点击查看原文：Why San Antonio's Cup is more than half full
Why San Antonio’s Cup is more than half full
Columnist Mike Finger, Spurs beat reporter Jeff McDonald discuss the play of Devin Vassell the last three games, the Spurs qualifying for the NBA Cup quarterfinals and when we can expect to see Victor Wembanyama back on the court.
Suggested reading:
Why the road-weary Spurs feel like the rodeo trip has come early
How Devin Vassell became the Spurs’ new Captain Clutch
How the Spurs feel about winning the Group of Death
Why the Spurs are glad to have their $226-million man
Here is the transcript of the podcast:
Mike Finger: [music fades in] From a highly secure network of top secret locations across South Texas, this is the Spurs Insider, Road Warrior edition. I am Mike Finger, joined as always by Express News Spurs beat writer Jeff McDonald and sports editor Nick Talbott.
Jeff is coming back for a cup of coffee in San Antonio, a cup of green tea, after spending a week on the road. He’s about to head back on the road just like the local cagers, who had quite a road trip, Jeff McDonald. Four games gone, underdogs in all four, and and stole two of them and stayed alive in the NBA Cup. Where do you want to start?
Jeff McDonald: Man, that’s a lot. That’s a lot. I think going into that road trip without Victor Wembanyama and Stefan Castle and knowing some of the teams they were facing, you know, it’s a four game trip and I don’t know that if we predicted that trip, but two and two sounds okay.
I understand if Spurs fans want to feel like they left something on the table or as as JJ Redick said, left some pizza in the box, because they they had chances to win at Phoenix and they had chances to win at, where was I last night? Minnesota. So, you know, they were in control of both of those games for like three quarters and then ended up kind of losing going on away. But overall, you got to think it’s a good trip. That win that win in Denver was something else we didn’t see coming. I think I might have if people want to go back and listen to last week’s podcast, I might have called that that game in Denver unwinnable.
Mike Finger: Yeah.
Jeff McDonald: And I was proven incorrect because they won it. Um, kept, like you said, stayed alive in the live in the NBA Cup, advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time in the Spurs Cup history. Um, so I guess you’ve got to be satisfied with with what they’ve been able to accomplish, but man, they need to start getting some of these, some of these, well, Victor and Stefan back. They did get Dylan back on that trip. That’s another thing that happened on it. But they really need their two big guns back to keep this going because it’s going to catch up with them eventually.
Mike Finger: I mean it’s there’s recency bias. The last game the Spurs played was in Minnesota when they did let a fourth quarter lead slip away, but I mean, and I don’t want to be this homer defending the local cagers, but when you go on a road trip like that without the last two rookies of the year playing in zero of those games and you win two of them, including at Denver, um, like how could how can you be upset? That that is exceeding expectations. Um, I can’t get too upset over letting a couple slip away down the stretch when you don’t have your guys. And I know nobody has their guys anymore. Everybody’s hurt in the NBA, but I mean that’s a that’s a successful trip.
And uh, you know, I I guess we could start with the status of Stefan Castle and Victor Wembanyama. They’ve both been out for a couple weeks. We’re at the point when they’re supposed to be re-evaluated. They are on the court doing on court stuff, but they are, we’re recording this before the Memphis game on Tuesday night, they’re not going to play in that game. Uh, you you tend to believe that Stefan is a little further ahead of Victor in his in his uh rehab.
Jeff McDonald: Yes, it’s just a different different injury and a different type of injury. And I understand people are really itchy to get Victor back on the floor. Fans, I mean, the coaches too, the team, everybody is. And I understand people that are like, you know, Dylan Dylan’s was worse and he was out 24 days, so shouldn’t shouldn’t Victor be back sooner than 24 days? And like maybe, but from being around the team the last week and just kind of having informal conversations with people, I don’t I don’t I don’t know that that Victor, I’m trying to think how to say it. Okay, here’s how I would here’s how I would say it because this is how I kind of put it out there yesterday.
If you’re asking me if Victor Wembanyama is going to be available for that NBA Cup week, so that’s not this week, but the week after, I believe, um…
Mike Finger: Seven days from Wednesday.
