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Please win that Bucks game.
Ugly game. Neither team played well. Thankfully, the good guys strung together enough competent minutes of basketball in the fourth quarter to escape Atlanta with a 111-104 victory to extend San Antonio's winning streak to four games.
For the vast majority of the night, the Spurs weren't playing with enough purpose or intensity. The Hawks, luckily, spent much of the evening getting in their own way. If this game had a soundtrack, it'd be "Entry Of The Gladiators" on repeat.
Despite the unsightliness, the Spurs will gladly accept a road win. With an overall record of 37-29, San Antonio is only 12-22 away from the friendly confines of the AT&T Center. An road win is indeed a good win.
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LaMarcus Aldridge
While LaMarcus Aldridge's statistics look fantastic, his actual play wasn't as impressive as his numbers. He settled for fadeaways too easily, didn't look to take advantage of mismatches often enough and wasn't running the court as hard as usual. Aldridge wasn't too active on defense but he was effective guarding the paint. The aforementioned criticism aside, Aldridge's production was top notch. He scored efficiently and saved his best ball for down the stretch.
Grade: B+
Summary: Aldridge could have been better but he was still really good.
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DeMar DeRozan
The good: DeMar DeRozan hit at least half of his field goal attempts for the seventh consecutive game. When he looked to pass, his playmaking was quite effective. Defensively, I'd rate him as slightly above average. He fell asleep at times, particularly when navigating around screens, but he was reasonably energetic on that end. The bad: DeRozan let the refs get in his head. He needs to learn how to not let negative emotions cause his play to go into a tailspin. Without mental toughness, he'll never be a plus playoff performer. Against the Hawks, it's difficult to say he was much of a difference-maker. Fourteen points on 14 shots and middling defense? Meh.
Grade: C+
Summary: DeRozan didn't help a whole lot but he also didn't hurt the team much.
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Derrick White
Wow. Derrick White put up 18 points, nine assists, six rebounds and six blocks in 29 minutes. As the stats suggest, White was a terror in nearly every facet of the game. Defensively, he was really good against Trae Young and he consistently supplied stellar help-defense, especially in transition. Needless to say, his six blocked shots were a career-high. (White's timidness to start the season is so very apparent in hindsight. He went 21 games and 433 minutes before his first block of the season. He now has 13 blocks in his last five games.) Offensively, White was masterful. He was deadly in pick-and-rolls and made nearly flawless decisions. His patience, high basketball IQ, sneaky athleticism and ability to hit shots from a variety of angles makes him a handful when he gets it going. The Spurs almost lost the Nuggets game because they took the ball out of his hands. Tonight, the Spurs were able to beat the Hawks because they kept the ball in his hands. With the game tied 91-91 with five a half minutes remaining, White went on to score or assist on the team's next 12 points during a 12-5 run that gave the Spurs a lead they'd never relinquish.
Grade: A
Summary: White was all over the court and saved his best play for when it mattered most.
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Rudy Gay
Rudy Gay was rock solid in Atlanta. Defensively, he was physical beneath the rim, pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds and his length disrupted the passing lanes on multiple occasions. Offensively, he looked to punish the Hawks whenever he was defended by a smaller player. Despite being back in the starting lineup to replace an injured Jakob Poeltl (hamstring), Gay spent time with the bench squad and successfully quarterbacked that unit for possessions at a time. His passing, once again, was an asset.
Grade: A-
Summary: Gay came to play.
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Bryn Forbes
Bryn Forbes spent much of Wednesday night rumbling, bumbling and stumbling around the court. He had difficulties on offense whenever he tried to put the ball on the court against pressure. His rotations on defense were similarly as adventurous. I'm not sure what was wrong but he looked painfully uncomfortable for much of his 25 minutes of action. To his credit, Forbes kept firing away whenever he had a glimmer of daylight. His individual defense was also adequate.
Grade: C-
Summary: Forbes struggled but at least the kept playing.
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Marco Belinelli
Marco Belinelli nailed a three-pointer less than ten seconds into his first stint ... and then proceeded to do next to nothing the rest of his time on the hardwood. Defensively, he was even more statuesque than usual; anything resembling a quick move had Belinelli beat. Offensively, he just wasn't very involved. At least he limited his mistakes and ill-advised shots, I guess.
Grade: C-
Summary: Belinelli was mostly MIA after his first ten seconds.
