Malik Hairston

[MaNu4Tres]

Anyone know what he's up to? Is he going to Europe or Austin?

[ChumpDumper]

We'll find out in a couple of days. This is the week in which players like Hairston are allocated.

[pad300]

Hey Chump, have you heard anything about if Nick Fazekas is playing in the D-league this year, or is he going to Europe?

[ChumpDumper]

I believe he signed to play in Belgium a couple of days ago.

I wouldn't be surprised to see him in Reno before the season is over.

[mystargtr34]

What pick do the Toros have? You would think Pop and co. would tell them to take Hairston if hes there.

[ChumpDumper]

The Toros pick last, but they can have Hairston allocated to them outside the draft since he was a Spurs draft pick.

[DANILO DRASKOVIC]

Hey Chump, have you heard anything about if Nick Fazekas is playing in the D-league this year, or is he going to Europe?

Belgium

[pad300]

According to the blog, ridiculousupside.com,

Hairston has indeed become a Toros allocated player - he's playing D-league this season. I am unsure if he can be signed by any team or if he's still Spurs property...

[ChumpDumper]

He can be signed by any NBA team.

[T Park]

Awesome.

Cut Farmer, sign Hairston, and play him.

Hes the best defensive wing on the team outside Bowen and Mason.

[ChumpDumper]

And thanks for the link -- it has all the returning and allocated players for each team.

Marcus Williams is back with the Toros. Charles Gaines has been allocated by them too.

[T Park]

:lol

Marcus Williams?

[ChumpDumper]

I'll take him. He's definitely a good D-League player. Having him, Gaines and Hairston right off the bat makes draft decisions much easier.

[T Park]

Sounds like they could use a solid PG.

[Obstructed_View]

Awesome.

Cut Farmer, sign Hairston, and play him.

Hes the best defensive wing on the team outside Bowen and Mason.

Mason's defense sucks, and Bowen has been almost as bad. Hairston would walk in and be the best individual defender on the team.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Sign up Hairston, waive Farmer. Hell, you can play him now instead of Finley.

[ChumpDumper]

Sounds like they could use a solid PG.Exactly, although Squeaky definitely got better over last season. A true center would help too.

[T Park]

Mason's defense sucks, and Bowen has been almost as bad. Hairston would walk in and be the best individual defender on the team.

I disagree, Mason has played well on defense.

[tp2021]

Awesome.

Cut Farmer, sign Hairston, and play him.

Hes the best defensive wing on the team outside Bowen and Mason.

I agree with you... :wow

We might want to wait until Manu comes back, or until these players can prove that they don't need Farmer for added scoring punch.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Mason is enough of a scoring punch. Our defense is at its shittiest. It would be impossible to bring up Hairston and get worse defensively at the same time.

[T Park]

fuck offense.

Defense wins championships and I'm pissed that Pop for some reason has forgotten this shit.

[tp2021]

fuck offense.

Defense wins championships and I'm pissed that Pop for some reason has forgotten this shit.

I wouldn't go so far as to say 'fuck offense,' but I think with TD, TP, Manu, and RMJ, as well as Ime improving his shot selection, and possibly help on the offensive glass from Mahinmi, our offense figures to be pretty stellar.

But yes, I would LOVE to get Hairston on this team before another team snatches him up.

[MarHill]

fuck offense.

Defense wins championships and I'm pissed that Pop for some reason has forgotten this shit.


This team has only played 4 games and we expect their defense to be at a championship level already. Yikes....Spoiled Spurs Fan is at it again!!!!


Pop hasn't forgot about defense....everyone knows that!!


Patience is a lost virtue....especially in professional sports!!!

[Obstructed_View]

I disagree, Mason has played well on defense.

Yeah, it was stupid the first time you posted it.

[ulosturedge]

I would have to agree our defense is the worst i've seen it. Despite the fact that it's early in the season it just seems like the age factor is really causing our defensive philosophy to breakdown. Bowen seems to have lost a step, our veteran roll players are getting older and slower every year, and we have no inside defensive presence. We really need a second solid interior defender. So even if our perimeter defense is lacking we still have some solid rebounding presence at least. Thats why i'm hoping Mahinmi gives us something.. anything..

