SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT)

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SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#1 » by G R E Y » Thu Oct 28, 2021 8:18 pm

Being in games is the first step. Finishing them well to reward ourselves for all the good work we've done along the way is the next one. It's a learning curve with some early growing pains. They should pay dividends for us playing together and executing selfless, movement-based, two-way play. Starting with this first of a three-game road trip, let's bring the requisite D to O energy!

WHERE: American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX

WHEN: Thursday, October 28, 2021, 7:30 pm (CT)



GO SPURS GO!!!
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#2 » by ducler » Thu Oct 28, 2021 9:37 pm

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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#3 » by G R E Y » Thu Oct 28, 2021 11:18 pm

Welcome back, ducler! :wave:

As to the starting group, I guess Keldon plays the 4?
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Interesting that Thad didn't get the nod. I wonder if Pop will play around with the starting group on this road trip ie/ Lonnie the first game, maybe Devin the next? I suspect that we want consistency so that would likely only happen if Lonnie struggles. But with more minutes and a bigger role, he's actually looked in a better rhythm and so contributing better on both ends.

This gives us legitimate three players that make 3s (supposed to be four but Keldon has yet to make one). With Thad being a more traditional 4, he's less likely to shoot from the arc (though he made some in pre-season).

Small, movement-based, pesky-D ball around Jakob it is.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#4 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 1:12 am

1ST Q: SPURS 25

MAVERICKS 15

And this is why a 20-point lead, especially early, means almost nothing. I get why Pop put in reverses with that 20-point lead, but they've frankly disappointed. We didn't score in the last however many minutes and gave them some life.

DJ was disciplined in passing except when we were up big and called his own number. Missed. On the next play he rightly passed to Bryn for a 3. Bryn should do nothing else but shoot.

Jakob is excellent.

We're on a cold snap. Drive more to reward the D.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#5 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 1:14 am

SOMEBODY **** DRIVE AND SCORE. A BACK DOOR CUT, MORE MOVEMENT, MORE PASSING. STOP SETTLING FOR OUTSIDE SHOTS.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#6 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 1:20 am

We have FOUR points half way through the 2ND Q. We've stopped moving, we're taking one and done shots, guys are calling their own numbers, and we're allowing drives down the middle.

EVERYTHING opposite to what got us an early lead.

Do everything opposite again, Spurs. Pull your asses out. Drive, dish, score, repeat. Defend again.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#7 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 1:51 am

2ND Q: SPURS 49

MAVERICKS 47

We lost that 2ND Q handily 32-24, one less than our end of Q cold 1ST, but we came back from a seven-point deficit to stem their momentum and generate some of our own to end the half.

We allowed too many points inside through drives, and got caught on screens too much so that they made an extra pass for open 3s.

I thought DJ and Derrick did a great job on Luka especially earlier. Switched well, defended cleanly, prevented easy drives inside, forced errant passes and misses. A lot of that dissipated later.

Devin has stepped up; Lonnie has not. Of course taking only two shots by the half from someone we expect to score ain't it. He drives well enough but frustratingly tries to be some magician passes and gives up a chance to score. I don't get it I really don't. Just weird tendencies. Is it mental? Pressure? He's a rhythm player. It used to be that other scorers ahead of him were in the way. Or so we thought. But he's gotten plenty of starter minutes and still defers to the likes of Jakob inside. Just like take your shot, guy!

Bryn has found his thankfully. For all the screens he's gotten lost on, gunning from the arc will keep him in the game. Don't handle it, don't dribble it, don't over-think it, just shoot it.

DJ has been terrific and a very solid steadying presence. His drive exposing the ball like he's Dr. J aside (literally blocked lol) he's been a fine balance of getting to his spots and passing (except for the one handed attempt inside to Drew that got stolen).

Derrick needs to **** step up on O. We can't have him and DJ alternating good O games.

Drew has been flat out bad. We perhaps could use Jock, right?

Good to see Tre out there for a bit.

Love you, Pop, but never ever put in Bryn, Diop, and Drew together again. That was our 20-point lead. Yes it's on them to get some points, but it was a horrible trio in for too long. They had to figure it out. They didn't.

I thought we made it wayyyyyyyyyyy too easy on their late half inbounds to Luka. Never a good idea. Sure enough we paid for it. Always have a Spur shadowing him. Always.

