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Thank the basketball gods for instant replay review. It allowed officials to overturn what would’ve been a robbery of a signature defensive moment for Victor Wembanyama. The San Antonio Spurs held a 117-116 lead in overtime when Dennis Schroder attacked the rim and was stuffed by the heralded rookie. The audacity of the attempt was more puzzling than the eventually overturned missed call.

Again, we were left asking ourselves if the Spurs could finish and secure a win.

Recently? The answer had been no. Sunday was different, in large part due to Keldon Johnson, who netted two free throws with a three-point lead to put things out of reach and give the Spurs a 120-117 victory.

Observations:

Do you know why teams don’t stop shooting threes? They need to give the opposing team something to respect. So, despite a team-wide horrid shooting night, Brooklyn had to respect every look the two-man game featuring Victor Wembanyama and Devin Vassell had to offer. The result? Giving Keldon Johnson too much space, allowing him to give the Spurs a lead, which eventually would turn into overtime.

Perhaps “team-wide” isn’t a fair description because Johnson didn’t struggle to hit shots. He had the hottest hand in the building from long-range, going 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. But outside of Johnson, it was a nightmare for both teams as they haunted lovers of the three-ball in Austin.

As frustrating as it is to watch players hoist up shots when they are ice cold, they need to keep the hope of winning alive. The Spurs, like their opponent, can get hot at any given moment, regardless of what percentages and trends say about the likelihood of it happening. In football you must establish the run even when getting stuffed, in boxing you must establish the jab even when unable to land it, on the hardwood you must keep shooting; always.

Well, unless you’re Houston in a Game 7 against the Warriors.

Young teams struggle to finish games, which usually boils down to late-game execution. Whether it was the Spurs taking too long to run their offense on the final possession of the fourth quarter or poor rotations leaving Dennis Schroder wide-open in the moments prior– a lack of precision led to a missed opportunity to win it in regulation. Ultimately, it was a harmless learning moment.
Wemby gives us nightly reminders that he’s an absolute treat to watch. His behind-the-back move, avoiding a potential Mikal Bridges steal, was the latest example of his video game-like ability.
Keldon Johnson may have kept the game from becoming a blowout when he caught fire in the second quarter. At one point, he drilled three straight shots from beyond the arc, including an and-one after being fouled by Cam Thomas. Brooklyn led 47-39 before the spurt but saw its lead trimmed to 51-48. A stalling offense suddenly finds its life when a player can act as a jumper cable and provide a spark. San Antonio’s offense was much smoother from that point on.
As mentioned above, you can’t afford to stop shooting threes as a team. But as a player, putting up shots when they aren’t falling can be deterring. Wembanyama and Devin Vassell showed why they are the team’s two leading scorers by not allowing missed shots to waver confidence. Both drilled threes in crunch-time to spark a rally.