If Spurs don't resign Kurt Thomas...

[Spurtacus]

where do they go from there? Who's a big out there they can sign? I'm worried that the Lakers may let Turiaf walk and steal Thomas from us.

[spurman20]

Dont think lakers will take him....they have enough bigs.....and they would pay dollar for dollar tax....plus I think we would match the offer.....I still want Ratliff, or trade for Krystic

[SenorSpur]

I'm afraid to entertain the question. In fact, I was thinking today about how "stout" our frontline would have been with both KT and Splitter in the fold.

[Hoy]

Problem with Thomas is that he is a copy of Oberto. He is old, short, tricky but slow. Different color, similar player.
Even his jump shot was not all that enticing in the playoffs. So when you sign Thomas, you are basically paying a player twice, once to Oberto and then again to Thomas. A dubious value.
We should explore a different type who can be had for a cheap.
Big player who can lean on Shaq and Bynum, tire them out. He is just a big hack but he does add missing size in Spurs front court.

A player like David Harrison.
A hack that can be had for cheap and can be situational player. And add dimension to roster.
Last year, we were old, slow and small. We are now younger, quicker but still small. He can be a BIG big.

[Ronaldo McDonald]

Problem with Thomas is that he is a copy of Oberto. He is old, short, tricky but slow. Different color, similar player.
Even his jump shot was not all that enticing in the playoffs. So when you sign Thomas, you are basically paying a player twice, once to Oberto and then again to Thomas. A dubious value.
We should explore a different type who can be had for a cheap.
Big player who can lean on Shaq and Bynum, tire them out. He is just a big hack but he does add missing size in Spurs front court.

A player like David Harrison.
A hack that can be had for cheap and can be situational player. And add dimension to roster.
Last year, we were old, slow and small. We are now younger, quicker but still small. He can be a BIG big.

If that ends up being the case, the Spurs need let Bonner know that way he can take a self-defense class.

http://www.hoopsvibe.com/IMG/matt_bonner-arton20875-240x240.jpg

The possibility of both of these guys sitting side-by-side at the end of the bench would be worth paying for seats alone.

Do it Pop!

[Kindergarten Cop]

Problem with Thomas is that he is a copy of Oberto. He is old, short, tricky but slow. Different color, similar player.
Even his jump shot was not all that enticing in the playoffs. So when you sign Thomas, you are basically paying a player twice, once to Oberto and then again to Thomas. A dubious value.
We should explore a different type who can be had for a cheap.
Big player who can lean on Shaq and Bynum, tire them out. He is just a big hack but he does add missing size in Spurs front court.

A player like David Harrison.
A hack that can be had for cheap and can be situational player. And add dimension to roster.
Last year, we were old, slow and small. We are now younger, quicker but still small. He can be a BIG big.

No offense, but Kurt Thomas and Oberto have almost nothing in common. I have no idea where you came up with that. Oberto is a horrible post defender and KT is very good at it. KT has much better range (15-18 ft) while Oberto rarely hits shots outside the paint. Oberto is crafty and often finds himself in the right place at the right time.

[NewJerSpur]

Kurt was brought in more for his defensive toughness (which Fab lacks), defensive rebounding, and his willingness to take elbow jump shots (which Fab lacks). His jumpshot was compromised a bit from inconsistent playing time (especially in the playoffs) as he learned the system and the team tried to find which rotations he fit best in.

Oberto is more of an offensive rebounder who moves better than Kurt without the ball and passes better as well.

The team is going in the right direction with the youth movement, but can still stand to take on a vet like KT...especially with Horry's status in the air.

[SenorSpur]

Kurt was brought in more for his defensive toughness (which Fab lacks), defensive rebounding, and his willingness to take elbow jump shots (which Fab lacks). His jumpshot was compromised a bit from inconsistent playing time (especially in the playoffs) as he learned the system and the team tried to find which rotations he fit best in.

Oberto is more of an offensive rebounder who moves better than Kurt without the ball and passes better as well.

The team is going in the right direction with the youth movement, but can still stand to take on a vet like KT...especially with Horry's status in the air.

Personally, I don't believe that Horry's status is up in the air at all. In fact, i really believe his fate is sealed. I can't see a scenario in which the Sprus ask him to come back.

[NewJerSpur]

Well, the FO already sent the message out to the remaining aging vets from last year's roster that they aren't as high a priority this season as in years past when they let Brent (who it can be argued has the most value of them all at this stage in their careers) skate to Houston. Still, one never knows with this FO. At this point, with the flux at SF/SG Fin might have the better shot at returning between he and Bob, but Rob may still be brought back as insurance in the event that Mahinmi hits a wall and KT does not return for some reason. He can still shoot the 3 and spread floor as a result. Regardless, I hope they get a deal done with Kurt soon.

