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Great grades timvp
It's always great to see Vintage Timmy. Hope Parker has nothing serious and will play this Friday.
Prior to Bruce Bowen getting his jersey retired, the Spurs had some business to attend to against the T'Wolves. However, San Antonio made quick work of the visitors from the north and cruised to a 116-100 victory. The quick work by the Spurs allowed the focus to be on #12 for the night -- and rightfully so.
The Spurs got off to a fast start thanks to Tim Duncan. Duncan scored four baskets in a span of two minutes in the middle of the first quarter. Each of his hoops was assisted by Tony Parker. In fact, Parker assisted on each of Duncan's five first quarter field goals.
Speaking of Parker, the biggest news of the night that didn't involve Bowen was Parker's injury. After playing only ten minutes, San Antonio's star point guard left the game with what is being called a tight hamstring. Considering the Spurs start their first back-to-back-to-back of the season on Friday, the timing couldn't be worse if Parker is forced to miss some time.
Tim Duncan A+
With the T'Wolves starting Kevin Love and no one taller than 6-foot-8, Tim Duncan had a chance to dominate this game ... and did he ever. To post 21 points, 15 rebounds and four assists in a complete game is great work. But to do so in only 24 minutes? Ridiculous. In fact, in the last 27 years (as far back as I can look) no player has ever put up those stats in that few of minutes. Duncan wasn't only bigger than everyone on Minnesota, he was also seemingly quicker, sharper and hungrier. When Duncan is this good, and we've seen him play at a high level a lot in the last month or so, the possibility of adding a fifth ring to the collection doesn't seem nearly as far-fetched.
Manu Ginobili B+
This game followed a familiar pattern for Manu Ginobili. On offense, he was god-like. His passing was outstanding, he made plays whenever he wanted and executed flawlessly. Even though he's far from 100% physically, I'm not sure if I've ever seen Ginobili play smarter on the offensive end. It's like he's seeing the game three or four beats ahead of everyone else. Unfortunately, Ginobili's defense remains worrisome. He's never been a bad defender ... until his latest return from injury. He just can't stay in front of anyone and his closeouts are extremely late. I assume he's trying to stay healthy and is taking it a little bit easy on defense but the other teams have taken advantage in a big way lately.
Tony Parker B+
Tony Parker's passing was extremely sharp prior to his injury and he helped get Duncan going. Watching it live, I didn't see a point when Parker got hurt. I watched the tape and still didn't see anything. His defense started to suffer in his second stint on the court, which was probably a sign of him hurting. Let's hope he can get back quickly and that his hamstring injury proves to be minor.
Kawhi Leonard A-
It's almost getting to the point that Kawhi Leonard can put up 16 points and nine rebounds and it be a ho-hum performance. He has blossomed into a very productive player who can be counted on to make an impact game in and game out. Offensively, I loved how he ran the court and attacked the rim. Defensively, while he did good work against Love by aggressively fronting him, Leonard's overall performance on D was very up and down; a few times he let players get wide open paths to the rim. Rebounding-wise, he was active on both ends of the floor.
Danny Green A-
A few weeks ago, Danny Green was struggling and it appeared as if his spot in the rotation could be fading away. But currently, especially in the last three games, Green has looked very good. Tonight his offensive numbers were solid and could have been a lot better if he didn't blow a few wide open layups. On defense, he was adequate in individual matchups but got burned a few times. Where Green really gave a boost on that end of the court was his help defense and his work on the glass.
DeJuan Blair D
Let's hope this game was blacked out in Pittsburgh. DeJuan Blair struggled in most aspects of the game. On offense, when he wasn't turning it over, he was shooting an ill-advised shot. On that end, he's really been bull-in-a-china-shop lately. Defensively, Blair didn't do much good and compounded his issues by getting in foul trouble. With the Spurs reportedly interested in signing Boris Diaw if he clears waivers, Blair's play lately might have the front office even more desperate than they were a few weeks ago.
