SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 44: SPURS VS. CLIPPERS, 15-1-2022, 7:30PM (CT)

[G R E Y]

I'd rather we wouldn't just exchange shot for shot with them as it just gives the opponent rhythm and puts pressure on our O to keep scoring.

[G R E Y]

And just like that our 12-point lead goes down to 10 and down to 7 for a Pop timeout.

Just not enough hustle on the rebounds in our end, and we keep giving them multiple chances to score and then they do.

Drive too easy in our key are cardinal sins for Pop, but I don't like our lackadaisical approach here.

Play hard, play smart, Spurs!

[G R E Y]

WE GOT VEEEEERYYYYYYY LUCKY ON THEIR MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS AND MISSES FROM 3 JUST THERE ****! GET INTO GEAR, SPURS!

[imagump1313]

We would be up 30 if it wasn't for Coffey. Just getting sloppy now...

Bates-Diop reminds me a lot of Kyle Anderson.

[G R E Y]

SAY WHAT YOU WILL ABOUT HOW GREAT DJ'S BEEN, BUT WE'VE BEEN MISSING DERRICK SORELY!

[G R E Y]

THIS IS WHAT I **** HATE ABOUT LONNIE'S GAME. OVER AND OVER AGAIN ME-FIRST SHOTS TOO EARLY IN THE CLOCK.

[G R E Y]

WE JUST NEVER **** LEARN. NEVER **** LEARN.

[G R E Y]

3RD Q: SPURS 85

CLIPPERS 80

They finished on a 10-3 because of boneheadedness that sets in at just about every **** end of Q situation for us.

At least Devin got a steal to prevent a shot there.

When will we learn to not over collapse on their drives and cover our arc to contest their 3s?

When will we learn to box out with all out energy to limit second chances?

When will we learn to finish opponents by not letting up when we have a lead and build our lead instead?

We have to impose our game with clean diligence.

[G R E Y]

JESUS CHRIST.

11-0 RUN AND NO **** SHOTS PUT UP.

18-3 RUN FOR THEM AS WE JUST **** REFUSE TO EVEN PUT UP **** SHOTS.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SO STUPID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ALSO GET DREW OUT OF THE GAME.

[G R E Y]

THANKS FOR THE MISSED SHOT AND THEN O FOUL TURNOVER, LONNIE. **** DUMMY.

[G R E Y]

DRIVE DRIVE DRIVE AT THEM, SPURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[G R E Y]

**** 12-2 START TO THE 4TH... JUST UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH...

[imagump1313]

Clippers had whole possession with Murray guarding Zubac and they never even tried to get it to him. Gift....

[G R E Y]

HUSTLE PLAYS YES LET'S GO I LOVE IT, SPURS!

[imagump1313]

Nice to get a win but not helping us get Banchero

[G R E Y]

PHEW! AND YEAH!!!

[G R E Y]

Nice to get a win but not helping us get Banchero

To be honest I find him underwhelming. I'd take Chet over him right now, and probably Jabari Smith over either, though that's on very limited views.

[imagump1313]

Nice to get a win but not helping us get Banchero

To be honest I find him underwhelming. I'd take Chet over him right now, and probably Jabari Smith over either, though that's on very limited views.

Yeah, long way to go before we are there. But we are almost as close to the first pick as we are to the playoffs

[G R E Y]

4TH Q: SPURS 101

CLIPPERS 94

From 12-2 down at the start of the 4TH Q to a 14-2 run to finish the Q, we pulled through. It's as puzzling how inept we look at times as it is encouraging that we snapped out of it, made something click right, and made great plays on both ends to come from behind and win the Q and the game.

Along the way, we limited our TOs - only six in the second half, four in the 4TH Q; we maintained our rebounding rate, balancing 28 in the first half with 26 in the second; we made 11-37 from 3, both above our average for the series win and our first win of 2022!

We got balanced scoring between starters (59) and bench (42), with four starters and three bench players in double figures. Six of our 3s were from starters; five, from the bench. It was this double attack that eventually came through for us, getting both the lead, and catching theirs to take over again.

