The Nets came into San Antonio riding a two-game winning streak after firing Avery Johnson as head coach. The Spurs, who were playing the latter game of a back-to-back, didn’t pull any punches against interim Nets head coach and former Spurs assistant PJ Carlesimo. The 104-73 Spurs victory extended their own winning streak to six games and brought Brooklyn back down to reality.
The game was close early. Midway through the first quarter, the score was knotted at 12. That’s when San Antonio’s offense awoke. The Spurs scored 19 points in the final six minutes of the period to take a nine-point lead into the second quarter.
The second was ugly for the Spurs early on; scoring was hard to come by and the defense was iffy. A Joe Johnson jumper six and a half minutes into the quarter brought the Nets within three points. After a timeout, the Spurs began running their sets better while playing more physically on defense. The result was a strong finish to the half that gave the Spurs a 55-47 lead heading into intermission.
Then the third quarter happened. Boom. The Spurs scored 30 points in the quarter. The Nets? Five. Yes, five points. In all, it was a 35-5 run that turned this contest into a laugher. Both teams emptied their benches in the fourth quarter in what was essentially a televised practice session.
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Tim Duncan
Tim Duncan’s scoring continues to shine. He went through a stretch a couple weeks ago where his outside shot wasn’t falling and it resulted in a few poor offensive showings. He has, however, bounced back wonderfully. In his last seven contests, Duncan is averaging 19.9 points and 3.1 assists in 30 minutes per game while shooting 53.7% from the field and 88.5% from the free throw line. Against the Nets, he used an assortment of moves in the paint while also adding a couple face-up jumpers. Duncan’s passing was also very good in the halfcourt sets. Defensively, he was again outstanding at protecting the rim; he has at least two blocks in his last seven games and 14 out of his last 15. Perhaps most important of all is the fact that Duncan was moving very well despite it being the second night of a back-to-back.
Final Grade: 92
Season Average: 90.5
Adj. Average: 90.8
Last 10 Average: 88.1
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Manu Ginobili
After going through some decision-making struggles earlier in the season, Manu Ginobili is in a very good place. The game seems to be really easy for him right now -- and that’s when he’s at his best. Part of the reason for the change is that he’s once again a threat off the dribble, which forces defenders to play off of him a bit more. In his 20 minutes against Brooklyn, Ginobili dissected their defense. His passing was excellent and his movement with and without the ball was supreme. Defensively, I thought he was above average. His individual D in the halfcourt was stout. His transition defense was lacking at times but he was able to make plays on both ends of the court -- yet another sign that he’s feeling really good.
Final Grade: 95
Season Average: 84.5
Adj. Average: 84.5
Last 10 Average: 87.9
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Tony Parker
Tony Parker stepped up his intensity another level or two and ended up embarrassing the s of the corpse formerly known as Deron Williams. Defensively, Parker was all over Williams -- limiting not only his scoring effectiveness but also his ability to create opportunities for teammates. Offensively, Parker continuously got to the paint; seven of his baskets were right at the rim. He also took care of the ball, passed it well and knocked down a three-pointer for good measure. About the only negative was the slower than normal pace. All in all, it was a great outing for the four-time All-Star who appears headed to a fifth.
Final Grade: 96
Season Average: 87.5
Adj. Average: 87.5
Last 10 Average: 86.0
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Kawhi Leonard
On defense, Kawhi Leonard took on Joe Johnson. Mission successful. Johnson hit a couple difficult shots but Leonard did a very good job for the most part. He was also active in the passing lanes and on the defensive glass. Offensively, Leonard didn’t get many touches but took full advantage when he did touch the ball. He shot well from the perimeter, dished quality passes off the dribble and made quick decisions. It wasn’t a splashy night at the office but Leonard definitely did things that helped the Spurs win comfortably.
Final Grade: 91
Season Average: 85.7
Adj. Average: 85.7
Last 10 Average: 88.2
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Danny Green
It was a quiet outing for Danny Green. Defensively, he started off against Keith Bogans so, yeah, not much D needed there. On the other end, Bogans wasn’t leaving Green. At all. Bogans simply stayed glued to Green no matter what. Although that hurt Green’s individual numbers, it actually helped the team as a whole. With a potential help defender out of the equation, Parker and Duncan had more room to operate and less to worry about. If more teams want to defend Green like this, that’d be great for the Spurs.
Final Grade: 84
Season Average: 82.7
Adj. Average: 82.9
Last 10 Average: 83.6
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Tiago Splitter
The Bad: Tiago Splitter’s defensive rebounding wasn’t up to par, especially in the first half. The Spurs could have put the game away even sooner if they took care of business rebounding-wise in the first two quarters. The Good: Virtually everything else. Offensively, Splitter moved to open spots extremely well. He finished at the rim and made purposeful passes. On defense, Splitter was very aggressive going after blocks. He was average in terms of post-defense but his D against pick-and-rolls was superb.
