timvp
12-08-2004, 05:44 AM
Tim Duncan
Although the Chicago Bulls are the laughing stock of the league, they did a good job in guarding Duncan on Monday night. Throwing a variety of bigmen at him, the different looks gave Duncan trouble. He was also not as aggressive as he normally is with the basketball, as he settled for a lot of jumpers. His defense was solid, but the Spurs need him to score more than 12 points on 4-for-12 shooting from the field. Maybe part of his offensive woes can be attributed to him visiting Soldier field to watch the Chicago Bears play, a team known recently for their offensive ineptitude. Perhaps it rubbed off on him.
GRADE: 78
DECEMBER: 89.3
SEASON: 88.2
Bruce Bowen
After a couple of sub par performances, Bowen has strung together four straight good outings. Playing 29 minutes, the Spurs’ defensive stopper finished 3-for-6 from the field and 1-for-2 from three-point land to amass his seven points. Showing some passing skills that have rarely been seen this season, Bowen tied a season-high with four assists. His defense was its usual stellar self, but he grabbed only one rebound. Although he’s never been a prolific rebounder, his rebounding numbers are down this year and he’s had two or less rebounds in ten of the team’s 19 games. The Spurs would like for him to rebound more to help out the bigmen on the boards.
GRADE: 88
DECEMBER: 87.5
SEASON: 84.8
Rasho Nesterovic
Nesterovic has been struggling as of late and Monday night was no different. His offense was downright anemic. He shot 1-for-9 from the floor and didn’t get to the line for the fourth consecutive game. Right now, his offensive rhythm is way off. He’s not hitting jumpers or even short shots around the basket and is shooting 25% from the field over his last four games. On the other end of the court, he was average. He didn’t do anything amazing but did help control the paint. He grabbed eight rebounds in 18 minutes, which is a very nice rate, but didn’t record a blocked shot. He’s going to have to step up his level of play if he’s going to get anything more than first and third quarter minutes.
GRADE: 69
DECEMBER: 71.8
SEASON: 82.6
Manu Ginobili
Ginobili had a fine all-around game … other than his turnovers. He had five turnovers in 27 minutes, mostly due to trying to force the issue with passes and drives down the lane. While the Spurs need him in attack mode, he’s got to make sure to keep his turnovers down. Overlooking his giveaways, he played well. He finished with 12 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals. Ginobili connected on 3-of-8 shots from the field, 1-of-4 from beyond the arc and 5-of-5 from the line. He was also very active on D and did a good job shutting down his man.
GRADE: 85
DECEMBER: 86.5
SEASON: 88.7
Tony Parker
Parker has played very well during this eight-game win streak. He’s scoring the ball and running the team equally as well. Monday night versus the Bulls was just another example. He finished the game with 17 points, five assists and three rebounds, while shooting 6-for-9 from the field, 3-for-4 from downtown and 2-for-4 from the charity stripe. He’s now shooting 59.4% from the floor 55.5% from three over his last six games. Parker also did a good job taking care of the ball, finishing with only one turnover.
GRADE: 90
DECEMBER: 90.1
SEASON: 84.1
Devin Brown
Once again, Brown was the spark off the bench. Since regaining his confidence and a spot in the regular rotation, Brown has taken off running. As it stands now, it’s hard to imagine him not getting quality time for the rest of the season. Against Chicago, the backup swingman scored 14 points and pulled down six rebounds. His hot shooting from the field continued, as he went 5-for-8 from the field, 3-for-4 from downtown and 1-for-1 from the line. Over the last six games, he’s shooting 58.5% from the floor, 62.5% from beyond the arc and 93.3% from the charity stripe. You can’t get much hotter.
GRADE: 91
DECEMBER: 91.8
SEASON: 85.8
Malik Rose
Rose is settling into his role as the first bigman off the bench. In 21 minutes, Rose totaled 11 points and four rebounds, while shooting 5-for-11 from the floor. He’s doing a great job by bringing energy to the court the second he enters the game. Rose is also playing more controlled, which is evident by his rising field goal percentage. If I had to nitpick, I could point at his three turnovers and say that it was too many.
