Spurs vs. Pistons Dec. 3 - Grades

[timvp]

Tim Duncan
If there is any team on the planet that has a prayer to stop Tim Duncan, it would be the Detroit Pistons. They have two very capable Duncan defenders in Ben and Rasheed Wallace, in addition to a plethora of long-armed players swooping in on help defense. Despite that, Duncan did a fine job and found ways to be successful. Although he struggled at times with Detroit’s defense, he found ways to score off of isolations and shots around the basket. He finished the game with 18 points, 18 rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a monster dunk over Ben Wallace that will make every highlight reel in the civilized world.
GRADE: 87
DECEMBER: 93.5
SEASON: 88.6

Bruce Bowen
Bowen’s defense was as good as ever against Richard Hamilton on Friday night. Hamilton came into the game averaging 21.1 points per game, but only managed eight points on 4-for-14 shooting from the field. Bowen also did a good job keeping Hamilton, who was averaging seven free throws per game coming into the contest, off the line. On offense, Bowen did a fine job. He hit half of his six field goal attempts and both of his free throws. Popovich rewarded him on a job well done, playing him a season-high 35 minutes.
GRADE: 95
DECEMBER: 86
SEASON: 84.3

Rasho Nesterovic
Nesterovic started the season off nicely, but is seemingly starting to regress. He’s had a couple poor outings in a row now after an underwhelming performance against the Pistons. In 27 minutes, the Slovenian 7-footer recorded two points, four fouls and five turnovers. He is totally out of rhythm right now on both offense and defense. While he had some good plays here and there, the Spurs need a much more consistent effort out of their starting center. On the plus side, he did a good job on the boards as he finished with seven.
GRADE: 67
DECEMBER: 67.5
SEASON: 83.4

Manu Ginobili
Ginobili was making a lot happen for the Spurs – both good and bad. On one hand, he was ferociously attacking on offense. He scored 18 points, while shooting 6-for-10 from the floor, 2-for-5 on threes and 4-for-7 at the line. He also chipped in four rebounds and four assists. On the other hand, his relentless forays to the basket and forced passes caused him to turn the ball over. Ginobili tied a season-high with six turnovers in his 34 minutes of action. The Spurs need him to toe the line between being aggressive and being reckless. Friday night he could have toed that line better, but his aggressiveness made up for his reckless play.
GRADE: 86
DECEMBER: 87
SEASON: 89

Tony Parker
It looks like Parker is starting to heat up offensively. He finished 9-for-16 from the field, 0-for-1 from downtown and 2-for-2 from the free throw line for 20 points in 39 minutes on the court. He’s breaking down defenses and getting to the rim. Parker is also utilizing a newfound spin move in the lane that has been successful of late. On defense, Parker did a good job on Chauncey Billups. Although Billups hit some huge shots in the fourth quarter, Parker contested all of them. The area Parker could have been better in was ball distribution. He was adequate, but the Spurs would like for him to be an even better playmaker. For the game, he finished with only three assists.
GRADE: 89
DECEMBER: 91
SEASON: 83.3

Malik Rose
As the season has advanced, Rose has emerged as the most capable of the backup bigmen. On Friday night, Rose logged a season-high 28 minutes against Detroit. Defensively, Rose had a very solid showing. He bodied up both of the Wallaces and rebounded the ball well, pulling down a season-high ten boards. On the other end of the court, Rose wasn't as pretty. He finished 2-for-7 from the floor and only 3-for-7 from the line. He’ll need to do a better job converted his attempts, but overall it was a step in the right direction for Rose.
GRADE: 85
DECEMBER: 84.5
SEASON: 85.9

Devin Brown
Coming off of a torrid three-game stretch, Brown came down to earth a little bit against the Pistons. He connected on only 2-of-6 shots from the field and finished with five points, two rebounds, two assists and a steal in 22 minutes off the bench. Popovich gave the majority of the backup swingman minutes to Brown, as the UTSA product has outperformed Brent Barry as of late. Though his numbers weren’t as jaw-dropping as his last couple outings, Brown kept his defensive intensity and energy level high.
GRADE: 86
DECEMBER: 92
SEASON: 85.1