Jeff McDonald: And I have to bet my house on him being available for the NBA Cup. Um, I think it’s possible that he is available for the NBA Cup, but if I have to bet my house, I’m betting against that.
Mike Finger: Um, but… You shouldn’t bet your house.
Jeff McDonald: If you’re… Kids live there. Well, yeah, yeah. Well… Some, yeah. Um, they come with… You’re saying that’s a that’s a reason to bet your house. They they come with the house, everybody, by the way, if if I lose. Um, now if you’re asking me in like another another big tent pole date of the of December is if you’re asking if if Victor Wembanyama will be ready for Christmas, will he be back on the floor by Christmas? And the answer to that is absolutely. Like barring some kind of setback, it’s probably a stone, not probably, sorry, it is a stone cold lock that he is back by Christmas.
So I think the best bet is somewhere in between the NBA Cup and and the Christmas Day game, you start to see Victor come back. And they’ve got, um, depending on how long they play in that cup, you know, they’ve got they’ve got a couple home games in there, I think. Well no, they could have a couple home games in there. They have at least one scheduled now against Washington. They’ve got a road trip to Atlanta, Washington, and then a home game against OKC before they go to OKC for Christmas. I think somewhere in that area, if I’m having to like play, it’s like a, you know, a roulette wheel or something, you have to place your chips on what what, what date you think he’s going to come back.
Mike Finger: Why is there all this gambling on this podcast? I’m going to not endorse that.
Jeff McDonald: I, yes, sure. Um, I think it’s somewhere in that area between the cup and and, um, Christmas day. I’m not saying he’s absolutely out for the cup. I I think it’s possible. I think from, you know, my semi-informed impressions, but I I don’t think it’s probable that he’s back from then because they’re just trying to make sure he is 100% and not going to reinjure it. And the the thing is you can’t really know that, right? I don’t think I you can’t ever be 100% sure he’s not going to come back too soon. So they’re I guess they’re trying to err on the side of of extreme caution there. And it’s just…
Mike Finger: Can you name the um, can you name the the the previous champions of the NBA Cup?
Jeff McDonald: Uh, the Lakers won one year.
Mike Finger: Mm-hmm.
Jeff McDonald: I can’t remember. Was that the first one?
Mike Finger: Yeah, I believe so. Indiana.
Jeff McDonald: They won last year. Here’s the thing. When the team I’m covering is not in it, I don’t pay that much attention to it.
Mike Finger: Well, the the point is that, um, I mean, Milwaukee won one year, didn’t didn’t they? The the point is that, uh, the the NBA Cup has not worked out well for the teams that have won it. Um, like in the long term, and to put, it’s a fun thing, it’s, uh, I think been better than I thought it was going to be in terms of fan interest and just giving us something to write and podcast about early in the season, but placing any more importance on those cup games when you’re talking about bringing somebody back from an injury than you would over any other games in December, I think is a mistake and that’s how the Spurs are looking at it. Like if I I don’t think there’s any extra urgency and I I think you’d agree to get players back for games just because they’re cup games as opposed to regular December games.
Jeff McDonald: Here’s another hypothetical that will never happen, but it’s just interesting to think about. Assume the Spurs do get to the NBA Cup finals. Like the championship game. That doesn’t even count in the standings. Like that doesn’t even help you get to the playoffs. So if your goal is, it’s almost like you would sit guys in those games if you needed to. You know?
Mike Finger: Well…
Jeff McDonald: I mean…
Mike Finger: The reason you wouldn’t is because I think Keldon Johnson explained to you why you wouldn’t.
Jeff McDonald: Yes. Yes. That’s what I was, that that that creates a little bit of a hornet’s nest because what if it like again, we’re just being hypothetical here. What if it really is super in Victor Wembanyama’s best interest not to play in the NBA Cup championship game for whatever reason? And you you you you hold him out, but now you might be costing everybody else on the team $500,000.
Mike Finger: I was not on this trip with you, but, um, from from what I gather, uh, and I can only imagine knowing how, uh, how Keldon tends to, uh, to to wax eloquently in in locker rooms, what what Keldon might have said about his, uh, his potential $500,000.