GRADE: 88
DECEMBER: 86.5
SEASON: 86.2
Brent Barry
After missing 17 consecutive three-pointers, Barry finally connected against the Bulls. For the game, Barry shot 3-for-6 from the field and 1-for-3 from beyond the arc. He scored seven points, pulled down two rebounds and handed out one assist. Everyone knew that his shooting slump wouldn’t last forever, but it’s good to see him finally hit a shot from deep. While he’s an astute passer and a good ballhandler, the Spurs need his shooting to be there for him to warrant big minutes.
GRADE: 82
DECEMBER: 72.5
SEASON: 83.1
Robert Horry
In possibly his best showing of the year, Horry scored only three points but pulled down five rebounds, dished out three assists and recorded two blocked shots in 17 minutes of playing time. If he plays this hard and is this active on the court, the Spurs can afford to play him in the fourth quarters of big games. Previously this season, he was too stiff and wasn’t rebounding proficiently enough to merit fourth quarter minutes. Now his rebounding numbers are starting to rise, as is his overall energy level.
GRADE: 89
DECEMBER: 85.7
SEASON: 83.9
Beno Udrih
While he wasn’t hitting his shots at the rate he has been recently, Udrih still played well. He ended the game with two points, three assists and two rebounds. He shot 1-for-4 from the field, including missing his only three-point attempt. Earlier in the year, he went a stretch of nine games with only two assists total. Over his last eight games, he has 19 assists. That is a sign that he’s learning the offense and figuring out where his teammates like the ball.
GAME: 85
DECEMBER: 87
SEASON: 82.6
Tony Massenburg
Massenburg played 12 minutes and did well against Chicago. Matching the physicality of some of the Bulls’ defenders, Massenburg came in and was effective. He recorded four points, four rebounds and a season-high three steals. Well actually, it was much more than a season-high. He had played 13 games and 92 minutes and hadn’t gotten a single steal the whole year. Now if he can only get an assist. So far this season, he’s been unable to.
GRADE: 88
DECEMBER: 79
SEASON: 82.9
Although the Chicago Bulls are the laughing stock of the league, they did a good job in guarding Duncan on Monday night. Throwing a variety of bigmen at him, the different looks gave Duncan trouble. He was also not as aggressive as he normally is with the basketball, as he settled for a lot of jumpers. His defense was solid, but the Spurs need him to score more than 12 points on 4-for-12 shooting from the field. Maybe part of his offensive woes can be attributed to him visiting Soldier field to watch the Chicago Bears play, a team known recently for their offensive ineptitude. Perhaps it rubbed off on him.
GRADE: 78
DECEMBER: 89.3
SEASON: 88.2
Bruce Bowen
After a couple of sub par performances, Bowen has strung together four straight good outings. Playing 29 minutes, the Spurs’ defensive stopper finished 3-for-6 from the field and 1-for-2 from three-point land to amass his seven points. Showing some passing skills that have rarely been seen this season, Bowen tied a season-high with four assists. His defense was its usual stellar self, but he grabbed only one rebound. Although he’s never been a prolific rebounder, his rebounding numbers are down this year and he’s had two or less rebounds in ten of the team’s 19 games. The Spurs would like for him to rebound more to help out the bigmen on the boards.
GRADE: 88
DECEMBER: 87.5
SEASON: 84.8
Rasho Nesterovic
Nesterovic has been struggling as of late and Monday night was no different. His offense was downright anemic. He shot 1-for-9 from the floor and didn’t get to the line for the fourth consecutive game. Right now, his offensive rhythm is way off. He’s not hitting jumpers or even short shots around the basket and is shooting 25% from the field over his last four games. On the other end of the court, he was average. He didn’t do anything amazing but did help control the paint. He grabbed eight rebounds in 18 minutes, which is a very nice rate, but didn’t record a blocked shot. He’s going to have to step up his level of play if he’s going to get anything more than first and third quarter minutes.
