Spurs/Mavs Game 1 Game Grades

[TMTTRIO]

Manu played too many minutes and it showed there at the end. He can't play over 30 minutes anymore at his age (today he played 31). He's only been averaging about 21 and it should stay around that.

[pgardn]

The Duncan stat line looks great, but at least half his points came via Parker on easy layups. And he just completely missed a bunny by going reverse. Duncan would be by far my favorite player but I can't give him a sharp play A, just a stat A.

Parker was the engine again, with help from Manu. Those are our two players that helped break the Mavs down.
Parker did disappear, but when aggressive, he was the man.

Imo none earn an A. Parker and Duncan B+ (Duncan for being in good position for the bunnies)

We are a much better team than what I saw.
This was a HUGE chance for the Mavs and they declined the gift.

The other objections I have were already mentioned.
Thanks for the effort anyway.

[superjames1992]

Manu played too many minutes and it showed there at the end. He can't play over 30 minutes anymore at his age (today he played 31). He's only been averaging about 21 and it should stay around that.

I thought he looked okay at the end fatigue-wise, but more than anything it wasn't the sheer number of minutes, but the lack of rest in the second half. With the exception of a ~1-2 minute break early in the fourth quarter, Manu played the rest of the game from the 7 minute mark in the third quarter on. I think if Belli didn't have his head up his ass Manu would have gotten more rest, though.

[Hoops Czar]

If Danny Green can't break free from Calderon on offense, then that's on Danny Green. If he's not getting clean looks from three, he should be slashing and cutting toward the basket for layup opportunities. This isn't the first time Green's been stonewalled on the perimeter and it won't be the last. Maybe Green doesn't deserve an F but a solid D is just about right.

[Chinook]

If Danny Green can't break free from Calderon on offense, then that's on Danny Green. If he's not getting clean looks from three, he should be slashing and cutting toward the basket for layup opportunities. This isn't the first time Green's been stonewalled on the perimeter and it won't be the last. Maybe Green doesn't deserve an F but a solid D is just about right.

Why in the world would Green cut into Parker's driving lanes just so he can get shots? He could have been selfish and tried to get his at the expense of the offense, but that's not his game. He kept his man on him, which is why Parker drove to the lane unimpeded most of the game. That's Danny's real role on offense.

I agree a D seems fine, though. He seemed too content to just space the floor on offense, and he was inconsistent on defense.

[Hoops Czar]

Why in the world would Green cut into Parker's driving lanes just so he can get shots? He could have been selfish and tried to get his at the expense of the offense, but that's not his game. He kept his man on him, which is why Parker drove to the lane unimpeded most of the game. That's Danny's real role on offense.

I agree a D seems fine, though. He seemed too content to just space the floor on offense, and he was inconsistent on defense.

It's called movement without the basketball and there was very little of it in game 1. Parker didn't dominate the paint in the second half and he needed to dominate in the first because everybody was just standing around or jogging in place. The Spurs won't beat better teams playing hero ball and they certainly won't beat better teams if every teammate isn't involved in the offense to some capacity. Green isn't a one trick pony on offense. He has the ability to come off screens and curls and drain 10 foot jumpshots. He's not a three or bust player. Heck, he could shoot over the top of Calderon and ther'd be nothing that Jose could do about it.

Green will almost certainly see better defenders than Calderon en route to the finals. Just watched the entire game on DVR for a second time. Calderon wasn't even looking in Green's direction half the time and could still guard him.

[heyheymymy]

pretty lackluster effort today but i think it was largely just rust and coming out flat on a noon start. i think they'll come out a bit stronger in game 2 because there was a pretty thin margin of error this game and i don't think they'll want to test their luck like that again.

