GAME DAY, BALA! PRE-SEASON GAME 5: SPURS AT MAGIC, 12-10-2018, 6PM (CT)

[G R E Y]

Our fifth and final pre-season game. Word is Bryn will be starting at PG. Hoping for a more locked in effort that shows concerted better D and some flow on O.

WHERE: Amway Center, Orlando, FL

WHEN: Friday, October 12, 2018, 6pm (CT)

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GO SPURS GO!!!

[G R E Y]

A new line-up opportunity. We're going super tall:

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Well, sort of. Hard to tell with the camera work. We're shooting poorly (33% or so) but they're shooting in the mid-teens so:

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[G R E Y]

And our shooting percentage actually dropped. We have 9 assists to 5 TOs, and 5 blocks:

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Because building camaraderie counts as much as anything else:

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And that's game. We finish the pre-season 3-2 in an offensive juggernaut of a game (well we did raise our FG% to 41% and 3s to 32% so I'll go with focusing on the improvement:

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[G R E Y]

Well despite two starters out, we looked more like a cohesive unit tonight; despite the shooting being less than stellar, our D looked much improved for the most part.

It's not so much that we won, it doesn't matter, it's what we did throughout the game for the result. Improving shooting as the game progressed was a good sign, but the more consistent D even more so. There were some individual lapses -- at times Davis backed up too much to the man dribbling towards him and gave far too much space for easy Js, at others they had far too easy a time getting right down our key for easy finishes (they went at Pau repeatedly). Some quick Pop timeouts remedied Davis's coverage (he was right up on his man to force passes and better shot contests), and we provided better help D to contest shots. We also had a good number of deflections, steals, and blocks.

Rebounding numbers were inflated because of so many missed shots by both teams, but I like that Jakob led the team with 3 O rebounds. DeMar does a good job assertively getting up on his man, but maybe because of too wide a stance and/or a slower first step out of it, he gets driven by and is a step behind. Then rather than shuffling his feet with hands up facing driver like other Spurs do, he turns his body to be shoulder to shoulder with the driver and that movement puts him yet another step behind. Still, he's more engaged on the D end. He moved laterally on the perimeter, and contributed with 2 steals, and a block. Better team D awareness and effort overall, individually and with helping teammates.

Of course, on the other end is where DeMar shone, and this is in large part why we got him. He sometimes brought up the ball up and facilitated well (2 assists). When the play broke down he was able to make something out of nothing by getting defenders to bite on his pump fakes for 9-12FTs that contributed to team-high 20 points. Overall, he showed a very good balance between setting up plays and getting his own shots. I like that he is doing a good job getting his points within the flow of the system.

As for our PG situation, Bryn held his own, and we did a good job helping him. LMA and Pau tied Patty with team-high 4 assists each. LMA's 5-15 made for an off game, but our more balanced scoring showed in that despite missing Rudy and LMA's poor shooting, we could still score thanks to a variety of efficient O contributions from Pau, and Patty, and to lesser extents, Quincy and Jakob. We did very well in fast D to O transitions, and quick passes (side to side, backdoor, high-low, cuts) that were made before defenders could keep up and resulted in open Js and lanes for us. There was one play where Bryn brought up the ball, passed it to Pau at the top of the right elbow and he made a quick pass down low to Jakob who by then established great position and made a quick, assertive spin and baby J that was reminiscent of what the bigs were practicing with Timmy. I loved that moment, and afterwards when Pau acknowledged Jakob's execution you could tell it gave Jakob a jump in his step.

Other easy plays like when Bryn brought up the ball to the left side of the arc, passed to I forget which Spur on the right side of the arc who quickly passed to DeMar now in the right corner for a 3 in rhythm made for easy points: simple side to side quick passes for a great shot in the flow of the O. Another still was when Patty brought up the ball, and again Pau was set up outside the key and he made a quick high-low pass to a ready Metu who got fouled.