Along the way there was some dicey play that surely will end up in the film sessions. Another TO-prone 1ST Q saw us make 7 TOs which resulted in our not really be able to get going despite shooting the 3 well. It contributed to the seesaw nature of the starting Q with an early lead given up on a run followed by our counter punch for a close result.

The swings of play probably reflect our turnstile lineups over the last two weeks or so, but there's no question we lost some mojo and our confidence in playing through rough patches and finishing games strong. We got in our way a lot with a lot of TOs and it cost us a lot of points, as have rebounds and second chance points.

Although the rebounds were tied overall, we did give up a sizeable number more on O as they had 21-15 advantage on the O boards. Twenty-one O rebounds! Several of these were on one extended possession where they kept it going with two or even three O boards which resulted in putbacks or worse 3s. Given we didn't have Jakob available tonight, I thought Jock did a great job with 11 boards overall and an impressive game-high 8 on O! Drew joined him with 7 overall (2 on O), and Diop had 7 boards as well (1 on O). Devin is becoming quite the rebound hound as well. He tied Jock for team high 11 (1 on O) and many were of the go and get them variety. He gets his nose into tight spots and fights for them. I like how he follows the ball and sneak pounces on them on unsuspecting opponents.

But opponents tend to do that too much to us, and while that's in part a function of our not having a true starting PF at the position, so while Jakob guards one big well enough, Doug or Keldon are then left to be the perpetual mismatches on the other, leaving Jakob to often try to provide help D and cover both bigs. Big load literally and figuratively. Still, our awareness and boxing out habits can be improved. If DJ can get sneak positioning on O boards and snap a ball away, then there are ways of grabbing the boards despite size; if Devin or other guards can get D boards from prying opponent hands, then it is possible to use body angles and sealing positioning to try.

It's also a function of mismatches created from switches, so like if one of our bigs happens to cover the perimeter, then we have guards down low on their bigs that need help with the task at hand.

Finally, I'm sure it'll get repeated ad nauseam in film, but long shots, long rebounds. We keep watching these sail by, just accepting their fate too often, giving up the second possessions without much fight.

Another pattern to break is too many Spurs committing to and collapsing on opponent drives leaving too much space to cover on kick outs that result in too open 3s.

The 3s were almost even with 12-11 made for them and us respectively, and with neither team making a 3 in the 4TH Q, this weapon was neutralized. While we lost the points in the paint battle 40-36 as they had proper bigs at both positions in both the starters and bench - and we were without our best and tallest rim protector - it's still a good result considering this was a strength advantage of theirs. And we did get 15 O boards of our own, two of which were by DJ late in the game that extended our possession on which we scored. Sometimes the timing of O boards is as important as the amount of them.

They had a sizeable 17-7 fast points advantage which I think is surprising, but also indicative of our not running back on D as well as we can. They put up a heap of shots, 100 to our 83(!), and those extra seventeen attempts resulted in four more made FGs, but you can see where all the rebound chances were from, too.

What we did do instead in the final Q was a whole lot of driving to get fouls and make FT shots. Opponents have used this very strategy against us to get back in to games and here we were learning from them and our mistakes in terms of shot selection and balance of attack no longer settling for passive 3s but making a concerted effort again and again to get to the basket, to challenge their paint protectors, to force the issue.

And it was a key difference maker for us as we made 22-27FTs to their 6-8!

Ans while Doug struggled to score again (1-5, 0-3 from 3, 2-3FTs), it's great to have him back because he garners the floor spreading attention and keeps moving off ball to force defenders to stay with him given his two-way threat. And with Jock starting in Jakob's place, we have five legitimate floor spacers who could make drive or make shots at the arc; no more four on five defending.

Jock has forced his way to at least the second big off the bench - and his first start tonight - and rewarded the team with a double double. Still finding his rhythm on O making 3-9, 1-3 from 3 and 3-4FTs for 10 points, his stellar rebounding presence was huge for us and helped fill in where Jakob would have as well as provide what Jakob doesn't, namely 3s and FTs. I'm not saying Jock is the defender Jakob is, but he filled in capably, and shows the dearth in the position we've been playing with when Drew was the backup. Oof. Solid pick up.

