Grades: Spurs vs. Grizzlies - Aug. 2, 2020

[timvp]

https://www.spurstalk.com/grades-san-antonio-spurs-memphis-grizzlies-august-2-2020/

Playoffs no longer impossible :wow

[Dhbsr555]

I disagree with walker grade I thought he played well

[DAF86]

White, Murray, Walker, Johnson. That's a nice core of interchangeable wings/guards. Add Poeltl as the defensive anchor and we have an interesting core going forward. All we need now is a 6'9" ish forward to round up the team. Could be Samanic if he ever pans out.

[talkspurs]

White, Murray, Walker, Johnson. That's a nice core of interchangeable wings/guards. Add Poeltl as the defensive anchor and we have an interesting core going forward. All we need now is a 6'9" ish forward to round up the team. Could be Samanic if he ever pans out.

They need to get Metu some time. I know lots of people say he sucks but they also say that about Murray/Lonnie and white is not going to be much. This is until they have a good game then they want to talk about how good they are. I have been on DJM bandwagon the whole time just like I have been saying metu will be good if given time. It also would give us another big body which we need.

[Seventyniner]

Spurs legend Jaren Jackson

That's a bit of a stretch...

Poeltl's +25 is eye-popping.

[Chinook]

They need to get Metu some time. I know lots of people say he sucks but they also say that about Murray/Lonnie and white is not going to be much. This is until they have a good game then they want to talk about how good they are. I have been on DJM bandwagon the whole time just like I have been saying metu will be good if given time. It also would give us another big body which we need.

Metu sucks

[tbdog]

Metu was a 2 year project. His time is up.

[GAustex]

Senile old poop is mistaken. Patty has no place on this team. Q'spoon should get last wing minutes, Defense and athleticism is what Spurs need.
There aint no Manu, Diaw or Splitter or Tim to set up and cover for Mills.

Stupid old poop still making mistakes.

Really if poop does not trust Q'spoon the others are young enough to eat the minutes...

[Boomersgold]

Senile old poop is mistaken. Patty has no place on this team. Q'spoon should get last wing minutes, Defense and athleticism is what Spurs need.
There aint no Manu, Diaw or Splitter or Tim to set up and cover for Mills.

Stupid old poop still making mistakes.

Really if poop does not trust Q'spoon the others are young enough to eat the minutes...

I see Spurstalk is still the place to go to for bad takes. The man had 10 points in 13 minutes and was a +11 and is still scapegoated.

[KobesAchilles]

I’m ready to order my championship DVD :lobt:

[sananspursfan21]

Solid win against a team that gave the Spurs fits before covid. How crazy would it be if these guys were able to make a run for it?

[R. DeMurre]

I understand the criticism that Poeltl needs to stay on the floor, but I still think being the defensive anchor in a starting line up with 4 guards-- which puts him at a disadvantage defensively and makes it necessary for him to cover more ground-- and posting an incredible +25 in limited minutes deserves a better grade than C+.

[FkLA]

White, Murray, Walker, Johnson. That's a nice core of interchangeable wings/guards. Add Poeltl as the defensive anchor and we have an interesting core going forward. All we need now is a 6'9" ish forward to round up the team. Could be Samanic if he ever pans out.

Imagine if we still had Bert. Instead Pop decided his untouchable sharp shooter was Forms.

[phxspurfan]

Metu was a 2 year project. His time is up.

the #metu movement is over

[spurs10]

Thanks for the grades! Great win! Why hasn't Mills been playing before today? Thoughts?

Go Spurs!
:flag:

[wildcardX]

One thing I did notice in the highlights that I liked was that the players have room out of bounds now. Less chance of injury(for player and fan) when a player is saving a ball from going out of bounds, not having to worry about landing on top of someone. Plus coming down under the basket and not tripping on a cameraman's foot or landing in their pile.

[lefty]

KJ crashing rhe boards, I like his hustle

[playblair]

if i see rudy gay stare at an open shooter & make 0 attempt to close out again im going to die from an aneurysm he does it at least 5 times a game

[ducks]

Thought walker did better then grade but last game he was better

[Amuseddaysleeper]

Great write up. I’m really worried about Rudy Gay, at least he isn’t labouring out there physically but he is way out of sorts.

Poeltl has to work on not fouling, amazing we won the game all things considered.

[ragas]

Poeltl +60 net-rating. Just saying ;-)

[DAF86]

Imagine if we still had Bert. Instead Pop decided his untouchable sharp shooter was Forms.

Don't remind me son. :depressed

[buujness]

I understand the criticism that Poeltl needs to stay on the floor, but I still think being the defensive anchor in a starting line up with 4 guards-- which puts him at a disadvantage defensively and makes it necessary for him to cover more ground-- and posting an incredible +25 in limited minutes deserves a better grade than C+.
100% agreed. Poeltl is proving just how good he is defensively; not just protecting the rim, but also when he's forced to switch onto a guard. People are saying White is the team's best defender, and while I don't disagree with that assertion necessarily, I think Jakob deserves to be part of that conversation.

Spurs should absolutely re-sign him.

[Chinook]

I understand the criticism that Poeltl needs to stay on the floor, but I still think being the defensive anchor in a starting line up with 4 guards-- which puts him at a disadvantage defensively and makes it necessary for him to cover more ground-- and posting an incredible +25 in limited minutes deserves a better grade than C+.

People are too obsessed with the idea that size is the only way to play good defense. Poeltl's job with this current lineup is easier than it would be with Lyles and Forbes starting. Defense comes from switchability and IQ, not from blocking shots. The Spurs being able to stay in front of guys and rotate efficiently makes Jakob's job easier. If anything, Memphis having a guy like Valanciunas scoring in the block allowed Poeltl to play inside most of the time. Had Memphis played JJJ at center from the outset, it's not clear that Poeltl would have been able to stay on the floor.

