'He's a Bulldog': Spurs Rain Praises on Tre Jones After Career-Best Performance
The San Antonio Spurs dropped their fourth straight game Monday at the AT&T Center, falling 115-109 to the Denver Nuggets for the second consecutive contest.
Despite the loss, the Spurs continued to discover what they have in guard Tre Jones, who posted a career-high 20 points on 9 of 13 shooting to go along with nine assists, three rebounds and three steals.
But the third-year guard -- who plays well beyond his years at this point -- isn't worried about scoring.
"I’m the point guard. My job is to set up my teammates and run the team," Jones said. "Night in and night out. I’m not worried about points."
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich likely enjoys hearing this team-first answer, but he wasn't going to let Jones' impressive night go by without giving him his much-deserved flowers.
"A great job," Popovich said of Jones. "I don't know how many assists he ended up with, but probably was close to double figures. But he did a wonderful job."
"Both of the sides of the ball, he's always attacking," Spurs wing Josh Richardson said of Jones. "He's like a bulldog. He had some big steals today, he had a couple of huge assists in the fourth. I just encourage him to keep doing that, keep being him."
Jones was playing efficient and fearless, displaying improved parts of his game that have been question marks since he entered the league.
He flashed some confident 3-point shooting off dribble hand-offs while continuing to find shooters as well on timely quick-decision passes once the help was drawn into the paint.
But Jones stayed true to his bread and butter on the defensive end as well, coming up with a sneaky steal from Nuggets star Nikola Jokic with six minutes left in the fourth to get a breakaway layup going the other way.
Spurs forward Keldon Johnson once again led the team with 30 points, thanks in large part to some dimes from Jones. But Johnson is continuing to take notice of how Jones impacts the game when he picks his time to score.
"He can definitely score the ball," Johnson said, per Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News. "He brings a multitude of things to the game. He's definitely a point guard you want on your side. He sets us up great ... But as you saw tonight, he can put the ball in the hole as well."
Jones is now third on the team in points per game (12.7) while leading the Spurs in assists (six) and steals (1.5). And as the Spurs look to break out of a four-game slump, they'll need his efforts for upcoming tests against the Memphis Grizzlies, Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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