GT: Spurs vs. Trailblazers

[Nolan]

When: 7:00 PM MT, Jan 7th 2018
Where: Moda Center at the Rose Quarter, Portland OR

Should be a fun one tonight, as it always is when we play the Blazers! Looks like everyone minus Gay and Green should be available for this one.

Key to this one is going to be keeping Lillard and CJ out of the paint. Can't let them collapse our defense and create mismatches.

Go Spurs!!

[Nolan]

Actually I take back that statement about everyone being available. Kawhi and Tony will be out as well.

Read on Twitter

[ducler]

[G R E Y]

So this is game 41, halfway point of the season. Feels like it's gone by quite quickly what with all the changes we've weathered; we've had ONE game with a full roster. And another one tonight without three starters and a key bench contributor. Next Spurs up: LMA, Pau, Anderson, Forbes, and Murray.

We'll need everyone sharp, focused and assertive, playing our system cohesively.

GO SPURS!

[G R E Y]

It’s the kind of end to a game that drives you to drink. A wasted opportunity for a win and the waste of a great game that history will add to Manu’s legend. But it’s a team sport, and games are won in the accumulation of good plays through 48 minutes and in good execution down the stretch, and lapses in both cost us the victory.

Let’s start with the last couple of moments first. I can’t quite say why, but had Manu taken the final shot and we still lost, maybe I wouldn’t have felt as bad about it. Maybe Pop’s reasoning was that LMA playing in his old home was a factor, or his season-long great play (hard to argue against this one), but there was just something about LMA in this clutch situation, even when he had an amazing game, that I didn’t fully trust.

Both LMA and Manu had the hot hand throughout the game. LMA had 30 points (12-21, 1-2 from 3, 5-7FTs), with 14 rebounds (seven each on D and O), and one assist, steal, and rebound. Manu had 26 points (9-16, 6-9 from 3, 2-3FTs), grabbed 4 rebounds, and had 2 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal.

In the 4th Q, LMA scored 4 points on 2-4 shooting, whereas Manu hit four 3s (4-5 from 3, 4-8 overall), including two crucial 3s to give us the lead twice in the last three minutes. When LMA missed the two FTs late in the game, a shift in Manu’s favour as the go-to guy in the clutch set in. You could tell LMA’s shot was rushed, too much spin, left his hands too fast, that’s both in the FTs and in the final miss.

I think we’d have been better served with LMA on the boards in case of a potential miss, and with Manu getting the last play seeing as how he was shooting and hitting shots with such confidence late (plus he’s already won two games for us on clutch final shots this year alone).

Good on LMA to have taken responsibility for the loss, but it was also a series and combination of things that lead to the final outcome. We made 19-26FTs for a below-standard 73.1%. So while LMA missed two late, we missed 7 as a team in a game decided by one point. We allowed 48 points in the first half, and 63 in the second – yikes. This was a function of their making more 3s (they made only one 3 on nine attempts in the first half, and 7 on 13 attempts in the second), but we increased and bettered their output from the arc overall, making 4-8 in the first half, 7-15 in the second. The main culprit was that they carved us up inside all game long. Whether by getting passes for open Js in our key, or drive after drive on our bigs (down the middle, baseline, it made no difference), they kept shooting it over us even with decent help D present. We just didn’t do enough to contest the passes and shots. Their shot chart looked like a target silhouette with most of the hits going to the heart. Nurkic, Napier, Turner, and McCollum had far too good a FG% in far too close a range, resulting in a 64-42 points-in-the-paint advantage for the Blazers. We need to protect the key better.

In such a deflating loss, it’s easy to overlook the things we did well. Every game counts, so perhaps it’s small consolation, but we were once again without four key players – Tony, Kawhi, Danny, and Rudy – and we managed to stay with the Blazers even as they picked up their play. We did a better job of protecting the ball than in the previous game, outrebounding the Blazers 42-38 (10-9 in O rebounds), and we also had a better assist to turnover ratio compared to the previous game, 26:14 versus Portland.

So there were some positive team improvements, as well as good individual contributions. Pop put out a starting line-up of LMA, Pau, Anderson, Forbes, and Murray (huge credit and respect to Patty for taking on the bench role despite being more experienced; great leadership and selflessness). Pau once again complemented LMA well, scoring 16 points (6-11, 1-2 from 3, 3-5FTs), getting 9 rebounds, and, along with Anderson, a team-high 5 assists. Our assists keep coming from both the guards and bigs; Murray and Bertans each had 4. When we have both generating assists, we’re playing our way and are harder to play against. Anderson has been slow and steady, and along with Bryn and Bertans, shot 50%FG. We need to manufacture more shots for both Kyle (8 points on 2-4, 6 rebounds, steal) and Davis (8 points on 3-6, including 2-3 from 3, 4 rebounds). Bryn did well not being shy in putting it up for 10 points on 5-10 (plus a rebound and 2 assists).

Guys are filling in well despite not getting the result. Maybe all the fluctuations, amid a heavy schedule to boot, are getting to us a bit, but what we can control is how we execute our system, how we stay steady mentally, and how we continue to bounce back and play together. Bear down, Spurs.

I love this team. GO SPURS!