Quick Grades: Spurs vs. Suns - Dec. 20

[Cane]

In the first half the refs seemed like they called everything against the Spurs after Pop used a timeout to yell at a ref about a no-call on Blair. Before that the Spurs were getting a nice string of home calls though.

Parker played better than Manu imo

If Parker didn't get into foul trouble I'd agree with you. Imo its frustrating to see that the youngest member of the big 3 played the least amount of minutes because of that. Especially against the Suns who have Nash and the Spurs were also without George Hill; they really needed Parker on the court but at least Neal and Quinn maximized their opportunities.

Last night:

Manu - 36 mins
Duncan - 31 mins
Nash - 35 mins
Hill - 39 mins
Parker - 29 mins

[Whisky Dog]

Who saw Chris Quinn coming? With these recent performances teams will scout and respect his jumper even more when he's on the court opening up passing and driving lanes and space for others to operate. Awesome stuff Quinn

[Darkwaters]

Have to say right now Im very pleased with the past summer getting Neal and Quinn and agree that Quinn may be worth keeping around. Wonder what will happen when we get Anderson back, poor dude is watching his replacements kick ass. Only pinerider we have now is Udoka.

I wouldn't say Quinn Is kicking ass by any means. But holding down the fort - yes.

Now Neal...different story.

[jjktkk]

Seriously, what is your fixation with the colour of somebody's name on the site? Who really cares? Just post quality thoughts and don't worry if somebody with 18,000 posts talks smack to you.

Kinda of creepy isn't it?

[peacemaker885]

I didn't watch the game :-( but from the posts, can we say that Chris Quinn is a much improved version of our beloved Jaque?

[Libri]

Gary Neal A+
Gary Neal did a good George Hill impersonation. With Hill sidelined with a toe injury, Neal poured in 22 points in 31 minutes. Even though his three-pointers weren’t falling (1-for-6) he produced by hitting runners in the lane and getting to the line eight times. I haven’t been impressed with his defense as of late but I was actually very impressed against the Suns. He showed good agility in one-on-one situations and his defensive rotations were crisp. All in all, the Spurs couldn’t have hoped for more.

It's interesting that Neal is hitting runners similar to Hill and Tony. I'm wondering if Neal had that tear drop in his arsenal before he came to the Spurs. If he learned it with the Spurs, then he very well might have more room for improvement in other areas. Perhaps there are still some facets to his game that are still untapped.

[Mel_13]

It's interesting that Neal is hitting runners similar to Hill and Tony. I'm wondering if Neal had that tear drop in his arsenal before he came to the Spurs. If he learned it with the Spurs, then he very well might have more room for improvement in other areas. Perhaps there are still some facets to his game that are still untapped.

I didn't see Neal play very much in Europe (just the ACB playoffs last year), so I'll defer to anyone who got a good look at him with Benneton the past two seasons. He's been labeled as a sharpshooter here because of his Summer League performance and his early season success from 3 point range.

When you look at his stats from Europe, his 3 point percentages were really just ordinary to below average, especially when you consider the shorter distance. His 2 point percentages, however, were excellent. By the stats alone, it looks as if Neal was a "scorer", rather than a "sharpshooter" in Europe. He's clearly expanded his range to increase his chances of catching on with an NBA team, but he probably had many of these scoring options in his arsenal before he ever showed up in San Antonio.

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/...eal-544/stats/

[Agloco]

It was a fluke, they would've beaten the Lakers and any other team in the NBA if they shot the way they did against us.

And they did it again last night tbh. If there's one thing that makes me nervous about this team its the fact that sometimes they give up points in a hurry. This is due in large part to the boneheaded plays that are being made of late. I cite DeJuans over-exuberant charge when we were up 19 as a complete momentum killer.....The Suns were down 19 and only 2 minutes later the deficit was 9 again. Maddening really.


The difference this year as opposed to last is that we have more weapons: Parkers healthy, Ginobilis healthy, RJeff is more agressive, etc, etc.

[Agloco]

It's interesting that Neal is hitting runners similar to Hill and Tony. I'm wondering if Neal had that tear drop in his arsenal before he came to the Spurs. If he learned it with the Spurs, then he very well might have more room for improvement in other areas. Perhaps there are still some facets to his game that are still untapped.

