San Antonio Spurs Report Card: Grading the Team vs. Los Angeles Clippers
It might not always be pretty, but the Spurs are doing what they vowed to do before this season began: win games that are supposed to be won.
The Spurs have started the season with an easy schedule (only one team with a winning record so far: New Orleans Hornets), and they have done well to take advantage of it with a 6-1 start. While some games have been tighter than they needed to be (such as this game against the Clippers), the Spurs are doing something that they weren't this time last year: finding a way to win.
Here is a report card on each Spur's individual performance for the game, as well as an overall grade for the starters, bench and team overall.
Tony Parker (PG)
1 of 13
Key Stats: 21 points, 9 assists
Tony is doing a good job of both scoring and distributing the ball. He did a good job taking advantage of the Clippers' vulnerability down low with Chris Kaman out.
Tony may have missed a few layups that he should have made, but he also made some circus shots that were much more difficult. Just one turnover also looks nice on Tony's stat sheet.
Grade: A-
Manu Ginobili (SG)
2 of 13
Key Stats: 22 points, 4 assists
Manu was Manu once again. It's hard to believe that he has "only" hit 39 percent of his three-pointers this season. To me it seems like he's hit them all, or close to it.
For the first time in several years, Manu is healthy and in playoff form at the beginning of the season, and it's paying off big-time. Along with the points he also contributed four rebounds, a block (from behind), and a steal. Four turnovers is the real issue.
If Manu doesn't get his long overdue second All-Star appearence this year, I'll be shocked.
Grade: A
Richard Jefferson (SF)
3 of 13
Key Stats: 22 points, 2 steals
RJ showed another sign of his remarkable improvement from last year. After an off night in Charlotte, he came right back today with as much confidence as ever, while last year he would have been hesitant to shoot.
He shot well from the outside, made some good drives into the lane, and provided some spark when the team was struggling.
Good job all around.
Grade: A
Tim Duncan (PF)
4 of 13
Key Stats: 6 points, 6 rebounds
I'll be lenient with Timmy, considering he was playing with flu-like symptoms. While he didn't shoot much (3/7 FG), he made his presence felt in the 22 minutes he played, especially on the defensive end with three blocks.
Not much else can be said other than he passed up his chance for his first three of the season when he passed it off at the second-quarter buzzer.
Grade: B
DeJuan Blair (C)
5 of 13
Key Stats: 8 points, 7 rebounds
Blair's shot is finally starting to come around (4/9 FG) in one of his better games of the season. He had a few putbacks (three offensive rebounds) and a slam dunk for good measure.
More importantly, he did a good job playing some pesky defense (one block, one steal), especially on the increasingly frustrated Blake Griffin. As long as he continues to play good defense and doesn't try to force anything on offense, his game will come around.
Grade: B+
Overall Grade for Starters
6 of 13
The starters did a decent job scoring (three players over the 20-point mark) and defending against a depleted yet pesky Clippers group that didn't want to go away.
A more overlooked aspect of the game was the free-throw disparity, with the Spurs getting 30 attempts compared to 14 for the Clippers. The starters made good of it, hitting on 18 of 19 attempts (all between Tony, Manu, and RJ).
Overall they probably had to work harder than expected, but whenever a lapse occurred, they got themselves right back out of it.
Overall Grade: B+
George Hill
7 of 13
Key Stats: 10 points, 4 assists
Hill looked a lot more confident today compared to previous games. His shot is starting to fall, especially from the outside (2/3 outside the arc), and he seemed more willing to take open shots than before.
Hopefully this game served as a confidence-booster to get Hill back to the form he showed last season.
Grade: B+
Antonio McDyess
8 of 13
Key Stats: 4 points, 9 rebounds
It wasn't McDyess's best outing offensively (2/6 FG) and he maybe passed up a few open shots, but his presence was definitely felt on the defensive end.
He continues to be a force off the bench while providing the inside defensive presense that is missing when Tim is resting.
Grade: B
Tiago Splitter
9 of 13
Key Stats: 6 points, 4 rebounds
With each passing day, Tiago is getting better and better. He knows where to be on both ends of the floor, he's starting to find his shooting touch, and he's good at drawing charges and annoying the opponent on defense.
He, along with Blair, were especially annoying for Griffin. His three blocks also showed that he is regaining strength from his injury. He had more time on the floor than before with 15 minutes, and he appears to be getting back into shape while showing little to no signs of fatigue.
Grade: A-
James Anderson
10 of 13
Key Stats: 7 points, 1 rebound
Anderson continues a hot streak of at least one three-pointer in each of his first six games so far (remember he missed the Houston game). That's quite a streak for a rookie only seeing 17 minutes per game (which is actually more than I thought he was getting).
It's pretty rare when you can watch a rookie take a three and be pretty positive it will go in. He's becoming very reliable off the bench, and his good defensive efforts will only earn him more time on the court.
Grade: B+
Overall Grade for Bench
11 of 13
It was a decent outing for the bench.Being outscored 38-28 by a depleted Clippers bench that was missing some players isn't the most ideal ending to a game, but it was a win nonetheless and everyone is showing signs of improvement.
However, there is still some work to be done. Hopefully a blowout is around the corner that will allow the bench players to see more time than they have in previous games.
Overall Grade: B+
Coaching
12 of 13
It probably wasn't the performance that Greg Popovich had in mind, but either way, his team won and that's what matters this early in the season.
He probably gave his players somewhat of a lashing at halftime and during a few timeouts, and after a momentary lapse that gave the Clippers a temporary one-point lead in the third quarter everyone got better.
My only question was, where was red-hot Gary Neal? I know Pop is trying to give everyone a chance, and as well as Manu and RJ are playing it's hard to bench them for long.
Grade: A-
Final Overall Grade
13 of 13
The game should never have been as tight as it was against a depleted Clippers team, but, as I mentioned before, the Spurs did what they were supposed to do by winning a game they probably would have let slip away last year.
Personally, I have an issue with winning mainly from having more free-throw attempts than the other team (30-14), although that can be caused by being more aggressive towards the basket. Either way, the fact that they hit five more baskets thanks to 13 offensive rebounds and 16 Spurs turnovers is unacceptable.
Other than that, the defense was good almost everywhere except outside, which is where most of the Clippers' shots were falling (seen in the free throw disparity).
The offense is also continuing to roll with good shooting all around. As long as the turnover count continues to get better, so will the outcomes.
Overall Grade: B+
