The San Antonio Spurs hope their home court and a focus on fundamentals will help them produce some energy and overcome a depleted roster when they host the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday night.
The Trail Blazers head to the Alamo City for the first game of a road back-to-back set and on the heels of a 118-100 win at New Orleans on Monday. Anfernee Simons led Portland with 24 points, and Dalano Banton scored all 20 of his points in the fourth quarter, helping the Trail Blazers outscore New Orleans 39-18 in the final quarter to erase a three-point deficit.
“I felt like we needed a little shot in the arm, offensively, when I went with Banton at the start of the fourth quarter,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said. “And, obviously, 20 points in one quarter is more than a shot in arm. I was just proud that we were able to stay focused.”
Banton’s big effort on Monday came after he produced 12 points in the final period in a loss at Phoenix on Saturday.
“Everything looks different every night with the talent that we have, so you just got to stay ready,” Banton said. “You never know when (Billups) is going to put you in there. It’s not just for me — it’s for anyone.”
DeAndre Ayton finished with 19 points and 13 rebounds in Monday’s win, and Jerami Grant and Toumani Camara each had 16 points as Portland snapped a two-game losing streak. Thursday’s contest will be the third of a four-game trip that will end in Minnesota on Friday.
The Spurs head home after a 127-100 loss at Houston on Wednesday that opened a road-home back-to-back set. San Antonio has dropped two straight games.
Victor Wembanyama led the Spurs with 15 points in 25 minutes while Julian Champagnie added 13 and Chris Paul, Keldon Johnson, Malaki Branham and Sandro Mamukelashvili scored 10 points apiece. San Antonio trailed 63-38 at halftime and never made a real charge to get back in the game, shooting 44.6 percent from the floor and committing 19 turnovers.
“We were not as physical as we needed to be and not as good with our details and fundamentals,” Spurs interim coach Wyatt Johnson said. “I think those things, at times, have led to some of our turnover problems — whether it’s sloppy passes, not strong enough catches, or not getting to the ball in the right spot.”
San Antonio will be without coach Gregg Popovich for the fourth game after the league’s all-time winningest coach suffered a “serious health issue” on Saturday. There is no timetable for Popovich’s return.
Guard Jeremy Sochan also will be out indefinitely after breaking his left thumb in Monday’s loss at the Los Angeles Clippers. He is set to have surgery this week. Sochan joins guards Devin Vassell (broken hand) and Tre Jones (right ankle sprain) on the Spurs’ injury list.
Thursday’s contest will be the first of five-game homestead and a stretch in which San Antonio plays nine of its next 11 games through the end of November in Frost Bank Center.