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Davis Bertans
It was great to see Davis Bertans get 11 shot attempts against the Hawks. He has found open shots to be few and far between as of late. However, truth be told, Bertans didn't shoot nearly enough tonight. While he took ten three-pointers, he passed up another five that where he was open enough to let it fly. Bertans value goes south whenever he started hesitating, as was the case tonight. Defensively, he was up and down. He had a few great defensive possessions but also had a few where he made basic mistakes.
Grade: B-
Summary: Bertans shot ten threes but should have shot more.
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Patty Mills
In his first couple stints, I thought Patty Mills was bad. His energy was nonexistent, he didn't appear to be mentally prepared and was committing boneheaded errors. Thankfully, Mills eventually remembered that it was a game day. While his three-point stroke never straightened out, his defensive intensity improved and he started hurting the Hawks with successful forays to the hoop.
Grade: C-
Summary: Mills was asleep but woke up in time to avoid disaster.
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Drew Eubanks
Pretty good, pretty good. With Poeltl out, Drew Eubanks played center behind Aldridge. He rebounded well, flashed very good timing when going for blocks, and wasn't skittish about getting into the middle of the action on offense by setting screens, rolling with purpose and calling for the ball on the low block. It's too soon to say whether Eubanks is an NBA player but the early returns are positive. He passes the eye-test as he has good size, a sturdy frame and he's legitimately athletic for a center.
Grade: B
Summary: Eubanks gave the Spurs ten good minutes.
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Pop
Talk about a quick adjustment. Last game, force-feeding DeRozan down the stretch almost cost the Spurs the game. This game, White was rightly given the opportunity to orchestrate the offense during money time ... and he succeeded with flying colors. Give Pop credit for making the change (and DeRozan deserves a handshake for accepting the backseat). We'll see if White continues to be the team's closer when he's not being defended by an undersized rookie. Time will tell. Beyond that welcome sight, I didn't have an issue with the rotation. The Spurs don't play again until Sunday so some players playing extended minutes wasn't a big deal.
Grade: A-
Summary: White the closer? Yes please, Pop.
Looking ahead: Four straight wins after the tumultuous Rodeo Road Trip is just what the doctor ordered. Getting one, even an ugly one, on the road is a positive.
Next up, the Spurs host the Bucks and their league-best record after three days of rest. Considering that'll be a back-to-back for Milwaukee -- and the fact that the Spurs will be at home -- the good guys have a definite chance to push the win streak to five. Rest up ... and then get it.
Please win that Bucks game.
It's at home so there's a slight chance, tbh.
Nice write up, as usual, it is a pleasure to read your posts. I feel you were too harsh on LA, I think he deserves an A, but that's just me.
The emergence of Derrick White is my favourite story of this season. I can't wait to see him play alongside DJ. Those two can be something special.
Wingstop 2.0 coming soon..
White is playing like a veteran when used as a closer. Very poised and calm with great concentration on all facets of the game. As the opposing coach said in his after game interview, (paraphrased_"White was the reason the Spurs won. Down the stretch he was great on both ends." When opposing coaches start giving you those accolades, you have made yourself a premium player. Well done.
Thank god DDR didn't have the ball in his hands.
But with Poeltl out, we have only ine center -Eubanks can't (yet?) play minutes against an average team, frankly. Missing Pau already?
Yup. To expound on this:
“I’ve been around a few elite defenders in Memphis with Mike Conley, Tony Allen — the best defender I’ve seen in the NBA — and Marc Gasol, and we didn’t trap in Memphis,” Pierce said. “When you have an elite defender that can do damage by himself, you don’t have to trap. They have that. Derrick White is an elite defender. And a guard that can get six blocks in a game is pretty good.”
Good road win. Nice to see White owning Trae Young on both ends of the court. This years crop of rookies must really suck since Young is even mentioned as a rookie of the year challenger.
White got that killer instinct I was talking about earlier this year but he lacks some talent to show it fully.
Let's hope he can develop more so we can have some quality in the backcourt, him along with DM.
"To his credit, Forbes kept firing away whenever he had a glimmer of daylight."... cmon
White with a stat line matched only by Duncan and Robinson
White just wins
Any White skeptics might want to check themselves
LMA was having trouble with Lynn when trying to get close in shots
timvp is trolling us
Thanks for the grades timvp.
