What does Gregg Popovich know that we don't about the draft?

[FoxPerez]

Originally posted at PlaymakerOnline.com (http://bit.ly/l1U3Gj)

The San Antonio Spurs have one player that they can get great value for on the open market: Tony Parker. And according to Yahoo Sports, they’re trying to trade him for a high pick in the upcoming draft. The Toronto Raptors and Sacramento Kings, who have the No. 5 and 7 picks respectively, are reportedly interested. But those same reports also say that teams at the lower end of the first round of the draft are looking to acquire George Hill.

At the end of the regular season, in our April issue of Playmaker Magazine, I declared Parker the team MVP because of his speed gave him the ability to score so efficiently in the paint and knock down a solid jumper when defenders gave him too much room.

But honestly, there’s a lot of nostalgic value as well. He’s been with the team during their last three championships and improved his performance in each one of those seasons culminating in being named the 2007 NBA Finals MVP. Also, Spurs fans have to admit that his marriage to Desperate Housewives beauty queen and San Antonio-native Eva Longoria had a lot to do with his popularity and his indispensability.

And he hasn’t done himself any favors off the court. First there was the couple’s scandalous breakup that involved rumors of infidelity with a former player’s wife and then Parker came out and said that the team’s window for winning a championship in the Tim Duncan era was shut. After all that, San Antonio fans aren’t likely to be hanging on to Parker so tightly anymore.

The interesting note here is that this move is so out of the ordinary for the San Antonio Spurs as an organization. With the exception of Duncan, every other major contributor that the Spurs drafted was a steal: Parker, Hill, Manu Ginobili, DeJuan Blair, Tiago Splitter. San Antonio drafts so well that, no matter what you thought of the players before they were taken by the Spurs, the mere fact that they were drafted by the organization made it a smart pick. So that begs the question: Who is it at the top of the draft that they think is a sure thing?

The biggest glaring hole for the San Antonio Spurs is at center and power forward. They were dominated at both positions by the Memphis Grizzlies, which is why they were bounced from the first round by the No. 8 seed in just six games. Tim Duncan is getting old, Antonio McDyess is likely (but not officially) gone, DeJuan Blair faded at the end of the season and Tiago Splitter doesn’t yet have a full season’s worth of playing time under his belt yet. In a draft that seems to be short on true centers that can develop into low-post powers, my guess is that Gregg Popovich and RC Buford think that if they can move up to the 5th or 7th spot in the draft, they can guarantee themselves Jonas Valanciunas or get lucky and have Enes Kanter fall to them. With Hill manning the point with a young nucleus of shooters being led by the experience of Duncan and Ginobili, the Spurs could be set to make a smooth transition from the Duncan era to a new one with this new group.

One thing is for sure, San Antonio has seen the numbers and they know that they’re in good hands when George Hill brings the ball up. Check out this excellent article on Hill vs. Parker (http://www.playmakeronline.com/2011/06/04/an-in-depth-look-at-parker-vs-hill/) from our partners at ProjectSpurs.com and you’ll be convinced too that trading Parker is the right move. Then on draft night, find out which player we’ll be talking about as being a genius pick by the Spurs again… even though we have no clue as to who it’s going to bet yet.

[will_spurs]

One thing is for sure, San Antonio has seen the numbers and they know that they’re in good hands when George Hill brings the ball up.

"We have never watched a Spurs game, but we are entitled to our opinion."

[TJastal]

Originally posted at PlaymakerOnline.com (http://bit.ly/l1U3Gj)

The San Antonio Spurs have one player that they can get great value for on the open market: Tony Parker. And according to Yahoo Sports, they’re trying to trade him for a high pick in the upcoming draft. The Toronto Raptors and Sacramento Kings, who have the No. 5 and 7 picks respectively, are reportedly interested. But those same reports also say that teams at the lower end of the first round of the draft are looking to acquire George Hill.

At the end of the regular season, in our April issue of Playmaker Magazine, I declared Parker the team MVP because of his speed gave him the ability to score so efficiently in the paint and knock down a solid jumper when defenders gave him too much room.

But honestly, there’s a lot of nostalgic value as well. He’s been with the team during their last three championships and improved his performance in each one of those seasons culminating in being named the 2007 NBA Finals MVP. Also, Spurs fans have to admit that his marriage to Desperate Housewives beauty queen and San Antonio-native Eva Longoria had a lot to do with his popularity and his indispensability.

And he hasn’t done himself any favors off the court. First there was the couple’s scandalous breakup that involved rumors of infidelity with a former player’s wife and then Parker came out and said that the team’s window for winning a championship in the Tim Duncan era was shut. After all that, San Antonio fans aren’t likely to be hanging on to Parker so tightly anymore.

