one. His length and anticipation caused a couple of deflections and a steal. He finished 5-6 with his only miss was a botched lay up. I really like his game.

Not a big enough sample size to say whether the improvement is there or not; I'm just saying that some of the same issues could still be there. In fact, I expect significant weaknesses.

[raybies]

Really impressed with Gay. Curious to see how he meshes with LMA and Kawhi sharing the floor with him.
I think the key is if he can adequately space the floor, and so far the returns look good.

[LakerHater]

White Inc: meh

I think Spurs Fucked up here!
They coulda taken Jordan Bell, they blew it!

[sananspursfan21]

I’m really starting to believe that PATFO is spiting this whole forum with yet another build from within season. It’s too early to say for sure but these guys seem primed and ready.

[raybies]

I think Spurs Fucked up here!
They coulda taken Jordan Bell, they blew it!
I think White will be a better all around player than Bell. He's just gonna have to wait a couple years to move up the ranks. He's got Forbes, and Paul ahead of him on depth chart.

Manu retiring and Forbes free agency might have an impact tho. He could see rotation minutes as early as next year. As for Bell, he's gonna look great some nights cause who he plays with and cause they lack depth at that position, so he'll get minutes. White will be at the bottom of the bench and playing a lot of minutes in Austin.

But all in all, Bell's skill set isn't hard to find, but what makes him exciting is his motor. I'd rather have Joff.

[wildbill2u]

I'm seeing a roster that is deep if not star quality after Kwahi comes back. There isn't a huge drop off except after Kwahi. All of these guys look like legitimate NBA players. Frankly, I was surprised that we handled the Rockets so easily with Harden playing big minutes.

Pop may be looking at splitting minutes and using hard pressure on offense and defense to wear down teams with a more star-laden starting five. If this is the strategy to beat those star heavy teams, and if our players like LMA and Kwahi buy in to the idea that the team winning is worth more than personal stats., then this could be a throwback to the "beautiful game" teams. I hope so.

[cd021]

Kyle was also great defensively, especially when he had the sidelines or baseline to help him. There was a play where he was one-on-one with Harden, and James kept trying to fake him out but eventually just had to pass it. They've come to respect that trying to dribble around Anderson is more likely to result in him picking your pocket that it is in a score.

I think the overall length on the perimeter between Green, Leonard, Gay and Anderson is both unusual and a plus. They all possess freakishly long arms with varying degrees of athleticism. Anderson doesn't have athleticism but he's figured out how to use his length; he has good anticipation and timing which allow him to deflect passes or swipe the ball when he is defending the ball or playing off it. He had a game against Cleveland last season where he had four steals and a block, two of his steals came from him helping off his man and reaching in as the opposing player drove by (pretty sure it was Lebron both times).


A large part of the reason why I am so high on his is because of his defense; considering it was a probably his biggest question mark when he entered the league, it's impressive that he has managed to work his way into being an above average defender.

[cd021]

I think White will be a better all around player than Bell. He's just gonna have to wait a couple years to move up the ranks. He's got Forbes, and Paul ahead of him on depth chart.

Manu retiring and Forbes free agency might have an impact tho. He could see rotation minutes as early as next year. As for Bell, he's gonna look great some nights cause who he plays with and cause they lack depth at that position, so he'll get minutes. White will be at the bottom of the bench and playing a lot of minutes in Austin.

But all in all, Bell's skill set isn't hard to find, but what makes him exciting is his motor. I'd rather have Joff.

I actually wouldn't be surprised if Murray filled Manu's backup SG spot if Manu retires after this season, assuming Parker is brought back for another year- a final season hopefully. After that, Murray would hopefully be ready to slide into the starting lineup and White would then have a shot at rotation minutes.

I think that there were probably more talented players than White taken after him but I think White could have a very solid NBA career while some of those other players may or may not.

[raybies]

I actually wouldn't be surprised if Murray filled Manu's backup SG spot if Manu retires after this season, assuming Parker is brought back for another year- a final season hopefully. After that, Murray would hopefully be ready to slide into the starting lineup and White would then have a shot at rotation minutes.

I think that there were probably more talented players than White taken after him but I think White could have a very solid NBA career while some of those other players may or may not.
yeah he def was a safe pick but I think he has some upside as well. I think elite role player is his ceiling and solid rotation player is his floor

[SAGirl]

After rewatching the game this past weekend... I paid attention to Brandon Paul and I think he will surprise this season. He's very solid on defense and can shoot. Once he knows the system, etc and has chemistry, I think he will be a good addition to the team.

[rjv]

gay, kyle, LMA, green and joff were great. forbes pissed me off on the play where the ball swung around to him and then he passed up the shot. dude is here to shoot and that was a flashback to last regular season.

[Chinook]

After rewatching the game this past weekend... I paid attention to Brandon Paul and I think he will surprise this season. He's very solid on defense and can shoot. Once he knows the system, etc and has chemistry, I think he will be a good addition to the team.

My only issue with Paul is that he's not nearly the athlete I expected him to be. He's like Kawhi without the length. Simmons was probably the best on the team, but Paul is possibly the fourth- or fifth-best. That certainly hurts his upside. But the shooting, D and over all maturity makes him a guy I could see actually being re-signed ... well if the Spurs hadn't just drafted two guards and given Mills a long-term deal.

[SAGirl]

gay, kyle, LMA, green and joff were great. forbes pissed me off on the play where the ball swung around to him and then he passed up the shot. dude is here to shoot and that was a flashback to last regular season.

Pop was visibly upset about that with Forbes. I daresay if he's passing up shots in the regular season he will be sat down until he's hungry enough about his playing time to go back to the loaded magazine.


My only issue with Paul is that he's not nearly the athlete I expected him to be. He's like Kawhi without the length. Simmons was probably the best on the team, but Paul is possibly the fourth- or fifth-best. That certainly hurts his upside. But the shooting, D and over all maturity makes him a guy I could see actually being re-signed ... well if the Spurs hadn't just drafted two guards and given Mills a long-term deal.

You are absolutely right. Paul is a good athlete, but Simmons is an elite athlete. Offensively their games are different, Paul likes to shoot the basketball a lot more, whereas JSimms passed up open shots bc he liked to drive to the hoop. Paul might be a better system player due to his shooting but like Ime said, Simmons was ahead offensively with the basketball.

I have thought about the guard situation and I think the exaggerated guard depth is in anticipation of guys they will find difficult to retain next season. Some guys will play their way off the team. The better some guys play, the less likely it is that Spurs can afford them. That is more speculation than on topic for this thread, but I have thought they have a lot of FA next summer anyways and some guys inevitably won't be back. So, while not all of these guards will be rotation players this year, they will get enough experience between injuries and rest games to play more next season if they develop well, when inevitably the roster changes again.