Dylan Harper couldn’t quite carry the Spurs to victory (Photo via X)
With Victor Wembanyama out of the game for most of the final three quarters, the San Antonio Spurs lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves by a final score of 114-109. The Spurs actually led by eight points three minutes into the final stanza but San Antonio’s defense fell off late and they were unable to hold on. This best of seven series, with the winner set to play the Oklahoma City Thunder, is now tied 2-2.
Stats: Spurs at Timberwolves
Spurs at Timberwolves – Final Grades
Victor Wembanyama
Wembanyama only played 12 minutes before getting ejected in the second quarter for an errant elbow. On one hand, getting thrown out of a playoff game is never a sound strategy. On the other hand, I can’t say the elbow came out of nowhere. The Timberwolves have been holding, pushing and practically tackling Wembanyama dozens of times per game. Their primary offensive strategy is to have Gobert or another big grab Wembanyama to try to create an avenue to the lane. On the other end, Minnesota mostly abandons the sport and latches onto him or tries to bump him out of the way. I’m sure the Spurs have been sending clips to the league but nothing has changed. Maybe this elbow was the nudge the NBA needed to take a look at what has been happening in this series.
Grade: B+
De’Aaron Fox
The good: The Spurs needed scoring and Fox co-led the way with 24 points. He got to the line for ten attempts and hit a number of important shots in important moments. He only turned the ball over once while dealing with a lot of physicality. Defensively, Fox was pretty good. He was both attentive and disruptive. The bad: Fox’s efficiency shooting-wise was poor. Going 8-for-23 didn’t exactly help the good guys win without Wembanyama. Fox also didn’t do a whole lot of playmaking for teammates. Overall: Fox needs to play a more efficient brand of basketball for San Antonio to be at its best.
Grade: C+
Stephon Castle
Castle mostly held up his end of the bargain. Defensively, he did a better job than normal of being super aggressive while being able to stay out of foul trouble. He was locked in and doing all he could on that end. Offensively, Castle was really solid. He was 2-of-6 from three and 6-of-11 from two. He could have gotten to the line more and he could have made more plays for his teammates — but some of that was beyond his control. All in all, Castle was playing playoff basketball at a high level.
Grade: B+
Devin Vassell
Vassell is another player who did enough for the Spurs to notch the victory. Defensively, I was really impressed. His ability to up his defensive play in the postseason has been a joy to witness. Vassell also did really well offensively. He shot well and put an efficient 14 points on the scoreboard. He stayed in his lane and didn’t try to do too much. Good stuff.
Grade: B+
Julian Champagnie
Champagnie was 0-for-5 from three-point territory. Thankfully, he was strong in almost every other area of the game. He rebounded well, passed the ball wisely, played solid defense and kept his miscues to a minimum. He was 2-for-3 inside of the arc and hit all four of his free throws. But, yeah, unfortunately, Champagnie’s most important attribute is his three-point shooting and he came up dry in Game 4.
Grade: B-
Dylan Harper
Holy crap, man. Harper is a certified baller. Off the bench, the rookie poured in 24 points in 27 minutes. The Timberwolves were trying to cut off passing lanes and Harper responded by slicing and dicing their defense. He’s great going downhill and his finishing is beyond elite. At big moments, the rookie was calm, cool and ready to deliver. Defensively, Harper was also above average. He plays with patience on both ends that is so impressive to watch. Like the other guards, Harper’s playmaking was limited but, again, that was mostly due to how the Timberwolves were playing defense.
Grade: A
Luke Kornet
Thrust into the spotlight following Naz Reid’s throat getting in the way, Kornet wasn’t overwhelmed by the situation. In fact, he played pretty darn good. Defensively, he guarded the rim well, kept his hands active and battled on the glass. Offensively, while I thought Kornet could have been a bit more aggressive, he finished plays, rebounded well and set mean screens. Kornet’s effort level was extremely high and he did all he could do to fill in for the big guy.
Grade: B+
Keldon Johnson
Ouch. I thought Johnson was far below average. Defensively, he was poor individually and probably even worse team-wise. His rotations were slow and he lost his man completely a couple times. Offensively, Johnson just wasn’t good. When he drove the ball, it felt like it was almost always a negative result. He finished with three turnovers and he was even sloppier than that number suggests. Johnson needs to step up because he’s holding the team back right now.
Grade: D
Carter Bryant
I don’t think Bryant was intimidated by his surroundings but he just didn’t play well. In 12 minutes, his most notable contributions were three fouls and three turnovers. I think he was a bit better than his raw statistics would indicate but his mistakes made it difficult for the coaching staff to trust him. That’s too bad because there were chances for Bryant to step in if he had been playing better.
Grade: C-
Harrison Barnes
I mean, sheesh, it would be so nice if Barnes could contribute. The coaching staff turned to him for his veteran knowledge and the move didn’t pay off. He hit one shot in nine minutes and got one rebound. He efforted on defense but the results were forgettable. Offensively, Barnes just somehow isn’t the threat he was last season or to begin this season.
Grade: C-
Mitch Johnson
There was obviously a whole lot going on following Wembanyama’s love tap. For a while, it looked like Coach Mitch had solved the puzzle on both ends. But then things went sideways in the fourth quarter and he couldn’t find the right buttons to push. There was a bunch that could have been second-guessed but, to his credit, I was equally as flummoxed in real time. Leaning on Harper a bit more probably could have helped. Staying away from KJ a bit more could have aided the cause. Trusting Bryant as the third center probably was the right call in retrospect — but who knows? Coach Mitch earned his paycheck this game.
Grade: C+