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Game thought! Thanks.
After a thrilling victory in the season opener, it didn't take long for the Spurs to realize they still have work to do in terms of gelling and building cohesiveness. On the second night of a back-to-back, the Spurs fell flat against the Bulls.
The 92-85 final score isn't indicative of how much the Spurs struggled. San Antonio could never get a rhythm and even when they created open looks, the shots clanged off the rim.
The Bulls looked decent but, in truth, they should have won the game easier than they did with how much the Spurs were off. Chicago is a young team with good depth but making it out of the first round is an accomplishment likely out of their grasp.
Overall, it was sobering night for the Spurs and their fans. The transition from talented on paper to talented on the court isn't going to be as seamless as it appeared in the season's first contest. This, as is always the case with Spurs basketball, will be a process.
Tim Duncan
34:23 minutes, 28 points, 16 rebounds, three blocks, two assists, two steals
13-for-19 from the field, 2-for-4 at the line
Tim Duncan's play was definitely the bright spot for San Antonio. Offensively, Duncan was shooting extremely well from the perimeter. He also used his strength advantage against the smaller Bulls to get a few easy buckets around the rim. Duncan's defense was also decently solid. He protected the rim and was alert when he needed to make a quick rotation. Though he finished with 16 rebounds, he didn't always box out well and was one of the leading reasons why the Bulls grabbed so many offensive rebounds -- especially in the first half. All in all, however, it was good to see that Duncan still is fully capable of carrying the team on any given night.
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Manu Ginobili
26:04 minutes, 12 points, six rebounds, four assists
3-for-11 from the field, 1-for-6 on three-pointers, 5-for-5 at the line
Once again, Manu Ginobili played well. The main flaw to his game was his three-point shooting. Not only did he shoot for a poor percentage from deep, a few of his attempts were of the questionable variety. When he wasn't shooting threes, the rest of his game was positive. He looked strong on his drives to the hoop, he made good passes and he competed on the boards. Defensively, he was on and off, with his sub par possessions on defense appearing to be caused by the fact that Ginobili still isn't in game shape.
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Tony Parker
34:40 minutes, eight points, three rebounds, three assists, three turnovers
4-for-11 from the field
I'm not sure what was wrong with Tony Parker but he was about as listless as you'll ever see him. Perhaps it was the hard fall from the previous night that had Parker playing without much aggression. Whatever the case may be, he wasn't breaking down the defense much at all and that caused the Spurs to struggle for consistent, quality looks. Defensively, he was decent against Rose but it was nothing to write home about. If you had to circle one reason why the Spurs had a difficult time offensively on the night, it would be Parker's lack of attack.
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Richard Jefferson
30:21 minutes, nine points, two rebounds
3-for-9 from the field, 0-for-3 on three-pointers, 3-for-6 at the line
This is not exactly the start of the season Richard Jefferson had in mind. While his easing into the offensive hierarchy is likely by design, his inefficiency surely is not. Hopefully he soon loses the hesitation and finds a niche he is comfortable with on offense. As it stands, Jefferson's jumper isn't very pretty and his newness to the situation is painfully obvious. The good news is that his defense has been better than expected so far. He's getting back on transition, picking up his man early and putting in a good effort on each possession.
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Michael Finley
28:04 minutes, six points, two rebounds
2-for-5 from the field, 1-for-3 on three-pointers
It was a quiet night for Michael Finley, with four of his five shots coming in the fourth quarter when the Spurs were trying to shoot their way back into the game. Without Parker penetrating as much, Finley spent most of his time standing defended out on the perimeter. On the other end, Finley's defense left much to be desired. He wasn't getting scored on a great deal but he was giving up open shots left and right.
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Matt Bonner
19:42 minutes, seven points, five rebounds
3-for-6 from the field, 1-for-4 on three-pointers
Matt Bonner played a predictable game. He helped spread the court offensively and he competed defensively. However, his lack of rebounding ability was highlighted in the first half as the Bulls were skying over him for offensive rebound after offensive rebound. In the second half, his rebounding improved but then his individual defense went south. As is usually the case, if Bonner isn't burying three-pointers, the rest of his game struggles to compensate.
