Grades: Spurs @ Bulls - Jan. 17, 2021

[timvp]

https://www.spurstalk.com/grades-san-antonio-spurs-chicago-bulls-game-37/

Fun one, tbh :tu

[DAF86]

Tre
Vassell
Diop
Samanic
Eubanks

Q
Lyles

The rotation vs the Bucks.

[heyheymymy]

Was wondering if Poetl would indeed earn the A+ from you. Great to see.

What a crazy game with something like a 34 point swing. It's one thing to sneak by after erasing a 20+ lead but to then yourself go up 10+ it's less of a fluke.

Spurs now have 9 comebacks of 10+ points this season and I know we would have coughed up most of those last year so I'm looking at that as a sign of development and progress.

[siraulo23]

crazy win :tu

[Fireball]

before the game I had the feeling if the Spurs will be down by 10 in the fourth there still is a chance to win the game as a b2b rears its ugly head at the end of the second game ... considering how bad the Spurs played for three quarters I was not as confident anymore. but they still pulled it off ... congrats!

[BillMc]

Misses that game, so these grades are really helpful! Thanks OP!

[RC_Drunkford]

great to see the young guys compete and win games without DeMar and LA. This will just make them grow even faster

[r0drig0lac]

big win, but I don't share the general optimism after being 20 below in a moment, the good thing is that Walker seems to have more and more flashes of his offensive star ceilling.

[John B]

Thanks Timvp. First off, that was a better 3rd quarter to cut the lead. Spurs are normally horrendous at the 3rd, but not last night. It was the court press DEFENSE that stopped the Bulls onslaught and created offensive opportunities for our guys to crawl back in at the end of the 3rd period. It’s DEFENSE. I hope Pop would see that it was DEFENSE that created offense and not merely to outscore. Hopefully it continues to emphasis on DEFENSE.

2nd Spurs need to address the slow starts at 1st and 3rd periods where Spurs are 25th in the league. That’s the starting lineup. DJ and Murray should find a better way to get the guys rolling offensively fast. Normally Spurs get buried in the first few possessions.

As much as I like to give Poeltl A+ for his career double-doubles, notice in the highlights that most of Bulls layups were againtst Poeltl. Young, Lavine even Satoransky all attacking Jakob and zero blocks. I don’t like to burst Jakob bubbles but Poeltl needs to protect the rims better, have pride on swatting layups and punishing people. Because easily last night game was a lost and because Spurs had very little protection of the rim.

I also disagree with Lonnie’s C-. Except for that TO and made worst with Lavine making a highlight reel dunk, Lonnie was very aggressive attacking the rim and was one of the few bright sides of the 1st half. Zero fouls. That was the kind of game I want Lonnie have, attacking the rim, punishing his defender with his quick first step, and not committing ticky-tack fouls. Lonnie’s game was at least a B last night.

Likewise, Poeltl got going offensively because of White’s assists, not Murray. Granted Murray played monster defense in the 4th, but likewise White and had dagger shots. I would give White a better grade.

Last night was a great comeback from a 23 point down because of great DEFENSE. Holding down the opponents to 41 pts in the 2nd half after the 58 points onslaught was great maturity for our young guys for not easily giving up. Spurs are 9 times winner coming back from a 10 point deficit that spells resilience, but also means Spurs need to figure not getting in the hole in the 1st place. Great win.

[Mr. Body]

big win, but I don't share the general optimism after being 20 below in a moment, the good thing is that Walker seems to have more and more flashes of his offensive star ceilling.

You're right; it's probably better to not fight and scrap to get the win.

[tbdog]

Poeltl is very much involved in offense now, where early in the season he wasn't. He now is setting multiple screens more possession. He is catching at different spots and handing off. He is rolling.

[NK123]

People get satisfied with wins against bad teams and forget what happened against the Sixers.
This team lacks consistency overall.
Continuity and in-game adjkustments from coaching has been a problem too.

I think that this team is one good player away from contending.
It would be great if we could extend Demar and sign Kawhi.

