One round has passed in the All-Time San Antonio Spurs 1-on-1 Tournament, and things are starting to get good. Last round we saw multiple blowout victories for favorites, and just two upsets: Devin Vassell over Artis Gilmore and Terry Cummings over Dejounte Murrary.
The official results, with voting percentages is in the bracket below:
We enter round two with some exciting matchups. Here is a reminder of the rules before we dig into the games:
- Each player is at the prime of their Spurs tenure. So someone like Kawhi Leonard or Dominique Wilkins would represent their peak season as a Spur, not the best of their career.
- Assume traditional 1-on-1 rules for the tournament. Half court, games to 11 straight up (ones and twos), no offensive rebounds, and checking the ball after a score. For this exercise, we’ll be alternating possessions, so no “make it, take it.”
- Single elimination tournament bracket. If a player loses, they are done.
Vote in the polls below for the winners of the Sweet 16
round.
Tim Duncan (1) vs. Derrick White (16)
Marilyn: And now I say goodbye to my favorite (active) former Spur, whom I would take back on the team in a heartbeat, but he stands no chance against the GOATPUFF. Sorry DW.
Jacob: Even as the number 1 seed, I think Duncan is a bit underrated in this tournament. I haven’t seen many comments picking him to win. This is another easy matchup, as I don’t think White can score much against Duncan, nor do I think he stands a chance against him on the block. Advantage Timmy.
Jesus: I’m trying to imagine a way for White to beat Duncan, and it’s not an easy task. The size mismatch is massive. Prime Duncan is arguably the best defender to never win DPoY. White is tough, but wouldn’t have a shot at defending Timmy in the post. With the perimeter guys, the hope is they get hot from three and their opponent misses, but Duncan was a killer. I just can’t see a way for White to advance.
J.R.: White is the guy I have to keep reminding myself that we’re not getting the current version of. Present-day, Celtics edition Derrick is a problem. Points from inside and outside. Defense all over the floor. Every little addition to his game is something I like to celebrate (even if it is taking place in the Leastern) because of how unknown he was when SA drafted him. All that said, even a completely upgraded, entirely bald, and fully operational D. White couldn’t hang with prime Timmy. It pains me to admit it, but we gotta say goodbye to him again. Duncan to the Elite Eight.
DeMar DeRozan (9) vs. LaMarcus Aldridge (8)
Marilyn: Interesting, two former teammates who both have very good midrange and post games. I consider DeRozan the slightly more reliable scorer of the two and certainly more agile, but that tiny advantage is all but mitigated his defense, which has always been subpar given his size, so I’m rolling with Aldridge and his bulkier frame for the win.
Jacob: This is a brutal matchup for both players. Aldridge doesn’t stand a chance against DeRozan on the perimeter, and DeMar will struggle to guard LaMarcus down low. In a 1-on-1 setting, I usually lean toward athleticism and creativity. Because of that, I lean DeRozan who wins the game on a poster dunk.
Jesus: These two would take turns going to the left midpost and taking jumpers from there. Neither was a great defender, but the big difference might be that Aldridge at least tried to guard smaller players while DeRozan didn’t bother to battle with bigger guys when hidden at power forward. It’s close, because DeMar could go on a scoring trance and take this, but I’m going with Aldridge.
J.R.: Who is going to get stops in this matchup? Aldridge can take DmDr inside, or use his fadeaway all day and never be bothered. But if LaMarcus refuses to come outside, DeRozan’s jumper isn’t good enough to rely on. So I’m going to give the edge here to the big man. Goodbye DeMar.
Manu Ginobili (5) vs. Larry Kenon (12)
Marilyn: I’m actually having a crisis of conscience right now. Although they played in different eras, and Kenon did not shoot threes at all, inside the arc he’s basically Manu but three inches taller and the more gifted scorer of the two. Manu’s main advantage is he may have been slightly more agile at his peak, and of course he can shoot threes. In a poll like this, I would probably go with my heart and click Manu, but if I had money at stake, I just might have to listen to my brain and go for the upset…
Jacob: Oof. This has upset written all over it. Kenon is bigger, faster, stronger than Manu. But this is about the players at the peak of their powers. Maybe in today’s game, Kenon is shooting threes and crossing dudes over for poster dunks. The game has advanced a lot, and Manu’s influence is all over today’s game with his creativity. I like Manu to find a way to overcome his deficiencies in this one.
Jesus: This one is tough. Kenon has the size, athleticism, and scoring acumen to take this. It’s just hard to count Manu out because he used to always find a way. How many fouls did he draw by being physical against bigger guys? How many steals and clutch buckets? On paper, Kenon should win. But if anyone defied the odds through his competitiveness, that’s Manu so I’ll give him the tiniest of edges.
