GAME DAY, BALA! GAME 18: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 25-11-2019, 7:30PM (CT)

[G R E Y]

Finally home after a lengthy trip, we have some good play to build on. We'll need all that we did well and build on it. We have to get in the right column on our court, and it starts tonight with focus on our system and a unified purpose.

WHERE: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX

WHEN: Monday, November 25, 2019, 7:30pm (CT)

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GO SPURS GO!!!

[ducler]

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[Baphomet]

Hopefully I'll be able to watch this one. My hopes aren't terribly high given the ability disparity between the two teams and how good the Lakers have been on the road, but there's no feeling like beating them so I'm hoping the boys can dig deep for this one.

The Lakers are good, but top heavy. Who knows, maybe this is a game for our bench to do some damage.

[G R E Y]

Interesting that Pop has chosen to put Derrick in as a starter instead of Dejounte. Better balance and game management, frankly.

Also, really like DeMarre subbing for DeMar.

Good adjustments in getting more D and O from our guys.

[G R E Y]

Yeah I hope Pop rips into them on that lazy no help no rotation D on their dunk. Every small play like that adds up. Details details details.

[G R E Y]

MUCH much better play from us this half, and it's no coincidence that Beli has played 0 minutes that half, Derrick started, and DeMarre was the sub in for DeMar.

Dejounte is rushing his O too much, but maybe as part of the bench unit he has more of a green light to drive? Needs to work on the P&R, especially with LMA. Derrick is better at these at this point in his career. He has more experience and has played more with LMA. Still, our PG skill sets complement one another and their defense is solid.

LMA is FAR more engaged to start tonight, which is great to see.

We are more decisive, and though there are some mistakes, we are hustling.

Just a much better energy among the group tonight, and it is translating to better, more cohesive play.

It's like these are the rotations and roles that have been waiting to be used and now here we are.

[G R E Y]

Again, Pop livid for the poor transition defense on consecutive opponent baskets. If it takes an entire practice of doing nothing but running back on defense to get it in our heads that we are as good as we go D to O, then so be it. Run. Back. On. Defense.

[G R E Y]

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[G R E Y]

Taking good steps is a good way to describe this game, or at least more steps forward and not as many backwards even though we didn't get the result we wanted.

I was so impressed with LMA this game. This is the engaged leader we saw put the team on his back for the better part of the last two seasons. What a noticeable difference in his effort on both ends: not settling only for outside shots but mixing it up with physical post-ups and vet savvy fakes for fouls (and led us with 5-6 FTs), running to the rim for putbacks, switching well, and closing out by actually jumping at shooters. It's when you see this LMA that it stands out as all the more a contrast to what we've not seen a lot of this season. When he puts his minds to it, he is a dominant force, and we frankly need this version of him consistently. Kudos to him for stepping up.

It set the tone as the rest of the starters were ready from the outset defending well, switching, rotating, closing out, hustling after rebounds. On the other end we passed and moved off the ball far better and that flow created good looks for just about everyone in the line-up. LMA feasted in the first and third Qs, and it seemed as if he and DeMar took turns taking over as lead scorers as the latter lit it up in the second and fourth. Bryn gave us what we need with spacing and 3s for around his season average, and Jakob had an off scoring night but provided the kind of all around utility beyond what appears on a stat sheet. He made many smart unheralded plays that resulted in more space for teammates, and provided solid rebounding that gave us second O possessions and limited opponent possessions. He knows where to move to be effective, and has a soft touch around the rim. His pop-a-shot is inconsistent and does need some more seasoning. Good for him for making his FTs.

Derrick as starter is a better balance with that group, so I think putting him with the first unit is a solid move. We don't lose anything on D, and on O he hits the 3 a bit better, can also drive, but is a much better facilitator, especially in executing the P&R. Dejounte has said all the right things, and has earned his contract, but a mere month after declaring all this gratitude and wanting to do all he can to improve, he was sitting on the floor during the Knicks game and close to the end of the bench at times in this one. He deleted some photos of him and Pop on his Twitter around the time that Patty first got the start in for him a couple of games ago, so I'm not thrilled with his response here.

