Summer League Game Blog: Spurs vs. Hornets - 7/12/09 3PM CT

[phyzik]

Thats it for Blair I think.

[timvp]

Newman back to his random substitutions :td

[rayray2k8]

omg don, make up your fucking mind!

[Ace9]

Collison lost it. Our possession.

[Ace9]

Nvm. :lol

[siraulo23]

cmon spurs, win this one~

[xellos88330]

LOL!!! Mahinmi "WHAT!?"

[Interrohater]

Hill has played well but I think Collison is better.
Yea, Hairston has played well too, but I think Dwayne Wade is better...?

[ElNono]

the hell with these ticky tacky fouls?

[rayray2k8]

goddamn these refs..

[Ace9]

Ugh, Ian with the poorly timed foul. This is crunchtime foos!

[timvp]

Mahinmi with the lane violation.

[phyzik]

freaking lane violation

[hater]

what the fuck up with the officiating? r we playing the mavs???

[slick'81]

fck

[Interrohater]

WTF?! Lane violation? that's really dude on dude action

[timvp]

Let's see if Mahinmi can knock these down.

[slick'81]

let go ian

[hater]

fuck these refs. this is summer league

[Ace9]

Mahinmi to the line. Bout a minute left. 85-86 Hornets.

[phyzik]

Gist got stuffed :lol

[Ace9]

Clutch knockdowns by Ian.

[coyotes_geek]

oh gist. that hurt.

[oligarchy]

Lol!

[tomtom]

damn gist got stuffed

[slick'81]

shit gist got exploded on

[SpursFan0728]

lol gist

[angelbelow]

damn it lol, i wish gist threw that down

[Ace9]

Woo got a steal!

[xellos88330]

Hairston!!!

[Ace9]

Hairston clutch 3 NICE!

[Behrooz24]

DAgger

[timvp]

Hill closes it out :smokin

[Spurs Brazil]

Malik with the dagger!!!!!!!!!!!

[Interrohater]

hell yea Malik!

[phyzik]

nice 3 by Hairston, followed by a block by hill. Spurs up 4 going to the line.

[Texas_Ranger]

Yea!!!

[slick'81]

hariston for 3333333333333333333333333333333

[Ace9]

Hill blocks. That's it. Mark up that W! :D

[ElNono]

moneyballlllll

[tomtom]

hairston baby

[siraulo23]

whooooooooooooo

malik for threeeeeeeeee
then block by hill!!

[urunobili]

Maliiiiiiiiiikkkkkkkkk!!!!!!!!

[rayray2k8]

Hill and Hairston coming up big at the end.
and DMX7, you're fucking crazy.

[Ace9]

Hill looked really nice in the 2nd half. Had some PG instincts going from him. Without him we lose miserably. :lol

[Behrooz24]

lol @ gist

[Chomag]

Now that Hairston is showing a consistant outside shot he has a chance of being a pretty damn good nba player

[Interrohater]

I don't care what some of ya'll are saying, George Hill has been impressive to me

[timvp]

Pretty good finish to the game. Defense picked up a little bit and the offense was much more cohesive.

[Ace9]

MVP's: 1. Hill 2. Blair 2. a. Hairston ....3. Beck

Nice game guys.

[BlackBellamy]

Blair looks great, Hill looks like he's developing as he should. Gist and Ian looked like steamrolled shit for the most part. Spurs Win though, right?

[tomtom]

Hill's release looks much smoother, gj Chip

[slick'81]

well on to the next one from what ive seen and heard hill and blair brought it

[Darkwaters]

Now that Hairston is showing a consistant outside shot he has a chance of being a pretty damn good nba player

Fuck yea he does. It's like he stole McClinton's mojo for shooting all of a sudden...cause McClinton can't do anything tonight and since halftime Hairston has looked great.

[siraulo23]

Good win!!

[Ace9]

Gist looked like crap. Ian had some flashes. Don't give up on the big man just yet. If he reaches his potential.......watch out.

[Darkwaters]

Timvp,

We going to get some GameThoughts tonight?

[phyzik]

Hill started playing much better as the game went on. Probably just needed to shake off the cobwebs.

[Darkwaters]

Gist looked like crap. Ian had some flashes. Don't give up on the big man just yet. If he reaches his potential.......watch out.


Flashes? Where?

Ian Mahinmi looked like crap.

[biziofromdowntown]

Goods
1) GH3
2) Blair
3) Malik

Negatives
1) Gist
2) Ian
3) McC


All others don't care

[timvp]

Can't complain about Blair getting 13 and 10 in 22 minutes in his first game.

[kbrury]

Hill has played well but I think Collison is better.
yeah all Hill did was be the MVP of the game.

[SonOfAGun]

Hill, Blair, Hairston

FTMFW.

[angelbelow]

great game!

[Interrohater]

Yea, big showing from Hill, Hairston and Blair.
We knew what we could get from Hill and Hairston, but damn, Blair is such a massive pickup for the Spurs... wow...

[Spurs Brazil]

Hill and Blair were great

Hairston and Beck good

Jack and Gist bad

Ian dissapointed game. He must be more agressive

[Ace9]

Mahinmi had some decent D, and did well with the screens sort of. He got a lot of fouls and knocked down some clutch FT's. Not really much on the offensive side though.

[timvp]

Timvp,

We going to get some GameThoughts tonight?

Yeah I'll come up with something :hat

[Obstructed_View]

George has definitely been playing with Tony. "Oh, we're down late in the game, ok, I'll slow it down and score myself"

Since that's exactly the way the Spurs are accustomed to playing, it's exactly the way Hill should run the team. He's capable of scoring and breaking down the defense, and the other players know where to be when that happens, no matter who has the ball.


Mahinmi with the lane violation.
They were both in early, but Gist waved his arms as he was falling into the lane. There's no way the officials weren't going to see him do that. :lol


Now that Hairston is showing a consistant outside shot he has a chance of being a pretty damn good nba player
Hairston's percentage when the clock is winding down are through the roof.

[Chomag]

well on to the next one from what ive seen and heard hill and blair brought it

and Hairston!

[Ace9]

GHill Interview.

[Obstructed_View]

At some point the other guys are going to have to work to get Ian the ball. He did a great job on pick and rolls and was wide open a lot.

[ducks]

blair is going to kick ass

[galvatron3000]

Give Ian atleast 2 more games under his belt then start the critique

[Mugen]

i loved how george played today.

he was aggressive and looked to score and drive.

he had trouble last year when he was passive and deferred to much.

also, Dejuan Blair is going to beast this league kids. BEAST.

[ducks]

At some point the other guys are going to have to work to get Ian the ball. He did a great job on pick and rolls and was wide open a lot.

intersting TAKE

[Ace9]

Hill had 25 points, if anyone wants to know.

[iilluzioN]

SPURS WIN!

Hill Dominated, like iv said he would

[urunobili]

can't wait for timvp's thoughts :hungry:

[wildbill2u]

Anyone got the box score

[Obstructed_View]

intersting TAKE

I didn't get to watch until the fourth quarter, but he was rolling to the basket well and set good hard picks. I'm hoping they see that on film and get him some easy ones next game.

[coyotes_geek]

Anyone got the box score

http://www.nba.com/summerleague2009/games/boxscore.jsp?gameId=1520900009

[SanAntonioSpurs23]

GH3, Blair, and Hairston played great :D

[callo1]

Dejuan the Beast Blair, Hairston and Hill looked great. Too early to judge Ian since he is coming off an injury.

[Taking it to the Hole]

Gist didn't perform as well as I expected but I loved seeing Hairston go on his little streak of baskets. I liked how GHill was agressive and focused and I agree Blair is a force in the paint. great start to summer league!!!

[tomtom]

Well that was certainly more entertaining than last year's SL. Just remember though, Hill played shitty last time but ended up proving us wrong and Tolliver played great in SL but didn't do too much on the Spurs. It's fun to watch but everything you see here isn't completely conclusive. Great game to watch

[Spurs Brazil]

Can't complain about Blair getting 13 and 10 in 22 minutes in his first game.

