Pop not afraid to give Simmons and Kyle real minutes against contending teams.

For all those who think Simmons and Kyle are not getting ready to contribute to this team's postseason success:

Quote:

---

Despite the elite-level competition the Spurs have faced in the past week, Popovich has shown no qualms about sending Simmons and second-year forward Kyle Anderson to trial by fire.“We’re giving (Simmons) and Kyle minutes to try and prepare them to become real pros and real contributors in the league,” Popovich said.
In Saturday’s 117-103 loss at Cleveland, Anderson scored 10 points in 18 minutes. Simmons, meanwhile, added eight points and a chase-down block on James.

---

'

http://www.expressnews.com/sports/spurs/article/Pop-gives-Simmons-trial-by-fire-6797090.php?t=93b8d25f06927fc3fb&cmpid=twitter-premium

Of course, there was a context to their play last game, but both Kyle and Simmons entered the Cavs game early and while we were behind bc of that hot start by CLE, there wasn't an expectation that we were throwing the game.

They are getting valuable experience that may come in handy in the playoffs.

Simmons will contribute, Kyle not so much tbh imo fyi

Last game, he was afraid not to put them into the game. The other guys were getting their asses kicked, might as well put them in. It didn't change much, but he pretty much had to give it a go.

Frankly, I think he knew that game was an L, and just spread the minutes.

I think Simmons can contribute towards most teams whereas Kyle is more situational but still someone who can contribute as well. I like his pg skills as the team us lacking in that area

Frankly they both played better than some vets we have... so yea why not?

Maybe I am reading too much into that statement by Pop, but both figure into the teams future.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by TheGreatYacht

Simmons will contribute, Kyle not so much tbh imo fyi

---

Pop begs to differ.:lol

The game plan, mantra, has been the same from the get go... chip away at the rock and eventually your last blow will be its undoing.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by koriwhat

The game plan, mantra, has been the same from the get go... chip away at the rock and eventually your last blow will be its undoing.

---

Speaking of Chip, let's hope Chip turns Simmons (already a decent 3 point shooter) into a better one, or Anderson into someone who can knock down a corner three in the mid-to-high 30s.

I think Kyle is coming along nicely, better than I expected. Simmons and Anderson, Fire and Ice

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by skulls138

I think Kyle is coming along nicely, better than I expected. Simmons and Anderson, Fire and Ice

---

Simmons has great ability to get to the basket and finish but he can become an even better player when he kicks it after drawing. If he can develop a game where players not sure he going to kick or score he can open the lanes up for him and others.

KA is starting to show the Spurs what happens after mid season of the second year. The last few games he has looked far better than at the start of the season. JS is really a surprise to me. He is showing he has game.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LongtimeSpursFan

Simmons has great ability to get to the basket and finish but he can become an even better player when he kicks it after drawing. If he can develop a game where players not sure he going to kick or score he can open the lanes up for him and others.

---

But not too much. Dont want to take his passion away making him overthink stuff, let it come naturally.

They will need Kyle to play PG vs Warriors. They can hide him easier than Parker/Mills.

Simmons cannot be afraid to shoot. Kyle is afraid to shoot a 3 but he loves the pump fake one dribble anyways lol

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by coachmac87

Simmons cannot be afraid to shoot. Kyle is afraid to shoot a 3 but he loves the pump fake one dribble anyways lol

---

I had a problem with the play where he was wide open at the 3 and he dribbled into mid range and took the shot.

It broadcasts to the world his own lack of confidence with his 3 point shot. A 3 point shot effective percentage is 1.44 times a regular shot. So you got to have a wide disparity between your regular 2 pt shot.

So say you hit 50% of those 2's, then your 3pt percentages should be not worse than 34.7%. His of course is worse, but it still doesn't justify the lack of confidence.

I think Kyle has done quite well in the past few games. Had a quick check of his stats to confirm what my eyes were telling me which is that he's shooting incredibly every time he gets in the game. He's shooting 49.6% and seems to make a few tough fadeaways that look so slow you swear he'll get blocked or won't get it off before the shotclock expires. He doesn't have a huge impact but doesn't look like he hurts us by being out there.

Simmons is so talented and raw. Can't wait to see him develop further.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by lofds

I think Kyle has done quite well in the past few games. Had a quick check of his stats to confirm what my eyes were telling me which is that he's shooting incredibly every time he gets in the game. He's shooting 49.6% and seems to make a few tough fadeaways that look so slow you swear he'll get blocked or won't get it off before the shotclock expires. He doesn't have a huge impact but doesn't look like he hurts us by being out there.

Simmons is so talented and raw. Can't wait to see him develop further.