Gary Neal B
After Parker went down, Gary Neal stepped in and did good work. I really can't complain. Offensively, while he does look to shoot quite a bit for someone who is supposed to be running the show, he mixes it up enough to keep the defense off balance. Neal also recognizes that Ginobili needs plenty of touches when those two are on the court together. Defensively, Neal's defense on the ball was extremely iffy but he made up for it somewhat by remaining active in the passing lanes; he had a handful of Deion Sanders-like interceptions by hustling and staying attentive.
Stephen Jackson A
Yeah, the made shots are good to see. However, there's so much more to be encouraged by from Stephen Jackson so far. Against Minnesota, he again let the action come to him and didn't force anything. Jackson has a reputation as a low efficiency chucker but there's been no sign of that in his return to San Antonio. Offensively, he spaces the court well, makes the right reads, moves well without the ball and is enough of a playmaker to create opportunities for himself and others when needed. Defensively, his individual defense has been tough as nails. At the same time, he keeps his head on a swivel and offers very good help. Honestly, Jackson's play so far seems too good to be true. I find myself waiting for the other shoe to drop at some point. Jackson won't be able to simply flip a switch and become a steely-eyed role player who relishes the dirty work while removing all the negatives that marred his career since leaving San Antonio, right? I doesn't make much sense ... but I'm enjoying it while it lasts.
Tiago Splitter A-
Defensively, Tiago Splitter was solid. When he wasn't protecting the rim, he showed good mobility by going out on the perimeter and contesting shots. Splitter was also really strong on the boards. However, his main strengths tonight were on the offensive end. Splitter didn't shoot as well as normal but made up for it by authoring a number of really good passes. His ability to find open teammates with quick interior passing is impressive. Overall, Splitter's screens and hard rolls to the basket really opened up the offense for everyone when he was on the court.
James Anderson B
Ever since the trade deadline passed, James Anderson's tenacity has gone through the roof. I don't know if he's more comfortable or what's going on but he's no longer just a guy who stands around on the perimeter. Then again, that could be partially due to him losing all confidence in his jumper.
Pop A
Pop was dealt a difficult hand. First, he didn't have coach favorite Matt Bonner at his disposal due to back spasms. Then he lost Parker. Then Blair and Splitter got in foul trouble. Through it all, I thought Pop did about as well as possible on his rotation. He's putting players in a position to succeed -- especially Jackson, Green and Leonard. I also liked how he pieced together a point guard rotation on the fly by using Ginobili and Green to run things when needed. Oh, and hopefully Pop noticed how the Spurs outscored the T'Wolves 13-5 when Duncan and Splitter were on the court at the same time.
Great grades timvp
It's always great to see Vintage Timmy. Hope Parker has nothing serious and will play this Friday.
Solid grades. As usual, Tiago did a great job getting to the rim (especially when posting up) but his finishing was horrendous.
Thanks for the grades.
I'm more and more impressed by Leonard. After the draft and earlier this season, there were some doubts about his offensive upside. With games like that, he puts these doubts through the shredder. He's looking more and more like a complete NBA player with a legit offensive SF game.
And hopefully, Parker's injury isn't too serious. Despite playing at a great level, he has struggled physically since the all star break. Mills signing should allow Pop to limit Parker's minutes more easily and it won't be a luxury.
If Jax plays like yesterday on a basis, the trade must be one of the best in franchise history, tbh.
To me, the most underrated part of Kawhi is his mental toughness and stability. Dude isn't phased by makes, misses, turnovers, missed rotations, etc. He just keeps grinding.
Bruno, I'm thinking just the same. Actually as you were typing this, I was searching for some old posts by timvp from the pre-season. Here is a selection, which is in now way meant as a bash, as many of use were thinking exactly the same. It's just to show the progress made.
Second game back for Jax was in the neighborhood of any of RJ's best performances for the Spurs, especially since the beginning of last year.
Leonard sure had some good handles - gotta give him credit.
BTW, no quick grade on Dawson?
