A Recap and Some Positivity
Since we last corresponded, the Spurs are 3-2, with some ugly losses mixed in (to the Warriors, and the Mavericks).
W 103-91 v Rockets — A win over a shorthanded team.
W 125-104 @Portland — A good win over a solid team missing McCollum, but four players over 30 years old had 20+ points
L 99-121 @Warriors — Everyone was hating on LMA
L 117-122 v Mavericks — Doncic making it look easy, but a nice effort
W 121-101 v Wizards — Beat a team with no defense.
If you are only watching the Spurs (this is fine) you might get dizzy with the hit-and-miss performances each game. The rest of the league, however, is doing much of the same thing. The Spurs are 9-8, and there are nine teams in the West within +/- 3 wins of .500. That is just a nice little win streak or a bad losing streak.
In the East, last year’s Finals entrant Miami is 6-9 and has nothing to really blame. The Bucks are 10-6 but lost to the Nets and Lakers and people are doing a little freak-out session. The Celtics, with generational talent Jason Tatum are just 9-6.
Maybe one or two teams in this league are truly bad and only three or so are good. It is a long season with weird COVID rules and nothing is normal. We cannot judge the game-to-game performances for much of anything based on the past. We do know that Keldon Johnson and Lonnie Walker are improving game by game, and that improvement has meant the defenses are defending them just a little bit differently. The scout reports know that KJ will drive to the rim with aggression and that Lonnie likes to pull up from three, and attack the rim with one hand.
LaMarcus Aldridge is necessary but he looked awful defensively at times. He got cooked vs the Mavericks a couple of times that made me want to pull him from the game.
I still like what DeMar is doing, but he has only shot one three per game over the last five (zero in the game vs Portland). To my eyes, that one has been a desperation one, and he has not gotten the corner looks or the shots in rhythm he was getting earlier this season. He’s been good in his role, however, and if he got some luck vs the Mavericks would have put the Spurs in line for a comeback win. He can still pretty much get whatever look he wants, but he does get a little frustrated when he is not getting the calls he wants.
Missed shots at the rim usually lead to breaks the other way — usually you are down the guy that attacked. DeMar gets to the cup, falls down, and then does a little complaining when it doesn’t go down. I do not blame him too much — he should be getting some of those calls and complaining is standard fare in the league.
The Spurs are creeping back up the defensive ratings rankings — last I checked they were ninth in the league — they had been in the 20s (!!) the last two seasons since finishing first in 16-17. The thinking is that when Derrick White comes back the Spurs have a little bit of calm to smooth out the janky sets that make it look like a bunch of randoms trying to figure out a new offense, while adding yet another plus defender.
I’ll leave you with a little bit of positivity: DeMar DeRozan is a good enough player that can get pretty much whatever shot he wants and when he is on, is very hard to stop. He has enough vision and passing in his game that he creates for everyone. He has enough around him in the young guys and LaMarcus that the Spurs have a solid team vs pretty much anyone except the Nets (who cannot play defense right now) and the Lakers (who just have another level to them). Everyone else? Well you cannot tell me they are just better. The Spurs are in a good spot even though there are a lot of flaws, because everyone has a lot of flaws. They could use a little more luck, however. .