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Antonio McDyess
16:23 minutes, one point, three rebounds
0-for-4 from the field, 1-for-2 at the line
Following an impressive debut, Antonio McDyess took a step back in his second outing. He forced a couple of shots offensively and played unsure defense. After looking like such a natural the first time around, his lack of experience playing with his teammates became apparent. The good news is McDyess looks like he's in good shape and he's moving well. Notoriously a slow starter, it doesn't appear as if a lack of conditioning is an issue.
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Roger Mason, Jr.
17:39 minutes, two assists
0-for-4 from the field, 0-for-3 on three-pointers
The Spurs desperately needed some sharpshooting from off the bench but Roger Mason, Jr. didn't oblige. Insteadb he added to the problem. Not only was he missing but he also attempted a few bad shots. Mason did make a good pass or two but it was mostly a struggle for him on the offensive end. On defense, he wasn't much better. If Mason is to keep a foothold in the rotation, he'll need to play better.
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George Hill
17:18 minutes, eight points, two rebounds, two steals
2-for-6 from the field, 1-for-2 on three-pointers, 3-for-4 at the line
George Hill was given an opportunity to win a bigger share of minutes but he came up empty. When the Bulls went with a lineup that featured two point guards, Pop responded by putting Hill at shooting guard. But with Hill not doing much offensively and not holding his own defensively, Pop was forced to look elsewhere. After a very good preseason, Hill hasn't yet carried that type of play over to the regular season. Hopefully that occurs shortly.
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DeJuan Blair
12:43 minutes, six points, four rebounds
3-for-3 from the field
DeJuan Blair was very good in the first game. In the second game ... not so much. His statistics look decent but he wasn't helping the team's cause. In fact, the Bulls took advantage of Blair's supposed biggest strength -- rebounding. When he was in the game in the first half, the Bulls were getting offensive rebounds on practically every missed shot. Defensively, he was again a liability. Offensively, his natural basketball talents were still on display but the chemistry with his teammates was lacking. To put it succinctly, Blair was a rookie who looked like a rookie.
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Gregg Popovich
By starting Finley and Bonner, Pop puts the Spurs at an athleticism, size and speed disadvantage to begin games. The Bulls gladly took advantage. Pop will eventually alter the starting lineup, the question is when. Regarding Blair, I thought Pop should have weathered the storm a bit better and given him more first half minutes. I like that he gave Hill minutes at shooting guard, even if it didn't pan out. Small ball also wasn't a bad idea, especially considering the small lineups the Bulls were utilizing.
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Offense
Offense was hard to come by on Thursday night. For the game, the Spurs shot 42.3% from the field and hit only 4-of-21 three-pointers and 15-of-23 free throws. Take out Duncan's marksmanship and San Antonio shot just 33.9% from the field. The 13 turnovers compared to only 15 assists illustrates how much the Spurs were off their offensive game.
Defense
The Spurs actually were above average in a number of facets defensively. They held the Bulls to 41.7% shooting from the field and Chicago hit only 3-of-16 three-pointers. But there were also a number of negatives -- namely the 15 offensive rebounds pulled down by the Bulls. The Spurs also only forced nine turnovers while allowing the Bulls to pile up 20 assists.
Drive to Five
It's not going to be easy. With the roster overhaul, the Spurs will experience a learning curve. Considering that it was a second night of a back-to-back against a young and athletic team in their home opener, a loss against the Bulls shouldn't have been too surprising. On Saturday night against the Kings, let's hope the Spurs can get back on the winning track.
Believe.
Game thought! Thanks.
Thanks of the insight. The Spurs had a bad night where nothing clicked and nothing worked, with the exception of Duncan.
Thanks a lot.
solid takes as usual. thanks timvp.
4 for 4 with 3 grays nice start
Mason is better as a starter
Some elaboration on this, please. I didn't record the game, so I only saw the action as it happened. I do, however, keep a live boxscore open as the game progresses.
In the first half, the Bulls had 19 second chance points off of 10 offensive rebounds.
Bonner played a little over 10 minutes and guarded Tyrus Thomas. In the first half, Thomas had zero points and zero offensive rebounds.
The worst of the damage was done by Noah, as you noted in Tim's summary. Deng and Gibson were the other two. Deng was guarded by RJ and Finley, while Gibson's success in the first half was all against Blair while Bonner was on the bench.
