Danny Green drops the hammer on Kevin Durant
San Antonio shooting guard Danny Green has made a living locking down opposing wings and leaking out to the arc to drain uncontested threes, so when he blew by Steph Curry and rose up over Kevin Durant for a slam, it came as no surprise that he left the fans in the sold out AT&T Center with their jaws on the floor in disbelief. His vehement dunk sent the Spurs crowd into pandemonium as they rose out of their seats and showered the fan favorite with a sea of cheers.
Unfortunately for San Antonio, the momentum from the highlight reel play was short lived and like an all too familiar script, the Golden State Warriors found a way to fight back from down 19. The second half of the game was demoralizingly one-sided as Golden State dismantled the Spurs to rip the win from their clutches and blow the ailing team out of the water 112-92.
Despite another huge night from LaMarcus Aldridge, the 88 combined points from the Warriors superstar quartet of Durant, Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green proved to be too much for them to handle. In the end, the Spurs sealed their fate with unacceptably terrible shooting in the second half and easily avoided defensive breakdowns incongruous with their usual defensive excellence.
Sophomore Dejounte Murray came out of the gates hot to begin the season, but has since come back down to earth with several forgettable showings that have left him relegated to bench duties under backup point guard Patty Mills. As for Mills, despite being rotated into the starting lineup, his nightmarish shooting troubles have continued to linger in his new role as the leading guard.
After jumping out to a unexpected 4-0 start without perennial MVP candidate Kawhi Leonard, the Spurs have suffered major team-wide regressions and dropped their last four games bringing them to an even 4-4 record. While the exceptional championship pedigree coaching of Gregg Popovich should keep San Antonio afloat in the NBA standings, it has become increasingly apparent that life without Leonard has left San Antonio on the outside looking in.
As far as we know, Kawhi Leonard will remain sidelined for at least another three weeks, and although this will give the Spurs’ inexperienced prospects an opportunity to shine, winning games in the regular season is the only way to make the playoffs. Having said that, San Antonio is a playoff team with or without Leonard on their roster. However, if the Spurs hope to make another deep playoff run, they’ll need Kawhi and company on the same page.
San Antonio will face off Friday against an upstart Charlotte Hornets team coming fresh off a huge win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday. Should they secure the career victory number 1155 for head coach Gregg Popovich, he would tie coaching legend Phil Jackson for sixth place on the NBA’s all-time wins list. Though career accolades mean nothing to their stern-faced play caller, the milestone would further boost what is already a surefire Hall of Fame resume for the coaching icon.
