As the San Antonio Spurs continue to try to find their way, they're navigating the reality of the last month and half. A 146-110 thumping at the hands of the New Orleans Pelicans drops them to a Western Conference worst 4-21 and marks a 19th loss in their last 20 games.

Despite that figurative umbrella, a Spurs veteran maintains what they showed on Sunday is not who they are.

“I would not say back to reality, not at all because we're definitely better than this. And I think the way we played against the Lakers, both games, I could say there was a lot of growth for us,” Spurs forward Cedi Osman said. “Today, yes, it was a bad day for us. We couldn't respond. They had a great three-point percentage and that's it. We've got to move on. We can't be thinking about this game because I don't think it was really realistic, what happened tonight. We played bad and they played great. That's it, really.”

Spurs had been trending in the right direction

The last team to beat the Spurs by double digits was…drum roll…the Pelicans. Victor Wembanayama did not play that night because of hip tightness. That 121-106 setback in New Orleans on December 1 preceded four losses by an average of five points and the Silver and Black's lone win since December 2.

The loss to the Pelicans also came after a late offensive foul proved the difference against the Atlanta Hawks the night before. That capped a four-game stretch in which the Spurs had fought the Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Warriors and defending champion Denver Nuggets well into the fourth quarters.

In Sunday's loss, not many positives presented themselves to San Antonio. For example, their 13 turnovers were as many as New Orleans had and, more importantly, less than what the Spurs average per game.

“It shows, a little bit, that we take more care of the ball so we're trying to take any piece of maturity we can get from a night like tonight,” Wembanyama said, “We're still trying to get better.”

Either way, there was no sugarcoating a lopsided loss that came on the heels of the team's first win in six weeks, which had been part of an improved defensive effort this month. That defense was nowhere to be found Sunday.

“It was tough. It was tough. The first five minutes, we were playing great. Then we kind of lost our energy. I think that it was just their day, I would say. I don’t know how many threes – like 23, 24 threes with a high percentage, and we couldn’t respond offensively. That hurts. It's tough to stay in a game when they shoot with a high percentage. We were trying our best, but it was not a good game for us,” Osman admitted.

A blunt, quick message

Gregg Popovich is frustrated

Following Sunday's 36-point loss, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich took the podium and, without waiting for any questions from reporters, immediately started talking. He spoke for 25 seconds before standing up and exiting the room, leaving no opportunity for questions from the media assembled.

“All right. Well, let's see. That's what you call an ass-whooping. Pure and simple. Drop the mic. Period. Full stop, all that kind of stuff. They had a great night shooting. We couldn't throw it in the ocean. But on top of shooting well, they played very well. We weren't as sharp as we needed to be and got whipped real good.”

Perhaps, it's ironic that the Hall of Fame coach ended his statement with the words “real good.” Because the Spurs weren't vs. the Pelicans.