DJ led the starters once again with 18 points on solid 8-17, 0-3 from 3, 2-2FTs, and another near triple double with 7 boards (1 on O), 9 assists, and 3 steals, because of course he stole cookies! His +14 was second only to Jock and tied with Derrick.

Speaking of which, while DJ has established himself as the main leader and go-to buy on the team, once again righting the ship in the 4TH Q with some clutch shots, assertive hustle plays like the double O board attempt that resulted in points, and terrific defense, it's clear throughout our 0-5 stretch just how important Derrick is to our team. Clearly no one else could fill the unique combination of shot making inside and out, passing, team leadership, and defense that Derrick provides. He has a both an understanding of our system and his own playing style so well developed within it that a big part of our defense and offense was clearly missing.

He led us with a stellar 7-11, 3-5 from 3, 2-4FTs, along with 4 boards (1 on O), bench-high 4 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks. A Swiss Army knife whose game complements DJ's so well, provides terrific perimeter support, and eases the burden off of DJ's work on both ends. His defensive prowess in stepping up to take two charges in the 4TH Q were huge plays that energized the team and helped to ground and settle us in. We made the stops, got the rebounds, and drove drove drove for points or fouls. Big momentum shifter. So great to have him back and showing just how valuable he is to our team.

Because it was his first game back, like Keldon before him, Derrick came off the bench to ease into play. He got a bench high 25 minutes to work with and frankly if it weren't for him our chances of winning would have been lessened. Devin was DJ's back court partner and struggled in efficiency in the role making 3-11, 2-7 from 3, 2-2FTs for 10 points, but he did get our other double double with 11 rebounds (1 on O) along with one each of assist, steal, and block for a +9 performance. This is solid work for a young, second year player who prides himself on his defense and is hungry to earn minutes, just like Jock.

And like Jock he does a lot of things besides scoring that help keep him on the floor. He was third on the team in minutes with 31 next to Keldon's 33 and DJ's workhorse 36, these on a SEGABABA. But Pop managed yesterday's minutes very well to position us to still play our most important players big minutes and compete.

Keldon has been god at picking his shot spots for another efficient 4-8, 3-6 from 3, 6-6FTs for a terrific 18 points along with 6 boards (1 on O) and 1 assist. He still struggles at times with making the right decision, passing up open shots for contested drives and weird attempts to pass. You can tell the whole 'don't let the ball stick with you so much' is in his head, rightly so, and he's thinking about the balance of taking his shot while still getting others more involved when he has the ball in his hands. He averages 1.7 assists per game, and I think we want him to expand it and in taking that instruction in, you can tell he's still working through finding the right balance and making the right reads. Work in progress.

Pop's also clearly got development and 'show me where you are with it' in mind with these line-up changes. So even in the midst of a trying roster roller coaster, there's opportunity for using it to generate some observations at this just about half way point of the season.

It's interesting that Lonnie, the more experienced guard, was back on the bench, and that on average this season, Devin already plays more minutes per game at 25.2 (fifth on the team) than Lonnie at 22.9. That said, Lonnie takes 10.8FGAs to Devin's 9.7, but Devin has already proven to be the more efficient and reliable, dependable two-way player despite less experience and O chops. He plays well within himself as he tries to expand his O game within our system. He is a bit more assertive even though he sometimes still doesn't take the shot he should, but when he does shoot, it's from terrific off ball movement to get open of find open lanes, and connects on a far better percentage of his takes. Devin's eFG% is 52.6 (9th on the team) whereas Lonnie's is 46.6%, dead last on the team - again.

Already Devin is less turnover prone. It's affected by the fact that Lonnie is surprisingly SECOND on the team in usage after DJ at 23.5% for Devin's 18.6% (9th on the team). I do like that Lonnie is more consistently engaged on both ends and noticeably more assertive in drives (he is far more physically developed than Devin and he has learned to better absorb contact on drives as well as be more willing to do so), but for all that extra usage and effort and a little extra FGAs, Lonnie averages 11.7PPG to Devin's 11.1. They're combining for nearly 23 PPG so we need both on the bench, but it's also something to watch as Lonnie's RFA this coming summer.