The interesting note here is that this move is so out of the ordinary for the San Antonio Spurs as an organization. With the exception of Duncan, every other major contributor that the Spurs drafted was a steal: Parker, Hill, Manu Ginobili, DeJuan Blair, Tiago Splitter. San Antonio drafts so well that, no matter what you thought of the players before they were taken by the Spurs, the mere fact that they were drafted by the organization made it a smart pick. So that begs the question: Who is it at the top of the draft that they think is a sure thing?

The biggest glaring hole for the San Antonio Spurs is at center and power forward. They were dominated at both positions by the Memphis Grizzlies, which is why they were bounced from the first round by the No. 8 seed in just six games. Tim Duncan is getting old, Antonio McDyess is likely (but not officially) gone, DeJuan Blair faded at the end of the season and Tiago Splitter doesn’t yet have a full season’s worth of playing time under his belt yet. In a draft that seems to be short on true centers that can develop into low-post powers, my guess is that Gregg Popovich and RC Buford think that if they can move up to the 5th or 7th spot in the draft, they can guarantee themselves Jonas Valanciunas or get lucky and have Enes Kanter fall to them. With Hill manning the point with a young nucleus of shooters being led by the experience of Duncan and Ginobili, the Spurs could be set to make a smooth transition from the Duncan era to a new one with this new group.

One thing is for sure, San Antonio has seen the numbers and they know that they’re in good hands when George Hill brings the ball up. Check out this excellent article on Hill vs. Parker (http://www.playmakeronline.com/2011/06/04/an-in-depth-look-at-parker-vs-hill/) from our partners at ProjectSpurs.com and you’ll be convinced too that trading Parker is the right move. Then on draft night, find out which player we’ll be talking about as being a genius pick by the Spurs again… even though we have no clue as to who it’s going to bet yet.

Excellent article from link posted within. Some quotes from that article:


Hill, Manu Ginobili, Gary Neal, Matt Bonner and Antonio McDyess were the most offensively efficient bench lineup in the league - a bench lineup is defined by a minimum of three non-starters playing together – ahead of Chicago’s Rose, Brewer, Deng, Gibson and Asik.

They had the highest offensive efficiency in the league at 129.2. A bench lineup with Parker, didn’t crack the top five. This is for multiple reasons.



George has a huge positive jump when they play apart rising to +5.5. George also becomes a distributor when they play separately with his assist average jumping to 4.5 from 1.9, when they play together. George’s scoring average moves up three points from nine to 12 when they play apart.


When Tony and George play together it’s pretty clear Tony suffocates George’s game.


When Manu and George play together, George’s stats explode. George’s +/- jumps to a elite point guard level of 8.7. His scoring climbs to 15.1 points per game and his field goal percentage is at 51%. Which means he’s cashing in on all those good looks Manu is giving him. Manu’s stats also jump significantly scoring at a 23.7 per game clip when he shares the court with George and 18.4 without him. Every single stat is improved for Manu when George is on the court with him. His three point percentage jumps six points when George is creating shots for him.


When Tony plays with Manu, it’s a bit of a different story. While Tony very much benefits from playing with Manu as his +/- rating is pretty high at 7.6, Manu’s production dips in scoring coming in at 20.1 and +/- falling to 7.6. Manu’s numbers almost across the board are superior when playing with Hill instead of Parker. This pattern also holds true with Gary Neal. Neal is a much more efficient player with Hill creating shots for him. His +/- goes from a negative playing with Parker to a +4.5 playing with Hill.


You can say the same about Tim Duncan, McDyess and Matt Bonner with the +/- disparities. The only wing player who seems to benefit from Tony Parker on the floor is Richard Jefferson and that is because Tony will take the offensive responsibility off his shoulders. :lmao

This information pretty much confirms everything I've been saying for the last few years. In a nutshell, Hill is a better team player than Tony Parker and makes those around him better players. If either one is traded, it should be Tony Parker.

[4>0rings]

Pop doesn't know shit, he's just a butthurt elderly man cause Tony Parker walked on his grass yard.

[DMX7]

If we trade a guy in his prime who's number is going to be hanging in the rafters for the #11 pick in an all-time shitty draft, we should be shot.

[DMC]

What did Pop know about Bonner/Blair combo that we didn't, and still don't?

[Danny.Zhu]

The only time Hill actually delivered in recent years is the Dallas series imo.