[Obstructed_View]

With the way people are blowing by the Spurs, Mahinmi should give us four blocks and six fouls virtually every game.

[SenorSpur]

I would have to agree our defense is the worst i've seen it. Despite the fact that it's early in the season it just seems like the age factor is really causing our defensive philosophy to breakdown. Bowen seems to have lost a step, our veteran roll players are getting older and slower every year, and we have no inside defensive presence. We really need a second solid interior defender. So even if our perimeter defense is lacking we still have some solid rebounding presence at least. Thats why i'm hoping Mahinmi gives us something.. anything..

Which is why I fault Pop because he should've had the foresight to know that his continuous gambling on older rotation players would eventually yield this result. He should have been better prepared for it.

[ChumpDumper]

We have plenty of young players.

They're just all injured or otherwise out.

[jjktkk]

Which is why I fault Pop because he should've had the foresight to know that his continuous gambling on older rotation players would eventually yield this result. He should have been better prepared for it.

Have to slightly disagree with you. The overall age of the Spurs has dropped this season. They are still long in the tooth, but IMO Pop was going to bring along Mihinmi and Tolliver(both young) into the rotation, along with Hill(young) which will drop the Spurs overall age down even further. Of course with Mahinmi's injury and Tolliver's leave of absense, we haven't seen all of the Spurs youngsters, so we just need to wait and see this current Spurs team round into form. Pop has a plan in place, just need for some of the fans to have alittle patience. I mean come on Spurs fans, have some faith. Its only been 4 games! GEEZ.

[SenorSpur]

Have to slightly disagree with you. The overall age of the Spurs has dropped this season. They are still long in the tooth, but IMO Pop was going to bring along Mihinmi and Tolliver(both young) into the rotation, along with Hill(young) which will drop the Spurs overall age down even further. Of course with Mahinmi's injury and Tolliver's leave of absense, we haven't seen all of the Spurs youngsters, so we just need to wait and see this current Spurs team round into form. Pop has a plan in place, just need for some of the fans to have alittle patience. I mean come on Spurs fans, have some faith. Its only been 4 games! GEEZ.

Having them on the roster is one thing. Demonstrating a willingness to give them playing time is another. The only way these guys will get better is through practice and court time.

Injuries or not, it appears Pop plans on bringing them along slowly. In the interim, we're going to witness diminishing returns as the older rotation get the lionshare of court time. So live with the results for now.

[ChumpDumper]

How can you draw that conclusion when they haven't even been available to play?

Hill is already the backup point guard. Live with that.

[Obstructed_View]

Having them on the roster is one thing. Demonstrating a willingness to give them playing time is another. The only way these guys will get better is through practice and court time.

Injuries or not, it appears Pop plans on bringing them along slowly. In the interim, we're going to witness diminishing returns as the older rotation get the lionshare of court time. So live with the results for now.

That's just dishonest, shame on you. Pop has played every available young player so far. Tolliver's mother died and Mahinmi's injured. Hill played ten minutes in his first game, also coming back from injury, and was awarded JV's spot in the rotation as a result. Mason's getting more and more minutes and Bowen's minutes are going to Finley out of necessity. Farmer's a scorer with no defense, and as it happens, scoring isn't the Spurs' problem right now.

[SenorSpur]

That's just dishonest, shame on you. Pop has played every available young player so far. Tolliver's mother died and Mahinmi's injured. Hill played ten minutes in his first game, also coming back from injury, and was awarded JV's spot in the rotation as a result. Mason's getting more and more minutes and Bowen's minutes are going to Finley out of necessity. Farmer's a scorer with no defense, and as it happens, scoring isn't the Spurs' problem right now.

You're missing the point. I'm talking big picture - not just this season. Specifically Pop's continued man-crush with Finley and his negligence in not properly addressing the backup SF position on this team for the past several seasons. This is especially damning with Bowen either getting off to a slow start or starting a sharp decline in performance.

All of which, has led to a drastic decline in this team's overall defensive performance. I know he's realized this before now, but my point is gambled too long before incorporating these changes.

