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  1. <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
  2. <feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xml:lang="en">
  3.  <title>Pounding The Rock -  All Posts</title>
  4.  <subtitle>For all your Manu Ginobili loving and San Antonio Spurs news</subtitle>
  5.  <icon>https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/12497/ptr-fv.jpg</icon>
  6.  <updated>2024-05-19T06:00:00-05:00</updated>
  7.  <id>http://www.poundingtherock.com/rss/current/</id>
  8.  <link type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/" rel="alternate"/>
  9.  <entry>
  10.    <published>2024-05-19T06:00:00-05:00</published>
  11.    <updated>2024-05-19T06:00:00-05:00</updated>
  12.    <title>Open Thread: Join Spurs guard Tre Jones at The Rock at La Cantera this afternoon</title>
  13.    <content type="html">  
  14.  
  15.    &lt;figure&gt;
  16.      &lt;img alt="Detroit Pistons v San Antonio Spurs" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/G7--JrQsLx1spPxYzB0h8WlC_B4=/0x569:3168x2681/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73356581/2147812935.0.jpg" /&gt;
  17.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  18.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  19.  
  20.  &lt;p&gt;Alienware invites you to a free gaming event&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="IX4A01"&gt;Today, the Spurs are hosting a free gaming event at The Rock at La Cantera. Spurs guard Tre Jones will be joining in the festivities. &lt;/p&gt;
  21. &lt;p id="UnssE6"&gt;“Game at The Rock,” a free day of gaming and basketball with Alienware invites players of all ages and skill levels to participate. Free play begins at 11 a.m. on Frost Plaza and continues throughout the afternoon. Players can enter a raffle onsite for prizes and a chance to play against Tre and Team Liquid later in the day, with the competition streamed on the big screen.&lt;/p&gt;
  22. &lt;p id="afhP8K"&gt;At 2:00 p.m., Spurs player &lt;a href="https://www.nba.com/player/1630200/tre-jones"&gt;Tre Jones&lt;/a&gt;, gaming influencer SypherPK and members of professional e-sports Team Liquid will compete.&lt;/p&gt;
  23. &lt;p id="2Iz34l"&gt;In addition to gaming on Alienware equipment, kids can participate in fun basketball competitions and skills challenges led by Spurs Sports Academy coaches. Participation is free. No registration is required.&lt;/p&gt;
  24. &lt;p id="aU7TLe"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Game at The Rock Event Details&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  25. &lt;ul&gt;
  26. &lt;li id="WuEjFl"&gt;
  27. &lt;strong&gt;When:&lt;/strong&gt; Sunday, May 19 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.&lt;/li&gt;
  28. &lt;li id="ApaQLb"&gt;
  29. &lt;strong&gt;Where:&lt;/strong&gt; Frost Plaza, 1 Spurs Way, San Antonio TX 78256&lt;/li&gt;
  30. &lt;li id="OivkAO"&gt;Tre Jones onsite from 2 – 3 p.m.&lt;/li&gt;
  31. &lt;li id="PddBqR"&gt;Meet and greet with Team Liquid and SypherPK&lt;/li&gt;
  32. &lt;li id="fXSIMA"&gt;Free parking is available; see a parking map at &lt;a href="https://therockatlacantera.com/frost-plaza-events/"&gt;TheRockatLaCantera.com&lt;/a&gt;
  33. &lt;/li&gt;
  34. &lt;li id="hEXafU"&gt;Free and open to players of all ages and skills&lt;/li&gt;
  35. &lt;li id="lSXVLA"&gt;Appearances by Coyote and DaBull, food trucks, DJ, Spurs merch truck and prizes&lt;/li&gt;
  36. &lt;/ul&gt;
  37. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="FBWYf1"&gt;
  38. &lt;p id="aardBf"&gt;Welcome to the Thread. Join in the conversation, start your own discussion, and share your thoughts. This is the &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba/teams/san-antonio-spurs"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Spurs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; community, your Spurs community. Thanks for being here.&lt;/p&gt;
  39. &lt;p id="eRjX1B"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Our &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/community-guidelines"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;community guidelines&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; apply which should remind everyone to be cool, avoid personal attacks, not to troll and to watch the language.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  40.  
  41. </content>
  42.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/19/24159332/join-spurs-guard-tre-jones-at-the-rock-at-la-cantera-this-afternoon"/>
  43.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/19/24159332/join-spurs-guard-tre-jones-at-the-rock-at-la-cantera-this-afternoon</id>
  44.    <author>
  45.      <name>Jeph Duarte</name>
  46.    </author>
  47.  </entry>
  48.  <entry>
  49.    <published>2024-05-18T09:37:29-05:00</published>
  50.    <updated>2024-05-18T09:37:29-05:00</updated>
  51.    <title>Why the Spurs should use both of their top ten draft picks</title>
  52.    <content type="html">  
  53.  
  54.    &lt;figure&gt;
  55.      &lt;img alt="SEC Basketball Tournament - Quarterfinals" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/xXXk_-iP3lDjz8fdICUrO-1LwrE=/0x0:3402x2268/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73355568/2087389278.0.jpg" /&gt;
  56.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  57.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  58.  