Final Grade: 91
Season Average: 85.1
Adj. Average: 85.9
Last 10 Average: 87.3
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Boris Diaw
First of all, it’s great to see Boris Diaw got back to rebounding. His five defensive boards led the team and it's more than he had in his previous four outings. He was also more assertive offensively than usual ... though he did have a few sloppy possessions mixed in. His passing, as expected, was helpful. Defensively, Diaw was strong. In addition to his rebounding, he played angles well, was physical in the paint and hustled throughout.
Final Grade: 90
Season Average: 80.2
Adj. Average: 81.2
Last 10 Average: 81.8
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Stephen Jackson
During the first three quarters, Stephen Jackson didn’t do much. He missed both of his shot attempts but did get to the line for a pair of freebies. He spent most of his time passing while playing adequate D. Jackson then played the entire fourth quarter of garbage time and looked like, well, garbage. The coaching staff obviously thinks he needs to work himself back into shape but it was certainly ugly. His defense was non-existent and he was missing shots and turning it over on the other end. While drawing conclusions based on garbage time isn’t intelligent, Jackson needs to use that time to improve instead of adding more doubt in the coaches’ minds.
Final Grade: 72
Season Average: 82.1
Adj. Average: 82.4
Last 10 Average: 77.8
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Nando De Colo
Pop decided this was a game for Nando De Colo at backup point guard. It didn’t go well. While his scoring was fine, his passing was simply bad and his ball-handling wasn’t much better. During the first three quarters, he had three turnovers and no assists. Defensively, De Colo had a few decent moments but was otherwise underwhelming. He played decently well in garbage time but he certainly did nothing against the Nets that would help convince the coaches that he deserves a regular spot in the rotation.
Final Grade: 73
Season Average: 81.9
Adj. Average: 83.9
Last 10 Average: 81.6
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Matt Bonner
With Duncan in rare early foul trouble, Matt Bonner got an opportunity. He did pretty well. Offensively, he was again very decisive and didn’t hesitate to shoot when he was open. On defense, Bonner gave commendable effort and battled on the boards.
Final Grade: 87
Season Average: 82.8
Adj. Average: 84.3
Last 10 Average: 82.2
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Pop
Pop handled Duncan’s foul trouble well. His rotations were logical throughout. He kept everyone’s minutes below 26. After halftime, the team came out refocused and energized on the defensive end. I’ll assume Pop played a role in that transformation.
Final Grade: 92
Season Average: 84.5
Last 10 Average: 82.4
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Offense
The 104 doesn’t look like much but since the Spurs only had 89 possessions, it was actually a great night offensively. The passing was a bit better than it has been in recent games. Perhaps the best aspect is the fact that the Spurs scored more than half their points in the paint. They didn’t rely on anything more than simply getting to the hoop and scoring.
Final Grade: 94
Season Average: 85.0
Last 10 Average: 84.1
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Defense
The defense was even better than their offense. Forcing 18 turnovers while allowing only 14 assists is obviously outstanding. The Spurs also kept the Nets from getting open looks from three-point land and kept them off the free throw line. The rebounding in the second half was very good and played a key role in the 30-5 third quarter.
Final Grade: 97
Season Average: 84.1
Last 10 Average: 86.3
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Overall
Teams usually play well for a new coach for a while. San Antonio ended Brooklyn’s euphoric feeling in ruthless fashion. That Spurs particularly lacked any semblance of ruth in that nasty third quarter. Add in numerous strong individual performances and this was truly one of the better showings of the season thus far. Now the good guys face a difficult back-to-back that begins in Milwaukee and ends in New York. Considering the cir stances, a split would be an acceptable outcome.
Final Grade: 94
Season Average: 84.6
Last 10 Average: 84.6
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Not sure what to think about SJax, I think ultimately we could use his toughness/locker room presence/defense no matter what, I don't think he's getting traded even tho it would be kinda tempting to do so right now, Boris could slide down to backup SF/4th big and we could get a 3rd big who can rebound...
to be fair Tiago rebounding effort was not worst than Tim.
Would Jax's toughness and edge still translate to the rest of the team if he only plays 5-8 MPG? He seems to be playing his way out of the rotation.
Stern is going to fine the Spurs for embarrassing a franchise on national TV instead of resting their starters.
nando/mills are not pgs ...... cojo deserves a shot cojo = true pg
Not sure what to make of those seasonal averages. As hard as I've been on S-jax, I can't say that He's basically kept pace with De Colo on the season. Nando's had a coupe of sunshine moments but overal, he's been completely disfunctional on the basketball court. The guy should be suiting up for the Toros to gain some much needed experience and playing time, He really hasn't done anything well. And While my enthusiasm for S-jax has tempered over the last month, by no means should he be thrown around in the same breath as De Colo on the season. Or maybe he has been that bad on the season. I just hadn't noticed.
Last edited by Hoops Czar; 01-02-2013 at 07:05 PM.
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