SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
Moderator: G R E Y
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
-
G R E Y
- Senior Mod - Spurs
- Posts: 43,767
- And1: 33,281
- Joined: Mar 17, 2010
- Location: Silver and Black
-
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
The Spurs Way
Thinking of you, Pop
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
-
G R E Y
- Senior Mod - Spurs
- Posts: 43,767
- And1: 33,281
- Joined: Mar 17, 2010
- Location: Silver and Black
-
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
4TH Q: SPURS 129 LAKERS 115
Feels good that we put together so many good things for long enough stretches and stayed resilient to lead end to end.
We have actually been playing much better the last couple of weeks or so, coinciding, not coincidentally, with Wemby being moved to the C position, Branham to the starting back court, and Sochan to his natural PF spot.
Here's proof:
Of course the O needs time to come along, but with Wemby at the 5 surrounded by shooters (yes, including Sochan, who's 3s average is now 36.4%, a 12% improvement from last season).
After last game, I commented how we needed more from Devin and BOOM! he showed out with a three-level, career-high scoring two-way performance.
I really liked that he started assertively, and that we rode the hot hand throughout the game. Devin stepped up with 36 on 12-19, 5-10 from 3, 7-7FTs, 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, only 1TO on team high 35 minutes. The other half of his shots were in the non-paint Js and physical drives and paint Js. I listened to the away broadcasters and Devin was given all kinds of praise for his smart shot creation and execution. He took smarter shots, too, not settling for the ill-advised contested sidestep 3s (it's pretty, and hard to criticize when it goes in, and fine in end of clock situations, just not the best shot when we have time for other options). He used simple screens to get space, he cut on give and gos, and drove with physicality. Just a terrific overall game, good energy, leadership, and pace, not forcing anything. He can pretty much get any shot he wants, and with better patience, vision, and choice. Thrilled for him and for leading us to the result.
We also got shot selection right team-wise as our top three players took the most shots with Devin, Keldon, and Wemby. And while the latter two struggled with efficiency, Keldon's physical drives really pushed back a team that is bigger and bulkier than us, so we needed this element of his game. And we need more of it from him. That Keldon now contributes in other ways is a joy to see - only 2 rebounds, but 6 assists is terrific.
Wemby with some oooh and aaaad drawing plays on both ends, active from the start (good! especially considering earlier in the season he would start more passively) and his 4 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks in the 1ST Q alone helped propel the momentum to the hot two-way start. D to O.
Wemby finished with another double double 13 on 5-13, 1-2 from 3 (good, he didn't settle for these), 2-3FTs with 15 boards (3 on O), 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, to only 2TOs (also good, it's important for these to decrease, though that one handed pass has been picked off enough times that it's something to look at). Monster dunks, bring up the ball, driving and dishing to Sochan, working through all kinds of physicality, working more P&Rs. Yes we could have found him more inside, yes we are getting better at it, yes we are going to have to keep working at it. And although he takes up a lot attention which opens up games for others, we put enough of a balanced thread inside and out to keep the defense off kilter.
We did have some trouble with the zone D, something to work on, but eventually found ways to penetrate through it earlier in the clock. Speaking of which, we did limit the early clock, passless heaves which some of our guys have had a tendency to do.
Interesting that Sochan played only three minutes in the 2ND Q. He had those dribble the ball up the court and held onto it too long without passing to open team mates, picked up his third foul, chose to post up and take bad shots rather than look up to see who else is open, etc.
But with Sochan out, we also allowed a heap of points in the 2ND Q. It was also a function of settling for 3s and allowing the O of beating us down the court. But we put a little bit of distance to end the Q on a Keldon +1 to stay ahead.
Third Q was another improvement and we actually won it. We drove more, picked up the pace, kept up the energy. And when we pulled away and our lead was cut to single digits, we got stops and buckets. Sounds simple but we stayed resilient and focused to get these. Sochan guarding LBJ was a load for him but you can tell he took on the challenge with pride. He once again guarded the lead ball handler, including full court press, and then switched to the bigs in the post. Smart, physical, balanced, determined. Really impactful defensively. Team high +21 5-10 from the field (though 0-3 from 3), 1-1FT, 8 boards (1 on O), 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1TO. You can also tell he wants so much to stand out that at times he gets tunnel vision, but after sitting most of the 2ND Q, Sochan was much better at giving up the ball sooner, driving and kicking out, actually running a P&R with Wemby. I'm surprised, though just how little lift he seems to have compared to last season. Not sure if it's the effects of his knee injury or what, but it stands out. Better touch at the rim this game, used the glass better, ran the floor, made quicker decisions with the ball. Better overall game even if there are still nascent aspects to his game that need reps and refinement.
Branham is looking more confident with every game. When he was running point, he motioned for where guys had to go well, wasn't a me-first scorer only, and in fact led us with 8 assists, chipping in 1 steal, 1 block, to go with 4 rebounds. He hardly had any of those early-clock, one and done, not passing to anyone shots. Very disciplined, team-first, smart pass-shot balance of a game. Love his simple use of screens, fakes and quick drives, silky smooth finishes. Terrific contribution.
