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Spurs closed out 2013 on a three game winning streak beating one New York team and entered 2014 playing the other New York team. Unfortunately, they didn't start things off with the same result. From the get-go the team played without much urgency. As we all know, the Knocks have been an abortion of a basketball team and it doesn't appear that things will get better. Apparently the Spurs were thinking along the same lines. The Knocks thoroughly outplayed the Spurs tonight from the opening tip. While certain players brought their game and energy, the team as a whole seemed disinterested. By the time the Spurs decided to play the Knocks were into a rhythm and looked respectable for a change. Despite all this the game was close at the end and a couple of 50/50 balls went the Knocks' way resulting in a 105-101 win for New York. Although the media will more than likely point to this as a turning point for this terrible basketball team, the result was more of an example of the Spurs' issues on both ends of the ball that have been pointed out ad nauseum.
Now onto the grades:
Tim Duncan: B-
Tyson Chandler has been a tough matchup for Timmy for awhile now, but to see him doing almost nothing in the post in the first half (and really most of the game) was strange. His rim protection on the other end was lackluster in the first half as well. In the second half, while Tim's offense never showed up, his D in the paint improved and was above average to elite at times. It would've been nice to see Tim take more than 8 shots, but this other than a lack of energy to start (which most of the starters brought in spades) this loss isn't on him.
Tony Parker: C
I've been on the 'Tony needs to rest for a month or so' bandwagon for a while now, and tonight just helps to show how exhausted he is. The offensive improvements in his game we've been treated to over the past few seasons have seemingly vanished over the Summer, to be replaced with heroball full-time; it's becoming commonplace to see him completely ignore a wide open Leonard or Beli in favor of attacking the rim (and failing to do anything outside turning it over) or settling for a terrible jumper. What's even more alarming, though, is his regression on D; he's playing James Harden-level D out there these days, which just isn't going to cut it. The box score shows 7 assists, but none of them stuck out. The only bright spot in his game this season has been a noticeable improvement beyond the arc. However, the fact is this version of Tony Parker will lead the Spurs to a second round exit. Lets hope he starts to improve soon.
Manu Ginobili: A-
All things considered, Manu had a pretty great game. He had 12 assists, which is always a big plus. What I liked most about his game tonight, and most of the season in general, is how well he looks physically and his aggressiveness. His 3-ball has been falling this season, but he isn't falling in love with it and continues to push the pace and attack the rim. Unfortunately, it wasn't that way tonight; I felt he took too many 3s when it became apparent his shot wasn't falling. On D he had some head-scratching plays, but its par for the course with him. He was one of the few players to bring energy to the game and bring the crowd into the game.
Kawhi Leonard: C-
It's becoming clear that Leonard has fallen into a slump. His play on both ends has been noticeably bad over the past few games. Tonight alone he committed two dumb fouls that helped put him in foul trouble and kept him from being a factor until late, and even then he had a few miscues. His shot continues to miss and it seems his FTs are becoming an issue as well. The biggest thing I took away happened in the heat of the fourth: Leonard came up with the ball and was left wide open beyond the arc. Rather than shooting it he hesitated for a solid 3-4 seconds before heaving a shot that never had a chance. His confidence is as low as I've seen it and it bothers me greatly. His playmaking, on the other hand, is continuing to improve. As a whole I'm not worried about his game (yet), but Pop needs to figure out a way to get Leonard more involved in the offense so when/if his shot isn't falling, he has a role to fall back on, whether it be playmaking or posting up.
Tiago Splitter: C
I was a strong advocate for bringing back Splitter in the offseason and thought his contract was a bargain. In the beginning of the season he was proving me right. Since his calf injury a month ago, however, he's been terrible; softest player in the league terrible. I know he never seems to get any calls no matter what he tries, but in the end he continues to get pushed around on offense by smaller players. When ing Andrea Bargnani pushes you around on both ends of the floor you're doing something wrong. Even despite that, he played solid D at times and was pretty good alongside the bench unit.
Marco Belinelli: A-
Most of us knew Beli would be a large upgrade over Neal, but the extent to which he has been is surprising. He put up a career night in points and kept the Spurs in the game single-handedly in the first quarter and parts of the fourth. He also was pretty good playmaking-wise; while he only has 2 assists on the box score, he was involved in several plays that resulted in easy buckets for other players. Yet, as good as he was offensively, his D was below average at best. His counterpart, Iman Shumpert, put up a season high in points with Beli guarding him the most often. All in all, BEli was much more of a plus than a minus tonight. IMO he'd be better off the bench alongside Manu.
Danny Green: C-
All I can do is shake my head. When his three isn't falling, he's one of the worst offensive players I've ever seen. He can't dribble, drive, and often struggles with the easiest lay-ups. His ability to finish is a bit better I guess if you're looking for any positives. On D I was fairly impressed with his job on Melo when Leonard went out with foul trouble. In general he really never made an impact on this game, and tbh his skillset would be a lot more noticeable in the starting line-up where his D is much-needed.
Patty Mills: B-
We all know Patty loves to shoot, so it's a bit of a surprise he only took 4 shots. Considering how good of a shooter he is and the fact he made 75% of his shots he needed to take a few more. On D he continued to be a pesky defender but oftentimes wasn't very effective. He brought energy to both ends of the floor and made his playing time count.
Boris Diaw: D-
He was invisiable most of the night and his box score supports that. He didn't score (didn't even attempt a shot), didn't pass, had one rebound, and when he guarded Melo it seemed Melo scored at will. Forgettable night for the anti-semitic Frenchman.
