Game Preview: San Antonio Spurs vs. Portland Trail Blazers
Yesterday at 03:00 AM
San Antonio hosts the scrappy Blazers after a tightly contested game last week.
It seems like every San Antonio Spurs game is a nail-biter. The Spurs are 7-3 in clutch games this season, including a major win over the Atlanta Hawks in overtime on Thursday night. Now they'll host the Portland Trail Blazers, who they narrowly beat 118-116 a week ago.
Both teams will look quite different, even if they just played last week. Portland will get back key contributors like DeAndre Ayton, and the Spurs are back to full health for the first time all season. San Antonio matched the Blazers' physical brand of basketball in their last matchup. They'll have to deal with tough athletes like Toumani Camara, Shaedon Sharpe, and Jerami Grant as well as the dynamic scoring guard Anfernee Simons.
The Spurs will look to their superstar, Victor Wembanyama, who was dominant in their last win over the Hawks. He's looked like an All-Star lately and has been great in clutch time. San Antonio will have an ace in the hole if they are once again put into a tight game.
San Antonio Spurs (14-13) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (9-18)
December 19th 2024 | 7:00 PM CT
Watch: CW35| Listen: WOAI (1200 AM)
Spurs Injuries: David Duke Jr. – Out (G League), Riley Minix – Out (G League), Harrison Ingram – Out (G League)
Trail Blazers Injuries: Dalano Banton – Questionable (hip), Bryce McGowens – Out (G League), Justin Minaya – Out (G League), Taze Moore – Out (G League), Matisse Thybulle – Out (ankle)
What to watch for
Matching Portland's physicality
The Blazers are a big, athletic, and physical team. They have enough pesky defenders to disrupt the Spurs' scorers. San Antonio matched Portland's physicality in their last matchup, especially Jeremy Sochan, who grabbed three offensive rebounds in the victory. They'll need to play tough once again to match up with the Blazers' brand of basketball. Now, with Ayton back, they'll be able to attack the paint with floaters and lobs.
San Antonio's starting lineup
The Spurs' new starting lineup looked great on Thursday night. Chris Paul, Devin Vassell, Harrison Barnes, Sochan, and Wembanyama made the Hawks work on defense and created a lot of advantages offensively. Sochan is able to do the dirty work inside while the rest of the lineup handles, moves, and shoots the ball. Wembanyama's ability to stretch the floor and hit his teammates for assists makes dynamic offensive players like Vassell and Paul even more effective. Watch how this lineup improves as they play more minutes together.
Quality minutes from the backup center
Mitch Johnson has a few options at center behind Wembanyama, but none of them have stepped up to claim the job. Zach Collins has been up-and-down this year offensively and got hit with a DNP in the Spurs' last game. Charles Bassey has a high motor and can protect the rim in spurts but lacks the offensive ability to make teams pay on the other end. Johnson actually went to Sochan as the backup center against the undersized Hawks. Portland is a bigger squad that will likely necessitate a backup big man. It'll be interesting to see if Bassey or Collins steps up to take the job.