---

Kyle shot 52% in January and that includes the awful GSW game, CLE (very efficient game for him and to me his most impressive bc of the environment and he was guarded by Kevin Love, who is terrible defensively but has size and weight on him, and lets face up until that point he had been playing garbage time guys, so for him it was another level). It is also including a very poor showing from him against the Lakers, his first game playing at the 4, and then sharing some minutes with Ray Mc and Boban in that game where they all looked very discombobulated. Even with all that, he had a good month.

Kyle Anderson is a good player. I trust him out on the floor because I don't really see him do much negative on the court anymore. He takes good shots and shoots a good percentage, he can get to the rim, he protects the ball well and doesn't make lots of careless turnovers, his defense is not terrible, in fact he can be useful defensively against stretch 4's, he has an excellent grasp of when to take his own shots and when to move the ball. I think he's a positive on the court whether he is noticed or not. I honestly think he has been a good, silent contributer that I think has earned his minutes and deserves some court time. He isn't as entertaining and aggressive as Simmons but he brings a different value with his playmaking and skillset at his size and length. He is very smooth and smart. I think he's a perfect Spurs type player. I'm on board with this guy.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cd98

They will need Kyle to play PG vs Warriors.

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by TheGreatYacht

Simmons will contribute, Kyle not so much tbh imo fyi

---

How did that work out for you? Simmons is nowhere near as polished as Kyle. KA has the patience of a veteran, sometimes detrimental, but he seems to make the right plays most of the time and his court vision is 10x that of Tony Parker. Simmons is just raw energy. He might get better, if he can do enough out there to not be a detriment.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DMC

How did that work out for you? Simmons is nowhere near as polished as Kyle. KA has the patience of a veteran, sometimes detrimental, but he seems to make the right plays most of the time and his court vision is 10x that of Tony Parker. Simmons is just raw energy. He might get better, if he can do enough out there to not be a detriment.

---

It think you are selling Simmons short that he's just raw energy. He's not just an athletic and explosive player, he actually is able to read the court well and pass well. If you can't see that, then you have no business evaluating his talent.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SAGirl

Kyle shot 52% in January and that includes the awful GSW game, CLE (very efficient game for him and to me his most impressive bc of the environment and he was guarded by Kevin Love, who is terrible defensively but has size and weight on him, and lets face up until that point he had been playing garbage time guys, so for him it was another level). It is also including a very poor showing from him against the Lakers, his first game playing at the 4, and then sharing some minutes with Ray Mc and Boban in that game where they all looked very discombobulated. Even with all that, he had a good month.

---

Very promising game against the Magic. What I noticed is that Kyle's performance or maybe it's confidence level, is higher when he plays against talented young players like those found in the 76ers, Grizzlies and even the Magic. However, he proved himself well against the veterans in Cleveland. That's actually a big step since like pop said... the need exposure against the 'real professionals'.

In my book KA and Simmons are both critical for a championship run. Simmons is going to learn how to cover the quicker guards and KA is learning to be less of a liability on defense. In playoff basketball, teams are going to exploit the weakest link for the Spurs that's Mills and Parker on the defensive end.

Simmons is like a great running back, threading, slashing through the paint when there doesn't seem to be an opening. Another slasher always welcome. And he finishes.

Still pretty raw, running on pure talent, hope he's smart enough to get smarter.

Was really impressed by Kyle last night against Magic. Want to see more of that.

Kyle did have a good game last night. His passing is excellent, but his calmness is also a bonus. He did have one assist to Patty that I don't think he saw coming. Looked like a top of the key hand off and then turned around to the the ball flying. :lol

Ginobili:

Quote:

---

Ginobili said Mills and Anderson were in the game at its crucial time because they've worked to be in that position.
"Pop(ovich) was trying to find the energy he wanted and he found it with that lineup," Ginobili said. "Patty was outstanding in that stretch and Kyle gave us some big buckets when we needed them. Pop doesn't give out gifts and try to be nice, especially after the two (blowout road losses to Golden State and Cleveland) last week. He's giving them the minutes because they deserve it and they provided what we need."

---

http://www.upi.com/Sports_News/2016/...7231454389723/

I think at this point, we can assume the time Kyle Anderson gets on the court is well deserved. Pop is not giving out gifts here. He's getting minutes in the crux of games bc he's providing what Pop wants.

Although Patty and Kyle were the ones spearheading that run that won us the ORL game, I think the comment applies to Simmons too. He has also helped us win other games and the time he's getting is also well earned. He didn't have a good game against ORL on both ends, but I think young players will have up and downs. Kyle is just a more polished offensive player. Simmons I would expect to have a bounce back game from this one. He didn't move the ball very well and got trapped instead of passing to open guys. That was compounded by him getting hit on backcuts and not having a good defensive game.