In other development observations, Drew was the third (second tonight) big off the bench and in 19 minutes you could see his strengths with 7 boards (1 on O) and more limited game compared to Jock's. It is what it is, but Jock's making a case for himself right now.

Finally, Pop kept a pretty much nine-man rotation as he does in these situations, but Primo played 6 minutes, going 0-2 from 3 and having one TO. Pop could have put Bryn in and we'd likely have scored more (and maybe given up more points on the D end as teams love to switch onto him), but Bryn's a known commodity and with Derrick back, Pop gave Primo another shot at showing where he's at.

Well, apparently not at this level yet, given his output the last few games. The experience is surely invaluable to him, but it's clear Primo needs more G-League reps. He's not lacking for confidence, but as a lead guard, our O became woefully stagnant. He looks much better running the O in Austin, and while part of it is familiarity with tendencies of team mates there, the other part of it is just level of competition, making the rights reads quickly, etc.

Right reads and decisions is something Lonnie still is on/off with, and even though he lost a year to recovery, he's running out of time proving that he can be trusted with the ball or finishing Qs or games. Yes he got that winning driving basket over Gobert versus the Jazz - and he admitted post-game that that wasn't the play and he just... decided to change it because he saw an opening - but you can see Pop's growing exasperation with him on the sidelines when he takes yet another ill-advised shot from 3 - or tonight, three long 2s - too early in the clock with nobody else touching the ball once he got it, when he TOs it unforced, when he makes a bad pass. And that's not to take away from his terrifically athletic drives at the rim for either layups or kick outs when they work, or passes in transition to team mates ahead. Credit for these, it's just you STILL don't know what you're going to get from him on any given play and that's concerning.

He was in the game to start the 4th Q, missed a 3 eight seconds into the clock, Jock got the O board and Lonnie got a charge. Although he made both his drives, Lonnie took most of his shots from outside in this game, and but one block registered, he was tied with Drew for team low -11. It's a nebulous stat, true, but there's an element to Lonnie's game that, unless he has the ball in his hands a LOT, unless he's starting and the main scorer, he's really not that quick otherwise in making good team reads and team decisions. It's shocking that for a player who takes more than half of his shots from a variety of 2s is the worst on the team at connecting on them.

So anyway, after his block followed by a series of errors and opponent run (not implying cause and effect, just both things happening), Pop chose to sub Derrick in for Lonnie midway through the seventh minute and although there were still some TOs along the way, we righted the ship with the defensive-minded, drive-oriented group we had out there with subs coming in and out around DJ and Derrick. Even with some missed bunnies on drives and putbacks late in the game, we caught them and past them in scoring to win the final Q 14-12 and earn the win.

I can't wait for Zach to be ready and playing. I envision him making his way to the starting unit rather quickly, like Jock did as the primary big off the bench behind Jakob, and it likely would have been sooner had he not been hit with illness and injury. Zach as the 4 next to Jakob balances our lineup and provides a bigs tandem that is truly big, limiting a season-long disadvantage against us. The question then remains, who goes out of the starting group? Does Keldon stay at the 3 or does Doug shift there? Is he quick enough to guard SFs? It's a nice problem to have, really, but egos have to be kept in check and I expect they will.

So that means Keita can play next to Jock, for instance, and we have a one-two punch at the bigs positions (even though it's not always the same tandems), and with Tre and Lonnie as the back court, we have Keldon, Doug, Bryn as movable pieces to put wherever in the line-up.

It's still a little sticky in terms of which player between Keldon and Doug we put on the bench, and maybe the short-term solution is having them both start before making a quick sub. I don't know but anyway I'd love to have that 'problem' going forward, the opposite of the one we've just had, where we can plug and play just about anybody with anybody and still roll.

What we do have when we are healthy is both groups contributing well and that's a big tribute to our system and development. But that we have our 'vet' back court tandem back and finishing games is a huge boon for us. They and Jakob are our defensive cogs, and with our back court back to steadying our O, all other pieces just settle in better. Great fight through the doldrums to generate our own momentum and push our way to the first win of 2022.