Pounding The Rock - Full Coverage: San Antonio Spurs @ Sacramento KingsFor all your Manu Ginobili loving and San Antonio Spurs newshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/12497/ptr-fv.jpg2014-03-22T16:32:41-05:00http://www.poundingtherock.com/rss/stream/52991612014-03-22T16:32:41-05:002014-03-22T16:32:41-05:00I survived the Spurs/Kings game
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<p>They won and nobody got hurt. Let's never speak of this game again. </p> <p>Here are some thoughts about the <a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Spurs</a>-<a href="https://www.sactownroyalty.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Kings</a> game I attended last night. I doubt I'll ever have any grandkids of my own, but I wouldn't even tell <i>your </i>grandkids about this one. It was probably the worst Spurs win I've ever seen in person, which should give you an idea how spoiled I am.</p>
<p>1. What a mess! Probably just a coincidence but that game felt like the Spurs' homage to the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/march-madness" class="sbn-auto-link">NCAA tournament</a> because it was ugly enough to be a college game. They had only 18 assists all night, easily one of their lowest totals of the season, and it's not like it was because they turned it over a bunch either. They just couldn't make shots. They put up 93 of them, just a huge amount --in part thanks to 13 offensive boards-- but shot below 39 percent and just 20 percent on threes. The ball movement wasn't crisp for long stretches of the game and quite stagnant at times. Honestly, there just weren't many highlights to be found in this one. It was like the quintessential Spurs game for people who don't watch Spurs games.</p>
<p>2. That being said, for the first three quarters, ironically, it sure seemed the Spurs had more success scoring the ball on isos and individual efforts taking it to the basket than when they worked it around and got open looks. Don't get me wrong, they tossed up a lot of ugly contested shots off those ball-stopping possessions, so I guess what I'm trying to say is they couldn't shoot jumpers regardless of whether they were good or bad shots. <span>Tony Parker</span>, <span>Kawhi Leonard</span> and <span>Patty Mills</span> were particularly guilty of this.</p>
<p>3. Speaking of Leonard, he sure played an out-of-character game last night, like he was channeling the guy across from him, Rudy Gay. Not only did Leonard ball do a ton of ball-stopping and iso-ing (if that's a word), but he also chucked up a lot of threes. His six attempts from downtown tied for the third-highest of his career and a couple of them were of the <i>pull up and fire early in the shot clock</i> variety, a la <span>Manu Ginobili</span> or <span>Danny Green</span>. It looked like it was a part of the game plan for him to be aggressively looking for his shot in this one.</p>
<p>4. I don't know if Pop ever announced that the team is officially looking at videos of and actively game planning against specific teams now, but they sure seemed to have a couple of unique wrinkles for Sacramento, with Duncan in the high post firing tight, hard passes right down the gut to a cutting <span>Tiago Splitter</span> or Leonard. Ginobili fired a couple in there too, as the Kings seemed a step slow in defending the paint all night, usually resorting to late, desperate fouls. Pop also employed a lot of odd lineups in the second half, especially the part where <span>Matt Bonner</span> played the final 14:09 of the game. <span>Boris Diaw</span> wasn't playing with much energy and maybe Pop wanted to save him for the smallish, versatile <a href="https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Warriors</a> tonight, since Duncan will probably be resting. I have a feeling Ginobili will play though, he only saw eight minutes of action in the second half.</p>
<p>5. There was a weird play in the third quarter, where Duncan had a sharp cut to the basket and was shoved on his hip by Gay, which prevented him from rising up for a short banker and allowed Gay to extend high enough to block the shot out of bounds. Duncan complained, rightly so, about the lack of a call. On the ensuing inbounds play, <span>DeMarcus Cousins</span>, perhaps sensing that he'd be victim of a make-up call if he so much as breathed on Duncan, backed way off him on a bunny eight foot jumper, which Duncan easily made. Tim was still bent about the no-call though and got a "T" on the next trip down.</p>
<p>6. The Spurs offense was rough to look at, but the starters still managed 21 points in 10:10 while allowing 18. Works out to a 99-85 pace for a full game, so those guys are continuing to dominate. Splitter in particular has been very strong of late. His last five games include three three double-doubles, and four where he scored in double-figures. He's averaging 10 and 8.4 over the past five games and he more than held his own against Cousins.</p>
<p>7. It was hard to tell how well the Spurs played defensively. The Kings missed a ton of shots too, but I think the Spurs did a better job of sealing off the paint. The refs let some physical play go for both sides. The Kings' lack of ball movement obviously hurt them because it's not like they've got a <span>Kevin Durant</span>.</p>
<p>8. And yes, I was severely butt-hurt all game long because of the way Thunders-<a href="https://www.raptorshq.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Raptors</a> ended. How does Toronto blow an eight point lead with 43 seconds to go? Durant BANKED a three to cut it to five and give them life -- I mean, come on. And then <span>John Salmons</span> misses both freebies with eight seconds to go. Just awful. In the end, Durant drained a 28-footer, with <span>Amir Johnson</span> all over him. Dude played 52 minutes and didn't appear to be even remotely tired. Durant isn't human. Serious question, how many minutes would he have to play before it affects his legs on the jumper? 100? 200? 500? Very frustrating.</p>