[timvp]

What I'd seriously do if the Spurs don't re-sign KT if I'm RC is I'd sign Horry to the ol' Danny Ferry contract. Give him a two-year deal with the second year non-guaranteed. Then lean on Mahinmi. If Mahinmi cracks, you trade Horry in a Ferry's-unguaranteed-contract-for-Hedo type trade. Everybody wins.

:drunk

[ceperez]

What I'd seriously do if the Spurs don't re-sign KT if I'm RC is I'd sign Horry to the ol' Danny Ferry contract. Give him a two-year deal with the second year non-guaranteed. Then lean on Mahinmi. If Mahinmi cracks, you trade Horry in a Ferry's-unguaranteed-contract-for-Hedo type trade. Everybody wins.

:drunk

Yup, I like that idea. Definitely keep Horry and don't resign Thomas. Force Pop to utilize Mahinmi and Bonner and desperately look for a Hedo/Jackson like player .

[Spurs Brazil]

Yesterday in Mason press conference nobody asked R.C about Thomas.

Is the reporters to dumb like McDonald to not ask him or they didn't aks because they knoew R.C would say nothing?

[SenorSpur]

What I'd seriously do if the Spurs don't re-sign KT if I'm RC is I'd sign Horry to the ol' Danny Ferry contract. Give him a two-year deal with the second year non-guaranteed. Then lean on Mahinmi. If Mahinmi cracks, you trade Horry in a Ferry's-unguaranteed-contract-for-Hedo type trade. Everybody wins.

:drunk

God help us all, should it come to that.

:sleep

[Sissiborgo]

Yeah i think we will just need to face that

[blaze89]

I'd consider the offseason a bust if Thomas is not re-signed. I have no problems with Mason nor Hill - simply because to get a top notch player for a small salary is difficult to achieve - but I think the re-signing of Thomas is priority.

[wildbill2u]

where do they go from there? Who's a big out there they can sign? I'm worried that the Lakers may let Turiaf walk and steal Thomas from us.

What's really scary is how strongly we'll have to rely on a old and slow player whose overall play and stats have been in a steady decline since 2003 and who was traded away by two Western Conference teams (Phoenix, Seattle) in the last year.

I don't say he can't be a useful bench player against some teams for some minutes, but to rely on him as much as everyone seems to do only shows
the weakness at the core of the front line.

Once you get past Timmy, no big on the roster impresses me as primetime player.

[mrspurs]

No offense, but Kurt Thomas and Oberto have almost nothing in common. I have no idea where you came up with that. Oberto is a horrible post defender and KT is very good at it. KT has much better range (15-18 ft) while Oberto rarely hits shots outside the paint. Oberto is crafty and often finds himself in the right place at the right time.

here is something they both have in common.........they are both choke artist...fab finds himself all alone cos the double tim and dare us to shoot from the arc.......and what does fab do the most.....studder,look around, pause, and then he.........chokes.....poor duncan hasnt had such a horrible set of bigs next to him ever.....

[mrspurs]

What's really scary is how strongly we'll have to rely on a old and slow player whose overall play and stats have been in a steady decline since 2003 and who was traded away by two Western Conference teams (Phoenix, Seattle) in the last year.

I don't say he can't be a useful bench player against some teams for some minutes, but to rely on him as much as everyone seems to do only shows
the weakness at the core of the front line.

Once you get past Timmy, no big on the roster impresses me as primetime player.

and exactly why if the FO doesnt get timmy help we will be saying the same thing come next may when we get knocked out again...only this time maybe even more easily...

[pad300]

If we could get Javtokas to come with the remaining money in either of our exceptions, I think he would be the choice. Given the amount of money we have, the only other option is to pick a pretty much complete unknown, a la Nick Fazekas, and hope he blossoms... I should be clear that I would prefer this route to re-signing Horry, even in the proposed trade scenario that TIMVP came up with.

[Steve-O-Matic]

Robertas Javtokas. Where there's a will there's a way. In fact, we need to try to make that happen independent of what happens with Kurt Thomas.

[BacktoBasics]

I doubt we'll know anything anytime soon unless KT wants to play for somewhere near the vet minimum. They'll wait to see if he gets any offers and then they'll try to match. If he gets no offers then he might be had for less.

I don't like the idea of scrambling at the last minute to try and find a replacement though.

[exstatic]

Kurt Thomas is only the best rebounder SA has paired with Tim since David retired, in spite of the fact that he has more screws in his ankles than a hardware store. He sets a mean pick, plays with his heart and his elbows, and has a nice jumper.

[Brutalis]

KT just called me said "They are boring me with these offers."