Jeff McDonald: I’ll see I’ll see the best I can do without like betraying confidences and stuff, but the conversation kind of started by his locker. De’Aaron was there, and De’Aaron was talking about how, uh, it was it was after the Denver game after they had qualified, and De’Aaron was talking about how it’s, you know, if they keep winning in this cup stuff, the NBA is going to have to adjust the Spurs schedule. They’re going to have to move that Washington home game back a day to accommodate the NBA. If they get the Spurs went all the way to the cup finals, that home game against Washington has to move be moved back a day to accommodate the Spurs and the cup finals, which creates a back-to-back on going the other way with a to Atlanta. And Keldon said in here, you know, I’m going to leave out the profanities, but he says, man, I don’t care. For $500,000, I’ll play a back-to-back to back-to-back to back. I don’t care. I’ll do anything for $500,000. I’ll run through a wall for $500,000. And then that begat the, what he’s going to do with the $500,000.
Mike Finger: Buy a lot of chickens and goats.
Jeff McDonald: Well, it was actually very altruistic. He says he’s going to buy a very nice car for David Jones Garcia.
Mike Finger: Ah.
Jeff McDonald: Who who also does not drive. He doesn’t have a driver’s license. So he’d have to buy a driver as well, a chauffeur. And so then Keldon was talking about he’d be the only guy in the NBA that goes from Uber to a Lamborghini.
Mike Finger: That’s pretty good. That’s what’s… that kind of hilarity is what is on the line, uh, you know, with this NBA cup stuff.
Mike Finger: The um, what what the heck happened in Denver? I think that’d be a fun game to to rehash on this podcast if we’re trying to be positive.
Jeff McDonald: Uh, Devin Vassell went crazy. You had a really nice…
Mike Finger: I’m gonna extend my streak of Jeff McDonald compliments on this podcast. It’s freaking the listenership out. But uh, a nice little mini retrospective on the, uh, sort of coming of age of Devin Vassell, man who’s been here for since the 2020 draft, uh, has had his ups and downs, his different roles and is becoming, I believe what Mitch Johnson called a winning player.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, you know, he was when he was drafted, and there was a whole line of these guys for a while, a whole succession of them. But when he was drafted in 2020, at the time, he was the Spurs’ highest drafted rookie since Tim Duncan. And you know, obviously being drafted number 11 overall is not the same as being drafted number one overall, but when when you’re tabbed that way, when you’re kind of presented that way, creates a certain sort of expectations. And he was coming into a team, you know, they were in the lottery. They were not a very good team. And so, you know, his rookie year, he was on that team with, you know, LaMarcus and and DeMar and Rudy and was kind of bided his time. But by his second, third year, they’re kind of grooming him to or maybe not grooming, but trying to see what he can do. Can he be this go-to guy? Can he be, uh, you know, a ball, a pick and roll ball handler who can create for himself and others? Can he be the head of a snake of an offense?
And it turns out he he he can on a team that’s going to win 22 games. That’s not just not who he is and not who he’s supposed to be. But as this team has grown up, as you as you’ve added more options, you’ve added Victor Wembanyama, Stefan Castle, De’Aaron Fox, probably Dylan Harper’s going to fall in that category. Um, you know, what you need from Devin Vassell has changed. And, and so, you know, he’s when they’re at full strength, he’s a guy that doesn’t really need to be scoring 20 points a game, um, you know, he’s just a guy that can you make a big shot here or there? When when the offense bogs down, everything else, can you just give us some moments? And not just not just with the shot, but you know, defensive activity, getting rebounds, um, that sort of thing. So, um, that’s when they’re all healthy. And what was kind of interesting in Denver, they’re not healthy, obviously. Victor’s out, Steph’s out. There’s just more opportunity. Somebody’s got to shoot the shoot the ball. And he’s still, he kind of showed that every now and then he can be a guy that goes and gets you points, gets you buckets. And it came on the heels of a game in Portland where he was also pretty good. He had 23 in Portland to help them win that game. And I believe those were, you know, those were the when you total that up, you can do the math for me. Um, that’s the highest, that’s the most he scored in a two game stretch his entire career. So if you think of Devin as a role player who can occasionally have a bust out game, and that’s what you want him to be, and also the role player stuff, like Mitch is very adamant that that, uh, you know, Devin needs to be involved in every aspect of the game. You know, in Portland, I asked about Devin because he scored 23 and Mitch said, I liked the six rebounds. And then, you know, he scored Devin scores 35 in in Denver, almost reaches a career scoring high. I asked Mitch about that and Mitch said, I like the way he fought over screens to play defense, you know, on the defensive end. So they want him to do, um, all that stuff. And if the scoring has to set when they’re at full health, if the scoring has to sacrifice for him to do all that stuff, um, so be it. They’d rather him do all that stuff.
