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tony has 1 assist, gets a B-
The Story:
The Spurs came into Phoenix on the second night of a Back-to-Back (games in which they've managed to own this year) against a scrappy, guard-heavy Phoenix Suns team. This had all the markings of a trap game and for a while there it sure seemed like this was gonna be a dogfight. The Spurs started off the game lackluster once again with Phoenix racing out to a 7-point lead. Then the starters began to get going a bit behind Kawhi and Gasol with the bench helping to finally turn the tide with energetic play.
The second quarter saw the Spurs fall behind once again with some sloppy turnovers and awful transition defense. There was one sequence in the second where Simmons turned the ball over going for a dunk, Phoenix threw the ball up court, and managed a dunk before a Spur managed to even cross half court. Thankfully the team buckled down late in the half to regain the lead and grow it to 8 points before the half.
The third quarter saw Phoenix quickly draw even behind some tough calls (and no calls) at the rim for both teams. LMA and Gasol proved inept at doing anything to prevent the Suns from scoring at the rim, so Pop was quick to insert Dedmon. From there the matter improved dramatically and the Spurs retook a 10-point lead. Towards the end of the quarter Devin Booker started heating up to bring the Suns back within three to end the quarter.
In the final stanza Phoenix managed to retake a brief lead behind Barbosa abusing the Spurs like one would a Brazilian hooker (or Avante in every single Club or NFL thread ever). Thankfully it didn't last and behind some inspired defense by Simmons on Booker to cool him off the Spurs managed to take over the game behind Kawhi and LMA deciding to show up. One play in particular signified the Suns' capitulation: after a no-call by the refs (even with the Spurs still getting the rebound and put-back) Leonard took it upon himself to rip the ball out of Tyson Chandler's hands and dunk it in his face to make his point. After that play you could taste the despair in the Phoenix Suns and they never threatened in the game again.
Overall I'm pretty happy with the teams' performance tonight; this had all the makings of a trap but the team managed to turn it on and make it a laugher in the end.
Some things I noticed during the game:
-The LMA/Gasol tandem just isn't going to cut it. They're 26 games in and they still can't both play well at the same time to start games, and defensively they're softer than Kool's schlong when he sees a Victoria's Secret catalog.
-Simmons is really coming into his own on defense. He still has his lapses ala Green and gets put in Pop's doghouse but his strides on that end have been evident this season. Good to see he's become a legit NBA player.
-We all know Pop is stubborn, but he can't just ignore how big of an impact Dedmon has on both sides when he's in the game. Despite his foul prone nature you have to figure his insertion into the SL isn't far off especially if LMA/Gasol continue to struggle. Then again, this is Pop we're talking about.
-I'm not too high on Devin Booker, but he definitely has the potential to be a star in this league. Unfortunately for him he's playing for a bad organization so he may never reach that ceiling.
-Phoenix in general has a lot of really nice young(ish) pieces. If they are looking to offload LMA at some point soon they would be a great trading partner.
-LDN hit both of his threes tonight, but overall he's been playing terrible ball the past 4-5 games. If Simmons continues to show strides on the defensive end it isn't out of the realm of possibility LDN loses his starting job (at least for a few games).
Grades:
Kawhi Leonard - B
Kawhi had an all-around great game, but his hesitance to assert himself on offense early on really hurt the team. Defensively we saw a fair amount of that whole parking-Kawhi-on-a-corner-against-a-3&D-guy in Tucker, but it didn't really take him out of the game defensively which was a great sign. He came alive with some big plays in the fourth including a nice little steal-and-dunk on Tyson Chandler under the rim that just sucked the soul right out of Big Daddy TC. My main complaint is his hesitance on offense: no way he should only be taking 12 shots tonight.
LaMarcus Aldridge - D+
Don't let his stat-line fool you; LMA was pretty awful tonight. Not sure if it was his "nagging" injuries, playing soft, or just not giving effort, but LMA was pure trash tonight for the most part after five days off. Couldn't score against Phoenix's smaller players, couldn't score against Chandler, couldn't defend the rim, couldn't defend the perimeter, etc. He managed to turn it on in the fourth a bit while being spoon fed by Gasol/Leonard/Parker, but if he can't start bringing it from the start of the game on he won't have a place on the team much longer.
