GT: Spurs (29-16) vs. Nets (16-28)

[Nolan]

When: 5:30 PM MT, Jan 17th, 2017
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn NY

We need a bounce back win after that disappointing showing in Atlanta. We can't be fooled by the Nets record (we can't be fooled by any record) they're a tough young team that plays hard and brings it every night. If we sleep on them they will burn us.

Key to this going to be controlling the pace of the game. We have to dictate the terms and we can't play down to their level. This means we need to dominate the glass and play solid transition defense.

Go Spurs!!

[G R E Y]

I posted about this in the Hawks thread, but pertains to this game. Pau's been playing injured, and may be out for this game:

Read on Twitter

Edit: It looks as if Pau will play through his injury.

Read on Twitter

Pau Gasol (hand) and Danny Green (groin) are planning to play through their bumps and bruises, Popovich said.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/article/Spurs-shutting-down-Kawhi-Leonard-indefinitely-12504542.php

[ducler]

[Nolan]

I posted about this in the Hawks thread, but pertains to this game. Pau's been playing injured, and may be out for this game:

Read on Twitter

Edit: It looks as if Pau will play through his injury.

Read on Twitter

Pau Gasol (hand) and Danny Green (groin) are planning to play through their bumps and bruises, Popovich said.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/article/Spurs-shutting-down-Kawhi-Leonard-indefinitely-12504542.php

We just cannot stay healthy

[G R E Y]

I posted about this in the Hawks thread, but pertains to this game. Pau's been playing injured, and may be out for this game:

Read on Twitter

Edit: It looks as if Pau will play through his injury.

Read on Twitter

Pau Gasol (hand) and Danny Green (groin) are planning to play through their bumps and bruises, Popovich said.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/article/Spurs-shutting-down-Kawhi-Leonard-indefinitely-12504542.php

We just cannot stay healthy

Pop was asked whether he felt the Spurs have been snake bitten in the injury department, and he said he doesn't believe in that sort of thing, it's just the ups and downs of a season.

But I'm superstitious, and ever since I mentioned the italicized word in another thread, three more Spurs went down like **** bowling pins lol STRIKE! So I'm just NOT going to use again, and maybe instead throw some eye of newt into the cauldron, and brush up on my Latin

[G R E Y]

We need Danny, Kyle, and Davis to get it going on the O.

LET'S GO SPURS!

[Nolan]

Solid win. Things got a little hairy in the 4th when the Nets went crazy from three but we kept feeding LMA and they had no answer for him.

[G R E Y]

Mr. LaMarcus Nurae Aldridge had a grown man’s game. He took the Spurs on his back to pick up our momentum after we got down down early, and late to put the game away for us when the Nets made a concerted push. Hook shots, sweet turnaround Js, face-up long Js, aggressive dunks, passing out of doubles, blocking shots, and grabbing rebounds – all in a night’s work. We expect this now from LMA, game in, game out quietly anchoring us, but we should never take for granted the high quality effort he’s been giving us. In this game, he was 13-24 for 34 points (including 8-8FTs), complemented by 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. The Nets had no answer for him. Although there were some moments in which we went a bit to late to him, overall, we did a much better job not telegraphing passes for easy pick offs, and once the ball was in LMA’s hands, he made smart, aggressive plays with it all night long.

My one gripe (and it’s almost making too fine a point of it given the game he had) is bunnies, which drive me crazy. LMA, FOR THE LOVE OF BASKETBALL FUNDAMENTALS, USE THE GLASS, PLEASE.... You, too, Murray! (And you, Joff...). You put in all that work to get a sound position, you deserve to get the points rather than the frustration of a shot that has hit everything but the right place on the glass and the bottom of the net.

Helping LMA with excellent play was Pau, who implemented the high-low game so well with LMA throughout the game. I never get tired of saying that Pau had a team-high in assists as he did once again with 7 to add to another double double of 13 points (on excellent 5-8 shooting, including a 3, and 2-4FTs), and 12 rebounds. All that with an injured shooting hand and being the second oldest player on the team. Love it.

Danny is not shooting it particularly well, but his 9 points on 2-6FGA was buoyed by 2 rebounds, an assist, 3 steals, and a block – aspects of the game he looks to first in terms of how he can help us.

Tony has frankly been off the past few games. His assists totals have been ok, but the shooting has really fallen off. He does a good job distributing the ball because he knows the Spurs system so well and has a good chemistry with his fellow starters. He provides a calming steadfastness which we need in a season with such roster and role flux, but he has to find a way to score. We have to punish opponents for leaving him open, or distribute his attempts (3-12 for 8 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists) to those who can.

Murray did well playing within himself, choosing wisely when to drive and when to pass. His shots and passes, though, are sometimes too ‘live’, have a bit too much spin that’s harder to control. His rebounding, on the other hand, is excellent. The 9 boards (4 O, 5 D) he grabbed show a nose and tenacity for the ball. His slight frame allows him to sneak into position and pounce. Great instincts.

Bryn, Bertans, and Kyle simply have to contribute more. Simplify the game, be defensively aware, and just run the plays hard. There wasn’t nearly enough from them when we need others to take the load off the vets. This is their opportunity to step up.

Team-wise, despite being outrebounded 46-42, and bested 42-30 in points in the paint, we did a much better job anticipating and shutting down back door cuts and baseline passes for 8 steals. Our 24 assists to 9 turnovers (giving up only 9 points on them) were much more Spurs-like as well. It didn’t hurt us tonight, but we did miss 8FTs, hitting 23-31 for 74.2%.

We also did a better job in matching their energy. We pushed the ball, matched their quick pace, didn’t back down, and got runs of our own to counter theirs. The book ends of the game were good examples. Down 19-11 in the first, we went on a 12-5 run to end the quarter, shooting 52%. We strung together solid team D, and cohesive O for a deceptively quick 17 point lead, though credit to the Nets for staying in it and battling back.

By the late 4th, we were up only 3 with just over 2 minutes left. Despite once again giving up 30 points in the final quarter, an animated Pop in the timeout with less than a minute left pushed us. We rebounded very well (especially Murray on both ends), made clutch passes and shots, and hit key free throws. It was great to see Manu helping the young guys with the plays during the timeout as well. He may not be playing, but is still contributing. If there’s anyone’s advice you want, it’s someone of his understanding of the game in general, and of the Spurs system in particular.

Although we had a great 3 percentage on 9-19 for 47.4%, they ended up shooting four more 3s in total, hitting 5 3s to our 1 in the final Q. But the work we put in throughout the game with Patty’s career-high night in 3s sustained us. Patty got a bench-high 25 points on incredible 7-10 shooting (7-8 from the 3, five in the first half, and 4-6 FTs) to go along with 2 rebounds 2 assists, and 3 steals. Just goes to show, every play counts, all the early effort pays off late.

We looked more like ourselves on the heels of Kawhi news that could have unraveled us. Instead, we came together to rally for a much better effort, and a much needed road win.

I love this team. GO SPURS!