A certain phrase in relation to a key aspect of basketball pops up when San Antonio Spurs players talked about improvement after breaking a 18-game losing streak.
“Defensively, we've stepped up, staying locked in,” star rookie Victor Wembanyama says.
“Even when we couldn't hit shots, we stuck together and locked in on defense,” forward Keldon Johnson echoed.
Locked in on defense
While the Spurs can finally celebrate a victory, they've been right there over their last four games. It coincides with Wemby moving from power forward to center.
“To me, our defense sometimes was the best part of the game,” the French phenom said following Friday's win vs. the Los Angeles Lakers while also noting Devin Vassell's game-high 36 points, “Sometimes I was getting so hyped up just seeing us force them to take bad shots and causing turnovers. I think it was a very big part of the game.”
‘When we set the tone defensively, you get to run and get easy shots. That's when we're at our best,” Johnson added.
Since Dec. 6, the Spurs have held two of their opponents to 102 and 93 points, respectively. Their last two losses have come by three points and one point.
“Overall, I think the defense was pretty good. It's been pretty good, improving significantly, but offensively we still have a ways to go. I thought that they competed well,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich stated following the 129-115 win vs. LA.
Defensive rating indicates the Silver and Black have been a top-five defense in December after really struggling on that end to start the season.
“Defensively. That's what we've got to hang our hats on to close out games and win the big games,” Johnson shared following the victory that snapped their franchise-record skid. “We showed real flashes of close to 48 minutes of really, really good defense and we stuck together, even when they made runs. That's a great team over there and they made runs, they made it tough but we stuck together.”
Defensive menaces
Two big factors in the Spurs' renewed defensive prowess are a pair of standout defenders.
The 7'4 top overall pick in this past summer's draft ranks second in the NBA in blocked shots.
“On the court, I was just trying to win, trying to defend and make the right play,” Wembanyama, who trails Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez by a fraction (3.0 to 2.9 blocks per game), said on Friday.
In making last season's NBA All-Rookie Second Team, Jeremy Sochan gained notoriety for his play defensively. The praise continued following his effort against one of the game's best-ever players.
“He gave everything he could. He did a good job guarding LeBron (James). He made him think about it, made him hesitate once in a while. You know, you're not going to stop the guy, he's spectacular, but Jeremy took on the challenge,” Popovich said.
Sochan's approach to guarding the league's all-time leading scorer was super simple.
“Just play defense,” the former Baylor Bear said.
“Jeremy put some crazy pressure on their best players. He has a big key role in our rotations and I'm glad he has the opportunity to show his qualities like that,” Wembanyama observed.
Sochan is quick to credit a team-wide defensive approach.
“Playing defense, that's really important. I feel like we've all taken a step. We've become more prideful, more aggressive on that side.”
Following 18 straight losses, the Spurs now have a chance at a second straight victory when they face the 15-11 New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday.
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