GAME DAY, BALA! GAME 47: SPURS VS. PACERS, 3-4-2021, 8PM (CT)

[G R E Y]

A bounce back game seems to be our pattern of late but we're facing a team with a strong front court which has also been challenging for us. We need to re-establish some consistency while still waiting for a full complement of players, particularly up front. We will need to take full advantage of our strengths - pace, transition, and movement on the foundation of solid team defense - to get back on the right track.

WHERE: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX

WHEN: Saturday, April 3, 2021, 8pm (CT)

Earn The Stripes Mode: Hustle, vision, team game!



GO SPURS GO!!!

[ducler]

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[G R E Y]

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Pacers are without Sabonis tonight. I'd hoped that would give us an edge, but with Drew now out we're short bigs all the more. Have to run run run throughout the game and take advantage of our pace and transition game.

[G R E Y]

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[STORM13]

Don't worry the Pacers will be without Sabonis, Brogdon, Warren and Lamb

[G R E Y]

Don't worry the Pacers will be without Sabonis, Brogdon, Warren and Lamb

That is the worry! We have one true C who is playing tentatively because we can't afford the foul trouble.

There are no gimmies with us at home regardless of who is out for the opponent.

[G R E Y]

A game of alternating sloppiness and runs on both teams. Usually our dependable bench keeps us at least on par but new subs lost the 10-point lead to a 10-point run and it's been a back and forth affair since.

We did well to support a lead with stops the other way but after giving up the lead we are back to exchanging baskets or being on the wrong end of 4-point swings.

Need to get tougher.

[G R E Y]

We are not moving their D and driving at a C who is a great shot blocker. Maybe move the ball horizontally, make some back door cuts, finish with reverse layins. Need more physicality. And D stops.

[G R E Y]

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We look tentative to the point of vulnerable right now. After we gave up the lead it's been a slippery uphill challenge.

Just exchanging points while lacking energy. They are on the second of a travel back to back and missing key players yet we look the more tired heavy disoriented team on our heels.

We need some NASTY! some juice, some aggressiveness - all of it.

DD making mistakes like passing mid air with team mates not expecting the ball thinking he will shoot it, not communicating on switches, not getting fast enough on D. They are implementing the game plan I'd hoped we'd use.

More tempo, more urgency, more physicality, more movement, Spurs!

[G R E Y]

JAKOB BOX OUT!

DEMAR MOVE YOUR ROOTED FEET TO AT LEASTPRETEND YOU'RE GOING TO CONTEST A WIIIIDE OPEN 3!!!

[G R E Y]

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Tough OT loss after tough double OT loss. We had chances all over the place to pull ahead and stay ahead. Three missed 3s after a missed FT that would have iced the game, but it really was on the defensive end that we lost the game. More on it soon...

[G R E Y]

We’re in the midst of a conflation of factors that has resulted in this 2-6 home (3-7 in last ten) spiral: a difficult schedule both in terms of teams we’ve played and lack of rest between them; injuries to important contributors that has resulted fluctuating line-ups; facing teams on win or loss streaks with the one playing locked in and the other desperate; making bad decisions on O; not making good decisions on D.

With three front court players out in Drew, Gorgui, and Trey, we had a much smaller margin for error up front and I think Jakob played like he didn’t want to foul all the more. We frankly needed him as we were left with Rudy and Luka as bigs back ups. While Rudy struggled early, he came on strong for us on O as the game progressed.

Luka is not yet near the consistent level we need to trust him with a bigger role, but games like these provide him and the team with an opportunity borne of necessity; his contribution gives some relief to a depleted front court and is a reference point to his progress. He’s improved a lot especially on the defensive end. He stayed in front of players well with solid foot movement and balance while switching directions with arms up to contest. But when it comes to physicality in rebounding, he wilts versus opponents, particularly on O boards. He did get a good O rebound putback, but was really otherwise he got tossed around or avoided contact.

A good next step is getting positioning and boxing out on O and going after the rebounds there as he does on the D end. He has a sweet stroke from the arc and his moves are far more compact and coordinated but his confidence here is nowhere near that of in G-League. That’s the next step that has to translate to the next level. It’s a learning curve.