With Tre out, Bake should be paying attention to the fact that Graham got the secondary minutes, even if he only played 8. Graham did get 3 assists, but those two shots, damn. I guess we can thank our lucky Pop decision stars that it was only two. When he was out there in the final minute the second shot went up quick haha.
But yeah Blake has to channel that speed and athleticism into actual point running. Julian was scoreless again (0-2) in only 8 minutes.
The rotations look to be stabilizing with Cedi running point in a pinch again well. He was terrific leading the bench with 15 on 6-11, 3-6 from 3, 2 boards, and bench high 6 assists for the lone bench player in the positive at +13. Doug was Doug, hitting 2-4 from 3. He is a D liability (you know it's bad when Keldon gets on you for missing a D help assignment, or a back door cut from right behind you), so the more limited 17 minutes in which he can make timely shots while limiting the exploitation on the other end is important. It's crucial to have a guy who can just come in and make shots because that's his job and he's always ready.
Zach was more aggressive and physical and tenacious, leading the bench with 16 on 5-9, 1-2 from 3, 5-6FTs (the only player to get FTs), 6 boards (team high 4 on O), and 1 assist.
So a game after our bigs outside of Wemby didn't contribute enough, both Sochan and Zach stepped up.
We caught them to even up the O boards, limited our TOs to only 8(!), got 5 steals and 5 blocks, shared the ball well (35 assists), and had 5 more FGAs, so better ball protection, pace, defense, and resoluteness throughout.
We did put them to the FT line a lot, but with their 18-28 we were close with our efficient 17-19. PITP were once again down 58-44, but we won the 3s battle, making seven more to offset the PITP loss.
We shot the 3 very well, making 18-42; over the last few games we've increased our 3s attempts from the season average of 37.5 to over 40 average per game. But we sprinkled in the drives and Js well, throughout. We have to improve our efficiency, but our shot selection and creation and team balance of contribution is better. Best of all, it is coming on the better D foundation.
Bottle this, open to unleash again.
Feels good that we put together so many good things for long enough stretches and stayed resilient to lead end to end.
We have actually been playing much better the last couple of weeks or so, coinciding, not coincidentally, with Wemby being moved to the C position, Branham to the starting back court, and Sochan to his natural PF spot.
Here's proof:
Of course the O needs time to come along, but with Wemby at the 5 surrounded by shooters (yes, including Sochan, who's 3s average is now 36.4%, a 12% improvement from last season).
After last game, I commented how we needed more from Devin and BOOM! he showed out with a three-level, career-high scoring two-way performance.
I really liked that he started assertively, and that we rode the hot hand throughout the game. Devin stepped up with 36 on 12-19, 5-10 from 3, 7-7FTs, 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, only 1TO on team high 35 minutes. The other half of his shots were in the non-paint Js and physical drives and paint Js. I listened to the away broadcasters and Devin was given all kinds of praise for his smart shot creation and execution. He took smarter shots, too, not settling for the ill-advised contested sidestep 3s (it's pretty, and hard to criticize when it goes in, and fine in end of clock situations, just not the best shot when we have time for other options). He used simple screens to get space, he cut on give and gos, and drove with physicality. Just a terrific overall game, good energy, leadership, and pace, not forcing anything. He can pretty much get any shot he wants, and with better patience, vision, and choice. Thrilled for him and for leading us to the result.
We also got shot selection right team-wise as our top three players took the most shots with Devin, Keldon, and Wemby. And while the latter two struggled with efficiency, Keldon's physical drives really pushed back a team that is bigger and bulkier than us, so we needed this element of his game. And we need more of it from him. That Keldon now contributes in other ways is a joy to see - only 2 rebounds, but 6 assists is terrific.
Wemby with some oooh and aaaad drawing plays on both ends, active from the start (good! especially considering earlier in the season he would start more passively) and his 4 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks in the 1ST Q alone helped propel the momentum to the hot two-way start. D to O.
Wemby finished with another double double 13 on 5-13, 1-2 from 3 (good, he didn't settle for these), 2-3FTs with 15 boards (3 on O), 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, to only 2TOs (also good, it's important for these to decrease, though that one handed pass has been picked off enough times that it's something to look at). Monster dunks, bring up the ball, driving and dishing to Sochan, working through all kinds of physicality, working more P&Rs. Yes we could have found him more inside, yes we are getting better at it, yes we are going to have to keep working at it. And although he takes up a lot attention which opens up games for others, we put enough of a balanced thread inside and out to keep the defense off kilter.
We did have some trouble with the zone D, something to work on, but eventually found ways to penetrate through it earlier in the clock. Speaking of which, we did limit the early clock, passless heaves which some of our guys have had a tendency to do.
Interesting that Sochan played only three minutes in the 2ND Q. He had those dribble the ball up the court and held onto it too long without passing to open team mates, picked up his third foul, chose to post up and take bad shots rather than look up to see who else is open, etc.
