Preseason Grades: Spurs at Heat - Oct. 15, 2024

[rjv]

1) it's the preseason and no one is going to risk an injury and 2) they were in miami.

[heyheymymy]

Almost won on the road with no Vassell and mins restrictions Vic against Bam Butler and Herro while playing Blake, Bran and Zollins together for the entire 4Q

I'll also say a tip of the cap to MIA who always seem to play greater than the sum of all parts since the Heatles era. So many plays last night where the MIA experience made mincemeat out of SA.

[Mugen]

he can just rise up and shoot over guys the way KD does. doesnt need a little rocker step fade like embiid to get it off tbh

KD generates a lot of those rise and shoot opps by being elite at coming off screens and moving without the ball tbh. I don't trust the old man to generate that same action nor do I think Vic will ever be at KD's level on that front.

I basically just want him to establish the same early position that Embiid does and go from there. Granted, Embiid is significantly stronger but it still shouldn't be too hard to get him the ball there. I lose my when he's getting the ball 25ft out and everybody stands around waiting for him to do something with it. Wemby and the coaching staff need to be much better on cutting that out.

[spurraider21]

KD generates a lot of those rise and shoot opps by being elite at coming off screens and moving without the ball tbh. I don't trust the old man to generate that same action nor do I think Vic will ever be at KD's level on that front.

I basically just want him to establish the same early position that Embiid does and go from there. Granted, Embiid is significantly stronger but it still shouldn't be too hard to get him the ball there. I lose my when he's getting the ball 25ft out and everybody stands around waiting for him to do something with it. Wemby and the coaching staff need to be much better on cutting that out.

obviously he's not going to move as well as KD, but it doesnt take as much to shake a center compared to the wings guarding KD. but yeah if vic is being guarded by a small, he should just do what KP does

agreed that too often we see vic dancing with the ball 25 feet out. its ugly offense and half the time he stumbles over his own feet . im not sure if thats the plays being designed or if its just him bringing the ball up the floor hoping to walk into a pull-up 3, and then improvising when its not there. given what we've seen from him, i think a lot of that stuff is still his own immaturity as a player and less of a team strategy.

[Mugen]

obviously he's not going to move as well as KD, but it doesnt take as much to shake a center compared to the wings guarding KD. but yeah if vic is being guarded by a small, he should just do what KP does

agreed that too often we see vic dancing with the ball 25 feet out. its ugly offense and half the time he stumbles over his own feet . im not sure if thats the plays being designed or if its just him bringing the ball up the floor hoping to walk into a pull-up 3, and then improvising when its not there. given what we've seen from him, i think a lot of that stuff is still his own immaturity as a player and less of a team strategy.

Agreed. But I think it's also an extension of the "we don't want to pigeonhole him into a box..." or "we're still figuring him out" that the old man was spouting last year.

If CP0 can get on him about staying away from that more then his contract would be well worth it. I'd have to imagine PATFO is still probably walking on eggs s around Wemby considering he's their first actual superstar since Nephew screwed them tbh.

[Pauleta14]

Agreed. But I think it's also an extension of the "we don't want to pigeonhole him into a box..." or "we're still figuring him out" that the old man was spouting last year.

If CP0 can get on him about staying away from that more then his contract would be well worth it. I'd have to imagine PATFO is still probably walking on eggs s around Wemby considering he's their first actual superstar since Nephew screwed them tbh.

He talked about it this Summer with France after the struggles of the NT, he acknowledged that he needs to make quicker decisions and slash as soon as he gets the ball in the paint/post.

He must use his mobility at its fullest to compensate his lack of weight in the paint

[Vince Carter's ankle]

obviously he's not going to move as well as KD, but it doesnt take as much to shake a center compared to the wings guarding KD. but yeah if vic is being guarded by a small, he should just do what KP does

agreed that too often we see vic dancing with the ball 25 feet out. its ugly offense and half the time he stumbles over his own feet . im not sure if thats the plays being designed or if its just him bringing the ball up the floor hoping to walk into a pull-up 3, and then improvising when its not there. given what we've seen from him, i think a lot of that stuff is still his own immaturity as a player and less of a team strategy.

I think he'll shoot 7-8 threes and most of them will be pull-up jumpers like at the end of last season

-shot 32.5% on 5.5 3s per game (6.1 3PA per 33min)
-in his first 20 games shot 25.5% on 5.1 3s per game (5.6 3PA per 33min), (started the season with around the same volume than in europe)
-in his last 50 games shot 34.9% on 5.7 3s per game (6.4 3PA per 33min), (took 1.3 more 3pts per 33min than at 18yo)
-in his last 30 games shot 35.3% on 6.3 3s per game (6.6 3PA per 33min)
-in his last 20 games shot 33.8% on 7.0 3s per game (7.1 3PA per 33min)
-in his last 10 games shot 33.3% on 8.1 3s per game (8.1 3PA per 33min)

The Spurs’ season ended in early April and by May, Wembanyama was back in San Antonio. Popovich gave him a list—three pages long— of things to drill down on. Half offense, half defense. For six weeks, Wembanyama worked. After a monthlong Olympic tour with the French national team—Wembanyama averaged 15.8 points per game in a silver-medal-winning effort—he was back. Individual work in the morning. Scrimmaging in the afternoon. At night, Wembanyama was back in the gym getting up a thousand shots—mostly threes. Around the Spurs these days, there is a palpable energy. Like, what you saw from Wembanyama last season was special—but you ain’t seen nothing yet.

