The San Antonio Spurs fell to the Brooklyn Nets Sunday 104-100 in a game where the Spurs built an early 16 point lead, but Brooklyn came back to hold on for the close win.
Here were some observations on Joshua Primo, Tre Jones, and Joe Wieskamp from the Spurs’ loss.
Joshua Primo
The Stats: 21 points on 22 shot attempts (0.95 points per shot attempt), 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks in 23 minutes
After missing the last two games, Primo returned to the starting lineup and finished as the Spurs’ leading scorer.
Primo was productive on both ends of the floor. He were some notes on some of his offensive possessions:
- Demonstrated the ability to make the long floater near the free throw line on a possession out of the pick-and-roll.
- Was able to score on his defender in isolation using the mid-range pull-up shot.
- The Spurs ran a dribble-hand-off set, and once Primo got the ball in his hands, he used the separation from his defender to score a layup attacking the basket.
- On one pick-and-roll possession, the defense dropped on the pick and Primo used that open space to get the clean mid-range jumper to fall going down hill.
- On another possession, Primo showed why he’ll need some time to learn how to be a ball handler efficiently. He began the possession bringing the ball up the floor, the Spurs tried two different sets to get him space, but the defense read the actions well. He held onto the ball for the entire possession, but got a late contested mid-range jumper to fall.
- On a possession in the fourth quarter, Primo used a high pick-and-roll from a teammate, and with the bit of space available, he launched and made a pull-up three.
- On a late possession with the Nets about to wrap for the win, Primo rushed the ball down the floor and knocked down a deep pull-up three.
“I was just happy to have him back out there,” said Spurs Summer League Head Coach Mitch Johnson after the game. “It was good to have Primo out there to go through some of those in-game situations.”
“That’s the best part about basketball, being able to be creative,” said Primo of how he’s able to score in a variety of ways with different types of shots.
Moving on to Primo’s defense, here were a few notes on that end of the floor:
- Primo finished the game with 3 blocks, which is a lot for a shooting guard.
- On one possession, his opponent tried to drive by him in the halfcourt, and Primo moved with him laterally, then blocked the layup attempt to the sidelines when the shot was attempted.
“I think it’s a big part of my game, using my length,” said Primo of his defense. “Just compete on defense, I love to do that.”
“He’s a versatile kid. He’s long, athletic, he can move his feet laterally,” said Coach Johnson of Primo on defense.
Tre Jones
The Stats: 18 points on 14 shot attempts (1.29 points per shot attempt), 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers in 25 minutes
Jones played in the majority of the game but got injured late in the fourth quarter on a jump ball possession. From there, the Spurs ruled him out for the rest of the game.
Jones was able to make a corner three, showing he’s slowly adding the three ball to his shot diet. He was efficient as the lead ball handler, displaying the ability to score close or away from the basket with layups, floaters, and mid-range jump shots.
On one possession, he stole the ball from his opponent and scored a layup on the other end.
It’s unknown if Jones will play in the Spurs’ final Summer League game Monday against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Joe Wieskamp
The Stats: 9 points on 10 shot attempts (0.90 points per shot attempt), 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover in 26 minutes
Wieskamp continued to bring outside shooting, rebounding, and some defensive playmaking to the game, like he’s continued to do for the Spurs in Summer League.
On an early possession, with just a bit of space from his defender, Wieskamp got a spot-up three to fall off a pass from Primo.
Like the last game, he anticipated an incoming pass to the player he was defending and stole the ball, then finished a left handed layup on the break.
On another possession, he was able to knock down a mid-range jumper in the halfcourt.
Up Next
The Summer Spurs’ final game will take place Monday against the Thunder at 4 PM CT. Devin Vassell missed Sunday’s game with right hamstring tightness and Coach Johnson already ruled out Vassell for Monday’s game, with the team not wanting to risk further injury.
