The Spurs snapped a five-game losing streak with a 130-108 win over the Pistons, who suffered a six-game losing streak. I have to say that the Pistons are really bad this year, and Monty thought he wanted to hit the playoffs, but he ended up playing like this. In fact, the Pistons are talented, at least much better than the Spurs. The Spurs are now a Wembanyama, and they have to hoard talent for another 1-2 years. The Pistons were the top pick at Cunningham, and Ivey and Duren were also high picks.
It is reasonable for the Spurs to be bad, the Pistons are a bit of a surprise, and the most important thing is that Monty's contract is not small, basically the highest contract in the NBA, more than $100 million. Moreover, the Pistons lost so much, and the rookies on the team were not cultivated, and they basically had no self-confidence. On the other hand, the Spurs plan is proceeding in an orderly manner, and they know that this year is all about giving the ball to Wembanyama to develop, and nothing else is needed.
In the opening game, Popovich was cautious with Wemban, basically limiting the time and not wanting him to get injured, and then giving him the tactical core position. In the limited time he had, Wembanyama was indeed a two-line development, and he played what the Spurs wanted to pick him, comparable to the terrifying body of Durant and the alphabet. At the same time, he is also developing another skill: organizational skills. As Popovich said after the game, he hopes Wembanyama can take the organization to the extreme.
In today's alliance, a big man with an organization is very threatening. And today can be called Wemban's most perfect performance, in the first quarter he assisted Jones for consecutive layups, and then when the opponent began to cut Wemban's passing route, he forced two more balls himself, and the Pistons were caught off guard. Later, Wemban showed the style of a master of passing, he assisted Sochan in the backcourt for a violent dunk, and then passed Sohan in the high post and scored in the air, Wemban played with ease, and the Spurs led 31-19 in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Pistons fought back, but Sochan hit a three-point shot to stop the bleeding, and Wemban's 12 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists led the team by 12 points in the half. Wembanyama scored another dunk in the second half, and then turned on assist mode again, allowing Vassell and Champagnie to basket respectively. The Spurs led by 20 points in a wave to kill the suspense. In the whole game, Wembanyama played only 21 points to get 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. He became the youngest center in NBA history to have a triple-double.
The Spurs' training model is the most reasonable, which is why Popovich is the master and Udoka is the apprentice. The arrival of Udoka this season has left the Rockets rookie without development, and Jalen Green has completely lost possession of the ball from previous seasons due to Van Jordan's control of the ball. Smith also didn't get a lot of development resources, and the team may only have Shin Jing playing. Then Amen Thompson and Ethan and Whitmore also didn't get enough time.
The Rockets' current record is only 50%, barely close to the 10th playoff level in the West. If the Rockets go all out this year to let Van Jordan control the game and compress the rookie development, then they will not make the playoffs in the end, not even the play-offs. That year the Rockets were basically a year of failure, and they basically got nothing. And Jalen Green, who is in the fourth year next year, will the Rockets continue to keep the compressed time, or will they send it away? The Rockets are putting the cart before the horse, as this year's play-offs are secondary, mainly to develop rookies.