  59.  &lt;p&gt;Results from the latest Pounding the Rock draft survey.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="a5B64C"&gt;With the &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba-draft"&gt;NBA Draft&lt;/a&gt; Combine behind them, the &lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com"&gt;San Antonio Spurs&lt;/a&gt; will bunker down and begin the final stretch of planning before the 2024 NBA Draft. With two picks in the top ten (#4 and #8) Brian Wright and the rest of the Spurs front office has some big decisions to make. &lt;/p&gt;
  60. &lt;p id="sxp28z"&gt;The Spurs 2023 Draft strategy was clear after Lottery Night. Everyone knew that the Spurs would take the generational big man from France, Victor Wembanyama. This year, it seems like anything could be on the table. Even if the Spurs were picking first in this year’s draft, no prospect would be guaranteed to go number one. In a fairly flat draft, San Antonio will have plenty of tough decisions to make with their two first-round picks. Do they trade one or two of the selections? If they don’t, which players should they select?&lt;/p&gt;
  61. &lt;p id="PAaQt9"&gt;We polled our readers to see what they would do if they were the Spurs front office. Here are the results. &lt;/p&gt;
  62.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  63.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2x54IMFObF7bCfYBpPqFVvzykys=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453200/SanAntonio_1_51524.png"&gt;
  64.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  65. &lt;p id="tfVD9y"&gt;An overwhelming majority of Pounding the Rock readers would like to keep both selections. The Spurs are one of the youngest teams in the NBA. Their core is filled with young players like Wembanyama, Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, Tre Jones and Keldon Johnson. Continuing the youth movement would be a sign from the Spurs front office that they are building the roster slowly. &lt;/p&gt;
  66. &lt;p id="uxw6qe"&gt;Using both picks would give the Spurs two swings at a long-term member of their core next to Wembanyama. That’s a luxury in a draft with so many question marks across the board. Plus, they would still have around $19 million in cap space to acquire a veteran or two, supplementing their young players.&lt;/p&gt;
  67.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  68.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/R7_9ehvKZlU3015qDotxPxKcC4M=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453202/SanAntonio_2_51524.png"&gt;
  69.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  70. &lt;p id="7ic6gg"&gt;The fourth pick in the draft will be an interesting selection. The rumor is big men like Donovan Clingan and Alex Sarr are moving up &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/esidery/status/1791499815483793830"&gt;draft boards&lt;/a&gt;. If both are selected in the top three, San Antonio should be able to pick a good player that fits their positional needs. Our readers would like that prospect to be Zaccharie Risacher. &lt;/p&gt;
  71. &lt;p id="RS8cwL"&gt;Risacher is a 6-foot-9 wing from France who can shoot the ball from three. He’s a good defender on and off the ball with some athletic pop. The issue with Risacher is his inability to make plays off the dribble. He doesn’t create much separation, which limits him to mostly catch-and-shoot attempts. He profiles as a three-and-D player whose best role will be without the ball in his hands. &lt;/p&gt;
  72. &lt;p id="gFcOuc"&gt;For most teams, that could be seen as a player not worth selecting in the top five. Risacher’s best fit may be with the Spurs. San Antonio wants the ball in Wembanyama and Vassell’s hands as much as possible. They need players to support their scorers. Risacher could step in to do that with his shooting, defense and length. &lt;/p&gt;
  73.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  74.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/eyrNbGRyUmx-s_UIXERNmzFFVbs=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453203/SanAntonio_3_51524.png"&gt;
  75.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  76. &lt;p id="MZcCRh"&gt;Point guard is a major need for San Antonio. Luckily for them, it’s not a big need for many other teams. After the Spurs select fourth, the draft order goes as follows: &lt;a href="https://www.detroitbadboys.com"&gt;Detroit Pistons&lt;/a&gt; at 5, Charlotte Hornets at 6 and &lt;a href="https://www.blazersedge.com"&gt;Portland Trail Blazers&lt;/a&gt; at 7. Those three teams have their franchise lead guards in Cade Cunningham, LaMelo Ball and Scoot Henderson. If the Spurs select a wing at four, a guard could wait for them at 8.&lt;/p&gt;
  77. &lt;p id="dOTDx7"&gt;PtR readers want that guard to be Reed Sheppard from the University of Kentucky. You can read our full prospect preview of Sheppard &lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/4/24146680/san-antonio-spurs-prospect-profile-reed-sheppard-kentucky-wildcats-john-calipari-victor-wembanyama"&gt;here&lt;/a&gt;. To summarize, Sheppard has the potential to be an elite role player. He’s a smart prospect who makes high-level reads on the court, shoots above 50% from three and has a 42-inch vertical. While he has some physical limitations at 6-foot-2 with a 6-foot-3 wingspan, Sheppard makes up for it with his skill and athleticism. By all accounts, Sheppard is a great kid who grew up around the game (his parents both played at Kentucky.) Selecting him seems like a “Spursy” move. &lt;/p&gt;
  78. &lt;p id="4paqoE"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Check out &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/featured?wpcid=163864&amp;amp;wpcn=SBNation&amp;amp;wpcrid=Reacts&amp;amp;wpscn=Social&amp;amp;wpsrc=Vox&amp;amp;category=live-in-game"&gt;&lt;em&gt;DraftKings Sportsbook&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt;, the official &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/featured"&gt;&lt;em&gt;sportsbook&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; partner of SB Nation.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  79.  
  80. </content>
  81.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/18/24159252/why-the-san-antonio-spurs-should-use-both-of-their-top-ten-draft-picks-on-reed-sheppard-risacher"/>
  82.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/18/24159252/why-the-san-antonio-spurs-should-use-both-of-their-top-ten-draft-picks-on-reed-sheppard-risacher</id>
  83.    <author>
  84.      <name>Jacob Douglas</name>
  85.    </author>
  86.  </entry>
  87.  <entry>
  88.    <published>2024-05-18T06:00:00-05:00</published>
  89.    <updated>2024-05-18T06:00:00-05:00</updated>
  90.    <title>Open Thread: The Minnesota Timberwolves look to celebrate Kevin Garnett’s birthday by advancing to the Western Conference Finals </title>
  91.    <content type="html">  
  92.  
