What We Learned from the Spurs loss to the Cavs

We’re having fun. Just remember, we’re having fun. Basketball is a game and we all participate in this enterprise together as a fun hobby. For fun. Not for sad. For fun. It’s FUN. A GAME. For FUN. Keep repeating that to yourself over and over while you watch the seconds tick away on another hard fought loss. It won’t make the pain go away or anything, but it does have an interesting numbing effect that I’m trying to explore.

Whoo boy, we are deep in the process these days. Just swimming in process. I try to keep telling myself, “at least the Spurs are learning lessons from these losses” but like, at this point, what could the lessons possibly even be? Player Better? Don’t lose 14 in a row? Trade for a dude who can drop 41 points at any given time? The big, dumb, neanderthal in my head wants the process to be that easy. You see another team do it and go “oh, well we’ll just do that now and be good” and the universe keeps loudly responding that it’s nooooooooootttt thaaaaaaaatttttt eaaaaassssy.

The truth is that knowing what to do and doing it are two different things. I believe that the people running this franchise know what it takes to win basketball games. It’s not some ancient mystery they’re trying to solve. The tricky thing is actually putting that plan into place. Getting the right guys. Striking the right deal at the right time. Being Patient. I have to believe that they aren’t looking for a plan, they just happen to be in the middle of executing a plan that seems like it’s taking forever when you’re watching the Cleveland Cavaliers hand you your 14th straight loss the way a cat might hand you a dead bird.

It’s a process. I hate that the Sixers co-opted the whole “Trust the Process” thing en route to their now very impressive record of zero championships because I really think trusting the process is a valuable mantra to those of us swimming upstream against the indomitable weight of a full rebuild. We have to relax. We have to see the bigger picture. We have to trust that whoever is steering the ship knows where they are going.

We’ve all heard people say that “the journey is the destination”, right? Meaning you’re supposed to enjoy the ride and be present so you don’t miss out on all the life that happens along the way. Or something. Look, I love that sentiment and try to apply to my life regularly but the issue that’s staring me in the face right now with regards to the Spurs is that, currently, the journey is an absolute drag. Zero fun, sir. This absolutely cannot be the destination because if this is the destination then I’m going to walk into the ocean.

So we keep pushing. We keep our heads up. We try to find little moments here and there to remember why this is all, in theory, supposed to be fun. Sooner or later we can start enjoying our journey again but, at least right now, I say we just focus on getting out of here.

We’re having fun. Basketball is a game and we all participate in this enterprise together as a fun hobby. For fun. Not for sad. For fun.

It’s FUN.

A GAME.

For FUN.

Takeaways:

• Hey, Malaki Banham is pretty fun! I had to do a couple of double takes during this game to remind myself that the smooth, lanky guy wearing number 22 running around out there wasn’t Rudy Gay. It feels like cold comfort some nights, but the Spurs really have done a decent job drafting legitimate NBA players over the last few years. These guys aren’t, you know, the second coming of Nikola Jokic or anything, but that’s never really the goal. They are just solid players who can come in and be useful NBA players in the right spot. Maybe they contribute down the road and maybe they are part of a package somebody wants when we make a move for our version of the Donovan Mitchell trade. Who Knows?!? But the Spurs are good at this part and hopefully they’ll be good at the next part too. In the meantime, Malaki is another fun one to watch.

• It was actually nice to play the Cavs and see them be good because, you know, they were bad! Recently! Like how we’re bad! Now! This is such an extremely basic observation that I feel dumb for even bringing up but, still, it was comforting. Teams do get better. They pull out of their funks. They don’t even need to draft otherworldly French teenagers to do it. I look at this Cavs team and it seems like they are having a blast right now. That could be us. We only have to believe if we wish to achieve.
• The Spurs are really doing an admirable job of not staying down during these games. I can’t imagine the mental fortitude it takes in this situation to go down over 20 points and still keep fighting when there is almost no incentive to fight. They’ve (unfortunately) had to do it a lot this year but they never just lie down and wait for it to be over. They’re in the lab out there. Working on things. Trying stuff out. They’re on their own journey to be better basketball players and, believe it or not, it’s a completely separate thing from the weird mental anguish I have going on in my living room while watching them play on TV. I’m proud of them. I might complain a lot but, deep down, I hope they know I’m proud.

WWL Post Game Press Conference

- You mentioned that you’re proud of the players. I guess my first question would be, what would make you say something as embarrassing as that on a website were people might see it?

- It’s a good question. I guess I just lost focus there at the end, you know? I try to maintain my composure and put out a “cool, calm, collected” vibe but sometimes you let your guard down and toss out a clunker like that.

- Do you think they need to hear that? That you’re proud of them?

- No, I’m under no illusions that they need that from me at all. In fact, if they did happen to see that some random guy on the Internet was doing the equivalent of patting them on the head and saying “it’s okay, I still love you” then it might actually make them angry.

- Do you want to get out in front of this and offer an apology?

- As a general rule, I stand by everything I say and offer a pretty strict “No Refunds, No Apologies” policy. This is obviously embarrassing but, you know, I think I still have to own it. I said what I said and, frankly, it wasn’t even a lie. I am proud of them, I do think it’s okay, and I still love them. I’m sure they aren’t looking to this particular corner of the internet for a father figure but if they happen to stumble upon it for some reason, well, I think I still want them to feel comforted by the sentiment. That’s the hope, at least.

- Are you worried that you might be washed?

- Oh I stopped worrying about that a long time ago. I think it was right around the time I realized I was washed.