San Antonio Spurs early-season performance and point differential, Digi Mart USA News: This is supposed to be the experimentation part of the season for the Spurs, but they are 8-2 with a 10.3-point differential, which is the second-best in the NBA. San Antonio is starting a three-guard lineup that has drawn a lot of scrutiny from analysts and fans alike.
There seemed to be no reason to fix what was not broken after an NBA Finals run nobody predicted, but the unit is performing far better than expected.
As The Ringer’s Michael Pina pointed out in a recently published article examining the group in depth, the Silver and Black are +56 in the 90 minutes De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper have shared. Victor Wembanyama is shooting just a few percentage points below 70% inside the perimeter when on the floor with them.
It is not supposed to be going this well this fast.
Despite all the winning, not everything has been perfect. The bench play has been inconsistent, Stephon Castle has not had a strong offensive start, and Tobias Harris has yet to play a game.
Regardless, the Spurs have been blowing teams out, and that is what makes the streak impressive.
San Antonio has played Utah, Sacramento, and Dallas twice each, opponents that are not exactly world beaters. The Portland game meant more.
The Trail Blazers faced the reigning Western Conference champions without Ja Morant, yet the Spurs won decisively, wiping the floor with their former first-round opponents. The Spurs beat Portland in five games back in April, one of those wins coming without Victor Wembanyama, but this meeting was worse for the Blazers.
Portland’s Deni Avdija blamed the second night of a back-to-back, but the same was true for the Spurs.
No matter what the Spurs try, they keep winning while doing it. That reflects how much the players buy into what the coach preaches, along with their high-end talent and determination to see each other succeed.
A top-five rating on both ends of the floor is not a matter of luck, and players do not achieve it as individuals.
The scary part is that less than 15% of the season’s games have been played. There is more growth to come, and Tobias Harris will eventually be integrated.
The league’s best team is only getting better, and the runway to do so is long. Buckle up, NBA.
