Proving his worth
» Samanic shows why Spurs used a first-round pick on him.
Croatian Luka Samanic got a taste of American football in the third quarter of the Spurs’ 119-93 win over New York on Tuesday night.
Guarding All-star Julius Randle along the baseline, the 6-foot-10, 235-pound Samanic absorbed a body blow when the 6-8, 250pound power forward lowered his shoulder into him like a running back attempting to bowl over a cornerback.
The play resulted in a charging foul against Randle much to the delight of Samanic’s teammates, who were quick to congratulate him and help him get back on his feet after the rib-rattling collision.
“He’s a strong guy,” Samanic said with a laugh after the game.
Samanic’s refusal to back down against Randle was one of the highlights of his best allaround game as an NBA player. In 20 minutes off the bench, he also scored 14 points, corralled seven rebounds and went 3 of 5 from 3-point range.
Bottom line: By showing off his offensive skills and getting physical with Randle, Samanic looked like a player worthy of the firstround pick the Spurs used to select him in the 2019 NBA Draft.
“More confidence, less hesitation, not worried about making a mistake and mostly catchand-shoot,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said, assessing Samanic’s play.
The Spurs called up Samanic from the G League on Feb. 21 to provided depth after a COVID-19 outbreak sidelined five players. In six games for the Austin Spurs, Samanic averaged 21.8 points and 11.3 rebounds.
Samanic finished Tuesday’s game two points shy of matching the career high he posted in a game against Utah last August in the Orlando, Fla., bubble. In the four games since his call-up, Samanic is shooting 41.7 percent from beyond the arc on three attempts per game.
“You realize after you stand next to him that he’s not a 6-6 kid,” Popovich said of Samanic, who was 5 of 7 from the field against the Knicks. “He’s like 6-9 or 6-10, and he’s got a really good touch, and he’s starting to believe in that.”
Perhaps even more impressive was Samanic’s spirited effort in helping defend Randle, who finished with 14 points — nine below his average — and 11 rebounds.
“I’m just trying to be able to switch from player to player,” Samanic said of his defensive goals. “It doesn’t matter who it is, and as time goes by, maybe try to guard better players the best I can.”
Although Popovich was pleased with Samanic’s play, the coach tapped the breaks when asked if Samanic “held his own” against Randle.
“I’m not going to go that far,” Popovich said with a chuckle. “We don’t want him to think he’s ready for the All-star game yet. Bring him along a little slower.”
Johnson earns Rising Star honor
A day after he returned to action following completion of the NBA’S health and safety protocols for COVID-19, Spurs forward Keldon Johnson learned the league’s assistant coaches had voted him onto the 2021 Rising Stars roster.
Johnson is the ninth player in franchise history selected as a Rising Star since the event’s inception in 1994.
The game, though, won’t be played this year in Atlanta “due to the limitation of having All-star events all on one night,” the league announced recently.
Johnson, who is averaging career highs of 14.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 29.4 minutes over 28 games, is on track to become the first Spurs player to average at least 14 points and six rebounds in his second season since Tim Duncan in 1998-99.
The former Kentucky player is the first Spurs player selected for the honor since Jonathon Simmons in 2017 and the first player selected in his second season after appearing in less than 20 games as a rookie since Clint Capela in 2016.
The announcement came after he came off the bench to score nine points on 4-of-6 shooting in 11 minutes against the Knicks in his first game since Feb. 14.
Masks to be required inside AT&T Center
Two days after the Spurs revealed a limited attendance plan to bring fans back into the AT&T Center, Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state has the green light to fully reopen and go maskless by next Wednesday, but the franchise says nothing is changing in their home.
Spurs Sports and Entertainment, which manages operations of the team and the Bexar County-owned AT&T Center, will follow guidance from COVID-19 experts, rather than the state, team spokesman Tom James said.
“Based on the recommendations from these experts and NBA guidelines, we will continue with our announced plans to limit capacity at Spurs games to 3,200 fans and require masks for all guests attending events at the AT&T Center,” James said in a statement.
The Spurs will start hosting fans at the AT&T Center on March 12 against the Orlando Magic, almost exactly a year since the coronavirus pandemic suspended the 2019-20 season. Tickets go on sale at 2 p.m. Friday. Madalyn Mendoza contributed to this report.