Grades: Warriors @ Spurs 11.23.2024

[Mugen]

https://www.spurstalk.com/grades-spurs-warriors-2025-game-17/

-Shout out to the Black Falcon with another quiet 20+ point game
-Champagnie played some great D in this game, i'm starting to believe he's the 3&D guy we were looking to fill with the '25 picks tbh
-Castle is a stud. Absolute stud.

[Spurs Homer]

My only complaint was the bad message coach johnson sent to bassey,

”play your ass off, make zollins look like absolute garbage, be a defensive beast when needed- and then get nailed to the bench like jeezus fuckin christ on the cross!”

A grade!

[Mr. Body]

Tre replaced CP for much of the crunch-time lineup pretty effectively. His statistical production wasn't enormous but his quickness and decision making was important. It also lends credence to the team liking to have a speedier guard who can be smaller next to Castle.

[Obstructed_View]

My only complaint was the bad message coach johnson sent to bassey,

”play your ass off, make zollins look like absolute garbage, be a defensive beast when needed- and then get nailed to the bench like jeezus fuckin christ on the cross!”

A grade!
Pop has taught him well.

[jeebus]

Tre replaced CP for much of the crunch-time lineup pretty effectively. His statistical production wasn't enormous but his quickness and decision making was important. It also lends credence to the team liking to have a speedier guard who can be smaller next to Castle.

They were jiving good; Paul was set to go back in and he nixed it when he saw how good the unit was doing. Lot of coaches disrupt runs by doing that.

[Manu-of-steel]

Great read! Our coach did a great job. I was rooting for Bassey to be inserted in the line up. But I agree that Mamu played great and his 3 point threat opened up the floor for our guys. Coach had the balls to keep Tre out there instead of of CP3, which proved to be the correct call. I think the Spurs smothered the Warriors' plays- CP3 and Barnes' inside knowledge of Kerr's tendencies may have a hand in that.

[onechance87]

Sorry but sochan and vassell may have to stay on the bench when they return.This current starting 5 works so good.

[spurraider21]

Champagnie has gotten better at everything at the expense of his shooting

[Manu-of-steel]

Castle was a monster- both offensively and defensively. He is not afraid of the moment, not rattled to make a play. I dunno, he is giving me Manu and Kawhi vibes. Castle's plays make me forget he's just 20 years old!

[spurraider21]

Mitch can’t get an A with Bassey getting 0 minutes tbh

[Manu-of-steel]

Wemby in the 4th quarter was awesome. He was a terror on defense, and his offense was great. Back-breaking 3 pointers and excellent passing by Wemby. Wow!

[RC_Drunkford]

My only complaint was the bad message coach johnson sent to bassey,

”play your ass off, make zollins look like absolute garbage, be a defensive beast when needed- and then get nailed to the bench like jeezus fuckin christ on the cross!”

A grade!

I mean at least he benched Zollins and went small with Mamu at the 5. That's something.


They were jiving good; Paul was set to go back in and he nixed it when he saw how good the unit was doing. Lot of coaches disrupt runs by doing that.

it was actually CP3 himself. He told Mitch the young guys got it, I don't need to come in. Said it in the postgame interview.

[ambchang]

I can understand no bassey as his play style may clog up the offence and his defence out in the perimeter won’t be as effective vs the warriors.


That said I’d rather be out bassey in to prove that’s the case.

[baseline bum]

timvp man, where do you think Vassell fits in on this team? It's hard not to notice the Spurs have gone from a bottom third of the league defense last year to top third of the league this year with Castle taking Vassell's minutes. Kind of wish they would have traded him for Markannen now.

[spurraider21]

timvp (https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/member.php?u=8) man, where do you think Vassell fits in on this team? It's hard not to notice the Spurs have gone from a bottom third of the league defense last year to top third of the league this year with Castle taking Vassell's minutes. Kind of wish they would have traded him for Markannen now.
Have to feel he can be an improvement to Shampenny even though he’s gotten better. Depends if he’s willing to be less ball dominant than he’s accustomed to and instead shift energy to D. As nice as Champagnie has been he’s shooting like 35% from 3 on the season

[scott]

Personally I thought Blake outplayed his grade here. He was a huge spart off the bench and this was probably his most impactful game as a pro. Very pleased with him.

