The Spurs suffered one of their worst losses of the season. Their thrilling comeback attempt shouldn’t eclipse the fact that they once again seemed to underestimate a less talented team that was a lot hungrier than they were. The Pelicans played with physicality, and their reward was a 104-95 gutsy road win that should have been impossible to pull off without San Antonio’s complicity.
It was an encouraging start for the Silver and Black. They seemed to have a sound defensive gameplan to defend Derik
Queen by putting Stephon Castle on the playmaking big man, and they were executing well on offense on two-man actions with Victor Wembanyama and Castle, mostly because De’Aaron Fox was hitting his corner threes. The Spurs pushed the ball whenever they could and got Devin Vassell back off the bench to bolster their offense. Unfortunately, they just couldn’t get separation when they were at their best, and the second unit struggled mightily on defense. The Pelicans felt much more comfortable attacking Luke Kornet, who played a deep drop and didn’t have much help from the main defenders in pick-and-rolls. Through mostly hustle on defense and the offensive boards, New Orleans managed to only trail by three after one.
San Antonio’s offense looked stagnant at times in the opening frame, but things fell completely apart in the second. They didn’t score a single fastbreak point and had to go up against a surprisingly disciplined Pelicans half-court defense that didn’t give up many good looks. Had the Spurs managed to make it a defensive battle, they could have stayed in front or within a couple of possessions, but they had no answers for Zion Williamson, who scored 10 points and dished out three assists in the quarter, taking defenders off the dribble and challenging Wembanyama inside as a roll man. The offensive boards kept going New Orleans’ way and the Silver and Black couldn’t match the energy of their opponent. There was a sense of frustration that resulted in Fox getting a technical at the end of the half, which finished with the visitors up nine.
The Pelicans missed the technical free throw after the break, but it didn’t take long for them to reach a double-digit lead in spite of it. It was a completely disastrous start to the half for the Spurs, which played with little physicality and urgency and made inexplicable mistakes on both ends. Mitch Johnson sat his entire starting lineup arguably a timeout too late, and San Antonio found some life, especially through the play of their two rookies. With Williamson resting and the momentum on their side, the Silver and Black chipped away at a lead that had reached 20 at one point and seemed insurmountable given the way the team was playing. Several names stepped up to get the team back in it by using their opponent’s recipe: just play harder. Heading into the final frame, New Orleans was still up 14, but there was hope of a comeback.
The problem with digging yourself a hole and trying to climb out of it is that it drains the energy needed to fight once you get back up. The Spurs played with inspiring physicality and intensity for long enough to not only catch the Pelicans but take the lead. Then they just ran out of juice. Some questionable coaching decisions didn’t help, but it’s likely San Antonio reverted to relying on threes instead of pushing the pace and attacking the rim at every opportunity because the ones that made the comeback attempt possible were exhausted, and the ones who sat during it were out of rhythm. New Orleans deserves all the credit for always continuing to play, relying on hustle and aggressiveness when the execution wasn’t there, and for pulling off a completely deserved win against an opponent that likely didn’t take them seriously, but hopefully learned its lesson.
Game notes
- Is this loss the end of the world for the Spurs? A reason to panic? It depends on how you see them. If they are a young team overachieving during a developmental year, it’s not a big deal. If you think they are a dark-horse contender, the trend of being outhustled by physical teams and the questionable coaching decisions are definitely concerning. Choose your own adventure.
- Victor Wembanyama had 16 points, 16 rebounds, and four blocks. The three wasn’t there, plus he missed several free throws, so the offense is nothing to worry about. While he had amazing plays on defense, he was late on rotations, especially in the fourth, and looked a step too slow. It’s probably a lack of familiarity with the scheme, combined with having to cover too much ground, but Wemby has looked mortal on defense at times lately.
- Devin Vassell’s return was a bright spot. He looked understandably rusty at times, but he hit some shots and was up to the challenge to play against a physical team. He also learned the lesson. “You don’t want to be a team that’s looked at as being soft,” he said postgame.
- It’s incredibly tempting to put the loss on Stephon Castle. The team went on a run with him on the bench and crumbled with him on the floor, especially on offense, in the second half. But why was he out there to close when Harper and Fox had both been better on that end? It likely wouldn’t have made a difference, but Mitch Johnson should probably gone with the guys that got the game close in the first place to try to get the win.
- We recently discussed whether Carter Bryant should continue to get playing time with Vassell back. He earned his eight minutes on Sunday by knocking down shots and playing fearlessly. He should be someone the coaching staff always looks to throw on the floor when the team lacks energy.
- The Spurs missed 32 of their 44 three-point attempts and 13 of their 32 free throws. Had they hit shots, especially the timely ones, they might have stolen the win despite being outscored by 24 in the paint and allowing 26 second-chance points off 19 Pelicans offensive rebounds.
Play of the game
A fan won $10,000 by making a half-court three off the shot clock, so it wasn’t all bad on Sunday.
Next game: at Houston Rockets on Wednesday
The Spurs will have time to marinate in this loss before heading to Houston to face a direct rival for seeding.
