Grades: Spurs vs. Rockets - Oct. 18, 2023

[timvp]

https://www.spurstalk.com/spurs-rockets-preseason-grades-4/

Man, this Wemby rookie year is going to be so fun :tu

[Dhbsr555]

I mean keldon was +16 while on the court he deserves atleast a b

[Cry Havoc]

It's starting to feel like a bad game Wemby in the regular season is going to be something like 20, 6, and 4 with a couple of blocks and maybe a steal per.

I think that last part is really really important to talk about and highlight. Everyone talks about his height being such a boon for blocking shots (I mean, duh), but this dude is so long and fast that he can shut off an entire section of the court by himself. He's obviously going to improve across all categories, but if I'm being honest the ceiling on his defense is really just remarkable. He's going to end up being one of those defensive players that has teams planning for him all season for the eventual post-season matchup. But I'm not sure there's all that much you can do against his kind of astronomical size, length, speed, agility, and nose for the ball. He shows all, and I mean all the hallmarks of a future historically good player. One of the biggest concerns about him as a rookie would be timidity or a lack of willingness to pursue effort plays. Wemby clearly has a talent for basketball that goes far beyond his size. He really is a 7'4" guy that has SF like skills. He can attack, dribble with ridiculous handles, and make eye-popping plays. When the dust settles this dude is going to be a fucking monster, and I simply cannot believe he landed here.

Strap in, Spurs fans. This guy is legitimately off the scale. He already does way, way more things at a high level than any 7'+ guy I've ever seen at his age. The sky isn't the limit: Mars is.


Moving onto other players... yeah, it's preseason, but damn does it look like Vassell is going to be a complete monster next to Wemby. Those two are going to wreak unholy hell on high level NBA offenses. The Spurs have an opportunity to build around a generational talent and already have a young gun that could end up being a Jeff Bezos's version of Danny Green. 3 and D isn't nearly enough to describe what he's going to be capable of for this franchise. What a window to build around these guys and put a team on the floor that can do everything at an elite level thanks to Wemby's incredible versatility.

[onechance87]

we gotta be better at rebouding....Seems our team gets lazy going for rebounds and it gets our opponents back in the game giving
them up.

[EricB]

If they stay healthy this is easily a playoff team

[Mr. Body]

Sochan did look better out there in his new position. His counterpart was Amen Thompson, who isn't quite at the same level yet, but it did work better. Collins is key to the whole thing, as he's a really good facilitator and can be that high post Jakob Poeltl role. Zach is sneaky good right now.

Working things out for the starters will take more time. I'd hoped to see them deeper into the game, when they start getting closer to 30 minutes each. Getting Keldon his spots and touches will be important. He can carry more of a load. The team is trying to learn how to not be Wemby-dependent - because there is legitimate talent here - while integrating him, too.

It's going to take a while for these starters, but their defense has been stifling so far and they just need to be patient and get the pieces close to humming. I don't worry about Keldon. Vic needs to know he's going to get plenty of touches, too.

The bench was better. Still some issues here or there. Champ is still worried about his shot. I feel like Pop wants him to eventually take Dougie's spot. I like that Julian cuts and drives and he seemed like the only guy to rebound hard on the defensive end for a while.

It's a fascinating season. There's a ton here and a lot of work to smooth the pieces together both in the starters and the secondary guys. I hated that the rebounding dropped off again.

Next game, even if just preseason, is against a really good Warriors team. I doubt the Spurs will be able to jump on them the way they have everone else so far. Looking forward to it.

[Dex]

1714835679224447180

[tbdog]

I'm more team Barlow than team Bassey for back up center.

[buttsR4rebounding]

It's starting to feel like a bad game Wemby in the regular season is going to be something like 20, 6, and 4 with a couple of blocks and maybe a steal per.

I think that last part is really really important to talk about and highlight. Everyone talks about his height being such a boon for blocking shots (I mean, duh), but this dude is so long and fast that he can shut off an entire section of the court by himself. He's obviously going to improve across all categories, but if I'm being honest the ceiling on his defense is really just remarkable.

He reminds me of prime Prime Time. Teams wouldn't throw to his side of the field allowing the Cowboys to stack their defense on the other side.

[tbdog]

A rockets forum quote.


PG: Sochan vs. FVV - FVV should easily be the favorite here
SG: Vassel vs. Green - Green should easily be the favorite here
SF: Johnson vs. Brooks - I can't call that one
PF: Wembanyama vs. Smith - hard to decide before Wembanyama has played a regular season game, but I like the way Smith has developed
C: Collins vs. Sengun - I would have to give that to Sengun, even though Collins has looked better this preseason.

[onechance87]

I'm more team Barlow than team Bassey for back up center.

i dont mind that at all....Especially since his offence seems better....But not sure hes a better defender or rebounder

[Mr. Body]

A rockets forum quote.

[/FONT][/COLOR]

Clutch fans are as to overhyping their players as SpursTalk fans are to grinding theirs to dust.

After seeing them two games and sadly another one coming up, Udoka has them playing solid defense. They were legit good last night with only Devin's shooting and a slew of Wemby free throws extending the lead. They're long and organized. Credit to their coach.

Their Achilles heel is playmaking. Van Vleet and Sengun seem to be the sole playmakers in the main rotation, although I think Amen will get his bearings well enough. Jalen Green was missed and he can score in bunches; not sure about facilitation, but he'll open things up. I came away thinking Jabari Smith Jr. is a good deal more effective than last year. He still needs to be activated by other players, and that #3 draft pick price tag will get expensive, but he can score. Now... trying to stop Zach Collins is another matter. Bringing Tari Eason off the bench will help.

