The Emirates NBA Cup began for the San Antonio Spurs as they faced off against LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. Winners of three in their last four games, the Spurs looked to continue their winning ways. Things started nicely for them as they scored the game’s first 11 points. It looked like they identified rookie Dalton Knecht as their mismatch and went at him right away. A good defensive stop leading to a Victor Wembanyama three led to JJ Redick calling timeout to settle the ship. It seemed to work. The Lakers would play the Spurs even over the next seven minutes. But after Devin Vassell made it a 30-21 game with 2:03 remaining, the Lakers would score the last 10 points to take a one-point lead at the end of one.

That Lakers run continued into the second, with them starting the quarter on an 11-2 run. The energy the Spurs came out with to start the game was all but gone. The Lakers were getting to loose balls and rebounds quicker, deflecting passes, and playing crisper offensively. After Max Christie hit a three to push the Lakers lead to 10, 42-32, Mitch Johnson called timeout in hopes of doing what Redick’s timeout did in the first for the Lakers. That, too, seemed to work. The Spurs hit three straight threes to make it a 42-41 game. The magic would run out again, though. The Lakers responded to that with their own 8-0 run and would have answers for the Spurs the rest of the half. Going into the locker room, the Spurs found themselves trailing 68-60.

At the start of the third, the teams basically mirrored the other for the first two and a half minutes. LeBron James would make a bucket to make it a 75-65 game, but the Spurs responded with a 10-2 run to get within two. Yet again, the Spurs bench couldn’t keep the momentum. When Blake Wesley and Zach Collins entered the game for Stephon Castle and Wemby with just over four minutes left, the Spurs trailed 84-81. When Chris Paul and Wemby came back into the for Collins and Devin Vassell with 1:42 left, it was 90-83. A couple of threes later, and it’d be a 93-86 heading into the fourth quarter.

They say the NBA is a game of runs, and this one lived up to it. The Spurs would get a mini-run in to make it a 101-100 game after Keldon Johnson drained a corner three. They’d then get another one to put them in front 107-106 thanks to a couple big buckets by Vassell. Their first lead since Anthony Davis got a layup with 22 seconds left in the first wouldn’t last, as Austin Reaves would sink a couple free throws 20 seconds later. The back and forth kept rolling on. Wemby and Stephon Castle would score the final eight points for the Spurs, but their final push wouldn’t be enough. An Anthony Davis dunk with 1:31 left would give the Lakers a 116-115 lead. With the score the same, Chris Paul was whistled for an offensive foul after dumping the ball off to Wemby and having Davis run into him (a call Spurs fans will likely be waiting to see in the L2M report). LeBron got an open layup on the Lakers next possession to make it a three-point game. A missed Castle three and two LeBron free throws later, and the Spurs would drop their NBA Cup opener, 120-115.

Play of the game

It’s pretty easy to pick the one that made history. Let’s give it up for Mr. 12,000.

Game Notes

Victor Wembanyama vs. Anthony Davis is a lot of fun. They could both end up in the Trillion Club (no counting stats) and it would still be exhilarating to watch these two big men match up. Both went right at the other on offense, which is what you love to see in the NBA. While not every point they scored was on each other, they both played a strong first half. Davis had 26 points on 9/15 shooting and 8/8 from the foul line. Wemby had 16 on 7/14 shooting, but didn’t see a free throw attempt. The second half was the same for the two behemoths. However, Davis would get the better of Wemby in both stats and the game. He ended the night with 40 points and 12 rebounds to Wemby’s 28 points and 14 rebounds. It was Wemby’s first game this season without attempting a free throw (Davis would go 10/12 from the free throw line).

Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell 2-man lineup. It’s something that stuck out during the game against the Sacramento Kings – enough to look up the stats to it. Through Vassell’s first three games back, the Spurs were outscored by 32 points in the 57 minutes he and Keldon shared the court. Perhaps the most surprising part of this is the fact that when you look at these two with Wemby as a three-man lineup, they had been outscored by 22 points over 26 minutes. After tonight, those numbers would get worse. Through four games and 77 minutes together, Keldon and Vassell are a -49, which means they were -17 in 20 minutes against the Lakers (it was a -10 in eight minutes with Wemby). There’s a lot at play when looking at these lineup numbers, but for these two to be two of your main players, it’s worth keeping an eye on.

Checking in on the rook: Stephon Castle. Castle has looked more like a vet than a rookie since he stepped into the Spurs facility. And while he’s certainly had some rookie moments, he’s mostly shown why he was taken fourth overall. Tonight was another example of how good he currently is and gives us a glimpse of what him and Wemby could be going forward. He was second on the team in minutes at 33:08 and points with 22, and he led the team in plus/minus at +17. He attacked the basket to draw fouls (took half of the Spurs’ free throw attempts with eight), made three of four three-point attempts, and chipped in five assists. His finish at the rim to give the Spurs a 115-114 lead was something special. The future is bright with this one.

Checking in on the other rook: Dalton Knecht. If you’ve ever adhered to the two for you, one for me philosophy, you’ll understand that’s what’s going on here. I’ve never shied from admitting Knecht was my favorite player in this past NBA Draft, even if I had Castle above him on my draft board. I felt he was a player a team could drop into their lineup and immediately improve offensively. Like Castle, he’s had his fair share of rookie moments. He made his second start of the season tonight, and it was apparent the Spurs knew who the weak link on defense was. They sought out the mismatch and attacked Knecht for their first two buckets. He ended up having a decent shooting night, going 6/11 from the field and 2/4 from three, but wound up with a plus/minus of -9. I’m still a believer in Knecht, but he hasn’t been near the top of best rookies so far this season.

Next game: At Dallas Mavericks on Saturday

The Spurs spend the second night of their back-to-back in Dallas trying to avenge their opening night loss against Luka Doncic and the Mavs