By the way Ray Mc did an outstanding job on Victor Oladipo and that coupled with the scoring punch from Kyle/Patty won us that game.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ceperez

Very promising game against the Magic. What I noticed is that Kyle's performance or maybe it's confidence level, is higher when he plays against talented young players like those found in the 76ers, Grizzlies and even the Magic. However, he proved himself well against the veterans in Cleveland. That's actually a big step since like pop said... the need exposure against the 'real professionals'.

In my book KA and Simmons are both critical for a championship run. Simmons is going to learn how to cover the quicker guards and KA is learning to be less of a liability on defense. In playoff basketball, teams are going to exploit the weakest link for the Spurs that's Mills and Parker on the defensive end.

---

I saw in an interview of Kyle, that he said Pop called a play for him to open the 4th. I think his confidence is mostly bc he's slowly built up until this point and Pop is going to him more. Before, Pop was scolding him a whole lot about this and that, including his shot selection, and he was trying to fit in with a system and some guys. He was playing like a very limited spot up shooter. That is not his best asset and I always, always said, that was not a good use for him and he was not being used properly.

I think that given the blowout losses against GSW and CLE, Pop is now looking for answers and he's going to the young players more.

... now I am guessing, but I think Pop has maybe seen the writing on the wall. We are going to need all our guys to win, maybe even to have the best chance at winning, and like we saw in this game, the required energy and effort came from Kyle and Patty. Some other games it is other players, but Pop is looking for answers in whoever can provide them. He's not being limiting opportunities to the established rotation.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DMC

How did that work out for you? Simmons is nowhere near as polished as Kyle. KA has the patience of a veteran, sometimes detrimental, but he seems to make the right plays most of the time and his court vision is 10x that of Tony Parker. Simmons is just raw energy. He might get better, if he can do enough out there to not be a detriment.

---

What a shit take lmao

Simmons is a little raw but I love his energy and slashing which we don't have much of. While Anderson is silky smooth. Hard to block with his long arms and high release also an effective defender in certain matchups.

Their developement is gonna be key for us as they could be the x-factor in certain matchups in the playoffs
Especially against GSW I wouldn't mind and I wouldn't be suprised to see both of them eating some of Parker's and (mainly) Patty's minutes either with Manu or Kyle himself at pg if they keep improving like they're doing right now
Kyle's calmness and ability to control the game could be really important to slow down the pace and impose our own,and both of them might be our answer to Livingston (and occasionally even Steph or Barnes if Kawhi's guarding Curry) on defense
They're also building their chemistry with the rest of the bench guys (Kyle and Manu have been struggling together,but I saw some really nice stuff between the two of them yesterday and Manu playing off the ball in stretches to save his legs with a competent ball handler on his side is not going to hurt us),what they need now is to start taking those open 3's because as good as Kyle is from mid-range we need them to take those shots

Simmons could contribute more if parker passed him the ball. I know Simmons isn't Michael Jordan, but damn I've seen Parker completely ignore him on numerous occasions.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UZER

Simmons could contribute more if parker passed him the ball. I know Simmons isn't Michael Jordan, but damn I've seen Parker completely ignore him on numerous occasions.

---

specially in transition, where Simmons is just a beast! I have noticed that too.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SAGirl

Ginobili:


http://www.upi.com/Sports_News/2016/...7231454389723/

I think at this point, we can assume the time Kyle Anderson gets on the court is well deserved. Pop is not giving out gifts here. He's getting minutes in the crux of games bc he's providing what Pop wants.

Although Patty and Kyle were the ones spearheading that run that won us the ORL game, I think the comment applies to Simmons too. He has also helped us win other games and the time he's getting is also well earned. He didn't have a good game against ORL on both ends, but I think young players will have up and downs. Kyle is just a more polished offensive player. Simmons I would expect to have a bounce back game from this one. He didn't move the ball very well and got trapped instead of passing to open guys. That was compounded by him getting hit on backcuts and not having a good defensive game.

By the way Ray Mc did an outstanding job on Victor Oladipo and that coupled with the scoring punch from Kyle/Patty won us that game.

---

He got kneed in the Groin by Vucevic. On that play just right after Simmons entered the game for the first time, he drove to the basket and he jumped away from Vucevic but Vucevic jumped right into Simmons and his knee got him in the family jewels. That is why Simmons didn't get up and run back on D and Pop called a timeout, and you saw him letting the refs have it after that play (something you didn't see against GS or CLE). The refs called a ticky tack foul on Vucevic the very next play. Basically a makeup call for the play before.

