Game Thoughts: Spurs @ Sixers - Jan. 21

[timvp]

The game was bizarre. The outcome was superb. Following the topsy-turvy affair, the Spurs emerged with a 90-85 victory over the Sixers. The win was San Antonio’s fifth consecutive and improved their record to 33-11.

With game tied 4-4 a couple minutes in, the Spurs went on their first run. Over the next six minutes, a 10-2 run started the night on the right foot. San Antonio kept their cushion the remainder of the first quarter and finished the period up 25-17.

With the Spurs up by eight points with six and a half minutes remaining before half, the good guys went on a 9-0 run to grab control of the contest. The Sixers found their footing a bit but still trailed by 14 points at the half, 49-35.

The second half would prove to be not nearly as kind for San Antonio. Down by 16 points a few moments into the third quarter, Philadelphia went on a 12-0 run to make it a ballgame. However, the Spurs were able to thwart this first run by scoring the next eight points.

The next Sixers run began with less than a minute to go in the third. In a span of nine minutes, Philly turned a 12-point deficit into a seven-point lead with a 23-4 run. Thankfully, the Spurs were stunned but not down for the count. Tim Duncan hit a jumper and then Kawhi Leonard followed a dunk with a three-pointer to tie the game at 82. Duncan struck again to give the Spurs the lead once again.

After Jrue Holiday hit a free throw, Tony Parker buried a long jumper to put the good guys up by three points with a minute remaining. The Spurs got a few more stops and eventually this chaotic evening ended with smiles.






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Tim Duncan

Add another great game to the list of Tim Duncan’s 2013 accomplishments. Offensively, he killed the Sixers early with his ability to pass; his passing from the high-post has really become elite this season. When he looked to score, everything Duncan did was smooth. He took open shots with no hesitation, unleashed low-post moves confidently and his hands were even better than usual when catching the ball in the lane. In a related note, his mistakes were minimal -- especially considering how much pressure Philadelphia was aiming at him. Defensively, Duncan was well above average. His perimeter defense was lackluster at times and his pick-and-roll defense was subpar but his interior D was outstanding and he was fantastic on the boards. Let us hope and pray Duncan can stay at this level for another handful of months.
Final Grade: 97
Season Average: 89.4
Adj. Average: 89.7
Last 10 Average: 85.0
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Tony Parker

Tony Parker was great in the first half. In 16 minutes, he hit five of his six shots, ran the offensive efficiently and played rugged defense against Jrue Holiday. Unfortunately, he totally fell off the wagon in the third quarter and his first few minutes in the fourth. He started dribbling way too much and failed to create any offense. His defense, especially in transition, also suffered. Fortunately Parker bounced back with a very strong -- on both ends of the court -- final four minutes of the game. He played a role in ten of the team’s final 15 points and his defensive aggression went into overdrive.
Final Grade: 88
Season Average: 87.0
Adj. Average: 86.9
Last 10 Average: 85.2
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Kawhi Leonard

Following a roller-coaster of a night, the final tally had more positives than negatives for Kawhi Leonard. He missed his first three three-pointers before draining his final two attempts from deep, including a clutch three in the fourth to tie the game. Speaking of clutch, the easy dunk he got after stealing the ball late was a key part of the comeback. Overall, it was encouraging to see Leonard more active than usual on the offensive end -- even if not everything went swimmingly. Defensively, he had his moments but was mostly average, although he was of great help on the glass. In the big picture, Leonard’s youthful exuberance is huge for this team and it was on full display against the Sixers.
Final Grade: 88
Season Average: 83.9
Adj. Average: 83.8
Last 10 Average: 82.2
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Danny Green

The ever-streaky Danny Green is currently cold -- he has hit only seven of his last 28 shots from three-point land. To his credit, Green added some production going toward the basket and he wasn’t bashful about shooting despite his wayward stroke. Defensively, he was below average. He allowed too much space in one-on-one matchups and didn’t defend pick-and-rolls well. He regained some value by rebounding well and making a few hustle plays on that end.
Final Grade: 76
Season Average: 82.5
Adj. Average: 82.8
Last 10 Average: 81.6
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Tiago Splitter

The big Brazilian was stout on the defensive end. Tiago Splitter was great on the boards again (he’s averaging 9.3 rebounds in his last four outings) and was active in the paint. He exhibited fast hands and did a better than normal job of contesting shots without fouling. On the offensive end, I wasn’t nearly as pleased. He had a few good plays but he was the best player on the court during Philadelphia’s run to take control of the game. I thought that Splitter could have been more demonstrative on the offense during that time instead of letting everything collapse around him. He wasn’t coming out to set screens often enough and he wasn’t sealing his man in the low post aggressively enough. The Spurs needed Splitter to step up to stop the ship from sinking -- and he didn’t rise to the occasion. That said, he came back in the game late and played more strong defense to help the Spurs secure the win.
Final Grade: 86
Season Average: 85.4
Adj. Average: 86.1
Last 10 Average: 86.1
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Boris Diaw

