Zach Lowe

You mentioned the J will the Wemby sequence in the third quarter.

I mean, it's just, it's so stark and so frightening, even as a neutral observer, when you,

after holding any great player, but Wemby in particular, because it's both ends of the floor, in slight check, you realize like three minutes into this sequence, oh, we've entered the point of the game where he's just going to single-handedly dominate the game for like eight minutes.

And that was the third quarter as the Spurs got back into the game where he makes a three, he has the drive, offensive rebound.

It was like, it was Wemby saying, okay, you're taking away the rim touches and the paint touches.

I'll just...

go outside in now I'll hit a three I'll drive and I'll I might miss but I'm gonna get the offensive rebound with one hand and dunk it all in one motion if you help I'm gonna drive and kick over here to Devin Vassell for a corner three like I'll dominate the game this way and I'll still be dominating the game defensively and his rim protection everybody knows but he's just no one has ever been so good I like Olajuwon was really good at this but it's a different level

I call it like the spin pivot block where he's in one place and the ball moves and he spins back and blocks another, another player in a different place.

He just makes these double rotations so fast.

And that was the third quarter, all that was happening.

But the other thing you mentioned hugging him, like they're doing the thing and you see this every once in a while on great, great big men.

You see it against Jokic where Jokic,

There are pick and rolls, like just say Castle, Wemby, where Hartenstein does not leave Wemby at all.

He just stays hugged on him.

And there was one in the first half where Castle is going around the screen and Hartenstein is already signaling behind him, hey, someone else has to come meet Castle at the rim because I'm not leaving this 7'5 guy that's setting the screen.

Someone else has to be there.

Shea comes late and Steph tries to dunk on him and Shea eats a foul.

And like, I think if you know that that's coming for the Spurs, you can get a little bit more aggressive driving wise.

But that's like the ultimate nod of respect to a big man is you set a screen.

We're just not even playing regular defense.