[wildbill2u]

Kurt Thomas is only the best rebounder SA has paired with Tim since David retired, in spite of the fact that he has more screws in his ankles than a hardware store. He sets a mean pick, plays with his heart and his elbows, and has a nice jumper.

Assuming all those qualities are true, since Pop only gives him about 20 mpg average (probably because of age) for his 4-5 ppg and 4 rpg in regular season, then we still come up short compared to the teams with better big men. Even when you combine his play with Oberto's minutes, we don't have one really impressive big man to complement Tim.

And in the playoffs, his minutes and contributions declined steeply in each succeeding series because of his defensive limitations against quicker more agile players who are featured on playoff teams. From 18 mpg against Shaq to 8 mpg in LA.

Sure, we're gonna try to resign him, but Mahimi had better step into that telephone booth and come out with a Superman suit.

[exstatic]

Assuming all those qualities are true, since Pop only gives him about 20 mpg average (probably because of age) for his 4-5 ppg and 4 rpg in regular season, then we still come up short compared to the teams with better big men. Even when you combine his play with Oberto's minutes, we don't have one really impressive big man to complement Tim.

And in the playoffs, his minutes and contributions declined steeply in each succeeding series because of his defensive limitations against quicker more agile players who are featured on playoff teams. From 18 mpg against Shaq to 8 mpg in LA.

Sure, we're gonna try to resign him, but Mahimi had better step into that telephone booth and come out with a Superman suit.

We've won with the "impressive" duos of Rasho/Nazr and Oberto/Horry, so I don't think you have a point. David Robinson isn't coming through that door. It'll be done by comittee again, and Thomas is a good piece to have.

If you haven't been watching for the last ten years, and it appears that might be so, the Spurs never have the talent to compete for the title. They do, however, bring in the right pieces, players that know their roles and execute them to a 'T'. Somehow, that's gotten it done four times.

SA's never going to draft near the top, and 2010 will be only the second time that they will have money to go after a big fish. I think you need to wrap your head around the reality of the situation.

[Marcus Bryant]

Assuming Thomas is re-signed, Oberto's role will diminish next season. I would not be surprised to see Mahinmi be the first big off the bench or even start. A youth movement is afoot in SA and Mahinmi is about as ready as he's going to be for his NBA rookie season.

[itzsoweezee]

imagine if mahinimi actually got some playing time last season to get him some experience and an opportunity to develop.

[CaptainLate]

Dont think lakers will take him....they have enough bigs.....and they would pay dollar for dollar tax....plus I think we would match the offer.....I still want Ratliff, or trade for Krystic

Weren't we looking to draft Krystic before the Nets "stole" him a pick or two before? My concern is whether he's injury-prone.

[CaptainLate]

Personally, I don't believe that Horry's status is up in the air at all. In fact, i really believe his fate is sealed. I can't see a scenario in which the Sprus ask him to come back.

I think with Horry it's a situation where he retires by force b/c no one wants to sign him for the vet min.

[Mr. Body]

Weren't we looking to draft Krystic before the Nets "stole" him a pick or two before? My concern is whether he's injury-prone.

Reportedly the Spurs were after him, yes. Thorn read their signals. I guess. That's been the Spurs' side of things.

[ShoogarBear]

What I'd seriously do if the Spurs don't re-sign KT if I'm RC is I'd sign Horry to the ol' Danny Ferry contract. Give him a two-year deal with the second year non-guaranteed. Then lean on Mahinmi. If Mahinmi cracks, you trade Horry in a Ferry's-unguaranteed-contract-for-Hedo type trade. Everybody wins.

:drunk

:drunk:drunk:drunk

[CaptainLate]

What I'd seriously do if the Spurs don't re-sign KT if I'm RC is I'd sign Horry to the ol' Danny Ferry contract. Give him a two-year deal with the second year non-guaranteed. Then lean on Mahinmi. If Mahinmi cracks, you trade Horry in a Ferry's-unguaranteed-contract-for-Hedo type trade. Everybody wins.

:drunk

Frankly, I don't think you can find someone dumb enough to take Horry just b/c he has an expiring contract. Better to have Horry mentoring the youth and available for slower front lines.

I'd love to see Mahinmi, Bonner, Mason and Hill get as much PT as possible, even if it means finishing in the bottom half of the playoff seeding. If we are healthy, and young, by the playoffs, we should be able to able to win the title in our usual odd year. :downspin:

[Fabbs]

imagine if mahinimi actually got some playing time last season to get him some experience and an opportunity to develop.
ChumperDumper, timvp and (i think) a few others saw him play multiple times.
The report was NBDL was the correct place for him last year.