But with Sochan out, we also allowed a heap of points in the 2ND Q. It was also a function of settling for 3s and allowing the O of beating us down the court. But we put a little bit of distance to end the Q on a Keldon +1 to stay ahead.
Third Q was another improvement and we actually won it. We drove more, picked up the pace, kept up the energy. And when we pulled away and our lead was cut to single digits, we got stops and buckets. Sounds simple but we stayed resilient and focused to get these. Sochan guarding LBJ was a load for him but you can tell he took on the challenge with pride. He once again guarded the lead ball handler, including full court press, and then switched to the bigs in the post. Smart, physical, balanced, determined. Really impactful defensively. Team high +21 5-10 from the field (though 0-3 from 3), 1-1FT, 8 boards (1 on O), 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1TO. You can also tell he wants so much to stand out that at times he gets tunnel vision, but after sitting most of the 2ND Q, Sochan was much better at giving up the ball sooner, driving and kicking out, actually running a P&R with Wemby. I'm surprised, though just how little lift he seems to have compared to last season. Not sure if it's the effects of his knee injury or what, but it stands out. Better touch at the rim this game, used the glass better, ran the floor, made quicker decisions with the ball. Better overall game even if there are still nascent aspects to his game that need reps and refinement.
Branham is looking more confident with every game. When he was running point, he motioned for where guys had to go well, wasn't a me-first scorer only, and in fact led us with 8 assists, chipping in 1 steal, 1 block, to go with 4 rebounds. He hardly had any of those early-clock, one and done, not passing to anyone shots. Very disciplined, team-first, smart pass-shot balance of a game. Love his simple use of screens, fakes and quick drives, silky smooth finishes. Terrific contribution.
With Tre out, Bake should be paying attention to the fact that Graham got the secondary minutes, even if he only played 8. Graham did get 3 assists, but those two shots, damn. I guess we can thank our lucky Pop decision stars that it was only two. When he was out there in the final minute the second shot went up quick haha.
But yeah Blake has to channel that speed and athleticism into actual point running. Julian was scoreless again (0-2) in only 8 minutes.
The rotations look to be stabilizing with Cedi running point in a pinch again well. He was terrific leading the bench with 15 on 6-11, 3-6 from 3, 2 boards, and bench high 6 assists for the lone bench player in the positive at +13. Doug was Doug, hitting 2-4 from 3. He is a D liability (you know it's bad when Keldon gets on you for missing a D help assignment, or a back door cut from right behind you), so the more limited 17 minutes in which he can make timely shots while limiting the exploitation on the other end is important. It's crucial to have a guy who can just come in and make shots because that's his job and he's always ready.
Zach was more aggressive and physical and tenacious, leading the bench with 16 on 5-9, 1-2 from 3, 5-6FTs (the only player to get FTs), 6 boards (team high 4 on O), and 1 assist.
So a game after our bigs outside of Wemby didn't contribute enough, both Sochan and Zach stepped up.
We caught them to even up the O boards, limited our TOs to only 8(!), got 5 steals and 5 blocks, shared the ball well (35 assists), and had 5 more FGAs, so better ball protection, pace, defense, and resoluteness throughout.
We did put them to the FT line a lot, but with their 18-28 we were close with our efficient 17-19. PITP were once again down 58-44, but we won the 3s battle, making seven more to offset the PITP loss.
We shot the 3 very well, making 18-42; over the last few games we've increased our 3s attempts from the season average of 37.5 to over 40 average per game. But we sprinkled in the drives and Js well, throughout. We have to improve our efficiency, but our shot selection and creation and team balance of contribution is better. Best of all, it is coming on the better D foundation.
Bottle this, open to unleash again.
The Spurs Way
Thinking of you, Pop
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
-
G R E Y
- Senior Mod - Spurs
- Posts: 43,767
- And1: 33,281
- Joined: Mar 17, 2010
- Location: Silver and Black
-
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
The Spurs Way
Thinking of you, Pop
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
-
G R E Y
- Senior Mod - Spurs
- Posts: 43,767
- And1: 33,281
- Joined: Mar 17, 2010
- Location: Silver and Black
-
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
The Spurs Way
Thinking of you, Pop
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
-
G R E Y
- Senior Mod - Spurs
- Posts: 43,767
- And1: 33,281
- Joined: Mar 17, 2010
- Location: Silver and Black
-
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
-
imagump1313
- Lead Assistant
- Posts: 5,095
- And1: 3,282
- Joined: Apr 27, 2013
- Location: Behind You
-
Re: SPURS GAME DAY! GAME 24: SPURS VS. LAKERS, 15-12-2023, 6:30PM (CT)
Thanks for being vigilant Grey!
Now that I have league pass I can watch games in more than 5 minute spurts.
I've been keeping up on games but we have been soo bad I found it hard to go out of my way even a little bit to watch lately.
Just finished watching the game last night. Nice to finally win.
Now that I have league pass I can watch games in more than 5 minute spurts.
I've been keeping up on games but we have been soo bad I found it hard to go out of my way even a little bit to watch lately.
Just finished watching the game last night. Nice to finally win.