And only 2PF

[jdev82]

Hill looks like shooting guard out there...

because he is one.

[Kori Ellis]

It's interesting the Newman ripped Blair about his D. They obviously plan on giving Blair some significant minutes from the get-go, or else Newman wouldn't have cared that much.

It's going to be awesome to have someone on the team that loves to beast on the glass like that.

[kace]

difficult to judge with these SL games. no gameplans it seems.

Hill and Blair were good. Mahinmi showed very interesting things IMO even if he had an overall poor game (i only saw the 2nd half).

[benefactor]

Good game overall. I'll probably watch it again later this evening as my stream would cause me to miss whole possessions for time to time.

Hill looked good and it was nice first outing for Blair too. Ian and Gist both looked questionable for players that plan to be on the roster next year. It's one game though...and I expect both will play better.

[tim_duncan_fan]

Mahinmi looks like a guy that should and could be a great player but doesn't really care whether he puts up numbers or not.

The moves he showed on his last field goal were awesome but it's like he doesn't really care to try that hard every play.

[oligarchy]

pos min fgm-a 3pm-a ftm-a off def tot ast pf st to bs pts
M.Hairston F 29:01 7-11 2-2 0-0 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 16
J.Gist F 22:57 1-6 0-0 2-4 1 2 3 0 4 1 0 1 4
I.Mahinmi C 24:45 1-3 0-0 6-6 3 1 4 0 7 0 0 1 8
G.Hill G 30:50 7-13 0-2 11-11 0 4 4 3 2 0 4 1 25
J.McClinton G 15:36 0-2 0-0 2-2 0 2 2 1 4 1 2 0 2
R.Beck 24:14 5-10 0-0 3-3 1 2 3 1 0 1 0 0 13
D.Blair 22:09 4-7 0-0 5-6 3 7 10 0 2 1 2 0 13
A. Gee 11:10 1-2 0-0 2-2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 4
S.Lasme 10:09 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 3 0 2 1 3
D. Taylor 09:10 1-5 0-0 2-2 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 4

[Ace9]

Good game overall. I'll probably watch it again later this evening as my stream would cause me to miss whole possessions for time to time.

Hill looked good and it was nice first outing for Blair too. Ian and Gist both looked questionable for players that plan to be on the roster next year. It's one game though...and I expect both will play better.

Really? ATDHE or ADTHE, or whatever was real good.

[coyotes_geek]

At some point the other guys are going to have to work to get Ian the ball. He did a great job on pick and rolls and was wide open a lot.

I would like to see that, but Ian's got to share some blame for the lack of touches he gets too. He's got to get better at getting position on the block. Cusworth was pushing him around pretty easily, which should happen because Ian is by far a better athlete.

[Obstructed_View]

because he is one.

And it's okay if he shoots. Don't turn the ball over, learn when and how to get it to the other guys, score when you can. That would make him the best backup point guard the Spurs have had since I-don't-know-when.

[timvp]

The stream was actually pretty damn good for me. It only froze for a couple seconds in the first half when someone was at the line. The rest was smooth. Not very high quality but it wasn't like the 1995 webcam quality it was earlier in summer league.

[galvatron3000]

Beck would be nice but it does seem he has trouble with his left hand dribble/drive/penetration

[wildbill2u]

Damn Mahinmi just has no clue how to get position in the post.

Amazing how a 6'11" 250 guy can turn himself intothe invisible man.

[Hornets1]

Great summer league game! Blair is a beast and Hill looked awesome! Collison and Thornton played very good as well!

[Behrooz24]

JackMcClinton (https://twitter.com/JackMcClinton)Tough one. We got the win tho.
2 minutes ago (https://twitter.com/JackMcClinton/status/2604144330) from TwitterFon (http://twitterfon.net/)

[ChumpDumper]

Really? ATDHE or ADTHE, or whatever was real good.The ADHD stream was stalling for me as well as the NBA stream. Pretty aggravating in the fourth. The quality is so much better on the NBA stream; it looks good on my TV. Can't wait to see the archive.

[HarlemHeat37]

Some thoughts..

George Hill..just dominated the game from start to finish..his shot looks a lot better..his athleticism and length is going to make him a special player..another thing I love about him is that he has a role player mentality all the time, even today, where he was clearly the #1 option/star player..he goes after loose balls all the time..

His defense is already good at the NBA-level, which is really what separates him from a lot of young PGs in the NBA right now..this will also allow him to play at the 2 with Tony, which could be huge for us..

DeJuan Blair..great game, couldn't have expected more..his rebounding truly is elite..his knees looked fine..he looked like a seasoned veteran playing against rookies..he had 1 bad move, where he beat his defender but decided to add another move, leading to his attempt being blocked..other than that, he showed very good touch at the basket..

His defensive awareness needs work, but that's expected for a rookie, especially since none of these guys have played together before..

Malik Hairston..he did what most of us expected..his shooting looks better, his defense was solid from start to finish, he's explosive at the basket..he needs to work on his ball-handling, but that isn't going to be a problem, since he's going to be a role player..

Ian Mahinmi..mixed results..his potential is pretty obvious, especially offensively..he has a very polished offensive game for a young project player IMO..his energy was a lot better than last year, but he still needs a lot more to be a rotation player for us this year..I won't judge him too much though, since it's his first NBA game since the injury..

James Gist..he didn't impress me in this game..he had a good move and a couple of strong finishes to the basket, but he looked over matched physically against the other big men..

Jack McClinton..he looked better in the 2nd half, but he didn't look good overall..I didn't like his shot selection on his few shots, and didn't like his energy overall, although it was noticeably better in the 2nd half..

[Bruno]

Blair, Hairston and Hill looked very good. Blair is a beast. Hairston could be a damn good glue guy. Hill could have scored 50.

McClinton looked bad but it was his first pro game.

Gist was bad and will have to play significantly better if he wants to be a Spur next year.

Ian show very little things but he hasn't played for one year. He will need to show more in the next games.

[The_Worlds_finest]

HIS SPOT HIS SHOT?!?!?!?! :lol

[TDMVPDPOY]

The stream was actually pretty damn good for me. It only froze for a couple seconds in the first half when someone was at the line. The rest was smooth. Not very high quality but it wasn't like the 1995 webcam quality it was earlier in summer league.

stream was nice man, too bad i caught a few plays of it, couldnt be fuckd wasting my dl cap on livestream stuff...need it for the poon :wakeup

GHILL dunk in traffic was fkn nice

[oligarchy]

Beck looks decent, but doesn't have great handles.

Hairston looked good when he wasn't trying to push it too much (E.g., his behind the back moves).

Hill was looking very good. He's going to kill people with his shooting, he J is looking smooth and he doesn't have to worry about people going under screens -- they will pay.

Gist looked lost out there. He seemed to miss too many rotations and didn't know if he wanted to play that far out. He just didn't look comfortable.

Blair.. exactly.

[Russ]

Give Ian atleast 2 more games under his belt then start the critique

Agreed. The one move to the basket was very nice. He seems to have some offensive moves.

But his key will be D, in particular the "basketball IQ" eveyone likes to talk about. Can he be where he needs to be.

He is long and athletic but at time appears to be almost too fluid in his movements. That is a very unusual criticism of a young player.

In Ian's case, it would be nice to see a little more herky-jerky from him, a little more explosiveness rather than fluidity. Perhaps the injuries to his feet have impaired that somewhat.

My expectations were somewhat low, so I thought he did well and showed some potential. He needs to build on it next game. (Blair did so well, they can cut down his minutes if they want -- he has nothing to prove).

[siraulo23]

Im just glad no one got injured!~

[biziofromdowntown]

Some thoughts..

George Hill..just dominated the game from start to finish..his shot looks a lot better..his athleticism and length is going to make him a special player..another thing I love about him is that he has a role player mentality all the time, even today, where he was clearly the #1 option/star player..he goes after loose balls all the time..