Rudy has been steady in roles larger than he or we anticipated, but that’s what his versatility provides. He was one of the six Spurs in double figures. Though he didn’t get many scoring chances until the 4TH Q, in it he scored 11 of his 14 points on an efficient 6-12, 1-3 from 3, 2-3FT’s along with 3 boards (2 on O), 3 assists, and 1 block overall in 24 minutes. On D Rudy got caught by a back door cut but made some good plays – his great positioning D with body upright, arms up and still got called for a foul, and later got hands on the ball earning a jump ball call.

With regular rotation bench players Lonnie and Drew out, we were thin on reinforcements and used a mostly eight-player unit along with Luka filling in. Rudy and Patty fulfilled their roles and had to cover for missing players. Not an easy task given we were up against a hot shooting team that we didn’t do a good job stopping to boot. Patty led the bench with 16 on 6-13, led the team with 4-9 from 3 and chipped in 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 34 minutes; his court time and chances to score were similar to those of starters.

With Luka playing only nine minutes and not relied on for scoring (sort of more a nice surprise if he does) and Devin an inconsistent scorer (1-5, 1-3 from 3 in 19 minutes), our bench was outscored 60-36. Devin’s positional defense is wonderful, especially for a rookie. His basic ball-him-man fundamentals, awareness of when to slide into help D mode and recovery, switching, and instincts to disrupt passing lanes are impressive. He does get blown by first steps, but I think he’ll adjust well once the speed of the NBA game slows down for him with experience.

And so their guards torched us all night with P&Rs. Jakob is endearingly honest and said post-game that they expected LeVert to be more of a facilitator and less the assertive scorer he was (he scored nine points above his 17PPG average). I’m surprised he was surprised that an opponent didn’t adhere to our expectations of him. I’m also surprised we didn’t adjust well enough to stop him. Or McConnell. Or Sumner. Or Holiday. *sigh* Clearly opponents have identified what works against us as one opponent after another runs the P&R successfully on us. Overall, our perimeter got beaten by first steps much of the night. We were chasing drivers, giving them lots of options in our paint. Lonnie and Drew out meant that the dynamics of what the bench could provide were hugely affected on both ends.

With tired legs already after a double OT (made all the more weary by a loss after all that effort), it looked as if we tried to score in the most economical rather than best ways possible. At times we settled for the one and done; at other times we settled for the outside shot too much; and when we did run our sets, there wasn’t as much movement of their D from side to side to get their terrific shot blocker of a center out of position enough to make drives easier on ourselves. And so we got blocked a lot. Rudy, DeMar, and Keldon were among those whose shots were either swatted or contested enough that we missed. Added pressure on our O movement is the fact that Jakob doesn’t draw his counterparts far enough away from the basket to be advantageous for us. Their C was not drawn out to an uncomfortable position much if not most of the game. When he returns, hopefully Dieng can help in this regard. We really need this added welcome dynamic.

You can see that Jakob is trying to extend his range beyond the restricted circle (it’s bizarre and jarring to even write that given the modern C game) but he missed all three of his shots in the paint outside of it. Still, he held his own against his positional counterpart scoring 14 points on 6-12, 2-3FTs (!) and 13 rebounds, a team-high six of which were on O. His near complete game was rounded out with 3 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks. He may not take the 3, but getting switched on guards and pulled out by their C to the arc he did guard it well. One main gripe I have with Jakob on D is inconsistent boxing out. We happen to have won the rebounding battle 46-44 in this game, including 18-11 on O boards, but in general we’re giving up too many rebounds by all too often ignoring this one simple fundamental aspect of rebounding.

P&Rs. So our perimeter defense is taking a hit. All it takes is one guy’s misread or not giving enough effort and our D breaks down. Jakob gets switched on a lot by opponent PG’s but he’s actually a mobile big who can guard the perimeter. When he does and other guys don’t cover their responsibilities, it’s then a tougher team cover over and over. We got crushed 72-62 in points in the paint. Our D has slipped from eighth to twelfth. The fatigue factor:

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And so our primary back court of DJ and Derrick have taken a bit of a hit in the ever nebulous +/-. Strangely with DJ this stat tends to be lower the more he scores, or more specifically, the more he leads us in FGAs in the last five games (including this one). Is it part of the ups and downs of him expanding his game? Does he want to fill a scoring void with team mates out and step up when we get into scoring droughts? Is he riding a hot hand? And at what cost?