[Obstructed_View]

You're missing the point. I'm talking big picture - not just this season. Specifically Pop's continued man-crush with Finley and his negligence in not properly addressing the backup SF position on this team for the past several seasons. This is especially damning with Bowen either getting off to a slow start or starting a sharp decline in performance.

All of which, has led to a drastic decline in this team's overall defensive performance. I know he's realized this before now, but my point is gambled too long before incorporating these changes.

First of all, that's another lie. You said that Pop has them on the roster and is unwilling to give them playing time. You should just admit that misstatement because no amount of manipulation is going to make it true.

Secondly, I'd love an explanation of who the Spurs should have picked up to replace Bowen in the lineup. A list of defenders who are comparable to him that they had the money and opportunity to have right now would be a great start. One of the people they had on their radar to eventually take over his spot is Udoka. Whether or not he will work out is undetermined, but the fact remains that he's living proof that the Spurs addressed the issue two years ago. If you are going to criticize and second-guess the Spurs' FO for this year's problems, questioning why Gist, a shot blocking forward that they drafted, isn't on the roster would be a far far better place to start.

This team's overall defensive performance is exactly that: Overall. It's much more than one guy. When Matt Bonner's been as solid on the defensive end as anyone on the roster aside from the rookie, the team has problems that Bowen at his defensive peak wouldn't do much to help.

[HarlemHeat37]

the defense isn't on Bruce at all IMO..well it is a little obviously, but he takes the same blame as everybody else..Tim Duncan, the best defender of this generation(IMO) is playing average defense, which isn't good enough for us at all..it starts with Duncan as the anchor, and it works down around..

we SHOULD still be a great defensive team though..our system is still there, Pop is still there, Duncan is still there..we've been able to mask our players that lack defensive skill for years, this year shouldn't be any different..

[SenorSpur]

First of all, that's another lie. You said that Pop has them on the roster and is unwilling to give them playing time. You should just admit that misstatement because no amount of manipulation is going to make it true.

Secondly, I'd love an explanation of who the Spurs should have picked up to replace Bowen in the lineup. A list of defenders who are comparable to him that they had the money and opportunity to have right now would be a great start. One of the people they had on their radar to eventually take over his spot is Udoka. Whether or not he will work out is undetermined, but the fact remains that he's living proof that the Spurs addressed the issue two years ago. If you are going to criticize and second-guess the Spurs' FO for this year's problems, questioning why Gist, a shot blocking forward that they drafted, isn't on the roster would be a far far better place to start.

This team's overall defensive performance is exactly that: Overall. It's much more than one guy. When Matt Bonner's been as solid on the defensive end as anyone on the roster aside from the rookie, the team has problems that Bowen at his defensive peak wouldn't do much to help.

There's no question that injuries/absences have limited playing time for the new additions. But as I said earlier, I doubt think Pop would've come out the gate rewarding them with playing time. His own comments bear out that he values loyalty to his veterans and wants youngsters to earn their court time gradually. My point is he needs to rethink that strategy.

Also, I stand by my statement about his continued force-feeding of minutes to Finley. In fact, why he is even on this team is a freaking mystery. The point remains that Pop has had 5 years to address the backup SF position. Yet he chose to put this off for a series of patchwork, end-of career vets, who had decent offensive skills, yet failed to provide much else.

If you want some names over the course of that time period, I'll give you a few. There was a time that Trevor Ariza and Matt Barnes were on the street a few seasons ago. Either of these would've been better options than Finley. Also, there is no reason that Malik Hairston isn't on this roster today. I've got no issues with Udoka and hope he continues to perform well.

You are absolutely correct in that the defensive problems are an overall, collective one. However, we all know that the core of the Spurs defensive philosophy and success has been rooted in Bowen's dogged defensive prowess on the perimeter and Duncan's defensive brilliance in the post. I'm troubled that there are no sutiable backup options at either spot.

If you think Pop is above criticism - that's fine. If you think I'm off-base, that's OK too. We can differ on opinions, but that doesn't mean I'm a liar anymore than you are.

[ChumpDumper]

So you're just complaining about a Bowen replacement.

