How the Spurs Dominated the Pistons Again, and What it Means for the Playoffs

SAN ANTONIO - "Any game between top seeds should be impressive, for us, it was super fun," Victor Wembanyama said after leading his Spurs to a second blowout victory over the Pistons in 10 days.

"It wouldn't have been fun if we didn't set the tone to the game... if we didn't dictate the game," said Wembanyama, who finished with 38 points, 16 rebounds, and 5 blocks in the 121-106 win. "I think we led for 48 (minutes)."

San Antonio indeed led wire to wire, starting when Wembanyama splashed a 3 right out of the gate. He finished the first quarter with 12 points, which is more than he logged in the entire blowout win over the 76ers in the previous game. Not to be outdone, De'Aaron Fox scored 16 points in the opening stanza. Both of San Antonio's All-Stars shot the ball well from outside, and Stephon Castle dropped 12 dimes and once again locked MVP candidate Cade Cunningham in his dungeon.

The Spurs knew this ultra-physical Pistons team would try to impose their will and avenge the defeat they suffered just 10 days earlier in Detroit. San Antonio, in turn, leaned on teamwork and their own physical advantages to counter. Wemby is the best example of their size, Fox is speed personified, and Castle has to be one of the strongest 21-year-old point guards to ever play.

Before the game, Wembanyama warmed up with members of the Spurs' coaching staff grabbing, pulling, and pushing him to test his balance and strength. During the game, the Pistons struggled to defend him without fouling. Jalen Duren got into foul trouble early that hampered his effectiveness throughout the game, and Wembanyama shot 10-11 from the free throw line. Getting there was a conscious choice on his part.

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"Personally, it's all about the angles," Wembanyama said after the game. "If you don't go to the basket, they will get away with physicality, right? They will get away with fouls or things that could be fouls, but I had to fix my angles. I think there was a few times last game against them where I was not going towards the basket, so they got away with things, and I didn't let them do that today. They have to adapt. It's the foul the team who fouls most in the league, for a reason."

As Wembanyama attacked the rim, Fox played in space with speed. The Pistons gave him some cushion because of his blinding quickness, and he punished them with his outside shot. As far as the physicality goes, Fox knows that games like this help prepare this young Spurs team for the frequent whacks and infrequent whistles they'll face in the playoffs.

"That's what it's gonna look like," said Fox, who finished with 29 points. "As much as you think you're getting fouled, you probably are, but refs are like, 'we can't call it every single time.' This game, these two games, the New York game, the Toronto game, those are teams that are physical, and you have to be able to embrace that, and that's what the playoffs look like."

Fox's blinding speed is another tool to counter the rough-and-tumble play style that the Pistons and many other teams try to employ against San Antonio.

"Just being able to get by people, it seems like it's gonna be a lot of hands swiping down. You're taught this. A lot of even high school kids do the same thing now, and however the refs call it, they call it, but you have to be able to be physical offensively, as well as being physical on the defensive end. Playing against this team, you know that you're gonna have to bring that, because you're not gonna be able to finesse your way or just be able to get out and transition the entire game. So you have to be able to match their physicality on both ends."

The Spurs will finish the season 6-1 against both 1 seeds. They're currently the only team with two victories over Detroit, and the Timberwolves are the only other team to beat Oklahoma City twice. The Pistons and Thunder are among the best in the league at understanding that the officials won't whistle every single bump that could be considered a foul, and use that to their advantage.

"That's why scores are lower in the playoffs, as much as refs or the league wants to say that they don't officiate the games differently, we all got two eyes, and we can all see it, so you have to be able to embrace that, and you have to be able to maintain your level of play," Fox said.

Luckily for the Spurs, they have a second-year star in Steph Castle who brings that same level of nastiness to the point of attack on defense every single night. Cade Cunningham put up one of the worst shooting performances of all time in the first matchup at 5-26 from the floor, and in the rematch was limited to 10-26. Castle made him work for everything.

The most impressive play of the night from him was when Isaiah Stewart set a hard screen near halfcourt and Castle recovered to block Cunningham's 3-point attempt from behind a la Manu on Harden.

"He's been just connected to the guy that he's guarding, and he's doing a great job of being physical without fouling and showing his hands and moving his feet and living on guys shoulders and sides, because you're not gonna be able to keep people in front in this league, but to be able to be connected to them, he's doing that at a high level," Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said.

"I think that he does a great job of it," Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff added. "Their ability to put him on the ball at the point of attack, him being able to get through screens and be physical, through screens, pick up full court. I think he does a really good job of executing their system, because he is so physical, he is into the ball and has trust that he's got that support with their bigs behind him, so he does a great job of executing their system."

Beyond San Antonio's leading triumverate, they got meaningful contributions and energy plays from all over. Julian Champagnie put up 16 points and 7 rebounds, including a late scoring surge that helped put the Pistons away. Rookie Carter Bryant nearly jumped over a defender for an alley-oop jam, and logged 3 blocks including a chasedown right when Detroit had cut their deficit to single digits early in the fourth quarter. Late in the game, Keldon Johnson dove over the scorer's table to save it.

"With the personality that the games versus Detroit typically take on, the big plays aren't a skill or finesse play," said Mitch Johnson, who was fired up himself on the sideline. "It's typically a multiple effort play that involves some type of force or contact, and I thought that was one of them. And I think when you're able to make those plays, because you can put that they're going to make those plays, it's a confidence boost for your teammates."

The Spurs' own brand of toughness has carried them to great success against the best and most physical teams in the NBA. San Antonio is on a 60-win pace with 20 games left until the biggest test of their physicality yet in the NBA playoffs.

"Detroit produces those types of games," said Johnson. "It doesn't always mean you gotta go hit the guy on the other team. It's just contact competitiveness, a lot of flying around, and sometimes you fly on the floor, in the sidelines or into bodies. I thought, we didn't blink. We just tried to trust our instincts tonight."