[Chinook]

It's called movement without the basketball and there was very little of it in game 1. Parker didn't dominate the paint in the second half and he needed to dominate in the first because everybody was just standing around or jogging in place. The Spurs won't beat better teams playing hero ball and they certainly won't beat better teams if every teammate isn't involved in the offense to some capacity. Green isn't a one trick pony on offense. He has the ability to come off screens and curls and drain 10 foot jumpshots. He's not a three or bust player. Heck, he could shoot over the top of Calderon and ther'd be nothing that Jose could do about it.

Green will almost certainly see better defenders than Calderon en route to the finals. Just watched the entire game on DVR for a second time. Calderon wasn't even looking in Green's direction half the time and could still guard him.

That's the point. Green knows how to get open, run off screens, cut to the paint. But him doing so comes at the expense of other players. Green cutting limits Parker's driving lanes. Him running off screens takes the bigs away from their sweet spots and away from other guys needing screens. The other players have to want Green to be a higher option for those things to work. That's why Green would need to get plays called for him.

Essentially, the starting offense is in Parker mode by default. Green mode is something the team can do, but they only break it out on rare occasions. When the offense is in Parker mode, Green does little more than slide around the perimeter. He can definitely slide better than he did today, but he almost always gets open as a result of the defense helping on Parker's drives. No one was stopping Parker from driving in the first and fourth quarters, mainly because they didn't leave Green. If Pop wanted Green to score more, he would have called plays for him like he did in the last Memphis game. Pop will do this later in the series if he feels Green is losing too much focus.

Can you honestly say Green shooting contested jumpers is something the Spurs should ever want when the Big Three are each having above-average performances? I can't. But I'm not worried about Danny's offense. This is a Green series. He will leave a mark on subsequent games.

[gilmor]

u know we can't win the championship if the Big 3 log in too many minutes.. We will see in Games 2 and 3.

But Game 3 will see we rely on the Big 3 once more. Hopefully Game 2 somebody else step up.

[Austin_Toros]

I didn't say you said I was mean. I was making a point that I have gone out of my way to be nice, so that you don't lose that fire in the face of a tough demotion. I know you will pull through if you can become mentally strong and learn from your many, many mistakes.

What's wrong with N0 LyF3 ScRuB sharing his opinion? It's no different to any other thread. There haven't been any grades posted in a while so he's doing a favour for those who want to read grades.

[Hoops Czar]

That's the point. Green knows how to get open, run off screens, cut to the paint. But him doing so comes at the expense of other players. Green cutting limits Parker's driving lanes. Him running off screens takes the bigs away from their sweet spots and away from other guys needing screens. The other players have to want Green to be a higher option for those things to work. That's why Green would need to get plays called for him.

Essentially, the starting offense is in Parker mode by default. Green mode is something the team can do, but they only break it out on rare occasions. When the offense is in Parker mode, Green does little more than slide around the perimeter. He can definitely slide better than he did today, but he almost always gets open as a result of the defense helping on Parker's drives. No one was stopping Parker from driving in the first and fourth quarters, mainly because they didn't leave Green. If Pop wanted Green to score more, he would have called plays for him like he did in the last Memphis game. Pop will do this later in the series if he feels Green is losing too much focus.

Can you honestly say Green shooting contested jumpers is something the Spurs should ever want when the Big Three are each having above-average performances? I can't. But I'm not worried about Danny's offense. This is a Green series. He will leave a mark on subsequent games.

Chinook, I can't tell if you're making the bolded up or believe that. The Spurs usually have three or four options per play so if one or two break down, the Spurs have backups by default. It's the constant ball movement and player movement without the ball that got the Spurs to the 60 win plateau and it's the lack there of in game 1 that nearly got them beat. Both Duncan and Diaw prefer to play outside the paint these days (today, being a rare exception for Duncan) so I don't see how that would impact Green's ability to come off curls or screens. Even at that, Green rarely has play specifically designed for him. He's usually the beneficiary of a Ginobili/Parker drive or a Duncan kick out. Part of Greens problem wasn't the lack of play calls but, the inability to shake pathetic defenders in Calderon and Crowder. That falls on Green's shoulders, not his teammates.