You should have said that in the first place.

[Allanon]

If you want some names over the course of that time period, I'll give you a few. There was a time that Trevor Ariza and Matt Barnes were on the street a few seasons ago. Either of these would've been better options than Finley. Also, there is no reason that Malik Hairston isn't on this roster today. I've got no issues with Udoka and hope he continues to perform well.

I for one am glad you guys didn't snag Trevor Ariza. He's quickly becoming one of my favorite Lakers.

I thought Hairston would have been a good addition to the Spurs but then again, there just weren't enough roster spots.

[ChumpDumper]

The Spurs could easily bring back Hairston. I don't see anyone else desperate for his services yet.

[chreph]

I thought Hairston would have been a good addition to the Spurs but then again, there just weren't enough roster spots.

I find this pre-season case to be hilarious. We have no roster spots available but yet have no productive help for Tony, Tim, and RMJ. Seems like poor decisions were made in regards to our roster spots. Roster spots are supposed to be hard to come by for stacked teams, not thin/weak teams.

For example, JV has no business on our roster. We have TP, George Hill, and RMJ/Manu are more than capable of running the point for a little while if we need that 3rd PG. Tolliver and Bonner will play the same role (I use the term "role" loosely in Bonner's case). Meanwhile, we get to wonder "what could have been?" in regards to Hairston and Gist. :bang

[tp2021]

Gist is still ours. My guess is he will be here next year.

[ChumpDumper]

As far as Gist goes, I'm pretty sure the Spurs want to sign him to a two-year deal and ddn't want him to be a free agent in 2010.

[AFBlue]

FWIW, Hairston has 31pts, 7 boards, 4 assists and is 17 of 17 from the free throw line....and the game isn't over.

[AFBlue]

Make that 33 (19-20 from the line), 7rebs, and 6asts.

[Spurs Brazil]

Box Score

http://www.nba.com/dleague/games/boxscore.jsp?gameId=2020800009

Toros won the game

[Thompson]

So do we drop Ahearn (since we have Parker, Mason, Hill, and Ginobili and Vaughn who can all play point) and lock up Hairston with a roster spot now? I don't see why not, before someone else grabs him. Let him stay in Austin though.

Then again, he does have a .286 FG% on the season. Is he a streaky shooter or something? Hill had trouble in summer league, did Hairston just have a rough start to the season?

[Rynospursfan]

I think Ahearn is a goner, soon, but for who I don't know.

[Ice009]

Wow. That is an amazing game from Hairston.

I'm all for cutting Hearn right now to bring Hairston in.

I'm also up for cutting Tolliver and bringing back Horry. Our bigs truly suck right now. Bonner is playing very good though. Unless we need to keep Tolliver around to keep Bonner on his toes I don't see why he's on the team.

I really do think Robert Horry could have contributed more than Tolliver has thus far and possibly even out shoot him too. Would it be safe to say now that Tolliver is an average shooter? Does he still need more of a chance?

[intlspurshk]

I preferred Farmer as I thought the team needs scores. Now it didn't work and hence I seconded the proposal to bring back Hairston, if he can play good man to man defense.

[The Truth #6]

If Pop feels the need to have a 3rd string point guard then I think Ahearn is a better option than JV, but of course JV isn't going anywhere. Perhaps next Summer we can try to get Ahearn to take JV's place somehow some way.

As for Hairston, I don't see him getting a lot of minutes ahead of Udoka right now, who is hardly playing either.

If anyone gets cut I think the better argument is for cutting Tolliver and bringing in another big to see what they can do. That assumes there is a better big out there - others can answer that better - but I don't see the wing position being something we need to focus on right now.

A post player is what we need and with Ian hopefully coming back soon we'll probably just stay pat with everyone we have, including Ahearn.

[Bruno]

CD has reported that RC was at the Toros game.
Maybe he will bring back someone in his bags... :stirpot:

I've liked the few I've saw of Hairston. His main drawback is that he is quite short to play the 3 but it hasn't stopped the Spurs in the past when they signed someone like Udoka.

