Marjanovic continues to intrigue, but has long way to go

Boban Marjanovic jams a shot home in the first half as the Spurs host Sacramento at the Alamodome on March 5, 2016. Boban Marjanovic jams a shot home in the first half as the Spurs host Sacramento at the Alamodome on March 5, 2016. Photo: TOM REEL, . Photo: TOM REEL, . Image 1 of / 12 Caption Close Marjanovic continues to intrigue, but has long way to go 1 / 12 Back to Gallery

Boban Marjanovic was stuck.

Trapped in the middle of a ring of Thunder, Marjanovic had the ball and no way out.

On second thought, he seemed to realize, there was: skyward.

So he brought the ball up from between his legs, unleashing on the rim with all the wild force of a medieval trebuchet.

"Big boy," Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams, one of Marjanovic's victims, said, shaking his head.

Steven Adams explaining task of guarding Boban Marjanovic is predictably hilarious: "I tell you what mate: Leg days" pic.twitter.com/EXqVb1zRt3 — Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) March 27, 2016

That big slam from that big boy was part of a surprising first quarter for a patchwork Spurs team constructed from the parts left over after Kawhi Leonard (quad), LaMarcus Aldridge (rest), Tim Duncan (rest), Tony Parker (rest), and Manu Ginobili (rest) stayed back in San Antonio.

The skeleton crew that accompanied coach Gregg Popovich to Oklahoma City led 26-24 after one quarter and trailed by just four at the half, in part thanks to Marjanovic's six points and three rebounds, all of which came in the opening seven minutes.

Eventually, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook made light work of the Spurs' version of "The Replacements," as they should have.

But this game wasn't about the final score; it was about little victories that came within.

Rather than futilely push for a win, Popovich pushed his ragtag crew to embrace the stacked odds and compete in the hope that some players may reveal more of themselves.

"We had a lot of young guys get some time and found out some other things about certain players in certain situations and that's what you try to do," Popovich said. "We will take all the positives of it that we can."

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