<p>9. It's a testament to the pace and depth of the Spurs that even on a night where they shot 39 percent and 20 percent from downtown and where they only managed nine fast break points, that they finished a tick short of a 100 on the night. They got 19 second-chance points, which is above the norm for them, and got up a ton of shots and free throws, because they only committed nine turnovers. By the fourth quarter the Kings were just completely worn down by all their cutting and off the ball movement and just seemed to collectively give up. <span>Marco Belinelli</span> destroyed them late with his back cuts and Duncan finished with six assists for the third game in a row. The Kings actually played a lot harder defensively than normal and did a solid job of getting back in transition, but they just do a ton of stupid things on both ends of the court. It's almost impossible to be good when Cousins and Gay are your two best players and <span>Isaiah Thomas</span> would ideally be the sixth or seventh man on a good club, a sparkplug off the bench a la Mills or <span>Reggie Jackson</span>.</p>
<p>10. For those of you looking to visit California and catch an NBA game, I'd highly recommend making the trip to see the Kings instead of catching the Warriors. It's a much cheaper ticket, you can get affordable seats a lot closer to the floor, and the people who go the games are actually basketball fans who stay in their seats to watch the game. For waaaaaaay too many people in the Bay Area, the Warriors are just this fad -- something to do. The tickets are crazy expensive, even for the worst seats in the gym. You can't watch the game for more than two minutes without having to get up or have your view obstructed because "fans" are constantly getting up to get more overpriced, watered-down drinks or $11.50 Bud Lights, and a third of the crowd are bored girlfriends staring at their phones the whole time or taking selfies. Warriors fans have a reputation for being loud and a great crowd, and maybe they do for playoff games, but for your run-of-the-mill regular season game the only thing those people scream for are <span>Stephen Curry</span> threes. It's a shame the Kings are so terrible because their fans deserve a better team.</p>
https://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5537072/spurs-kings-aptly-named-sleeptrain-arenaMichael Erler2014-03-22T15:32:21-05:002014-03-22T15:32:21-05:00Opponent Comments: Spurs vs Kings
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<p>Do you know what happens when the Spurs shoot 39% from the field and 20% from the 3-point line? Yeah, they win by 20, of course. Here's what Kings fans from our sister site, Sactown Royalty, had to say about the game last night as they watched.</p> <p>It was an ugly, really ugly game for the Spurs last night. But if you say that it was the ugliest game of this winning streak, and in spite of that they won by 20, what should be the bottom line? I really have no idea, maybe the Kings really wanted to lose this one and it didn't matter how bad the Spurs had played, they would have played even worse.</p>
<p>Anyway, let's take a look at <a href="http://" target="_blank">their game thread:</a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">* * *</p>
<p>What can we lose but the game?<br>Huh?<br>Go, Kings.<br>by gallo del cielo</p>
<p>It's a nice 1st quarter<br>by fccpw</p>
<p>at least we are down 1 only<br>by HongKongKingsFan</p>
<p>This just in . . .<br>. . . The Spurs are really good.<br>Now, back to our game.<br>by gallo del cielo</p>
<p>Spurs' ball movement is just<br>incredible<br>by HongKongKingsFan</p>
<p>Lol again<br>Why is Travis Outlaw in?! This is the most blatant form of tanking I've seen. The only team better than us at it is probably the Sixers.<br>by Kentrell Jackson</p>
<p>Splitter has scored 11, not a good sign<br>and we are still struggling on the line<br>by HongKongKingsFan</p>
<p>They got an interesting stats<br>When Splitter got 10 or more points, Spurs win 20-0<br>by fccpw</p>
<p>If Splitter were a King, he would never play.<br>by gallo del cielo</p>
<p>I don't know about that<br>He wouldn't be Aaron Grey, but he might be Jason Thompson. The Spurs signed him to $35M? I don't doubt them enough to say he would not play.<br>by betweentheeyes</p>
<p>It ain't Splitter I'm against!!<br>It is the inability of the Kings to create slots for niche players like him !!!<br>Sorry I'm shouting !!!<br>by gallo del cielo</p>
<p>Would you rather see the Kings lose to everyone but the top playoff teams or have them beat the clubs that equal or worse records for the rest of the season?<br>by betweentheeyes</p>
<p>Is hating on the Spurs<br>The NBA equivalent of hating on Duke for reasons other than them being fundamentally sound?<br>by Hit4TheCycle</p>
<p>If you hate the Spurs, prepare to face the fear from Coach Pop<br>by fccpw</p>
<p>some bilateral awful shooting<br>The Spurss at 36% the Kings at 39% - yuck and yuck. Why are the Kings down by 10?<br>9 more FG attempts, 6 more made FTs by San Antonio<br>by betweentheeyes</p>
<p>and Spurs are the better team<br>by HongKongKingsFan</p>
<p>The officiating is blatantly horrible.<br>by Reke_Havoc13</p>
<p>Spurs keep trying to hand us the game but we just refuse to take it...<br>by JBmo</p>
<p>Not today<br>Spurs just dominate defense<br>by fccpw</p>
<p>We really suck<br>by MJMJ725</p>
<p>Because we're being outclassed by a veteran team with an 11 game winning streak?<br>by drock1331</p>
<p>No, because we make stupid mistakes on a daily basis and can't even run a simple fast break<br>Does that help?<br>by MJMJ725</p>
<p>the game is offically over<br>by HongKongKingsFan</p>