J.R.: Not a great matchup for El Contusion, but this is peak Manu we’re talking about. A player equal parts moxie, guts, inventiveness and unpredictability. Given the weapon of his step-back three-pointer, his Eurostep, his wily defense that frustrated many an offensive threat, I don’t think it’s playing favorites to take Ginobili over Kenon. Well, maybe it is a little bit, but I’m going to give myself permission to indulge here.
Kawhi Leonard (4) vs. Mike Mitchell (13)
Marilyn: Painful as it is to say, especially with more alleged shenanigans by him and Uncle Dennis coming to light, you just can’t ignore peak Kawhi in San Antonio. Mitchell played the same position and was a similarly good scorer, but he would still have trouble getting around the 2x DPOY and his massive wingspan.
Jacob: Kawhi uses his anger for Pablo Torre as motivation and doesn’t allow Mitchell to score. 11-0 skunk.
Jesus: Mitchell was a fantastic scorer who could give everyone in this bracket trouble, so it’s unfortunate he ran into Kawhi this early. Leonard’s two-way play gives him a chance to win the whole thing and should get him past Mitchell here.
J.R.: I love Mitchell’s game and his competitiveness. He had spots all over the floor, and could even get up to block shots at the rim on occasion. But this is Kawhi he’s going against, a guy who could challenge Mike’s high release, and terrorize him when he puts it on the floor. It won’t be a cake walk, but Leonard wins.
George Gervin (3) vs. Devin Vassell (19)
Marilyn: Nice upset for Vassell in round one, he can’t stop or outscore the Iceman one-on-one. Next.
Jacob: This is one of those games where Vassell keeps up for awhile, but Gervin kicks into another gear that we haven’t seen Vassell reach. It’ll be closer than some give it credit for, but Gervin should win this.
Jesus: How is Devin Vassell supposed to stop one of the best scorers ever? This one shouldn’t be close.
J.R.: I’d love to see prime Bowen try to stop Gervin, not because I think he’d be able to but because it would be fun to see what Bruce forced George to come up with in order to score — which he absolutely would. And if Bruce himself couldn’t contain Ice, what is Devin going to do? I’ve got Gervin here and it ain’t pretty.
Tony Parker (6) vs. Sean Elliott (11)
Marilyn: Now we get a matchup featuring two massively different players. Sean was both an exceptional athlete and gifted scorer with more range than Tony, although even he would admit he probably couldn’t stop Tony on the drive. That being said, does it matter? What’s stopping Sean from just posting up time and again, and could Tony actually stop a good player 6in taller than him enough to outscore him? It’s another crisis of conscience!
Jacob: I am high on Parker in this tournament. This is a really tough matchup for him. Elliott is bigger and has the versatility to stick with TP defensively. I’m going with my gut here, though. Parker is a Hall of Famer for a reason. He’s found ways to overcome disadvantages throughout his career. Give me TP even in a mismatch.
Jesus: The matchups get more interesting as we go on. Eliott vs. Parker would be an amazing offensive battle to witness. Parker had a deeper bag but Elliot could just shoot over Tony. TP could try to crowd Sean to bother the shot while forcing him to put the ball on the floor, but Sean could overwhelm him physically on drives. Despite the size advantage, Elliott would really struggle to bother Parker, who was a master at getting to his spots. It would be close, but I have to go with Elliot, with his versatility giving him an edge. Sorry, Tony.
J.R.: It’s true that Sean can spot up against Parker, or back him down in the post. It’s true that Sean’s better from deep and has the size advantage. But Prime Tony is scoring every time he touches the ball against Elliott without fail. Remind yourself just how lightning fast Parker was, and how automatic his teardrop was. Recall the unstoppableness of his dribble left into an elbow jumper. I’m not saying there’s much room for error, but Tony only needs to force one stop. I think he does it.
Victor Wembanyama (7) vs. James Silas (10)
Marilyn: I’m just going to go ahead and say it: there are probably only two, maybe three players on here who can stop Wemby one-on-one, and until one of those match-ups more than likely comes next week (and what a matchup it will be), he has my vote.
Jacob: Imagine dropping a player with Wembanyama’s skill set into the era when Silas played. They wouldn’t know what to do. Wemby by a lot.
Jesus: Just like Mitchell, Silas could have potentially represented the old guard in the third round if he had gotten a more favorable matchup. Alas, he faces the alien, so Captain Late’s run stops here.
J.R.: Wemby for the win. Next matchup.
David Robinson (2) vs. Terry Cummings (18)
Marilyn: Did I mention there was just a few players who could stop Wemby one-on-one? Well, the freak of nature that was The Admiral is one of them, and of course he’s easing by in this warmup round.
Jacob: Probably the most lop-sided contest of the second round. I’m going Robinson.
Jesus: Thanks for playing, Terry Cummings, but everyone is already looking forward to the next round battle of the giants.
J.R.: Cummings is going to get his because he’s a legit scorer, but I have no delusions about David prevailing — and it’s not particularly close.