Both Tolliver and Ahearn didn't look like interesting prospects. I would have nothign to say if Spurs waive both and sign a wing like Hairston and a athletic big like Courtney Sims or Jermareo Davidson.

[Ice009]

CD has reported that RC was at the Toros game.
Maybe he will bring back someone in his bags... :stirpot:

I've liked the few I've saw of Hairston. His main drawback is that he is quite short to play the 3 but it hasn't stopped the Spurs in the past when they signed someone like Udoka.

Both Tolliver and Ahearn didn't look like interesting prospects. I would have nothign to say if Spurs waive both and sign a wing like Hairston and a athletic big like Courtney Sims or Jermareo Davidson.

I like that take Bruno. I have no problem with the Spurs cutting Ahearn and Tolliver right now and bringing in Hairston and another big. I don't know those two bigs you mention, but if they are better defenders or rebounders than Tolliver I would not mind giving them a go.

[naico]

Davidson has always been a bit overrated. He's athletic and has a lot of energy to bring to the table, but other then that i just can't see him on a decent nba team contributing.

[mrspurs]

He's playing in the scrub league.

[ChumpDumper]

He's playing in the scrub league.And you're a scrub poster, playbaby.

Sims completely blew up these first two games. We'll see if he can keep it up.

[galvatron3000]

CD has reported that RC was at the Toros game.
Maybe he will bring back someone in his bags... :stirpot:

I've liked the few I've saw of Hairston. His main drawback is that he is quite short to play the 3 but it hasn't stopped the Spurs in the past when they signed someone like Udoka.

Both Tolliver and Ahearn didn't look like interesting prospects. I would have nothign to say if Spurs waive both and sign a wing like Hairston and a athletic big like Courtney Sims or Jermareo Davidson.



It seems to me like the Spurs are searching for the next Rob Horry instead if these bigs are what you say then waive Hearns and Tolliver and give them a shot. If they want another Horry just make a run atr Rasheed this summer, if he will accept the offer. Right now just some strong reounders and interior defense will make me happy atleast some atheletic bigs who chase down boards. That will surely help Duncan

[ChumpDumper]

There really weren't any bigs of special note at this game. I'm sure he was there to see Ian, Malik and Marcus.

[ducks]

Courtney Sims might be intersting

[Bruno]

There really weren't any bigs of special note at this game.

Chris Richards ?

[ChumpDumper]

I guess. His play wasn't that noteworthy, though maybe they could have gone to him more. He's in better shape than I remember.

Hill is a good shot blocker but got shut down offensively by Charles Gaines and Marcus.

[AFBlue]

I guess. His play wasn't that noteworthy, though maybe they could have gone to him more. He's in better shape than I remember.

Hill is a good shot blocker but got shut down offensively by Charles Gaines and Marcus.

How much "4" did Marcus see, and how much "3" did Malik see? Just curious to see what they'd be used to running in the system if they got the call up...

[Obstructed_View]

I've liked the few I've saw of Hairston. His main drawback is that he is quite short to play the 3 but it hasn't stopped the Spurs in the past when they signed someone like Udoka.

Hairston is an inch taller than Udoka and plays about six inches taller due to his timing, his arms and his leaping ability. He's the closest thing to a Bowen replacement the Spurs have had in the pipeline for a while.

[SenorSpur]

Hairston is an inch taller than Udoka and plays about six inches taller due to his timing, his arms and his leaping ability. He's the closest thing to a Bowen replacement the Spurs have had in the pipeline for a while.

All the more reason Pop needs to get him back in here. The Spurs could've used his athletic ability and defense against the Rockets. After all, none of the other wings were successful defending the Rockets.

[AFBlue]

Hairston seems to be very successful at beating his man off the dribble and drawing contact on his drive to the hoop. I know he's a good athlete, but I wonder if he would find the same kind of success at the next level.

At this point, it's all he's really shown he's able to do on offense. Still, he's a very intriguing prospect...

[ChumpDumper]

I think I'll wait for him to do something more than trade drives with Derrick Dial before declaring Hairston call-up material.

[SenorSpur]

Hairston seems to be very successful at beating his man off the dribble and drawing contact on his drive to the hoop. I know he's a good athlete, but I wonder if he would find the same kind of success at the next level.

