mazerrackham
New member
- Joined
- Oct 26, 2025
- Messages
- 17
- Reaction score
- 22
Scott's traveling so guest poster mazer rackham coming at you with some close-out Spurs playoff grades from game 5. Great first half and hanging on in the second half led to Spurs being able to close out the series. I know we're all looking forward to more Spurs playoff basketball in the 2nd round against either Minnesota or Denver, so in the meantime here's some grades to kick off some discussion/thoughts.
Victor Wembanyama
Game 5 - 5.00, Series Average - 4.37
@scott - Amazing how he can have a casual offensive game but be so dominant on defense it elevates him to an easy 5 for me.
@LeBowen - What can even be said? I guess I was impressed at how he showed zero signs of frustration after not getting the ball for long stretches, despite being wide open in a handful of situations.
@heyheymymy - Defense was stifiling and Wemby played in control with more selective offense.
@spurraider21 - Just an absurd player. He wasnt pressing much offensively early on because of how easily we were scoring, but still controlled the game defensively. Scored when he had to later. Owned the game.
De'Aaron Fox
Game 5 - 5.00, Series Average - 3.75
@scott - I hope everyone is enjoying that steaming turd that he dropped on your chest the last two games.
@heyheymymy - Fox shows some consistency to end the series. Makes things so easy when he is having a good game. Three point shot selection seems careless at times.
mazer - Great efficiency, and (though it could have been a bit quicker for my liking) delivered as the closer that all spurs fans hope for in a ruthless way to put the Blazers to bed. Even before his offensive explosion he controlled the game well and had some nice dimes.
@spurraider21 - If we get game 4/5 Fox on a regular basis, we are title favorites, and I don't want to hear otherwise.
Stephon Castle
Game 5 - 2.20, Series Average - 3.24
@LeBowen - He's not the main character, he can't get frustrated. If it's not his night, he needs to stay calm and let others do the work. Those terrible turnovers on consecutive possessions brought Blazers back into life.
@heyheymymy - Bad stuff with tovs and fouling out. But I still like his energy, hitting 2 threes. Castle doesn't seem the type for composure risk but he must manage agitators like Deni.
mazer - I would give him an average 3 but his turnovers were really dragging the offense down. A lot of what he did was just fine, and the refs didn't cut him any slack despite others not getting the same treatment, but regardless he's gotta take care of the ball better in this one. Being inefficient but getting shots up is just fine after a first half like they had. Being sloppy and turning the ball over is the biggest sin you can commit in that situation.
@spurraider21 - Overall not a great series for him. Awesome in game 3. He just continues to struggle and presses a bit too much offensively into the teeth of a good defense. This style of play may work against Denver, but won't against Minnesota. Also bad frustration fouls late that could be costly in a different context
Julian Champagnie
Game 5 - 5.00, Series Average - 3.76
@scott - Felt a Champ game coming, tonight was a good night for it!
@LeBowen - A perfect game from him, unfairly benched by Mitch at the end in favor of three guard lineup, but Castle fouled out in no time.
@heyheymymy - Champs early sharpshooting proved crucial to break the Blazers will.
@spurraider21 - Champaigne supernova game. What more can you say? He's shooting very aggressively with confidence and not shying away during playoff action. Great to see
Devin Vassell
Game 5 - 3.40, Series Average - 3.78
@LeBowen - Not a great game for him other than that highlight block and a mid-range when Blazers cut it to 9. His 3pt shot has disappeared and he didn't get any rebounds.
@heyheymymy - Rough shooting but I still like what he brought in hustle and defense. Got the offense started early and hit one late to stave off Portlands last push.
mazer - Continues to be a good glue guy, though it always pains me a bit to see a 0-4 from three box score, I still think he's taking the right shots and playing his role really well.
@spurraider21 - It feels bad giving him a 3 because he competed defensively and had a nasty block. He made a couple of timely buckets. But the overall shotmaking is going to have to be better in future rounds and that is still his primary value
Dylan Harper
Game 5 - 4.20, Series Average - 3.75
@LeBowen - Looked effortless out there, he'll be maybe even the most important player in the next series because we know what we can get from the starters.
@heyheymymy - Great to see the rookie with some consistent big performances. He looks like a natural.
mazer - Really good stuff from the rook again. He had some great defense, efficient offense, and shot the ball efficiently.
@spurraider21 - Good game for the kid. Not quite game 3 levels, but did damage during his playing time, helped us stay confident when Castle was out of the game
Luke Kornet
Game 5 - 2.80, Series Average - 3.94
@LeBowen - A quiet game, I felt like he should've had a couple more rebounds, but he was solid enough.
@heyheymymy -Solid if compact game from Luke. Did what was needed to advance and now hopefully gets some good rest to offset his heavy R1 mins.
mazer - I expect a bit more from him. Had a couple good rim contests, but also had several where he didn't put up much resistance. Several boards I felt he just slapped at instead of grabbing also made me pull my hair.
@spurraider21 - Solid game to cap off what was overall an excellent series for him except for game 4.
Keldon Johnson
Game 5 - 3.00, Series Average - 2.52
@scott - Not a great game, but brought the energy.
@LeBowen - Still not great, but way better than the first couple of games when he actively killed our momentum.
@heyheymymy - KJ showed some of his trademark hustle. Good spark off the bench. Hope this gets him engaged for Round 2.
mazer - Still not a perfect game and he's just outside of a 4 for me because he did provide some timely energy plays, but he also had stretches of being fairly invisible.
@spurraider21 - KJ had a rough series but was ok in the finale. Really had trouble against Portland's frontline. Won't get any easier if we play Minnesota or Denver if Gordon is healthy.
Harrison Barnes
Game 5 - 2.40, Series Average - 2.30
@LeBowen - Didn't mess anything up, but he's becoming a cardio man out there.
@heyheymymy - He brings vet stability still but can't get much going elsewere.
mazer - I still have some faith that Barnes can deliver a big moment when he's needed in this playoffs but the candle's growing dimmer by the game.
@spurraider21 - Frankly dont get why he is playing over Bryant. At least he made a couple of shots but they were short 2's, uncontested.
Mitch Johnson
Game 5 - 4.25, Series Average - 3.60
@LeBowen - Honestly, not sure. Do I praise him for having the guys ready from the tip-off or do I criticize him for another awful quarter where we got taken completely out of rythm by the referees and Castle's turnovers? I guess I'll give him the benefit of the doubt since it was a closeout game.
@heyheymymy - Give credit to Coach Mitch. Won his first Spurs series ever in 5 and managed his star being out 2 games. Offense without Wemby was a mid-series adjustment test he figured out for a tough road win. Was not always pretty with stagnant offense at times and not trusting CB more but he got the job done well while navigating some hurdles.
mazer - Yeah, the team was a bit up and down. Maybe young team syndrome or maybe Mitch could have done more? Ultimately he gets a positive grade for the team being ready to play and finishing strong, but like I keep saying it's always hard to know what to attribute to the coach outside of the players themselves.
Closing Thoughts:
I think this series has closed out with me still having some concerns about the Spurs taking care of the ball appropriately, and keeping the foot on the gas when you have a lead in order to not let teams back in it, but overall good stuff from the squad taking care of business. It only gets harder from here, but this felt like a good solid step taken in the new era Spurs.
Victor Wembanyama
Game 5 - 5.00, Series Average - 4.37
@scott - Amazing how he can have a casual offensive game but be so dominant on defense it elevates him to an easy 5 for me.
@LeBowen - What can even be said? I guess I was impressed at how he showed zero signs of frustration after not getting the ball for long stretches, despite being wide open in a handful of situations.
@heyheymymy - Defense was stifiling and Wemby played in control with more selective offense.
@spurraider21 - Just an absurd player. He wasnt pressing much offensively early on because of how easily we were scoring, but still controlled the game defensively. Scored when he had to later. Owned the game.
De'Aaron Fox
Game 5 - 5.00, Series Average - 3.75
@scott - I hope everyone is enjoying that steaming turd that he dropped on your chest the last two games.
@heyheymymy - Fox shows some consistency to end the series. Makes things so easy when he is having a good game. Three point shot selection seems careless at times.
mazer - Great efficiency, and (though it could have been a bit quicker for my liking) delivered as the closer that all spurs fans hope for in a ruthless way to put the Blazers to bed. Even before his offensive explosion he controlled the game well and had some nice dimes.
@spurraider21 - If we get game 4/5 Fox on a regular basis, we are title favorites, and I don't want to hear otherwise.
Stephon Castle
Game 5 - 2.20, Series Average - 3.24
@LeBowen - He's not the main character, he can't get frustrated. If it's not his night, he needs to stay calm and let others do the work. Those terrible turnovers on consecutive possessions brought Blazers back into life.
@heyheymymy - Bad stuff with tovs and fouling out. But I still like his energy, hitting 2 threes. Castle doesn't seem the type for composure risk but he must manage agitators like Deni.
mazer - I would give him an average 3 but his turnovers were really dragging the offense down. A lot of what he did was just fine, and the refs didn't cut him any slack despite others not getting the same treatment, but regardless he's gotta take care of the ball better in this one. Being inefficient but getting shots up is just fine after a first half like they had. Being sloppy and turning the ball over is the biggest sin you can commit in that situation.
@spurraider21 - Overall not a great series for him. Awesome in game 3. He just continues to struggle and presses a bit too much offensively into the teeth of a good defense. This style of play may work against Denver, but won't against Minnesota. Also bad frustration fouls late that could be costly in a different context
Julian Champagnie
Game 5 - 5.00, Series Average - 3.76
@scott - Felt a Champ game coming, tonight was a good night for it!
@LeBowen - A perfect game from him, unfairly benched by Mitch at the end in favor of three guard lineup, but Castle fouled out in no time.
@heyheymymy - Champs early sharpshooting proved crucial to break the Blazers will.
@spurraider21 - Champaigne supernova game. What more can you say? He's shooting very aggressively with confidence and not shying away during playoff action. Great to see
Devin Vassell
Game 5 - 3.40, Series Average - 3.78
@LeBowen - Not a great game for him other than that highlight block and a mid-range when Blazers cut it to 9. His 3pt shot has disappeared and he didn't get any rebounds.
@heyheymymy - Rough shooting but I still like what he brought in hustle and defense. Got the offense started early and hit one late to stave off Portlands last push.
mazer - Continues to be a good glue guy, though it always pains me a bit to see a 0-4 from three box score, I still think he's taking the right shots and playing his role really well.
@spurraider21 - It feels bad giving him a 3 because he competed defensively and had a nasty block. He made a couple of timely buckets. But the overall shotmaking is going to have to be better in future rounds and that is still his primary value
Dylan Harper
Game 5 - 4.20, Series Average - 3.75
@LeBowen - Looked effortless out there, he'll be maybe even the most important player in the next series because we know what we can get from the starters.
@heyheymymy - Great to see the rookie with some consistent big performances. He looks like a natural.
mazer - Really good stuff from the rook again. He had some great defense, efficient offense, and shot the ball efficiently.
@spurraider21 - Good game for the kid. Not quite game 3 levels, but did damage during his playing time, helped us stay confident when Castle was out of the game
Luke Kornet
Game 5 - 2.80, Series Average - 3.94
@LeBowen - A quiet game, I felt like he should've had a couple more rebounds, but he was solid enough.
@heyheymymy -Solid if compact game from Luke. Did what was needed to advance and now hopefully gets some good rest to offset his heavy R1 mins.
mazer - I expect a bit more from him. Had a couple good rim contests, but also had several where he didn't put up much resistance. Several boards I felt he just slapped at instead of grabbing also made me pull my hair.
@spurraider21 - Solid game to cap off what was overall an excellent series for him except for game 4.
Keldon Johnson
Game 5 - 3.00, Series Average - 2.52
@scott - Not a great game, but brought the energy.
@LeBowen - Still not great, but way better than the first couple of games when he actively killed our momentum.
@heyheymymy - KJ showed some of his trademark hustle. Good spark off the bench. Hope this gets him engaged for Round 2.
mazer - Still not a perfect game and he's just outside of a 4 for me because he did provide some timely energy plays, but he also had stretches of being fairly invisible.
@spurraider21 - KJ had a rough series but was ok in the finale. Really had trouble against Portland's frontline. Won't get any easier if we play Minnesota or Denver if Gordon is healthy.
Harrison Barnes
Game 5 - 2.40, Series Average - 2.30
@LeBowen - Didn't mess anything up, but he's becoming a cardio man out there.
@heyheymymy - He brings vet stability still but can't get much going elsewere.
mazer - I still have some faith that Barnes can deliver a big moment when he's needed in this playoffs but the candle's growing dimmer by the game.
@spurraider21 - Frankly dont get why he is playing over Bryant. At least he made a couple of shots but they were short 2's, uncontested.
Mitch Johnson
Game 5 - 4.25, Series Average - 3.60
@LeBowen - Honestly, not sure. Do I praise him for having the guys ready from the tip-off or do I criticize him for another awful quarter where we got taken completely out of rythm by the referees and Castle's turnovers? I guess I'll give him the benefit of the doubt since it was a closeout game.
@heyheymymy - Give credit to Coach Mitch. Won his first Spurs series ever in 5 and managed his star being out 2 games. Offense without Wemby was a mid-series adjustment test he figured out for a tough road win. Was not always pretty with stagnant offense at times and not trusting CB more but he got the job done well while navigating some hurdles.
mazer - Yeah, the team was a bit up and down. Maybe young team syndrome or maybe Mitch could have done more? Ultimately he gets a positive grade for the team being ready to play and finishing strong, but like I keep saying it's always hard to know what to attribute to the coach outside of the players themselves.
Closing Thoughts:
I think this series has closed out with me still having some concerns about the Spurs taking care of the ball appropriately, and keeping the foot on the gas when you have a lead in order to not let teams back in it, but overall good stuff from the squad taking care of business. It only gets harder from here, but this felt like a good solid step taken in the new era Spurs.