When he was handed the reins from Tony, it was a decision that was best for the team. When Tony took over as a young guard, he stayed a starter because of his ability to facilitate for others, finding those angles and pockets of space and passing at just the right height and place for each teammate to then do something good with the ball. For now, because of last season's circumstances, it just so happens that Derrick has more experience and chemistry with this group. That is what is best for the team - they all looked more engaged and moving so well. So for DJ to be giving off some weird vibes off court about his displeasure with the decision to play from the bench or whatever it is isn't the display of leadership he said he has. There's no questioning his heart and desire, but he has holes in his game that Derrick's games does not and because of that, it suits the others better. Each has a different energy and we need to learn to feed off each one, but right now we need the steadying presence that Derrick's poise is providing.

If DJ wants to start, he has to play less like a 2-guard with less driving mano-a-mano into multiple defenders, and more passing with purpose and executing the P&R. I appreciate that he is eager and wants to help, but at times he is too fast for his own good, loses the ball on drives, and rushes rather than work to create a rhythm that all around him will benefit from. It's not like he was demoted; it's just another guy was placed in a situation that is a better fit right now. I appreciate that there are a lot of changes for him to absorb right now, and his role is fluctuating, but Derrick and Patty went through it all of last season and just stepped up time and again; they did what was asked of them the best they could. I hope he gets his feelings / ego in the right lane and realizes he is still getting his minutes and still helping the team. It's been interesting listening to post-game interviews and players talking about discipline and being guys who make others better. Each guy has to be honest with himself about the extent to which he is following those attributes. Leadership starts there.

I really like that DeMarre is the first sub for DeMar rather than Beli, who got his first DNP - Finding His Shot of the season. At times DeMarre is still figuring out where to go on O (Dejounte was waving for him to move in a certain direction) but even with a case of Beli-itis tonight (0-4) he is a much better defender. Patty and Rudy's energy and effort were not rewarded with efficient scoring tonight when we needed a complete team offensive. Lonnie and Metu each played a minute, each got blown by on drives and Metu as almost always found a way to the FT line. With so few minutes, I think Lonnie rushes his shots in trying to do something out there, but it's his defense that will get him more minutes. Our bench scored only 22 points tonight and this along with points in the paint were the biggest differences tonight.

Before the game, they showed a stat where at this point last season we were something like -54 on 3s scored, and this season it is around three times that, so both defending and hitting the 3s is crucial, though given we're in the top five on O, this is the lesser concern. After the game, guys talked about lapses that have been plaguing us. We were far more energized and team-oriented throughout, even though once again the second half had more errors of spacing and shot selection (only one guy touches the ball and shoots too early) on O and rotations, giving up O boards, and the fundamentals of not running back on D.

We keep thinking that our hot first-half shooting will just carry over and compensate for D miscues, so we tend to settle for outside shots early in the clock to get ourselves back on track when it is attention to D details that have been helping us to stay afloat when the shots haven't been falling. Getting stops enables us to not rush shots be it to close a scoring gap or pull away. As for scoring, it would help if we didn't second guess ourselves about open shots - if it's there and we generate it from great passing that opened it up, shoot, don't over-complicate things by passing some more and putting more pressure on the last guy with the ball as the shot clock expires. Giving open shots at the arc or in the key to make an extra unnecessary pass is too unselfish, but also some combination of tentative and not wanting to make mistakes.

We did a lot of good things from the coaches to the players in this game relative to how we've been playing prior to it. Solid line-up changes and rotations (ie/ DeMar fouled or made a couple of poor O choices, in came DeMarre and vice versa), solid game management with timeouts to stop runs or send a sandpaper message about defensive effort or O lapses; terrific ball movement, compete level, and willingness to play as a unit. If some guys have to sacrifice their games right now to help the team play better, so be it. It's tough and tests all those proclamations of doing whatever it takes and whatever the team needs, but if there was ever a sign of leadership, doing this is it.