Tiago freaking Splitter

[dallasmaverickslose]

I mean what the hell? What's the deal with this guy? Yeah yeah I know his injury from earlier didn't help his progress at all, but that's not really what I'm talking about. I'm not taking about right now, I'm talking about his NBA career overall.

Isn't this his 4th year? Why isn't this guy holding his own even without Timmy playing lights out? He has his strengths and does some good things here and there, but damn, I was optimistic that after a few years he would at least somewhat bring back the Twin Towers effect on this team.

Guess not, tbh... :depressed

[PlayNando]

He was the only Spur with a positive +/- as he ended +4 in 24 minutes.

He also is our defensive anchor down low, IMO. The game got out of hand when Pop went senile and went full-on small ball in the 2nd quarter (benching Tiago), allowing the Thunder to score 40 points in that quarter alone.

Yes, Tiago is soft and mostly can't finish, but he is a huge defensive asset that many overlook.

[Juggity]

If you expected him to come in and replicate the twin towers era, you were expecting too much. Splitter isn't David Robinson. David Robinson is one of the top 25 players in the history of the NBA.

However, splitter's defensive skillset has turned the spurs into a defensive powerhouse again — long after the defense-first mentality of the championship years had been abandoned and the spurs written off as contender. That alone makes him a key cog on the team

[testies]

first two posts killed your thread

[Aremid]

If you expected him to come in and replicate the twin towers era, you were expecting too much. Splitter isn't David Robinson. David Robinson is one of the top 25 players in the history of the NBA.

However, splitter's defensive skillset has turned the spurs into a defensive powerhouse again — long after the defense-first mentality of the championship years had been abandoned and the spurs written off as contender. That alone makes him a key cog on the team

Nobody is expecting him to be the admiral, but is it much to ask him to finish more aggressively in the post or work with chip on his jumper? Meanwhile you have serge ibaka working on those shots as well as 3s. Nobody is asking him to be d rob but his improvements have made the thunder a much more difficult matchup

[thunderup]

Watching Splitter today makes me appreciate Adams much more. :lol

[PlayNando]

If you expected him to come in and replicate the twin towers era, you were expecting too much. Splitter isn't David Robinson. David Robinson is one of the top 25 players in the history of the NBA.

However, splitter's defensive skillset has turned the spurs into a defensive powerhouse again — long after the defense-first mentality of the championship years had been abandoned and the spurs written off as contender. That alone makes him a key cog on the team
Good take, per par. :tu

[dallasmaverickslose]

If you expected him to come in and replicate the twin towers era, you were expecting too much. Splitter isn't David Robinson. David Robinson is one of the top 25 players in the history of the NBA.

However, splitter's defensive skillset has turned the spurs into a defensive powerhouse again — long after the defense-first mentality of the championship years had been abandoned and the spurs written off as contender. That alone makes him a key cog on the team

Note that I didn't say replicate it. I meant that he would bring back some of the benefits of that era. Let's be honest, Splitter is probably the most prominent big next to Duncan in the post-Robinson era, but considering all of the hype he brought with him from Spain, it's safe to say we're all at least a little disappointed. I like the guy, but he so damn soft. And I'm still having trouble getting over his dismal finals showing.

[dallasmaverickslose]

first two posts killed your thread

Not really.

[Reck]

first two posts killed your thread

How?

Most of the time he's a liability out there. A few good plays doesn't negate the fact he's really not getting any better. Like OP said, this is he's 4th year at the top level and he still has major issues out on the court.

personally I've seen enough Splitter.

[TheGoldStandard]

What is sad is that even defensively he's slightly above average it's just that most "bigs" are shitty at defense that Splitter looks good in comparison. The problem is that most "bigs" in this league have some kind of offense that makes up for their lack of defense and that's where they excel where Tiago doesn't. I'd love to have a big who actually could average 15 a game and make 7 rebounds and would contest shots. Sure his stats look good and his advanced stats look great on paper but overall he's an offensive liability who doesn't have any post game at all and is way to soft to ever learn one.

[Reck]

What is sad is that even defensively he's slightly above average it's just that most "bigs" are shitty at defense that Splitter looks good in comparison. The problem is that most "bigs" in this league have some kind of offense that makes up for their lack of defense and that's where they excel where Tiago doesn't. I'd love to have a big who actually could average 15 a game and make 7 rebounds and would contest shots. Sure his stats look good and his advanced stats look great on paper but overall he's an offensive liability who doesn't have any post game at all and is way to soft to ever learn one.

