Wolves Beat San Antonio Spurs 106-92, Despite Poor Offensive Showing
The Wolves won a sloppy game against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday night 106-92. The defense continued to lead the way, holding their opponent to 92 or less for the 5th time in the last 6 games.
On the offensive end, the Wolves shot a paltry 40% from the field, but only committed 12 turnovers. Victor Wembanyama was a defensive force for the Spurs, blocking 7 shots and altering another half-dozen at least. Anthony Edwards led the way with 26 points on 10-21 shooting, but Nickeil Alexander-Walker was the real key, tying his second-highest scoring output this season with 17. Jaden McDaniels added 12 points and 11 rebounds for his first career double-double (Yes, it is his 5th season in the NBA, yes, he is 6’9” with a 7-foot wingspan, and yes, that was only the second time he has recorded double-digit rebounds.)
What We Learned:
Wolves defensive identify from last year appears to be (knock on wood) back. It seemed inexplicable that the defense would be so significantly worse than last year after the KAT trade yielded comparable or better defenders. Alas, it was until this recent stretch of games. Look to see if the Wolves can continue to keep teams below 100–this recent stretch of opponents have not been among the league’s powerhouses.
Although for many teams (I’m thinking of the Dallas Mavericks, in particular) the alley-oop to the center is a given for a few easy scores a game, that has not been the case with Rudy Gobert. His poor hands and coordination have made it so few teammates even look to get him the ball—Mike Conley, Donte DiVincenzo, Robb Dillingham, and Julius Randle are the only ones who consistently do so—and even these attempts seem difficult. Gobert missed a number of easy dunks and layups last night, but he was also a part of a key run that put the game away for good. With the Wolves lead dwindling to 8 points early in the 4th quarter, Gobert and DiVincenzo got on the same page for an alley-pop. The next time down the floor, DiVincenzo threw a pretty pocket pass to a rolling Gobert for another dunk.
Wolves can weather off nights from Randle (11 points) and Reid (3), but only when group there is plenty of contribution from others. in this game, the top scorers got plenty of help from NAW with 17, McDaniels 12, Gobert 10, Conley 9, and DiVincenzo with 7. NAW continues to pick his spots perfectly and is a real spark off the bench.
While the offense catches up, holding teams under 92 and not turning the ball over (only 12 last night) is an effective remedy.
DiVincenzo dropped to 31.9% from three on the season after going 1-5. You have to think that Coach Finch understands he might be able to get more from Dillingham at this point, but he isnt’t willing to give up on DiVincenzo. Given how early in the season it is, and how good DiVincenzo was last year, I’m inclined to give DiVincenzo a little more time. It is unfortunate that Dillingham will struggle to see the floor when DiVincenzo plays. We saw Dillingham and Conley share the floor for a few minutes last night…will we see more of that?