Across the quarter-season mark, we took a take a look at the numbers that defined the Spurs’ then-surprising success. The aim was to take a look at stats that confirmed what the Silver and Black have been doing properly early, however some readers recommended a follow-up article close to the midway mark of the season to see if the traits held.
Whereas going again to the identical 4 stats from the unique publish, it was considerably shocking to see that they nonetheless replicate a number of the Spurs’ largest strengths. It looks as if it wasn’t a coincidence or an anomaly that they did properly in these areas to begin the season, however the first indicators of the identification they have been constructing. So let’s take a look at the numbers that designate the kind of staff San Antonio has constructed.
51.5 – Whole rebound proportion
(Beforehand, 52.3 Whole Rebound Proportion)
The Spurs have been an elite rebounding staff all season lengthy. Again in late November, they ranked fourth within the league in complete rebound proportion, and in late January, they rank fifth, behind the Rockets, Hornets, Pistons, and Knicks. Cleansing the glass appears to be a precedence, and San Antonio is among the many greatest within the league at it.
As talked about within the earlier article, the nice Spurs groups of the previous have usually been nice at defensive rebounding, and that’s a practice Mitch Johnson has continued. The Silver and Black rank second behind solely the Hornets in getting opponent misses in all the league. Victor Wembanyama is a serious motive why. He’s not the perfect at boxouts, however Wemby ranks third within the league in defensive rebounds per recreation and is first in defensive rebound proportion amongst gamers who’ve suited up for at the least 20 video games. His rebounding vary is large, and the staff makes positive others put our bodies on potential offensive rebounders.
The place the Spurs haven’t been as efficient is in offensive rebounding. They ranked twelfth within the league again in late January and now rank fifteenth. The drop is defined by their rating nineteenth in offensive rebounding since Thanksgiving. They have been seventh in second-chance factors then and have ranked fifteenth since. There are a number of causes for it. Some Luke Kornet absences have damage them. A part of it’s Keldon Johnson not being as shockingly prolific on the offensive glass currently as he was earlier. There’s additionally the truth that opponents now count on the Spurs to crash the glass and shield towards it.
Whereas being elite on each can be nice, so long as the Spurs stay elite at stopping offensive boards from opponents, they need to have a shot at controlling the possession recreation, which is all that issues.
11.1 – Opponent makes an attempt from midrange per recreation
(Beforehand, 11.5 opponent makes an attempt from midrange per recreation)
One other pattern that continues from the previous nice Spurs groups is their proclivity to permit midrange jumpers as a option to shield the paint and the three-point line. San Antonio remains to be forcing opponents to take probably the most midrange pictures within the league. The sphere aim proportion allowed on these seems to be remains to be pretty excessive, however not prohibitively so, at 41.9 p.c.
The technique has labored on the subject of stopping pictures on the rim. The Spurs enable the eleventh fewest pictures within the restricted space and rank sixth in opponent discipline aim proportion allowed in that vary regardless of lacking Victor Wembanyama and Luke Kornet at instances. That mentioned, these absences have affected them, as they’ve considerably fallen down the ranks since Thanksgiving, which shouldn’t be shocking to anybody who has seen a number of the lineups they’ve trotted out not too long ago. Nonetheless, the Silver and Black have been among the many greatest at not sending opponents to the free-throw line all year long, which is expounded to creating them leap shooters.
The place issues haven’t been progressing properly is within the opponent’s three-point taking pictures division. The Spurs have been permitting a whole lot of nook threes of their first month and proceed to permit a ton of them now. The scheme, which locations Wemby because the low man guarding a nook shooter, typically leads to open seems to be for his man. It’s not all unhealthy, although. The Thunder, the perfect protection within the league, permits probably the most nook threes, so it’s clearly not a loss of life sentence to surrender these seems to be, so long as the precise shooters are taking them. The Spurs’ opponents rank within the backside 5 within the NBA in nook three-point proportion, which could imply the Silver and Black are getting fortunate, but additionally that they know who to depart open.
So long as the Spurs drive their opponents to be leap shooters, which shouldn’t be arduous contemplating the standard of their rim protectors, they need to be high quality, even when they permit nook pictures that sometimes damage them. Nonetheless, cleansing up their rotations would make them an much more formidable defensive staff.
3.0 – Fastbreak factors differential
(Beforehand, 6.6 Fastbreak level differential)
Though not by as many factors, the Spurs are nonetheless getting extra transition buckets than their opponents. They do it regardless of taking part in at a mean tempo and rating within the backside half of the league in steals, which usually result in live-ball turnovers that flip into fastbreak alternatives.
The constructive quantity is an efficient signal, however there have been some notable modifications in the place the Spurs rank in a number of associated classes. San Antonio has performed at a considerably greater tempo for the reason that final check-in. At Thanksgiving, they ranked twenty sixth in possessions per recreation. Since then, they’ve ranked twelfth. Taking part in quicker is just not essentially a foul factor, and it appears to be inspired by the teaching employees, but it surely hasn’t resulted in additional fastbreak factors. The excellent news is that turnover proportion has additionally decreased considerably currently, even with the elevated tempo, so whereas pushing the ball up court docket has not gotten San Antonio extra fastbreak factors, it has not turned them right into a sloppy staff both.
That mentioned, the variety of opponent fastbreak factors has climbed. The Spurs don’t enable that many, with solely eight different groups permitting fewer, however they ranked first within the league at Thanksgiving regardless of having a a lot greater turnover proportion. Curiously, San Antonio nonetheless permits few factors coming immediately off steals, in accordance with PBPstats.com. In addition they defend the break properly after made pictures, which isn’t shocking. The difficulty appears to come back from a mix of opponent buckets after missed threes and pictures on the rim, plus a number of extra factors allowed off live-ball turnovers.
San Antonio remains to be profitable the battle in transition, which is nice information. However this may be an space to observe going ahead, as a result of they don’t have as huge an edge as they used to.
66.6% – Win proportion in clutch video games
(Beforehand, 70 p.c win proportion in clutch video games)
Regardless of a few painful shut losses, typically preceded by a comeback, the Spurs stay probably the greatest clutch groups within the league, tying the Thunder at fourth with a 66.6 p.c win proportion in video games that come right down to the wire. It’s a powerful season-long achievement for a younger staff that has seen its closers sidelined at instances resulting from harm.
The thrilling information is that San Antonio hasn’t been coasting on its early success. Since Thanksgiving, the Silver and Black are 9-5 on video games by which the lead is 5 factors or fewer within the final 5 minutes of the sport, the fourth-best mark within the league, trailing solely the Lakers, Magic, and Nuggets. In that stretch, they’ve shot surprisingly properly on threes (39.5 p.c) and have barely turned it over. Their numbers haven’t been as tidy within the final two minutes of video games when they’re forward or behind by three factors or fewer, however they’re nonetheless 8-4 in these conditions, the fourth-best mark within the league within the stretch.
The Spurs don’t typically run attention-grabbing performs in shut video games, counting on the scoring skill of their stars Victor Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox, who each rank within the prime 20 in clutch factors per recreation. It doesn’t make for probably the most thrilling viewing expertise, particularly for many who keep in mind the set items the Lovely Sport Spurs used to run late in video games, but it surely’s arduous to argue towards the outcomes. Hopefully, as time passes, Mitch Johnson will add extra selection to his clutch offense, however for now, plainly giving the ball to his closers is an efficient technique that reduces turnovers and will get extra wins than losses.