Nice post. I agree.

[dallasmaverickslose]

What is sad is that even defensively he's slightly above average it's just that most "bigs" are shitty at defense that Splitter looks good in comparison. The problem is that most "bigs" in this league have some kind of offense that makes up for their lack of defense and that's where they excel where Tiago doesn't. I'd love to have a big who actually could average 15 a game and make 7 rebounds and would contest shots. Sure his stats look good and his advanced stats look great on paper but overall he's an offensive liability who doesn't have any post game at all and is way to soft to ever learn one.

His defense is good. But he brings close to nothing on the offensive side of the ball, and he always seems to get bullied in the paint even though he has a considerable size advantage over quite a few of the bigs he's matched up against.

[testies]

But the point is not our offence. Two games ago Splitter was high on the pick and roll defending Stephen fucking Curry succesfully. The man is versatile and just great on defence. Why the fuck does he need to score more than 8 points on offense? We have a very fluid offense with Parker, Leonard, Belinelli, Manu, Mills, Green, Duncan..

When he entered our starting line up it was the differece between getting abused by Memphis and getting to the WCF and Finals and almost winning

.. Our offense is far from our problem.. if we didn't have Splitter, we'd not even be close to top5 defence on NBA

[Juggity]

Nobody is expecting him to be the admiral, but is it much to ask him to finish more aggressively in the post or work with chip on his jumper? Meanwhile you have serge ibaka working on those shots as well as 3s. Nobody is asking him to be d rob but his improvements have made the thunder a much more difficult matchup

I mean, what can you do? Every team has bad matchups.

The Spurs' kryptonite is the Thunder, with their athleticism and serge ibaka's outside shooting
The Thunder's kryptonite the Miami Heat, who can counter the thunder's athleticism and youth with Lebron's dominance over KD and westbrook's tendency toward chuckery
The Heat's kryptonite is the Indiana Pacers, who can bruise inside like no other team and have some great young wing defenders

I guess what I'm trying to say is: at a certain point, you have to make a decision about who you build your team to go up against. The spurs seem built to challenge a team like Miami, as seen in the hard-fought finals. I'd rather the spurs be built to challenge Miami than to challenge OKC.

Further, I don't really think it's possible to turn the Spurs into a team that can be consistently effective against the Thunder. Splitter could work on finishing more aggressively in the post all he wants, but that's just one piece of the puzzle. At its core, the problem is that the spurs are not athletic, and the thunder are built to exploit that. Only when TD, Manu, and the old folks retire could SA be rebuilt to match up better with the thunder. That said, I still think the spurs have a 50-50 shot to beat the thunder in a series, if it comes down to that.

[testies]

If instaed of having Splitter we had a big who had less defence but could score 10 points a game, we'd be absolutely a much worse team than now

[dallasmaverickslose]

But the point is that you guys just don't know basketball. Two games ago Splitter was high on the pick and roll defending Stephen fucking Curry succesfully. The man is versatile and just great on defence. Why the fuck does he need to score more than 8 points on offense? We have a very fluid offense with Parker, Leonard, Belinelli, Manu, Mills, Green, Duncan..

When he entered our starting line up it was the differece between getting abused by Memphis and getting to the WCF and Finals and almost winning

I hate to be arrogant, btu you guys are tactically dumb.. Our offense is far from our problem.. if we didn't have Splitter, we'd not even be close to top5 defence on NBA

Like I said he does a few nice things and has some strengths (like his defense).

Unfortunately, his scoring (or lack of) is his major liability to this team. The problem is that if Timmy isn't having a good scoring night you can almost guarantee that our bigs will not be providing any significant post scoring, which is a serious concern IMO. Every now and then Tiago will come up big with his scoring but overall it's inconsistent. And Timmy's not getting any younger. It sure would be nice if we could have a big that would take more of the scoring pressure off of Timmy. Sorry, I don't have the deepest takes in the world, but that's just how I see things with Tiago right now.

[testies]

That's what Diaw is for, if you didn't notice

[dallasmaverickslose]

That's what Diaw is for, if you didn't notice

That's nice. The problem is we drafted Tiago with some pretty high expectations and he was supposed to take on the job as a legitimate 2nd big. He hasn't quite been that.