Danny Green - D-
Hasn't been much to LDN about these past few games for Green. He made the most of his limited shot opportunities tonight by making both his threes while contributing a rebound and assist, but other than that he was awful. He couldn't stop fouling Booker and Bledsoe, and his greatest strength, transition defense, was nonexistent tonight. He ended up getting benched after his fourth foul and never saw any action again.
Tony Parker - B-
He scored fairly well tonight and only took two bad shots during the meat of the game. However, managing only one assist while being the primary ball-handler is inexcusable especially with all the weapons this team has. He also froze Leonard out at times, especially when Phoenix was making their comeback runs in the second and third quarters. Part of that is on Kawhi for not being assertive, but the HOTS should know better.
Pau Gasol - B
Not much more you can ask of MVPau on offense. He scored efficiently and from a variety of spots. Also rebounded pretty well against the likes of Tyson Chandler. However, he's a big problem on defense especially against teams with a lot of quick, skilled guards like Phoenix. This was on full display in the second quarter when Gasol couldn't even make it past half court before Phoenix managed to score a layup.
Dewayne Dedmon - A
Just not much to dislike about this guy; he does it all. Dedmon brought loads of energy on both ends, often intimidating Phoenix's guards when they weren't raping the Spurs in transition. Offensively he's starting to show an impressive post game with some patience and excellent body control. Been awhile since the Spurs had a big man with this level of athleticism so enjoy him while you can.
Manu Ginobili - C+
Manu looked like he was going to start the game off well with some nice playmaking, but unfortunately he devolved into Turnobili quickly. He managed to recover and be an overall plus by not forcing anything on offense and playing solid D.
Patty Mills - D
Not a good game from Patty. He couldn't guard any of the Suns' guards, and often found himself struggling against their full-court press on D. To add to his woes his shot just wasn't falling tonight. After a strong start to the season on the road for Mills, his last four road games haven't been pretty; this was the case last year as well where Mills wasn't able to get it going on the road. Let's hope he turns it around.
Jonathon Simmons - B-
Was gonna give him a D up until the fourth quarter, then he went Tony Allen lite (coined by Kawhistorm) and shut Devin Booker the down. An understated part of the reason the Spurs' bench has been so good on D is thanks to JSimms becoming a good (sometimes great) defender. Just need to hope he starts taking his open shots.
Kyle Anderson - A-
Fathead has quietly put together a nice string of good outings for this team. Although the eye test still doesn't say he's an elite defender, his length and growing abilities to use it have made up for his slower speed (slow being an understatement for the resident billboard) and his rebounding abilities, especially against bigger players and in crowds, are definitely strong. His lack of ability to even knock shots in from 16-18 feet out really hurts him on offense, but he can get those shots whenever he wants.
David Lee - B
Another strong outing for the surprise pick-up of the season. He didn't finish particularly strong outside a nice And-1, but his rebounding and energy brought nothing but positives to the team tonight. It's been mentioned a few times so far this season, but the most surprising aspect from DLee is the fact he isn't a liability on defense; he guarded opposing teams in many different aspects and done well for himself. His four turnovers, unfortunately, did lead to fast break points for the Suns which is why his grade isn't higher. Other than there wasn't much to hate from his play tonight.
Bench Scrubs - C
They didn't choke a 3-1 lead.
Pop - B
I felt Pop didn't call timeouts when he should've while Phoenix went on their runs in the second/third quarters, but other than that not much to nitpick about his coaching tonight. His defensive assignments for each player were great and he managed everyone's minutes pretty well. He even showed some fire by yelling at everyone he could early on to help breathe life into certain players. JUst need to hope he's seeing what we're seeing with the bigs situation.
tony has 1 assist, gets a B-
Good review and well written. Much appreciated Rob!
I watched the same game you watched.
I agree about the big situation. I thought Ginobili was very shaky but so was Mills at times. Anderson just changed things a bit when he came in and helped.
I wanted to see Bertans but he got good minutes against the Celtics and the bench bigs were playing very well.
I hope Danny gets back on top of his game.
Good review overall!
Thanks for the grades!
But sadly, it seemed like Pop loved what he saw from Gasol in the last two games on offense...But more Pau's role increases on that end, more LMA looks passive and lost.