Our final play with the getting out of a double to pass to the elbow, out to the arc, and extra pass to in rhythm Bryn end of Q 3 was terrific, and emblematic of how we should be playing.

We settled for too many outside shots for too long, so hopefully we get our transition game going better, our movement returns, and we prevent drives inside down the middle as well as rotate well to contest their outside shots.

Jakob is wonderful.

Full team smart effort, Spurs! Finish strong and well.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#8 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 1:55 am

FFS, Derrick! Get your head in the game! Tre in, please!
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#9 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 1:56 am

Can we please communicate on our rotations? SOMEBODY run out to at least try to contest the 3s, yeah?
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#10 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 2:09 am

POP - PLEASE. DO NOT PLAY BRYN, DREW, AND DIOP TOGETHER. PLEASE.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#11 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 2:17 am

3RD Q: SPURS 76

MAVERICKS 76

Keeping our poise, playing our game, trusting our work and each other will be central to pulling through for the win now. Best on both ends, Spurs!
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#12 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 2:32 am

And their largest lead of the game.

By all means stop moving and keep taking only outside shots FFS...
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#13 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 2:47 am

So dumb. Wasting time driving by Keldon when he had Derrick wide open on the left corner.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#14 » by G R E Y » Fri Oct 29, 2021 3:33 am

4TH Q: SPURS 99

MAVERICKS 104

Habits. They are what they are because they're repeated. Trite, but applies. I don't want to hear about moral victories, etc.

I want to know why DJ gets into mano-a-mano mode when we are up big to bring up his stats. It takes us out of our movement flow when we stand around watching one and done shots. Also he takes the worst, most contested drives, which only reinforces his unwillingness to do so.

In fairness, he was a stabilizing force for us but also wanted to take the shots - well that only reinforces lack of movement and one and doneness which is perilous for us.

He and Jakob - our best, most consistent player, frankly - were wonderful anchors on both ends. There's only so much two players can do when the SG is sucking hard on O, when the PF is, too, and when the SF is taking a while to warm up. And yet we STILL had a 20-point lead from our transition game.

I want to know what the **** is going on with Derrick because it seems like bizarro Nero White out there on O. Picking up dribbles when he's not dribbling off his foot, when he's not turning it over. He had some nice, physical drives in the 4TH Q but these were missing from most of our team for most of the game.

I want to know why Keldon is missing 3s and FTs. He was poor-but-serviceable enough to be hopeful last season with the former, and decent with the latter. Now that teams have figured out that he's going to drive - this when we needed a 3 that he passed up, Jesus - they'll let him do that if it means he misses the best shots in the game. He's been scouted and he needs to adjust. Find the open man when you draw defenders in on those drives.

Keldon's decision making also leaves much to be desired. Should have shot the aforementioned 3, and on a drive he completely missed a wide open Derrick in the left corner down 3. Brilliant. ****.

I want to know why we insist on settling for outside shots when we're up big rather than running our plays. We KEEP taking the foot OFF the pedal. How many double digit leads are we going to blow before it sets in? The last four games have all been winnable and yet here we are.

Lonnie brought it in the second half and made some shots inside and outside. I get why he's starting but if we're going to miss or pass on 3s then might as well get some size in there with Jock or Thad. Neither saw the court tonight.

The Bryn-Drew-Diop experiment frankly took us completely out of our rhythm and cost us the big early lead. We showed both the best and worst when the starters are clicking but weird bench line-ups are not. I hope Pop doesn't keep putting out that trio because it very clearly cost us a 20-point lead in like eight minutes that we never got back.

Diop was great on D overall - how about that blocked 3?! - but we got nothing from him on O.

Diop , Derrick, Keldon and Drew just brought little to the O and that put pressure on our D to be near perfect.

Devin is only in his second season so I expect some inconsistencies even as I keep hoping he'll just be the polished player of game 1. He's getting to the right spots for the most part.

It's a different game when you're the starter and the pressure is on you to deliver night in and night out, eh fellas?

That's the challenge. Guys aren't used to being 'the guys' and maybe it's the pressure of the moments, maybe it's the fatigue of having to bring it on both ends, maybe it's inexperience, but it's adding up. Late game pressure decisions, seeing what plays and teammates are available and making the right reads is one aspect.