EDIT: Bonner had two shifts in the first half. In the first shift, Noah's opening minute putback was the only offensive rebound collected by the Bulls. While he was off the court the Bulls recorded four more. During his second shift, Rose and Noah had offensive rebounds. After he went back to the bench, the Bulls got their final three offensive rebounds of the half. That's three while he was on the court and seven while he was on the bench.
Last edited by Mel_13; 10-31-2009 at 12:06 PM.
Gray has nothing to do with it. There are posters who are way newer than me that have their names colored black.
If Rj and Tony attacked the rim more this game would've been different but I don't know if the Bulls were too quick and athletic or we just weren't attacking. Wheres Tpork to defend Finley and Bonner? I'm pretty sure he's too much of a ing pussy to say anything in this thread...pussy
Right now RJ seems to be forcing everything maybe trying to hard and not letting his game come to him. Talent does not just leave and he has proven his talent over his career. Once he settles down I believe he will be ok.
Agreed. I think he needs to be put back in the starting lineup to try get him going early. He will also get better shots playing with Duncan/Parker/RJ. Hopefully the McDyess transition to the starting lineup is sooner than later too.
You echo my thoughts from the other RJ thread. Little things like the cut to the basket from the corner when Duncan was passing towards the three point line make it obvious that he is going to need time to get comfortable...both with his role in the system and with the tendencies of his teammates. I think by this time next month we should start to see him meshing better with his surroundings.
I agree with you that Pop should've given Blair more minutes. I disagree with you when you write: "If you had to circle one reason why the Spurs had a difficult time offensively on the night, it would be Parker's lack of attack."
With this many scorers on the team all sucking at the same time, you can't pin this one on Parker.
After watching it again, it was more first half and third quarter. Noah's activity wasn't solely against Duncan. Sometimes Duncan would rotate and Bonner's job was to box out. I'd say Bonner wasn't as bad about it as Duncan or even Blair but Bonner wasn't exactly going out of his way to help out on the boards. Two defensive boards in the first half from Bonner was part of the problem.
Exactly! Pop don't want dunks he want 3s!!!!!!!!!!!!
I leaning more towards Duncan learning that RJ is not Bowen instead of vice versa.Exactly! Pop don't want dunks he want 3s!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks. The original comments didn't match my memory or the game logs. Bonner was part of the problem, but he wasn't the worst offender in this game.
I have to agree with some people when they said if Finley and Mason stink, why not try Bogans!?
I mean, I know he's not Allen Iverson scoring wise, but what the , give him a shot.
Haha I know I was just exaggeratingI leaning more towards Duncan learning that RJ is not Bowen instead of vice versa.
Thanks timvp
I agree that TP was the main problem in the offence. Everything start with him and I don't remember to see him playing so passive like this last game in the last 3 seasons.
Maybe he's a little confuse now and don't know when to attack and when to get others involved but I always prefer TP attacking and being aggressive.
I hope he can also can built some chemistry with RJ on the break. I think he had 2 opportunities to throw some lobs to RJ but he was unsure. In the 1st half he took some time to pass and Rose blocked RJ and in the 2nd half he decided to go by himself and I think Thomas blocked him
That pretty much describes Bonner in almost every loss.
exactly!!!I leaning more towards Duncan learning that RJ is not Bowen instead of vice versa.
Pop knew it would happen. After the first game, he said something like "poor defense, we were lucky our shots were falling so we could stay ahead".
Same poor defense next game, but shots weren't falling to bail themselves out.
LJ what do you think of Pop's idea to play Manu the last 7 mins of every quarter? Personally, I hate it.
With RJ on board we should play at least two of the so-called big four at all times, barring blowouts. As this rotation currently stands, we play either just Jefferson or none of them for the first three or four minutes of the 2nd and 4th quarters, until Tim and Tony check back in and to me that's pretty dumb.
Shouldn't we stick to what we did the last few years? Check Manu in with like 5:00 to go in the 1st/3rd, play him like 8 or 9 minutes, take him out about 3 minutes into the 2nd/4th when Tim and Tony are good to check back in, and then play all of them together the final 4-5 minutes of the half.
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