Having 2 consistent players on this roster would be special and would give more leverage to the young guys.

[sananspursfan21]

Great win. I tuned in during the second quarter and shut it off after White air balled a three in the third. Something told me the game wasn’t over but I was too annoyed to keep watching. Turned it back on out of curiosity midway through the 4th and was pleasantly surprised :lol

[r0drig0lac]

You're right; it's probably better to not fight and scrap to get the win.

this is an unnecessary effort to try to understand something that has not been said, nice.

[Ocotillo]

Not our guy but how did Patrick Williams look? I missed the first three quarters of the game and did not see much of him but saw in the box score he had 14 boards.

[Sugus]

People get satisfied with wins against bad teams and forget what happened against the Sixers.
This team lacks consistency overall.
Continuity and in-game adjkustments from coaching has been a problem too.

I think that this team is one good player away from contending.
It would be great if we could extend Demar and sign Kawhi.

Having 2 consistent players on this roster would be special and would give more leverage to the young guys.

:wtf:wtf:wtf

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

I was really impressed by Murray's leadership in the 4th. You could see the adrenaline and the desire to win, and he was making it happen on the defensive end. He was absolutely hounding Levine, and when Zach got out of synch the Bulls followed. Murray's misses didn't bother me too much because he was beasting last night. If Poeltl hadn't earned the game ball I would definitely given it to Dejounte.

The Spurs have played decently without DeRozan, but I do think they're better with him in the lineup. Not sure we fall down by 23 to the Bulls with him there last night.

And what's up with the Bulls stats team there in Chicago? They were missing stuff all night. Poeltl had a least two clear blocks and was right there on a couple of more and they credited him with zero??? Dumb.

[John B]

Not our guy but how did Patrick Williams look? I missed the first three quarters of the game and did not see much of him but saw in the box score he had 14 boards.
I think he got double-doubles by the 3rd period? Williams was legit and a great pick for the Bulls.

[D-Robinson 50 fan]

I missed most of this game. What happened with Lonnie? I seen he was aggressive in the first half but fell a couple of time awkwardly. Plus his minutes were low. Did he get hurt?

[Dejounte]

I missed most of this game. What happened with Lonnie? I seen he was aggressive in the first half but fell a couple of time awkwardly. Plus his minutes were low. Did he get hurt?

Lonnie, like the rest of the team, was playing sloppy. Somewhere in the 2nd or 3rd they turned up their aggressiveness (maybe coaching), and Lonnie was attacking the basket with no regard for his body. Unfortunately, the end result was not pretty and he had a couple close calls with injury. There was a play in the first quarter where he passed up a three and turned it over... I was like WTF LONNIE. But overall, he did okay. He didn't play much because they were probably being careful with him after those two incidents.

[exstatic]

I was really impressed by Murray's leadership in the 4th. You could see the adrenaline and the desire to win, and he was making it happen on the defensive end. He was absolutely hounding Levine, and when Zach got out of synch the Bulls followed. Murray's misses didn't bother me too much because he was beasting last night. If Poeltl hadn't earned the game ball I would definitely given it to Dejounte.

The Spurs have played decently without DeRozan, but I do think they're better with him in the lineup. Not sure we fall down by 23 to the Bulls with him there last night.

And what's up with the Bulls stats team there in Chicago? They were missing stuff all night. Poeltl had a least two clear blocks and was right there on a couple of more and they credited him with zero??? Dumb.

Even after Pop turned off the VERY effective full court press, DJ was meeting Lavine the second he stepped over half court, badgering him every step of the way.

[Sugus]

Even after Pop turned off the VERY effective full court press, DJ was meeting Lavine the second he stepped over half court, badgering him every step of the way.

I wonder whether the Spurs can keep up that full court pressure for the full game? Or at least some full quarters when they're down 10+ points... It was visibly a game-changer, and Dejounte hounding the other team's PG for the entire court is just a recipe for easy steals and transition opportunities. Some college teams do it, so why can't the Spurs?