Spurs’ Manu Ginobili Shaky in Return
The best news the Spurs (19-9) received Saturday, however: The fifth metacarpal in Ginobili’s left hand is again strong enough to survive being attached to him.
“I felt good,” Ginobili reported after logging 17 minutes off the bench in his first action since Jan. 2. “I wasn’t going to do too many things, first because I can’t. I’m not ready. I need to slowly start getting back into basketball shape.”
Ginobili made his return at the 7:06 mark of the first quarter. Moments later, he logged his first points in 39 days when he scooped up a loose ball and scrambled the length of the floor for a layup.
The 34-year-old guard finished with eight points on 4-of-7 shooting and four assists, most of them working the pick-and-roll with DeJuan Blair and Tiago Splitter. He missed both his 3-point tries.
“The legs for the threes aren’t going to be there yet, but he got a good start,” Popovich said. “Scored a little bit, got a few assists, got a good rhythm. I thought he drove it pretty well, passed it pretty well. It was good to see.”