[TXstbobcat]

The most we can really hope for from splitter is defense, rebounding, and a limited offense game.

[Hoops Czar]

Tiago never had an offensive game. He needs to be set up by the pass in order to be the least bit effective on offense. When he tries to create his own shot, he just looks like a damn fool. Put him out there with Green, and the Spurs are playing 3 v 5 on offense.

[dallasmaverickslose]

Tiago never had an offensive game. He needs to be set up by the pass in order to be the least bit effective on offense. When he tries to create his own shot, he just looks like a damn fool. Put him out there with Green, and the Spurs are playing 3 v 5 on offense.

Exactly.

[Brunodf]

True that, he only regressed since his 2nd season

[Johnny RIngo]

What is sad is that even defensively he's slightly above average it's just that most "bigs" are shitty at defense that Splitter looks good in comparison. The problem is that most "bigs" in this league have some kind of offense that makes up for their lack of defense and that's where they excel where Tiago doesn't. I'd love to have a big who actually could average 15 a game and make 7 rebounds and would contest shots. Sure his stats look good and his advanced stats look great on paper but overall he's an offensive liability who doesn't have any post game at all and is way to soft to ever learn one.

Yeah, his name is Tim Duncan. But seriously, there are only about 13 big men in the NBA that average 15/7. It's ridiculous to expect the Spurs to have two of them on the same team. Wolves have two and yet their interior defense is a mess since neither Love or Pekovic are good defenders.

Splitter's soft on offense. We all know this. But he's useful against most teams in the league when the PnR is clicking and his defense is almost always consistent. He's overpaid at 9 million but so are most of the bigs in the NBA.

[Tuddy]

He punished Channing Frye a few times in the post when they went to him the other day. Makes me more optimistic for the playoffs if other teams go small like Miami with Mike Miller at the 4 last year.

[BatManu20]

http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/2194/tiagosplitteryoumad.jpg

[Hoops Czar]

He punished Channing Frye a few times in the post when they went to him the other day. Makes me more optimistic for the playoffs if other teams go small like Miami with Mike Miller at the 4 last year.

Good defensive players should be licking their chops when they see Steven Adams checking in. They shouldn't be getting manhandled by third string bigs.

[HarlemHeat37]

Splitter is a below average overall offensive player, but he's one of the top 10 defensive big men in the NBA, tbh..

Most bigs in today's league are flawed, tbh, you live with their strengths..

The problem with Splitter is that it takes him a while to find his rhythm after returning from an injury, and exacerbating the issue this season is the ineffectiveness of the starting unit at generating efficient offense..Splitter's game is pick&roll, but it's difficult to space the floor when opposing defenses no longer respect Kawhi's outside shot, Green is struggling and Parker hasn't been nearly as effective as last year at penetrating, tbh..

[PingPong]

Splitter was used to play offense in a different way he plays now. Sometimes he is open and nobody pass the ball to him. He isn't the most skiled post player, and the Spurs system does't help him.

[Arc]

The problem with Splitter is that it takes him a while to find his rhythm after returning from an injury, and exacerbating the issue this season is the ineffectiveness of the starting unit at generating efficient offense..Splitter's game is pick&roll, but it's difficult to space the floor when opposing defenses no longer respect Kawhi's outside shot, Green is struggling and Parker hasn't been nearly as effective as last year at penetrating, tbh..

this.

pop should consider replacing green with belinelli in the starting line up. leonard isn't aggressive enough right now, and green is struggling offensively. when you add in splitter, you have a starting line up with guys who are only good defensively. that's why the bench always has to dig them out of a hole. beli should be getting more minutes, that dude is on fire right now.

[LakerHater]

Tiago off court (24 min): OKC shot 59.5%, SA had 35.9 reb% (62 DReb%)
Tiago on court (24 min): OKC shot 39.1%, SA had 50 reb% (83.3 Dreb%)


Spurs D this season Splitter on bench: 102.1 DRtg.
Spurs D this season Splitter on court: 89.1 DRtg.

[Robz4000]

Pop needs to stop letting teams force them into smallball when it isn't needed tbh.

[objective]

Splitter has had major issues scoring since coming back from the calf injury. He's shooting 37% since he came back and is especially bad scoring with his junky post game, and I think it must be the calf because he had some nice games earlier in the year.

And the leg problem was lingering, it bothered him before he missed the 5 games.

Check his splits:

OCT/NOV - 59.8 FG%
DEC - 41.7 %

That's huge; pick and rolls aside, he's just not hitting the shots he gets.

Hopefully the leg issue won't linger and he'll return to normal.

Benching him for long stretches as Pop does isn't good for the team if Splitter is healthy enough to play.

[Juggity]

Tiago off court (24 min): OKC shot 59.5%, SA had 35.9 reb% (62 DReb%)
Tiago on court (24 min): OKC shot 39.1%, SA had 50 reb% (83.3 Dreb%)


Spurs D this season Splitter on bench: 102.1 DRtg.
Spurs D this season Splitter on court: 89.1 DRtg.



^Pretty much the clearest evidence imaginable of Splitter's defensive impact.

[Baam]

Stop fapping on Splitter advanced Stats, he can't stay on the floor since he's so weak on offense, he can be taken out of a game at will by the opposite coach basically, he's not the answer, relying so much on him is more of a problem actually, see his advanced stats in the Finals...

[Hoops Czar]

Splitter's offense leads to bad defense because most of his shots or moves in the paint turn to turnovers and fast breaks in the other direction.

[szkorhetz]

Nobody is expecting him to be the admiral, but is it much to ask him to finish more aggressively in the post or work with chip on his jumper? Meanwhile you have serge ibaka working on those shots as well as 3s. Nobody is asking him to be d rob but his improvements have made the thunder a much more difficult matchup
Tiago had that jumpshot in Europe, but it was destroyed in his first year.

[r0drig0lac]

he is the last of the problems ... want to use it as a scapegoat so will hide the reality for those who do not want to understand the real problems

[PingPong]

When you have an old fart with his stupid military mind as a coach imposing how you have to play instead of using your strenghts surely you will struggle. That's the COY system. It's Works with scrubs like Green and Neal, but not with everyone.

[james evans]

If you expected him to come in and replicate the twin towers era, you were expecting too much. Splitter isn't David Robinson. David Robinson is one of the top 25 players in the history of the NBA.

However, splitter's defensive skillset has turned the spurs into a defensive powerhouse again — long after the defense-first mentality of the championship years had been abandoned and the spurs written off as contender. That alone makes him a key cog on the team
he isn't even david robinson in 2003. that's an understatement. he's azz with decent defense. someone needs to tell him how big he is and that he should stop going up like a pussy under the rim.

[Darius McCrary]

Its a complete myth that Green is struggling offensively, yall are such sheep.

Every good team we play, they take him out bc its very obvious by now that's the key to shutting down the Spurs offense.
But he's doing normal Danny green things against every other team in those wins we have.

Its not his fault that really good teams know how tobreak Pop's system.
I'm do r sick of hearing talk about Danny Green struggling, its total BS

[Raven]

Splitter is very skilled offensively, he has problems with the fact that he gets the ball too close to the basket, so he can go to the rim without even putting the ball down, the consequence is that he jumps without momentum that's why he often gets blocked. More of a system problem than his actual flaw imho.

[Baam]

Splitter is very skilled offensively, he has problems with the fact that he gets the ball too close to the basket, so he can go to the rim without even putting the ball down, the consequence is that he jumps without momentum that's why he often gets blocked. More of a system problem than his actual flaw imho.

:lol:rollin

[PingPong]

I think his skills are getting open, since he hasn't strengh or post move enough to face defenders. You can't throw him the ball as the last resource when the whole defense is set aound the paint. Simply like that.

[Kabals]

Average rebounder
Can't even post up a point guard and even get blocked by them
Get blocked way too much on easy dunk/layup
Can't make jumpshot

Sure he is a great rim protector and above average pick'n'roll defender and he would be great for the Spurs if Duncan wasn't playing but instead he is useless because of small ball play and we are paying him 10M a year for 20 min per game.