  93.    &lt;figure&gt;
  94.      &lt;img alt="New Orleans Pelicans v Minnesota Timberwolves" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ULo9zQ9siqizpGDDPhOsQKpOt7A=/0x0:3600x2400/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73355299/520992898.0.jpg" /&gt;
  95.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  96.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  97.  
  98.  &lt;p&gt;There’s nothing like a Game 7&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="m0brG9"&gt;This Denver Nuggets/&lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com"&gt;Minnesota Timberwolves&lt;/a&gt; series has been bonkers. &lt;/p&gt;
  99. &lt;p id="0PbAQ3"&gt;First of all, you have T-Wolves head coach Chris Finch sitting on the second row while assistant Micah Nori mans the clipboard. Finch suffered a ruptured patellar tendon in his right knee after a collision with his own player. &lt;/p&gt;
  100. &lt;p id="1WIMV5"&gt;Then you have Minnesota waltzing into The Mile High City and stealing two games out from under the reigning NBA Champions. Following that, Denver made an impressive three-game sweep to put the Wolves’ backs against the wall on their home court.&lt;/p&gt;
  101. &lt;p id="r87OE5"&gt;How did Anthony Edwards and his merry band of canine’s respond? By tromping the Nuggets to the tune of a 45-point win.&lt;/p&gt;
  102. &lt;p id="MDmyG7"&gt;And now they face sudden death in a Game 7 that promises to be tense and energetic. &lt;/p&gt;
  103. &lt;p id="d8zBg7"&gt;For one, Anthony Edwards superstardom is in its infancy. He has not shown the maturity to lead a team as of yet. He certainly has the talent to take over, but advancing to the highest level requires more than a singular player. Look at LeBron James’ title runs to see that how you lead your team makes a difference.&lt;/p&gt;
  104. &lt;p id="EeIcFn"&gt;Edwards maturity has also been mentioned — although somewhat indirectly — by his elder teammates. In his &lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDJIGvQirFg"&gt;walk-and-talk&lt;/a&gt; interview with Stephen A. Smith, he originally pivoted from Smith’s “clearly the star attraction” but later stated “I’m the better player, 100% when asked about comparison to Shai Gilgeous- Alexander and Luka Doncic. &lt;/p&gt;
  105. &lt;p id="tOgeE2"&gt;He also embraced Stephen A.’s referral as the next “Kobe  or MJ” by saying, “I gotta fulfill what he said.” In that moment, Edwards exposed that what pundits say do define him and gave a commentor’s approval regard. The greats set their own standards on the court and leave the talking heads to the television.&lt;/p&gt;
  106. &lt;p id="4O3FK0"&gt;When &lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1lA_IBof6E"&gt;Mike Conley’s 2024 Sportsman Award&lt;/a&gt; was acknowledged on &lt;em&gt;Inside the NBA&lt;/em&gt;, he mentioned that Edwards “believes more in himself...I think he thinks the best player ever to the game, walk on earth.” The tongue-in-cheek was benign, but did allude to how a elder statesman views the young, budding superstar. &lt;/p&gt;
  107. &lt;p id="Ak6ryk"&gt;Conley also compared Edwards to his children saying “there’s absolutely no difference between my 7, 5, and 3, and Anthony Edwards, they are all the same. They act the same I have to teach them the same things...” Again, some seemingly harmless jabbing, but telling of the maturity of Edwards. &lt;/p&gt;
  108. &lt;p id="ubLl1m"&gt;Will Edwards be able to take in the moment and expose that diamond in the rough, and honor one of the team’s greatest players by leading the Timberwolves to their first Western Conference Finals in 20 years?&lt;/p&gt;
  109. &lt;p id="OG5oKW"&gt;Or will the Denver Nuggets embrace their home court advantage, employ their championship DNA, and take the spot in the Western Conference Finals? &lt;/p&gt;
  110. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="CcSoky"&gt;
  111. &lt;p id="aardBf"&gt;Welcome to the Thread. Join in the conversation, start your own discussion, and share your thoughts. This is the &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba/teams/san-antonio-spurs"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Spurs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; community, your Spurs community. Thanks for being here.&lt;/p&gt;
  112. &lt;p id="eRjX1B"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Our &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/community-guidelines"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;community guidelines&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; apply which should remind everyone to be cool, avoid personal attacks, not to troll and to watch the language.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  113.  
  114. </content>
  115.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/18/24158958/minnesota-timberwolves-look-celebrate-kevin-garnetts-birthday-advancing-western-conference-finals"/>
  116.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/18/24158958/minnesota-timberwolves-look-celebrate-kevin-garnetts-birthday-advancing-western-conference-finals</id>
  117.    <author>
  118.      <name>Jeph Duarte</name>
  119.    </author>
  120.  </entry>
  121.  <entry>
  122.    <published>2024-05-17T07:30:00-05:00</published>
  123.    <updated>2024-05-17T07:30:00-05:00</updated>
  124.    <title>2023-24 Spurs Player Reviews: Jeremy Sochan</title>
  125.    <content type="html">  
  126.  
  127.    &lt;figure&gt;
  128.      &lt;img alt="San Antonio Spurs v Utah Jazz" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/HISfWqHLWgZNs2GoNUSNEyw5RSc=/0x0:4968x3312/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73353386/2110570741.0.jpg" /&gt;
  129.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Chris Nicoll/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  130.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  131.  
  132.  &lt;p&gt;The sophomore found some footing after being miscast in a point guard experiment.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="BE3wcm"&gt;Welcome to Pounding the Rock’s 2023-24 player reviews! The series will look at the 15 players who finished the season with the &lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;San Antonio Spurs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; on guaranteed contracts (so no two-way players because we saw so little of them this year, and no Doug McDermott). Enjoy!&lt;/p&gt;
  133. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="3dxsdV"&gt;
  134. &lt;h3 id="MCOoDS"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Jeremy Sochan&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  135. &lt;h3 id="RQyqTP"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;2023-24 stats: 74 games, 11.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 43.8%FG&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  136. &lt;h4 id="7yXXop"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Contract Status: 2 year, $12.6 million remaining&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h4&gt;
  137. &lt;h4 id="ee4zmp"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Age: 20&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h4&gt;
  138. &lt;p id="8JFbLl"&gt;This year was nearly two completely different seasons for Jeremy Sochan. There was the first 25 games where Sochan was the subject of a point guard experiment by the &lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com"&gt;San Antonio Spurs&lt;/a&gt; coaching staff. Then came the rest of the season when he was allowed to play his natural position off the ball. Those first 25 games were not pretty, as Sochan struggled mightily with lead ball-handler duties. Defenses pressure him full court and dared him to make plays in the pick and roll. The results were high turnover nights and uneven offensive performances all around. &lt;/p&gt;
  139. &lt;p id="yu83OV"&gt;“There have been moments where it’s like, ‘Yo, I don’t want to.’ It’s like, ‘f--- this s---.’ I’m going to be honest,” Sochan said mid-season. “There have been moments where there isn’t confidence. But there are moments of being confident and just working. Knowing the trust I have from the coaches and players, it helps.”&lt;/p&gt;
  140. &lt;p id="zs0WWl"&gt;Gregg Popovich and his staff wanted Sochan to develop more on-ball skills. If nothing else, the team learned what Sochan’s limits are as a primary ball-handler. When the Spurs inserted Tre Jones into the starting lineup and moved Sochan off the ball, the offense started to improve with a real floor general on the court. Once that change was made, Sochan started to make strides as an off-ball cutter, using Victor Wembanyama’s gravity to find easy looks in the openings on the floor. &lt;/p&gt;
  141. &lt;p id="bnxQqj"&gt;Sochan improved as a three-point shooter this season. He shot 30.8% from deep on 3.4 attempts per game. While he’s certainly not a sharpshooter, his willingness to take shots from deep and occasionally make the defense pay for sagging off him was a big development from his rookie season. Sochan has a great motor, averaging nearly 2 offensive rebounds per game. He generates shots around the rim with his athleticism and energy. He was just okay at finishing those looks in the paint, making 65.9% of his attempts at the rim. &lt;/p&gt;
  142. &lt;p id="GMK55C"&gt;The biggest development for Sochan came on the defensive end. Sochan stepped into a “stopper” role, being asked to guard the opposing team’s best perimeter player, nightly. He posted a 1.9 defensive win share in 2023-24. With Wembanyama locking down the paint, Sochan did an admirable job stepping up to make it difficult for opposing scorers.&lt;/p&gt;
  143. &lt;h3 id="1n4Tj7"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Looking forward&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  144. &lt;p id="a4GNVa"&gt;Sochan had an up and down season offensively. For every 20+ point explosion came a single-digit affair. He had a hot shooting stretch from November to January, but was cold the rest of the season. In order to be a part of the Spurs long-term plans, Sochan has to find a consistent offensive role. Whether that’s becoming a respectable shooter who can space the floor, or a savvy cutter and finisher who can play off of Wembanyama. Improving in those areas will be vital to his long-term development.&lt;/p&gt;
  145. &lt;p id="ZE3Ly7"&gt;Luckily, we know Sochan is constantly in the gym with Spurs shooting coach, Jimmy Barron. Getting a full summer to work with Barron could do wonders for his shot. It already improved incrementally from his rookie to sophomore season. Sochan seems like a no-drama, team-friendly player who will buy into what the staff wants him to do (the point guard experiment is evidence of that.) That should give Spurs fans some hope that he can develop into a key player next to Wembanyama.&lt;/p&gt;
  146. &lt;p id="gB6YkJ"&gt;Acquiring more floor spacers this offseason could help Sochan’s offensive game. Last season teams weren’t overly concerned with guarding the Spurs on the perimeter, instead sending multiple defenders at Wembanyama inside. The paint clogged up and players like Sochan struggled to make an impact. Once San Antonio starts to stretch the defense out, guys like Sochan and Wembanyama will find more success on the interior.&lt;/p&gt;
  147. &lt;p id="W1SSbc"&gt;Sochan will be extension eligible in in two seasons. As of right now, it’s hard to imagine the Spurs would offer him the max rookie-scale extension they gave Devin Vassell last offseason. These next two years will be crucial to Sochan’s future with the team. Making strides on the offensive end should help Sochan earn his second contract and lead to more wins for the Spurs.&lt;/p&gt;
  148. &lt;h3 id="KcU7BC"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Top performance&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  149. &lt;p id="D99OOi"&gt;&lt;em&gt;March 25th vs. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.brightsideofthesun.com"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Phoenix Suns&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt;: 26 points, 18 rebounds in 104-102 win&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  150. &lt;div id="pkqXcW"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K1l90F5qfq0?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  151. &lt;h3 id="kdxUYE"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Final grade: B-&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  152. &lt;p id="nbzlGo"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Up next: &lt;/strong&gt;Devin Vassell&lt;/p&gt;
  153. &lt;p id="6gkIwZ"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Previous Reviews:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  154. &lt;p id="Ls444i"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/4/19/24133858/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-sidy-cissoko"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Sidy Cissoko&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  155. &lt;p id="GNIxUV"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/4/22/24135667/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-charles-bassey"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Charles Bassey&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  156. &lt;p id="iUYbGj"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/4/24/24137767/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-devonte-graham"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Devonte’ Graham&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  157. &lt;p id="go2gpi"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/4/26/24140767/2023-24-san-antonio-spurs-player-reviews-dominick-barlow-austin-spurs-g-league-2-way-overtime-elite"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Dominick Barlow&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  158. &lt;p id="QlFaBb"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/4/29/24144058/2023-24-san-antonio-spurs-player-reviews-sandro-mamukelashvili-gregg-popovich-nba-free-agency-wemby"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Sandro Mamukelashvili&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  159. &lt;p id="W3ZXB3"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/1/24145877/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-blake-wesley"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Blake Wesley&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  160. &lt;p id="kVzUd9"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/3/24146334/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-cedi-osman"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Cedi Osman&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  161. &lt;p id="odkT2N"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/7/24151448/nba-2023-24-san-antonio-spurs-player-reviews-julian-champagnie-victor-wembanyama-gregg-popovich"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Julian Champagnie&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  162. &lt;p id="bUQ2OF"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/8/24151503/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-zach-collins"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Zach Collins&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  163. &lt;p id="xEqbtY"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/10/24153206/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-malaki-branham"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Malaki Branham&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  164. &lt;p id="qcVhua"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/13/24153464/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-keldon-johnson"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Keldon Johnson&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  165. &lt;p id="C4peHm"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/15/24156893/2023-24-spurs-player-reviews-tre-jones"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Tre Jones&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  166. &lt;p id="4m3u6P"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  167. &lt;p id="25mNg5"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  168. &lt;p id="rVh8eh"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  169.  
  170. </content>
  171.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/17/24158673/2023-24-san-antonio-spurs-player-reviews-jeremy-sochan-all-star-weekend-victor-wembanyama-defensive"/>
  172.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/17/24158673/2023-24-san-antonio-spurs-player-reviews-jeremy-sochan-all-star-weekend-victor-wembanyama-defensive</id>
  173.    <author>
  174.      <name>Jacob Douglas</name>
  175.    </author>
  176.  </entry>
  177.  <entry>
  178.    <published>2024-05-17T06:00:00-05:00</published>
  179.    <updated>2024-05-17T06:00:00-05:00</updated>
  180.    <title>Open Thread: Happy birthday, Tony Parker</title>
  181.    <content type="html">  
  182.  
  183.    &lt;figure&gt;
  184.      &lt;img alt="Oklahoma City Thunder v San Antonio Spurs" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/yPHfiS7tCKiJqWc4J00zU4C-tNM=/0x0:4176x2784/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73353219/1239251321.0.jpg" /&gt;
  185.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  186.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  187.  
  188.  &lt;p&gt;The original French to Spurs connection&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="nlT3TO"&gt;Today, the &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba/teams/san-antonio-spurs"&gt;San Antonio Spurs&lt;/a&gt; superstar French guard celebrates his 42nd birthday.&lt;/p&gt;
  189. &lt;p id="Ba2AN7"&gt;Tony’s long and storied career with the Spurs involved four titles including taking the Finals MVP honors in 2007.&lt;/p&gt;
  190. &lt;p id="pQEglX"&gt;In addition, Tony made six All-Star appearances, two FIBA Europe Player of the Year, and a FIBA EuroBasket MVP. Known nationally and internationally, &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba/players/296723/tony-parker"&gt;Tony Parker&lt;/a&gt; seldom took a season off as he played nearly year-round.&lt;/p&gt;
  191. &lt;div id="AlNrNN"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4VAd4QdXusM?rel=0" style="border: 0; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media; accelerometer; gyroscope; picture-in-picture"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  192. &lt;p id="BKDLgh"&gt;Parker almost made it as a Spurs lifer, but after relinquishing his role to the development of the youth movement, Parker chose to finish his career in Charlotte under his idol Michael Jordan.&lt;/p&gt;
  193. &lt;p id="GRxX7u"&gt;Parker’s #9 was retired November 11, 2019 after a Spurs home game.&lt;/p&gt;
  194. &lt;div id="sXMiD1"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S4UYTAzOAWY?rel=0" style="border: 0; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media; accelerometer; gyroscope; picture-in-picture"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  195. &lt;p id="B82DRo"&gt;He has since released a book &lt;em&gt;Beyond All Of My Dreams&lt;/em&gt; that chronicles his career both on and off court. There was also a Netflix documentary &lt;em&gt;The Final Shot&lt;/em&gt; that mirrored much of his story.&lt;/p&gt;
  196. &lt;p id="q4gu1A"&gt;He can still be seen sitting on the sidelines of the AT&amp;amp;T Center enjoying a Spurs home game from time to time. Our dear friend is never far away.&lt;/p&gt;
  197. &lt;p id="TQ6eFd"&gt;Last season the Spurs drafted one of his countrymen, leading to more access of Parker cheering on his Spurs. &lt;/p&gt;
  198. &lt;p id="2HFejz"&gt;Last summer, Parker was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame along with Gregg Popovich and Beck Hammon.&lt;/p&gt;
  199. &lt;div id="3r0xvy"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1R8xwSq9SoU?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  200. &lt;p id="QkIBxh"&gt;And most recently, Parker was seen running the Olympic torch through Marseille as this summer’s games will be held in his native France.&lt;/p&gt;
  201. &lt;div id="ZqmW9C"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wr4Z5q05lAU?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  202. &lt;p id="DuPkte"&gt;Quite the life for such an important member of the Spurs organization.&lt;/p&gt;
  203. &lt;p id="hcdjTH"&gt;Happy birthday, Tony.&lt;/p&gt;
  204. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="LqJHOm"&gt;
  205. &lt;p id="aardBf"&gt;Welcome to the Thread. Join in the conversation, start your own discussion, and share your thoughts. This is the &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba/teams/san-antonio-spurs"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Spurs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; community, your Spurs community. Thanks for being here.&lt;/p&gt;
  206. &lt;p id="eRjX1B"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Our &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/community-guidelines"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;community guidelines&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; apply which should remind everyone to be cool, avoid personal attacks, not to troll and to watch the language.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  207. &lt;p id="wGQJlE"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  208.  