At this point, it's all he's really shown he's able to do on offense. Still, he's a very intriguing prospect...

The Spurs should be concerned about another team tabbing Hairston.

[AFBlue]

The Spurs should be concerned about another team tabbing Hairston.

I'm sure they are...at least they're keeping tabs on him. He's probably one of the reasons RC was there last night.

[AFBlue]

How much "4" did Marcus see, and how much "3" did Malik see? Just curious to see what they'd be used to running in the system if they got the call up...

CD, question for you...

[ChumpDumper]

CD, question for you...Tulsa runs weird lineups because they have no point guards. Hairston was covering Derrick Dial most of the time as he ran the point. The Toros did run some small ball with Gaines as the center, so both players got time at the positions you brought up. Williams did a very good job holding his ground against Steven Hill, but Hill does suck on offense so that may not be saying much.

[AFBlue]

Tulsa runs weird lineups because they have no point guards. Hairston was covering Derrick Dial most of the time as he ran the point. The Toros did run some small ball with Gaines as the center, so both players got time at the positions you brought up. Williams did a very good job holding his ground against Steven Hill, but Hill does suck on offense so that may not be saying much.

Thanks!

At least we know they're versatile. Hairston on a PG....very Bowen-esque, though I'm not making the direct comparison. :lol

[ChumpDumper]

Dial is an SG playing the point. Overall I've been more impressed with Williams' D, but it's not that big a difference. Offensively, they are both doing a bunch of crap they won't get away with in the NBA like trying to take their men off the dribble too often.

[AFBlue]

Dial is an SG playing the point. Overall I've been more impressed with Williams' D, but it's not that big a difference. Offensively, they are both doing a bunch of crap they won't get away with in the NBA like trying to take their men off the dribble too often.

Does Williams look better athletically this year compared to last? I know the main concerns with him last year had to do with his speed/quickness and the ability to play the 2/3 on the next level.

Any improvement in that area?

[ChumpDumper]

Does Williams look better athletically this year compared to last? I know the main concerns with him last year had to do with his speed/quickness and the ability to play the 2/3 on the next level.

Any improvement in that area?Not terribly quick but he's really using his length well playing the passing lanes and the like.

His three point shots go in, but his release is low and slow.

[AFBlue]

Not terribly quick but he's really using his length well playing the passing lanes and the like.

His three point shots go in, but his release is low and slow.

Again, thanks.

[Darkwaters]

The Spurs should be concerned about another team tabbing Hairston.

The Rockets had a scout at the Toros/Utah game a couple of days ago.

[Obstructed_View]

I think I'll wait for him to do something more than trade drives with Derrick Dial before declaring Hairston call-up material.

They can call him up and leave him in Austin, right? At this point that's all I want them to think about doing.

[ChumpDumper]

They can call him up and leave him in Austin, right? At this point that's all I want them to think about doing.True enough, but the Spurs are so deep at the guard positions I would just want someone bigger.

[Obstructed_View]

True enough, but the Spurs are so deep at the guard positions I would just want someone bigger.

Yeah, see my other post about Sims. I don't care if he doesn't know the defense, just rotate around him and tell him to step out of the lane every two and a half seconds.

[mountainballer]

another game or two of that kind in the D league and Hairston will be gone. no matter if Spurs need him now or not, if they don't use a roster spot for him, they will regret it big time in a year or so. Spurs also need some solutions in a future that isn't that far away. I'm pretty sure Ime won't be re signed (more likely he will be part of a deadline trade), he's somehow ok as a 3rd stringer, but the upside just isn't there. Finley will be here for 2 years at most.
Hairston could take the role of either. best case, take the role and minutes of Ime in his 1st year, then take the role of Finley. as mentioned, Hairston doesn't display the perfect size for a wing, but thanks to his fantastic leaping ability he plays much bigger than either Ime and Finley do.
so, call him now, in two months (or earlier) this will make much sense when the Spurs trade for a big and will need the expiring contract of Ime as a filler.
one year from now we will celebrate this move as we currently celebrate the acquisition of Mason or drafting Hill.