His defense is already good at the NBA-level, which is really what separates him from a lot of young PGs in the NBA right now..this will also allow him to play at the 2 with Tony, which could be huge for us..

DeJuan Blair..great game, couldn't have expected more..his rebounding truly is elite..his knees looked fine..he looked like a seasoned veteran playing against rookies..he had 1 bad move, where he beat his defender but decided to add another move, leading to his attempt being blocked..other than that, he showed very good touch at the basket..

His defensive awareness needs work, but that's expected for a rookie, especially since none of these guys have played together before..

Malik Hairston..he did what most of us expected..his shooting looks better, his defense was solid from start to finish, he's explosive at the basket..he needs to work on his ball-handling, but that isn't going to be a problem, since he's going to be a role player..

Ian Mahinmi..mixed results..his potential is pretty obvious, especially offensively..he has a very polished offensive game for a young project player IMO..his energy was a lot better than last year, but he still needs a lot more to be a rotation player for us this year..I won't judge him too much though, since it's his first NBA game since the injury..

James Gist..he didn't impress me in this game..he had a good move and a couple of strong finishes to the basket, but he looked over matched physically against the other big men..

Jack McClinton..he looked better in the 2nd half, but he didn't look good overall..I didn't like his shot selection on his few shots, and didn't like his energy overall, although it was noticeably better in the 2nd half..

He must start learn to play at the SF or he'll go

[HarlemHeat37]

BTW, I didn't like the plays that were called most of the time..

Too much passing around the perimeter early..we were a lot better when Hill was involving in P&Rs more often..

I'd like to see more aggressiveness in the offense, like we saw in the 2nd half..

[kromediablo]

once again the spurs do not have anybody that can play above the rim

[galvatron3000]

If Beck played more like Reggie Miller and came off lots of curls he' d be nicer but he needs to work on his dribbling

[Spursmania]

Some thoughts..

George Hill..just dominated the game from start to finish..his shot looks a lot better..his athleticism and length is going to make him a special player..another thing I love about him is that he has a role player mentality all the time, even today, where he was clearly the #1 option/star player..he goes after loose balls all the time..

His defense is already good at the NBA-level, which is really what separates him from a lot of young PGs in the NBA right now..this will also allow him to play at the 2 with Tony, which could be huge for us..

DeJuan Blair..great game, couldn't have expected more..his rebounding truly is elite..his knees looked fine..he looked like a seasoned veteran playing against rookies..he had 1 bad move, where he beat his defender but decided to add another move, leading to his attempt being blocked..other than that, he showed very good touch at the basket..

His defensive awareness needs work, but that's expected for a rookie, especially since none of these guys have played together before..

Malik Hairston..he did what most of us expected..his shooting looks better, his defense was solid from start to finish, he's explosive at the basket..he needs to work on his ball-handling, but that isn't going to be a problem, since he's going to be a role player..

Ian Mahinmi..mixed results..his potential is pretty obvious, especially offensively..he has a very polished offensive game for a young project player IMO..his energy was a lot better than last year, but he still needs a lot more to be a rotation player for us this year..I won't judge him too much though, since it's his first NBA game since the injury..

James Gist..he didn't impress me in this game..he had a good move and a couple of strong finishes to the basket, but he looked over matched physically against the other big men..

Jack McClinton..he looked better in the 2nd half, but he didn't look good overall..I didn't like his shot selection on his few shots, and didn't like his energy overall, although it was noticeably better in the 2nd half..

Nice thoughts Harlem:tu

[kbrury]

Ian will get better, as Bruno said he hasn't played in a year.

[HarlemHeat37]

He must start learn to play at the SF or he'll go

Yup..I've been saying this since last year..Gist can't be a successful PF in this league, he will need to be a SF..

[Obstructed_View]

Did they run any four down? That might be interesting to see.

[oligarchy]

Some thoughts..

George Hill..just dominated the game from start to finish..his shot looks a lot better..his athleticism and length is going to make him a special player..another thing I love about him is that he has a role player mentality all the time, even today, where he was clearly the #1 option/star player..he goes after loose balls all the time..

His defense is already good at the NBA-level, which is really what separates him from a lot of young PGs in the NBA right now..this will also allow him to play at the 2 with Tony, which could be huge for us..

DeJuan Blair..great game, couldn't have expected more..his rebounding truly is elite..his knees looked fine..he looked like a seasoned veteran playing against rookies..he had 1 bad move, where he beat his defender but decided to add another move, leading to his attempt being blocked..other than that, he showed very good touch at the basket..

His defensive awareness needs work, but that's expected for a rookie, especially since none of these guys have played together before..

Malik Hairston..he did what most of us expected..his shooting looks better, his defense was solid from start to finish, he's explosive at the basket..he needs to work on his ball-handling, but that isn't going to be a problem, since he's going to be a role player..

Ian Mahinmi..mixed results..his potential is pretty obvious, especially offensively..he has a very polished offensive game for a young project player IMO..his energy was a lot better than last year, but he still needs a lot more to be a rotation player for us this year..I won't judge him too much though, since it's his first NBA game since the injury..

James Gist..he didn't impress me in this game..he had a good move and a couple of strong finishes to the basket, but he looked over matched physically against the other big men..

Jack McClinton..he looked better in the 2nd half, but he didn't look good overall..I didn't like his shot selection on his few shots, and didn't like his energy overall, although it was noticeably better in the 2nd half..
The thing with Malik is that he looks to have extended his range. He had a decent mid-range game to start, but looks to have even cleaned up that a bit.

Jack looked horrible. He definitely looks too small out there and he definitely IS NOT going to be a back-up PG.

Gist may have said he was going to be on the team, but unless he turns it around in the rest of the 4 game, I don't see it.

[Spurs Brazil]

david b. thorpe Mahinmi is a talent. But he still does not get much done. 6 and 4 with 6 fls in 22 mins. Remember-mental is to physical as 4 is to 1. Knight]
david b. thorpe Collison is really nice. I see why Holiday played the 2.
david b. thorpe Manu and Tony are going to make Blair's Christmas very special. He's going to be crushing guys on ballscreens and pin downs.
david b. thorpe Blair with the double-double in 17 mins.
david b. thorpe Collison can run a team. As Ben Howland knows.
david b. thorpe Julian Wright has horrible shot selection. At this point in his career, that's disappointing.
david b. thorpe McClinton just not a pg. Struggles as a playmaker.david b. thorpe Blair can not afford to hunt shots after being well defended inside.
david b. thorpe Jack McClinton getting outplayed by Thornton.
david b. thorpe Thortnon filling it up. Shoots a lot but he can shoot. He'll be a nice Eddie House option off the bench.
david b. thorpe Malik Hairston playing well this half. 7 pts.
david b. thorpe Beaubois has been the best pure pg I've seen this summer. Until George Hill. Westbrook is the most explosive game changer.
david b. thorpe Marcus Thornton is playing well, defending and playmaking.
david b. thorpe Julian Wright has great activity. With confidence I don't see how he couldn't be in the rotation.
david b. thorpe George Hill was the 2nd worst player of all the first rounders last summer. He's fantastic now. Credit him, and his organization.
david b. thorpe But not surprising.
david b. thorpe Both teams have been practicing their team d. Impressive.
david b. thorpe He directed them to the right spots and then split the ballscreen.
david b. thorpe George Hill just had a monster dunk, but it was the least impressive play of the sequence. He set up the entire set by talking to his guys.
david b. thorpe DeJuan Blair. 1 minute. 3 boards.
david b. thorpe Hill is a tough matchup for Collison. Almost as quick, but way longer and very crafty.david b. thorpe And then almost did it again, with a backtip steal and a missed layup that was dunked home. He has a nice and compact game.
david b. thorpe Thornton made 2 plays! Block and finish.
david b. thorpe Mahinmi is someone I've always been intrigued with. His lack of leg strength has always been a major issue. Just can't stay balanced.
david b. thorpe Thornton vs. McClinton is a good matchup too.
david b. thorpe Collison does a nice job attacking the ballscreen. Pressures the show guy.
david b. thorpe Collison vs. Hill is a good matchup. George can defend.
david b. thorpe Spurs Hornets.

