The Spurs should be patient with Luke Kornet, for now

The Spurs have rallied after losing their first two games of the season, rattling off four wins in a row. They are starting to round into form while still having room for growth, looking like the contender their talent suggests they can be, through ups and downs.

Among the areas that still need improvement is the play of the second unit. And among the reserves, Luke Kornet has been getting a lot of scrutiny, as he hasn’t bounced back to the form he showed last year and now has an exciting rookie behind him who has looked productive in limited minutes.

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In the Spurs’ latest win against the shorthanded Timberwolves, Kornet looked good, but his solid performance won’t completely get him off the hook from those who might want to see Tarris Reed Jr. get a chance to fight for the backup center spot as soon as possible.

While the rookie should get his opportunity if Kornet continues to struggle, for now, being patient with the veteran seems like the right move.

The offense is terrible with Kornet on the floor, but it’s not necessarily his fault

It’s always tricky to put too much stock in advanced numbers with so few minutes to go by, but they are not kind to Kornet. The Spurs score just 100.5 points per 100 possessions when he’s on the floor, a ghastly number. His limitations on that end are well-known, and it doesn’t feel like he has developed any other tools, such as a floater, to change that. His strengths, however, are also clear and are not insignificant.

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Kornet is a good screener. In just 14.6 minutes a game, he’s averaging 2.7 screen assists, the 18th most in the league, and those screen assists are resulting in six points per game, the 25th-best mark in the league. Now, screen assists tend to be higher for limited role-playing centers who don’t get the ball back after initially freeing their ball-handler. There’s a reason why Victor Wembanyama averages fewer despite playing over twice as many minutes as Luke: Wemby screens, then the guards find him, and Wemby scores. The Alien leads the league in plays finished as the pick-and-roll dive man, which makes sense. Luke can’t do that. Context…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/spurs-patient-luke-kornet-now-020224876.html

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Publish date : 2026-11-02 02:02:00

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