Grades: San Antonio Spurs at Oklahoma City Thunder – Game #28
Dejoute Murray led the Spurs in their loss to the Thunder (Photo via Twitter)
The San Antonio Spurs were back in action Wednesday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder. It was San Antonio’s first game since Valentine’s Day. Their previous four contests were postponed due to protocols related to COVID-19.
Tonight, those protocols kept Derrick White, Keldon Johnson, Rudy Gay, Devin Vassell and Quinndary Weatherspoon out of the game. Those five players are expected to miss an extended period of time, although no timeframe has been given. DeMar DeRozan was also out following the recent death of his father.
Despite being so short-handed, the Spurs had a lot of positive moments against the Thunder. Ultimately, though, the good guys lost by a final score of 102-99 when Luguentz Dort broke a tie with a buzzer-beating three-pointer.
Key Stretch
After a three-pointer by Dort put the Spurs in a seven-point hole with three minutes remaining, Patty Mills heroically scored seven straight points to bring San Antonio within a bucket. The Spurs got a stop and then Lonnie Walker IV tied the game with a driving layup with 30 seconds left. San Antonio got another stop and had the ball with 11 seconds on the clock. Unfortunately, that’s when things went south for Mills. He turned the ball over and then left Dort open in the corner for the game-winner.
Key Statistic
The Spurs just could never get a handle on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He finished with 42 points on 13-for-20 shooting from the floor, including 6-for-11 on threes and 10-for-11 at the line.
Spurs at Thunder: Final Grades
Jakob Poeltl
Even though LaMarcus Aldridge was back, Poeltl remained the starter at center. (Will that continue? It seems possible — and that would be a rather large turn of events in Spursville.) The positives: Defensively, he was mostly solid. He was active on the interior and serviceable on the perimeter. His rebounding and passing were both strengths. The negatives: Poeltl had a few moments where he fell asleep on defense and he had some costly point-blank misses on the offensive end. His one-on-one defense wasn’t as good as usual, as he was reaching too much.
Grade: C+
Lonnie Walker IV
With so much scoring expertise on the sidelines, it would have been really helpful if Walker was able to fill the void. But … that didn’t happen. I didn’t mind his three-pointers; the looks were mostly there. It was his 3-for-9 shooting on two-pointers that was the problem. He rarely put himself in good position and lacked the needed level of aggression or hardheadedness. Defensively- and playmaking-wise, he wasn’t as much of a factor as he needed to be for the Spurs to be successful with so many players out.
Grade: C-
Dejounte Murray
A lot of really strong play from Murray tonight. Offensively, I thought he was excellent. He was in attack mode from the opening tip. When the Spurs were doing well on offense, it was usually due to Murray. Not only were his 27 points impressive, he also handed out six assists and didn’t have a turnover. Defensively, he was strong on the boards and his awareness in terms of his team-defense was on point. Sadly, Murray gave away some of his value with his lackluster individual defense. First, he needlessly got into foul trouble. Then he gambled way too often and did little to slow Gilgeous-Alexander in the final three quarters. Murray had his moments in that matchup but the Spurs needed him to play smarter on that end in order to put out the raging inferno that was SGA.
Grade: B+
Trey Lyles
Eh, Lyles was far from amazing but he had his moments. Offensively, he had a handful of possessions where he really looked like he knew what he was doing. His ball-handling and coordination were strengths on a night where the Spurs were desperate for any semblance of offensive skill. Defensively, he was less impressive but he was okay enough on the boards to retain some value on that end.
Grade: B
Luka Samanic
Thrust into the starting lineup, Samanic wasn’t great — but he wasn’t terrible, either. As expected, there were a lot of highs and lows. The good: He had some strong finishes in the paint. He’s not shy about looking to score, which is helpful right now. Defensively, when he knew what to do, he was doing it pretty well. He was playing out of position at small forward but he was quick enough to survive. The bad: On offense, his ball-handling in space was okay but his ball-handling in any sort of traffic was terrible. On defense, his understanding of the system still needs a lot of work. In any sort of complex action, he was reliably out of position. The net-net: Hey, I mean, pretty good. Samanic didn’t embarrass himself. Personally, I hope he keeps starting so we can really get a feel of what the Spurs do (and don’t) have with him.
Grade: B-
Patty Mills
Well, that was an eventful game from Mills. In his first 25 minutes, I wasn’t too impressed with his play. He was making plays here or there but he also mixed in more than his share of boneheaded plays. His shot-selection wasn’t great and his playmaking was rudimentary. Then, late in the game, he suddenly became the team’s most dependable perimeter defender and put the team on his shoulders on the offensive end. But, tragically, in the final ten seconds, Mills had an ugly turnover and then left Dort wide open.
Grade: C
LaMarcus Aldridge
Aldridge looked decent-ish in his return. Defensively, his movements were labored and he struggled defending in space. But he also rebounded better than usual and was stout near the rim. Offensively, his three-point stroke was helpful and he had a couple of strong moves in the lane. However, he was also 1-for-7 on two-pointers and clogged the paint at times.
Grade: B-
Keita Bates-Diop
Early on, Bates-Diop looked bad. He wasn’t moving well and his moves to the hoop were painfully feeble. Eventually, though, his gears got greased and he found a rhythm. Once in that rhythm, Bates-Diop was impressive. His ungodly length was helpful on defense. His instincts are good and he exhibited better than average anticipation. Offensively, he wasn’t timid about calling his own number and also made a few slick passes. Bates-Diop might have earned himself more minutes going forward with this performance.
Grade: B+
Tre Jones
Jones didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. Even in his young career, it’s obvious he’s a smart player who can be trusted to make heady plays. Tonight, he kept his mistakes to a minimum and his passes were usually on time and on target. On both ends, I thought the second rounder flashed an exciting amount of athleticism for someone who was regarded as a sub par athlete heading into the draft.
Grade: B
Drew Eubanks
Even though the Spurs are super short-handed, they remain deep at center. That will make finding minutes for Eubanks difficult. Against the Thunder, he didn’t play well enough to move the needle much at all. While he had a handful of positive plays, he also had a handful of head-scratchers.
Grade: B-
Pop
Given the circumstances, I thought Pop’s coaching was impressive. The gutsiness of the starting lineup (no Aldridge, yes Samanic) was cool to see. He rightly rewarded Bates-Diop with extra playing time. As a whole, the Spurs were playing hard on defense and were creating some good opportunities on offense. For a roster that is held together with spit and bubblegum right now, Pop had his guys playing with an admirable amount of cohesiveness.
Grade: B+
Next Up
San Antonio’s abbreviated Rodeo Road Trip is behind them. Next, they return home to take on the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday.