The San Antonio Spurs suffered a 107-90 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on Wednesday night, opening up a two game road trip.
The loss was frustrating for the Silver and Black, who had no real answer for the Pelican big men Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins. San Antonio took a 14-point lead in the first half, but inconsistent offense and mistakes would be their undoing.
Here is what went good and bad for the Spurs, as well as three standout players: Rudy Gay, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Pau Gasol.
The Good:
- LaMarcus Aldridge was unfazed by the bigger and more athletic Davis, constantly getting aggressive with him on the offensive end.
- Rudy Gay may have gotten back into form after a few games where he was look a tad lost and out of rhythm.
The Bad:
- Without Kawhi Leonard, the Spurs have been unable to find a player to help out Aldridge on a consistent basis. While Aldridge may be able to do it all against below .500 teams, the Spurs big man will need someone else to step up and help him on offense against playoff caliber teams.
- Danny Green and Patty Mills combined for two points on 1-of-12 shooting.
- Turnovers. Turnovers. Turnovers. San Antonio had 15 of those things.
- New Orleans’ Davis and Cousins combined for 53 points.
Three Standout Players:
Rudy Gay: After a week or so of subpar play, it looks like the Spurs biggest signee in the offseason may be out of his slump. Rudy Gay finished with a team-high 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting and went 2-for-3 from three-point range.
This is a good sign for Gay, who has been scoring in single digits for a little over a week of games. However, that all changed on Wednesday night in the Big Easy as Gay looked confident with his shot, drove the paint, and shot with confidence. As I wrote above, the Spurs will need Gay’s shot to fall on a more consistent basis until Leonard returns.
LaMarcus Aldridge: The Spurs big man had a solid game for the Silver and Black, but was held under 20 points for the first time in recent memory. Aldridge finished with 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting.
Aldridge remained aggressive all night long, each time taking the ball to Davis and Cousins in the post. He spotted up for the occasion 20-foot jump shot, but some just spun out. Aldridge and Gasol combined for 33 of San Antonio’s 90 points.
Pau Gasol: The NBA veteran center had a solid night with 17 points and nine boards. He helped out Aldridge in the post against the Pelicans’ two headed monster of Davis and Cousins.
Gasol showed that in big games he can still bring it when needed and his presence in paint and around the rim proved huge to keep San Antonio in the rebounding battle, despite New Orleans having the 45-39 edge.
Up next: The Spurs are now 11-6 on the season and will have a few days off to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. The team will return to the court on Saturday night when they travel to Charlotte to face the Hornets at 6 p.m. from the Spectrum Center.
