Spurs Power Rankings – Week 5 – End of the tough toad trip

Home cooking saved the week for a struggling Spurs squad.

The Spurs faced a three game road trip after winning at home against the Houston Rockets. The win versus the Rockets felt good, but the sour taste of losing the two before that was still there. But the team came out flat and was constantly fighting to catch up in both the Kings and Suns games. The Spurs showed some fight for the close Clippers game, but what they really needed was some home cooking (and maybe a struggling to win in Texas Golden State Warriors).


Week 5 – Ending on a Positive Note: This week was a hard one for the Spurs. But after dropping all three of the road games, the Silver and Black ended the week on a high note by beating the defending champions.

Last week: 1-3 (8-7) – 99-104 vs. Kings (loss); 96-116 vs. Suns (loss); 111-116 vs. Clippers (loss); 104-92 vs. Warriors.

This week: Monday, 11/19 @ Pelicans (9-7); 11/21 vs. Grizzlies (10-5); 11/23 @ Pacers (10-6); 11/24 @ Bucks (11-4)


Tim MacMahon, ESPN – 16 (last week: 9)

The Spurs hope that LaMarcus Aldridge’s 24-point performance on 10-of-16 shooting in Sunday’s win over the Warriors is a sign of things to come. Aldridge’s slump played a significant part in the Spurs’ recent funk, as he averaged 12.8 points on 34.1 percent shooting while San Antonio lost five of the previous six games. Aldridge in wins: 23.8 points, 49.7 field goal percentage. Aldridge in losses: 11.0 points, 31.6 field goal percentage.

John Schuhmann, NBA.com – 16 (last week: 8)

The Spurs are the only team that has lost to the Suns in the last two weeks and the only team that has lost to the Kings in the last nine days. They’re 2-5 in their last seven games and only the Hawks and Bulls have shot worse over that stretch. But the Spurs are also the last team to have beaten the Rockets, and the 95 points per 100 possessions that they allowed in their win over the Warriors on Sunday were the fewest that the champs have scored all season. This team remains somewhat of enigma, right around the league average on both ends of the floor, with a cumulative point differential of zero. They rank fifth in 3-point percentage and 29th in 3-point rate (3PA/FGA), with the two guys responsible for 40 percent of their scoring — DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge — having combined to make just five 3-pointers all season. Monday’s game in New Orleans is the second game of a back-to-back. They’re 0-2 in those and have lost four straight on the road.

Khadrice Rollins, SI.com – 11 (last week: 9)

The Spurs have two wins on the road this season and they were the overtime thriller against the Lakers and a 30-point drubbing of the Suns. Luckily a rough week ended with a home game against the reeling Warriors or else the three-game losing streak San Antonio was riding might have continued. Now it’s time to see if Sunday’s victory can carry over as it gets set for road matchups with the Pelicans, Pacers and Bucks this week.

Reid Forgrave, CBS Sports – 16 (last week: 9)

The Spurs have lost three in a row before beating the Warriors on Sunday. What’s odd about this team isn’t so much that it has a mediocre defense (16th in the NBA, which would be the worst finish for a Gregg Popovich-coached team since 1996-97, Popovich’s first season). What’s most odd is that the Spurs offense is anachronistic in today’s NBA. They rank first in the NBA in mid-range shot attempts; they shoot nearly four more mid-range shots than the team that ranks second. And the Spurs take fewer three-pointers than anyone except the Cavaliers.


So, does the trend seem accurate or are the Spurs just getting warmed up? Tell us what you think in the comments.

Source: Pounding The Rock

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