Reply With Quote
Lemme be the first to thank El Nono
Spurs 101 - Pelicans 95
Savvy. That’s the first word that comes to mind to describe tonight’s Spurs win. The Spurs headed to New Orleans after a solid win against a good Timberwolves team the night before, still missing Tiago Splitter, and now having to reshuffle the lineups one more time after Danny Green suffered a fracture in his hand (out 4 weeks), and Manu Ginobili was making his return after missing a couple of games.
When you’re shorthanded, and you’re getting halfway through the season, these back to back games get tougher and tougher. The Spurs only had energy for small stretches, so carefully managing when to push and when to hold back was key. Outside of Kawhi being glued to Gordon most of the game (great job, more on that later), defense was really a second thought this game. Hope for a miss and grab the board.
Ultimately, the Spurs would need all the energy they could munster. This turned out to be an electric game, and the Pelicans didn’t shrink to the physical play the Spurs proposed for stretches. Anthony Davis posted a double-double, Roberts had a very good game, and overall they had a good shooting night (44% from the field, 64% from downtown). On top of that, Tim Duncan would foul out with 6 mins remaining in the game and the Spurs only up two points.
Fortunately the Spurs were able to lean on their savvy players to escape New Orleans with a hard fought win and be the first team in the league this season to reach 30 wins while retaining the top spot in the Western Conference.
The Starters
Tony Parker: Tony fought all night against a player in Roberts that came to play. He did it all. The jumper was there, the finishing at the basket was there, the drive and kick too. He had a steal and basket early in the game, and when TD fouled out, he took it upon himself to be the guy to close this game and he delivered. I though he managed his energy pretty well, not being overly aggressive on defense at the start of the game so he could have some gas left in the tank for the finish. Well done, mon ami. A
Manu Ginobili: Manu looked rusty to start the game. His attacks to the basket were sound, but his decision making was not. He got better as the game progressed, although his 3 point shot was MIA for the night. This was a game where his passing wasn’t working, but he was generally scoring well going to the basket, which is the opposite of what we’ve been accustomed to. Gino still has a lot more work to do to regain the form he had prior to missing the last two games, but he looked healthy, which is extremely important. C+
Kawhi Leonard: This was a phenomenal game from Leonard. He basically shut down Gordon (4-14), and whenever he had the possibility of getting a touch or two on offense, he made the Pelicans pay. On a night where most every Spur didn’t have enough to play tough D all game, he was the exception. Offensively, the Spurs need to find a way to get him in the post more often, especially on match ups like tonight where he had the clear advantage. He rebounded well and also connected on the only 3 pointer he took. B
Tim Duncan: Timmy battled all night against Davis who has been a very solid player this season. He tried to bring a brand of physical play inside, and it generally worked. When he couldn’t finish, he drew fouls. Until he fouled out, he was the anchor where the Spurs would go when they needed to get some scoring. I thought he ran out of gas towards the end, and that had some influence on being a bit late on the last couple of fouls. It was extra difficult for Tim tonight, without Tiago and with a shaky perimeter defense, but he stepped up and was an integral part of this win. B+
Jeff Ayres: I know Jeff has taken a lot of flak, but this is one game where he was a net positive. He defended well, especially on the 3rd quarter, and he actually wasn’t getting in the way of teammates on offense. I still would like to see more boards from him, but overall, he was an asset in the 16 minutes he played. C
The Bench
Boris Diaw: This looked like an old Boris outing. He attempted no shots and did not get himself to the line. He wasn’t bad, he was just invisible for most of the game. He did have to spend a lot of energy guarding (superbly if I might add) Kevin Love the night before, so it’s possible he was just a bit tired. The Spurs could’ve used a bit more from him offensively tonight. D+
Marco Belinelli: I thought Marco was great. He moved constantly without the ball and kept the Pelicans defense busy. He picked his spots on offense, and then he dropped La Bomba…
…much to the delight of Spursfans around the world. While the bench generally was underwhelming in this game, I thought Belli was the bright spot. B-
Matt Bonner: It was difficult for Matt to find the open 3 like the night before, but he hustled against Ajinca and Whitey, grabbing 5 boards on a night where rebounding was extremely important (due to the general poor defense). While he looked overwhelmed physically in the first half, he did much better in the second half. C
Patty Mills: I’m a bit disappointed in Patty’s outing tonight, even though he only played a bit over 10 mins. Generally I would’ve liked to see him more aggressive going at his guy or looking for his shot. His defense was also not as active as it’s been for the season. He ended up not shooting or creating, and the Spurs need that from him, especially on games where Manu isn’t available with the bench unit. D-
Corey Joseph: Corey played 15 mins. He hit a 3 pointer, and made a fairly contested reverse layup . There really wasn’t that much more noteworthy from him. He’s getting the minutes now, and this is his chance to show he belongs, but tonight he did not. D
Aaron Baynes: Baynes played limited minutes (8) and mostly was matched up against Ajinca, a very tall (7'2) center. He protected the rim well, and grabbed 5 rebounds in that short stint. While that part is impressive, it was a very short sample. I'd like to watch more from Baynes, but at this time it looks like Ayres, Bonner and Diaw will be getting the most minutes behind Duncan while Splitter is out. INC
The Coach
Pop: It was a night of mad scientist for Pop. He had to shuffle the lineups again, and figure out a way to conserve energies to have some energy left for the entire evening. I thought he did a good job. He stretched out the bench play as much as possible on both halves to rest legs, and pushed the right buttons at the right time to come up with the win. On the to-do list is to get Kawhi more involved on offense on nights like these, as noted above. B
---
Filling in for HarlemHeat37...