Altho with Flabbs Obertos playoff performance you have to wonder.....

[Duncan2177]

Kwame Brown?

[meestahmeestah]

Frankly, I don't think you can find someone dumb enough to take Horry just b/c he has an expiring contract.

Keith Van Horn begs to differ. :p:

[Spurtacus]

Kwame Brown?

Pass.

Robertas Javtokas. How much of a help can he be? Remember, we're still title contenders...not rebuilding. Need people who can come in and play. As much as I like to get younger, signing KT needs to get done.

[DPG21920]

I want to start an official Kurt Thomas watch thread, I know I need to be patient, but the UFA part makes me extremely nervous....

[spurman20]

Weren't we looking to draft Krystic before the Nets "stole" him a pick or two before? My concern is whether he's injury-prone.

Yes, Pops loved him and he is a good player who can play the high or low post which is very important in our system. He did have the knee injury but seems to be healing well and its the only major injury he has had. Not uncommon for a guy to blow out a knee. I saw him in a couple games this year and he is not a 100% yet but he will be this year. I would love to have him. He would put us over the top no doubt!

[spurman20]

Pass.

Robertas Javtokas. How much of a help can he be? Remember, we're still title contenders...not rebuilding. Need people who can come in and play. As much as I like to get younger, signing KT needs to get done.

He is very skilled and athletic I think he could be a 10ppg and 8 rpg 2.5 blpgm guy but, I keep hearing we will not bring him over. Dont know what the deal is with him.

[K-State Spur]

Frankly, I don't think you can find someone dumb enough to take Horry just b/c he has an expiring contract.

Why would it be dumb? It has nothing to do with his actual production and everything to do with providing almost immediate cap relief to any team that would trade for him.

We traded Danny Ferry (who had RETIRED) for productive pieces based on a similar contract.

[Tully365]

God help us all, should it come to that.

:sleep

Yeah-- I would hope they were pretty confident about him returning, since all of their draft and free agent interests were not true 4s or 5s:

Hill: 1/2
Hairston: 2/3 (he was even forced to play a little PG at times, or point forward)
Gist: 3/4
Mason: 2

[ducks]

I THINK he has told spurs he will sign for x amount dollars and less if they need to to avoid the tax

[gmanrulz]

kvYgYijGCtY

[spurman20]

I think the spurs are letting the other teams set the market for KT....Wise move. I still would like to find a way to get Krystic and a sign and trade Thomas for Krystic would be awsome. We get bigger younger and more skilled up front for min risk. Krystic and Duncan together would be great between the 2 45ppg 19rpg 4blk prgame. I know Jersey wants to move him.

[Spurtacus]

I want to start an official Kurt Thomas watch thread, I know I need to be patient, but the UFA part makes me extremely nervous....

How's that thread going for you?

[DPG21920]

How's that thread going for you?

Not too good! But thats ok, It was not for everyone. I just wanted to consolidate this and mine. Make it a one-stop shop for those interested in what is going on with KT. I am finding some people who are making some good points about market value and engaging in theoretical conversations, but most do not care for it. I was just doing it because KT is important to the team in the scope of things and I like to discuss things like market value and such...

[SenorSpur]

Weren't we looking to draft Krystic before the Nets "stole" him a pick or two before? My concern is whether he's injury-prone.

Didn't know much about Krstic, but just looked up his numbers and vitals:

Nenad Krstic
#12 Forward - Center
Height: 7-0 / 2,13
Weight: 240 lbs. / 108,9 kg.
From: Serbia & Montenegro
Years Pro: 4

2007-08 Statistics
PPG 6.6 RPG 4.40 APG 0.6 EFF + 7.02 Born: Jul 25, 1983
Career Statistics
PPG 11.3 RPT 5.7 APG 1.1 BPG 0.7

All that with him averaging 27 mins per game? Sounds good. I like it. If the Nets are indeed trying to move him, I wonder what the Nets would be asking for him. The Spurs should get in on him.

[SenorSpur]

I think the spurs are letting the other teams set the market for KT....Wise move. I still would like to find a way to get Krystic and a sign and trade Thomas for Krystic would be awsome. We get bigger younger and more skilled up front for min risk. Krystic and Duncan together would be great between the 2 45ppg 19rpg 4blk prgame. I know Jersey wants to move him.

Truthfully, I'd love for the Spurs to acquire Kristic without having to sacrifice KT. Because there is limited $$$ left in the coffers, I doubt that it would be possible.

Kristic has good numbers, but I doubt that he exhibits the physical presence of KT. Still would love to have him

[DPG21920]

He is just a little soft defensively. I do not know why the Nets would want KT considering they have a slew of young players at that position and his contract can come off the books next year.