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Pop gets a passing Grade?
Season over. After scoring only 34 points on 22% shooting in an anemic first half, the Spurs trailed by as many as 17 points in the third quarter. But the good guys didn't quit, as they trimmed the deficit to 11 points going into the fourth quarter.
In the deciding period, San Antonio kept chipping away; their defense tightened and their offense was able to generate better shots. Eventually, the Spurs cut Denver's lead down to two points on a Bryn Forbes dunk with 52.2 left in regulation. Unfortunately, Jamal Murray answered with a floater, the Spurs came up empty on the next possession ... and then the Spurs inexplicably let time expire.
Strange end to a strange season, I guess. Congrats to the Nuggets on a well-played series.
While the Spurs definitely let opportunities slip through their fingers in the this first round matchup, it's still impressive how they bounced back from the Game 5 demolition to grab Game 6 and then almost escape with an epic comeback in Game 7. A lot of coulda, woulda, shouldas tonight but, big picture, they put up a better fight than any other underdog team in the first round and were thisclose to taking out the second seed in the Western Conference.
LaMarcus Aldridge C
Loved the defensive effort by Aldridge. Played Jokic tough, especially in the fourth quarter. Timely help defense. On the other end, though, he wasn't playing with enough force. Too much settling led to an inefficient offensive performance.
DeMar DeRozan C
Tale of two halves: DeRozan was 1-for-10 in the first half and appeared to be overwhelmed by the moment. Thankfully, he turned it around in the second half with 15 points, five rebounds and four assists on 6-for-11 shooting. His defense was energetic throughout, however the Spurs needed him to play like he did in the second half for all four quarters.
Derrick White D
White just wasn't doing much of anything. Tepid defense. Shying away from ball-handling and playmaking on offense. Eventually, the Nuggets stopped rotating to him at all in the second half and he still couldn't make them pay. Pop -- controversially, I'm sure -- went elsewhere.
Bryn Forbes A-
Forbes showed up big time when the Spurs needed him most. In the second half, he led the way with 17 points on 6-for-7 shooting from the field, including 3-for-3 on three-pointers. It's safe to say he wasn't intimidated by the moment. Defensively, he was also pretty damn good, all things considered.
Jakob Poeltl C+
With the Spurs desperately needing offense, Poeltl spent most of his time on the bench. While he was on the court, his defense was only decent but his rebounding was stout.
Rudy Gay A
If not for Rudy Gay, I'm not sure if the Spurs score 60 points tonight. He carried the team for stretches, particularly in the first quarter when he scored nine straight points after S.A. only mustered four points in the game's first nine minutes. His aggressiveness against mismatches gave the team life. Defensively, he held up much better than he had all series long.
Patty Mills C
With White not providing much of anything, Mills got extra time ... and mostly followed suit. He gave better effort but was less effective on defense. On offense, he continued to be dry shooting-wise but he did chip in a few good passes. And the Nuggets at least rotated to him when he was off the ball.
Marco Belinelli F
I'm not sure how much worse Belinelli could have played if he tried. Terrible defense that the Nuggets specifically targeted. Did nothing positive on offense -- bad decisions, limited movement and shriveled when pressured. So much for a veteran stepping up and playing big in a big game.
Pop C-
Good: Eventually found a lineup that was cutting into Denver's lead. I agreed with playing DeRozan, Aldridge and Forbes heavy minutes. Going more with Gay and less with Poeltl also made sense given the cir stances. Bad: I don't know what the happened on that last defensive possessions. Spurs HAD TO foul down four with 28 second remaining but Pop wasn't motioning to foul (none of the assistant coaches were either). And then the Spurs get the rebound and nobody motions for timeout? What? Outside of that terrible bit of time management, Pop has to be docked for the lackluster attack coming out of the gates. That was just terrible offense in the first half -- something, anything should have been done. Debatable: Playing Mills over White. On one hand, White wasn't playing well and Mills theoretically has the knowhow and big game experience to help right the ship. And, scoreboard-wise, the Spurs did execute their comeback with Mills in the game. On the other hand, White is obviously the better player. It could have been a great learning experience and maybe the Nuggets are shut down even more in the fourth with White on the court. Then again, preserving White's confidence going into the offseason and not allowing him to fall completely on his face while in the spotlight was the right call. Tough to say.
