The Top 5 most surprising performances by Spurs role players

2. San Antonio Spurs – Austin Daye (2015)

Speaking of career five-points-per-game scorers, Austin Daye lands at number two on the list. Drafted 15th overall by Detroit, Daye spent the majority of his six-year NBA career as a Piston. In 2013, the Spurs acquired the 6-11 forward for Nando De Colo, but he would hardly see the floor.

On one particular night in Minnesota, Daye made the most of a rare opportunity to showcase his talents. Getting a team-high 36 minutes, Austin tallied one of his three career double-doubles in a 108-93 victory over the Timberwolves.

Burying 4-of-9 shots from beyond the arc, Daye scored a game-high 22 points and pulled down 10 boards to pace the Spurs at the Target Center. The Silver and Black weren’t exactly facing elite competition on that night, as the Wolves had lost 14 straight before the meeting.

Still, Daye had never scored more than 13 with the Spurs until this game and only eclipsed this 22-point mark once in his NBA career. At 32-years-old, Daye now plays professional basketball in Italy for Reyer Venezia.

1.  San Antonio Spurs – Joffrey Lauvergne (2018)

It’s not every day you see a guy averaging 2.8 points per game for the month suddenly explode for 26, but that’s exactly what Joffrey Lauvergne did in February 2018. Facing a Nuggets squad led by Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, the Spurs ran out of gas in the fourth quarter of this one, but that doesn’t take away from a once-a-career performance.

With LaMarcus Aldridge sidelined with a sore right knee, Lauvergne was the first big off the bench and simply couldn’t miss. Joffrey shot a ridiculous 80 percent against Denver, converting on 12 of his 15 attempts to lead all scorers with 26.

The 6-11 center also tallied 11 rebounds, two assists, and a block in his 24 minutes. Joffrey was another guy that rarely saw the floor for San Antonio, only averaging 9.7 minutes per game and making 55 total appearances in the 2017-18 season.

While his Poeltl-like offense made it easy for him to shoot a high percentage from the field, he also mixed in some impressive breakaway dunks in the game.

Joffrey Lauvergne signed a two-year deal overseas in 2018 and currently plays in the Lithuanian Basketball League.