[TheGoldStandard]

The guy has had 4 years to learn post moves and simply can't do anything outside of a sweeping hook. The guy doesn't know how to spin off his opposite shoulder for a hook or an up and under. When you're big takes a power step and wants to lay it up rather than go hard that's also another problem. His offense is limited, his spacing offensively is horrible and is only effective in pick n roll situations sometimes. It is true that few big men in the league can average 15 and 7 consistently but Tiago gets those opportunities in pick n roll and put backs but doesn't take advantage of those opportunities. He gets intimidated easily and will pass or go for a weak finesse move that misses. Defensively our rebounding goes up because most of his counterparts are taking jump shots and not penetrating, that's smart basketball plus OKC is a jump shooting team, theyre not going to out physical anyone. So our defensive stats go up but what are the offensive stats with Tiago on the floor? With small lineups being the majority of the teams we potentially will be facing in the playoffs it means a lot of small ball lineups which means Tiago on the bench because he's a liability on offense.

Danny green is garbage this year, hasn't learned anything new in his years as a pro, has no other offense beside jacking up a three. His defense is also hit or miss, we can't use the magic rock theory to defend Durants numbers. That is to say we can't say I have a magic rock that keeps tigers away, look around do you see any tigers? I guess the rock works. Just because Durant didn't torch us for 40 doesn't mean Danny Green is responsible for that, Durant is ecenomical and doesn't force shots, plus OKC feeds the hot hand something the spurs fail to do.

There are adjustments that need to be made and they are glaring against the elite teams.

[PlayNando]

The Hero continually puts Tiago in awful positions tbh...

[heyheymymy]

If you expected him to come in and replicate the twin towers era, you were expecting too much. Splitter isn't David Robinson. David Robinson is one of the top 25 players in the history of the NBA.

However, splitter's defensive skillset has turned the spurs into a defensive powerhouse again — long after the defense-first mentality of the championship years had been abandoned and the spurs written off as contender. That alone makes him a key cog on the team

juggity with the family size goods. I'm pretty disappointed waiting for tiago to turn that corner, but he's made great strides and has crucial defensive prowess. I recall late in the past 2 regular seasons he was able to shoulder the offensive load with big games, and he improved his FT shooting in one offseason to the point where it's a non-issue now, when before he was getting hack-a-splitter'd it was so bad.

He's making slow and steady progress ever since he's been a Spur, and right now he is probably coasting/still getting into shape and rythmn/saving it in the tank for april, may and june.

[TheGoldStandard]

juggity with the family size goods. I'm pretty disappointed waiting for tiago to turn that corner, but he's made great strides and has crucial defensive prowess. I recall late in the past 2 regular seasons he was able to shoulder the offensive load with big games, and he improved his FT shooting in one offseason to the point where it's a non-issue now, when before he was getting hack-a-splitter'd it was so bad.


He's making slow and steady progress ever since he's been a Spur, and right now he is probably coasting/still getting into shape and rythmn/saving it in the tank for april, may and june.

Offensively Tiago can't and shouldnt coast given how limited he is offensively. He has Tim Duncan at his disposal and yet has not developed any post moves outside of that god awful sweeping hook. No pivot step, no left hand hook, no strong move to the basket.

[dunkman]

He's quite good with the P&R on offense. Tiago sets excellent picks, cuts quickly to the basket and is a good finisher. His other offensive skills are limited, though. It's up to Pop to use his skills correctly, but Pop has figured out that can get more efficient offensive production elsewhere.

[TheGoldStandard]

He's quite good with the P&R on offense. Tiago sets excellent picks, cuts quickly to the basket and is a good finisher. His other offensive skills are limited, though. It's up to Pop to use his skills correctly, but Pop has figured out that can get more efficient offensive production elsewhere.

Was with you until you said he was a good finisher.. rest is a bad take. Tiago is not a consistent finisher or he'd average better scoring numbers.

[james evans]

Offensively Tiago can't and shouldnt coast given how limited he is offensively. He has Tim Duncan at his disposal and yet has not developed any post moves outside of that god awful sweeping hook. No pivot step, no left hand hook, no strong move to the basket.
i have no idea what goes on in a spurs practice. splitter can't dunk the fukin ball with a man standing within 2 feet of him, danny green can't pump fake and go around his defender to pull up for a jumper, and every time someone says "boo" at matt bonner, he panicks and puts the ball on the floor instead of shoots it. this shit has been going on for a while. this is nothing new. wtf is practice for if you aren't developing?

[itzsoweezee]

Tiago is the Spurs' best defensive player this year. He's gotta score though if the Spurs want to get open looks from the perimeter.

