Spurs vs. Kings Nov. 3rd - Grades

Tim Duncan
Duncan started off the regular season playing just as he was playing in the preseason – like a man on a mission. He dominated the Kings, displaying powerful moves around the basket. His jumper looked pure and he was decisive with the ball in his hands. Duncan also picked up 10 rebounds in the first half, leading the Spurs to their dominating 54-36 advantage on the boards. Maybe most important of all, the Spurs’ franchise player hit all eight of his free-throws. Bottomline: Duncan has never looked this good, this early.
GRADE: 98

Bruce Bowen
The Spurs pay him to defend and Bowen didn’t disappoint tonight. He held Stojakovic to 5-14 from the field for only 15 points. His cat quick reflexes and savvy positioning were in mid-season form. The new rules seem to have no effect on him, seeing as he had only one foul in 28 minutes. His offense, on the other hand, wasn’t too hot. He hit only two of his seven shots and also wasn’t able to pull down a rebound.
GRADE: 83

Rasho Nesterovic
Nesterovic had an up-and-down game to begin the season. While he pulled down 12 rebounds and got a block in 27 minutes of play, he also missed some defensive rotations and some layups. If he would ever learn to dunk the ball when he has it around the rim, he’d be much more effective. But seeing as this is his seventh year in the league, you’d probably have more luck teaching pigs the intricacies of flying. Although, as long as he sticks to defense and rebounding, the Spurs will be fine.
GRADE: 85

Manu Ginobili
This was a vintage performance by Ginobili. He was all over the court, both offensively and defensively. Whenever the Kings would make any sort of run, Ginobili would be quick to erase any momentum by making a big play of his own. He hit 7-12 from the field, 2-3 from beyond the arc and 8-9 from the line. If Ginobili can continue this level of play, the Spurs will accomplish whatever they want to this season and Ginobili will be an all-star.
GRADE: 100

Tony Parker
Whether he was pressing after getting his contract or he was suffering from a case of opening game jitters, Parker was off against the Kings. He hit only 3-16 from the field, while allowing Bibby to hit 9-13 shots for 23 points. To his credit, Parker did manage five rebounds and four assists while committing only two turnovers. Hopefully he can shake off whatever was ailing him in the first game, keep his same level of aggression and start producing at the level he is capable of.
GRADE: 62

Brent Barry
Barry played 32 minutes in his Spurs debut, which could mean that Pop plans to give Barry starter type minutes off the bench. So far, so good for the Spurs’ primary offseason acquisition. He shot 6-9 from the field and hit 3-6 from three-point land. His basketball IQ was apparent, helping the Spurs to an assortment of easy baskets. Defensively, he looked better than he ever did in the preseason. He stayed in front of his man and even forced a couple turnovers. Barry won’t have 16 points and three assists every night, but it’s obvious that Pop has major plans for his new bench stud.
GRADE: 90

Malik Rose
Spurs fans were excited to see that Rose was the first player off the bench for the Spurs. In Pop and Malik’s love-hate relationship, it seemingly is in the love category right now. Rose, hoping to stay on Pop’s good side this year, produced like the Rose of old. He was all over the boards, grabbing nine rebounds in 18 minutes. He also passed the ball effectively and had great shot selection. While he only scored four points on 2-3 from the field, he was playing the way Pop wants him to play.
GRADE: 88

Beno Udrih
Udrih didn’t play like a rookie in preseason and didn’t play like a rookie in his NBA debut. He was silky smooth running the offense, especially the top pick-and-roll. For a rookie at his stage of development, he runs the pick-and-roll about as well as you could imagine. On fast breaks, he makes great decisions with the ball. He missed all three of his shots, but that was overshadowed by how well he ran the team. His defense wasn’t spectacular, but so far he’s proving to be a capable defender. The Spurs must be excited by his quick progress in picking up the NBA game.
GRADE: 80

Devin Brown
After a very solid preseason, Brown only got nine minutes in the regular season opener. If this is a precursor for things to come, Brown looks to be a spot player on the wing positions. While he was on the court, he produced. He had a nice jumper off of a pick and also had a quality penetration and dish sequence. Defensively, he was very active in his limited time.
GRADE: 80

Robert Horry
Horry played only seven minutes and was pretty much invisible out on the court. The only statistics he compiled were one rebound and one foul.
GRADE: 75

Tony Massenburg
He came into the game with a chip on his shoulder trying to prove his worth to the latest team that let him go. In five minutes, he had two viscous blocked shots to re-introduce himself to his former teammates.
GRADE: 82

Tim's looking like he might have anothrt 2001-02 type of year. The difference is, he's got a lot of help this time around.

This could be his breakout year in scoring. 27 points per game isn't out of the picture if he can play like this throughout the season.