It's a good question but if I'm a betting man, I'd say that the runners and teardrops have been in his arsenal for a while. He looks VERY comfortable coming off the dribble and shooting that. There's no hesitation at all.

Having said that, I did not follow his career prior to him joining the Spurs.

[jjktkk]

. The Spurs have really had a difficult time in the past plugging the holes when shorthanded, but this year they have managed to stumble upon a couple gems that have been difference makers during this stretch.

Stumble? Kinda of a harsh description of the Spurs scouts. Kudos to the Spurs for bringing in Neal and Quinn. The Spurs have to be one of the deepest backcourts in the league.

[jjktkk]

It's a good question but if I'm a betting man, I'd say that the runners and teardrops have been in his arsenal for a while. He looks VERY comfortable coming off the dribble and shooting that. There's no hesitation at all.

Having said that, I did not follow his career prior to him joining the Spurs.

+1. Neal plays nothing like a rookie. He plays like a 5 year vet.

[benefactor]

Stumble? Kinda of a harsh description of the Spurs scouts. Kudos to the Spurs for bringing in Neal and Quinn. The Spurs have to be one of the deepest backcourts in the league.

Any player you bring in is a crapshoot from a fit perspective. Neal could have been another Haislip and Quinn could have been another Blake Ahearn.

The comment was more directed at the quality of depth. When one considers what the Spurs have dealt with depth-wise over the past several seasons getting good production out of Quinn and Neal is a breath of fresh air.

[SenorSpur]

Indeed Quinn has been surprisingly effective. I guess it's time for me to stop thinking the Curtis Jerrells is in their plans.

[Manufan909]

Have to say right now Im very pleased with the past summer getting Neal and Quinn and agree that Quinn may be worth keeping around. Wonder what will happen when we get Anderson back, poor dude is watching his replacements kick ass. Only pinerider we have now is Udoka.

And Splitter. But I'm guessing you were only taking the smalls into account.

[temujin]

I didn't see Neal play very much in Europe (just the ACB playoffs last year), so I'll defer to anyone who got a good look at him with Benneton the past two seasons. He's been labeled as a sharpshooter here because of his Summer League performance and his early season success from 3 point range.

When you look at his stats from Europe, his 3 point percentages were really just ordinary to below average, especially when you consider the shorter distance. His 2 point percentages, however, were excellent. By the stats alone, it looks as if Neal was a "scorer", rather than a "sharpshooter" in Europe. He's clearly expanded his range to increase his chances of catching on with an NBA team, but he probably had many of these scoring options in his arsenal before he ever showed up in San Antonio.

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/...eal-544/stats/

Spot on.
Neal is one of the players who would be best described as "seeing the basket" all the time.
He has a natural nose for scoring, including inside the paint.
I thought that he could have more problems doing that with bigger defenders, but he adjusted really well.
He has also hit big shots late in contested games.
His major problem was discipline: tactical during some games, and outside of the court.
With the Spurs he has no choice but be disciplined.
As for the latter point, we will see.

[Libri]

I didn't see Neal play very much in Europe (just the ACB playoffs last year), so I'll defer to anyone who got a good look at him with Benneton the past two seasons. He's been labeled as a sharpshooter here because of his Summer League performance and his early season success from 3 point range.

When you look at his stats from Europe, his 3 point percentages were really just ordinary to below average, especially when you consider the shorter distance. His 2 point percentages, however, were excellent. By the stats alone, it looks as if Neal was a "scorer", rather than a "sharpshooter" in Europe. He's clearly expanded his range to increase his chances of catching on with an NBA team, but he probably had many of these scoring options in his arsenal before he ever showed up in San Antonio.

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/...eal-544/stats/

It's a good question but if I'm a betting man, I'd say that the runners and teardrops have been in his arsenal for a while. He looks VERY comfortable coming off the dribble and shooting that. There's no hesitation at all.

Having said that, I did not follow his career prior to him joining the Spurs.

You two were right. Neal had the runners in his arsenal before he came to the Spurs. Here is a video of Neal playing in Europe. The first play at :6 shows Neal's teardrop/running shot.