Yep, the game was hard to watch. At least the team started with good energy and just with that, the Hawks didn't have the feeling of having a chance.
Rudy Gay keeps failing to help out inside and to help the helper in the paint. The team receives too many points and concedes too many offensive rebounds because of that. That's been a difference maker in Spurs defense all season long. DeRozan going through screens and playing good position off the ball defense is another indicator of team defense quality in a particular game.
Brynn Forbes game is looking worse every week. He's starting to look like last season's himself. Not good. Maybe Forbes and Mills are running out of gas? They've played much more than expected.
Eubanks plays harder than I thought. He's more physical than expected and I like it. To jump trying to block every shot is a bad idea but as long as he makes a hard foul every time he misses the block I'm ok with that because this team lacks a lot of that. Especially in the rol he has in this roster. Though he will have to learn how to play better defense if he wants to stay on the court for some minutes, but I'm eager to watch him play vs good teams, he's not screwing it up attacking and plays hard under the rim.
Another solid game from Aldridge leading the team to the win.
Like I've been saying, the best player in this team is White. The second best is Gay. The efficiency numbers DO NOT LIE.
DeRozan is like #4 in the pecking order.
What's needed is not to have DeRozan bring the ball up. Have White bring it up and if DeRozan has a mismatch, then give it to him.
Someone with basketball IQ needs to be on that court to decide who's going to create the offense. In the end, it's all about being more efficient than the opponent.
Eubanks is a serviceable player. Nothing elite here, just good enough to do little things. He's wide enough for screens. Got enough length and speed to bother people in the paint. He's got two useful hands (ambidextrous). I don't know if he can space the floor. He plays center, but is too small against most centers.
I think if he knows the offense and defense, he should stick. He's a better defensive player than Cunningham, that's for sure!!
Cunningham is a disappointment. He's actually got very good percentages from 3. The damn problem is that he can't defend anyone and is lousy with help defense.
Eubanks is a hall of famer compared to Pau of the last 3 months.
Timvp grades about Forbes is like when a woman tells a guy, well she has a great personality, when trying to convince him to date her friend.
Thanks for the grades Timvp. Agree on all the grades. White is growing right before our very eyes. Him taking charge late to keep the lead was crucial for the win. I hope that continues as he develops more ways on breaking down the defense to close the game - see Manu. Derozan giving way, if that's the case, is big. I always feel DDR doesn't mind and always willing to do anything for the team. But hopefully it's a call also to improve especially in his long range. His fakes sometimes are weak and he's caught picking up his dribble behind a defender without anywhere to go. I'm sure he'l figure a way. The coaches are good at that also.
Eubanks with 5 rebounds, with 2 offensive and a block in 10 minutes was huge. Yes I notice that hard roll to the basket. His teammates will eventually find him. He is a fresh change for Pau. And I always feel he develops like a David Lee with his energy. He could be that answer to our backup big.
It was an ugly game, but a great great away win, or any win for that matter. I'm hoping they're building a momentum and feeling good about winning. Having the confidence that they can beat anyone when they play the right way is a plus. GSG!
haha, i actually laughed out loud at this but then got depressed
cause its true
what a waste with gasol
Derrick White is quickly becoming one of my favorite players.
There was a part of the game where he was dribbling out by the 3 pt line scoping the D, and then he just had a burst of speed quickly went to the basket for an open layup. He actually missed the layup lol but he's been proving that he can finish at the basket so i'm not worried about the miss. I'm more excited about that burst of speed. Seriously reminded me of Parker.
I get so tired of seeing this team settling for 3's. Its so refreshing to see just attack the basket.
White is so clearly the best PG on the team and I think it's just easier for fans--with the distance we're afforded--to see it and say "make it so". The idea takes longer to settle with the players and coaches, who have certain expectations about roles going into each season, and are reluctant to trust a young player immediately. But we're about at the point where we'll see the ball starting in White's hand the majority of the time.
I agree and feel we may be selling DeRozan short. He's been ball dominant but that is just as likely coaching and game plan as his own personality.
Can she fit in a rowboat?
And Manu being a gym rat I think can workout with how to break defense with the kid. I think Manu is just itching to show his original euro-step if he's not already.
And if refs are letting it, hey work with the step back too. Doncic is doing it. I mean I hate Harden, but he plays big with his body and Derrick can fathom some of his moves attacking the basket.
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