The shooting was atrocious, but that is what happens when you have a team that doesn't have a lot of shooters. This will happen. But on the flip side of that, the team's Defensive Identity kept them in the game. Throughout the game thread when all seemed lost I was saying that this game was winnable if we abandoned the 3-ball chucking approach to the game. In the second half the offensive game became more balanced and we saw the results.

Love the second half adjustment Mitch made going with Mamu instead of Collins. Perhaps one of Collins' most embarassing performances in awhile. The silver lining is perhaps this helps Mitch eventually feel better about giving some of those Collins minutes to Bassey.

Great win.

I have some thoughts on the rotation going forward and a (relatively) small trade we can make to really be in a position for our first playoff experience in what seems like eternity.

[Brazil]

Not sure how wemby had only 3 blocks recorded this game, I’ve seen at least 5… anyway solid win against a red hot warriors

[RC_Drunkford]

Have to feel he can be an improvement to Shampenny even though he’s gotten better. Depends if he’s willing to be less ball dominant than he’s accustomed to and instead shift energy to D. As nice as Champagnie has been he’s shooting like 35% from 3 on the season

before the game last night he was 12th in the NBA in catch and shoot 3s. I don't understand why some people here act like he's some kind of scrub. He'd be in the regular rotation of almost every NBA team.

[spurraider21]

before the game last night he was 12th in the NBA in catch and shoot 3s. I don't understand why some people here act like he's some kind of scrub. He'd be in the regular rotation of almost every NBA team.
Who said who is a scrub?

[heyheymymy]

Harrison Barnes, man.

[RC_Drunkford]

Who said who is a scrub?

not talking about you, but there have been a couple of people on this board calling him that

[baseline bum]

Have to feel he can be an improvement to Shampenny even though he’s gotten better. Depends if he’s willing to be less ball dominant than he’s accustomed to and instead shift energy to D. As nice as Champagnie has been he’s shooting like 35% from 3 on the season

Champagnie plays credible defense though. Vassell's defense completely fell off a cliff after the first 20 games or so last season.

[baseline bum]

before the game last night he was 12th in the NBA in catch and shoot 3s. I don't understand why some people here act like he's some kind of scrub. He'd be in the regular rotation of almost every NBA team.

Still can't believe half the board was scoffing the idea when I said it was a no-brainer picking up his $3 million option.

[100%duncan]

-Wemby knows how to turn it up but it would be nice to see better pacing from him. There are still some stretches, albeit becoming less frequent now, that he isn't able to score the ball.

-Much has been said about CP3's IQ, but Barnes' macro movements have been really on point. His cuts, the whole season so far, has been his best ability tbh. Also doesn't hurt that he's a reliable three point threat. Still, I would like if the team relied on him less as obviously he isn't a piece for the long run. It would be interesting once Sochan comes back.

-Mitch Johnson has been a breath of fresh air. I was hesitant at first but it seems like this dude actually coaches in-game and makes adjustments based on what works and doesn't. Miles away from Pop just "being happy to be here."

-Zach Collins, Branham, and Wesley (although Wes did good this game and he has vibes) need to get off the team. Damn we really need better talent still.

[Davidicus]

Classic Wemby coming off rest a bit rusty but turning it on in the 4th. He’s still doing things I’ve never seen before like that unbothered, long-stride drive to the hoop.

HB with a stealthy 22. The dude is smart with skills and shots, he’s fitting right into the Spurs way.

I’m still getting used to not being terrified with Champagnie’s defense. I’m really impressed with his growth this year, he’s legitimately taking big steps.

Castle is putting the league on notice. His D on Lebron, SGA, and now Curry have been very impressive.

