In the playoffs, one play can chance the outlook of an entire series. For the San Antonio Spurs, that play was Victor Wembanyama smacking his face against the hardwood after tripping over Jrue Holiday. Wembanyama would play just 12 minutes in Game Two, and is now in concussion protocols, meaning he could miss more games.
The Spurs didn’t get blown away without Wembanyama. In fact, they built a 14-point fourth-quarter lead without him. However, a breakdown of late-game offense led to a 106-103 loss
to the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 2. With the series tied at 1-1, the Spurs will head to Portland looking to reclaim home court advantage. The margins without Wembanyama are slim. FanDuel has the Spurs as a -120 favorite in Game Three. The Spurs will need the supporting cast to play even better in Portland if they don’t want to go down 2-1.
It was a mixed bag from San Antonio’s supporting cast on Tuesday. They’ll be the main focus for Game Two’s player grades. As a quick reminder, these grades are based on each player’s on-court performance, going beyond just the stat sheet. A “B” grade represents the average performance for an individual. If a player logs fewer than 5 minutes or plays only in garbage time, their grade will be incomplete.
Victor Wembanyama
12 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 1-for-3 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, -7
Wembanyama has to be graded on his 12 minutes of play, and not the impact his injury had on the team. The Blazers were doing a lot to deny him from getting the ball in the first half. They sniffed out the Spurs usual flex screens and dribble handoffs to get him the ball. When Wembanyama is back, San Antonio needs to get creative with how they get him the ball. The Spurs desperately need him if they want to win this series.
Grade: B
De’Aaron Fox
34 minutes, 17 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 turnovers, 2 steals, 4 fouls, 6-for-16 shooting, 1-for-3 threes, -14
Fox looked good for the majority of the game. He disappeared late in the game when San Antonio needed him most. The Spurs insisted on spamming dribble handoffs at the top of the key with Fox and Vassell, which the Blazers obviously knew was coming. They jumped everything and blew up the action, causing the Spurs offense to completely break down. Part of the blame for the bad late-game offense is on the coaching staff for a lack of creative offensive sets, and the other part falls on the Spurs guards for failing to create separation like they had earlier in the game.
A large part of the offensive load now falls on Fox’s shoulders. He has proven in the past that he can rise to the occasion. Whether or not he can do it against Portland could decide the series.
Grade: B-
Stephon Castle
38 minutes, 18 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 turnovers, 2 steals, 1 block, 2 fouls, 7-for-20 shooting, 2-for-6 threes, –1
Castle missed some key shots late, including an air-balled mid-range jumper that would have tied the game. He still seems to be forcing it a bit offensively. Castle is at his best when he’s able to get downhill and either score with power around the rim or get fouled. He got to the free throw line five times in Game Two, but only converted two free throws. It’s become clear that Portland’s strategy for guarding him with a big is working, as it’s keeping him out of the paint fairly consistently. The Spurs have to find a counter.
He’s doing a lot of work defensively trying to stay in front of Deni Advija, and held him to just 14 points in Game Two. Without Wembanyama roaming the paint, his role on the defensive end becomes even more important.
Grade: B–
Julian Champagnie
27 minutes, 9 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 1 turnover, 5 fouls, 3-for-4 shooting, 2-for-3 threes, -14
Champagnie once again hit some big shots. He attacked the rim for a contested layup and hit some big threes. He was in foul trouble for most of the game, finishing with 5 fouls. Champagnie has bene playing decent defense, but the Blazers are definitely hunting him on that end. They brought him into the action late trying to attack him in the half court.
Grade: B
Devin Vassell
34 minutes, 16 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 6-for-16 shooting, 0-for-5 threes, -1
Vassell continues to be one of the Spurs’ best offensive players in the series. He maynnot have hit a three on Tuesday, but he is getting to his spots in the mid-range and hitting some tough shots. He was a major reason the team was able to build that big fourth-quarter lead. Vassell grabbed a ton of tough boards but missed the most important one, letting Jrue Holiday get around him for the go ahead put-back late in the game. Vassell was a few inches away from an A+ grade. His game-tying three-point attempt was oh-so-close to going down.
Grade: B
Dylan Harper
23 minutes, 10 points, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 2 fouls, 4-for-7 shooting, +4
Harper looked much more confident in Game Two. He and Scoot Henderson were going at each other all game long, and talking smack while doing it. He showed great poise knocking down paint jumpers over the top of the Blazers’ bigs. He still is making a few too many rookie mistakes, including an odd double dribble while switching hands on a floater late in the game. He’s going to have the Scoot assignment when he is in the game, and the Spurs need to pick up his defensive effort to slow him down.
Grade: B
Luke Kornet
28 minutes, 10 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 4-for-5 shooting, +11
Kornet now becomes a key player in this series. Without Wembanyama, he’s the Spurs’ only playable big man. He did exactly what San Antonio needed him to do on Tuesday. There wasn’t a huge drop-off when Wembanyama went out. In fact, the Spurs played better with Kornet on the floor. He stood his ground around the rim and was active on the glass, grabbing 5 offensive boards.
Strategically, Kornet’s starting changes a lot for Portland. They can’t just put a big man on Castle and have him sag into the paint, because Kornet will hurt him inside and on the offensive glass. The real question becomes what the Spurs do to back him up.
Grade: A
Harrison Barnes
15 minutes, 4 points, 1 rebound, 1-for-3 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, +13
Barnes also exited the game with an injury late. It’s been reported that he will be back for Game 3. The Spurs will need all of the big bodies they can get without Wembanyama. San Antonio looked more under control with Barnes in the game. He made some smart decisions, including following his own shot and getting fouled after an offensive board. Now the Spurs just need him to hit some outside shots.
Grade: B
Keldon Johnson
18 minutes, 7 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-for-7 shooting, 1-for-3 threes, +7
Johnson hasn’t made the same impact he did in the regular season. Where is the paint scoring we’ve seen all year? He’s getting to the rim, just struggling to finish. There seems to be a tentativeness from Johnson on both ends that didn’t exist earlier in the year. The Spurs need more aggression from KJ, especially now that they could be without their best offensive player.
Grade: C
Carter Bryant
12 minutes, 7 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 fouls, 3-for-5 shooting, 1-for-2 threes, -13
Bryant played well in his 12 minutes. His role is now crucial to the Spurs’ chances in this series. He is San Antonio’s de facto backup big man, since Mason Plumlee and Bismack Biyombo have not proven to be able to provide much value off the bench. Bryant spaces the floor and provides excellent energy as a small-ball 5. The problem is… he’s not a center. Especially not on a playoff team. Portland is going to go right at Bryant in small-ball lineups. It’s a tough position for Bryant to be in, but so far, he has risen to the challenge.
Grade: B+
Inactives: Harrison Ingram, David Jones-Garcia, Emanuel Miller
