Soaking it up
Teammates say Vassell qualifies as coachable rookie.
It didn’t take Spurs center Jakob Poeltl and other veterans long to realize that swingman Devin Vassell fit into the classification of a coachable rookie.
“He came up to me a couple of times and asked me for advice very early on and I also saw him talking to some of the other vets, asking for advice constantly,” Poeltl said.
Vassell’s willingness to listen and learn is one of the many characteristics that foretell a bright future for the Florida State product, who the Spurs selected 11th overall last November.
“That’s big for a first-year guy, putting yourself out there and trying to learn all the time,” Poeltl said. “It’s going to help him in his career.”
The Spurs upgraded Vassell from probable to active for Monday night’s game against Sacramento after he sat out the second half of Saturday’s 120104 win over Chicago with a right ankle sprain he suffered in the second quarter.
The Spurs were relieved to learn he wouldn’t need to miss any games to recover. Vassell, 20, is a strong defender who came into Monday’s game averaging 17.2 minutes, 5.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.9 steals per game while shooting a team-best 41.5 percent from 3-point range on 2.3 attempts and 86.7 percent from the freethrow line on 0.8 attempts.
Per 36 minutes, he’s averaging 11.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.9 steals.
“Just the way he seems to be under control on offense for a first-year guy is pretty tough to do,” Poeltl said. “He makes these shots look easy. He has been really solid for us, knocking down 3s, knocking down free throws.”
On the defensive end, Vassell is “getting better and better,” Poeltl said.
“I noticed in the first couple of weeks of the season he was fouling because he would find himself out of position, and tonight he had some really good plays on defense,” Poeltl said after the Chicago game. “He is finding his rhythm there more and more.”
Weatherspoon earns praise from White
Even though Quinndary Weatherspoon has been relegated to mainly mop-up duty since joining the Spurs after the G League season ended, one of his teammates believes the second-year guard is improving
daily.
“‘Q’ has a bright future,” guard Derrick White said.
White said he got to see firsthand how hard Weatherspoon works when the two were rehabbing this summer after foot and knee surgery, respectively. White is also impressed with Weatherspoon’s play on the defensive end.
The Spurs selected Weatherspoon in the second round out of Mississippi State in the 2020 NBA Draft.
“He’s a ball dog,” White said. “He gets after it. He’s aggressive, physical, makes you work. He really takes a lot of pride on that end of the floor. He’s good
laterally and has good hands, everything to be a good defensive player.”
Walker has some fun after somber tweet
Spurs guard Lonnie Walker IV missed his fourth game in a row Monday with a sore right wrist, but he’s not too hurt to crack some jokes on Twitter.
Clutch Points’ dedicated Spurs account @Spursnationcp shared a somber tweet Saturday night wishing Walker a speedy recovery from his injury, which coach Gregg Popovich said could keep him sidelined at least another week. The thirdyear
pro saw the tweet the next day and immediately let his goofy side show.
“All this for a wrist,” he tweeted alongside the crying of laughter emoji. “I almost said RIP (to) my damn self.”
Walker’s followers were quick to get in on the joke, responding with “Wrist in peace,” a picture of his headstone and that he should show up to practice with his face on a T-shirt in true San Antonio memorial style.