The message was surprising. Since retiring from the NBA in 2020, Jamal Crawford, a slick-handling scorer, has dabbled in individual coaching. Guards, mostly, a position Crawford adeptly played for 20 seasons. In March, Crawford’s phone buzzed. Victor would like to work out with you, Ndiaye texted. Do you have time to come to Texas after the season? Wembanyama, in tinkering with ways to improve his pull-up three, admired how Crawford was able to shake defenders and was hoping to collect a few pointers. In June, Crawford flew to San Antonio. For several days, the two ran drills. “It’s actually scary how fast he learns,” Crawford says. “He was picking up footwork and rhythms that took me years in a matter of minutes.” At night, the two went to dinner, where Wembanyama would mine Crawford’s mind. “I’ve never met a 20-year-old like him,” Crawford says. “When it comes to basketball, working with him is one of the greatest things I’ve ever been a part of.”

Popovich, 75, embraced the challenge. He has polished Tim Duncan, developed Tony Parker and harnessed the skills of Manu Ginobili. In Wembanyama, Popovich was gifted a player with more raw talent than any of them. The task was refining it. Initially, they focused on footwork. Popovich showed Wembanyama film of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Rocker steps, pivots, pump fakes. “We talked to him about how important it was to get that base really solid and disciplined,” Popovich says. He encouraged Wembanyama to watch how Stephen Curry moved after the pass. “Chasing space,” Popovich says. “We weren’t teaching him Kareem’s skyhook. Simple concepts.”

Indeed, Wembanyama expects his game to grow as he does. Not up, but out. Officially, Wembanyama weighed 210 pounds last season. He will weigh more in this one. Spurs coaches pushed him to be more aggressive last season. Opponents, looking for advantages, would often use sturdier wing players to try to push him off his spots. Among the things he worked on with Crawford was how to deal with physical defenders. “I think my physical potential,” Wembanyama pauses. “I don’t know where it can lead me. I’m sure it’s not complete at all. I want to work so that I have the chance one day to invent new things.”

Pop’s offseason program focused on defensive fundamentals. How to close out better. How to use his hands, his length. How to get between two spots on the floor and remain balanced. Offensively, it was decision-making. “He intuitively understands space and where people are, but he tends to dribble in crowds,” Popovich says. Shooting drills to become more efficient from beyond the three-point line. Popovich estimates Wembanyama worked with eight to 10 different Spurs coaches this summer.

https://www.si.com/nba/2024-25-seaso...just-beginning

[Dex]

The first five players off the bench were Jones, Johnson, Collins, Castle and Wesley. If that is indeed the ten-man rotation, that means Branham, Mamukelashvili and Bassey will begin the season on the outside looking in.

I really want Mamu over Collins but understand that is unlikely given how Pop treats his "veterans"

Collins had a better outing against Miami but I am still just so over this dude. He's lost his outside shot, he's a foul machine, and the best thing he provides is fake toughness while not really presenting much of a challenge on defense.

Mamu is not perfect either but has proven he can shoot and pass, both things the offense desperately needs on a regular basis.

[exstatic]

I really want Mamu over Collins but understand that is unlikely given how Pop treats his "veterans"

Collins had a better outing against Miami but I am still just so over this dude. He's lost his outside shot, he's a foul machine, and the best thing he provides is fake toughness while not really presenting much of a challenge on defense.

Mamu is not perfect either but has proven he can shoot and pass, both things the offense desperately needs on a regular basis.

Mamu isn’t a five, and struggles in the position. He can’t displace Collin’s or Bassey. He needs to hope that Barnes really is washed and not going 75% because it was preseason. That’s his only shot at the rotation.

[Dex]

Mamu isn’t a five, and struggles in the position. He can’t displace Collin’s or Bassey. He needs to hope that Barnes really is washed and not going 75% because it was preseason. That’s his only shot at the rotation.

I'd argue Collins isn't really a five either, he just pretends to be one.

But your point is well taken and probably accurate..

[spurs10]

Mamu isn’t a five, and struggles in the position. He can’t displace Collin’s or Bassey. He needs to hope that Barnes really is washed and not going 75% because it was preseason. That’s his only shot at the rotation.

If Barnes starts at the 4, who comes off the bench at the 4?

[LeBowen]

If Barnes starts at the 4, who comes off the bench at the 4?

Lineups get staggered.
It's going to be Jeremy, Barnes or Keldon at 4 if Mamu doesn't get minutes.

CP3/Tre
Devin/Castle
Jeremy/Champagnie
Barnes/Keldon
Wemby/Collins

It's going to be between Tre, Champagnie, Branham, Wesley and Mamu for those two final rotation spots.
That's why all off them need to be on their A game in the first two weeks while there are more minutes available before Devin comes back.

[exstatic]

If Barnes starts at the 4, who comes off the bench at the 4?

Keldon

[heyheymymy]

If Barnes starts at the 4, who comes off the bench at the 4?

Maybe Mamu