Wow, I seriously did not see Tiago earning an A- for last night. My stream sucked though, so I noticed his misses more than his assists. I wish he hadn't gotten in foul trouble, maybe there would have been even more twin tower minutes to be had.
I agree with the rest of the grades, especially Timmy, Green, SJax, and Kawhi. They all easily earned their As last night.
Agree on all of the grades timvp! You always impress us on your write-ups
Yeah, it's very nice to see a young player growing under our eyes.
IMO, SJax is considered a chucker when he's the #1 or #2 option on his team. Now that he's not being relied on to carry the team, he can revert back to what he's needed for.
Also, everyone seems to forget that magical little man called Chip England.
F?
Thanks for the Grades, timvp!
Last night it ocurred to me that if we do face the Grizz again in PO Pop will have to put TD and Tiago out there at the same time to guard Randolph and Gasol, am I right?
You mean, like last year?
I said it in the game bloag: that first defensive possession when Tim/Tiago played together that resulted in a Tim block was the most beastly and energetic defensive possession I've seen all year. Go back and watch that moment, Unc.
Not sure about A- but some of the combinations with Manu were fantastic, and Tiago was just an anchor in the post. At some point he had a behind-the-back pass that was beautiful. A bit more assertiveness at the rim would be icing on the cake.
Tbh, I think I had some others even more negative
One exciting part of Kawhi's improvement is there appears to still be a lot of room for growth. I mean, just up until the last few games, he had never actually drove the ball to the basket and scored in a halfcourt set. Considering he has the ballhandling and the athleticism to do so, he could take another couple steps if he figures out how to do that on a consistent basis.
To Kawhi's credit, he has kept things simple so far on the offensive end and has played to his strengths. This season, he has mostly scored in transition, by crashing the offensive boards, via a backdoor cut or by hitting spot-up threes. There's really not that much variation to his game right now but he's really starting to master what he does.
Right now, I have no idea what his future holds. I've never seen a rookie improve so rapidly while at the same time make virtually no mistakes while doing so.
And while some fans don't want to hear it, Pop has done masterful work with Kawhi. He's putting him in spots where he can succeed and has given him a lot of rope without much pressure to perform.
Speaking of Pop, since that Portland game that Pop forfeited and Kawhi got big minutes, Kawhi has a PER of 23.1.
Prior to that game, Kawhi's PER was 13.9. Guess that forfeit game served a purpose other than to cause GNSF to meltdown . . .
I was looking for one along the lines of "I wonder if Kawhi's ever going to be able to contribute offensively in the NBA" but couldn't find itTbh, I think I had some others even more negative
It's also worth remembering that he was rated as a poor ballhandler before the draft. Right now I'd say he has above average ballhandling skills for a forward, going coast to coast while dribbling through 2-3 players... or just bringing the ball up after a defensive rebound (but smartly relinquishing the ball asap). I noticed that the ball rarely, if ever, crosses half court in the hands of a player not named Parker (if on the court, obviously), but Kawhi seems to be taking that kind of liberty, and nobody seems to mind.
Kawhis 3-pt shooting has been so much more effective than I imagined
How would you rank him compared to other rookies so far, especially from the Spurs perspective/needs?
There's a rather obvious link, I would say!
TIMVP, you mentioned that J-Anders <-- (That's for you ChumpDumptser)may have lost his confidence in his jumper. I hope that's the case because if he becomes the guy who takes the ball to the hoop, he'll find himself getting more minutes.
More Defense + More Drives to the rim = More playing time for Anderson.
When everyone else is having a good game it's disappointing to see Blair struggling. Usually a blowout game like this is like a tide that rises all boats. Blair often does pretty well just by picking up loose balls on offense and defense so are his good games simply luck?
Which brings up the real problem. He didn't have to play against their Serbian monster last night so he should have been in good form against the smaller Wolves lineup. Is this inconsistency the result of a lazy at ude that day, too many burgers the day before or simply not having the loose balls fall into his hands (bad luck)?
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