The San Antonio Spurs continued their slump as they fell to the league-best Houston Rockets (53-14) 109-93 at the Toyota Center on Monday night.
The defeat was the third straight for San Antonio, who fell out of the playoff picture and sit in a three-way tie for the eighth and final postseason spot. Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge both missed the game with injuries.
Here is what went good and bad for the Spurs as well as three standout players: Rudy Gay, Bryn Forbes, and Tony Parker.
The Good:
- To be honest, there was not a lot of good that came out of this game. The only thing is the young players for the Spurs got more playing time and experience against some of the top players in the league.
The Bad:
- With the loss, the Spurs fell out of the playoff picture to 10th place in the Western Conference. San Antonio is now in a three-way tie for the eighth and final playoff spot with the Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz.
Three Standout Players:
Tony Parker: Once again, Tony Parker proved why he is still so valuable to this San Antonio squad. With the Spurs down 13-4, Coach Pop benched all his starters, upset at their lack of effort.
He inserted Tony Parker and that quickly sparked the Silver and Black to a run. The Spurs went on a 12-0 run and cut the deficit to 25-21 going into the second quarter. Parker scored eight points during that run and ended with 12 total on 5-for-6 shooting.
Bryn Forbes: Once again, the former Michigan State Spartan took advantage of his playing time, tying for the leader in points on Monday.
Forbes did his best to keep the Silver and Black in the game, scoring 14 points on 50 percent shooting. He would help the Spurs go on runs but it would not be enough against a high powered offense like Houston’s.
Rudy Gay: Since returning from injury, Rudy Gay has gradually gotten better each time out and Monday night saw his veteran leadership really play a part on a Spurs squad that is desperate to get healthy bodies.
Gay posted 13 points and five rebounds as he started in place of the injured Aldridge.
While the Spurs’ play as of late looks bleak, these three players can give fans hope when and if Kawhi Leonard returns to the floor.
UP NEXT:
The Spurs are now 37-30 on the season and will return to the court on Tuesday when they welcome the Orlando Magic (20-47) to the AT&T Center at 7:30 p.m.
