SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 36: SPURS AT PISTONS, 10-1-2024, 6PM (CT)

Post #61 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:04 am

Post #62 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:08 am

Sochan gets the screen. Dribbledribbledribble, passes to no one, not even looking to do so, clanks a J miss... *sigh*

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOK

Post #63 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:08 am

Dom O board, Dom passes out smartly and quickly to Doug in the left corner who hits a 3.

Simple, smart basketball.

Post #64 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:11 am

That Tre drive has been there pretty much all game. Good that he's still looking for and taking them.

Post #65 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:12 am

We now have Tre, Blake, Cedi, Julian, and Dom in just around 3 minutes left.

Post #66 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:12 am

Tre/Dom P&R perfection resulting in a dunk.

Post #67 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:14 am

Tre GREAT patience and working of Dom's screens, waits for the slither of space, Blake great cut, zip pass inside, Blake finishes OFF GLASS. Well done all around.

Post #68 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:15 am

HEY DIAKITE MINUTES! Gets to the FT line... makes one...

Post #69 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:16 am

We now have Diakite, Mamu, Blake, Cedi, Branham.

Blake drives, gets the shot, fouled, makes FT.

imagump1313 · Post #70 » by **imagump1313** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:22 am

LMAO, Piston announcers actually blaming the loss on playing back to back while we didnt.

Reach much??

Post #71 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:25 am

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

GSG!!!

imagump1313 · Post #72 » by **imagump1313** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 2:46 am

Post #73 » by **G R E Y** » Thu Jan 11, 2024 6:40 pm

4TH Q: SPURS 130 PISTONS 108

With all due respect, we won a game we should have won, but to get there, continuing the better play we've shown of late, a noticeable jump which coincided with Wemby going torch mode and Tre being reinstalled to the starting five.

First, our superstar rookie continues to impress with record setting stats and never-before-seen plays. Every game he shows something new, and in this one the first career triple double in only 20 minutes(!) displayed some eye popping assists; a pin point full court heave, a behind the back pass, and nut meg were three that stood out. 16/12/10.

The corollary to the passes is that we're moving better off-ball, too. Not all the time, not all guys, but overall better.

I get the experiments that were point-Sochan (again, we did it without naming it as such with Keldon before, to good results now) and starter Branham (same). Both of our second year players starting have aspects to their game we need to test, others to expedite growth of. For Sochan it's handles and vision, the latter which showed promise last season in a more off ball role. Clearly with the handles still far behind in development, more on-ball work was too much for him, especially combined with defending the top opponent. Branham doesn't give up the ball when it gets to his hands which is something Keldon used to do. Both Sochan and Branham look at times like they choose to get theirs ignoring the better plays. Though they do this less than before, the balance of stretching your game and trying to stand out to stick around in the league with a second contract on the horizon and focusing on making team-first plays is still weighted on the former.

At least Sochan defends.

In 21 minutes, Branham scored 7 on 2-7, 1-3 from 3, 2-2FTs; in 6 minutes, Blake scored 9 on 4-4. The key that stands out most is that Blake got these within team flow, using his skillset to team benefit - D to O, speed, and better touch at the rim. He used to be so fast that he couldn't control the finish, and now he's putting both together better. Branham chucks without looking to make the right team play first. Early clock shots, or passes he'd get from O boards resulted in heaves as well. Why? We have time, LOOK to others, set something up. Frustrating. His scoring profile is promising but his shot selection - time, place, optimal look -- for the team, not just for him -- gives the impression that there's no such thing as a bad shot or bad context for it as long as he takes it. Yes he got 3 assists and a couple of rebounds, ok good. But what stands out more is what he has the ability to do but is doubling down on not doing.

After the game, Pop talked about us looking at who will stick with the team long-term. Point-Sochan failed (though I still maintain the reps have value) and even though it's not yet clear where he'll fit long-term (at the 4? starter?) he has clear value defensively and with improving 3s, FTs, and good passing (when he wants to). Tre back as starter says a lot about Branham's game as starter, too. Not just in managing the O, which isn't easy for a combo guard (though should be easier / come more naturally than for a PF), but in broadening his game in terms of looks for others and defense. Blake's reps in Austin have clearly shown dividends and I still think that both Branham and Sochan could have benefited from time there but whether through deep rebuild opening up spots and minutes with the big club or whether because of pick slot selection, we are where we are with them. It's a moveable feast (sometimes famine) and we navigate forward together and adjust to growing pains.

But given the minutes distribution, starting position shifts, and lineup adjustments, some should be paying attention to where they're getting slotted and consider whether doubling down on no D and early clock chucks is in their best self-interest. Team-frst, D-first really are best individually. Blake is playing his way back with pesky D and controlled speed and better finishes. Branham has to be looking over his shoulder.