I didn't realize there was a Green mode. Actually, Parker mode worked because the bigs of Dallas were slow to react when Parker drove the lane (just a subtle reminder why Dallas is 22nd in the league in opponents FG%) In Green's defense, he has a quick release and needs very little spacing to get a shot off. In the second half, the Spurs just stopped looking for him because the activity level wasn't there. This will have to change as the playoffs continue because the Spurs can't rely on Belinelli's offense to offset the damage done on defense when he's on the floor. The good news is it's only one game so if you're not worried, neither am I.

[littlecoyotecoin]

I said Green put up strong defensive numbers and doesn't deserve an F. How is saying Ginobili had one more board in two more minutes a counter to that? It's not like I said Green had a better game than Manu.

Would you mind if I agreed with you? Danny had a mediocre game, giving him an "F" is way out of line. He didn't score, but, as mentioned, he did all sorts of other things that net him a "D" or better. Again, he took two shots, and he's not a creator. Unreasonable expectations are unreasonable.

[littlecoyotecoin]

You can't be a starter and have zero ing pts in the playoffs that is why he deserves a F- - He only shot the ball two times because he played like a scarred he needs to find his balls and put them back in and play like he deserves to playing for the best team in the NBA. I like him but he needs to play with some balls get some at ude because we can't win if he plays like this through the series.

You protest too much.

Tim Duncan, PF 37 1-9 0-0 3-6 1 2 3 2 3 1 1 1 5

Hall of Famer in a playoff game. Go-to guy. Ball in his hand much more. Couldn't do that night. Ended in a loss, I think we can give Danny a pass, seeing as he isn't a Hall of Famer, doesn't have the ball in his hands all the time, played fewer minutes, and actually had more rebounds. It was one game, no over-reaction necessary.

[JR3]

Jesus ing christ

Manu with a better grade than Splitter...

Really? On Easter?

[gilmor]

You guys are so ing sensitive about Game Grades.. Bottom line is that we win.. who ing cares Manu played better than Parker.. or Parker played better than Manu..

[ElNono]

You guys are so ing sensitive about Game Grades.. Bottom line is that we win.. who ing cares Manu played better than Parker.. or Parker played better than Manu..

yah, and it was a great win earned with some amazingly solid D when it mattered... they need to keep that going for longer in games, or we're gonna be in trouble, but man, when they lock up like that it's a beauty.

[Sean Cagney]

You guys are so ing sensitive about Game Grades.. Bottom line is that we win.. who ing cares Manu played better than Parker.. or Parker played better than Manu..

You are 100% DEAD ON!

[DAF86]

Danny Green: 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 0 turnovers, 0-2 from the field Grade: F
Manu Ginobili: 6 rebonds, 3 assists, 4 turnovers including 2 critical TOs that almost gave away the game b-b-but three 3s Grade: B+

Letting the pts out to fit the agenda.

[Chinook]

Chinook, I can't tell if you're making the bolded up or believe that. The Spurs usually have three or four options per play so if one or two break down, the Spurs have backups by default. It's the constant ball movement and player movement without the ball that got the Spurs to the 60 win plateau and it's the lack there of in game 1 that nearly got them beat. Both Duncan and Diaw prefer to play outside the paint these days (today, being a rare exception for Duncan) so I don't see how that would impact Green's ability to come off curls or screens. Even at that, Green rarely has play specifically designed for him. He's usually the beneficiary of a Ginobili/Parker drive or a Duncan kick out. Part of Greens problem wasn't the lack of play calls but, the inability to shake pathetic defenders in Calderon and Crowder. That falls on Green's shoulders, not his teammates.

The Spurs' options are in the sets, not their plays, to be precise. Each option is its own play. Each play can have "options" in the sense that a player can pass to multiple teammates, but those are usually reactive and not the result of the Xs and Os. By that I mean that Parker will only give up the ball if his own path to the basket is impeded, unless the Spurs are running a play like the Hammer, in which the baseline pass to the weak-side corner is the desired result. Green wasn't left open to get a pass from Parker. That meant Danny didn't get shots, but it also allowed Parker to go one-on-one with Dallas' bigs with no help.