  209. </content>
  210.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/17/24155841/happy-birthday-tony-parker-naismith-hall-of-fame-olympics-france-nba-san-antonio-spurs-wembanyama"/>
  211.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/17/24155841/happy-birthday-tony-parker-naismith-hall-of-fame-olympics-france-nba-san-antonio-spurs-wembanyama</id>
  212.    <author>
  213.      <name>Jeph Duarte</name>
  214.    </author>
  215.  </entry>
  216.  <entry>
  217.    <published>2024-05-16T20:07:37-05:00</published>
  218.    <updated>2024-05-16T20:07:37-05:00</updated>
  219.    <title>Report: The Spurs have shown little interest in Trae Young</title>
  220.    <content type="html">  
  221.  
  222.    &lt;figure&gt;
  223.      &lt;img alt="NBA: San Antonio Spurs at Atlanta Hawks" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/VCuWWuElTebc8ceW6n6XpoVNOr8=/0x0:4205x2803/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73352709/usa_today_17663686.0.jpg" /&gt;
  224.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  225.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  226.  
  227.  &lt;p&gt;A new week, a new rumor about the Spurs and Trae Young.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="eXCnPc"&gt;As far back as the &lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/2/14/24073172/report-the-spurs-and-hawks-discussed-a-potential-trade-for-trae-young"&gt;trade deadline &lt;/a&gt;in February, Trae Young has seemingly been tied to the Spurs by multiple sources, often under the assumption that he will request a trade or be traded should the Atlanta Hawks decide to rebuild.  Winning the draft lottery for the first time in their franchise history has only added fuel to the overall speculation about what the Hawks will do now that they have another enticing chip to either dangle in front of potential trade partners or use themselves to jumpstart the rebuild.&lt;/p&gt;
  228. &lt;p id="DoTrB1"&gt;At the same time, the Spurs need a point guard who can feed Victor Wembanyama and score at least, and least on paper, Young fits the bill.  The Spurs also have the assets to be a viable trade, including two top-8 picks this summer and some of the Hawks’ own unprotected picks over the next few years from the Dejounte Murray trade that they would likely like to back, so he may be more attainable than it originally seemed.  However, according to &lt;a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/does-trae-young-make-sense-for-the-rebuilding-spurs-and-victor-wembanyama-212313043.html?guccounter=1&amp;amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAC8jZbECwtqeYQ3rQLkWN4sqSactMfCROUJa7hvlaADG-vFK19AhjGnnMyaDpUnrUfER3y5gvSYZAnsyrRfvWIZlWYU6ZeHnIodI_uZSK4Fwrpe2OWyz0xlGvA-DrPDj5DxLwsbKnR9Q7ooBEHvvUbmii2HtwXgvB7Uc2ZYhxdUA"&gt;Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports&lt;/a&gt;, the Spurs apparently have not shown as much interest in Young as some rumors and “reports” have led us to believe.&lt;/p&gt;
  229. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="oOaKC6"&gt;The Spurs have so far approached building around Wembanyama as an intriguing experiment, where they will weigh all different kinds of variables around their Rookie of the Year. However, according to multiple league figures with knowledge of the situation, any Spurs plans of maneuvering to bring Young to San Antonio have been vastly overstated. The Spurs, sources said, have expressed little interest in obtaining Young to date.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  230. &lt;p id="BvMEFF"&gt;With reports and rumors all over the place, it’s hard to know what and who to believe anymore, but one thing is for certain: the closer we get to the draft and free agency, the more these rumors will swirl up.  And who knows?  There may be a new “report” out next week the contradicts this one.  The best thing to do is go with the flow and trust that PATFO will do what’s best.&lt;/p&gt;
  231.  
  232. </content>
  233.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/16/24158667/report-the-spurs-have-shown-little-interest-in-trae-young"/>
  234.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/16/24158667/report-the-spurs-have-shown-little-interest-in-trae-young</id>
  235.    <author>
  236.      <name>Marilyn Dubinski</name>
  237.    </author>
  238.  </entry>
  239.  <entry>
  240.    <published>2024-05-16T07:02:44-05:00</published>
  241.    <updated>2024-05-16T07:02:44-05:00</updated>
  242.    <title>Mavericks hold off fourth quarter rally by Thunder to win game 5 in OKC, 104-92</title>
  243.    <content type="html">  
  244.  
  245.    &lt;figure&gt;
  246.      &lt;img alt="NBA: Playoffs-Dallas Mavericks at Oklahoma City Thunder" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Q6v75XiNNLuZM3mDDuMoh0sIuIk=/0x0:5339x3559/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73350999/usa_today_23285804.0.jpg" /&gt;
  247.        &lt;figcaption&gt;On top of Doncic’s greatness, the Mavericks’ stingy defense prevented Oklahoma City from getting the necessary scoring to support Shai Gilgeous-Alexander production’s | Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  248.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  249.  
