San Antonio Spurs beat Pistons in Jakob Poeltl breakout game

Jakob Poeltl had been experiencing a disappointing first season with the San Antonio Spurs, but he came up big in a home win over the Detroit Pistons.

Jakob Poeltl is often a forgotten piece of the Kawhi Leonard trade because he’s been in and out of the rotation for most of his first year in a San Antonio Spurs uniform.

That all changed on Wednesday night when Gregg Popovich inserted him into the starting lineup to match up with the Pistons’ twin towers of Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond.

Poeltl came out of the gates like a man possessed as he put up 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block in the first six minutes of the contest.

He kept up that intensity all night long finishing with 11 points, 14 rebounds, and 3 blocks including a swat of Blake Griffin and absolutely stuffing an Andre Drummond dunk attempt.

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Gregg Popovich has pushed the right buttons for over two decades in San Antonio, and starting Jakob Poeltl was another brilliant move by the greatest coach who ever lived.

Poeltl wasn’t the only youngster who shined against Detroit as Derrick White filled the stat sheet with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and 1 steal; and he made several key plays down the stretch to seal the victory.

Aldridge led the team in scoring with 24 points, and he also grabbed 5 rebounds while dishing 3 assists.

DeMar DeRozan continued to show how well-rounded he is this season with 17 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists while only turning the ball over once before taking a shot clock violation at the end of the game.

Marco Belinelli was red hot off the bench with 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting, and Patty Mills also chipped in with 11.

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This was the best all-around effort we’ve seen from the Spurs in weeks, and it’s no coincidence that it was their first game at home after the Rodeo Road Trip.

San Antonio will look to put a win streak together with a huge matchup with the Thunder on the horizon on Saturday night.