This is Green's true purpose on offense. I feel like you have a certain misconception that if likened to football, Green is a wide-receiver to Parker's quarterback. You seem to think Danny is supposed to get open for the offense to work. I feel a better analogy would be Green being a defensive lineman to Parker's linebacker. Green's job is to occupy players to give Parker favorable match-ups. If Green scores, great, just like it's great if the lineman penetrates and tackles the running back behind the line. But that's not why he's there. So long as Parker and Duncan dominate inside, Green's lack of attempts is not a sign of poor offense. It's only when the opposing teams can both help on Parker AND shut down Green that the Spurs have issues.

I didn't realize there was a Green mode. Actually, Parker mode worked because the bigs of Dallas were slow to react when Parker drove the lane (just a subtle reminder why Dallas is 22nd in the league in opponents FG%) In Green's defense, he has a quick release and needs very little spacing to get a shot off. In the second half, the Spurs just stopped looking for him because the activity level wasn't there. This will have to change as the playoffs continue because the Spurs can't rely on Belinelli's offense to offset the damage done on defense when he's on the floor. The good news is it's only one game so if you're not worried, neither am I.

All that leads to the mode part. I think that's the best way to analyze the Spurs' offense, rather than charting plays or sets. While the Spurs seem to be this free-flowing offense where everyone shares the ball and they are constantly looking for the best shot for the team, the reality is that it's not that simple. The team uses a single player as a catalyst each time down the floor. That player creates the initial breakdowns that lead to the ball-movement. Parker and Ginobili break down their men off the dribble. Duncan does his work from the high post. Diaw and Leonard back their men down.

Green's mode is based on him running off screens and moving without the ball inside the arc. If you recall the last Phoenix game, you know what Green mode looks like. That's not something he can do consistently when the Spurs are in Parker mode, mainly because Parker is not good enough off the ball and because Green isn't good enough with the ball to justify taking Parker off it. So the team has to sprinkle Green mode in small doses by running plays for him here and there. Really, I don't think Pop ever wants to use Green mode in a meaningful game. He just wants it there as an option for times like last year's Finals, where a package of plays with which the team had real experience would have allowed Danny to stay effective after the Heat ran him off the three-point line. In case you think the first five games of the Finals where Green mode, they weren't. They were just Green playing up to his potential in Parker mode.

tl;dr: Green is pretty much just a spot-up shooter when Parker is on the floor. That's not going to change any time soon. He can play that role better than he did in Game One, but he's not going to show any diversity unless Pop calls plays allowing him to.

[Chinook]

Would you mind if I agreed with you? Danny had a mediocre game, giving him an "F" is way out of line. He didn't score, but, as mentioned, he did all sorts of other things that net him a "D" or better. Again, he took two shots, and he's not a creator. Unreasonable expectations are unreasonable.

I've never had any problem with your takes. You can feel free to agree and disagree with whatever you want to. My beef with you had nothing to do with your stance on Daye.

[SpurYank]

I do appreciate the trouble you went through to post these grades. However, re Manu & Splitter, we watched different games, you and I. Dirk IS the Maverick's offense. Splitter made it very difficult for this offense to make an appearance.

[TheCerebral1]

There's no way Split City was not at least a solid B+. He played tough defense on Dirk, and chipped in his normal near double double. A win is a win.

[superbigtime]

Team basketball better make a comeback. A little concerned about Beli. Not Patty or Green though.

[jARS mEsH sEt]

Letting the pts out to fit the agenda.

"DAF86 is a spurs fan from argentina." Surprise surprise

[Killakobe81]

"You have an incoming friend request from El Nono"

Damn, Deep what is with the passive/aggressive beatdown?
Isn't this Spur on spur crime?

i also love the I did it for your benefit as you spread cheeks and ram in ass ....