The San Antonio Spurs fell to the worst team in the Western Conference in a 112-96 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. The Silver and Black blew a big third quarter lead in their third game since superstar Victor Wembanyama was ruled out for the season. In his absence, one of the team’s biggest threats, Devin Vassell, continued to struggle. The issues went well beyond Vassell’s troubles, though, according to acting coach Mitch Johnson.
“It just kind of snowballed in a catastrophic way there in the second half.”
Johnson’s Spurs led by 17 in the Crescent City before a Pelicans squad that improved to just 14-43 with the victory completely turned the tables.
“Knee-jerk reaction. I’ll have to go back and watch it,” Johnson answered when asked about his initial reaction to the blowout.
Spurs shoot poorly in loss to Pelicans
Struggling before Wemby went out for the season, the setback in New Orleans marked the Spurs’ second since the devastating news. But, unlike a victory vs. the Phoenix Suns and a loss to the Detroit Pistons, the Silver and Black did not shoot well vs. Zion Williamson and company.
“We missed a ton of shots, the momentum swung and you felt the confidence dissipate a little bit. You felt the conviction when guys shot it. Some of them felt like after thoughts. Whether they were open and they felt like they had to shoot it or they had missed some shots,” Johnson said.
His team shot 33% from the field, including only 29% from three-point territory.
“When you looked at the box score, there are some outlier numbers there I would say in terms of shooting. Not an excuse, it’s just a fact.”
San Antonio was up 13 heading into the locker room before they stretched their advantage to nearly 20 in the third quarter.
“It felt like even in the first half we missed a lot of good shots. Even stuff around the rim, so there weren’t necessarily shots,” Johnson continued. “We’ve had a few games where we’ve been up and some things that we’ve not been capitalized on has not maybe hurt us as much in the first half because were were playing well defensively or the other team was making shots. Whatever the circumstances were at the time, so be it.”
Devin Vassell continues to struggle
The Spurs second leading scorer in each of the last two years, Vassell again held that spot this season until the trade for De’Aaron Fox. A nearly 20 point per game scorer last year, the former Florida State star’s troubles continued in New Orleans.
“I wish he would not care so much. That sometimes is the problem when you’ve got good guys and people who really want to play for their team. And at some point you gotta not give a you know what,” Johnson said of the 11th pick in the 2020 draft.
Spurs postgame
Mitch Johnson on Devin Vassell
“…I hope he shoots it with more confidence…
I wish he would not care so much…
…at some point you gotta not give a you know what…”
Context
Dev w/5 pts in tonight’s L. Avg’ing 7.8 ppg over his last 5#PorVida #GoSpursGo pic.twitter.com/IClVKGT78F
— Hector Ledesma (@HectorLedesmaTV) February 24, 2025
“Devin’s a really good player,” the Spurs assistant continued.
Averaging 15.6 points per outing as of the Pelicans contest, Vassell has put up about half that in a five-game stretch that includes the rout in Louisiana.
“He’s a tremendous offensive player. People go through that in their career. If I could have any message, like I’ve told him before, I hope he shoots the ball. I hope he shoots it more. I hope he shoots it with more confidence, with more aggressiveness.”
It’s no coincidence Vassell’s struggles have coincided with the troubles of a Spurs squad that’s three and half games out of the Play-In as of their latest loss.
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