GRADE: 69
DECEMBER: 71.8
SEASON: 82.6
Manu Ginobili
Ginobili had a fine all-around game … other than his turnovers. He had five turnovers in 27 minutes, mostly due to trying to force the issue with passes and drives down the lane. While the Spurs need him in attack mode, he’s got to make sure to keep his turnovers down. Overlooking his giveaways, he played well. He finished with 12 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals. Ginobili connected on 3-of-8 shots from the field, 1-of-4 from beyond the arc and 5-of-5 from the line. He was also very active on D and did a good job shutting down his man.
GRADE: 85
DECEMBER: 86.5
SEASON: 88.7
Tony Parker
Parker has played very well during this eight-game win streak. He’s scoring the ball and running the team equally as well. Monday night versus the Bulls was just another example. He finished the game with 17 points, five assists and three rebounds, while shooting 6-for-9 from the field, 3-for-4 from downtown and 2-for-4 from the charity stripe. He’s now shooting 59.4% from the floor 55.5% from three over his last six games. Parker also did a good job taking care of the ball, finishing with only one turnover.
GRADE: 90
DECEMBER: 90.1
SEASON: 84.1
Devin Brown
Once again, Brown was the spark off the bench. Since regaining his confidence and a spot in the regular rotation, Brown has taken off running. As it stands now, it’s hard to imagine him not getting quality time for the rest of the season. Against Chicago, the backup swingman scored 14 points and pulled down six rebounds. His hot shooting from the field continued, as he went 5-for-8 from the field, 3-for-4 from downtown and 1-for-1 from the line. Over the last six games, he’s shooting 58.5% from the floor, 62.5% from beyond the arc and 93.3% from the charity stripe. You can’t get much hotter.
GRADE: 91
DECEMBER: 91.8
SEASON: 85.8
Malik Rose
Rose is settling into his role as the first bigman off the bench. In 21 minutes, Rose totaled 11 points and four rebounds, while shooting 5-for-11 from the floor. He’s doing a great job by bringing energy to the court the second he enters the game. Rose is also playing more controlled, which is evident by his rising field goal percentage. If I had to nitpick, I could point at his three turnovers and say that it was too many.
GRADE: 88
DECEMBER: 86.5
SEASON: 86.2
Brent Barry
After missing 17 consecutive three-pointers, Barry finally connected against the Bulls. For the game, Barry shot 3-for-6 from the field and 1-for-3 from beyond the arc. He scored seven points, pulled down two rebounds and handed out one assist. Everyone knew that his shooting slump wouldn’t last forever, but it’s good to see him finally hit a shot from deep. While he’s an astute passer and a good ballhandler, the Spurs need his shooting to be there for him to warrant big minutes.
GRADE: 82
DECEMBER: 72.5
SEASON: 83.1
Robert Horry
In possibly his best showing of the year, Horry scored only three points but pulled down five rebounds, dished out three assists and recorded two blocked shots in 17 minutes of playing time. If he plays this hard and is this active on the court, the Spurs can afford to play him in the fourth quarters of big games. Previously this season, he was too stiff and wasn’t rebounding proficiently enough to merit fourth quarter minutes. Now his rebounding numbers are starting to rise, as is his overall energy level.
GRADE: 89
DECEMBER: 85.7
SEASON: 83.9
Beno Udrih
While he wasn’t hitting his shots at the rate he has been recently, Udrih still played well. He ended the game with two points, three assists and two rebounds. He shot 1-for-4 from the field, including missing his only three-point attempt. Earlier in the year, he went a stretch of nine games with only two assists total. Over his last eight games, he has 19 assists. That is a sign that he’s learning the offense and figuring out where his teammates like the ball.
GAME: 85
DECEMBER: 87
SEASON: 82.6
Tony Massenburg
Massenburg played 12 minutes and did well against Chicago. Matching the physicality of some of the Bulls’ defenders, Massenburg came in and was effective. He recorded four points, four rebounds and a season-high three steals. Well actually, it was much more than a season-high. He had played 13 games and 92 minutes and hadn’t gotten a single steal the whole year. Now if he can only get an assist. So far this season, he’s been unable to.
GRADE: 88
DECEMBER: 79
SEASON: 82.9