Grades: San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder – Game #15

[spursparker9]

https://www.spurstalk.com/grades-spu...-2025-game-15/

[Davidicus]

got to see this one in person

Yes Castle had an up and down night, but from my perspective, a very good one. He spent most of the night guarding one of the best basketball players in the world. His TOs were rough, but expected from a rookie shouldering the load. That was apparent - Mitch was relying on him for both defense and offense. Some of his zip passes while backing down his defender at the elbow / free throw were amazing to see in person, like a laser. Overall with the offensive and defensive load, Im guessing he learned more last night than any game this season, which is a very good thing.

Speaking of shouldering the offense, CP3 was awesome. Some of the shots he took were totally whack, but went in. CP3 has won us a few games this year, this was another one.

Keldon really carried us in the first half and then took a giant dump the second half. Some of his shots in the 4th were soul-crushing. However gotta give him credit on that dunk, the crowd went from murmuring to electric, and really jumpstarted the crowd for the rest of the game.

Bassey had a really nice night, putting in the lords work with rebounds / blocks / dunks. Feels like he's quickly coming back into form.

Tre I can't say the same. He was a liability out there with his hesitation to take 3s. Him and Castle on the floor together is difficult to watch with spacing. They both want to pump and drive, with mixed results. Hoping Tre can re-discover his edge.

Was fun to see Wemby in street clothes pulling the refs aside during timeouts to dispute calls. He's really got the right mindset.

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

Great game. Great win.

Tre needs to step up.

[Leetonidas]

Bassey was very impressive. Dude just brings what you want out of a backup C to the court. He should be Victor's primary backup

[onechance87]

Tre jones needs to be gone by this summer.Dude is a 3rd string pg.We can get a better second backup pg this summer.

[KobesAchilles]

I love the fact that Castle took 7 threes while only making one. It’s a big change in at ude from college where he would shy away from taking threes bc he was scared to miss. I want Castle to continue shooting even when he is missing. It’s an important mindset to have and one he will need if he is going to take that next step.

[Mr. Body]

Impressive Mitch kept with Castle handling the ball a ton down the stretch. The kid doesn't let plays get to him.

The last couple minutes was excellent basketball on both ends. Four threes in a row.

Overreact in cir stance, but this game showed the problems OKC continues to face. They overlooked the Spurs a bit, but they continue to have trouble with bigs of most any kind. Obviously they were missing Chet, but this was the issue even with him vs. Dallas in the POs. Their almost all-guard line-ups can get pushed around. And, they lack a second go-to guy other than SGA. Also a problem vs. Dallas.

As for the Spurs, this is where the vets came through massively. Paul, of course, that leaning three was vintage. Barnes also settled things. This was an L last year. The confidence of having it a win and how to handle late-games is big.

[Mr. Body]

Also, game shows how the process working with Wemby continues. This offense was more free-flowing. Eventually will get there with Vic but there's still a lot of deference and waiting around.

[LeBowen]

Finally caught up with this, great win. As already said, obvious growth compared to last season when this would've been an L because we'd crumble during OKC's late run.
CP3's best game so far, Barnes finally stepped up and wasn't just a bystander.
Bassey showed he's worth the hype some users have been making.
Champagnie's contract will be ridiculous value over the next few years. He won't ever be a star, but a great role player to have.
Castle impacted everything despite a poor shooting night. He already looks bigger than SGA, in a couple of years he'll bully every guard in the league.

I don't believe in Keldon's resurgence, though.
Should get back to .500 with a win against Utah before the next real test. Hopefully Wemby and Devin are back for GSW game.

[Mugen]

Best win of the season tbh.

Just really nice to seemingly have a coach that actually cares about winning and holds his players accountable. I know for a fact a certain somebody would have had Malaki Branham closing that game instead of Castle last night

[LeBowen]

Best win of the season tbh.

Just really nice to seemingly have a coach that actually cares about winning and holds his players accountable. I know for a fact a certain somebody would have had Malaki Branham closing that game instead of Castle last night

What I found interesting was Mitch's half-time speech on Tv, don't remember the last time cameras were in Spurs locker room during a game.

[jesterbobman]

Thunder have done a really good job with small lineups, but this shows the issue with missing iHart and Chet (and, Jaylin Williams) - they're small. Jalen Williams has done a decent job as a 6'5" small ball Centre, but he should be a SF.

Really good win. Castle isn't there yet as a PG against high level defences, but being trusted to deliver is great.

[ginobilized]

A couple of micro-observations:
-No Wesley = better flow and more mins for Castle
-Branham was on a shorter leash and I like this!
-Castle's passing is elite, already. Wow! That is the hardest skill to find. Even though Castle struggled against OKC's formidable pressure, he was better than anyone on last year's squad.
-Tre, as much as I love him, seems overmatched so far.
-The team is so much better than last season. Adding 15-20 wins to last year's total would be phenomenal.

[spurraider21]

ive been begging for Bassey to at least give compe ion fo Zollins for the backup C minutes. they are so different stylistically that you can just go by matchups. but theres no reason for him to be completely buried.

[Davidicus]

I love the fact that Castle took 7 threes while only making one. It’s a big change in at ude from college where he would shy away from taking threes bc he was scared to miss. I want Castle to continue shooting even when he is missing. It’s an important mindset to have and one he will need if he is going to take that next step.

