What we learned from the Summer Spurs win over the Hawks

Photo by Adam Hagy/NBAE via Getty Images

No Castle, no problem for San Antonio’s Summer League team.

San Antonio Spurs fans went through a roller coaster of emotions on Sunday. Before the summer Spurs contest with the Atlanta Hawks, the team announced first-round pick, Stephon Castle, would miss the rest of the Summer League with a wrist injury. It was a blow for fans who wanted to see the UCONN product build on his already impressive Summer League. Fortunately for Castle and the Spurs, it seems to be a more preventative move, than a sign of a long-term injury.

Without one of their best players, the summer Spurs stepped up and took down the Hawks, and the number-one overall pick, Zaccharie Risacher, in a 79-76 win. They got contributions up and down the roster on both ends. Newcomer, D’Moi Hodge led the team in scoring with 13 points while hitting three triples. Jamaree Bouyea had another strong showing with 12 points, 4 assists and 3 steals.

Without Castle, the summer team won’t have the national allure they brought earlier this year. Yet, Sunday night’s game showed that this team can still win ball games without his pedigree. Despite a sloppy ending to the game in which San Antonio nearly gave it away, it was an overall solid performance. They’ll look to keep that up against the New Orleans Pelicans on July 16th.

Observations:

Bouyea has been one of the biggest winners from the Spurs summer team. He’s a defensive pest who looks capable of running an NBA offense. San Antonio suddenly has a bit of a logjam at point guard. Chris Paul, Tre Jones, Castle and Blake Wesley will all fight for minutes. Because Bouyea is on a two-way, it’s unlikely he will factor into that competition all that much. Still, it’s great to have that kind of depth with a two-way roster spot. If he plays most of the season in Austin, he’ll likely elevate the younger Spurs around him.
It was a tough shooting night for Harrison Ingram, but he still found ways to contribute. He had 6 points on 2-10 shooting and hit just 1-7 threes. He still managed to pick up 4 offensive rebounds. Ingram’s activity on the glass has been encouraging this summer. A player with his size and motor that shoots a respectable percentage from deep is a valuable piece moving forward.
Nathan Mensah has been playing some great basketball in the last three games. He had 10 points and 9 rebounds with a block on Sunday. Mensah is a decent athlete and looks solid as a rim protector despite being 6-foot-9. He went under the radar in the California Classic but has intrigued me with his activity in Vegas.
Hodge was a lights-out shooter at the University of Missouri, so it wasn’t surprising to see him get hot from deep. He’s a solid on-ball defender, too (he picked up 2 steals in the loss. Keep an eye on Hodge moving forward. As the Spurs look to fill their two-way roster spots, he could be a prime candidate as a 3&D depth piece.