Season 48, Game 40
San Antonio 98, Charlotte 93
24-16, 7th in the West
The Spurs won, so the end result felt good.
And Manu played brilliantly, and probably saved the game for us multiple times. (Though, in Manu fashion, even the moments of greatness were sprinkled with those ‘bad Manu’ moments that make you scratch your head; it’s the price of admission for Manu.)
Beyond that, I’m not sure what positive I have left to say. (We made 5 of 6 free throws down the stretch?) I’m probably being too hard on the team, seeing the Hornets and just assuming it was an inferior team. Despite the poor record, this Charlotte team had been on a 5-game winning streak, and they were one of the best defenses in the league last season. Even if those numbers aren’t the same this year, this is a team that can defend and has been winning. So in that sense, it’s actually a very nice win on the road for this Spurs team.
It didn’t feel that way watching, though. And my notes are scribbled with exasperation, disgust, and negativity. Things like: “Starters suck, especially TP and AD.” “Hate Manu bail out 3s.” (I do hate it when he dribbles, gets a pick, and takes the pull up 3 instead of driving; it bails out the defense.) “So many easy misses.” “Boris shot a 3-inch shot 2 inches.” (He put an alley-oop layup short.) “Shit start from starters.” (They get the note to start each half, apparently.) “Biyombo is killing us.” “Offense is complete shit.” “Too many fouls.” (The Hornets really let us off the hook by missing so many free throws. I suppose it’s nice to be on the other end of that problem for once this season.) “I don’t trust TP.” (I don’t trust Tony Parker right now.) “TOs in clutch situations…sheesh.”
I think I’m just worn down from this stretch of games, with every game being close regardless of opponent. The team really isn’t playing that poorly, but they aren’t playing great, and this being stuck in the middle is tough. They’re not so bad that the season can be written off (far from it, especially with Kawhi missing so much time), but it’s getting harder and harder to take them seriously as a championship threat, even with Kawhi missing time. That’s the real conundrum of this season: it looks like our team, and it feels like our team, but it doesn’t look like our team or feel like our team. And we can’t know which is actually real. Make sense? Exactly.
And Pop is still in mad scientist tinker mode. The experiment the last few games is running multiple PG sets. Which makes sense given how well Cory has been playing and how much time Parker has missed. Tony needs to be eased back in, and a spot needs to be found for Cory in the rotation. Throw in Manu, and it’s almost like we have a 4 PG rotation. In general, it’s working really well, except Tony with Cory, who both offer a similar skill set and both lack the same vital skill: the 3-point shot. But all of the other combinations offer unique advantages and quirks, and I’m enjoying watching the experiments.
One issue that was quite noticeable in this game was the imbalance of ball handling between the starters and the bench. The only real ball-handler with the starters is Parker, while the bench has Manu, Cory, Patty, and Boris. So in a sense, calling the starters ‘shit’ is a bit unfair, because the bench is actually a better unit the way Pop has the deck stacked. It’s getting a bit tiresome, though, watching our starters barely hold it together out there, and seem completely inept on offense.
(It’s also a bit tiresome watching Austin Daye, period. But that might border on personal. I just don’t like his demeanor, body language, nor his game. Except when we play Minnesota 4 times a year.)
So it’s probably just me. I’m tired of winning 2 games then losing 1. I’m tired of every game being close in the 4th, whether it be the Grizzlies, the Pistons, or the Hornets. I’m tired of being the Spurs but not really being the Spurs. Yet. I want Kawhi back. I want to feel that confidence that comes with being a Spurs fan.
I don’t want to “hate watch” my favorite team.
Speaking of confidence, the Blazers come to town Friday night. I pretty much always expect to lose to them (except in the playoffs). So maybe now is the time we finally beat them in the regular season? Let’s hope so.
(And let’s hope it’s not 3OT).