  250.  &lt;p&gt;Dallas’ strong second period helped secure a lead that provided it enough cushion for its third win of the series&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="5UaBev"&gt;The Dallas Mavericks won each of the first three quarters, and staged a mini-run at the start of the final period to provide enough of a margin to take the crucial Game 5 in Oklahoma City tonight.  Luka Doncic’s third career playoff triple-double reflected his offensive brilliance (equal parts strong shooting and smart playmaking), and he also committed to focus on his great play rather than being distracted by referees.  The victorious Mavericks shot 53% from the field and 40% from three to keep the Thunder perpetually on their heels throughout.&lt;/p&gt;
  251. &lt;p id="HJztay"&gt;Dallas’ star duo of Doncic (31 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists) and Kyrie Irving (12 points and 4 assists) were consistently present in the early and late moments moreso than in Game 4.  The Mavericks received an unexpected scoring source in the first half tonight in Derrick Jones, Jr. (19 points, 3-5 from three).  PJ Washington (10 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists) provided a needed boost in the fourth period.  &lt;/p&gt;
  252. &lt;p id="VnrvAJ"&gt;Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (30 points, 8 assists, and 6 rebounds) was singularly excellent for Oklahoma City with no other contributors getting into double-digits until that exciting fourth quarter.  Jalen Williams (12 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 steals) struggled to impact the game until late, while Lu Dort (12 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Josh Giddey (11 points and 3 rebounds) chipped in during the home defeat.  &lt;/p&gt;
  253. &lt;p id="HtBluN"&gt;From the onset, Dallas’ Doncic and Irving were intent on attacking deep into the paint.  The Thunder, with six different players making field goals, found a comfortable balance around their starters to stay close with the Mavericks.  Jones, Jr. found offensive success at multiple levels to get 10 quick points, but the Thunder had higher accuracy from distance.  Dallas left the frame up two.&lt;/p&gt;
  254. &lt;p id="nQoANF"&gt;In a second period with few stoppages in the action, Dallas’ transition offense and intentional seeking out of its big for lobs and interior passes helped it go up by 13.  After a brief run by OKC, the Mavericks answered emphatically and a Doncic three pushed the advantage out to 15.  Gilgeous-Alexander sought out his own offense to help close his team’s gap, and yet, Dallas headed into the break up 54-44.&lt;/p&gt;
  255. &lt;p id="jZ1gVw"&gt;At the start of hte third, Dallas received a significant boost from its bigs, Washington and Gafford, to give its stars a little bit of rest at the offensive end.  The deep right corner became the Mavericks’ friend, as they maintained a stranglehold of their lead.  Gilgeous-Alexander’s 14 points in the stanza still was not enough - given that his teammates consistently misssed open jumpers - to help his team win a quarter in the game and the Thunder went into the fourth down 69-81. &lt;/p&gt;
  256. &lt;p id="e1arMN"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Observations&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  257. &lt;ul&gt;
  258. &lt;li id="PuZoec"&gt;There’s still likely two more games to this matchup, but it seems like Dallas is the worthier foe that could challenge the Nuggets over a full series.  &lt;/li&gt;
  259. &lt;li id="Dokh9c"&gt;Doncic and Jokic are the two players where I expect anything they throw up in the paint to either go in or draw a foul.  Gilgeous-Alexander is riiiiiiigghhhht there.&lt;/li&gt;
  260. &lt;li id="P3Snqw"&gt;Ian Eagle’s quippy lexicon reminds me of the retired NHL play-by-play voice “Doc” Mike Emrick.  &lt;/li&gt;
  261. &lt;li id="vmVZSZ"&gt;Can’t believe Irving is 32 years old!&lt;/li&gt;
  262. &lt;li id="oictEG"&gt;I never tire of typing ‘Gilgeous-Alexander.’ It’s definitely more fun than Jonas Valanciunas.  &lt;/li&gt;
  263. &lt;li id="cPfw4B"&gt;During the between-quarters interview, Thunder Head Coach Mark Daigneault seemed a little too calm and collected for an important occasion like Game 5. &lt;/li&gt;
  264. &lt;li id="cPRhuV"&gt;If the Spurs can get Wemby a fraction of the lob action that Dallas generates with Washington, Dereck Lively (11 points and 10 rebounds), and Jones, Jr.....&lt;/li&gt;
  265. &lt;li id="m1MfGT"&gt;The Thunder made their first three buckets from the tipoff.  Isaiah Joe and Holmgren, in particular, were assertive in finding their own offense.  Irving converted his usual difficult lay-up and found a diving Jones, Jr. for the first of his several important buckets tonight.  The teams matched 3-pointers over the middle part of the frame.  The fast and furious action yielded a 24-22 result after one for the Mavericks. &lt;/li&gt;
  266. &lt;li id="uiN5xc"&gt;The teams’ superior ball movement resulted in open threes. Lively continued the Dallas lob party off a wonderful feed from Doncic.  OKC’s offense stalled out and the Mavericks took lightning quick advantage to extend its lead. After a 6-0 Thunder run, Jones, Jr., was as Eagle described it, “tickling the clouds” for yet another lob dunk.  A Williams (Jalen) driving dunk was reminiscent of Russell Westbrook’s violent forays to the rim.  However, Dallas went into the half up 54-44.  &lt;/li&gt;
  267. &lt;li id="rUIVoY"&gt;Coming back from the break, the track meet continued between the teams.  A pair of Gafford and Washington, Jr. baskets staked the Mavericks out to a 14-point lead.  Gilgeous-Alexander responded with a pair of his own makes.  Despite the extended period of fireworks on both sides, OKC was not able to shave into the deficit much.  Dallas repeatedly used its actions to find open shooters in the right corner.  An Aaron Wiggons steal and transition lay-up brought the Thunder within ten, but Dallas exited the third up a dozen. &lt;/li&gt;
  268. &lt;li id="QgBYBA"&gt;Williams (Jalen) asserted himself to start the fourth, but the Mavericks coolly responded while pushing their advantage our further.  A second chance opportunity resulted in a straightaway three from Doncic to make it 89-71.  A pair of threes from Gilgeous-Alexander and Dort along with a Chet Holmgren dunk brought OKC within ten again.  Another thunderous Holmgren dunk was answered by a Washington corner three.  Washington’s next three was blocked, but he scooped the carom up and dunked it.  After several Doncic misses, OKC was not able to capitalize and get closer.   Jones, Jr. blocked Holmgren’s attempt and soared for a game-clinching transition dunk at the other end.&lt;/li&gt;
  269. &lt;/ul&gt;
  270. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="Ie1k5v"&gt;
  271. &lt;p id="V1c0M9"&gt;Game 6 takes place back in Dallas Saturday night at 7:00 PM CDT on an unassigned network at publishing.&lt;/p&gt;
  272.  