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-42-61/David-Thorpe-Livetweeting-From-Summer-League.html

[Obstructed_View]

Yup..I've been saying this since last year..Gist can't be a successful PF in this league, he will need to be a SF..

Yeah, kind of a tweener. He can play smallball four better than anyone recently, though.

[HarlemHeat37]

Did they run any four down? That might be interesting to see.

Only a few times IIRC..there wasn't much posting up in general..

Blair had 1 or 2 post-up clear outs, and Ian had 1 IIRC..that actually might have been it..

[HarlemHeat37]

The stream that I was watching on was very good btw..it didn't get cut off at all..

[FvckMavs]

I want to thank Steve Kerr again for giving us both Hairston and Blair.

[coyotes_geek]

The thing with Malik is that he looks to have extended his range. He had a decent mid-range game to start, but looks to have even cleaned up that a bit.

Jack looked horrible. He definitely looks too small out there and he definitely IS NOT going to be a back-up PG.

Gist may have said he was going to be on the team, but unless he turns it around in the rest of the 4 game, I don't see it.

Agree on all 3 counts.

[spectator]

a lot of people mention malik's shooting has improved; i suspect this is in regards to the limited minutes he was offered with the spurs, because his percentages with the toros are impressive: http://www.nba.com/dleague/playerfile/index.jsp?player=malik_hairston

[Demo Dick Marcinko]

My guess is that Pop and RC will be keeping one eye on the SL games and the other eye on the wire for a big man with the potential last move that the Spurs will make that everyone keeps talking about. Is that Scola guy any good? Does anyone know much about him? Is his game as good as Mengke Bateer?:toast

As a previous poster commented, let's give him a couple more games. The guy just oozes potential and I think that one day soon he's gonna get it, and he's gonna be a stud for us. Then watch out for Mahinmi and Blair inside. Those guards trying to drive better not forget their mouthpieces and their Kevlar.

Guards and PG consider yourself warned.

[Spurs Brazil]

R. Jefferson, A. McDyess and DaJuan Blair might help Spurs fans get over it . . . but San Antonio will never quite be the same. #fb
about 3 hours ago from TweetDeck San Antonio's dream summer finally has a blemish. The one-of-a-kind Liberty Bar is apparently leaving its historic location. Scandalous

http://twitter.com/STEIN_LINE_HQ

[Demo Dick Marcinko]

Hey guys maybe I mentally checked out but where is Haislip. He wasn't even listed on the box score. If the reason he was MIA is in one of the existing threads I missed it and my bad.

[rayray2k8]

R. Jefferson, A. McDyess and DaJuan Blair might help Spurs fans get over it . . . but San Antonio will never quite be the same. #fb
about 3 hours ago from TweetDeck San Antonio's dream summer finally has a blemish. The one-of-a-kind Liberty Bar is apparently leaving its historic location. Scandalous

http://twitter.com/STEIN_LINE_HQ

The hell is he talking about? The injuries took its toll on the spurs last season. Stein is talking out of his ass.

[benefactor]

Man, that sucks because it was only smooth for me when they were shooting free throws. Gist would inbound one second and then in no time Hairston was running back with his close up.

On that note Hairston played the best. 7-11 from the field, a clutch basket to put the dagger in and just played well from what I could see.
Yeah...it would get the some thing. We would inbound the ball and be dribbling up and suddenly the Hornets were inbounding and headed the other direction. Hopefully it is better in the archive.

[kbrury]

The hell is he talking about? The injuries took its toll on the spurs last season. Stein is talking out of his ass.
He's not talking he about that, the Liberty Bar is kind of a landmark in SA I guess from what he's saying its moving from a place that has been there since the 1800's

[Buddy Holly]

The hell is he talking about? The injuries took its toll on the spurs last season. Stein is talking out of his ass.

He was making a joke about the Liberty Bar moving from its historic location to Southtown. He jokingly said RJ, Dice and Blair will help Sours fans get over it.

[spectator]

plus, i think stein likes the spurs; at least that is my impression from reading his column

[Buddy Holly]

Hey guys maybe I mentally checked out but where is Haislip. He wasn't even listed on the box score. If the reason he was MIA is in one of the existing threads I missed it and my bad.

He isn't nor ever was going to play in the SL.

[fleggy2k2]

Hey guys maybe I mentally checked out but where is Haislip. He wasn't even listed on the box score. If the reason he was MIA is in one of the existing threads I missed it and my bad.

don't think he's on the SL roster

[SonOfAGun]

ian was pretty much invisible this game

[duncan228]

Hill shoots well in Spurs' summer opener (http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/spursworld/2009/07/hill-shoots-well-in-spurs-summ.html)
By Joe Alexander

George Hill turned in some veteran-like stats in the Spurs' first game of the Las Vegas Summer League.

The second-year Spurs guard was 7 of 13 from the field, 11 of 11 on free throws and had three assists and 25 points Sunday in the Spurs' 92-86 summer league victory over New Orleans. Last summer, Hill struggled badly with his shooting in his first pro action out of college.

Malik Hairston, another player with some pro experience already under his belt, had 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting Sunday. Rookie DeJuan Blair, the rebounding machine out of Pitt, had a team-high 10 rebounds in his pro debut and scored 13 points.

Former UNLV guard/forward Romel Beck had 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting.

Spurs center Ian Mahinmi, who suffered an ankle injury a year ago in the summer league, played almost 25 minutes and had eight points and four rebounds.

Game box on NBA.com (http://www.nba.com/summerleague2009/games/boxscore.jsp?gameId=1520900009)

[Darkwaters]

I want to thank Steve Kerr again for giving us both Hairston and Blair.

The lunacy of the act is whats so awesome.

We essentially traded Goran Dragic for Malik Hairston and DeJuan Blair. How outrageous is that?

And to top it all off, Dragic got overpaid by the Suns and then sucked all last season.

I love fucking over PHX every chance possible.

[completely deck]

ian was pretty much invisible this game

That was to be expected. He's the next Oberto

[timvp]

The lunacy of the act is whats so awesome.

We essentially traded Goran Dragic for Malik Hairston and DeJuan Blair. How outrageous is that?

Don't forget that the Spurs also got $500K in that deal. :bking

[Demo Dick Marcinko]

He isn't nor ever was going to play in the SL.


Ok that kinda makes sense. It's not as if he's a rookie or 2nd year player. Thanx

[rayray2k8]

He's not talking he about that, the Liberty Bar is kind of a landmark in SA I guess from what he's saying its moving from a place that has been there since the 1800's

-_-

[ace3g]

ESPNEWS channel actually showed highlights from the game today, it was focused on Blair, so maybe Blair will help the Spurs get some attention on ESPN!!!! (not that we need it)

[Demo Dick Marcinko]

don't think he's on the SL roster

thanx:toast

[biziofromdowntown]

After today match (too early i know)

Hill will be our back up PG
Blair could make the team
Malik could make the team
Ian doubtful but could make the team
Gist to Austin
McClintoc to Austin

[completely deck]

ESPNEWS channel actually showed highlights from the game today, it was focused on Blair, so maybe Blair will help the Spurs get some attention on ESPN!!!! (not that we need it)

Oh Blair's a beast baby. He's a beast.

[urunobili]

The lunacy of the act is whats so awesome.

We essentially traded Goran Dragic for Malik Hairston and DeJuan Blair. How outrageous is that?

And to top it all off, Dragic got overpaid by the Suns and then sucked all last season.

I love fucking over PHX every chance possible.

check my signature...

[TDMVPDPOY]

After today match (too early i know)

Hill will be our back up PG
Blair could make the team
Malik could make the team
Ian doubtful but could make the team
Gist to Austin
McClintoc to Austin
Gist would probably go back to europe if its all about the money....

