Why would it not make sense?...Both Neal and Manu will be entering the final seasons of there contract next season and Green is a FA this coming offseason. As long as the Spurs sign there key FA's 1st (lorbek or Diaw, Green) and as long as De colo comes for cheap then there is no reason not to bring him over.
Anyone think he'll get Oberto-type treatment? I don't get the feeling the Spurs would try to put him in the rotation right when he comes over (unless he's that amazing). Perhaps get spot minutes in the first year behind Parker/Manu/Neal/Green(/Joseph?) and then become a key rotation player in '14?
Even if De Colo does come over, unless we trade Neal or someone kills it in training camp and preseason, I predict we'll start the season with the same rotation we have now, with Cory still in Austin and Nando on the third string in Patty Mills's spot. If he earns the minutes at some point, he'll have a chance to take over as the backup point.
For the moment, there is only one source reporting that De Colo would go to Spurs so I'm taking with a grain of salt like the earlier rumor he would go to Madrid. Hopefully, we will have more news in the coming days.
Regarding his playing time, it will mainly depend on 2 questions:
Will Pop continue the Neal at PG experiment?
Will Pop play Nando at the PG spot?
If pop has no problem giving Neal the back pg position then he should have no problem letting NDC play the same position. They both are horrible defenders with Neal being a better scorer and NDC being the better ball handler.
Realgm is reporting the same thing but via San Antonio Express-News (which uses the same source that Bruno provided).
http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap...purs_For_12_13
Manu Ginobili:
* Italian League Championship: 2001
* Italian Cup: 2001, 2002
* Euroleague Championship: 2001
* Americas Championship: 2001
* Indianapolis WC - Silver Medal: 2002
* NBA Championship: 2003, 2005, 2007
* Summer Olympic Games gold medal: 2004
* Summer Olympic Games bronze medal: 2008
could mean that Spurs don't bring in Lorbek, which would have some logic.
MLE will likely be used for Diaw and LLE likely won't be enough for Lorbek, but enough for DE Colo. after re signing Diaw an acquisition of Lorbek is no longer a major need anyway.
btw. I don't care about the possible back court rotation at this point. Spurs should just stockplie talent and then figuere out whatever works best. if DeColo pushes Neal out of the rotation...so be it. Neal makes 850K next season, so even if he ends up as a 3rd stringer behind De colo next year, he just makes the money any other 3rd stringer would make either.
Besides, if he gets knocked out of the rotation, Neal is still great injury insurance for Manu (or whoever else in the backcourt). If that's how it works out, it's a great luxury to have someone like that as an 11th or 12th man, just like it's great having Blair to call on when Bonner implodes.
If Lorbek is delayed another year or so, that's just fine. At this point, the Spurs do not need another soft-shelled Euro big. They need a young, athletic, rookie big, who possesses some of the aggression and necessary skills needed to help combat a young talented frontline such the one in OKC. There are a couple of prospective project bigs that could be available in the second round. Bernard James, Henry Sims & Jonas Bergstedt are some immediate examples that come to mind.
The Spurs did a good job of identifying and bringing in Leonard to shore up the SF position for years to come. They now need to do the same thing for the PF/C spot.
While it's not 100% sure that De Colo will sign with Spurs, this rumor seems to be really strong.
A french journalist (Pascal Giberné) has contacted his agent. A quick translation about what he is saying on his twitter about that:
https://twitter.com/#!/PascalGibBN
- Nando De Colo's agent, Wassim Boutanaos, seems to be confident about his client playing for Spurs next year.
- Boutanos talked ten days ago with Dennis Lindsey Spurs assistant GM. Talks were encouraging.
- According to Boutanos, De Colo's singing will depend on what kind of contract Duncan will get.
- Boutanos quote: "Dennis Lindsey told me that in all their projections for next year roster, Nando was a part of it."
- According to Boutanos, most of the big Spanish teams playing the Euroleague are also interested in De Colo.
Do keeping Diaw and signing De Colo mean that no way Spurs could get Loberk?
Always Believe In the Spurs.
As mountainballer said earlier the key with Lorbek is whether or not he will accept a LLE deal deal ($4M over 2 years).
If Lorbek wants more than the LLE, Spurs will have to decide if they want him or Diaw. Once Spurs have decided between Lorbek and Diaw, they can sign De Colo with the rest of the MLE or the LLE.
If Lorbek is fine with the LLE, Spurs can sign both him and Diaw. Signing De Colo on top of that would be difficult. It would take De Colo accepting a minimum deal, which I don't think he will or Diaw and De Colo splitting the MLE with Diaw getting a contract starting at $3.5M-$4M per year and De Colo getting the rest of the MLE ($1M-$1.5M).
If you looked at what De Colo's agent is saying, I guess Spurs are in the first case. They will had to make a pick between Diaw and Lorbek.
BTW, De Colo has given an interview in today's newspaper but he has said way less things than his agent did. He just said that he hasn't signed a contract or a pre-contract and that he is just waiting to see what offers he will receive.
Thanks.
The full interview is now available:
http://www.basketnews.net/asp.net/ma....aspx?id=13458
Translation:
A lot of rumors coming form Spain are announcing Nando De Colo to Spurs this summer?
There is a true wish from them to have him for the next season. Since the start of the season, they are happy with his improvements. However, nothing is signed since it's not allowed by NBA rules. And the question for them is if they will succeed at re-signing Tim Duncan. It's their priority before talking with other players including Nando.
Have you talked with them recently?