Last edited by ElNono; 01-14-2014 at 12:51 AM.
Lemme be the first to thank El Nono
boring game to watch until the 4th quarter tbh..
cant imagine whats its like to be a Thunderef fan and watch games like this every night for the past 3+ years
or the new Rockets play even worse games then this
Good grades, gotta love the ferrari
Thanks for the writeup.
Good writeup!
Nice write up. Very thorough and detailed for someone like me who didn't get a chance to watch the game. I glossed over the box score and saw Baynes got a little action. I woud be interested to know how he looked on the court.
My take on Leonard is that his role is to be a lockdown defender. I don't think he'll ever be a consistent scorer on offense. He'll have his ups and downs but as long as he does his best to shutdown the opponents best player on offense, he's doing his job.
Wow, when was the last time Timmy D fouled out of a game? Even reading that is kind of mind blowing.
Hard fought victory on a night where Spurs were shorthanded and had little incenstive to win but yet still did.
Good read El.
How does a "phenomenal game" only end up with a B?
Kawhi Leonard: This was a phenomenal game from Leonard. He basically shut down Gordon (4-14), and whenever he had the possibility of getting a touch or two on offense, he made the Pelicans pay. On a night where most every Spur didn’t have enough to play tough D all game, he was the exception. Offensively, the Spurs need to find a way to get him in the post more often, especially on match ups like tonight where he had the clear advantage. He rebounded well and also connected on the only 3 pointer he took. B
I'm just asking, not criticizing your review. I have not even seen the game yet and probably will not watch it.
Keep your panties intact.
oops, I knew I was missing someone.... he actually rebounded well... I'm gonna update the writeup in a bit and add him in.
No offense taken. I'm grading overall, not on "what's expected of him". Kawhi had a phenomenal defensive game (probably missed that) and when he received the touches upfront, he did well, he boarded well too. He just wasn't that much involved on offense generally, which mean he didn't contribute that much on that side. Not his fault, but it is what it is. I though him and TD were neck and neck as the best two players after Tony tonight.
Thanks for the kind comments
Nice job on the write up. Have to agree with the grades too, except for Kawhi who I would rate higher. He brought the energy and hit most of his shots, IIRC.
Difficult to gauge Baynes because we only see glimpses... Today, he was mostly in a lineup with Joseph, Mills, Ayres and Belli... not much going on there, that's why he was a net negative. I would be much more interested to see how he looks next to Duncan, for example, as we saw against the Lakers last playoffs.
Didn't catch the game, thanks for the grades
this is some good . hard to believe you filled in for Harlem at the last minute, sort of like how Spurs keep winning when TP sits out tbh.
How much time was on the shot clock when Marco shot that lol
The Pelicans showed quick double teams on Leonard post ups early in the game. Seems other teams are noticing even if the Spurs aren't.
3 seconds left
I'm glad we've managed to keep grades alive. I remember in past years timvp would go out of his way to create average grades for players as the season went on. But it's nice the tradition has carried through.
Nice detailed grades. Great job!
Nice write-up! Thanks for taking the time to do it.
Great game by Tony. Fantastic D by Kawhi. What a shot by Marco! Has any other free agent pickup fit in so quickly?
The Pelicans look like they could be a force in a few years. Davis' TD-like reaction after a foul call was priceless. Really impressed by the brows game and development. Brian Roberts??? It's amazing how many times lesser known players go off on the Spurs with career performances.
Wait, can anyone tell me why Cojo's "getting the minutes now"? Wasn't he just filling in for Manu?
Thanks. That's too bad. Not that he's a world beater by any stretch but, I think Baynes has a higher ceiling than both Bonner and Ayres but Matty has seniority and Jeff has Boylens stamp of approval. With Splitter out, this would have been the perfect opportunity to see what Baynes has to offer. It doesn't look like he's gained Pop's trust yet.
I think he's filling in for Green now.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