Matt Bonner: B-
Bonner came into the game when the Spurs outside Beli were struggling to score and proceeded to hit three 3s and give the Spurs control. His D was below-average and he was scored on by Bargnani on drives at least twice, but he fought and managed to remain a positive. He hardly played in the second half but when he did he didn't do much of anything. Good enough for a solid grade I guess.
Jeff Ayers: C-
He finished a dunk. Other than that, jeebus' favorite player hustled but made a couple of dumb mistakes that led to turnovers or gave the Knicks a new shot clock. Had 4 rebounds in 10 minutes so I guess it wasn't a complete waste. #PlayBayne tbh.
Coach Pop: C
Strangely enough I felt Pop was a big reason the Spurs lost tonight. On top of his weird rotations that we've come to accept grudgingly at this time of the season, he never seemed to get into the game. There were a couple of moments where I felt Pop needed to yell at the team of the officials but he never did. There were a couple of calls he argued but all in all he never went after anyone for the lack of energy. Must've thought the Knicks were going to it up at the end much like the rest of us did but sadly they hung on.
Offense: B
The offense started off slow in part to Tony Parker and Tim Duncan struggling with the presence of Tyson Chandler; he's a game changer for the Knicks on D and causes problems for a mul ude of teams besides the Spurs. Luckily, Beli was there to keep the Spurs in it on that end. Tim and Tony never got it going on this end, though, which reuslted in the Spurs playing from behind generally wnheever they were on the court. The team finished with 29 assists on 37 shots, which usually should result in a win, but throughout the night it seemed the Spurs actually struggled to get a bucket.
Defense: C-
The downward trend on defense continues for the Spurs. While the Spurs struggled to score it seemed the Knockerbockers scored at will. A lot of it stemmed from Beli starting (below-average defender at best) and Parker not even trying. Both helped to get Iman Shumpert going and he never cooled off. The defense in the paint was great for the most part but defense on the perimeter continues to be an issue; the Knocks shot above 50% from 3 tonight and shot ~52% overall. That level of D just isn't going to cut it going forward and Pop needs to find a way to fix the issue soon.
Thanks
GAME THOUGHTS......... SCREW that damn f in damn stupid ass game...... LOST.
JK good writeup. I meant F that game though.
son I am disappoint. You're too lenient on Airs; must be the newer grading system for this generation, where a C is a 60-69.
Thanks grades. Nice job!
Wonder about Boris tonight. This may have been his most invisible game as a Spur.
Thank you. I missed the game tonight. Looks like the spurs pissed away an opportunity to get ahead of okc in the standings tonight after the nets win.
Splitter was killing it in the 3rd/4th
great rebounding and defense
Duncan was lackluster and slow on rotations
Carmelo was getting to the rim at will with him their and finishing
and Bellenli was also a sieve defensively
it was his job to double from the baseline for whatever reason even though he was guarding Shumpert and he did about as poorly as you could do
once play in particular stuck out where he couldnt decide whether to double or run of Shumpert and kept switching back and forth which led to another open corner 3 by Shumpert
Parker not being able to score on an isolated Bustnani on the perimeter multiple times is an F tbh... since he doesnt play defense anymore and he couldnt do basic thing any PG in the NBA would do
How Belinelli gets an A- is beyond me. I'm sure you're giving him an A for offense. How could you deduct only a half a point for his defense? I don't see how the Spurs will be able to give Belinelli anymore of a role in the playoffs than they did Neal.
The Spurs are basically pissing away any chance at the number 1 seed with all these home losses. I can't remember the last Spurs team to lose 5 home games before the fifth of January. Don't bother bringing up last year's early season struggles. It was the offense that was slow out of the gate. This year, it's the defense. It's extremely difficult to fix a broken down defense with players who aren't accustomed to playing any, but are needed to keep the offense flowing efficiently.
Oh yeah, Danny Green is absolutely worthless.
Because while his D was nothing to write home about, he is the only reason the Spurs had a chance to win the game at the end. Duncan/Parker/Leonard/Splitter combined for some of the worst offensive production seen from a starting unit.
Belli scored 30 and gave up 25 tbh...
But good writeup and thanks.
I blame this loss on France.
There is always one scrub that kills the spurs and tonight that scrub was Shumpert. No surprise, Spurs for some odd reason cannot guard the three. They have 3 months and change to figure out
FIFY.
Disappointed we loss, our defense has been terrible imo.
I know a Knicks fan at work and he hates Shump and says he is a bum. AT Halftime I said to him RANDOM BUM kills the Spurs again per par! Of course it was the guy he thinks is a bum and once again that comes true. Like you said they can't guard the three, period.
seriously, belinelli is ruining this team. Cancer doin what cancer does.
Between this and the Houston game, it's obvious we can't defend , especially not the three. Pop needs to light a fire under some asses.
A disgusting game. Thank God I sold my tickets.
Nice writeup, Robz4000.
Spurs drop a few of these games every season. Used to happen more frequently, tbh.
January Non-issue.
it'd be easier to swallow if we had some quality wins to sweeten it a bitNice writeup, Robz4000.
Spurs drop a few of these games every season. Used to happen more frequently, tbh.
January Non-issue.
Nice writeup, thanks. A lot of mistakes in that game and a lot of calls that went against us. I can only hope they are as we speak watching film on missed defensive assignments. As many have said, we can only hope it is motivation for the Clips.
Pop is shaking his fist at the team, that's about all he does now. No discipline and no repercussions
defense is so bad...
Tony continously focusing on a two man game with Tim hurts other starters and the motion offense as a whole.
It may have been successfull in the past but this season for obvious reasons they are not as effective together and teammates are left looking like traffic cones.
The problem is on defense
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