[RodNIc91]

Are there going to be Game thoughts for the games played on summer league? SHould be fun and interesting to see. Just Curious

[oligarchy]

After today match (too early i know)

Hill will be our back up PG
Blair could make the team
Malik could make the team
Ian doubtful but could make the team
Gist to Austin
McClintoc to Austin

Hill will be the backup.
Blair will be on the team, it's why Newman was riding him for his defensive lapses.
Malik has a possibility -- we'll see if he stays consitent.
Ian is making the team, he's under contract ;)
Gist probably won't make the team.
Jack probably won't make the team.

[timvp]

Are there going to be Game thoughts for the games played on summer league? SHould be fun and interesting to see. Just Curious

Yes. Working on it now :reading

[biziofromdowntown]

Yes. Working on it now :reading

Hurry up! :wakeup



:king

[Spursmania]

Yes. Working on it now :reading

:hungry:

[Spursmania]

Hill will be the backup.
Blair will be on the team, it's why Newman was riding him for his defensive lapses.
Malik has a possibility -- we'll see if he stays consitent.
Ian is making the team, he's under contract ;)
Gist probably won't make the team.
Jack probably won't make the team.


Did I miss this? I've seen a few posts about this, but didn't see that. Was he on him during the game or when?

[oligarchy]

Yeah, during the game. He was in his face -- I'd say for his pick and roll defense.

[kbrury]

Did I miss this? I've seen a few posts about this, but didn't see that. Was he on him during the game or when?
Pulled him out to "discuss" things. He got back in though.

[Dex]

After a short and shaky start, George Hill ran the club well and played like the veteran among rookies. He was efficient with his shots, perfect from the line, and had a vicious breakaway dunk. His presence on the floor noticeably seemed to calm the offense, especially toward the end of the game.

I was disappointed in McClinton's play. Didn't show any flashes whatsoever, and looked like he was bothered by his height. Hopefully just a bad game.

Hairston showed flashes of his ability, but it always seems to come in spurts with him. If he can learn to be more consistent, I could see him cracking a spot at the end of the bench.

Blair looked awesome. He didn't dominate the game, but for his first game of professional action and coming off the bench, he came in and showed the exact kind of tenacity that we were all excited about when he fell to the Spurs. He hustled for rebounds, hustled on defense, and hustled for points. If this kid can stay healthy, he definitely seems to have the talent and desire to be a factor for the Spurs inside, and soon.

Mahinmi was decent, but underwhelming. For a guy with his combination of length and experience, he still looks very unnatural on the court. Aside from a few nice post moves and putbacks, he was ineffective inside and seemed affected by the New Orleans block party. Four boards by the starting C isn't going to cut it either. To put that into perspective, George Hill matched Ian Mahinmi on the boards, and Blair was 2.5 times more productive in less time.

Gist looked like his head wasn't in the game. For a guy talking big about a bench spot on the Spurs, he didn't show any reasons to believe he deserves it. Better bring a better effort than that next time.

The only other standout was Beck, who caught fire in the first half when the Spurs had little else going for offense, and helped keep them in the running going into half. That being said, he lost his spark after intermission.

[exstatic]

Mahinmi will likely make the team, because they've picked up his salary this year. This may be his last chance, though. His salary next year will jump from $1.08M to $1.95, almost doubling. I think he has to show BIG progress this year to avoid being a tax casualty next season.

[kbrury]

I don't know if it was the quality but it seemed like some players(Spurs) were playing to close to eachother almost cluttered to where no one had room to operate. Then at times people wouldn't move around to get the ball, they would just stand. Everyone will get better with a couple games under thier belt I think.

[biziofromdowntown]

I don't know if it was the quality but it seemed like some players(Spurs) were playing to close to eachother almost cluttered to where no one had room to operate. Then at times people wouldn't move around to get the ball, they would just stand. Everyone will get better with a couple games under thier belt I think.


Same for me..i looked at guys positioning and i never found good space and positioning. we were compressed under the rim and with lost rotations too much.

[Darkwaters]

If the trends we saw in the game tonight continue I would guess:

Hill is the backup PG for certain

Blair averages more than the aforementioned 20 MPG in the big league and plays well

Hairston retains his contract and plays for the big club next season. Whether he plays in Austin or SA depends on his performances then in camp and the early season.

McClinton goes to Europe.

Gist either returns to Europe or gets cut in camp and gets the Marcus Williams/Malik Hairston treatment over the next year or two...refining his game further.

Mahinmi continues to understudy next season (but not in Austin obviously). He is given ample opportunity to carve out a niche in the rotation with good play. But bad play signals him becoming a trade chip.

Beck gets a camp invite and is cut before the regular season.

Of course this is based off of only 1 game. But I was saying if the takes that we all had after one game were true for all 5 that would be how I see it potentially playing out.

[oligarchy]

...
Hairston showed flashes of his ability, but it always seems to come in spurts with him. If he can learn to be more consistent, I could see him cracking a spot at the end of the bench.


I concur. He seemed to be camping a bit much. I was waiting for him to pull out some marshmallows.

[kbrury]

Same for me..i looked at guys positioning and i never found good space and positioning. we were compressed under the rim and with lost rotations too much.
agree
If they can spread it out some more it would help a shorter player like jack, but he also needs to move on his own and get some plays called for him with a screen or a kickout.

[ducks]

McClinton was given to be in euro this year

[Russ]

Mahinmi will likely make the team, because they've picked up his salary this year. This may be his last chance, though. His salary next year will jump from $1.08M to $1.95, almost doubling. I think he has to show BIG progress this year to avoid being a tax casualty next season.

Don't the Spurs only have until October 1 (or some such early date) to decide whether to pick up his option?

[Kobayagi]

Is there a boxscore anywhere?

I'm sure it was posted before, but c'mon, there's 35+ pages. :wow

[coyotes_geek]

Don't the Spurs only have until October 1 (or some such early date) to decide whether to pick up his option?

The option is for the 10-11 season. The Spurs picked up the 09-10 option last year.

[Darkwaters]

Is there a boxscore anywhere?

I'm sure it was posted before, but c'mon, there's 35+ pages. :wow



http://www.nba.com/summerleague2009/games/boxscore.jsp?gameId=1520900009

[biziofromdowntown]

pos min fgm-a 3pm-a ftm-a off def tot ast pf st to bs pts
M.Hairston F 29:01 7-11 2-2 0-0 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 16
J.Gist F 22:57 1-6 0-0 2-4 1 2 3 0 4 1 0 1 4
I.Mahinmi C 24:45 1-3 0-0 6-6 3 1 4 0 7 0 0 1 8
G.Hill G 30:50 7-13 0-2 11-11 0 4 4 3 2 0 4 1 25
J.McClinton G 15:36 0-2 0-0 2-2 0 2 2 1 4 1 2 0 2
R.Beck 24:14 5-10 0-0 3-3 1 2 3 1 0 1 0 0 13
D.Blair 22:09 4-7 0-0 5-6 3 7 10 0 2 1 2 0 13
A. Gee 11:10 1-2 0-0 2-2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 4
S.Lasme 10:09 1-1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 3 0 2 1 3
D. Taylor 09:10 1-5 0-0 2-2 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 4

[Russ]

The option is for the 10-11 season. The Spurs picked up the 09-10 option last year.

Right, but the point is they can't wait to see how he does this season to make the decison about next season.

[Kobayagi]

Thanks, guys.

[coyotes_geek]

Right, but the point is they can't wait to see how he does this season to make the decison about next season.

You're right, and I missed your point. I thought you were asking whether or not the Spurs could cut Ian loose this year.

[Muser]

Damn, Blair/Hill look nice.

[kbrury]

Can't wait til Tuesday Hill vs Lawson:hungry:

[Bruno]

Don't the Spurs only have until October 1 (or some such early date) to decide whether to pick up his option?

It's October 31st. Spurs will have the training camp to decide whether or not picking his option.