That said, he had some really nice defensive possessions and was better than Eubanks. I'm not saying he was bad or anything or that it's not nice to have a good rim-protector on the squad. I'm just saying that the Spurs are probably playing the best defensive lineup they've had all year right now (at least when considering DeRozan being on the court).

[mookie2001]

If we had bertans he would have sat out or got benched.

[siraulo23]

Pop deserves an A for this youth development nba restart thingy. A couple more minutes for KJ, a bit less Rudy, cant really complain.

[RC_Drunkford]

crazy that it took Flopovich only 64 games and a Covid-19 break over 4 months to figure out Forbes, Beli and Lyles suck. If he played these line ups with Aldridge this team easily wins 45-50 games

[lefty]

crazy that it took Flopovich only 64 games and a Covid-19 break over 4 months to figure out Forbes, Beli and Lyles suck. If he played these line ups with Aldridge this team easily wins 45-50 games
Isn't he being forced to play them because of injuries?

[John B]

Thanks for the grades Timvp. I think the new look Spurs is taking the league off guard. They don’t know how to scout them and hopefully it continuous with only a few games left. The 3 guards rotation, with a motor Keldon is a sight to see. They are switchable on all positions, everybody’s a ballhandler and can create, and they’re not too shy to let it fly. I’m excited that Pop has given up on that hurried offense, no-defense lineup. We’ve waited too long to finally see these athletic guards playing together. Let’s keep the streak going. Go Spurs Go!

[SpursDynasty85]

Metu was a 2 year project. His time is up.

Technically he is finishing up his 2nd year right? Not surprising he doesn't get minutes here with his little experience on first team. Hopefully he gets promoted to first team next year and learns from the bench.

[Mugen]

crazy that it took Flopovich only 64 games and a Covid-19 break over 4 months to figure out Forbes, Beli and Lyles suck. If he played these line ups with Aldridge this team easily wins 45-50 games

:lol It really is, I said it in the game thread but injuries have been the best Spurs coach this season.

[Mugen]

If we had bertans he would have sat out or got benched.

Yeah but the Spurs would be about 8-10 games better in the standings heading into the restart :lol

[BillMc]

I thought Drew played pretty well given the circumstances and his limitations.

[DPG21920]

Makes you really scratch your head that while many of us were screaming for more youth, less Mills/Beli/Forbes and at least giving White/Murray time together that we are seeing it now with positive results.

Pop doesn’t deserve too much credit here. It was a no brainer at this point after the way the season was going. Can’t believe it took this long and makes you wonder what this season looks like if he didn’t take so long to adapt and change.

[DPG21920]

And Murray has a lot of work to do still. I’m pleased with the flashes but man Sa needs him to find his niche fast and find consistent play.

Lonnie needs to take lessons from Keldon on drives. If Lonnie drove like Keldon he would be an elite finisher.

[Dejounte]

And Murray has a lot of work to do still. I’m pleased with the flashes but man Sa needs him to find his niche fast and find consistent play.

Lonnie needs to take lessons from Keldon on drives. If Lonnie drove like Keldon he would be an elite finisher.

You cant change a Zebra's stripes. Ive been saying it since last year. Lonnie is afraid of contact.

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

Isn't he being forced to play them because of injuries?

My thought as well.

It's better to be lucky than good sometimes. I think the injuries are forcing this lineup change, otherwise we might be seeing the same sh!tty rotations featuring Forbes, Mills and Marco all get 25+ minutes.

[R. DeMurre]

People are too obsessed with the idea that size is the only way to play good defense. Poeltl's job with this current lineup is easier than it would be with Lyles and Forbes starting. Defense comes from switchability and IQ, not from blocking shots. The Spurs being able to stay in front of guys and rotate efficiently makes Jakob's job easier. If anything, Memphis having a guy like Valanciunas scoring in the block allowed Poeltl to play inside most of the time. Had Memphis played JJJ at center from the outset, it's not clear that Poeltl would have been able to stay on the floor.

That said, he had some really nice defensive possessions and was better than Eubanks. I'm not saying he was bad or anything or that it's not nice to have a good rim-protector on the squad. I'm just saying that the Spurs are probably playing the best defensive lineup they've had all year right now (at least when considering DeRozan being on the court).

I never mentioned shot blocking and was talking entirely about fundamentals and a defensive mindset. The Spurs outplayed Memphis by 25 points in 21 minutes with Poeltl on the floor, and that's an outstanding outing no matter how you look at it. My only beef was that the C+ grade seemed low, considering the huge impact.

[tbdog]

Technically he is finishing up his 2nd year right? Not surprising he doesn't get minutes here with his little experience on first team. Hopefully he gets promoted to first team next year and learns from the bench.

His contract is 3 years but only 2 years of the money is garanteed.

[Kurgan]

Technically he is finishing up his 2nd year right? Not surprising he doesn't get minutes here with his little experience on first team. Hopefully he gets promoted to first team next year and learns from the bench.

If he can't even stand out in D-League, he has zero shot of making the real team. He's just not very good. Whatever, he's a 2nd round pick. Most 2nd rounders end up out of the league.

[SpursDynasty85]

If he can't even stand out in D-League, he has zero shot of making the real team. He's just not very good. Whatever, he's a 2nd round pick. Most 2nd rounders end up out of the league.

It seems that Metu's role is more suited for support anyway. When you have guys like Lonnie, Luka, Keldon, you are there for support. Like Eubanks, his role in the G League will be more of a support role with sprinkles of high-scoring games but learning the basics with the inherent physical tools he has should be enough for at least a lower bench role. He's still young enough to grow into that kind of role and if he ever gains a reliable 3, he'll be getting a good chunk of minutes somewhere in the NBA.