The San Antonio Spurs beat the Sacramento Kings 130-103, giving them their second win. The Spurs knocked down 17 three-pointers, finally giving them the offensive explosion that everyone has been waiting for. San Antonio was struggling to shoot the ball in the first three games until this one. Julian Champagnie made eight of the Spurs’ 17 threes.
Spurs Three-Point Shooting Comes Alive
The Spurs went 37/116 from three through the first three games against the Thunder, Rockets, and Mavericks combined. That is 31.9% in their first three games, which is really bad. Against the Kings, they finally had the offensive display that they needed to break through. They went 17/37 from three, which is 46%. That is much better and the type of performance that San Antonio needed as a team.
They did improve a little in the Dallas game, making 15 threes. It did take them 42 attempts to get there, but you could see the improvement and comfort. In this game, against the Kings, they were playing fast. A couple of lobs early to Victor Wembanyama opened up the three-point shooting for the Spurs. This was the type of shooting that San Antonio really needed against the Thunder and Rockets.
Julian Champagnie Gives the Spurs a Major Scoring Boost
Champagnie came in the game ready to shoot and didn’t disappoint. He made eight of his first ten three-pointers. All eight of his threes came in the first half, helping the Spurs to an 80-54 halftime lead. The game was somewhat close until Champagnie came in and started lighting it up. He was an instant spark and even hit a couple of heat checks.
He is a player who can provide San Antonio with the consistent three-point shooting that they need. This is the type of performance that the Spurs will need from their role players. Not all at once, but every game it should be a different player. Devin Vassell started the good three-point shooting, and then Champagnie came in and continued it.
Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs’ Offense Feeds Off of Each Other
When the Spurs are shooting like this, it opens up Victor Wembanyama’s paint dominance. Wembanyama had 29 points and 10 rebounds in this game. A lot of his points came off open lobs to the rim. He had nine dunks in this game courtesy of their hot three-point shooting. They become a much tougher team to defend when their shooters are making shots and their bigs and guards are attacking the paint.
Wembanyama scoring in the paint opens up the game for the shooters, and the shooters making shots opens up the game for him. This is the overall performance that San Antonio is capable of. This is a confidence booster going forward. Spurs are a scary team to defend when they’re hitting threes and dominating the paint.
Now the Spurs need to answer the question of whether they can sustain this level of play. If they can continue this going forward, they may just go on a win streak. One game against a struggling team doesn’t mean much, but it is surely a confidence booster for San Antonio.
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