[Bruno]

Pounding The Rock has made an interview with Ian:
http://www.poundingtherock.com/2009/7/12/946942/san-antonio-spurs-summer-league

[Spurs_9_20_21]

Damn, Blair/Hill look nice.
hell yeah! blair=mr.double double
hill=someone gimme a nickname for hill. :lol

[Russ]

Pounding The Rock has made an interview with Ian:
http://www.poundingtherock.com/2009/7/12/946942/san-antonio-spurs-summer-league

Someone needs to a counter for the word "cool" said by the interviewer the way they did with AI and the word "practice." :)

[Darkwaters]

Nice find Bruno.

What stuck out to me most from the interview was Mahinmi saying he was talking to the national team to try and play with them. Interesting.

[Darkwaters]

Someone needs to a counter for the word "cool" said by the interviewer the way they did with AI and the word "practice." :)

eGDBR2L5kzI

[marcflynn2009]

hey where can i watch the next game??

[Spursmania]

eGDBR2L5kzI


"We're talking about practice, man":lmao:lmao

[Russ]

This one has the actual counter:

bHJDRgVwcP8

[peskypesky]

scroll down for his comments on the Spurs

http://twitter.com/coachthorpe

sweet

[Gutter92]

Guys I just got back, can sum1 fill me in on what happened at the game? I don't wanna read all 39 pages.

[urunobili]

He is in love with Hill though...

[Mhak]

dam. i totally missed the game.... Do any of you guys have a link for replay for this game. Base on all your comments makes me want to kick my arze for missing it.

[oligarchy]

That's David Thorpe:

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-42-57/David-Thorpe-Livetweeting-From-Summer-League.html

[kbrury]

Hill-Awesome
Hairston-On fire in the 2nd half
Blair-Beast
Gist-Bad
Mahinmi-not good, but first game in a year.
McClinton-Bad


or....thanks to HH






Some thoughts..

George Hill..just dominated the game from start to finish..his shot looks a lot better..his athleticism and length is going to make him a special player..another thing I love about him is that he has a role player mentality all the time, even today, where he was clearly the #1 option/star player..he goes after loose balls all the time..

His defense is already good at the NBA-level, which is really what separates him from a lot of young PGs in the NBA right now..this will also allow him to play at the 2 with Tony, which could be huge for us..

DeJuan Blair..great game, couldn't have expected more..his rebounding truly is elite..his knees looked fine..he looked like a seasoned veteran playing against rookies..he had 1 bad move, where he beat his defender but decided to add another move, leading to his attempt being blocked..other than that, he showed very good touch at the basket..

His defensive awareness needs work, but that's expected for a rookie, especially since none of these guys have played together before..

Malik Hairston..he did what most of us expected..his shooting looks better, his defense was solid from start to finish, he's explosive at the basket..he needs to work on his ball-handling, but that isn't going to be a problem, since he's going to be a role player..

Ian Mahinmi..mixed results..his potential is pretty obvious, especially offensively..he has a very polished offensive game for a young project player IMO..his energy was a lot better than last year, but he still needs a lot more to be a rotation player for us this year..I won't judge him too much though, since it's his first NBA game since the injury..

James Gist..he didn't impress me in this game..he had a good move and a couple of strong finishes to the basket, but he looked over matched physically against the other big men..

Jack McClinton..he looked better in the 2nd half, but he didn't look good overall..I didn't like his shot selection on his few shots, and didn't like his energy overall, although it was noticeably better in the 2nd half..

[urunobili]

Guys I just got back, can sum1 fill me in on what happened at the game? I don't wanna read all 39 pages.

timvp will have thoughts of the game shortly... be patient...

[kbrury]

he gave Hill some love on Espnews.

[AFBlue]

Nice find Bruno.

What stuck out to me most from the interview was Mahinmi saying he was talking to the national team to try and play with them. Interesting.

What stuck out to me was the part about only being allowed to play with the d-league affiliate for two years...I thought it was three years?

The reason I find it interesting is, the Spurs might not get a good enough indication as to whether he's ready to contribute with just 5 summer league games and a few pre-season games...he may actually benefit from some time at the beginning of the season in Austin.


Anyone have clarification?

[ace3g]

Blair is going to have fun when we play the Grizzlies in the Summer League, Thabeet is sporting this stupid mohawk (watching the Grizz/Thunder game)

by the way Sam Young scored the first 6 points for the the Grizzlies, including this sick pump fake step forward move, which I think was the one people have been talking about. My friend had a move like that, and everyone that he traveled, but his foot stays on the ground.

[Cloud786]

Anyone know if there is a way I can watch this game somehow right now?

[SonOfAGun]

Blair is going to have fun when we play the Grizzlies in the Summer League, Thabeet is sporting this stupid mohawk (watching the Grizz/Thunder game)



haha yeah, I hope its these same commentators because they are all over thabeet

[DMX7]

Anyone know if there is a way I can watch this game somehow right now?

If you buy the $15 pass, then it should be available in the archive section.

[timvp]

What stuck out to me was the part about only being allowed to play with the d-league affiliate for two years...I thought it was three years?

The reason I find it interesting is, the Spurs might not get a good enough indication as to whether he's ready to contribute with just 5 summer league games and a few pre-season games...he may actually benefit from some time at the beginning of the season in Austin.


Anyone have clarification?
Mahinmi is ineligible for Austin. It's two years in the NBA and those two years are up.

[Spurs Brazil]

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/55/fullj.ebdf431199563ecec2ecd2def33be619/ebdf431199563ecec2ecd2def33be619-getty-88848947ge002_summer_league.jpg

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/67/fullj.b9982711dfd151a8212d03c19312c278/b9982711dfd151a8212d03c19312c278-getty-88848947ge007_summer_league.jpg

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/c4/fullj.e59a125285090a54c98c07bcbedaf5db/e59a125285090a54c98c07bcbedaf5db-getty-88848947ge005_summer_league.jpg

[Behrooz24]

scroll down for his comments on the Spurs

http://twitter.com/coachthorpe

sweet

DeJuan Blair. 1 minute. 3 boards.

:toast

[Spurs Brazil]

Spurs Drop Hornets to Open Summer League Play


LAS VEGAS, July 12 – The third day of the 2009 NBA Summer League presented by EA SPORTS opened with the San Antonio Spurs hosting the New Orleans Hornets at COX Pavilion on the campus of University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

In a tightly contested fourth quarter, Malik Hairston sealed the Spurs 92-86 victory with a three-pointer with 18 seconds left in the game. Trailing by two heading into the fourth quarter the Spurs led by as many as six in a quarter that featured seven lead changes and six ties.

George Hill tallied a game high 25 points for the Spurs while Malike Hairston tallied 16 points. The Hornets were led by Marcus Thornton with 22 points while Darren Collison chipped in 19.

“My coaches and teammates told me to just play my game, and that’s what I did,” said Hill on today’s performance.

The Hornets led by as many as nine in the opening half of play and led by two at the half.

The Spurs third quarter attack was led by Hairston who scored 13 points and led San Antonio to a five point lead in the third early in the quarter. The Hornets finished the quarter strong and maintained their two point lead heading into the final period.

Both teams shot well from the charity stripe, the Spurs connecting on 33 for 36 from the line while the Hornets connected on 19 for 20.

Both teams return to the hardwood on Tuesday, the Hornets hosting the Los Angeles Clippers at 7:30 p.m. while the Spurs host the Nuggets at 7 p.m.

http://www.nba.com/spurs/gameday/090712.html

[Spurs Brazil]

Spurs rookie DeJuan Blair aims to eat up space
Art Garcia, NBA.com
Posted Jul 12 2009 8:35PM

LAS VEGAS -- He's been called the steal of the second round, but DeJuan Blair wants to be known for something else.
"I'm a space eater," Blair said with a grin.

