Season 50, Game 13
San Antonio 116, Los Angeles Lakers 107
10-3, 3rd in the West
In a game defined by runs, the Spurs had the last tiniest gasp to edge out the Lakers. Leading by as many as 18 at the start of the 4th quarter (that number should sound familiar, as it was the same margin against Sacramento two nights earlier), the Lakers came up a few shot shorts in their comeback attempt.
It’s hard to get a feel for this Spurs team. With Parker and Green returning, suddenly the starters look really good together. Meanwhile, the bench has faltered of late, whereas they carried the team to several early victories.
While +/- can be a noisy stat for any single game, this is the second game in a row where all of the starters were in the black (most by double digits), and most of the bench was in the red (save for Manu Ginobili).
The Lakers bench has been really good this season, so there is that. But the Spurs bench weren’t doing themselves any favors in this game. While the ball has been moving better of late (evidenced by the team-wide 30 assists in the game), the second unit seems to get a bit too clever with the ball sometimes. Against this young and swarming Lakers’ defense, it led to way too many turnovers and run outs for easy fast break points. (9 TOs in the first half, leading to 12 Lakers points.)
The Spurs schizophrenic play was well illustrated on the scorecard. In the 1st and 3rd quarters, the Spurs outscored the Lakers 65-40. +25. In the 2nd and 4th? The Lakers won those 24 minutes 67-51. -16. The Spurs have been very good at building big leads this season, and even better at relinquishing them.
For now, it hasn’t really come back to bite the team. But it will eventually. We should also remember that Pop is tinkering, figuring out what he has. He is playing player combinations that have never shared any meaningful minutes together and leaving them out there to figure it out. He is sitting players for two or three games, then giving them 25 minutes the next. It’s far more important to know what he has in April, even if it means losing a game or two in November and December.
A few more thoughts from the game:
• Kawhi had his best passing night of the season, matching his career high with 7 assists. He already seems to be adjusting to the extra attention defenses are giving him, allowing his gravity to suck in defenders and then finding the wide open man for the uncontested shot. Most of these passes are fairly simple, they just require an extra level of attention and court awareness. Was there any question he would find it?
• Parker continues to be great since returning from injury. He is scoring in double figures, dishing out assists, and organizing the offense. Most importantly, the team is winning. My biggest fear with Parker was not his diminishment, but his denial of his own diminishment. If these recent games are any indication, Parker has the ability to age gracefully, just as Duncan and Ginobili did before him.
It seems he is good for one little scoring outburst every game, and steady PG play the rest. Pop isn’t pushing his minutes, and with Mills behind him, we have solid guard play for 48 minutes.
• Aldridge did a great job of not settling for his jumper tonight. He took the ball into the post and attacked the Lakers’ smaller defenders. He was critical scoring the basket in the 4th quarter, keeping the Lakers at bay. Here’s hoping LaMarcus is finding his role in the offense and getting his shot back on track.
The Spurs have the weekend off before facing the struggling Mavericks at home Monday night.
Go Spurs Go.
