Season 48, Game 03
San Antonio 94, Atlanta 92
2-1

Much like last season’s game against the Hawks in San Antonio, the Spurs’ “little brother” look alike came into town and the gear ground to a halt.

I’m considering adopting Atlanta as my Eastern Conference team to follow and cheer for. With Coach Bud taking over, they run a system very similar to the Spurs. Their roster is also full of likable and good players that work hard and play well together. They move the ball, they play smart, and they have a clearly delineated system on both ends of the court. They are a reasonable facsimile of the Spurs, if lacking in years of corporate knowledge and a few truly elite level players.

And for the rest of the season (minus one remaining game), I’ll enjoy checking in on them. But when the Hawks and the Spurs meet, muck abounds. Every player on both teams knows every call, every set, every play, every passing lane, every movement of each player. It makes for disjointed and sloppy play from both teams everywhere on the court.

We should be grateful for having escaped with a win. The Western Conference is a beast, and every win is going to be money in the bank at the end of the season. But I can’t help but still feel disappointed in the team’s slow and sloppy start. The schedule has done the team no favors, with only two games in the opening 8 nights of the season, followed by a back to back as part of 5 games in 7 nights. Last night’s game against Atlanta felt like the real season opener in many respects, and now we jump head first into the fire.

All of this will hurt rhythm and consistency. What is particularly distressing is the complete lack of fluidity on the offensive end. Sets are scrambled and completely disjointed. Players are literally running into each other. The ball is sticking a moment too long in most players hands. Or, the ball is moving to no obvious advantage. I’ve seen more rushed and bad shots at the end of the shot clock this young season than I might have all of last year. More players are trying to play one-on-one than the system calls for, and everyone looks confused. The team looks quite ordinary.

What’s even more distressing is that there seems to be a lack of trust on the court. This is the one team in the NBA where that should not exist. Not only has this exact team been playing together for a whole season (and in the case of the majority of the roster, a few seasons at least), they have empirical evidence that the system works! There is a shiny trophy and fancy banner hanging in the rafters that speaks to this point. And yet the correct pass is being met with hesitation; players are choosing to drive into traffic rather than swing the ball; players are getting looked off for no good reason. Rust can be shaken off, trust is a lot trickier.

It’s early, so all of this sounds a bit alarmist. Splitter just rejoined the action last night, and he looked great. Kawhi will find his way. Tony and Tim are playing magnificently. Green, Ayres, and Joseph are all playing great in their roles. Hopefully Manu and Boris will come around as season really kicks in. There’s probably nothing to worry about, and this team deserves every benefit of every doubt.

Selfishly, I just want to see my favorite team playing at their awe-inspiring peak. I suppose I can wait a little bit.

I might have to wait for at least a few more days, though, as Pop is already playing the rest game, holding out both Manu and Duncan for tonight’s game in Houston. Splitter and Marco will also be out with minor injuries. Accept the (mostly) inevitable loss, and revel in the chance for the deep bench players to get some good run, Kawhi to get a lot of playing time and lot of offensive focus, and Kyle Anderson to get his first NBA minutes. And who knows: this team has been known to pull a few surprises when down a player or two.