Spurs wake up, pull away from Kings for 107-96 win
SACRAMENTO — (Damn right there’s a dateline. I was there) The San Antonio Spurs did something they hadn’t done in more than in more than two weeks… they won a basketball game, taking control in the fourth quarter to pick up the 107-96 win over the Sacramento Kings. Even better than the double digit win, they looked a little bit like the Spurs we’ve been wanting to see.
The start of the game looked similar to the previous four. San Antonio started slow and Sacramento really didn’t feel like missing a shot. The difference was the Spurs actually played decent defensively, the Kings just made a ton of contested long 2-pointers. The Spurs got good looks, but as we’ve seen a lot lately, those shots just weren’t falling. The Spurs defense picked up in the second quarter, holding Sacramento to just 20 points. The defense didn’t hold in the third quarter, but their offense really picked up too. It wasn’t a great third quarter, but it wasn’t the absolute disaster it had been. And if we’re asking things to incrementally get better, this was a good first step.
The Spurs outscored the Kings in the fourth quarter thanks to the reemergence of Tony Parker. Parker was pretty quiet the first three quarters, attempting just nine shots and making three of them. He had six attempts in the fourth quarter alone and was aggressive in trying to get to the hole. He felt confident in his jumper too. It was the best he’s looked since the Clippers game and as Matthew Tynan put it in El Conclusion, this wasn’t just one of those games where Parker starts hot and fades late, it was the opposite of that.
The other big positive from Friday night’s game was Kawhi Leonard. It just didn’t feel like he forced much. His points came in a variety of ways. 3-pointers, fast breaks, mid-range post moves. It was all going. He didn’t force himself to drive into multiple defenders, though that did happen once or twice. Watching it live, this looked more like the team we’re used to seeing. Even in the first half when things weren’t awesome, it wasn’t because of a stunted offense, it was just because of some missed open looks. We always figured these things would average out and in the second half they did. It was a good win with one big caveat. No DeMarcus Cousins. Maybe the Kings new offense under head coach George Karl moved more freely without Cousins in the line up. It seemed to open things up for Ray McCallum and Ben McLemore, but that’s instant offense that was missing from the line up. But at this rate, who cares. They needed the win and it really didn’t matter who it came against.
Next up they Spurs finish off the Rodeo Road Trip in Phoenix Saturday night. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. central time.