https://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5536088/opponent-game-thread-spurs-vs-kingsKL_Indubitably_Good2014-03-22T14:30:43-05:002014-03-22T14:30:43-05:00GIF Breakdown: Spurs at Kings
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<p>You've probably heard if you didn't see the game; The Spurs got an ugly win in Sacramento on Friday night. It was ugly, but it was the 12th-straight for the Spurs, who continue to lead the league with their 52-16 record. Let's check out some plays from Friday night that stood out, but probably didn't make it onto Sportscenter. </p> <p>Let's start this with a bucket from <span>Kawhi Leonard</span>. This play starts with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/">Spurs</a> in transition. <span>Danny Green</span> pushes the ball to Kawhi almost at the baseline. The young man shows nice patience as he waits for Tiago to cut through the lane. Whi follows the big man and is met by <span>Reggie Evans</span>. Sorry Reggie, my man Kawhi has it going on from mid-range. The Cornrowed One knocks down a tough-looking, fade-away 12-footer. I'm thinking that the Spurs' <em><a target="new" href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/pages/ptr-lexicon#oppenent">oppenents</a> </em>will be treated to heavy doses of that shot in the coming years.<img src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/assets/4172103/2_whi_patience.gif" class="photo" alt="2_whi_patience"></p>
<p>You've probably encountered the stat where if <span>Tiago Splitter</span> scores in double-figures the Spurs win. You might have <a href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5536686/morning-rehash-eye-of-the-beholder" target="_blank">seen it on Pounding the Rock</a>, or Twitter, or a Spurs broadcast. Yeah, it's gotten some coverage.</p>
<p>Here we see the Spurs in transition. Tiago runs the floor and is rewarded for his effort by <span>Tony Parker</span>, who hits the big man with an accurate dish as he's sprinting . Number Eight is <span>Rudy Gay</span> who, as a rim protector, is allowing opposing players to score 55% of the time. To be fair, a rim protector he is not. So, it should come as no surprise that Tiago doesn't put the ball on the floor and finishes with a nice dunk. This is not one of those cute layups he likes so much. Tiago has been really good for the team lately, and it's good to see him finish strong. More of this Tiago, I've <a href="https://twitter.com/kirkgoldsberry/status/447058730031390720/photo/1/large" target="_blank">seen your shot chart</a>.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/assets/4172055/1_tiago_running_floor_.gif" class="photo" alt="1_tiago_running_floor_">Here's another play that features Tiago. Tim and Tony run a pick-and-pop and as three <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.sactownroyalty.com/">Kings</a> rush to challenge Tim, he eschews the pop for a quick pass to Tiago who is open under the basket. Reggie Evans scrambles back to challenge Sparkles, but Splitter has great position and knows just what to do. He makes a dribble into the paint to get Evans on his back, spins back toward the baseline, sells an excellent pump-fake, goes up and scores. And-one for 22.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/assets/4172183/3_tiago_from_tim.gif" class="photo" alt="3_tiago_from_tim"><br id="1395480408362"></p>
<p>Though we normally highlight amazing team play, this drive by Tony showcases his individual excellence.</p>
<p>In this next GIF Tony curls around Reggie Evans after the big man shows hard off of a Timmy screen. Evans races back to stop the rolling Tim as Tony attacks Thomas. Isaiah flops really hard as Tony drives, which leaves Parker completely open as he knocks down a 14-footer. The ball has just about found the bottom of the net as Thomas is knocked back to the ground by a <i>vicious </i>Splitter forearm. I'm not sure it would have helped had Thomas stayed on his feet, but I do know that it's almost impossible to get a defensive stop from the ground. He must have seen a <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Gaudens_double_eagle">1933 St. Gaudens Double Eagle</a> on the floor. Maybe a third trip to the ground would have helped him recover his prize,</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/assets/4172079/4_tony.gif" class="photo" alt="4_tony"><br id="1395477436536"></p>
<p>Some people have been asking for more defensive plays. Generally, good defensive plays last a long time. This makes them less desirable to GIF.. But we'll try to bring you more plays from the Spurs on D. On Friday night Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker teamed up to force a turnover.</p>
<p>Rookie Ray McCallum and veteran Rudy Gay run a pick-and-fail here. Kawhi sticks to Gay hard after the screen and forces McCallum to try a difficult entry-pass to Rudy. Those long arms force a bad pass that wasn't even close to working. It's the little things. That's where the Spurs excel. You're going to need something stronger than this pass against this squad. Unless you're one of the tanking teams.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/assets/4172191/5_defense.gif" class="photo" alt="5_defense"><br id="1395481060083"></p>
<p>Hey, it's another Duncan to Splitter assist. This is becoming so commonplace in games that Pop might want to start hiding this interaction from opposing scouts. Six assists for TIm, <i>and </i>double-figure scoring for the Brazilian. That's not fair. The Spurs are completely unstoppable when that is happening. On Friday night the Spurs won by 20. Shooting less than 39%. Of course.</p>