Very nice evaluation timvp. I agree with you about Manu and I don't think he receives enough credit for his b-ball IQ. Manu is alot like Jason Kidd in that he is always coming up with the loose balls. Not only is he determined to penetrate but he understands momentum and how important it is when the other team is making a run to go right after them. Between Manu and Brent the Spurs have two of the brightest players in the entire league wearing silver and black. Fun game last night and I'm looking forward to the game against LA.

Awesome evaluation, a great read. This kind of stuff for some of us that can't see the action.

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Originally Posted by timvp

This could be his breakout year in scoring. 27 points per game isn't out of the picture if he can play like this throughout the season.

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Remember timvp, I made the prediction of 27.1 ppg and 82% from the line this year for Tim on your Bold Prediction Thread

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Originally Posted by timvp

Tim Duncan
GRADE: 98

Bruce Bowen
GRADE: 83

Rasho Nesterovic
GRADE: 85

Manu Ginobili
GRADE: 100

Tony Parker
GRADE: 62

Brent Barry
GRADE: 90

Malik Rose
GRADE: 88

Beno Udrih
GRADE: 80

Devin Brown
GRADE: 80

Robert Horry
GRADE: 75

Tony Massenburg
GRADE: 82

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I agree with TIMVP!!!


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Originally Posted by SpursFanInAustin

http://home.comcast.net/~daldude/RoyHit.gif

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This is SWEET!!!

Don't you think it is too early? I mean Duncan and Gino are in great shape and even if I could not see the game you seem very excited, but can they keep the same rythme until play off time ?

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Tony Massenburg
He came into the game with a chip on his shoulder trying to prove his worth to the latest team that let him go. In five minutes, he had two viscous blocked shots to re-introduce himself to his former teammates.
GRADE: 82

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Listened to most of the game on radio, and caught the last few minutes on TV.

I am very glad we brought our boy Massenburg back. Hopefully, he shows this defensive aggressiveness every night. The more we see from malik and mass, the more confident I am in our Spurs laying the smack down on Detroit or Miami in the Finals. And KG can fuggetaboutit. :smokin

Too low on TP and too high on Beno. TP was constantly shredding the Kings defense, and didn't let the game slow down. He didn't finish well at the basket though and his shot selection in general was off. Beno didn't make a shot, and had the same number of TOs as assists. Just his first game though.

Great report! Thanks timvp.

My two cents.

TD had a near to perfect game. He shot the ball smoothly and some of his shots were not easy layup or dunks, but low percentage shots shooting over some tall guy (Miller). Who ever says Timmy is boring to watch is high on crack!

TP had a so-so game. But . . . shit! is this guy quick or what! His shot was off, no question, but he is going to be OK.

Manu had a great game. I would not rate him 100 but 95 just because he missed two very easy layups (one off the tip at the beginning of the game and another one in the first or second quarter). He was very close to a double double (24 / 9) and mad three nice steals (two of them had his trade mark). And he only played 28 minutes.

Barry: The missing link. I liked his game. He played aggressivly, made his shoots from outside. His D looked improved.

All in all, couldn't have asked for a better first game.

Now lets crush the LAL tomorrow and my week will be complete!

Great evaluation. I was not as impressed with Beno however, I thought he did look lost at times. Tony was trying too hard. He was putting on two and three moves, when one was enough to get open. He will be outstanding this year. And when the game started to take a familiar look, i.e tighten up at the end wasn't it great to see Barry not Hedo out there? This guy can really play. Manu was unreal and Duncan has never looked better. One game for sure, but a great start.

All in all I can't give the team as a whole an A+ since they didn't close them out well enough, but for a first game I'll take it.

Nick Van Exel
NVE took over the game in the 4th quarter by scoring 13 points and led the Blazers' comeback victory over Golden State. This is why we got Nick...he's a shot-maker under pressure. He will make a huge difference for the Blazers this year.
GRADE: 90

Great. That fits in with "Spurs v. Kings Nov 3rd Grades"

I also would have rated Beno much lower. Just wasn't impressed.

The Kings announcers (who are HORRR-i-BALL) went ballistic on Mass, calling him a "viscous cheap-shot artist".

Bet they never said that last year.

I thought the Spurs were impressive last night. I called it "borderline scary-good" midway through the 4th, only to see Sac come creeping back.

My one hesitation in getting too giddy about this is the fact that Sacramento was on the back-end of an early-season back-to-back and really looked like it by the 4th quarter last night.

Still, the two things that most impressed me last night were the workmanlike effort on the boards (on both ends) and the way the Spurs drove to the rack with impunity. They took 17 threes, but it didn't seem that high, mostly because they got to the hole that the shooters got tremendous looks. It was more than 4 down -- it was movement and aggression that created shots for everyone and lots of foul troubles for the Kings. We'll see how long that continues, but so far, pretty impressive.

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It was more than 4 down -- it was movement and aggression that created shots for everyone and lots of foul troubles for the Kings. We'll see how long that continues, but so far, pretty impressive.