Mike Finger: He’s been a a unquestionably significant bright spot of the season so far. I remember having discussions before the season started. I don’t think it was on the podcast. It might have been off the air when we were talking about who might come out of the starting lineup when De’Aaron Fox returned. And there was that question about Julian Champagnie, uh, Stefan Castle down the line. And I didn’t completely rule out the idea that it could or should be Devin. Um, just because Champagnie presented that three-point shot, that three-and-D type of role in that starting lineup and the thought maybe Devin could do more off the bench, but I mean, there’s no question he’s a starting player now and fits into what that group does as a unit. And uh, this, I I don’t I don’t guess that we wrote it before the season started, but we could have. This was a big year for him to kind of prove how he fits, and he’s exceeded my expectations so far.
Jeff McDonald: Um. And uh, you know, the the listeners and are probably screaming that he went, he followed that game and never by going one of eight for three. Sure. in Minnesota, but nobody shot the ball well in that game.
Mike Finger: Except for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Jeff McDonald: That’s true. That’s true. But if, um, like if Devin were that guy that could just go out there and whatever he was in Denver, you know, make seven threes a game, he you wouldn’t be Devin Vassell, he would be, you know, a MVP candidate. You know, that you you know, he’s just that’s that’s what he is. I I think he’s a little bit of a polarizing player among Spurs fandom, I think. And what I would encourage maybe, I think this is what happens sometimes. You I know this as a fan, I know this as a for myself as a fan of other sports, of other teams, you kind of, you kind of form an opinion on what a guy is and that kind of sets in stone in your mind. I would urge people that have done that with Devin Vassell to just sort of start with a fresh slate, fresh eyes. Don’t think of him as, you know, quote unquote lottery pick or the highest drafted rookie since Tim Duncan at the time. Think of him as just how he fits on this team and how he gets those tasks done and I think you’ll, I think you’ll see what we’re talking about, that he’s having a really good year.
Mike Finger: I’m doing this really quickly in my head, but is this right? Think think about this. He went from the high the Spurs highest drafted pick since Tim Duncan to now if you name the players on the Spurs roster, I mean so then became that, became that. I believe he’s now the sixth highest drafted player on on the on his team.
If you think about it, if you count De’Aaron Fox. Like you have, you have Victor, Stefan Castle, Dylan Harper, all top three picks, or top four, I guess, for Steph. Um, you have De’Aaron Fox, who I believe was was was picked in the top 10, and you have Jeremy Sochan. When you think of it that way, he’s the sixth highest drafted Devin Vassell’s the sixth highest drafted player on his team, and probably, you know, in terms of expectations for what he needs to do for this team, no higher than fourth, your fourth option. To be what he is now, that’s pretty good. Like, you don’t need him to be part of a big three. Um, if if if if, I think championship teams, playoff teams, contending teams have had players like Devin Vassell as their fourth, fifth, sixth guy.
Jeff McDonald: Absolutely.
Mike Finger: And and that I I think you’re right. If you recalibrate just your image of him in your head and what you need from him and what you expect from him, I think that uh, he can be, as Mitch Johnson said, a winning player in that role.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah. Another thing that I noticed this week, I was toying around with, um, on ESPN, they have a a WAR tool, you know, wins above replacement, which isn’t a perfect stat. It it gives you a picture of a player’s overall contributions. Uh, it’s it’s by no means immaculate, but it it’s interesting. And you go back to the 2019 draft, which remember was headed by Zion Williamson and Ja Morant, has your De’Andre Hunter, your Tyler Herro, R.J. Barrett. Do you know in this season who leads all players in WAR from that 2019 draft?
Mike Finger: You’re asking me this because it’s a Spur, right?