Simmons did better in the 2nd half once he shook it off.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UZER

Simmons could contribute more if parker passed him the ball. I know Simmons isn't Michael Jordan, but damn I've seen Parker completely ignore him on numerous occasions.

---

The one I still remember is the baseline 3 against the Knicks where Simmons WAS WIDE OPEN and Parker just dribbled right past, you know the game where Parker almost cost the Spurs a W.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SAGirl

I saw in an interview of Kyle, that he said Pop called a play for him to open the 4th. I think his confidence is mostly bc he's slowly built up until this point and Pop is going to him more. Before, Pop was scolding him a whole lot about this and that, including his shot selection, and he was trying to fit in with a system and some guys. He was playing like a very limited spot up shooter. That is not his best asset and I always, always said, that was not a good use for him and he was not being used properly.

I think that given the blowout losses against GSW and CLE, Pop is now looking for answers and he's going to the young players more.

... now I am guessing, but I think Pop has maybe seen the writing on the wall. We are going to need all our guys to win, maybe even to have the best chance at winning, and like we saw in this game, the required energy and effort came from Kyle and Patty. Some other games it is other players, but Pop is looking for answers in whoever can provide them. He's not being limiting opportunities to the established rotation.

---

Pop hopefully finds the answers in Simmons and Anderson. Both players will of course still need to step up their game. They both need to be unafraid to take the 3 point shot and they can't be passive in offense. Spurs cannot rely anymore on the aging Big 3 and need to make the transition this year.

There's half a season to do this and the best way this can happen is for Pop to sit the big 3 more.

This is the real blessing in Duncan's prolonged time off. His 25 minutes a game don't necessarily go to Boban or additional Diaw/West minutes, but instead can allow Anderson and Simmons to get more burn.

Since Jan 1, Simmons is putting up 16.9 / 3.4 / 1.7 / 0.5 blocks and 0.9 steals per 36 minutes with 2.4 turnovers. Shooting 62.5% from two and 41.7% from three.

Would be good to see his FTA go up (currently at 0.28 FTA per FGA, which is league average) given how well he does getting to the hoop and finishing, while also cutting down on the fouls (he'd be in foul trouble with bigger minutes).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SAGirl

specially in transition, where Simmons is just a beast! I have noticed that too.

---

That's what really catches my attention. There have been quite a few times Simmons was running the break with Tony and he just blatantly ignored him.

Simmons is too raw tbh. He makes a year 1 Kawhi look like Mike Miller.

He goes for every fake and tries to go hard against anyone including a prime Curry, Lebrob, Kyrie,etc. And then he proceeds to get his ass handed to him :lol

He needs to smarten up.

I've been critical of Kyle since he's been here, and pretty much lost faith in him.. But he's looked like a different player over the last few weeks IMO. He seems much more comfortable and best of all.. Is taking the shots he's supposed to now.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ceperez

It think you are selling Simmons short that he's just raw energy. He's not just an athletic and explosive player, he actually is able to read the court well and pass well. If you can't see that, then you have no business evaluating his talent.

---

That's retarded as fuck. If you don't agree with me you have no business in this conversation. Are you from some dictator led country? Are you going to come haul me away in the middle of the night and threaten to kill my family?

Simmons is a scrub.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by TheGreatYacht

What a shit take lmao

---

I'd bet your mother thought you were a turd when she dropped you in the toilet.

“It’s tough for them, because we are playing to win a championship,” point guard Tony Parker said. “Pop is very demanding and has high expectations, so you can’t (make) any mistakes.”

With an eye toward determining exactly how deep his bench runs, Popovich has been giving Anderson and Simmons a bit more leeway to play through mistakes.
With one caveat.
“Not on defense,” Popovich said.
http://www.expressnews.com/sports/sp...#photo-9340241

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cd98

They will need Kyle to play PG vs Warriors. They can hide him easier than Parker/Mills.

---

I could see him getting minutes in that series. Mills would have to guard Livingston (who's 6'7). Maybe Pop swaps Anderson in for Mills but I would expect him to play off ball while Manu handles the rock.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SAGirl

“It’s tough for them, because we are playing to win a championship,” point guard Tony Parker said. “Pop is very demanding and has high expectations, so you can’t (make) any mistakes.”

With an eye toward determining exactly how deep his bench runs, Popovich has been giving Anderson and Simmons a bit more leeway to play through mistakes.
With one caveat.
“Not on defense,” Popovich said.
http://www.expressnews.com/sports/sp...#photo-9340241

---

Anderson's weakness that he has the tendency to take mental naps. That's why it was good that Pop is on his case.

Simmons is a focused hard worker on the court with a tireless motor. His problem is different, he tries to hard. Defensively he just needs to stay in front of his man and offensive he just need to be aggressive when the defense is off balance.