I see them going in the right direction mixing in vets and getting a well-grounded coach. If they can play good defense, they'll have a shot at games. Need to figure out the offense.

[rjv]

Next game, even if just preseason, is against a really good Warriors team. I doubt the Spurs will be able to jump on them the way they have everone else so far. Looking forward to it.

i'm starting to wonder what lineup Kerr will throw out there on Friday given that most of the starters for GS had huge minutes last night.

[DPG21920]

I love that Pop is sticking with the weird but best player starting lineup. It’s what I have been hoping and thinking would be the case and I love that hes going with it.

[Mugen]

Dirty Dom deserves a crack at the rotation tbh.

[Spurs Homer]

Wemby needs minutes and lots of consistent minutes and the rest depends on health.

The monster on the court - AT ALL TIMES - has to be taken into account not only by opponents but ALL spurs players on the floor.
Wemby is like the conductor and the best musician in the symphony all at once. If Pop catches players ignoring him or just playing for themselves (branham/wesley) - they need to be taken out for any other spur that gets it.

Of course this does not mean the old - post up calling a play for the big guy -

but victor appears to be a free flowing - lets run right now and see what happens type of player and the team needs to run with him. He likes bringing the ball up and CREATING -

shit he has also been extremely EFFICIENT.

You could see how disappointed in himself he gets when he misses or makes a mistake or fails in any way -

he runs to the ball and sprints down the court and wants to make up for his lack of dominance on the previous play.

Let him run and create freely and BASE the offense on where HE is going. Not rocket science.
The only issue is how to balance his court dominance with - OVER-DEPENDENCE and also falling apart when he goes to the bench which is why he needs consistent minutes - even if that means he goes to the bench a few more times in between and returns after a quick breather like he has been used the past three games - but 20 minutes of course should be stretched to at least 32-38 minutes MINIMUM!

[Mugen]

I didn't like that garbage lineup that Pop threw out in the 3rd that I think didn't have a single starter (maybe KJ?).

Going to chalk it up to preseason but there is really no reason that they shouldn't have at least 2 of the starters on the court at all times if he staggers correctly. Bench unit is not good enough to trot all 5 or even 4 out there at the same time.

[rjv]

all that length reminds me of the late 90's, early 2000's jailblazers team.

[The Truth #6]

I don't think it's been mentioned much, but Tre Jones looks a lot more stout out there and his three-point shot seems to be falling. Lost in the shuffle of if Jeremy can be a point guard or not, it looks like Jones has actually made some significant improvements in the off season.

[onechance87]

I don't think it's been mentioned much, but Tre Jones looks a lot more stout out there and his three-point shot seems to be falling. Lost in the shuffle of if Jeremy can be a point guard or not, it looks like Jones has actually made some significant improvements in the off season.

looks the same to me bro

[spurraider21]

Dirty Dom deserves a crack at the rotation tbh.
hes currently on a 2-way, so he can only be active for 50 games.

until they convert him to a regular nba contract. probably near the deadline if they make some trades or buyouts of guys like mcdermott/graham/osman

[spurraider21]

I don't think it's been mentioned much, but Tre Jones looks a lot more stout out there and his three-point shot seems to be falling. Lost in the shuffle of if Jeremy can be a point guard or not, it looks like Jones has actually made some significant improvements in the off season.
Tre will probably look a lot better as the backup PG. while im not sold on the Sochan point guard experiment, thats one of the good outcomes.

[JPB]

I didn't like that garbage lineup that Pop threw out in the 3rd that I think didn't have a single starter (maybe KJ?).

Going to chalk it up to preseason but there is really no reason that they shouldn't have at least 2 of the starters on the court at all times if he staggers correctly. Bench unit is not good enough to trot all 5 or even 4 out there at the same time.

Yup, and not tall or strong enough.

[spurraider21]

Yup, and not tall or strong enough.
still thinks he has the old beautiful game bench that would sometimes bail the starters out after a sorry ass start and a full on hockey shift change :lol

mvpatty, manu, marco, diaw, baynes aint walkin thru that door

if he is planning on doing hockey rotations, keldon in the second unit makes some sense. just dno we have a viable starter at the 3. osman has looked the best in preseason, but dno if thats sustainable

[The Truth #6]

looks the same to me bro

His three point shot is falling. That's a noticeable difference. Also he's gained weight with muscle and doesn't get pushed around as much.

[couchman]

A lot of us called for this starting lineup months ago and I’m glad Pop is giving them a chance to work.
It puts four guys around Sochan who can shoot the 3 and gives him the best chance to continue developing.
I still expect him to end up as a forward for us in the future but that maybe a year or more away.

This SL also gives Branham the opportunity to be the main scorer off the bench. Short of being in the starting lineup I think this is the best route for his development.

[onechance87]

His three point shot is falling. That's a noticeable difference. Also he's gained weight with muscle and doesn't get pushed around as much.

making the 3 consistently will be the difference....Hes always been inconsitent at shooting....its only been a few preseason games..
but hoping he improves

[spurraider21]

His three point shot is falling. That's a noticeable difference. Also he's gained weight with muscle and doesn't get pushed around as much.
he's played 3 preseason games

he has hit 2/7 three pointers in those games, or 28.5% of them

his 3pt% last season was 28.5%