Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images A young team faces another setback before Paris I think this qualifies as a slump. I’m not sure what the actual statistical measures are, but as far as I’m concerned... the Spurs are slumping. That’s something you probably have to expect with a team like this: little slumps here and there, stretches where things just aren’t clicking and nothing’s really coming together. We’ve all been there, right? I haven’t noticed anything in these games that makes me worry about the future or feel like we need to smash the panic button. It’s a slump. It happens. What’s contributing to it though? Are they tired? Overextended? Do they just not have enough talent? Probably yes to all of the above. There’s likely a handful of other issues mixed into this unfortunate stew that we can’t possibly see from our front-row seats on the couch. They lost their head coach right as the season was starting—maybe that’s finally catching up to them. Maybe a first-year head coach doing an admirable job is still having a tough time filling the gaps left by a Hall of Famer. Maybe the whirlwind of attention that comes from having one of the most famous athletes on the planet is more taxing than we realize. I can tell you for sure they didn’t play very well in Miami yesterday, but I doubt anyone can truly pinpoint the deeper reasons why. What’s relevant to us is that it’s happening. The slump is happening, and we’re here, acknowledging that fact. How and when they pull out of it is beyond our control, so all we can do as fans is recognize it and not completely lose our cool. Right? We’re not going to freak out, right? Because it’d be easy to. I know it would. I’ve sat through these collapses and felt the anger rising in my chest. They’re better than this! I know they are! I’ve seen it! Why aren’t they just... doing it better? It’s beyond frustrating, and no amount of deep breathing makes it any more fun to watch our guys repeatedly blow their defensive assignments deep in the shot clock or force shots on offense that have no business being forced. This is our reality right now, and right now, our reality bites. Maybe a quick trip across the pond will be a nice reset for everyone. A chance to see things from a different perspective and get out of the oppressive grind that is the NBA schedule. This isn’t exactly the strong form anyone was hoping they’d carry onto the global stage in Paris, but hey, it’s not the end of the world. Frankly, none of this is. The Spurs are a young team playing at the low end of their considerable capabilities at the moment. They can’t seem to figure it out, but that doesn’t mean they never will. Takeaways: I think we can all agree the debate about whether the Spurs need Jeremy Sochan in the lineup can be put to rest. I’m sure we can all be reasonable and agree that, duh, of course Jeremy makes us better. Anyone who was on the fence about it before his extended absence can accept defeat gracefully and bow out of the race.* The team misses his physicality, his ability to slot in anywhere in the lineup, his energy—the whole Jeremy Sochan experience. It’s not easy to define why he’s so important, which is why this debate was a thing in the first place, but the Sochan-shaped hole in the Spurs’ ability to be a wrecking ball on the court is glaring. *I fully recognize and acknowledge that no one who argues on the internet will ever actually stop arguing or do anything with grace. This team can’t seem to get transition anything right, which is confounding because it feels like it should be a strength. We’re so long and athletic and fast that you’d think transition defense would flow naturally. At the drop of a hat, they need to be sprinting, finding their spots, and putting out fires. No one is running complicated schemes in transition, so our defense shouldn’t be complicated in return. Everyone just needs to react faster. Maybe that’s easier said than done—what do I know? It feels almost inexcusable to have Victor go scoreless in a quarter. That should be impossible. If he’s going to be the focal point of everything the Spurs do on offense, then the team needs to be putting him in positions to succeed—better sets or, heck, any sets at all. Teams seem to have figured out that you can be so physical with Chris Paul that he has trouble even starting the offense in the first place. If that’s happening, then someone else needs to bring the ball up the court. Think outside the box. I know Chris runs the show, but we’re fast approaching that point where we’re doing the same bit over and over, expecting different results. It’s not cutting it. Losing to a team like the Heat, which is currently in a hostage situation with its own player, is dumb and embarrassing. The whole Jimmy Butler–Heat dynamic is pretty dumb and embarrassing in its own right. The only thing more embarrassing is people predicting the Spurs would trade for a personality like Jimmy Butler right now, hoping he’s the slight push needed to get them to, I dunno, the 8th seed? Dumb. Did I mention embarrassing? Because it’s dumb. And embarrassing. WWL Post Game Press Conference - Are you excited to watch the games in France. - I’d be more excited to watch the games in France if I was actually watching the games in France. - You’re telling me that Pounding The Rock didn’t front the money to fly you over there for this? - They didn’t! - Did you explain to them how valuable your insights would be sitting in the arena? - Of course. - Did you explain to them that there is a certain, I don’t know what, about being in the France for these games that will be impossible to accurately report on from home? - A je ne sais quoi? Bien sûr. - Zut alors! - En effet!