Jeff McDonald: Mm-hmm.
Mike Finger: Then it has to be Keldon Johnson.
Jeff McDonald: It’s not, uh, Luka Šamanić, who who’s also in that draft. Keldon Johnson. He’s he he is this year, six years into it.
Mike Finger: That’s interesting. That is interesting.
Jeff McDonald: He leads that draft in war this year. And a lot of those guys are having down years, but that’s that’s something, man. Who would have thought that?
Mike Finger: That’s it right before we started this podcast, I was I was uh putting together the preview box for the Magic game coming up. So I’m on basketball reference and you know, if you go to the Spurs team page, it has the, you know, the war leaders of, you know, season by season and I did happen to notice that that uh Keldon led the Spurs, but I did not know that he led the entire 2019 draft class.
Jeff McDonald: Entire 2019 draft class.
Mike Finger: This is an educational podcast all of a sudden.
Jeff McDonald: He leads the Spurs because what we’re talking about uh like what aggregate war and not war per 100 possessions or war per game or whatever, which obviously you have uh Victor and Stefan Castle still head of him ahead of him in uh in the average, but for the season, he provide he’s provided as much war as anybody and uh and and definitely leads the 2019 draft class.
What, I mean, those two guys, we’ve talked about them before uh as a duo because I think they’ll always be linked in a way, um, much like, um, sort of you think of Derrick White and Dejounte Murray together in Spurs lore and history as being cohorts. I think we’ll always see Keldon and Devin Vassell as cohorts and, uh, uh, they’ve had a similar career arc in terms of people being excited about them to start and then sort of fading on them and being down on them and now kind of reemerging in this new role on this new team. Uh, kind of a cool thing.
Mike Finger: The group that was there before Victor, and there’s not many of them left, but the group that was there before Victor, the remaining ones, like all those players have had to figure out a new way to play, a new role. Um, Mitch says it all the time. Keldon Johnson averaged 22 points per game in this league. That’s nothing to sniff at. Now it’s for a team that, you know, wasn’t anywhere near the playoffs. But to be a guy that you you’ve proven you can go score 22 points a game in the NBA, but now no, you’re going to be a bench player and we’re going to ask you to play limited minutes and um, yeah, you can you’re still free to score on the bench, but, um, if you wouldn’t mind grabbing rebounds and doing dirty work, and like he’s had to learn to be that guy. How how do you contribute to winning when you’re not going to average 22 points a game? And he’s a guy that’s done it. That whole group, we talked about Devin earlier having to do that. And I guess that’s, if I’m looking at the bright side of any, any kind of bright side with Jeremy Sochan right now, he is where Keldon and Devin were, um, a year ago, two years ago, trying to figure out how he fits on this team. And and for those two guys, for Keldon and Devin, it didn’t always look pretty at times. And there were times you watch Devin and Keldon during that that kind of interim trying to figure things out and it not always working and thinking maybe they’re not part of the long-term future for this team. And I I think, if you’re looking at any kind of positive for Jeremy, it’s like maybe he’s in it right now. And maybe he comes out the other side. But right right now, it’s not looking so so great in terms of how how he what he’s supposed to do. What what is he supposed to do for this team? You know, we’ve talked about what Devin’s supposed to do for this team. We’ve talked about what Keldon’s supposed to do for this team. Um, I think part of it is nobody knows. I don’t think he knows. I’m not sure the coach coaches know how he fits, what what he can do. Um, so I don’t know. I… I also know it’s a long, it’s a long season and things can can work themselves out and you’ll, maybe we’ll see something from him, but right now it’s not, he’s not giving them much and they’re not playing him much.