Maintaining OUR game - movement on O, great man and team D to prevent drives down the middle, communicating on rotations, limiting TOs - is something that we are not doing for the whole game. We lulled ourselves into a false sense of comfort after that big lead and once again fell short when the game was close. We did not take nearly enough 3s, and the ones we did take were often not the best decisions ie/ they were from settling for a one and done or a contested shot rather than creating it from passing. When we generated it from ball movement they were better shots and makes. we missed too many FTs - six in a five -point game - and we turned it over 14 times which cost us 20 points - too many.

Too few guys are scoring. This once again comes from movement and sharing not putting one another in tight spots with late clock passes and contested unbalanced shots or drives too early in the clock. When we learn that sharing and movement throughout the whole game is central to a W then perhaps we'll get more of them. Right now, it's a bitter pill that a lot of our guys have to swallow. The next step is a bigger one than perhaps several have anticipated, and the growing pains will continue. But we have to change our habits of taking the foot of the pedal when we're up big (88 shots isn't going to cut it for a team that wants to run in transition), of changing the way we play when we get leads (one and done is not going to cut it for a team that relies on movement and pushing the ball), of guys playing simple basketball when they get playing time together with team mates they don't normally share the court with (Drew, Diop, and Bryn was hard to watch in that 1ST Q but they had plenty of time to figure something out and didn't).

So habits. Keldon needs to find his teammates. DJ has to keep passing it around. Derrick has to find his good coordinated self. And we have to stay committed to our best two-way game. We've already seen time and again what happens when we settle and deviate from it. Right now it's like whack-a-mole. One or two new guys get hot in each game while others take turn sucking on O. The turn of the tide will come with consistent commitment to our two-way, transition, pace, movement O game based on the foundation of good D. We talk a lot about lessons, we'll have to find a way to implement them. We know what to do.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#15 » by imagump1313 » Fri Oct 29, 2021 12:35 pm

I'm really not seeing anything that wasn't expected soo far.

Besides White being as disappointing as he is I think we are seeing what we are going to be all year. I am enjoying finally seeing that we are not the most old and un-athletic team on the floor every night.

Dallas and the Lakers looked really old and slow compared to us. However, we are young and still figuring out how what it means to play well professionally. We are going to look great at times and horrible at the same time.
We all knew Murray was going to try to be The Man. Well, he is getting his chances now to do that. Its obvious he's not ready for that yet but we need to find out.

The one thing I can honestly say is that if we could ever get Poeltl to be aggressive and play more consistently, we could surprise some people eventually. He is the key right now. Not, White, not Murray, not Johnson, not Walker, not Vassel or anyone else. All these other guys are going to be up and down all year. But when Poeltl plays well it allows the others to be aggressive in their own ways and we need that this year.

We are going to be frustratingly inconsistent all year, but hopefully we start seeing more consistency from guys as the year plays out. I'm actually enjoying it soo far.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#16 » by Phreak50 » Fri Oct 29, 2021 12:57 pm

I think we are overachieving.

I don't think anyone on our team would be even a second best player on any other team in the league.

White has been super disappointing though. He has reached his peak already it seems and as I've said before, doesn't look like a point guard or shooting guard. Ideally he'd be a sixth man if his shot was more consistent.

At least Murray is increasing his trade value.

And I don't get why we aren't trying to show Young has some value so we can flip him to a contender.

I agree overall though, it's been refreshing to watch.
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#17 » by shrink » Fri Oct 29, 2021 2:22 pm

Is Thad Young cooked at 33? I’d be surprised since he was pretty good off the bench last year, but this was his third DNP-CD?

Anyone have info?
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Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 5: SPURS AT MAVERICKS, 28-10-2021, 7:30 PM (CT) 

Post#18 » by imagump1313 » Fri Oct 29, 2021 2:59 pm

shrink wrote:Is Thad Young cooked at 33? I’d be surprised since he was pretty good off the bench last year, but this was his third DNP-CD?

Anyone have info?


I think Young is fine. Everyone in the league already knows what he is so there is no reason to showcase him. He just obviously isn't in our plans. The team has put little to no effort into mixing him with the core guys since he got here. I think they were hoping for a workable trade before the season started and that didn't happen. My guess barring injuries, is that he will be traded before any deadline comes up for whatever we can get. They could also be waiting for other teams having injuries to get more.

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