[Wu36]

The last time Pop was right was when he said he should be fired if this team didn't win.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Those Hill v Parker numbers defy what I've seen with my own eyes, but really, moving TP at this point isn't a bad idea (aging, relies on speed, battered plenty), as long as you get more than one draft pick. 5th and Casspi, would give us the lanky wing defender we've lacked, and a pick to spend on a lottery big. That'd be a fair return. Still gotta move RJ though... :depressed

[baseline bum]

Those Hill v Parker numbers defy what I've seen with my own eyes, but really, moving TP at this point isn't a bad idea (aging, relies on speed, battered plenty), as long as you get more than one draft pick. 5th and Casspi, would give us the lanky wing defender we've lacked, and a pick to spend on a lottery big. That'd be a fair return. Still gotta move RJ though... :depressed

It'd be 7th and Casspi. What a horrible trade that would be. The only realistic one that I wouldn't vomit at hearing Stern announce would be #5 and Ed Davis, but I still wouldn't want that one either. Save Tony to trade for a top 10 pick next season when you can grab a nice forward or point guard. Unless the Spurs are extremely high on Valaciunas, I wouldn't want to do a deal with Toronto. The Sacramento and Portland deals are just spectacular clusterfucks. No way I want Jefferson included in a deal either, because that means the Spurs would get no decent assets out of it.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

It'd be 7th and Casspi. What a horrible trade that would be. The only realistic one that I wouldn't vomit at hearing Stern announce would be #5 and Ed Davis, but I still wouldn't want that one either. Save Tony to trade for a top 10 pick next season when you can grab a nice forward or point guard. Unless the Spurs are extremely high on Valaciunas, I wouldn't want to do a deal with Toronto. The Sacramento and Portland deals are just spectacular clusterfucks. No way I want Jefferson included in a deal either, because that means the Spurs would get no decent assets out of it.

That's certainly the pessimistic view. Fuck, it's in the lap of the Gods as far as I can see.

I really like the Miller/Batum and a pick for Parker and a pick idea mentioned elsewhere, but it's highly unlikely from Portland's perspective.

[baseline bum]

That's certainly the pessimistic view. Fuck, it's in the lap of the Gods as far as I can see.

I really like the Miller/Batum and a pick for Parker and a pick idea mentioned elsewhere, but it's highly unlikely from Portland's perspective.

You would be happy trading Parker for Batum? Miller would just be cut.

[FkLA]

At the end of the regular season, in our April issue of Playmaker Magazine, I declared Parker the team MVP because of his speed gave him the ability to score so efficiently in the paint and knock down a solid jumper when defenders gave him too much room.


:lol

http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/7407/81147838.png

Too bad they stopped doing hotspots because his shot was even more atrocious this past season.



Hill, Manu Ginobili, Gary Neal, Matt Bonner and Antonio McDyess were the most offensively efficient bench lineup in the league - a bench lineup is defined by a minimum of three non-starters playing together – ahead of Chicago’s Rose, Brewer, Deng, Gibson and Asik.


They had the highest offensive efficiency in the league at 129.2. A bench lineup with Parker, didn’t crack the top five. This is for multiple reasons.



George has a huge positive jump when they play apart rising to +5.5. George also becomes a distributor when they play separately with his assist average jumping to 4.5 from 1.9, when they play together. George’s scoring average moves up three points from nine to 12 when they play apart.



When Tony and George play together it’s pretty clear Tony suffocates George’s game.



When Manu and George play together, George’s stats explode. George’s +/- jumps to a elite point guard level of 8.7. His scoring climbs to 15.1 points per game and his field goal percentage is at 51%. Which means he’s cashing in on all those good looks Manu is giving him. Manu’s stats also jump significantly scoring at a 23.7 per game clip when he shares the court with George and 18.4 without him. Every single stat is improved for Manu when George is on the court with him. His three point percentage jumps six points when George is creating shots for him.



When Tony plays with Manu, it’s a bit of a different story. While Tony very much benefits from playing with Manu as his +/- rating is pretty high at 7.6, Manu’s production dips in scoring coming in at 20.1 and +/- falling to 7.6. Manu’s numbers almost across the board are superior when playing with Hill instead of Parker. This pattern also holds true with Gary Neal. Neal is a much more efficient player with Hill creating shots for him. His +/- goes from a negative playing with Parker to a +4.5 playing with Hill.



You can say the same about Tim Duncan, McDyess and Matt Bonner with the +/- disparities. The only wing player who seems to benefit from Tony Parker on the floor is Richard Jefferson and that is because Tony will take the offensive responsibility off his shoulders.

This information pretty much confirms everything I've been saying for the last few years. In a nutshell, Hill is a better team player than Tony Parker and makes those around him better players. If either one is traded, it should be Tony Parker.

:tu:tu

[TDMVPDPOY]

You would be happy trading Parker for Batum? Miller would just be cut.

why miller? should be looking at one of their bigs camby or pryz...

batum or rudy? man i wish we can steal these two players, see them develop on the spurs roster...

[TJastal]

why miller? should be looking at one of their bigs camby or pryz...

batum or rudy? man i wish we can steal these two players, see them develop on the spurs roster...

I wouldn't mind Fernandez. Got a ton of experience under his belt on both continents and could back up either wing position. Big time shot maker as well. If the spurs are truly gearing up for one last run he'd be the guy to get, not some dumbass rook like Klay Thompson.

[lmbebo]

why miller? should be looking at one of their bigs camby or pryz...

batum or rudy? man i wish we can steal these two players, see them develop on the spurs roster...


pryz is on the bobcats now. traded for gerald wallace