Season 48, Game 17
San Antonio 109, Philadelphia 103
13-4, 5th in the West
It’s a fairly common phenomenon, and one the Spurs have been on the opposite side of many times: one team jumps out to a fairly comfortable lead in the first half; the second team raises their aggression and energy in the second half and the first team can’t match it. Suddenly, what was once a 24-point lead has dwindled down to nothing, and the team that has been slowly fighting and clawing their way back into it has the momentum and the edge.
And any other team besides these 76ers, and that might have been enough to beat the short-handed Spurs on Monday night. But it wasn’t a different team, and it wasn’t enough.
Oh man, this team is tough to watch. They are just so young and lacking in any semblance of cohesion or teamwork. It was actually nice to see them come together and play to their one strength: youthful energy. We all know that their head coach, Brett Brown, was a top assistant in San Antonio for years and is beloved by the players and staff.
In particular, Coach Pop. I’m not saying Pop was trying to throw the game, but he was definitely pulling punches, and handicapping his Spurs team as much as possible. Parker and Duncan obviously sat. Manu only played 13 minutes, basically two 5 1/2 minute stints in each half.
(Matt Slocum – AP Photo)
In the third quarter, when the game threatened to get out of hand, Leonard, Green, and Baynes all had a quick hook, and Ayres, Daye, Bonner, Marco, and Cory got the bulk of playing time. That is not a lineup that inspires confidence.
As could be anticipated, the Spurs still pulled away late, because Kawhi is awesome, the Spurs have a built-in system to help the team in close games, and the Sixers just don’t know how to win games.
Outside of the score and the scare, there were a few interesting things to take away from the game:
- With Duncan and Parker out and Manu only playing limited minutes, this really was the Kawhi Leonard show. And it was mostly positive. It’s obvious that the team is working on developing his post game, and he got the ball in the post a lot.
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Don’t underestimate the importance of Kawhi being able to hone his craft during actual game minutes with real stakes. And don’t underestimate the importance of getting the learning curve out of the way early in the season. (In general, its a great underrated strength of the Spurs, instilling confidence in the entire roster throughout the regular season.) There was some shakiness in the endgame during some critical possessions, but when it mattered most, Kawhi closed. He’s young and there will be growing pains. He’ll only get better (which should scare 29 other teams).
- Aron Baynes has been a bit of a revelation this early season getting big minutes with Tiago out. He’s shown flashes, but with steady time and a consistent rotation spot, he is really blossoming into his full game. On offense, he is a brute setting picks and rumbling to the basket, but also has really soft hands and a nice touch. That’s an incredible combination. He is still not as stout on defense as he should be for a man his size, but he is getting better.
(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
It’s nice insurance when Tiago is out, and also when he comes back, knowing that the big man rotation goes 4-5 deep solidly.
- He’s an easy (goofy) target, but Matt Bonner actually has a decent floor game. It’s a credit to his professionalism and hard work that he developed a dribble-drive pull-up into a little sky hook after the rest of the league scouted him out and started driving him off the 3-point line. It’s not graceful, but it’s more effective than it should be, and probably surprises his defender.
This is probably the best of both worlds for Pop: the team got the win, but didn’t look great doing it, so he can really get after them and use the game as a teaching tool, making sure he gets the team’s attention and keeps them sharp.
The Spurs face the Nets on Wednesday night before heading to Memphis for a big early season showdown against the league-best Grizzlies.