Our last talk with Spurs was ten days ago with Dennis Lindsey. We stay in touch with them. Spurs are one of the few NBA franchises that really follow a player after having drafted him. For three years, Nando has received each year three visits from a member of Spurs FO. RC Buford was in Valencia a month ago to see him.
What do they think about Nando's improvement and what have they said to him?
In how they projected his evolution, they have liked his improvement on the defensive end and his ability to play both guards spots. After three years in Spain, they think Nando is ready to play a role with them. More precisely, Dennis Lindsey tell me today: In all our roster projections for the next season, Nando is a part of it. Now, nothing is signed, there are still some items to talk about but it seems to be on a good way.
Would you say it's 70-30?
I won't take the risk with kind of proposition. There is a true wish for Nando to go in the NBA. With all the specificity of this franchise, Tony, Boris, their coach, the game played in San Antonio suits him well. Saying that, as long as it isn't signed, it isn't signed. During the more June and more precisely at the end of it, we will know for sure. And if it didn't happen, some Spanish teams playing the Euroleague are interested.
Some big Spanish teams are after him? Which ones?
Their names are known. Nando has never hidden what he wanted. If he had to stay in Europe, his priority is to play the Euroleague and to stay in Spain. Spanish teams qualified for the Euroleague are known. Real Madrid is interested in him but with their roster loaded with guards, so they aren't necessarily the best destination for him. However, if I say Malaga, Vitoria and Barcelona, they are true options. Nando is reaching the end of his contract so he is free to decide where he will go and San Antonio will have no buyout to pay.
Outside of San Antonio, are there other NBA franchises interested in Nando?
There aren't. San Antonio's wish was to follow Nando and they let everybody know that they wanted to keep him. Spurs have never talk to us about another NBA franchise wanting to acquire his rights.
How does he compare to Neal?
I've only watched him play few games but I think he is much better ball handler.
He doesn't, beyond their comparable size and athletic traits. Neal is vastly superior as a shooter and scorer, whereas De Colo is vastly superior as a ballhandler and distributor. Both are generously considered 'combo' guards, but the reality is that De Colo is as much a liability playing the 2 as Neal is playing the point. Having both on the court at the same time would be an ugly sight defensively.
Not the same type of player. Neal is a shooter, De Colo plays more athletics basket. He can shoot, can drive to basket, draw some contact. His ballhandling skills looked really good.
Valencia used him as their closer, and prime weapon at iso situations during ACB semifinals. He seemed solid at doing it. Made some buckets. Valencia lost deciding game because of 3 stupid decisions made by his teammate. When De Colo had ball, Valencia was effecient on offense.
Cant say anything specific about his defens. He`s not a road pole, I am sure of this.
I'd rather have De Colo here than Neal.
This series is really emphasizing the importance of back up ball handler/point guard, no more turning 2 guards into PGs. Neal is ok when Manu is out there with hiim, but there are times when that isn't available, and the Spurs offense goes downhill in this series.
I'll take a slow ball handler over a slow shooter (both aren't great defensively) for the back up PG spot. I don't have a problem with Neal on the roster, just Pop has to stick with him at the SG spot.
Spurs Depth:
PG: Parker, CJ, De Colo, Mills
SG: Manu, Green, Neal
SF: Kawhi, TMac
PF: Duncan, Diaw, Bonner
C: Splitter, Baynes, Blair
"So the final image of Ginobili isn’t that he lost a bronze medal. It’s what he did to try to win one." -
Buck Harvey
Still crazy after all these years. “And I love that,” Jackson said. “I’d rather play with someone like him, who plays hard and gets hurt, than someone who is afraid.”
- SJAX regarding Manu
"slow ball handler" isn't really a good definition for De Colo. While it's true he hasn't a quick first step or good lateral mobility, he isn't a slow player. He is a player that fasten the game.
De Colo is too a great shooter. His 3P% might not be great but that's mainly because he take complicated 3 point shots in Europe where he is often the central point of the offense. A good stat to show what kind of shooter he is are his FT%.
Over 3 years in Spain, he has played 155 games in Spanish league and European competitions. In these 155 games, he is 378/422 from the line. It's a 89.6% FT%. You can't do that without being a heck of a shooter.
Well with Neal sucking in this last game and him not being on the flight to OK I can see us trading him real quick this summer. All I hope is De Colo a player who plays better in crunch time or is he like Bonner who turns into Butter?
The problem with Bonner is that he never worked on anything other than his 3 pt shot (and he doesn't even do that well). He should have learned to take advantage of that skill by working on a decent pump fake drive move and/or post game around the basket.
Green could evolve to the next level as well if he incorporates a pump fake/drive to the basket. You have to be able to drive and finish at the basket when your shot isn't falling or you will be useless out there.
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Yeah and Bruno didn't really mean De Colo was slow just speed isn't one of his listed skill sets, same for Neal, and for the back up PG spot (even if it is a combo guard) you need to be able to handle the ball.
This series is also emphasizing the Spurs need for a decent, young post player, with size, skill and athleticism.
when the spurs draft in the lottery maybe you will see one these type players playing in a spurs uni..not until then
When Timmy and Manu are gone then will get that young guy until then just sign Lobrek and De Colo and call that your draft.
Boris didnt help his case in the last games of the series. I wouldn't be surprised if Spurs were once in the plan of trying to sign both, but now shifted to an either or approach. For the record I like Diaw, but his aggression in games 1&2 versus the rest of the series was noticeable. I'm not sure if that is all on him, or on Pop not using him to attack more.
Forget Diaw he doesn't do anything we need which is defend and hit open shots. SIGN LOBREK
I would sign him trade Neal and Lorbek for a better pick in the draft honestly.
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