Tre outplaying both of the younger guards is not surprising given the extra year of experience and starting last season. We knew what we had in him on both ends, and though he still needs to improve his woeful 3s efficiency, his return to the starting five (at least for now) shows us that at least for now neither of our younger guards have raised their games to a level where they push Tre for the slot. Like Lonnie before him, we're trying Branham in different positions, starter, bench distributor/scorer, and like Lonnie the profile to reality is not yet coinciding. Blake's game is making bigger leaps, and putting him beside Branham in some reps is what's being tried more. We do still need Blake to be more of a pass-first PG (tends to get tunnel vision and not run sets but he's great in open court)but his overall game is showing more improvement.

Tre fitting with the starters has his teammates gushing about how they love playing with him. I love that he's driving more and finishing better, and our paint points were a big feature in this game. Only 27 of our 94FGAs were from the arc (we made 9) but we had a big 74-62 PITP advantage, and the off-shoot is a very solid return in FTs, 23-27. Tre scored 11 on 5-9, 0-1 from 3, 1-1FT and game high +17 an indicator in his and team stats of his seamless cog role. He should keep the role unless or until someone pushes him for it. I like much better that guys have to play for their minutes, for their positions, that neither is guaranteed just because we're rebuilding and developing.

Devin has looked more engaged and scoring more inside, though his 1-5 from 3 could have been trimmed. He scored 16 on 6-12, 3-4FTs was a better balance. Adding 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal rounded out his night.

I've been harping on Julian's role with the starters and in focusing more on his contribution yesterday he stood out well on D, staying with his man, help D, using his size to disrupt drives and shots. He is hardly scoring, but moving very well, keeps the ball moving, cuts well, and was the recipient of Wemby's nutmeg pass and finished it (phew!).

With him as starter there's more D and ball to go around, and Keldon has more room to operate from the bench, and operate he does. He plays starter minutes anyway, but now gets freer rein to go full Wilder mode. He led the bench with 17 on 4-8, 1-2 from 3, game high 8-8FTs along with a board, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block in 25 minutes.

Good Doug showed up and showed out, making 4-5 from 3. With the ball moving better, we found him better as well. Sharp shooting was a big positive, especially considering the starters combined for only 2-14 from the arc (oof) and teh rest of the bench players combined for 3-8 form the arc. I'm glad we didn't triple down on outside shots, that we kept driving inside, making most of our push in transition and sets ups in the paint.

Twin Cedi chipped in 11 (4-6, 1-3 from 3, 2-3FTs) but was huge all around with steady, high energy play, grabbing 6 boards (1 on O), dishing 3 assists, and getting 2 steals.

With Zach and Bassey out, Dom has been filling in as backup C and had one of his best games with 11 (5-8, 1-1FT), 8 (3 on O, tied for team high with Wemby), bench high 4 assists, 2 blocks. Once he gets that 3 stroke going, he has the makings of a very good 4/5 backup. Great pick up, and credit to him for continuing to work to grow his game. He is stronger, quicker, more confident, moves well, good footwork and stance fundamentals, and it's paying off. He's frankly outplayed Mamu and is earning more minutes with better D and more team oriented play. Maybe it's a function of giving guys a stretch of looks, but Mamu has tended to go shot-first mode, or to over-dribble. Dom plays more within himself, team first, and isn't pressing to show more of his game. It comes within the flow of it. He's making a strong case for himself to be one of those players who sticks around.

So we had eight players in double figures, four each in starters and bench, with the latter contributing 70(!) points. Terrific output, especially considering we have a double digit scorer in Zach still out.

We had 36 assists to only 5TOs and even though we weren't pressured as much on D, we still do tend to make some unforced errors which we also kept to a minimum.

We do still need to box out better but we nevertheless won the rebound battle 46-43, including 10-9 on O boards. Seven on opponent 10TOs came on our steals, so good active hands reading passing lanes, getting deflections, collapsing on drives well, sealing the baselines and providing better help D.

Yes the opponent is struggling more than us, missing a key player, on a B2B, but we didn't take them lightly from the get to. Any team can catch any other sleeping on a given night and we got ahead and stayed ahead.

Good timeouts by Pop to get us better aligned even though we were still leading but team first play waned, and good responses from them. I like how Devin and Wemby continue to get staggered so that at least one of them is on the court for more of the game, steadying presences among younger groups or those who have fewer reps together as we try out different lineup combos around our two main guys.

With Blake and Dom emerging more, it'll be interesting to see how they continue to push guys ahead of them, and how lineups and eventually the roster shakes out. I love that they're making more of their chances and it benefits both them and the team. With Tre back as starter, the first five are more cohesive and clicking better, faster. With Keldon's move to the bench it's been his attitude about it that has stood out best, as he continues to punish defenses with his blend of bruising to get to the rim and finesse finishes at it.

Fine all around team win. Good mental approach to what could have been a trap game, continuing on the good buildup of better play coming into this game. More tests coming up to assess where our consistency is at. Fine showing in this game.