<p>We see Splitter set a screen for Whi, who finds nothing and passes out to the legend, the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/pages/ptr-lexicon#timduncan">GOAT PUFF</a>, Timothy Theodore Duncan. With DeMarcus Cousins providing extra help on Whi, Tiago slips free under the basket and Timmy hits him with a touch-pass under the rim. Cousins, the young, athletic man recovers, but our tall, fair-skinned South American does a little dance, shakes Boogie with a nice spin-move and finishes with one of those reverse layups he loves so much. To be honest, he actually needed his moves to finish this one. That's an absurd layup that Tiago gets to go. Really. Find a court and try that shot.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/assets/4172087/6_spltter_from_td.gif" class="photo" alt="6_spltter_from_td"></p>
<p>This is a strange play, in a strange game, and it shows the Spurs start the play before Tony Parker gets the ball for the inbounds. The ref comes out to sort something out, but the good guys are still running their play. It's a hell of a mess and I'm not sure what is going on, but if you had Manu feeding Duncan halfway from the free-throw line and the hoop you win everything. Timmy had a pretty awful night shooting the ball, and this attempt does not fall. Luckily Splitter is there to tap the ball in after he muscles <span>Travis Outlaw</span> out of the way. So...good?</p>
<p><img alt="7_play_long" class="photo" src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/assets/4172215/7_play_long.gif"><br id="1395483723136"></p>
<p>Let's watch The Wee Frenchman score a couple in this play. He uses two screens, from Tiago and Timmy, to shake <span>Isaiah Thomas</span> (who's <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaiah_Thomas_(basketball)#Personal">name has an interesting story</a> if you haven't heard it.) Then with speed and general TPness, our <a target="_blank" href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/pages/ptr-lexicon#poingguard">poing guard</a> gets to the basket and puts a little French on a layup <i>high </i>off the glass.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/assets/4173361/tony_high_off_the_glass.gif" class="photo" alt="Tony_high_off_the_glass"><br id="1395517762355"></p>
<p>Let's end this edition of GIF Breakdown with a score from <i>The Spicy One</i>. <span>Marco Belinelli</span> scored 13 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter -- man, the guys on the bench sure can score in bunches. This play starts with Marco receiving a hand-off from Matt Bonner. Tim and Bonner set screens to eliminate Travis Outlaw. It's now Marco and <span>Jason Thompson</span> at the top of the arc, and the Italian makes a wide loop to the basket, beating Thompson to the rack, and then finishing with a nice layup that bounces on the iron a couple of times before dropping.</p>
<p><img src="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/assets/4173665/marco.gif" class="photo" alt="Marco"><br id="1395522274967"></p>
https://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5535866/gif-breakdown-spurs-at-kingsChris Itz2014-03-22T12:00:33-05:002014-03-22T12:00:33-05:00Morning Rehash: Eye of the beholder
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<p>The Spurs overcame a poor shooting night (38.7% from the field, 20% from 3-pt) to win by 20 in a contest that made up for what it lacked in aesthetics by continuing the win streak.</p> <blockquote>
<p>Now the questions that come to mind: "Where is this place and when is it?" "What kind of world where ugliness is the norm and beauty, the deviation from that norm?" You want an answer? The answer is it doesn't make any difference, because the old saying happens to be true. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. In this year or a hundred years hence. On this planet or wherever there is human life - perhaps out amongst the stars - beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Lesson to be learned in the Twilight Zone.</p>
<p style="text-align: right;">-Rod Serling</p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr">The <a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Spurs</a> played one of their sloppiest games of the year against the <a href="https://www.sactownroyalty.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Sacramento Kings</a>, who weren't exactly tidy themselves. But the Spurs' ugly is just a lot better looking than the Kings' ugly. About 20 points more attractive, to be exact. Even though the Spurs had their second worst shooting night of the season*, the game was never in doubt. It was one of those nights where the ball bounced everywhere but in the basket. At the end of the first quarter, Isiah Thomas heaved the ball high towards the opposite basket, but it bounced off the scoreboard and caromed straight down towards Boris Diaw, who did not even seem to notice as it spun past him.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The Kings have a lot of talented players, which makes their record a little hard to understand. Unlike the <a href="https://www.silverscreenandroll.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Lakers</a>, there are more than two guys on the team which could make the Spurs roster, but their win/loss record isn't that much better than the Lakers. Their basic problem is they don't play well together. And <span>Rudy Gay</span> is fighting a career-long trend of making any team he plays on worse.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Tiago Splitter</span> had a gorgeous first half, and he played <span>DeMarcus Cousins</span> to a standstill. After Tiago scored his 11th point on a reverse layup with 3:15 left in the second quarter, Spurs announcer Bill Land shouted "Game Over!" because the Spurs haven't lost a single game that Splitter's scored in double figures this season. Bill was right (as the Spurs eventually won) but also in the dual sense that the watchable part of the game was just about done.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Kawhi's rebounding and defense made a big difference. His three point jumper in the first quarter was San Antonio's only made three of the first half. As terrible as the Spurs were on offense, their defense was typically Spursian, the Kings did not get any clean shots, except for <span>Travis Outlaw</span>, who hit 2 three pointers when he was left open. The Spurs limped into the halftime break with just 47 points, but the anemic Kings only had 37. Leading all scorers at the half was ... Tiago Splitter.</p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr">We couldn't throw it in the ocean. -Pop</p>