Sometimes DeMar was the initiator of the O, others he was the end point. What's great is that we had a lot of players who likewise served both ends of O plays. It's so much better than when we had to overload LMA because he was the primary (and previously, often the sole) threat. We were on the low end of the league average for 3 attempts last year, so given that we have more firepower this season (Davis needs to find his shot), hopefully we'll employ it more (though it depends on its necessity in a given game and so long as it's within game flow). Our O is far more equitable and dangerous now (our PPG is higher than last season, this with starters missing in most pre-season games) which will help us and make it more difficult to guard against.

Other than the weird Hawks anomaly, we held opponents to 100 points or below in four of five games, and also held opponents to under 40% shooting in three of five games. I hoped to see a better D effort team-wide and better flow on O and in this game we did both. An improved showing trends us the right way as we prepare for the season.

[jptremblay]

Seems that Poetl will start with LA, nice decision. We can take more profit with Pau in the 2nd unit.

Poetl/Gasol/Metu
LA/Bertans/Cunningham
Gay/Bellinelli
DeRozan/Brynn Forbes/Lonnie Walker
Patty/White

Not that bad.

[G R E Y]

Bryn Forbes believes he can do this, and that should surprise nobody. In his two-plus seasons with the Spurs, a lack of confidence never has been Forbes’ weakness. So when the Spurs’ newest starting point guard says he has no fear about manning what has suddenly become the NBA’s most cursed position, believe him.

“We’re going the make it work,” Forbes said Friday before drawing his first start of the preseason in the Spurs’ 100-81 victory at Orlando. “The last three years, that was the biggest change in my game, learning the point guard position. That was what I worked on the most.”

Upon his arrival to the Spurs’ program in 2016, the team immediately began to cross train him as a point guard. Players of Forbes’ size — he is 6-foot-3 — generally need point-guard skills to survive in the NBA. The Spurs sent Forbes to their G-League team in Austin, with instructions to play him primarily at the point.

“He got some experience,” Popovich said. “He’s not a point, but it gave him a chance to work on his ball-handling and his confidence.”

Defense returns: Popovich and other Spurs veterans say they were pleased with the team’s defensive improvements Friday, two days after allowing Atlanta to score 130 points....

“I thought the defense was very good,” Popovich said. “They took a step forward in some of the things we were trying to do game-plan wise.”

LaMarcus Aldridge called Friday night “a good step in the right direction, being better with schemes....”

“I think these guys realize they’ve each got to pick it up,” Popovich said. “It’s all about the defense, especially on the road. They showed that tonight. Hopefully, it will continue.”

https://www.expressnews.com/spurs-nation/article/Spurs-notebook-Forbes-slides-into-NBA-s-most-13304030.php?utm_campaign=twitter-premium&utm_source=CMS%20Sharing%20Button&utm_medium=social

[G R E Y]

Seems that Poetl will start with LA, nice decision. We can take more profit with Pau in the 2nd unit.

Poetl/Gasol/Metu
LA/Bertans/Cunningham
Gay/Bellinelli
DeRozan/Brynn Forbes/Lonnie Walker
Patty/White

Not that bad.

Jakob looked noticeably better yesterday, and good in his first pre-season game, disappearing in between. Jakob has looked good with Pau, and the Pau and LMA pairing we know has good synergy, though the Jakob - LMA one has yet to find a good chemistry. Hopefully it will come. Yesterday we involved him in the O besides just using him as a clean-up guy, so there is of course more potential to tap into on both ends. He looked more engaged and energized last night. Good to see.

I agree that Pau on the second unit provides advantages, though those are aplenty in the first unit as well. Perhaps Pau starts after all, since incorporating three new starters may be too big an adjustment and continuity and established synergy is important to get us rolling from the start.

We do have a much better balance in the line-up. A lot of talent and athleticism. We'll have to pick up the D collectively, communicating and hustling for each other until more players return and add to it.