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http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Spurs_rookie_impresses_in_preseason_loss.htmlSpurs rookie impresses in preseason loss
The game was over, the sweat had dried, the media horde had finally vacated his locker. At long last after the Spurs' 99-85 preseason-opening loss to Houston on Tuesday night, Spurs rookie DeJuan Blair was ready to go home.
The only hold-up? In just his second semi-official visit to his new home arena, Blair didn't quite know which way was out.
?That way, DeJuan,? someone called out, helpfully pointing Blair in the direction of outdoors.
It was quite a contrast from what had happened for four quarters prior, when Blair always seemed to know which way to go. Namely, wherever the ball was.
Blair was a smash in his preseason debut, scoring a team-leading 16 points and grabbing 19 rebounds in 22 minutes.
?I did what they asked me to, and that's rebound,? Blair said. ?Everything else came off of that.?
Only Gregg Popovich could keep Blair, a second-round pick out Pittsburgh, from becoming the first Spurs player to grab 20 boards in the preseason since Will Perdue in 1996.
He sat Blair for most of the fourth quarter, choosing to look at other players.
After the game, Popovich pronounced himself pleased with Blair's first-game performance. Before it, the coach had cautioned about expecting too much, too soon from the 6-foot-7 rookie.
?I don't want to denigrate anything he's done in the past, and I don't want to over-emphasize anything he's doing well,? Popovich said. ?I just don't know exactly where to put him yet, as far as what kind of impact he might make.?
Popovich chose to rest many of his would-be regulars ? basically anyone over 32, plus Tony Parker ? choosing instead to give a long look to several of his youngsters.
Blair and Ian Mahinmi shared big-man minutes, with vastly different results, while second-year man George Hill ? whom Popovich has been calling his favorite player in camp ? enjoyed a solid outing in relief of Parker at the point.
It was Blair, however, who stole the show ? and, apparently, the hearts of 15,545 fans at the AT&T Center with his see-ball, get-ball ethos.
Raw offensively and undersized for a big man, the 20-year-old Blair is still very much a work in progress. Popovich wants him to fight the urge to do more than he is capable of.
?I don't want him to go out and show me how good he is,? Popovich said. ?I want him to go out and just play his game, and not try to get more minutes by showing me all these different parts of his game.?
Both sides of Blair were on display in the first quarter. Then, he ill-advisedly posted up Rockets center Chuck Hayes ? not Blair's game ? and missed badly on a turnaround. Yet he was able to birddog his own rebound for a put-back basket.
Blair missed 9 of 15 shots Tuesday, which helped account for at least some of his eight offensive rebounds.
As he proved at Pitt, and as he proved in July while demolishing the Las Vegas summer league circuit, Blair certainly has a flair for that. His new teammates have been impressed equally by the number of rebounds Blair gets as the manner in which they come.
?If an arm was close, he would have broken a couple,? Manu Ginobili said.
Still, Ginobili notes what Popovich does. There is still a ways for the rookie to go. He needs to learn the intricacies of the Spurs' pick-and-roll. There will be nights when it will be difficult to find someone for Blair to match up with defensively.
In the meantime, Blair can always do what comes natural. He can rebound.
He might not always know where he's going yet. But he certainly knows why he's here.
?That's what they brought me here for, to rebound,? Blair said. ?I've got a knack for the ball. I just go get it.?
