The San Antonio Spurs were handed their first loss in ten games by the Denver Nuggets. San Antonio looked stout against the former champions for most of the game, until costly mistakes down the stretch led to a 136-134 loss.
The clash between two of the league’s best players, Victor Wembanyama and Nikola Jokic, made this a must-watch game. On a day with two Final Four games, it was the Spurs and Nuggets who put on the best basketball display. Both Wembanyama and Jokic put up monster stat lines, going
at each other all game long. Jokic got tough shots to go over Wembanyama on his way to 40 points, 8 rebounds, and 13 assists. Wembanyama fought through double-teams and physicality to give the Spurs an edge, despite ultimately failing to leave Denver with the win.
It was a preview of what could be ahead for both teams. Denver will either need to secure the third seed or defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder to face San Antonio in the playoffs. The Nuggets are +210 to make the Western Conference Finals, and the Spurs are -170 on FanDuel.
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
40 minutes, 34 points, 18 rebounds, 7 assists, 5 blocks, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 8-for-17 shooting, 2-for-6 threes +4
Wembanyama put up big stats and was a few inches away from hitting a game-winner at the end of regulation. If it weren’t for Wemby, the Spurs would not have been in the game. However, he made some mistakes late in the game that held the team back. He miscommunicated a switch with Julian Champagnie at the end of regulation, leading to a wide-open Aaron Gordon dunk. He made a similar error on the dagger floater from Jokic in overtime.
Offensively, it’s hard to blame much of the loss on Wembanyama. San Antonio’s late-game offense would likely be better if he got better looks than fadeaways off elbow isolation plays. He’s facing two to three defenders every time he touches the ball in the clutch. But critical defensive errors late in the game cost the team the victory. It’s a good lesson for him to learn in the long run, and he had a really good game overall. He’s deserving of an A grade.
Grade: A-
Stephon Castle
40 minutes, 20 points, 5 rebounds, 9 assists, 4 turnovers, 6 fouls, 9-for-17 shooting, 0-for-4 threes, -10
Castle thrived offensively for most of the game. If one of his spot-up three-pointers falls, as they have been since the All-Star break, the result may have been different. He was incredibly active defensively, chasing Jamaal Murray around on the perimeter. He’s still struggling with turnovers, and when the jumper isn’t falling, teams don’t respect him from deep. The Nuggets actively played off him in clutch time on Saturday.
It would be nice to see Castle more involved in the offense late in the game. Can you trust him in the pick-and-roll late, given his turnover issues? Will teams just sag off him in actions, daring him to shoot? Maybe. But he’s been one of the team’s best offensive players all season. He should have some sets run for him late in games.
Grade: B
De’Aaron Fox
40 minutes, 14 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, 4 fouls, 7-for-19 shooting, 1-for-4 threes, +7
Oof. Okay, here we go. Fox was not very good on Saturday, particularly at the end of the game. The two moments everyone will point to are the airball against Gordon late in the game and the botched lob into the missed five-footer. Gordon is a stout defender, and it’s tough to get a good look against him. I’m willing to give him a pass there. The lob looked to be a bit late, but Vassell deserves some blame there (more on that later). Missing the bunny immediately after is a tough break.
Fox’s role on the team is to be a secondary scorer and a steadying hand in the clutch. He has done that for most of the season. He did not do that against Denver. He didn’t hit shots, wasn’t effective defensively, and was even off handling the ball. They need Fox to be better in the playoffs if they want to make a deep run.
Grade: C–
Dylan Harper
20 minutes, 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, 5-for-7 shooting, 2-for-3 threes, -1
Harper was solid off the bench. He gave the Spurs a bit of a scoring punch off the bench, but not as much as he typically does. His heave three at the end of the game pumps his stats a bit. He made rookie mistakes, too, like shooting a three over Jokic rather than driving on him later in the game. He continues to struggle with guarding physically on the perimeter without fouling. There are some things to clean up here, but this was a pretty standard game for a rookie in a high-leverage situation.
Grade: B
Julian Champagnie
33 minutes, 18 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 foul, 6-for-12 shooting, 6-for-9 threes, +2
The Spurs hit shots against Denver. Champagnie was a major part of that. He hit big-time threes when left open, including one to take the lead in overtime. He, of course, was a part of the defensive mistake alongside Wembanyama that led to the game-tying dunk. Ultimately, Champagnie’s job is to hit open shots, and he did that on Saturday. San Antonio will need more of that come playoff time.
Grade: B+
Luke Kornet
13 minutes, 0 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 foul, 0-for-1 shooting, -6
It was a fairly quiet game for Kornet. The Spurs needed Wembanyama in the game for long stretches to match up with Jokic. That meant a lot of Kornet on the bench. When he was in the game, he struggled. He got scored on inside and wasn’t an offensive difference maker. With Jokic playing so well, maybe a French Vanilla lineup would have given the Spurs two big bodies to throw at him. Perhaps Mitch Johnson is saving that look for the playoffs.
Grade: C
Devin Vassell
39 minutes, 18 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 6-for-14 shooting, 3-for-8 threes, -10
Vassell hit shots against Denver, but was also involved in one of the toughest plays of the game. If he catches and finishes the lob from Fox, even if it wasn’t a perfect pass, the Spurs probably win the game. All things considered, he did about all you can ask from a role player in a high-stakes game, but that one mistake stands out.
Grade: B
Harrison Barnes
17 minutes, 8 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3-for-4 shooting, 2-for-3 threes, +2
Barnes also hit shots when the Spurs needed him to. He was frustrating to watch defensively. The Nuggets spammed corner threes when Barnes was in the game. It felt like he was slow to close out to the corner all game long.
Grade: B
Keldon Johnson
17 minutes, 10 points, 2 rebounds, 2 fouls, 3-for-10 shooting, 0-for-6 threes, -3
Johnson was given a tough task on Saturday. He was the primary Jokic defender when Wembanyama was used as a defensive roamer. Jokic abused that matchup, as he should. Offensively, the Spurs really could have used a three or two from KJ. He missed some wide-open looks against Denver. Overall, it was an off game for Johnson.
Grade: C
Carter Bryant
5 minutes, 0 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 foul, +5
Bryant played fairly well in his limited minutes. He played sound defense and didn’t make any major errors offensively. It’s hard to make much of an impact in five minutes, though.
Grade: B
Monday’s Inactives: Harrison Ingram, David Jones-Garcia, Emanuel Miller