This is a great point. If he wasn’t shooting we’d all be freaking out. I imagine Pop and coaching staff have reiterated to him to fire when open (like all players)

[LeBowen]

This is a great point. If he wasn’t shooting we’d all be freaking out. I imagine Pop and coaching staff have reiterated to him to fire when open (like all players)

That's the only right way and the fastest way to improve each player.
Unlike previous years we're actually trying to win, but development is still the first priority.
As in we won't sit Castle or tell him not to shoot if it would be beneficial to win that one game, we're looking at the bigger picture.
Let the players play through their mistakes.

[exstatic]

Impressive Mitch kept with Castle handling the ball a ton down the stretch. The kid doesn't let plays get to him.

The last couple minutes was excellent basketball on both ends. Four threes in a row.

Overreact in cir stance, but this game showed the problems OKC continues to face. They overlooked the Spurs a bit, but they continue to have trouble with bigs of most any kind. Obviously they were missing Chet, but this was the issue even with him vs. Dallas in the POs. Their almost all-guard line-ups can get pushed around. And, they lack a second go-to guy other than SGA. Also a problem vs. Dallas.

As for the Spurs, this is where the vets came through massively. Paul, of course, that leaning three was vintage. Barnes also settled things. This was an L last year. The confidence of having it a win and how to handle late-games is big.

A lot of that was CP3. Once he gets past half court,he often passes the ball off to Castle, or one of the other youngsters to run the sets.

[John B]

Again very satisfying win against a better team, despite OKC missing Chet, but the Spurs are missing 3 starters so I say that’s pretty much evens it out.

CP3 was the point god . That was the reason I hated going against him. He made big baskets when they needed the most. But what caught my attention was he was letting the kid, Castle handle the pressure down the stretch. That was mentoring. Castle I’m sure is learning a lot from CP3 how to calm the situation when the opponents rally. Very commendable of CP3.

That brings to another point. Timvp mentioned that Barnes is too good to be relegated to 5th option. On the contrary, that has been very professional of him. He came here to tutor, to guide and not to takeover games. Sure last night he was more active because the Spurs were missing people, but he’s ready to step-it-up.

Bassey was a monster. I wonder if he could bring this type of game besides Wemby against athletic bigs, because that’s the big man the Spurs need until Wemby becomes post dominant. Shooting would also be good. But I like that Bassey kept it within his comforts only last night.

Keldon is who I expect him every night. I hope he could bottle it. Champs I want him to be more lethal with his 3’s. Defensively he’s getting better and he’s also no longer just a shooter but will take it down when the defense tries to crowd him.

I think last night’s win was a combination of CP3/Barnes calming the team to weather the storm. Last year they would’ve easily lost that lead. Good times.

[Mugen]

What I found interesting was Mitch's half-time speech on Tv, don't remember the last time cameras were in Spurs locker room during a game.

I mean before Mitch became acting coach, it probably went something along the lines of:
"Who cares? It's just basketball guys. The most important thing is being a great person, let's put up Harriet Tubman's wikipedia page on the big screen. Make sure to give the opponents a big hug after the game."

[John B]

A lot of that was CP3. Once he gets past half court,he often passes the ball off to Castle, or one of the other youngsters to run the sets.

And that was good mentoring. I really think CP3 put it to heart to truly mentor these kids. Some assholes would just take over games and pad their stats as much until their wheels fall off. All those years I hated the guy seems melting away, except maybe 2015 last shot

[scott]

And that was good mentoring. I really think CP3 put it to heart to truly mentor these kids. Some assholes would just take over games and pad their stats as much until their wheels fall off. All those years I hated the guy seems melting away, except maybe 2015 last shot

It yields the same result, but I think CP3 cares less about being a mentor are cares more about not being a ing loser. CP3 holds a very unique stat - he has led four difference franchises to their all-time winningest seasons. He's a compe or who wants to win, and I think he realizes that helping these youngsters helps winning. It's not some kind of community service project for him.

[RC_Drunkford]

ive been begging for Bassey to at least give compe ion fo Zollins for the backup C minutes. they are so different stylistically that you can just go by matchups. but theres no reason for him to be completely buried.

there are 35 million reasons

[Chinook]

ive been begging for Bassey to at least give compe ion fo Zollins for the backup C minutes. they are so different stylistically that you can just go by matchups. but theres no reason for him to be completely buried.

I don't think Bassey is suited for a single-big role, at least not on a team that lacks star guards like the Spurs. His lack of size and scoring versatility holds him back. A compe ion is fine, and everyone on the team should be given chances. But it doesn't surprise me that Collins is beating him out seeing as Zach is having a very good year (objectively, not just for him) and fits what this team's second unit needs more.

However, I do think Bassey should be a consideration for that utility stint next to Wemby that Mamu has been getting recently. Bass seems like a guy who fits best in the cleanup role next to another big. Think Reggie Evans next to Blake Griffin. If teams aren't going to play their centers on Victor anyway, then there is very little lost if they decide to play two bigs rather than focusing on spacing along the three-point line. Getting that good PnR roll-man on the floor rather than making forwards try to do it should help with the guards who do play in those lineups. Defensively, Bassey's no worse on the perimeter than Mamu, and he's much better at the rim. I'm not saying Sandro can't keep getting chances. I just think the Spurs should be willing to continue to see what combinations work and not just stick with the idea that you need shooters to creating spacing.

[RC_Drunkford]

Seems like OKC is not ahead of us by as much as we thought. They were missing guys, but we beat them without our 3 best players while they had 2 of those on the floor. Very promising

[Mr. Body]

A lot of that was CP3. Once he gets past half court,he often passes the ball off to Castle, or one of the other youngsters to run the sets.

Because that's what the staff wanted them to do. They specifically wanted Castle to handle the ball a good deal down the stretch.