Pop gets a passing Grade?
pop was kicking and screaming trying to get them to foul on denver's last possession, so i dont understand that criticism. and oh yeah, not calling a timeout when we got a rebound with 2 seconds left down 4. what a blunder
Pop gets a passing Grade?
Aldridge and Mills should get automatic F for quitting on the season.
Game was over before the foul debacle. It was aggravating to watch butat anyone that thinks that is where we lost the game. There was like a 0.1% chance we couldve won from that position.
We lost on the floater and the subsequent miss down 4
Belli should get a lower grade than an F.
Something like Detention or something
Damn, Pop didn't coach a bad game all series....
If Pop actually wanted the Spurs to foul, then it was his fault because he never signaled it. He gave the "pressure the ballhandler" signal, not the "intentional foul" signal. When he calls for an intentional foul, it's with one arm striking the other. He instead did the push up motion.
Maybe Pop was yelling to foul but I could see Aldridge's confusion, tbh.
I mean, you're going to play for the rebound and you actually get the rebound ... might want to call timeout
All team came out flat ! Someone needs to tell Pop that even in playoffs some players do not have sense of urgency.
Game 7 and they fought for like 5 minutes of the game.
Pathetic basketball charisma
Thanks OP for the grades tonight and in the past.
Well, onto the draft discussions.
Mills not fouling kind of torpedoes the whole corporate knowledge and experience schtick that keeps him around. Derek White could have made that mistake as a second year player, at least he has an excuse. Aldridge is a vet too, but he doesn't quarterback like a point guard, Mills gets blame first from me
So forbes made a mistake cause he was shouting and signaling to foul :winkIf Pop actually wanted the Spurs to foul, then it was his fault because he never signaled it. He gave the "pressure the ballhandler" signal, not the "intentional foul" signal. When he calls for an intentional foul, it's with one arm striking the other. He instead did the push up motion.
Maybe Pop was yelling to foul but I could see Aldridge's confusion, tbh.
I mean, you're going to play for the rebound and you actually get the rebound ... might want to call timeout
The end of the game doesn't matter. That 1st quarter was a show. If the Spurs do anything at all, like take 5 guys from the audience and put them on the floor, they at least put some points on the board. It was embarrassing as to see a team like SA have 2 points halfway through the 1st in a game 7 of the playoffs.
Then again, they basically overachieved. They should have lost by 40 as ty as they started and they would have if Denver wasn't also a fraud.
Why would he do that? At that point Denver's players could just stand at their bench after the timeout. Not even Manu could have pulled off the flop for the four point play with no opposing player within 35 feet.I mean, you're going to play for the rebound and you actually get the rebound ... might want to call timeout
Also they were playing for Cancun at that point.
Pop probably wanted someone go for the steal and foul if necessary while doing so instead of just fouling.If Pop actually wanted the Spurs to foul, then it was his fault because he never signaled it. He gave the "pressure the ballhandler" signal, not the "intentional foul" signal. When he calls for an intentional foul, it's with one arm striking the other. He instead did the push up motion.
Maybe Pop was yelling to foul but I could see Aldridge's confusion, tbh.
I mean, you're going to play for the rebound and you actually get the rebound ... might want to call timeout
A really season all-around tbh. I'm sure it's "Spoiled Spur Fan" and all that....
But I probably would have been happier if they were a lottery team that tried hard and got better...
Instead, it was just a team full of idiots that blew every opportunity that was handed to them...favorable seeding, 2-1 lead, Denver ting the bed in Game 7.....
I'm hoping against hope that tonight was Pop's final game and he retires from coaching and running the organization...
Sure, they'll be tier in the regular season and might miss the playoffs but I'd rather that than being right about every single predictable dumb thing he does in the playoffs....
Thanks for the memories and you had a really good run when being carried by greats like Timmy and Manu, but time to walk away old man....like you always say....it's just basketball.
Overall though I said it before the season that the Spurs will not be able to get into 2nd round after that trade.
Even if they opened on fire and won tonight, they are who they are. They aren't built to beat the contenders.
I hope belli gets traded over the summer. He's literally unplayable in the playoffs
Pop gets a passing Grade?
Patty is infallible in the eyes of the suckers, and sadly the FO. He'll be right back at it next season, playing 20+ minutes and collecting that fat paycheck and organize a coffee date so the idiots can say wow....he's irreplaceable with that corporate knowledge. Only until the old decides to retire, can this organization finally be rid of that trash.
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