Beno Udrih
Like Brown, Udrih cooled off versus Detroit. Having played six solid games in a row coming into Friday’s contest, Udrih tied a season-low with eight minutes and didn’t score a point – missing his only shot. He had three assists but negated them with three turnovers to match. Udrih also didn’t have a very good defensive game. Regardless, Udrih’s had a fine season so far and should learn from this performance and move on.
GRADE: 74
DECEMBER: 85
SEASON: 81.9

Brent Barry
Other than two huge free throws to help seal the game, Barry had little impact. He played a season-low six minutes, including only playing three seconds total after halftime. He missed all four of his field goal attempts, with three of those being from beyond the arc. The Spurs just need Barry to calm down and not press. He’s currently shooting the ball too quickly and falling off his shot. Once he settles in and becomes comfortable, his minutes and productivity will improve dramatically.
GRADE: 70
DECEMBER: 71.5
SEASON: 84.2

[ducks]

I wonder if brown and beno were tired
they have been playing more lately because of blowouts
the starters are used to play big minutes and they are not

[boutons]

"I wonder if brown and beno were tired"

geez, I don't. They're 26 and 22, this is early Dec (not early April), they had not played their limited minutes in 48 hours, 3 nights in their own beds. They better NOT have been tired.

[ducks]

if players are only used to play 10-15 minutes a game
and the last 3 games they played more

they are also playing 7 games in 10 games for the second time

[T Park]

I disagree with the Nesterovic grade a little.

When in there, he played very good defense on a quicker more agile Rasheed Wallace, staying in front of him quite well forcing him into missed shots, and he filled the lane keeping Billups and Hamilton out .

I agree with the turnovers and the offense, he looks out of synch, but also, he doesnt get as many shots as he was getting early in the season either.

IMO, 10 shots should be his max and standard every game.

IMO this falls on POP, for not running enough pick and rolls with Parker or Udrih.

On the other hand, the Pistons were defending the pick and roll the best of any team all year.

On that note, I think he might have desrved a 72 instead of a 65.

JMHO.

[BigVee]

I think if Pop would have left the starters in a couple more minutes in the 3rd, the Pistions would have quit. But a win against those guys is always big. They had more rest, were psyched about Ben being back, and still the Spurs came out and laid the wood to them.

[Phenomanul]

Yeah... but the issue is that they managed to scare the Spurs on their home turf... It's the sort of game that lets them think that they could steal a game here in a 7-game series...

We shouldn't have let them go home with that mentality.....

But.... a win is a win.... :king

[SequSpur]

I disagree with almost all of these grades except for Tony Parker.

If you broke 100 down by 4, then the highest score that any player should receive is a 75. The Spurs were equal to the Charlotte Bobcats in the 4th quarter, which is pitiful. Play in the 4th quarter is much more important than play in the first half, therefore points should be awarded appropriately.

I think you are being a little to "nice" when it comes to grading these players just because they won. Manu, Rasho, Beno were terrible. Parker got no help in the last 5 minutes. No help on the screen rolls, Billups went off. Also, Malik on Rasheed? Another brillant move by Popovich.

[T Park]

Also, Malik on Rasheed? Another brillant move by Popovich.

What should he have done oh great John Lucas?

that should be Sequ's new thing under his name

WWJL What would John Lucas do?

Stomp clap, and say, SCORE TIM!!!

Thats about what his coaching was in 92 93 and 93 94..

Clap stomp and say SCORE DAVID!!!

Oh yeah, and let the players run timeouts.

Yeah that was fantastic seeing Rodman draw up plays next to Lloyd Daniels.

[SequSpur]

Dude didn't score a point on Rasho. He shot over Malik, like LJ shot over me.

STFU, bring something else than your John Lucas crap. Pop won 2 championships, yes, but should he have won more? I think so. I think this team was close to a dynasty and he and his management team dismantled it year after year and then finally won again in 03 and then dismantled the team again.

Bring your ass to the gtg.

[ALVAREZ6]

ginobili = beast

[T Park]

Dude didn't score a point on Rasho.

Rasho sucks, he wouldnt have been able to keep up with him, Hes too soft to guard Wallace.