Poeltl’s work continues at foul line
Jakob Poeltl arrived at the Spurs’ practice facility in August eager for a bigger role after two years of doing what he called “dirty work” for Toronto.
“I do a lot of the little things out there, like setting good screens, being in the right places, making the right reads off my teammates,” he said shortly after joining the team in the blockbuster trade that sent Kawhi Leonard to the Raptors. “That’s my role right now, and I really enjoy that. But I am working every single day to develop so I can take on more responsibilities.”
Seven months later, the 7-foot center is indeed enjoying an expanded role in his third NBA season. But even after starting a career-high 13 games, the work continues for Poeltl, whose latest goal is to improve his touch at the freethrow line.
Poeltl enters Friday’s game with the Knicks shooting a team-worst 55.3 percent at the foul line (42 of 76). His plan to improve revolves around plenty of work with Spurs assistant coach and noted shooting guru Chip Engelland.
“We’ve already worked a lot, especially over the last month or so,” Poeltl said. “We’ve been working a lot on different types of stuff, mainly the shooting form. It’s showing some good improvements. I feel positive about it.”
The Spurs are shooting a league-best 82.2 percent at the free-throw line, a testament to the work they do at practice and shootaround.
“It’s about getting my own routine, getting the shot the way I want it to be, and then reps, reps, reps,” Poeltl said. “Try and get it down where it becomes automatic.”
Where’s Anthony?: For Spurs forward DeMar DeRozan, any game against the Knicks conjures memories of Carmelo Anthony, who starred in New York for six and a half seasons and was an AllStar in each of those years before being traded to Oklahoma City just before the 2017-18 season.
After one year with the Thunder, Anthony played 10 games this season with the Houston Rockets before they traded him to the Chicago Bulls in January. The Bulls waived him in February, and he has gone unsigned since, which puzzles DeRozan.
“He’s one of the all-time great scorers, a Hall of Fame player, so it’s definitely crazy not to see him out there,” DeRozan said.
In 16 seasons, Anthony averaged 24.0 points per game while making 10 All-Star teams and earning All-NBA honors six times. His weak spots: He wasn’t a great defender, and he enjoyed just two deep playoff runs without making it to the Finals.
Still, DeRozan, who teamed with Anthony to help Team USA win a gold medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, believes Anthony has more NBA basketball left in him.
“I’m confident he’ll be back out there,” DeRozan said.
Gay set to return: The Spurs on Thursday upgraded forward Rudy Gay to probable for Friday’s game after he missed the last two games with the flu.
Gay is third on the team in scoring (14.2 points per game) and second in rebounding (6.5) while shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from 3-point range, both career highs.
Gay has posted nine doubledoubles this season, his most since he recorded 11 in 2013-14 while playing for Sacramento. Knicks: David Fizdale Spurs: Gregg Popovich
STAT LEADERS
Knicks: Points, Smith, 14.6 per game; rebounds, Jordan, 12.2; assists, Smith, 6.0; steals, Smith, 1.4; blocks, Robinson, 2.4
Spurs: Points, DeRozan, 21.7 per game; rebounds, Aldridge, 8.9; assists, DeRozan, 6.1; steals, White/DeRozan, 1.1; blocks, Aldridge, 1.3
NOTABLE
• The Spurs come in on an eightgame home winning streak and a six-game streak overall, their season high in both categories.
• New York is 1-7 since beating the Spurs 130-118 on Feb. 24 at Madison Square Garden and has dropped seven in a row overall. The Knicks’ last road victory came Feb. 14 at Atlanta.
• With a win, the Knicks would sweep the season series over the Spurs for only the second time since 2002-03 and the first since 2012-13.
• Aldridge is averaging 27.6 points and 10 rebounds in March while shooting 57.3 percent. He has scored at least 24 points in seven straight games.