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That movement and aggression is supposedly the game plan. They kept repeating that in the locker room. Because of how the refs are going to call fouls this year, they are going to play a lot more aggressive style than in the past. I'm saying they are going to always have 100 point nights or no 4-down, but it's going to be a very different season.

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Originally Posted by Kori Ellis

That movement and aggression is supposedly the game plan. They kept repeating that in the locker room. Because of how the refs are going to call fouls this year, they are going to play a lot more aggressive style than in the past. I'm saying they are going to always have 100 point nights or no 4-down, but it's going to be a very different season.

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Is that true?

Good to hear it then... very good news! It could only help the Spurs to be more diversified on offense. http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/imag.../smismokin.gif

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Because of how the refs are going to call fouls this year, they are going to play a lot more aggressive style than in the past. I'm saying they are going to always have 100 point nights or no 4-down, but it's going to be a very different season.

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Very interesting. This could help the offense a lot this season get back to being very good as opposed to mediocre. It might take away a bit of their defensive dominance, at least to the degree of last season, but hopefully the offense can more than make up for it.

Well, let's hope that they continue to attack. They've got the horses to do it. Parker is at his best when penetrating, and if he could ever get a call at the rim, he'd be almost impossible to guard. That free-flowing, attacking offense frees Manu to expand his game. Having a third penetrator helps immensely, and Barry's length and feel makes him the finisher more in the Elliott mold than the Hedo/Jackson mold. Add his floor vision to that and he's a genuine weapon.

I thought it was telling that the Spurs got a 3-16 from Parker and still won going away. They're much better equipped to survive off nights from key components.

All of that may mean fewer touches for Tim, but it might also free him from some double teams. Sacramento learned last night that a double of Duncan doesn't necessarily mean spot-up 3's on kick-outs -- it might get you a slashing guard attacking the rim.

I might be the only one, but i thought that the movement and penetration really helped the Spurs offensive rebounding (that, and Sac's fatigue). Rasho and Malik are pretty much free to set screens and search for offensive boards, which should get the Spurs a few more possessions per game.

I'm working on a plus-minus from last night. I suspect that Malik and Barry had really good +/- numbers.

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Whether he was pressing after getting his contract or he was suffering from a case of opening game jitters, Parker was off against the Kings. He hit only 3-16 from the field,

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I think it should be mentioned that a lot of Tony's missed shots were layups that got turned into points or offensive rebounds from Rasho. Kind of like what Iverson does in Philly.

Also, Tony looked to be fouled a few times on those drives. Especially the one in the second half where Peja reached across and grabbed Tony's right arm and spun him around. Ball goes out of bounds....King ball...wtf?

Anyways, the putbacks and OR were the reason Tony's misses didn't bring us down last night.

Great point. Even though some of his shots didn't fall, his penetration caused all the interior defense to be out of position time after time.

Manu will be better this year, but tony will have the better career

IMO, it would be in the best interest of the Spurs if Tim scored around 20-22ppg and let Manu and Tony burden more of the offensive load. If Manu can stay consistent throughout, 18 to 20ppg from him is not out of the question. Tony just had a bad game but he did everything neccessary to put pressure on the defense.

If Brent could average 14ppg off the bench, OMFG, the Spurs will be unstoppable.

Nice report card. :) Do they get 5 bucks for every A they bring home?

I'll admit, I think the score on Tony is a bit harsh. He may have had one of his characteristic low scoring nights, but he still ran the offense well and helped move the ball and spread the scoring elsewhere. Also, he was constantly penetrating for kickouts. He kept getting hammered inside, but the refs were choking on their whistles every time. He still did what he is getting paid to do, it just doesn't show on the stat line. So really, the only problem was that he just couldn't hit a shot. Looks like all that shooting practice over the summer paid off.

Good to know we can win games WITHOUT Tony scoring 20+ points this year.

I guess there's only a handfull of us that noticed Beno did well. He already has better court vision and makes better passes than Parker at this point. If he could shoot, Beno would be scary-good.

Parker did not need to be rated higher. For a guy that spent the offseason working on his shot, he's still inconsistent.

I think you will see a lot of manu, brent and TP on the court at the same time.

Alas, I also think it will prevent Devin from getting as much time as I'd hoped.

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Originally Posted by spurster

Too low on TP and too high on Beno. TP was constantly shredding the Kings defense, and didn't let the game slow down. He didn't finish well at the basket though and his shot selection in general was off. Beno didn't make a shot, and had the same number of TOs as assists. Just his first game though.

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I have to agree with spurster. Beno didnt look to impressive in the 1st half, and the only thing Tony was bad at was shooting

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Originally Posted by GoSpurs21

... and the only thing Tony was bad at was shooting

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Gee that's reassuring. He sucked at the one thing he worked on the most this offseason. I feel so much better now. :rolleyes

The offense was moving much more smoothly with Beno in there. Yet he is labeled as "unimpressive"?! Some of you really crack me up.

he was tight
did you watch the game
hsi shits were mostly short