Quick Grades: Spurs vs. Thunder - March 11

[superbigtime]

It's looking like, barring further injury, Mills and De Colo have front row seats for the playoffs.

Good. Mills can be a sparkplug paired w Manu or Parker. De Colo will just turn it over.

[foodie2]

Bustell Westbrick A++

One of his best outing for the Spurs. Getting raped by Gary Neal in D was decisive for the outcome of the game. His relentless pursuit of his own shot was also key to help the good guys limit KD O production.

Agree with this grade. Derek Fisher should get an A++ as well.

[Aztecfan03]

I'm wondering if CJ can hold the backup PG spot when TP returns of if he goes back out of the rotation. At least Pop is continuing to start him in favor of Neal.

CJ works best with the starting lineup because they need someone who can handle the ball there. Pop might not see him needed in the backup lineup since manu is there, but we will see.

[Pasta Batman]

I'm wondering if CJ can hold the backup PG spot when TP returns of if he goes back out of the rotation. At least Pop is continuing to start him in favor of Neal.

I think he can. His D and level headedness is a good thing. I think he can also play with Manu. This allows Manu to shift back and forth (to PG/SG on offense/defense) and also save him on D. This is big against an athletic team like OKC. Also, it can help reduce some of the risky plays Manu sometimes over does, especially against OKC where it can lead to 2 easy points.

Neal may have been the backup PG on paper, but most of the time he actually played SG, with Manu picking up the PG role. Which Manu can handle fine as long as he's not smoking something like he was last night.

Agreed. De Colo evidently has himself in Pop's doghouse between his erratic play and his unwillingness to take a Toros assignment. Mills can play the point, but CoJo is better, imho.

Seems to me the final PG rotation is/should be TP/CoJo/Manu. Let Neal play SG like he's supposed to. If Mills and Manu are on the court at the same time, they could conceivably switch off.

Yes, Neal was backup on D, but 2 guard on offense. De Colo needs another summer to continue to work on his shot and work with strength coach Chad Forcier. Neal should play when he's on, but if D is horrid, CJ should get time with Manu.

De Colo has a fraction of the talent Beno has. Beno was lazy, and the Spurs made a mistake thinking they could coach that out of him. De Colo may or may not be a legit NBA caliber player, but likely can't be on a team that's rediscovered defense.

De Colo's shot was always very raw. He's gotten better over the season, but still needs at least one summer. Also, since De Colo is like a combo guard, it takes a while to learn the system. He has a chance and the promise is there. It's up to work ethic and having time. I hope he plays in the summer league and works a lot with the coaches over the summer like Kawhi and CJ did.

CJ works best with the starting lineup because they need someone who can handle the ball there. Pop might not see him needed in the backup lineup since manu is there, but we will see.

Manu is bad handling it all the time (in smaller stretches works). He takes too many chances sometimes when sometimes you just need to run the offense. Also, CJ can play D on the better offensive player. With CJ and Manu, they can interchange on offense/defense. Neal played bad D on Westbrook, but he also couldn't hit some shots. CJ was far better to play D on him. Unfortunately he got some ticky tack fouls in the 1st half which reduced his minutes.

Both CJ and Neal deserve time.

[ace3g]

http://www.nba.com/spurs/spursinfographic130311

[007nites]

Timmy looked bad out there. He had no flow to his game. He plays the most fluid with Parker in the lineup. There pick and pop game is so smooth.

[ace3g]

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