On this night, Boris Diaw’s aversion to shooting open shots wasn’t his downfall. Instead, it was his tepid defense and his poor work on the glass. Diaw expended little, if any, energy on that end of the court. Offensively, he shot enough. In fact, a couple of his shots were bordering on ill-advised. His passing was commendable but was large negated by an abundance of sloppiness. All told, Diaw just wasn’t sharp on Monday night.
Final Grade: 72
Season Average: 81.1
Adj. Average: 82.0
Last 10 Average: 83.1
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Gary Neal

It’s getting to the point that the coaching staff might have to shut down Gary Neal. He has been putrid since his return from his calf injury, to put it bluntly. Against the Sixers, he again did nothing else but shoot the ball. And again, he shot it poorly. He’s trying to play the Manu Ginobili role and is failing miserably.
Final Grade: 69
Season Average: 79.7
Adj. Average: 80.7
Last 10 Average: 75.8
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Matt Bonner

Matt Bonner’s Hakeem Olajuwon impersonation was apparently for one night only. He reverted to his recent form against Philly. Defensively, he was a step slow and non-existent on the boards. Offensively, Bonner didn’t find any open looks and resorted to forcing the issue. This was a forgettable performance for the New Hampshire native.
Final Grade: 72
Season Average: 80.5
Adj. Average: 82.7
Last 10 Average: 74.4
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Nando De Colo

Nando De Colo’s stats look attractive. In 14 minutes, he was helpful rebounding-wise and registered four assists without a turnover. He also added a difficult jumper to the equation. Regrettably, when digging deeper, De Colo also had many weak spots. His running of the offense was erratic, he was impotent in pick-and-roll sets in the second half, he didn’t take charge in the fourth during the collapse and his team-defense was often times a step slow. This wasn’t a bad outing -- but not nearly as robust as the numbers suggest.
Final Grade: 81
Season Average: 81.2
Adj. Average: 83.1
Last 10 Average: 77.5
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Stephen Jackson

For the second straight game, Stephen Jackson looked dreadful. I’m not sure if he’s hurting, tired or what the deal is, but he’s barely able to move and isn’t able to shoot at all. Thankfully, he mostly took a backseat in this game but he still managed to be a drain on the proceedings. After a four-game stretch that saw him hit 13-of-26 shots from the field, Jackson is just two for his last 16. Hopefully he can solve whatever ails him.
Final Grade: 63
Season Average: 81.2
Adj. Average: 82.0
Last 10 Average: 78.6
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Pop

The Good: Despite Leonard’s turbulence, Pop stuck with him -- and it paid off. And while De Colo wasn’t perfect, it was heartening to witness Pop play the same point guard in both halves. The Bad: When the Spurs were circling the drain, Pop was seemingly too patient. There simply weren’t many adjustments – play-wise or personnel-wise -- during that time. It all worked out in the end but it took a somewhat miraculous turnaround. Additionally, I thought Pop played Neal too much and probably should have pulled the plug on Jackson earlier.
Final Grade: 85
Season Average: 84.0
Last 10 Average: 83.1
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Offense
The offense came easy in the first half -- but then fell apart. Overall, the Spurs just weren’t very good on this end. Then again, considering how poorly the Spurs shot from three-point territory and the fact that S.A. only had 36 points in the paint, it was fortunate they even reached 90 points. But, yeah, burn the tape of this offensive performance.
Final Grade: 72
Season Average: 83.8
Last 10 Average: 78.5
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Defense
The D was staunch in most aspects. The Spurs declawed the Sixers by taking away their three-pointers, keeping them off the charity stripe and rebounding well. I thought the Spurs were great defensively in the first half and again in the final four minutes. They struggled on D for a stretch in the second half -- particularly in transition and defending isolations -- but it was still a good showing overall.
Final Grade: 93
Season Average: 84.3
Last 10 Average: 86.4
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Overall
This isn’t a formula the Spurs should ever try to repeat but they were able to escape with a victory on this night. Regaining their defensive footing late in the fourth was great to see, as was watching the clutch shots hit net. Good, solid road win.
Final Grade: 86
Season Average: 84.3
Last 10 Average: 83.3
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[Strategic]

With everything going on with the Spurs today I barely remember the sixers' beat down.