Dedmon is a better fit for LMA game on both ends than Pau.
Like you said, after 26 games it's starting to become a worrisome trend.
Well, we can see that Kawhi/the whole team is doing an effort to involve Pau and LMA in the first quarters.Kawhi had an all-around great game, but his hesitance to assert himself on offense early on really hurt the team.
Parker has more the ball in his hands and play P&Rs/Pops with both bigs, Kawhi is in the corner to make space for them.
We have seen the same thing in other games this season, Kawhi taking just one shot in the first quarter while they tried to get LMA engaged early.
But since LMA wasn't very efficient in the first plays this season, we had slow starts on offense...This is why I'm not a big fan of parking Kawhi in the corner that much.
Last edited by YGWHI; 12-16-2016 at 02:15 AM.
OP gave Kawhi a B. Already better grades than Redditers.
missed the game, gonna catch up at nba.com... thanks robz!
Great grades.
It's interesting that Kawhi only took 12 shots, it felt like a lot more. The one play he had against a double team with plenty of time on the shot clock that became a spin move fadeaway on the baseline was so Kobe-esque and not in a good way.
Dedmon was amazing, that was the best defensive performance by a Spurs big in some time.
The offense was balanced tonight.
Kawhi and Pau 12 FGA, LMA 11, Parker 8...But I'm not sure if Pau/Parker getting almost the same shots than Kawhi/LMA duo will give us many wins in the season.
It's fine against the Suns but the Spurs needed a lot of offense from Kawhi and LMA to beat the Warriors, if these two players can't get the ball more than the old starting combo, we won't beat the Clippers this season.
Of course, they won't win many games against elite teams with this guy's defense either.
Last edited by YGWHI; 12-16-2016 at 04:01 AM.
kawhi gets a B while parker get a B- for having...
7 less points
9 less rebounds
3 less assists
wtf...
Thanks. A fun read, and a pretty accurate write-up of the ebb and flow of the game.
The Spurs keep giving up early leads. At least tonight they woke up earlier than some nights, and only gave up 20 first quarter points. But they continue to struggle out of the gate, and the LMA/Pau combo seems like a good place to start tweaking. Something's got to give, though, because they spend way too much time going uphill, because of the early holes they dig themselves into.
It's worth noting that the Spurs had 20 turnovers, and that LMA/Lee/Simmons had 13 of them between them. (At least LMA, with 5 TO's, managed to lead the team in something.) Giving up 20 turnovers on the road is a good way to lose games. I think they had 12 TO's about halfway through the second quarter, which is at least part of the reason Tony only got 1 AST. He wasn't great, but he wasn't THAT bad either. When you've got guys being careless with the ball, it makes the offense look really ugly. And Tony only had 1 TO for the night.
Well, unlike Pop and RC, no one expects anything from Parker now... So we're kind of happy when he doesn't the bed in a game.kawhi gets a B while parker get a B- for having...
7 less points
9 less rebounds
3 less assists
wtf...
Also, we celebrate when he looks like in the first 3 quarters but has a good 4th...Like the game against Boston.
Last edited by YGWHI; 12-16-2016 at 04:02 AM.
so a 1:1 assist to turnover ratio.
no, there's still a contingent here who believes in tony.
speak for yourself. before tonight's game i posted about him being lucky that he didn't have to play against isaiah thomas.
i'm not surprised with his poor play against the suns.
the spurs didn't need tony to beat the celtics.
iirc, every spur who played, which the exception of one or two, was already shooting 50% or better before parker made those shots in the 4th... and he gave up at least half the points he scored in the 4th while playing "defense".
Sure. Also, not only Parker. Gasol was other being lucky about Thomas' absence.
But Parker will get the opportunity to show his real level of game against Harden, CP3, Lillard and Rondo-being-a- -all-season-until-faced-Parker-and-got-quasi-triple-double...next week.
Maybe his defense on pick and rolls along with Gasol against those elite guards will surprise us...Or maybe not.
the only thing that will surprise me about parker's defense is how much more pop will allow it.
Nobody said they needed him.
People are willing to forget Parker's horrible 3 quarters if he gets 4 minutes of good play in a whole game.
