The San Antonio Spurs avoided a furious turnaround by Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans in the fourth period, taking their first victory since the ten-day hiatus in the hoops. Although the good guys were seriously at fault due to the same health and safety protocols that postponed four games, they took advantage of the occasion and secured vital stops along the way.
Silver and Black improved to 17-12, rising five games over 0.500 for the second time this season and holding fifth place in the hyper-competitive Western Conference. Although it was not a dominant victory by any means, San Antonio showed the value of depth and determination. And the immediate impact of adding DeMar DeRozan back to the roster was obvious when veteran swingman put the team on his back and took them to victory.
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- DeMar DeRozan has only continued to earn my respect since he joined the organization in 2018. Although the high-scoring swingman did not request a switch to San Antonio, he conducted himself as a complete professional in all aspects, never becoming a pain in the neck. head to PATFO. DeMar added a new feature to his game each off-season, mentored several young Spurs and was a constant source of reliable attack for a team that often lacked a legitimate building block. Despite losing his father while quarantined in Charlotte just over a week ago, DeRozan dominated the Pelicans with 32 points and 11 assists on Saturday night. Not only did DeMar show an inspiring amount of perseverance, but he also showed why his contempt for the All-Star was so irritating to Spurs fans. Should any other player leave the midseason display, DeMar DeRozan should be the first person the NBA calls for a substitution.
- Resilient, this is the word I would use to describe this version of Prata e Preto. And that resilience is one of the main identifiers that distinguishes them from the team that San Antonio put together a season ago. Both have faced a ton of hotly contested clashes and have given up more than their fair share of double-digit leadership, although the Spurs 2020-2021 have done an excellent job of avoiding implosions of total tightening time. The Spurs went 13-20 in games with two possession last year and made it 7-5 this season. Would fans probably prefer comfortable wins to a handful of nail rodents? Of course, although they shouldn’t complain much, as long as San Antonio doesn’t receive many last-minute heartbreakers.
- Dejounte Murray has excelled in the last six matches. The fourth-year general averages 20.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in an extremely efficient 50% field kick. To be clear, Dejounte has been playing as an All-Star since losing 27 points and draining the Warriors’ three-point green dagger earlier this month, and his 2.7 steals per game made him one of the first two players in the NBA along this stretch. Murray registered 18 points, six purses and seven coins against New Orleans and its stifling backcourt of Eric Bledsoe and Lonzo Ball. And the strict owner is proving that his skeptics are wrong, while exceeding the high expectations of his contract extension. We hope that Derrick White will join Dejounte to silence the pessimists as soon as he returns from the health and safety protocols.
- There were numerous lessons from the previous San Antonio game, but one of the things that stood out to me was how much of your squad spent time in the G-League at some point in their career. A record 45% of players in the NBA lineups at the start of the season were former G-League participants, but that number soared to 68.8% for Spurs. Tre Jones, Quinndary Weatherspoon, Luka Samanic, Keldon Johnson, Keita Bates-Diop, Drew Eubanks, Lonnie Walker IV, Derrick White, Jakob Poeltl, Dejounte Murray and Patty Mills participated in the league’s development program. And Silver and Black remains one of the best franchises in using this phenomenal resource. Luka and Tre prospered with the Austin Spurs before PATFO called the pair back to San Antonio. Despite the limited minutes, both seem to be useful NBA players, with a potentially bright future ahead. Many have seen a trip to the G-League as a relegation to no-man’s-land, but the Spurs have done a ton to change that perception.