Mike Finger: This might be a little bit of revisionist history, um, but I don’t remember it, I I remember Keldon and Devin both being sort of lost and sort of adrift during their lower moments. I don’t ever remember them being this out of it where they just weren’t being played. I think they were they were always playing. Um, and I’ll say it, I’ve I wrote in the San Antonio Express News, the Dead Tree Edition and expressnews.com right after Victor Wembanyama got hurt that and Stefan Castle was banged up that, um, this was an important stretch for Jeremy Sochan. Um, that when your team does not extend you before the season starts when a lot of guys in his draft class picked around him in his draft class were extended. Um, that this was a time that if he’s going to show what he can do, you know, this this was the moment for it with Victor out, with with sort of, we thought, guaranteed minutes, uh, guaranteed opportunity for him to show, answer exactly the question that you were just asking, where does he fit? What does he do on this team? And it hasn’t gone great. I’m not ready to, like you, I’m not ready to chalk it up to being a lost cause, but it does make you wonder how he does fit because I I don’t, and this isn’t necessarily calling Jeremy Sochan out, I’m just wondering what the what the job is. And I think you’re right in terms of it’s not just on him, it’s on the coaching staff, it’s on everybody to figure that out because a decision will be coming this summer. He’s gonna be a restricted free agent. We’ll see, maybe he just comes back for cheap. Maybe nobody else offers him a huge contract and they’re able to keep him around. But, uh, what it’s been two weeks since Victor’s been out and he we really haven’t seen a big Jeremy Sochan game. Uh, Stefan Castle’s been out for a lot of that. Stefan Castle was a, a, you know, the elite wing defender on this team, perimeter defender, which Jeremy Sochan is his, um, that’s a part of his game and he hasn’t stepped into that role necessarily. So, I don’t know. It’s, he’s got time like you said, but I I don’t have the answer to that question yet as to is this, uh, is Jeremy Sochan a part of this team’s long-term future? We we just don’t know yet.
Jeff McDonald: He seems to be lacking confidence or lacking confidence in what he’s supposed to be doing, especially on the offensive end. I will say in that Denver game, he was one of the guys that helped guard Jokic and I mean, Jokic almost had a triple double because he’s because he’s that guy, but but you know, Jokic got off like 10 shots in that game. And maybe some of that’s on Nikola himself, but the the Spurs kind of, it seems weird to say they took a guy out of a game that nearly had a triple double, but um, they kind of did and and Jeremy was a part of that group. And that that’s the best thing he can do right now is guard people and pester people. And maybe he’s a guy that fit, maybe this is counterintuitive, maybe he’s a guy that fits better when they have all their pieces. I don’t know.
Mike Finger: That’s true.
Jeff McDonald: It kind of seemed like, it kind of seemed like those first two games he came back off the injured list when the Spurs are pretty much whole, he was good. Just a ball of energy. Like grabbing, you know, jumping pass lanes and starting fast breaks and throwing alley-oops and having alley-oops thrown to him. Like it seemed like that’s what he was doing and maybe it’s counterintuitive and he needs he needs to be around better players. I don’t know. because the Spurs have good players around him right now, but I I’m kind of stumped too and I know that probably the Spurs are and like you said, a decision is coming. Um but there’s 60 something games left for him to make his mark and so we’ll we’ll see how that goes.
Mike Finger: To be more positive, you you mentioned it in passing earlier, but Dylan Harper came back and I don’t want to go over the top. I don’t want to be ridiculous because the Spurs did just have the last two rookies of the year, two pretty, I mean in Victor’s case, a spectacular all-time rookie season. Uh, Stefan Castle really, really solid rookie of the year season. There there have been far worse rookies of the year in the past 20 years of NBA history than than Stefan Castle had. But I don’t ever remember those two guys just being able to to like in control, get to the rim whenever they want like Dylan Harper does. I think that’s a a part of Dylan Harper’s game that you just don’t see from rookies. Am I am I wrong about that? Like, I I know that he’s not the number one option and that’s part of it. Like defenses were just swarming Victor from the moment he got in the league. But Dylan Harper just seems to be cool with the with the ball in his hands and to be able to get to the rim against, like I was watching him against Mike Conley in that Minnesota game and Mike Conley’s 53 years old and six foot nothing, granted. But he had no chance. He had no hope of of stopping Dylan Harper one on one. Um, I I’m just really impressed with the the kind of polish of his offensive game just less less than what, 15 games into his NBA career.