At least, that's what I read in the last game-grades thread.
But I don't judge 'people'...They're what they are.
Last edited by YGWHI; 12-16-2016 at 03:58 AM.
Not sure about the Anderson grade.
He got bullied in the post by a rookie, and either got bumped out of the way or overplayed a side and ...Chris?? I think just went around him with a quick move and dunked it with no one protecting the rim.
I'm pretty sure next dead ball or two Pop subbed in Simmons.
There were some shaky sequences at the end there, that reminded me of the Bulls loss the other night.
Danny Green gets called for his 4th foul swiping down on the guy driving.... and that dude gets free throws????? He never even went into a shooting motion.
And then the next play Kawhi drives, draws a foul and picks up the ball and scores it, and they wave the basket off. Really wtf.
Then Lee gets mugged under the basket, the Suns scrap for the ball and try to advance it, and Manu goes for the steal and incidentally contact fouls Knight at midcourt.
The refs review to see if was a flagrant. It wasn't.
And very next play I think, Knight gets loose again in transition (Spurs need to clean that up, those gutless worms were giving up free points daaaamit) and Mills manages to foul him before Knight can dunk it, and Mills momentum carries him past under the basket, while Knight falls almost face first.
Once again it's reviewed for a flagrant.
I was about to be heated with all that extra , but again just a regular foul.
....
On Booker... not sure if it was Simmons stepping up to play better D.... I think he just started missing some shots. I would say he cooled off... It was looking to be one of those nights were some guard explodes for the other team.
Bledsoe and Knight too were putting serious pressure in the paint. Suns guards are talented, especially compared in this game between ours.
.....
Also - not sure if it was just me working 3 weeks straight, and still going out catching up to me - but I found this game kind of boring, aside from a few alley-oops, and that Kawhi rip on TC.
I found myself looking at the squad and thinking man I don't really care about what these dudes are doing on the court... and I'm a huge Spurs fan =/.
Their style of play.... lacks a defining character or artistry. I mean I like the team, just they way they play, it's missing that spark at the moment, that je ne sais quoi: a pleasant quality that is hard to describe.
It's just not a joy to watch as past incarnations of the Spurs teams have been.
Happy they got this win though, and continue to show road resolve.
And the team at the end had some good vibes, able to laugh at a Lee failed miscue to Gasol for an alley-oop.
Really not sure why Aldrige continues to miss bunnies tho or obliterate lesser players, trying too hard... but lacking the urgency of it being the playoffs maybe.
The team still has plenty of room to improve though.
Thank you for making the grades.
Scrubs deserve a C+ because Laprovittola shaved and got a haircut.
Suns really mailed it in in the 4th tbh
This, they collapsed really bad as a group. Symptoms of an extremely young team (w/ some exceptions) that couldn't match the intensity brought by the Spurs in the 4th.
Thx for the grades man
I'm enjoying so much the Dedmon lob festival . It's awesome to watch the Spurs taking advantage of their athletic players for once.
Man LMA is just an enigma. Hes so frustrating to watch. You can tell he wants more touches, but dammit he doesn't earn them. Hes plays so passive. Everyone has to clear completely out of the way only for him to take a 15-18 ft fadeaway. He should be eating smaller guys up in the post but let's them off the hook over and over with his fadeaway. When he does try to bang, hes goes up so soft he gets his shot blocked.
His teammates treat him like the GSW treat Klay. Everytime he scores, they have to overreact like they're encouraging a kid to keep learn how to ride his bike just to keep him from quitting because it's too hard.
He brought it in against OKC in the PO last year, but then slowly disappeared as the pressure went up.
Chinook: " but but only Bulls used that tactic "
Wow. You need to look into taking a booster dose of your meds if you're going to stay up after midnight and post stuff.
Look, I know what you're thinking. "If these assholes keep giving Tony good grades, Pop will think he's playing good and NEVER make Patty the starting PG!" And you're right. Pop listens to everyone here but you. But what you don't understand is that most of us here get paid by Tony to post good stuff about him. We don't really give a damn that Tony is the worst PG in the history of the NBA, or that the Spurs would coast to another Championship if only Patty was starting. As long as Tony keeps his job, we get paid.
There. The truth is out. It's just what you always thought.
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