<p dir="ltr">The good thing is they couldn't either. -Manu</p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr">Every NBA quarter is officially 12 minutes long, but this third quarter seemed to last for several hours, as both teams slogged through an unappealing stretch of bad shooting, endless whistles and bizarre sequences. On one inbounds play, the Spurs started running their motion and a chaos of colliding bodies erupted in the lane for nearly 10 seconds, and the referee hadn't even handed the ball to Parker to inbound it. But there were a few pretty plays for the Spurs. After Rudy Gay rejected a Splitter dunk attempt (Rudy Gay blocked a shot?), the ball came back out to Tony and he drove past three Kings to lay a soft shot off the top of the glass, just past Cousins' outstretched arm. There were just occasional flashes of brilliance, but those flashes were enough for the Spurs to outscore the Kings. At the end of the quarter, <span>Isaiah Thomas</span> heaved a deep three point shot that gently swished through the net, but the ball was still on his fingertips as the clock expired. The Kings' best play of the quarter did not count.</p>
<p dir="ltr">As both teams staggered into the fourth quarter, there were a few sequences where the Spurs managed to get their boots partially out of the mire and play a <a href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/21/5535032/kirk-goldsberrys-appreciation-of-the-beautiful-spurs">beautiful game</a> for a few moments at a time. Travis Outlaw, who had been killing the Spurs with his 3 point shots, had some embarrassing defensive lapses. He turned his head to watch the ball as Marco cut behind him for easy scores ... twice. Parker hit a three with 2:37 left and it was over. Pop inserted Joseph and Ayres, and Malone inserted <span>Royce White</span>, who after a few years of difficulties finally made it onto the floor in an NBA game. The only remaining drama was whether White would touch the ball. He didn't. There was no change--<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92LkNQZ8_dM&feature=youtu.be&t=3m31s">no change at all</a>.</p>
<p dir="ltr">*They shot worse against Phoenix on February 21, 2014, and lost 106-85.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><i>Be sure to <a href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5535790/recap-the-spurs-show-they-can-win-ugly-beat-the-kings-99-79" target="_blank">read Stephen Shepperd's recap</a> if you haven't already.</i></p>
<h4 dir="ltr">QUOTE OF THE NIGHT</h4>
<p dir="ltr">"I just need to move" -- <span>Marco Belinelli</span>, explaining how he knows he will get the ball if he takes the effort to get open.</p>
<h4 dir="ltr">GAME MVP</h4>
<p dir="ltr">Marco Belinelli: 13 points in the 4th quarter, icing the game. He also delivered the first <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FClVQWyN7WM&feature=youtu.be">Italian cooking lesson</a> ever in a post-game Spurs interview.</p>
<p><iframe frameborder="0" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/FClVQWyN7WM" height="315" width="560"></iframe></p>
<h4 dir="ltr">GAME LVP</h4>
<p dir="ltr">Royce White: he had no impact in his 56 seconds of garbage time, but the 2012 first round pick <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2014/3/22/5536578/royce-white-first-nba-game-sacramento-kings" target="_blank">finally saw his first action in the NBA</a>.</p>
<h4 dir="ltr">ODDS AND ENDS</h4>
<ul>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">Baynes didn't have a huge impact on the game, but he looks comfortable out there. He's not rushing, he's setting good screens, and he seems to have completely replaced Ayres in the rotation.</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">Boris Diaw didn't have a great game, he's going to have to do more against the <a href="https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Warriors</a> if the Spurs are going to win.</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">Isaiah Thomas is really good. I can't believe he was the last pick in the draft.</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">DeMarcus Cousins is learning to block like Old Man Duncan. He barely jumps, while he stops the ball in his hands, either recovering it or getting a jump ball.</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">Kawhi just doesn't get enough credit for how good he is because he's just so consistent. You almost don't notice him stopping the other team's best player on almost every play.</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">Sean called one of <span>Boris Diaw's</span> off target floaters a ‘stale croissant.'</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr"><span>Reggie Evans</span> is just a terrible shooter. After 12 years in the league, you would think he would have improved some.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h4 dir="ltr">BY THE NUMBERS</h4>
<ul>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">[Did the Spurs big 3 pass the Lakers big 3 this game? I'm pretty confused about this.]</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">Spurs shot 5-25 (20%) from 3.</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">The Spurs outscored the Kings in all 4 periods. "If you win every quarter, you will win the game."--<a href="https://www.orlandopinstripedpost.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Magic</a> Johnson</p>
