Spurs center Jakob Poeltl couldn’t say at what point in his team’s 123-114 preseason loss to the Pelicans he picked up the two large scratches he sported during his post-game availability. Instead the welts, which went from his collarbone to somewhere beneath his jersey, served as a symbol of the constant contact he’d subjected his body to in 20 minutes of play, mostly with first overall pick Zion Williamson.
At some point this season one of the shared experiences of rival fanbases will be the perpetual unease for Williamson’s next downhill drive, which is like watching Bowser with a star power-up in Mario Kart or, as in Bryn Forbes’ less nerdy terms, “a defensive end that can jump.