Jeff McDonald: Am I am I over the top on that? Well, I guess, maybe. I mean, I think he reminds me of Manu Ginobili, but…
Mike Finger: Yeah. So…
Jeff McDonald: Um, the first three baskets he scored in Minnesota were drives. All three of them finished over 7’1" four-time defensive player of the year, Rudy Gobert, who is not what he was at the height of his defensive powers, but he’s still 7’1". And where we’re sitting in Minnesota is right there kind of on that baseline in that corner, it’s coming right at us. And they were, I mean, you could so you could see it up close and they were crafty finishes, man, because when you’re when you’re giving up that 5-6 inch height advantage, um, you’ve got to find a way to get the ball up on the rim and and Dylan found different ways to do it. Like go quick. Sometimes he would, he would, no one I would, this isn’t a video podcast so nobody can see me, but he he’d bring his arm wide as he could and like lift it, you know, use his wingspan to kind of get it up there. He had one, I think, that was a reverse layup where he kind of used the rim to keep the shot blocker away. Like it was just really, it’s not just, uh, physical speed and and power and explosion. There’s some basketball IQ there that that that I think that when I when I say he reminds me of Ginobili, and I I don’t want to, you know, you know what I mean. I’m just…
Mike Finger: Right. Yeah.
Jeff McDonald: I’m not saying he’s going to be a future Hall of Famer, but maybe, um… That’s the part that…
Mike Finger: No, but there there is…
Jeff McDonald: That’s the part that reminds me of Manu is just the craftiness and the IQ of it all.
Mike Finger: Yeah, I mean neither of us are like, uh, wordsmiths or like paid for to to describe things to the public. So like bear with us here. But that’s what I’m trying to get at is just to to be that inexperienced. And by the way, he played college at Rutgers. He he was not going to final fours like uh Stefan Castle was. He was not playing in big time college basketball games. Um, to to step in and to do exactly what you describe, to go at Rudy Gobert, to just get to the rim over and over again and not just get there, but know what to do when he gets there, whether it’s those high arching bank shots off, you know, the that come off above the square on the backboard, to using the rim as a screener, as a help, to to, uh, to knowing when to go into a defender as opposed to pulling up and going around a defender. It’s really impressive. Um, I think, uh, I think Dylan Harper might be, uh, might be something.
And then you ask…
Jeff McDonald: That’s a positive. You asked Mitch about him after that game and Mitch says, yeah, but, uh, you kind of like him get more than zero rebounds and have a zero assists.
Mike Finger: He’s starting to like Mitch.
Jeff McDonald: Yeah, sure. Sure.
Mike Finger: Got a little Popovichian in there. And that’s what I meant too about, uh, you know, not comparing his overall game to some of these other guys, but just that specific skill that he has, which I don’t think you take for granted in the NBA. The ability to under control get to the rim and finish at the rim. That is a, that is a skill that like you said, Manu Ginobili had and Dylan Harper has. Uh, Manu Ginobili had many, many, many other skills and attributes and strong points and we don’t know about Dylan Harper on any of those yet. But in that one specific, uh, comparison, it’s, I I think you’re not that far off base.
Jeff McDonald: When you were earlier when you said, you know, I can’t think of a rookie that’s been able to get to the rim with the ease that Dylan Harper has, I was like, well, the Spurs had one and his name was Manu Ginobili, but he was also 25 when he was a rookie.
Mike Finger: Yeah. Yeah.
Jeff McDonald: Like Dylan’s a teenager. He’s still 19. He’s the youngest player on this roster. He’s the only teenager on this roster since Carter Bryant turned 20 on the road trip. So, like this is the, not to be clichéd, but this is just scratching the surface. This is really just scratching the surface of the surface, to be honest.
Mike Finger: Yeah. Yep. Um, looking ahead, we’re getting to that point, another another road trip after this Memphis game. Um, there’s been they they’ve played four on the road. There’s going to be a minimum of four away from the Frost Bank Center, um, starting the day after the Memphis game. At Orlando, the second half of a back to back, at Cleveland, at New Orleans, at the Lakers in an NBA Cup matchup. And if you win that one, you have one or two in Vegas. If you don’t, you’re back home for Phoenix or the Thunder. But, um, no rest for the weary. What do you what do you what do you think about what lies ahead?
Jeff McDonald: You think it’s a, it’s a, you think it’s a good idea to, uh, lose that cup game and just come home?
Mike Finger: No.
Jeff McDonald: Asking for a friend.