In OT, we had two great looks from the arc by Rudy and Patty but both missed. It’s not registered on ESPN’s box score, but DJ also took a 3 in OT. It was off his own dribble even as he had Patty – our best 3 shooter in the game - waiting wide open to his right. No one else touched the ball on that possession and Patty uncharacteristically showed visibly frustrated body language that he didn’t get the ball.

It’s one of those possessions where if it goes in you think clutch shot! as he’s done before. But at the moment it also covers over the scrutiny about this being his only attempt from the arc.

DJ had a white hot first half in the first game versus the Kings in this home stretch, but was only1-4 in the 2ND half. When asked about the discrepancy in the post-game interview, he looked upset, saying that his number wasn’t called in the second half. But the thing was that he was a team-worst -8 at the half despite leading us with 21 points on 10-14, a team-high in FGAs. Despite that, we were down 68-60 at half by which point DJ had 3 assists.

His usage has increased from fourth last season (20.8) to second this season (23.4). He’s also second in FGAs at 14.4 (just behind DeMar’s 14.6) and second in scoring at 15.7PPG. So in that Kings game he took his per game’s average worth of shots in the first half alone.

In that Kings game, DJ was the only one in double figures in FGAs, with Jakob the only other player close to it. It wasn’t sustainable to not get others who usually also contribute on O more involved. He ended up finishing that game leading the team in scoring (23) and in a team worst -25. But he also had 7 assists which is terrific of itself despite that loss. To his credit, DJ is also second on the team in assists with 5.2 per game this season so there’s promise. That he got team mates involved is an investment in trust for future games.

Maybe DJ tries to take on too much himself at times, especially with some players out, but in doing so he tends to get tunnel vision. He once again led us in FGAs, making 9-17 to go along with 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. If you played ‘guess that stat line’, 20 points with no 3s and a starters low -7 would likely elicit DeMar’s name first. You can tell DJ’s certainly adopting some aspects of DD’s game, like finding his mid range spots, finding open team mates, etc. DJ’s defense is, of course, superior, but the lack of 3s and at times tunnel vision are not the traits we need.

The thing is, I’m not yet sure what kind of player DJ wants to be. On the one hand, he can go on scoring streaks. And sure, we should go with the hot hand. On the other, the one and done situations when he brings up the ball and takes a 3 off his own dribble when our best 3 shooter is open shows that he needs to better balance working to get others involved with getting his own shot even as I really like how he has developed his O game and is flexing it.

He’s not the PG who is a super passer (though that’s improved) or a super scorer (ditto) but he has boatloads of overall talent on both ends and is honing his craft. To that end, it would be great for him to grow into the PG who makes the right decisions regardless of whether or not he has the hot scorer’s touch. It’s about reading the given situation and, equally important, about the team being able to trust he’ll make the right decision, especially in pressure situations.

After that Kings game, DJ talked about how everyone needs to get better from players to coaches, and something about play calls. It sort of came across like well, he did his part. He always takes personal responsibility, but I felt he got a bit ahead of himself in that interview. That’s not to make too big a deal about an upset player’s comments. Obviously he cares a lot, but I felt he was a bit blind to his end of things, and the game results reflected that. The cliche of controlling what you can control, and seeing that coaches put players in best positions to succeed applies. Even if in the moment it stings, his ‘not getting his number called’ was meant to create awareness to broaden his game and as the player who initiates the O, encourage, engage, and trust his team mates to contribute, too. And so Patty’s 4-9 from 3 had a chance to be a 5-10. And in a six-point game, details like that are all the more magnified; a 3 here, 5 missed FT’s there – including a crucial one by DeMar that could have sealed the game, matter all the more.