The 37th pick in the 2009 Draft by the Spurs didn't waste any time gobbling up real estate and rebounds Sunday afternoon, throwing his 265 pounds (and considerable backside) around as soon as he checked into his first Summer League game.

A jumper from one of his new teammates went up and Blair made a beeline for the paint. Clearing room against a taller New Orleans defender, the 6-foot-7 Blair snatched the rebound and went back up. He missed but got it back before muscling the ball in.

"You cannot teach space," Spurs assistant and Summer League coach Don Newman said. "He's a space eater. He knows how to take it up, he knows how to hold his space and he's a physical guy by nature.

"He's going to get accustomed to how the game is called and those things will come, but one thing you don't want to do is back him off. You want to play like he plays. He'll continue to take that space."

Blair hadn't even broken a sweat and he began to fill up the box score. In five first-quarter minutes, the Pitt product had five points and five boards. The line after Blair's first pro game read 13 points and 10 rebounds, including three offensive, in 22 minutes.

"I'm not here to score, I'm here to play," he said. "I've been going a good job of preparing myself to come in and rebound, and I feel good. I think I played good. I went out there to rebound. The points just happened."

Blair just happened to fall in the Spurs' lap. Projected by many as a possible lottery-worthy talent after deciding to leave school as a sophomore, knee concerns sent Blain spiraling out of the first round. Specifically, he's missing the ACL in both knees.

An MRI done during the scouting combine in Chicago revealed the unique condition. Blair had surgeries to repair both ACLs in high school and hasn't had any issues since. He doesn't play with a brace on either knee and, if not for the test, wouldn't give the situation a second thought.

"I'm not worried about that," he said. "The knee problems are over."

Twenty-nine other teams felt differently about his medical prospects. As much as San Antonio is credited for pulling off a Draft steal, picking Blair was a no-brainer. General manager R.C. Buford admitted as much, adding that the team never expected the Big East player of the year to still be on the board seven picks into the second round.

Blair has found himself in the enviable spot of joining a title contender that had a need for frontcourt bulk behind Tim Duncan. Along with the recent signing of Antonio McDyess, Blair will be playing behind and learning from two of the premier power forwards of the last decade-plus.

"It doesn't matter what happened in the Draft," Blair said. "I went when I went and I ended up being on a team with great players, great coaches and great fans. I'm not complaining about it."

If you have a question or comment for Art Garcia, send him an e-mail.

http://www.nba.com/summerleague2009/summerleague_blair.html

[siraulo23]

http://www.nba.com/spurs/gameday/090712.html

Gameday recap and photos

[Spursfan092120]

Blair looked good...wish McClinton would have had a better game. :(

[Thompson]

I wonder why Gist jumped for the ball at the beginning of the game instead of Mahinmi? Is Ian that rusty?

[poeticism707]

12 points in 18 minutes.

Only 20 years old.

Great googly moogly...
:lol

[Dex]

An MRI done during the scouting combine in Chicago revealed the unique condition. Blair had surgeries to repair both ACLs in high school and hasn't had any issues since. He doesn't play with a brace on either knee and, if not for the test, wouldn't give the situation a second thought.

"I'm not worried about that," he said. "The knee problems are over."

Even being undersized, the only reason Blair fell as far as he did was because of the concern over his knees.

If what he's saying (and what we're seeing) is true and there really is no cause for concern, then he is easily another steal for the Spurs.

[kbrury]

I wonder why Gist jumped for the ball at the beginning of the game instead of Mahinmi? Is Ian that rusty?
This was his first game in a year.

[Thompson]

This was his first game in a year.

So he can't jump? I'm just wondering if his ankles are still a concern.

[Knoxxx]

In the picture of the opening tip, Gist's wingspan looks incredible. His arm looks a whole hand longer than a normal arm, unless that was just an optical illusion caused by the angle or something.

[Brazil]

Whhhaaaattttttt a summer league game and 40 pages of posts ??? :) it gonna be a great season

[callo1]

Don't judge Ian and McClinton's play based on this first game. Ian clearly is having timing issues coming off that injury...he has played the least real ball in the last year due to the injury.

McClinton didn't look good, but I think he has the type of game that will take longer to translate to the Spurs system (which is why I was kind of suprised about the pick) but, once it does, he will be one of those "instant scorers" off the bench. I just wonder how he and Pop will mesh with his shot selection. If Pop tries to much to throttle him back, his game will be compromised...only time will tell. He seems more like a Suns type of player than a Spurs system player in many ways.

[SouthTexasRancher]

Spurs rookie DeJuan Blair aims to eat up space
Art Garcia, NBA.com
Posted Jul 12 2009 8:35PM

LAS VEGAS -- He's been called the steal of the second round, but DeJuan Blair wants to be known for something else.
"I'm a space eater," Blair said with a grin.

The 37th pick in the 2009 Draft by the Spurs didn't waste any time gobbling up real estate and rebounds Sunday afternoon, throwing his 265 pounds (and considerable backside) around as soon as he checked into his first Summer League game.

A jumper from one of his new teammates went up and Blair made a beeline for the paint. Clearing room against a taller New Orleans defender, the 6-foot-7 Blair snatched the rebound and went back up. He missed but got it back before muscling the ball in.

"You cannot teach space," Spurs assistant and Summer League coach Don Newman said. "He's a space eater. He knows how to take it up, he knows how to hold his space and he's a physical guy by nature.

"He's going to get accustomed to how the game is called and those things will come, but one thing you don't want to do is back him off. You want to play like he plays. He'll continue to take that space."

Blair hadn't even broken a sweat and he began to fill up the box score. In five first-quarter minutes, the Pitt product had five points and five boards. The line after Blair's first pro game read 13 points and 10 rebounds, including three offensive, in 22 minutes.

"I'm not here to score, I'm here to play," he said. "I've been going a good job of preparing myself to come in and rebound, and I feel good. I think I played good. I went out there to rebound. The points just happened."

Blair just happened to fall in the Spurs' lap. Projected by many as a possible lottery-worthy talent after deciding to leave school as a sophomore, knee concerns sent Blain spiraling out of the first round. Specifically, he's missing the ACL in both knees.

An MRI done during the scouting combine in Chicago revealed the unique condition. Blair had surgeries to repair both ACLs in high school and hasn't had any issues since. He doesn't play with a brace on either knee and, if not for the test, wouldn't give the situation a second thought.

"I'm not worried about that," he said. "The knee problems are over."

Twenty-nine other teams felt differently about his medical prospects. As much as San Antonio is credited for pulling off a Draft steal, picking Blair was a no-brainer. General manager R.C. Buford admitted as much, adding that the team never expected the Big East player of the year to still be on the board seven picks into the second round.

Blair has found himself in the enviable spot of joining a title contender that had a need for frontcourt bulk behind Tim Duncan. Along with the recent signing of Antonio McDyess, Blair will be playing behind and learning from two of the premier power forwards of the last decade-plus.

"It doesn't matter what happened in the Draft," Blair said. "I went when I went and I ended up being on a team with great players, great coaches and great fans. I'm not complaining about it."

If you have a question or comment for Art Garcia, send him an e-mail.

http://www.nba.com/summerleague2009/summerleague_blair.html


Man I like his attitude. He's definitely a keeper!

[antimvp]

ian with the huge 7 PF....lol.

[anjlbitz]

Report from the Cox Pavillion

I tried to get there a little early so I can sit behind the Spurs bench. Epic fail on my part cause I sat on the wrong side. I sat with a bunch of Spurs and Pitt fans. I guess wasn't the only one who sat on the wrong side.

During warm-ups, a lot of the Spurs players showed off their athleticism with a fantastic display of dunks. James Gist could jump out of the gym but he was almost always rim-blocked. DeJuan (Blair) Barkley looked like he wanted to break the backboard, Shaq-style.

Quite a number of Spurs fans during the game. During the last minute some fans were even starting up a "Go Spurs Go" chant.