</li>
<li dir="ltr">
<p dir="ltr">The Spurs have scored more than 100 points in almost 80% of their games this year. Last year, they only topped 100 points 63% of the time. The offense is so efficient this year that 99 points feels like a wretched failure.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h4 dir="ltr">THE GAME IN SONG</h4>
<p><iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/FzDmDqKMt58" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p dir="ltr"> </p>
<h4 dir="ltr">GOING FORWARD, THE SPURS NEED TO...</h4>
<p dir="ltr">"Play better," as Pop says. The Spurs were able to get past a sloppy Kings team with a sloppy effort of their own, but the Warriors are a much better team, and they won't be able to shoot 20% from the three point line and win in Oakland. It's a back-to-back game, so Pop is probably going to rest some players. Manu in the post game said he was going to try to convince Pop to let him play, but we all know who's going to win that battle. Honestly, I don't think that Pop likes really long winning streaks during the regular season, and he might just choose this game to end it.</p>
https://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5536686/morning-rehash-eye-of-the-beholderMark Barrington2014-03-22T09:12:49-05:002014-03-22T09:12:49-05:00Game Links: Spurs at Kings
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<figcaption>Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>It may not have been a pretty game, but the Spurs did their defense thing. The result? Their 12th straight win.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span><a href="http://popcornmachine.net/cgi-bin/gameflow.cgi?date=20140321&game=SASSAC">Game Flow</a><span> | </span><a href="http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/shotchart?gameId=400489903">Shot Chart</a></span></b></p>
<p>On <a href="http://www.sactownroyalty.com/2014/3/21/5535748/kings-spurs-final-score-marco-belinelli-demarcus-cousins-royce-white">SacTown Royalty’s recap</a>, two of the key differences were turnovers (<a href="https://www.sactownroyalty.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Kings</a> 15 / <a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Spurs</a> 9) and offensive rebounding (Kings 7 / Spurs 13). The Spurs "outscored the Kings 19 to 4 on second chance points."</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span><span>Comment Section of their Recap: A poster commenting on <span>Royce White</span>’s 56 seconds of playing time.</span></span></p>
<blockquote>
<p><b>I think we're all overlooking how good his defense was...</b></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 9.6pt; margin-left: 0in; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span>While White was on the floor… NO<span> </span><span class="caps"><span>ONE</span></span><span> </span><span class="caps"><span>SCORED</span></span>.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>by<span> </span><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/users/kfipp" target="_blank" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;">kfipp</a><span> </span></span></p>
</blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Matthew Tynan, <a href="http://www.48minutesofhell.com/el-conclusion-san-antonio-spurs-99-sacramento-kings-79">over at 48MOH</a>, handed out grades and it wasn’t pretty. The only two players to record an "A" were the foreign exchange students. Round of applause for Italy and Brazil.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Speaking of grades, <a href="http://www.sacbee.com/2014/03/21/6258540/kings-flunk-latest-test-against.html">Jason Jones over at the SacBee</a>, says that the Kings failed their latest test against the NBA’s best. The game was not looking good offensively, but the Spurs notched they latest win "</span><span>by holding the Kings to a season low in points."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Spurs coach <span>Gregg Popovich</span>. "A lot of physicality … We played pretty good (defense). We couldn’t throw it in the ocean but we played pretty good D and that got us in the game."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span><a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/standings">Standings</a> – The Spurs are still 1.5 games ahead of the <a href="https://www.welcometoloudcity.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Thunder</a>, and lead the league with the best record of 52-16. Notice that the Spurs are 26-8 on the road and 26-8 at home. How’s that for balance? </span>Also, notice that 2 teams have clinched playoff berths in the East, and no teams have done so in the West.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span><a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/news/spurs-beat-kings-99-79-043453198--nba.html">Coach Michael Malone</a> - ''If you had told me going into tonight's game that we hold the Spurs to 99 points, 38 percent from the field, and 20 percent from three-point, I would've said we were going to win the game,'' Kings coach <span>Michael Malone</span> said. ''They just keep at it for 48 minutes, and that's why I think that they are the favorite to win the NBA championship.''</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span><span>Manu Ginobili</span> - ''It was one of those games where we couldn't make a shot,'' Ginobili said. ''The good thing is that they couldn't, either.''</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Coach Gregg Popovich - </span><span>"It was an ugly game, wasn’t it".</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span><span>Tony Parker</span> - ''It's a great reminder that we can win with defense…It was not pretty. We were not shooting well. But sometimes you need to win those kind of games. We know in the playoffs, sometimes the ball doesn't go in.''</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>On <a href="http://projectspurs.com/2014-articles/inside-the-victory-spurs-99-kings-79-12-straight-wins.html">Project Spurs</a>, <span>Marco Belinelli</span> had some personal pasta facts: </span><span>"I can’t eat (pasta) during the season, or else I become really fat."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>In that same article, Paul Garcia compiled some nice stats:</span></p>
<blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; line-height: 17.4pt; background: white;"><b><span>Where San Antonio Stands</span></b></p>
<ul type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>Regular Season: 52-16 (Lead the NBA) </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>Road Record: 26-8 (Lead the NBA) </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>Vs. Opponents with -.500 records: 29-2 (Lead the NBA) </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>Vs. The Western Conference: 30-10 (Lead the Western Conference) </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>Post All-Star Break Record: 14-1 (Lead the NBA) </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>29 of the Spurs’ 52 wins have been by 10 or more points </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>The Spurs are 10-0 in the month of March. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>The Spurs are 21-0 when <span>Tiago Splitter</span> scores in double-figures. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>The Spurs are 13-0 when the team grabs 50 or more rebounds in a game.</span></li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 17.4pt; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><span>For those keeping track, it’s starting to look like the <a href="https://www.silverscreenandroll.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Lakers</a> have <a href="http://lakeshowlife.com/2014/03/22/gasol-next-year/?utm_source=FanSided&utm_medium=Network&utm_campaign=Around%20the%20Network">made up their mind</a>. Will the Spurs be interested and will the price be right for <span>Pau Gasol</span>?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Next Up: More California Dreaming, as the Spurs stay in Cali and take on the <a href="https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Golden State Warriors</a>. </span></p>
https://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5536222/game-links-spurs-at-kingsTrooperJoe732014-03-22T01:08:50-05:002014-03-22T01:08:50-05:00Recap: Spurs' 12th straight was ugly, beat Kings
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<p>The Spurs' 12th win in a row may have been one of the silliest NBA games seen in a while. Belinelli came in and cleaned up the mess in the fourth with 13 points in the quarter, leading San Antonio to a 99-79 victory.</p> <p>If you had been watching college basketball all day, with their terrible shot selections and lack of ball movement, and were looking forward to tuning into the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/">Spurs</a> game for some nice, well-executed professional basketball, then I'm sorry.</p>
<p>The 99-79 final score in the Spurs' win over the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.sactownroyalty.com/">Sacramento Kings</a> looks like just another dominating performance by the Silver and Black, but the score hides the fact that the majority of the contest was a slapstick comedy of a basketball game. At times, this game was a visual rendition Yakety Sax.</p>
<p>The Kings kept it close early, mostly by holding the Spurs to shooting 36% in the first quarter. San Antonio got to a 16-8 lead with six and a half minutes to go in the first quarter, but the Kings would score nine unanswered points to take the lead 17-16 with under four minutes to go. This would be the only lead the Kings had all game. The Spurs would regain the lead shortly after and finish the first leading 24-23.</p>
<p>The Kings continued to show some good defense against the Spurs, not allowing the usual penetration and open looks we are used to seeing. The Spurs found themselves taking contested shots deep into the shot clock. Despite the effort, the Spurs went out to a 32-24 lead with 10 minutes to go after a tough bank off the glass by <span>Marco Belinelli</span>. <span>Tim Duncan</span> was having a frustrating game and was getting called on some ticky-tack fouls in the second, which made him show some emotion we don't normally see. The Kings would pull within two points a few times, but the Spurs would finish off the half strong. They went into the locker room up 47-37.</p>
<p>The third quarter...oh man, the third quarter. The third quarter was something. It had been a chippy, low-scoring affair before half time, but I would not have believed you if you told me that was as pretty as it was going to get. Here is a game clock timeline of some of the "lowlights" of a quarter that may never be spoken of again:</p>
<p>11:06 - Kawhi block/grabs Cousins' shot in the air then takes it down the court himself ending in a missed layup. In an attempt to get the rebound, Splitter gets hit in the throat. The rebound goes to Duncan who gets fouled on the put-back miss. Duncan hits 1-of-2.</p>
<p>10:27 - <span>Tiago Splitter</span> dishes a nice behind-the-back pass to <span>Danny Green</span> under the basket, who misses an easy layup.</p>
<p>9:30 - Splitter tries to get past Cousins to score but gets his shot blocked and knocks it out of bounds trying to sell the foul. No call.</p>
<p>8:30 - Splitter gets tomahawk-blocked by <span>Rudy Gay</span> in the paint.</p>