DeMar played 47 minutes last game, and 37 more in this one. It was, frankly, not his best outing despite the favourable stats: team high 25 points on 6-12, team high 13-15FT’s, 4 rebounds, team-high 6 assists, but also team-high 5 TO’s. He just didn’t have the requisite energy in this game even as he kept fighting to get to the FT line. He does that, going to his patented moves to stop time, rest a bit, and get us some points while getting opponents into foul trouble. But at times it does also cover for some less than stellar play. When players struggle, they go to their habits. As far as habits go, getting to the FT line consistently is a great one to have. But that one missed FT at the end of regulation was costly.

And habits cut both ways. That DeMar’s defense is newsworthy when it’s good is itself bad. They got a basket on a back door cut on DeMar late in the game as well. He tends to drive for fouls rather than points and in OT a drive which was once again too low of a finish at the rim was contested with no foul called. His trying to go for a steal while blatantly running into the opponent was another points swing against us. The latter two plays were from clearly tired legs, and when they go, sense tends to as well. The loss isn’t all on him, but again, in a close game, exploiting the weaknesses of opponents best usually gets the win.

With DeMar, DJ, and Jakob not making any 3s (and taking only one among them!), a lot of extra pressure falls on Derrick’s shoulders to take and make them. Rudy, Patty and Devin are our best 3 shooters, and it’s part of what has made our bench so successful the first half of the season. But Derrick’s season has been marred with injuries and illness, so that pressure to hit 3s is compounded by huge variations in efficiency. Last game he connected on a career-high 7-13, but was 2-10 in this one. And its been like that much of the season as he’s restarted the process of getting his feet under him and his timing right. The poor 3 shooting heavily skewed efficiency as he registered 6-15 for 18 points (4-4FT’s) along with 3 rebounds and 3 assists. He’s more assertive, which is great, and still defensively sound, which is better still, but he’s chasing efficiency, and we frankly need him to catch it right about now.

It was great to see Keldon play so well after some recent struggles. This is from after the previous game:

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He was all around stellar in scoring 20 points on 7-10, 2-2 from 3, 4-5FT’s, along with 10 rebounds (4 on O), and 1 block. He was 3-6 in the first half and 4-4 in the second. Much had been made on social media about Keldon not playing in OT because supposedly Rudy was taking his minutes again. But the facts don’t support the conjecture: 83% of Rudy’s minutes are at PF this season; 81% of Keldon’s are at SF. Both shot 100% in the 4TH Q, scoring 11 and 14 of their points respectively. So even if in this game Rudy went in for Keldon, you really couldn’t fault either one for being in the game.

A better argument could be made about Keldon going in for DeMar who was 0-2, 1-2FT’s in the 4TH Q and then 0-1 and 1-2FT’s in OT. It could be argued that DeMar was also there for the passing – he had 2 assists in the 4TH Q, and 2 in OT for a total of 6 – but we had DJ, Derrick, and Patty there, too. DeMar does garner a lot of defensive attention. And it’s hard to justify taking out your star player for a second year one in crunch time unless said second year player is the next true great one. It just is. In hindsight I’d have gone with Keldon and Rudy based on their hot hands, but I don’t have to deal with the ramifications of locker room relationships after such decisions.

We finished the 4TH Q on a 8-2 run to tie the game and give ourselves a chance in OT, but well and truly ran out of gas there. We scored 7 points on 9 attempts to their 13 points on 7 attempts. These were emblematic of the game as a whole – us struggling to score efficiently at times, and struggling to get stops at others. Tough couple of losses. You can tell Pop really wanted these wins what with the heavier minutes to the vets throughout. And we needed these games, especially versus teams we really should beat. It’ll be a mental grind to get back up for the last one at home, but we’ll have to take solace in the fact that there’s plenty of room for improvement in our play: figure out a way to defend P&R better without real practices, limit turnovers (we gave up 25 points on our uncharacteristically high 18), use our transition game (19-0 fast break points for them!), run back on D (again, 19 points...), and make our 3s. Sounds like a total overhaul, but we’ve done better in all these areas leading up to this stretch of home games. It’s in us to play better, and up to us to find it.

NOTEWORTHY ACHIEVEMENTS

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