George Hill IMO did a pretty good job at running the team at PG. He spent a lot of time directing his teammates who were out of position in offensive and defensive sets. Seems like he did his homework and studied. And his offense wasn't bad either ;) His defense appeared like he was bored. His jumpshot has improved immensely. He looks more fluid and during warmups he didn't miss.

James Gist wasn't very impressive. He looked a bit lost. Hopefully it's just 1st game jitters. Only thing good he brought was the "lulz" with his Louis Vuitton backpack & a Marvin the Martian hat outfit.

Jack McClinton just stunk up the place. I was hoping that after he got blocked on a jumper that he'd get angry and just start tearing up the Hornets. Unfortunately he just continued to suck. Also, I thought he wasn't a PG? There were possessions in the 2nd half where G. Hill became the 2 and he was the 1? Anyway, I'm chalking this performance as 1st game jitters same with James Gist's.

Ian Mahinmi was very active and tried very hard this game. He just seems so clumsy sometimes. Most of his 7 fouls were from jersey grabbing so maybe he needs to move his feet on defense more instead of trying to play catch up with his hands. He had one nice offensive play at the end of the game that gave me hope. I think once he shakes the rust he'll impress us.

Malik Hairston 1st half was forgettable but woke up during the 2nd half. He was playing well with G. Hill. Seems like they have good chemistry.

De Juan Barkley yeah I guess he was ok ;) He became an instant fan favorite of Spurs and non-Spurs fans alike. Every time he got a rebound, the crowd would cheer as if it was an awesome offensive play. It also seemed like he got a hand on almost every Spurs rebound.

Rommel Beck he had a pretty good first half but I wasn't that impressed. He really seemed eager to make a team this season. He played a 2 man game during the first half with Taylor when he got most of his points. Also he can't dribble. The entire Hornets bench was yelling to force him to dribble left and successfully got turnovers. During the second half he was playing with Hill and the rest of the Spurs draft picks and tried to force his offense.

Some pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/anjlbitz/SLSpursHornets

[timvp]

Great job, anjlbitz :tu

In the game blog I was :lol @ Rommel Beck's inability to dribble with his left hand. I've never seen a player make it as far as he has in his basketball life who can't dribble with his left hand. He had a fast break one time and instead of dribbling to his left with his left hand, he turned around and did a half circle to get there using his right hand :rollin

He looked smooth in catch-and-shoot situations and finishing near the rim but his dribbling required circus music.

[TIMMYD!]

Holy Shit this has to be the most viewed and commented thread of all time.

[kbrury]

Holy Shit this has to be the most viewed and commented thread of all time.

see draft day thread. http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=129627

[Kori Ellis]

Holy Shit this has to be the most viewed and commented thread of all time.

It looks like it's about 100th in terms of views all time at SpursTalk. Pretty good for a summer league game.

It's 23rd most viewed in the Spurs section.

[SouthTexasRancher]

Report from the Cox Pavillion

I tried to get there a little early so I can sit behind the Spurs bench. Epic fail on my part cause I sat on the wrong side. I sat with a bunch of Spurs and Pitt fans. I guess wasn't the only one who sat on the wrong side.

During warm-ups, a lot of the Spurs players showed off their athleticism with a fantastic display of dunks. James Gist could jump out of the gym but he was almost always rim-blocked. DeJuan (Blair) Barkley looked like he wanted to break the backboard, Shaq-style.

Quite a number of Spurs fans during the game. During the last minute some fans were even starting up a "Go Spurs Go" chant.

George Hill IMO did a pretty good job at running the team at PG. He spent a lot of time directing his teammates who were out of position in offensive and defensive sets. Seems like he did his homework and studied. And his offense wasn't bad either ;) His defense appeared like he was bored. His jumpshot has improved immensely. He looks more fluid and during warmups he didn't miss.

James Gist wasn't very impressive. He looked a bit lost. Hopefully it's just 1st game jitters. Only thing good he brought was the "lulz" with his Louis Vuitton backpack & a Marvin the Martian hat outfit.

Jack McClinton just stunk up the place. I was hoping that after he got blocked on a jumper that he'd get angry and just start tearing up the Hornets. Unfortunately he just continued to suck. Also, I thought he wasn't a PG? There were possessions in the 2nd half where G. Hill became the 2 and he was the 1? Anyway, I'm chalking this performance as 1st game jitters same with James Gist's.

Ian Mahinmi was very active and tried very hard this game. He just seems so clumsy sometimes. Most of his 7 fouls were from jersey grabbing so maybe he needs to move his feet on defense more instead of trying to play catch up with his hands. He had one nice offensive play at the end of the game that gave me hope. I think once he shakes the rust he'll impress us.

Malik Hairston 1st half was forgettable but woke up during the 2nd half. He was playing well with G. Hill. Seems like they have good chemistry.

De Juan Barkley yeah I guess he was ok ;) He became an instant fan favorite of Spurs and non-Spurs fans alike. Every time he got a rebound, the crowd would cheer as if it was an awesome offensive play. It also seemed like he got a hand on almost every Spurs rebound.

Rommel Beck he had a pretty good first half but I wasn't that impressed. He really seemed eager to make a team this season. He played a 2 man game during the first half with Taylor when he got most of his points. Also he can't dribble. The entire Hornets bench was yelling to force him to dribble left and successfully got turnovers. During the second half he was playing with Hill and the rest of the Spurs draft picks and tried to force his offense.

Some pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/anjlbitz/SLSpursHornets


Nice job, anjlbitz.

It looks like Ian has about 4 more games and if he continues with his propensity towards getting large numbers in the foul department, his clumsiness, and just looking like he belongs somewhere other than the NBA. Since he can't go back to the D-League I'm afraid his days as a Spur are numbered.

[kbrury]

Nice job, anjlbitz.

It looks like Ian has about 4 more games and if he continues with his propensity towards getting large numbers in the foul department, his clumsiness, and just looking like he belongs somewhere other than the NBA. Since he can't go back to the D-League I'm afraid his days as a Spur are numbered.
he'll have Training Camp also, less pressure when playing with TD and TP.

[bishopospurs]

I am happy with the game today, only one game but gotta like Hill and Blair. I can't wait to see how they fit in with the rest of the team. I am going to wait a while before making any real predictions on the season. If the spurs get anything out of McClinton it would be a steal that late in the draft.

[bishopospurs]

http://www.nba.com/spurs/gameday/090712.html

Gameday recap and photos
Pic 6 is funny, why is #34 not even looking at where the play is happening? Blair is pulling down a board and he is looking off in the other direction.

[bigdog]

I didn't get to see it, but from what I'm reading on here, I'm very excited. Sounds like Hill and Blair tore it up. Hairston had a good game, too, and Ian at least showed some potential, but looked very rusty, which is expected.

I wish I could see the games.

[mystargtr34]

Is there any way i can watch this game now? Archived?

[Libri]

Is there any way i can watch this game now? Archived?

I also want to know this but I think it still going to cost $14.99. :bling

[Manufan909]

I'm glad these games are being archived. Both legal and illegal streams are taking shits late in the game.

Where exactly? I'd really love to watch all these games, but I work during all but one.

[mazerrackham]

if you pay the 15 dollars you can watch them as many times as you want until like july 26th or something

[ChumpDumper]

Where exactly? I'd really love to watch all these games, but I work during all but one.http://summerleague.istreamplanet.com/nba/player/default.asp

I'm watching today's archive right now on my lcd tv. Looks really good. There is an annoying trait of the flash player in that it doesn't seem to buffer in advance of the shown video much, which leads to occasional freezing that I find ridiculous for an archived game.

My recommendation:

1) Start the stream.

2) Change the storage setting in the flash player to "unlimited" if you have a fair amount of space on your hard drive.

3) Do ALL your shopping.

4) Move the cursor back to the start of the game and enjoy.

[timvp]

Is there any trick to fast forwarding and rewinding? When I try I end up skipping minutes instead of seconds. Frustrating.

[ChumpDumper]

Yeah, a little goes a long way when moving the cursor once the whole game is loaded -- that's all I've been doing.