Mike Finger: No, I I think, uh, well, I I know what you’re getting at, but um, no, I think you try to, of course you try to win it. Don’t be, don’t be outrageous. Don’t try to get aggregated.
Jeff McDonald: I think I think you either I think you either want to, uh, actually I believe this. You either want to lose that first cup game or just win the whole thing. Like it makes no sense to go to Vegas for for one.
Mike Finger: Anyway…
Jeff McDonald: Well…
Mike Finger: What are you asking me about?
Jeff McDonald: What are you asking me about? I would sort of quibble, like this is a this is a stupid argument, but, um, if you if you, um, if you lose the first in in Vegas, you have a couple days off before you come back for for Washington. I don’t think that’s bad either. I think it’s fine to go to Vegas for one.
Mike Finger: Um…
Jeff McDonald: That’s true, but you could lose to the Lakers and just come home, play somebody. In some ways losing the final is the worst possible outcome.
Mike Finger: Yeah, you’re right. I think that is the worst spot because you have to play that extra game that doesn’t count, and then you set up a a back to back later in the week.
Jeff McDonald: So that’s that’s kind of a pain. This wasn’t the question either, but aside from like the 500k on the line for every player, what what is the advantage of making that cup if the Spurs aren’t playing…
Mike Finger: Fans like it. It’s it’s joy. It’s it’s it’s fun.
Jeff McDonald: But if you’re thinking about just in terms of, uh, you know, having the best regular season record you can muster and making the playoffs, well now you’ve got to go play the Lakers, whereas if you had were not in the cup, you’d be playing two two loser teams.
Mike Finger: Yeah.
Jeff McDonald: Like Charlotte and somebody else, and one of them would be at home. You can’t play anybody from the East. And well, that’s true. But now now if you now you’re playing the Lakers and, um, if you lose that when you come home and you play another, you know, another cup loser, another team that was good enough to make the cup quarterfinals. So you get two tougher games by virtue of doing that and, uh, then you get to the finals, if you do get to the finals, well if you get to the finals, it’s fine. You’ve won all those games. It does…
Mike Finger: This is the problem. I’m going to cut you off. This is the problem with just podcast, hot take, morning debate show America, is…
Jeff McDonald: Well, excuse me.
Mike Finger: is is is every does everything have to be in service of winning a title? Does everything have to be why is this important? Why why does this, why should they try to win when it doesn’t serve their goal of winning an NBA title? Can’t some things just be joyful for the sake of joyfulness? For to to competitive for the sake of competitiveness. Like people people have fun watching the games. Uh, if your best players are playing… If the Spurs did not make the final eight of the NBA Cup, they’d be playing a worse team next week than LA. It would probably be an easier schedule and it wouldn’t be as fun to watch. You’re going to get to see, um, De’Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper and maybe Stefan Castle and Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell go to Staples, I’m sorry, crypto.com Arena and play LeBron and Luka and those guys and in a game that with like a a winner go home type type, uh, atmosphere. Like why not, why not have fun with that? What does it does it suit their hopes of becoming what, what are you saying, the fourth seed in the Western Conference? We’re not talking about them winning the first seed. We’re not talking about them, uh, uh, in the play in. Like it’s all just matters of degrees anyway. We we figured that the local cagers are going to finish somewhere between like third and sixth in the Western Conference. Am I breaking news here? Um, like why not just go compete for it? It’s fun.
Jeff McDonald: The answer is because it’s fun, Jeff. Now that you’re here, now that you’re here, it’s fine. I’m just saying. I’m just saying there were there’d be some upsides to not having to do all this rigmarole.
Mike Finger: There’s upsides to everything. There’s downsides to everything.
Jeff McDonald: I don’t think that’s true. I can name a lot of things there’s not upsides to, but this is a family podcast.
Mike Finger: All right. Well, there’s downsides to lots of things too. You might as well just embrace the fun where it comes because we’re getting to that age where there’s not as much fun as there used to be. I think all of us are. No matter how old you are listening to the podcast, the the fun is coming fewer and far between. Uh, so embrace it where it is. And uh that’s where we’re going to finish this this week because it’s a good place to finish. Embrace the fun where you can find it. Take care of each other and keep it real. [music fades in]