[Cry Havoc]

I'm at the point now where I want to see our lineups consist of

1st team
Paul
Castle
Vassell
Barnes
Wemby

2nd team
Tre
Champagnie/Branham
Keldon
Mamu
Bassey

Collins can be used in spot matchups but overall I think this bench is massively upgraded over last year if Bassey keeps playing with energy.

[playbonner15]

They were jiving good; Paul was set to go back in and he nixed it when he saw how good the unit was doing. Lot of coaches disrupt runs by doing that.

If Paul decided for himself that going in wasnt best at the time and vetoed the coaches, i'm loving the signing more. Having another guy with his bball IQ is so great this season

[John B]

I'm at the point now where I want to see our lineups consist of

1st team
Paul
Castle
Vassell
Barnes
Wemby

2nd team
Tre
Champagnie/Branham
Keldon
Mamu
Bassey

Collins can be used in spot matchups but overall I think this bench is massively upgraded over last year if Bassey keeps playing with energy.

Are we trading Sochan? Because he’s not in your line-up.

[John B]

This was more than a satisfying win. I hated the Dubs and the problem of switching on Curry. Our rookie just smothered him in the 4th, limiting the Dubs to 13 pts in the 4th quarter. That’s fuckin’ Kawhi-esque impressive as shit. That from a 20 yrs old. And Castle’s deep 3 despite airballing a mid-range a few possessions ago to take the lead. That’s Manu-esque brazen cahones. I just compared our 20 year old rookie to Spurs’ best. If Spurs fans are excited about Wemby, they better be equally excited about Castle. Because this kid has it. And he’s being trained by the maestro pointgod himself. I couldn’t be more excited. Before I coveted Doncic to hopefully find his way to Spurs someday. But not anymore. He’s not just Robin, he’s Batman next to Superman! That’s all I have to say.

[KobesAchilles]

Vassell doesn’t play like a winning player. The good thing is he has legit vets now to go to for advice. But his defense is shit. He doesn’t move the ball particularly well. He takes a lot of bad shots. And too many shots as well. He’s a player that would fit well on Golden St for instance but not really for our team.

That being said, he’s a fine shooter. He play hard. He is still very young. But he’s at the age where he is what he is. If he can refrain from offense and focus more on defense that would be great. I don’t really need him shooting the ball more than 10 times a game. But I do need him staying in position on defense, not overplaying the passing lanes, recognizing when to switch and when to stay, fighting for boards, chasing over screens. All these attention to detail shit.

[T Park]

Tre replaced CP for much of the crunch-time lineup pretty effectively. His statistical production wasn't enormous but his quickness and decision making was important. It also lends credence to the team liking to have a speedier guard who can be smaller next to Castle.

There was a point in the fourth where Paul was gonna come in, watched game play for a minute walked back and gave the wave under the chin motion like “nah” and sat with the coaches,

[T Park]

Mitch can’t get an A with Bassey getting 0 minutes tbh

Yes he can. Bassey is a third string big for a reason.

[Ice009]

There was a point in the fourth where Paul was gonna come in, watched game play for a minute walked back and gave the wave under the chin motion like “nah” and sat with the coaches,

I actually saw this too. I was watching Chris wondering why he didn't come in during the foul/dead ball, but then I saw him walk back to the bench. Mitch did want him to go it, but seems that CP3 told him that unit is playing well, leave it as it is for now.

I also agree about Bassey. I thought Mitch probably didn't play him because he didn't like the matchup against the Warriors. I don't think it was an oversight or anything like that.

[Cry Havoc]

Are we trading Sochan? Because he’s not in your line-up.

He's still a ways out but obviously he would start and I would shift barnes to the backup 4. This bench might actually be really good when we get healthy given how Julian, Keldon, and Barnes have been playing, especially if Bassey continues to play well.

[heyheymymy]

The Warriors were 12-0 when leading by double digits and 12-0 when leading after the third quarter before Saturday. Then they blew a 17-point lead in San Antonio by scoring just 13 points over the final 13 1/2 minutes (27 offensive possessions), with 11 players contributing to the collapse.