The Spurs are making it a habit of winning tough games that come down to the wire. After taking down the Rockets on Friday, they were at risk of dropping a winnable game against the Pelicans on the second game of a back-to-back before De’Aaron Fox closed the night in style in his season debut to secure a 126-119 victory at home.
The danger of this matchup was that it could turn into a trap game if the Spurs, after a big win the day prior against Houston, didn’t come out with the appropriate fear.
A few sloppy possessions on offense in which Victor Wembanyama got too fancy caused some concerns, but the effort and hustle on defense eased them, at least temporarily. The other major subplot to follow early on was how De’Aaron Fox, suiting up for the first time this season, would fit with Stephon Castle. Initially, Fox took a backseat to the reigning Rookie of the Year, with good results. Both took and missed a lot of threes, but Castle logged seven first-quarter assists in part because he looked to push the pace off good defensive possessions. Despite not playing their best basketball, enough went right for San Antonio to lead by six after one.
In past games, whenever Victor Wembanyama struggled on offense like he did against the Pelicans for most of the first half, the Spurs were in trouble. Things were different this time because Fox was on the floor. The former All-Star took over in the second quarter, dropping 13 points and helping the Silver and Black carve up a big lead. Alas, the blowout that looked possible wasn’t meant to be. The smaller lineups Mitch Johnson used were a mixed bag, and giving minutes to Carter Bryant turned out to be a bad decision. The execution just wasn’t at its best, and once the visitors sharpened up and increased their physicality, a double-digit lead that reached 19 points at its apex largely disappeared. Enough threes fell and Wembanyama showed some good flashes on offense to prevent a bigger run, but the Spurs went into the break up just eight.
The ups and downs expected on a second game of a back-to-back in which a new player is inserted in the rotation continued in the second half. Castle was once again on the ball a lot while Fox waited for his touches, and this time it didn’t work as well as it did in the opening frame. Making matters worse, the defense lost some of its energy as some players looked tired and fouled excessively. The feisty Pelicans, winners of two in a row heading into this matchup, refused to go away and never looked defeated despite the Spurs often pushing the pace and getting easy buckets after getting stops or forcing turnovers. Wembanyama did great work on the defensive boards, but his offense wasn’t consistently there, and there was no big Fox-led run. New Orleans won the quarter by one and headed into the final frame down seven and looking dangerous.
Neither team could impose its will in the fourth. A good Keldon Johnson stretch was followed by some fantastic minutes from Trey Murphy III. Derik Queen was too big and skilled to handle for the small, Wemby-less lineups. The Spurs’ star center, meanwhile, had some good moments but couldn’t take over. The Pelicans got as close to three points and simply refused to go away when San Antonio responded, using a few standout performers to keep up with the Silver and Black’s balanced attack. The defining moment of the game was a strange one. Fox was not on the court in the final minutes, but Stephon Castle fouled out, forcing Mitch Johnson to send him back in. The star guard lived up to his reputation as a clutch performer, scoring a short jumper to put the home team up five with 29 seconds to go and then icing the game from the line to secure an ugly win.
Game notes
- De’Aaron Fox finished with 24 points in 14 shots to go with three assists and three rebounds. It was a fantastic first game of the season for a player who is still trying to find his place. After sharing the floor with Chris Paul last season, he now has to split ball-handling duties with Stephon Castle. To his credit, he seemed fine with playing off the ball and picking his moments. Having Fox back makes the Spurs a lot tougher to guard, and once they find the right balance, the Fox-Castle backcourt will be terrifying.
- As for Castle, he finished with 14 points and 14 assists, notching his second double-double in as many nights. Still, at times, he was too ball-dominant considering Fox was around, and his defense wasn’t as consistently good as it tends to be. He did let it fly when opponents played off of him, but missed all six of his three-point attempts. The stat line probably looks better than the performance actually was, but the young guard still had a good game.
- Everything is so much easier when the threes fall, as they did for the second consecutive game. Devin Vassell, Harrison Barnes, and Julian Champagnie, who came off the bench to make room for Fox, combined for nine makes in 17 tries from beyond the arc. The Spurs move the ball and find the open man. As long as the shooters keep sinking their open looks, the offense will have stretches when it hums.
- Keldon Johnson and Jeremy Sochan once again brought a level of physicality and energy that gave the Spurs an edge. Having those two check in off the bench and generally wreak havoc is such a luxury. Both players entered the season with some potential question marks about their future, but right now look like perfect rotation pieces despite their shortcomings.
- Victor Wembanyama, after struggling to keep the Rockets’ bigs off the glass, made a concerted effort to box out Kevon Looney, who is an elite offensive rebounder. He also scored 18 points, was amazing on defense and created looks for others, but we’ve seen him do that plenty of times. The focus on controlling the defensive board not with length but with early efforts, however, is not as common but is always welcomed.
Next game: at Chicago Bulls on Monday
Are the Bulls for real? The Spurs are about to find out. Chicago is 6-3 after a close loss to the contending Cavaliers. The Spurs will need to control the pace and own the paint to escape the Windy City with a win.