  273. </content>
  274.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/16/24157930/mavericks-hold-off-fourth-quarter-rally-by-thunder-to-win-game-in-okc-104-92"/>
  275.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/16/24157930/mavericks-hold-off-fourth-quarter-rally-by-thunder-to-win-game-in-okc-104-92</id>
  276.    <author>
  277.      <name>GaryQfromSanJose</name>
  278.    </author>
  279.  </entry>
  280.  <entry>
  281.    <published>2024-05-16T06:00:00-05:00</published>
  282.    <updated>2024-05-16T06:00:00-05:00</updated>
  283.    <title>Open Thread: Dwight Howard says he would “bust up” Victor Wembanyama in the paint</title>
  284.    <content type="html">  
  285.  
  286.    &lt;figure&gt;
  287.      &lt;img alt="Houston Rockets v Los Angeles Lakers" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/vCPezlDcYTm6st3Avtab0oxXaZA=/0x187:2370x1767/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73350870/462225174.0.jpg" /&gt;
  288.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Harry How/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  289.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  290.  
  291.  &lt;p&gt;The man who went #1 overall nineteen years before Wemby says he can hold his own against the current Rookie of the Year&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="VhwjaI"&gt;In a hot take worthy of Kendrick Perkins, three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard recently shared with Mike Miller on the &lt;em&gt;OGs Show&lt;/em&gt; podcast that although he praised Victor Wembanyama’s standout rookie season, in a one-on-one matchup, the thirty-eight-year old believes he would “bust Wemby up in the paint.”&lt;/p&gt;
  292. &lt;p id="TQmxZC"&gt;Admitting the battle would be tough, Howard was confident in himself. &lt;/p&gt;
  293. &lt;div id="7Co89p"&gt;
  294. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  295. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;    &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;'I'm busting Wemby up in the paint' | Former NBA center Dwight Howard says Spurs' Wembanyama is no match for him&lt;a href="https://t.co/nktKeTw7uA"&gt;https://t.co/nktKeTw7uA&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/nba?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#nba&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/porvida?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#porvida&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sanantonio?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#sanantonio&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gospusgo?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#gospusgo&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— JeffGSpursKENS5 (@JeffGSpursZone) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JeffGSpursZone/status/1790768037462761870?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  296. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  297. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  298.  
  299. &lt;/div&gt;
  300. &lt;p id="zduTZf"&gt;This is not the first time Howard has commented on Victor. On December 9, 2023, Wembanyama left his mark on the NBA by surpassing Dwight Howard’s record as the youngest player to achieve a 20/20 game.&lt;/p&gt;
  301. &lt;div id="OviGWB"&gt;
  302. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;
  303. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Wemby tonight:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;21 PTS&lt;br&gt;20 REB&lt;br&gt;4 AST&lt;br&gt;4 BLK&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Youngest player ever to have a 20/20 game. &lt;a href="https://t.co/9wUpHFbaWy"&gt;pic.twitter.com/9wUpHFbaWy&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— WembyMuse (@Wemby_Muse) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Wemby_Muse/status/1733333955368161301?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 9, 2023&lt;/a&gt;
  304. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  305. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  306.  
  307. &lt;/div&gt;
  308. &lt;p id="XMm9w8"&gt;Broke my record ! This guy is already great ! Love to see it    &lt;/p&gt;
  309. &lt;p id="5YGVzW"&gt;— Dwight Howard (@DwightHoward) December 11, 2023&lt;/p&gt;
  310. &lt;p id="pku857"&gt;The 6’10” 265 lbs. baller, who has most recently been playing in Puerto Rico, could best bully the French Phenom in the paint. Unfortunately for Howard, he’d suffer through being blocked in the paint more than he is used to. &lt;/p&gt;
  311. &lt;p id="vsJyoo"&gt;Additionally, Wemby can shoot over Howard, especially from beyond the arc.&lt;/p&gt;
  312. &lt;p id="6BgyJr"&gt;I’m not saying Victor could go unscathed, but in the end he would prevail. &lt;/p&gt;
  313. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="rjB9wA"&gt;
  314. &lt;p id="aardBf"&gt;Welcome to &lt;em&gt;The Thread&lt;/em&gt;. Join in the conversation, start your own discussion, and share your thoughts. This is the &lt;a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Spurs&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; community, your Spurs community. Thanks for being here.&lt;/p&gt;
  315. &lt;p id="qlhrTq"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Our &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.poundingtherock.com/community-guidelines"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;community guidelines&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt; apply which should remind everyone to be cool, avoid personal attacks, do not troll and watch the language.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  316.  
  317. </content>
  318.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/16/24153292/nba-dwight-howard-says-he-would-bust-up-victor-wembanyama-in-the-paint-san-antonio-spurs-lakers"/>
  319.    <id>https://www.poundingtherock.com/2024/5/16/24153292/nba-dwight-howard-says-he-would-bust-up-victor-wembanyama-in-the-paint-san-antonio-spurs-lakers</id>
  320.    <author>
  321.      <name>Jeph Duarte</name>
  322.    </author>
  323.  </entry>
  324. </feed>
  325.  

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