We should not expect a great show for this first Summer League evening in Sacramento and this San Antonio – Charlotte was messy on many points. Spurs, however, got the job done by relying on better team cohesion and a one-sided start.
Carried by the Champagnie-Barlow pair (30 and 24 points), the Texans took the meeting by the good end (30-11 at the end of the first quarter then 58-32 at the break) to never be again then worried. While waiting for the first steps of Victor Wembanyama in his new colors, those of Sidy Cissoko (3 pts, 4 rebounds) have been encouraging, with activity on both sides of the floor, the defense on Brandon Miller in particular.
Brandon Miller steps up
Number 2 in the Draft, Brandon Miller was the main attraction of this first meeting. The winger had a lot of trouble in the first half with only one small basket before recovering after the break to finish as his team’s top scorer with 18 points, to accompany 5 rebounds, 3 assists but also 6 lost balls. He waited for the last act to gain momentum with 12 points including three 3-point baskets and an acrobatic 2+1 placed in the last seconds of the match.
The two teams will continue this Wednesday, against Golden State for Charlotte and the Lakers for San Antonio, still without “Wemby”.
