Somewhere in the previous newsletters we wrote about how important the winning part of the development process is. The Spurs have a lot of youth, but anchoring that youthful bounce is the experience of Patty, DeMar, and LaMarcus. There is a championship, a handful of 60+ win seasons, playoff battles, some international experience, and years of figuring out how to not blow leads in the NBA.
In two of the three recent nights when Lonnie Walker (he had 24 last night as well) and Keldon Johnson lead the team in scoring (29 last night) the Spurs lost.
The broadcast talked a lot about how Pop wants the young guys to play fast and move the ball quickly. They are at their best when they do not over think and let their basketball instincts help them. They are all quick, and playing faster helps them be even faster on the court.
The problem they are facing, and will face as they move forward is one every good scorer gets: the defense adjusts. The league is well aware that Keldon Johnson likes to slash his way to the rim. They will be waiting. In this game JaeâSean Tate played tough on KJ, meeting him for a tough near-charging call that Keldon got the bucket on. The next drive Tate stopped Keldon by wrapping it up.
Looking at guys like DeMar, who started out in the league as dunkers and slashers is a great way to find out how to get better and add nuance. DeRozanâs game is more than just âshooting midrange jumpersâ, as it is about setting up the defense, countering, moves to compliment and counter other moves. It is a dance, an escalation with the defense as they are adding things to stop those moves. Last night, PJ Tucker won, but just barely. He got in that small bump to dislodge DeRozan just enough to bother the shot. Still, DDR is so good that it almost went in.
The Rockets, despite what James Harden may have said in his bid to get out of town, are a good squad coached by a smart coach. Steven Silas helped turn the Mavericks into the best regular season offense (in efficiency) last year, and helped these young Rockets do the same. This is not a reason to question the entire rationale of the Spurs system, here. They lost to a good team. They have a mix of vets â PJ Tucker is great, DeMarcus Cousins is a beast â and youth â Christian Wood was already turning heads in Detroit after a journeyman career.
Steve Jones has a nice twitter thread breakdown
The Spurs âshouldnâtâ have lost this game if they are going to be a league powerhouse â or so goes the story. The truth is that this season has messed with everyoneâs rhythms and only maybe the Lakers are enjoying their time. Teams you would consider good: Raptors, Pelicans, Brooklyn, Milwaukee, the Clippers all have at least four losses. The Spurs have six.
DeMar had an ordeal with his dad being sick and left town to deal with it. He returned, had a hell of a fourth quarter and nearly tied the game against a nice team. There were things that Pop was unhappy about but he is grumbly about a sunny day. There are always things to improve on, and the Spurs got a little better. Keldon scored 29 and learned that it wonât be so easy for him. Lonnie is getting more consistent.
I do not know if there can be such a thing as a good loss in the high-stakes world of professional sports. There is too much weighing on the outcome (the entire point of the contest, aside from entertainment through competition) for it to be a good loss. There can be lots of good from a loss, just as there is a possibility of a lot of bad from a win.
If you are not getting better, and improving the game, coming together as a team, finding improvements here and there then no matter the outcome you can be upset. The coaching staff takes this approach, and it is why Pop will not play the stars on back-to-backs â because this win or loss is not as important as the overall improvement of the team. The Spurs got better in this one even if they lost.