The Fox Is Good | Some Trade Thoughts
Newest Spur Helps With Winning
De’Aaron Fox made his debut in glorious fashion vs the Atlanta Hawks. He was responsible for something like 50 points between scoring and passing. By his own admission he was better in the first than the second. He scored an easy 18 in the first as the Spurs built a big lead.
Chris Paul said he was encouraged because they hadn’t had more than a shoot-around with D. Fox as preparation. That, of course, is good and bad. The good? Well these dudes are high level hoopers who can play with freedom and react to each other for buckets. They don’t have overly complex gameplans to process. It is all freedom.
The bad? Well the opponents are also high level hoopers who can limit some read-and-react style things with a smart game plan. We saw a little bit of this in the second half as the Hawks grabbed steals and got easy buckets. One glaringly obvious problem with the Spurs was the defense, again a work-in-progress, as guys were getting used to playing with one another. Rotations were missed, and a giant lead was made small.
D.Fox was good. He’s the focus right now. While CP3 has been good, he does not have the court-bending burst he once did — I remember 2008! — and so while his wily game and quick handle can create space, there is nothing like superior speed and athleticism to generate open looks. The Spurs were literally at their best with speedy point guards. Tony Parker had a lot of things, but the main weapon was his speed.
Fox said he draws attention no matter “how well I’m playing” and it is true. You don’t have to have your shot dropping to be able to speed past a guy and get a layup. Teams have to respect his quick first step and that leaves that lefty jumper open for a second longer than the average NBA guy. Fox made a couple of huge plays that won the game for the squad late — the driving miss was essentially a dump-off to Wemby. Lost in the analytics of Good Shot/Bad Shot is that getting to the rim is great because it creates put-back opportunities. Short shots create short rebounds. Wemby was quick to put back a huge dunk. Then of course Fox found Wemby for the roll on a pick-and-roll. Fox mentioned that he was encouraging of Victor to be aggressive and to try to finish. A young star who can help Victor become the best version of himself. I am all verklempt. Talk among yourselves.
All that said, we should remember that this was the Atlanta Hawks. The Spurs fleeced them in the Murray trade, and were one-time John Collins/DeAndre Hunter suiters. The Hawks have imploded and are now looking like their primary purpose is to improve the Spurs’ draft picks. The good teams will make the Spurs work harder defensively, and limit Fox more than he was tonight.
For now, we can at least enjoy the ridiculousness good fun that is Wembanyama, Castle, and Fox killing teams with athleticism. GSG
A tweet that has stuck with me through the years was one calling the Mavericks “so far ahead of the Spurs right now” after landing Luka Dončić. This blog has always been wary of spending time at the bottom of the league in hopes of building draft capital for a run. Right now, the Spurs have Wemby and a lot of potential. Lady Luck was indeed on our side.
If we know anything about basketball Fate is that the Spurs have historically been very fortunate, but also help create their own luck by ensuring they run the most well-respected organization in the league. They drafted David Robinson, and built a team around him as best as they could. They drafted Tim Duncan and went about making sure he had as long of a championship window as could possibly open. They tried to rebuild the team around Kawhi Leonard, but were smacked in the face with a little misfortune. He wanted out. The brass tried their best to build around Aldridge and DeRozan, but neither were the level required. A full rebuild commenced and they hit the first time on the biggest prize.
Since then, they have tried to be patient, but this trade represents more of a real attempt to make a move up the standings. Losing more for Cooper Flag and whomever is just extending the time for stacking chips. You have to take risks to make a move. You eventually have to use your gunpowder. No actual player will be as good as the Potential Next Drafted Superstar because the possibility represents the infinite, while the current player has real limitations and all that come with it.
The Mavericks traded the kind of player that can drag you to the Finals with scraps because he didn’t fit their culture. I can respect their perspective and after two decades of watching hard workers and selfless players in Silver and Black, it is difficult for me to really fathom rooting for a guy who doesn’t show up in shape. Still, I think you can work around the limitations of a guy who is a supernova of a player. Can’t you?
Right?
In any case, I am not a Mavericks fan and was rooting for the Celtics to beat them in the Finals. Rivalries and all that. Still, I can understand the feeling. I think the Dallas fans can sort of understand why Spurs fans boo Kawhi when he comes to town. He broke the relationship that we thought we had. Is it rational? No, but sports aren’t rational. We are watching grown men throw a leather ball in a metal ring. Come on. It isn’t about rationality. Which is why when your favorite team gets too rational about things it ruins the whole endeavor.
Some good reading: D Magazine on the bet the Mavericks Org made
A note on this blog:
Yes, I know Spurious has been quiet all season. My focus has been on MGN, work, and family. Not quite in that order but some days yes, that order. We’ll try our best to be more consistent here.