San Antonio Spurs vs. Atlanta Hawks: White and Aldridge edge out road win

In a night that saw Derrick White post unpredicted numbers next to LaMarcus Aldridge, the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Atlanta Hawks to further their hold of the eighth seed.

Many of the San Antonio Spurs young players over the years have flown under the radar for most of the league. While other teams manage to secure their rising talent through lottery draft picks or extensive trades, the Spurs always make sure to find talent deep in the draft, through the G League and in free agency.

The most recent gem to emerge in the Alamo City – sophomore combo guard Derrick White – made a statement against one of the game’s most explosive young guards in Trae Young.

White dominated his matchup in the 111-104 victory over Atlanta. He finished the evening with a loaded stat line of 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting, nine assists, six rebounds and a steal. The stat that grabbed the attention of national media: Derrick White blocked a career-high six shots in the game. Through his undying commitment to hardcore on-ball defense, White became one of eight guards in the history of the league to lock six shots in a game.

Derrick White finishes with 18 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds and 6 blocks.

Only two other Spurs with those numbers in a game in history:

David Robinson (4)Tim Duncan (1)

— Jordan Howenstine (@AirlessJordan) March 7, 2019

Inversely, Young scored 22 points on an atrocious 8-of-24 from the floor including 1-of-7 from behind the arc. This is a huge accomplishment for White considering that Young has been stellar since the All-Star Break. With Young off his axis, the rest of the Hawks struggled to pick up the slack.

More from Air Alamo

• Spurs show remarkable poise against Bulls, unlike many fans
• Devin Vassell is the latest in the Spurs’ collection of silent assassins
• San Antonio Spurs: 5 Players to avoid in any LaMarcus Aldridge deal
• Is Gregg Popovich hiding Luka Samanic as a secret weapon?
• San Antonio Spurs News: More DeRozan trade talk from Chris Haynes

The rock of the San Antonio Spurs, All-Star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge had a huge night of his own in the ATL. His 32 points, nine rebounds and two blocks were crucial in securing this victory, especially down the final quarter of the game that saw San Antonio outscore their youthful opponent by four points after a strong third quarter.

As for the rest of the gang, Rudy Gay secured another double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds on 50 percent shooting.

His close pal DeMar DeRozan put together an efficient outing with 14 points on 7-of-14 shooting with seven assists and three rebounds; once again proving that this team operates best with DeRozan setting his teammates up rather than forcing shots in close games. Sharpshooter Davis Bertans tagged on four triples while 2-way player Drew Eubanks logged 10 minutes in the absence of center Jakob Poeltl, who was sidelined with a hamstring issue.

Next up on the docket is the Eastern Conference’s best in Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks.

Hopefully the San Antonio crowd will give Coach Budenholzer a warm welcome before ceremoniously cheering against his team!