<p>7:40 - <span>Tony Parker</span> drives the lane and gets clobbered by Cousins, who gets a piece of the ball. Parker assumes the fetal position for a few seconds. No call.</p>
<p>7:09 - Kawhi and <span>Reggie Evans</span> both take a hard fall as Kawhi was fighting through his screen on defense. Foul on Kawhi.</p>
<p>6:54 - Parker finds Duncan cutting to the basket off of a pick-and-roll. Duncan gets his shot swatted into the stands by Gay. Off the ensuing inbound, Duncan hits a bank shot, but gets called for a technical foul on the way to the other end of the court for saying...something.</p>
<p>6:10 - Gay spins as he drives the lane, and the ball flies out of his hand into the stands. Turnover.</p>
<p>5:11 - <span>Isaiah Thomas</span> tries to get past Parker, trips, falls, and knocks his own ball out of bounds as he drives the lane. Turnover.</p>
<p>4:57 - Kings' coach <span>Michael Malone</span> gets called for a technical foul for saying things to the official. Sean Elliot says, "When Tiago scored his 11th point, we should have just gone to the bus."</p>
<p>0:41 - Sean Elliot says, "This is one of the zaniest games I've seen." As Sean finishes his sentence, Isaiah Thomas drives and gets fouled in the head by Splitter who knocks Thomas' headband over his eyes. Thomas then frustratingly takes off his headband and throws it into the stands.</p>
<p>Please know that here were so many more slips, trips, bricks, falls, and fouls that were not listed. Again, all of this happened in the third. Somehow, the Spurs increased their lead throughout all of this and headed into the fourth up 69-57.</p>
<p>The fourth quarter was by far the best played quarter by both teams. Marco Belinelli had a lot to do with that. The Italian did most of his damage making off ball cuts and getting open. He truly is a master of off-ball movement. I also want to say that as we give Marco credit for finding ways to get open, we must also give the rest of the Spurs credit for having the awareness to find him in tight spots. Both are a treat to watch.</p>
<p>Belinelli had 13 fourth quarter points, and the Spurs finished off a rocky, weird game in Sacramento securing their 12th straight victory. With the win, they remain two games ahead of the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.welcometoloudcity.com/">Thunder</a> heading into Oakland tomorrow night.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>For the opponent's perspective, visit <a href="http://www.sactownroyalty.com/" target="_blank">Sactown Royalty</a>.</p>
https://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/22/5535790/recap-the-spurs-show-they-can-win-ugly-beat-the-kings-99-79Stephen Shepperd2014-03-21T23:47:50-05:002014-03-21T23:47:50-05:00Final Score: Spurs beat Kings, 99-79
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<p>It wasn't the prettiest game to watch. In fact, it was downright ugly for the most part. But the Spurs got their 12th win in a row on the first night of a back-to-back in Sacramento. The Spurs will look to extend it to 13 as they visit the Golden State Warriors tomorrow night. </p> <p><span>The offense wasn't quite what it's been for the past several games. The <a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Spurs</a> couldn't make a three for much of the game. I forget the actual number, but at one point the Spurs were like 1-of-14 from deep. <span>Kawhi Leonard</span> hit a triple from the wing in the first quarter, but besides that the boys were as cold as they've been in years. <span>Manu Ginobili</span> finished the game 0-for-6 from downtown. </span></p>
<p>It was a strange game, tightly contested for much of it, but the flow was awful. The refs upset both fanbases with a slew of <i>interesting </i>calls.</p>
<p>The Spurs were able to keep the <a href="https://www.sactownroyalty.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Kings</a> from scoring much, and they almost got to 100 points as they cruised to an easy win over the young Kings.</p>
<p>Hey, it's late March and the Spurs keep on winning. I think we would have liked to see them just destroy the Kings, but sometimes the ball just won't get in the hole. I mean, 20% from deep? That's an anomaly and the Spurs probably should have won this game by 30. 20 is not too shabby though. In fact, it's crazy the boys played as bad as they did and won by such a gaudy number. On to the next challenge in Oakland tomorrow night.</p>
<p>Your Spurs improve their league-leading record to 52-16. Go Spurs!</p>
<p>If anyone is interested, the Spurs have now covered eight of the last nine spreads Vegas has put out. The boys are not just winning, they're winning by more than the only expert's predictions i think are relevant. I mean, anyone can say something, but without skin in the game, you're just talking. Impressive stuff.</p>
<h4>Quick Notes:</h4>
<p> </p>
<ul>
<li><span><span>Marco Belinelli</span> led the way for the good guys with 17 points off of the bench. Five other Spurs scored in double figures as the team managed just 38.7% from the floor. Even worse, the team shot just 5-of-25 from beyond the arc. And they won by 20. Strange stuff. </span></li>
<li><span>The Kings shot 40% from the field, but they turned the ball over 15 times to the Spurs' nine. They also lost the rebounding battle by four and were bad from deep, where they hit 4-of-14. </span></li>
<li><span><span>Tim Duncan</span> could not get anything to drop for most of the game. He finished with 10 points and nine boards though. </span></li>
<li><span>Timmy also tallied six assists for the third straight game. The Spurs have not lost this season when he reached the six-assist mark. <span>Tiago Splitter</span> finished in <i>twin figures </i>with 11, moving the Spurs' mark to 21-0 when the big Brazilian scores 10 or more. </span></li>
</ul>
https://www.poundingtherock.com/2014/3/21/5535350/final-scoreChris Itz