[ThaBigFundamental21]

Splitter has his moments. Bet lets be honest, he is far inferior to the player everyone was expecting. He just isn't that good. He is a career backup starting for the Spurs. I don't care what anyone counters. Splitter is not good enough to start in the NBA. He is starting due to a need or a deficiency. However you want to slice it.

[TD 21]

this.

pop should consider replacing green with belinelli in the starting line up. leonard isn't aggressive enough right now, and green is struggling offensively. when you add in splitter, you have a starting line up with guys who are only good defensively. that's why the bench always has to dig them out of a hole. beli should be getting more minutes, that dude is on fire right now.

Replacing one knockdown shooter with another, at the same position, wouldn't change anything. What they need to do is replace Diaw with Splitter and Ayres with Bonner. Playing big only makes sense if it limits elite offensive teams defensively. Suffice it to say, it's failed miserably in that regard and it hurts their own offense.

As for Splitter, other than his one fluke performance against the Thunder last season, he goes fetal every time against the Thunder/Heat and the front line is not good enough to get away with him doing so. This is precisely why I still think they need to explore trading him.

[Skull-1]

The Hero continually puts Tiago in awful positions tbh...


I am agreeing with you and NoLyfeScrub the past few days. Hell is freezing over I think...

[TheGoldStandard]

The Hero continually puts Tiago in awful positions tbh...

Yeah I mean he's the one telling Tiago to shoot those shifty sweeping hooks or go up soft against bigs looking to block him. This whole time I thought it was Tiago being peaked offensively and being inept at scoring.

[dallasmaverickslose]

Yeah I mean he's the one telling Tiago to shoot those shifty sweeping hooks or go up soft against bigs looking to block him. This whole time I thought it was Tiago being peaked offensively and being inept at scoring.

his post moves suck tbh

[Johnny RIngo]

Average rebounder


17.5% total rebound percentage means he's a pretty fucking good rebounder actually. Best offensive rebounder on our team too.

[$pursDynasty]

i have no idea what goes on in a spurs practice. splitter can't dunk the fukin ball with a man standing within 2 feet of him, danny green can't pump fake and go around his defender to pull up for a jumper, and every time someone says "boo" at matt bonner, he panicks and puts the ball on the floor instead of shoots it. this shit has been going on for a while. this is nothing new. wtf is practice for if you aren't developing?

I couldn't agree more, you can it me with all the stats you want, +/- and the rest but Tiago is not that good. The Spurs need a big to help defensively and Splitter does do that but would the Spurs not be even better with a Favors, Javell M, DeAndre Jordan, Tyson Chandler or Ibaka. Spurs offense doesn't really need points from Splitter and his P&R defense is good but he isn't a shot blocker. If he were more of that I might be able to overlook his scoring softness. Besides the players I mentioned I can probably name 5 more that would be more effective than Tiago.

[PlayNando]

17.5% total rebound percentage means he's a pretty fucking good rebounder actually. Best offensive rebounder on our team too.
:tu Truth.

Tiago haters need to shut it because they only speak on lies, tbh!

[PlayNando]

It's unbelievable how much more hate the White Man gets on these forums, tbh. The racist haters really come out for them.

[james evans]

and to think splitter was the best player(mvp) in his leauge before coming to the nba. i can imagine what kind of talent is in that league.damn..

[rmt]

Don't know what the big deal is - Splitter is known to take a while to get his rhythm back off injury. It's the same as Manu (I'd say Manu is even worse coming back from injury). The problem with OKC was not Splitter. It's the same as the first game when Reggie Jackson kills whoever's guarding him. Spurs have difficulty defending speedy perimeter players - or should I just say any perimeter players (see Curry/Thompson vs GSW in the playoffs). When a bench player like Reggie Jackson kills you and Durant doesn't even have to make any effort, OKC is a bad match-up and Spurs will not get by them in a 7 game series (especially if Ibaka keeps hitting 3s or any outside shot).

[Chomag]

There is no doubt he has a load of talent but he is One of the softest bigs around the Basket that I think I have ever seen.

Seriously I dont think I have ever seen a 7 footer get blocked at the rim as much as he does.

[TampaDude]

he isn't even david robinson in 2003. that's an understatement. he's azz with decent defense. someone needs to tell him how big he is and that he should stop going up like a pussy under the rim.

^ this

There's no comparison, really. Splitter is a pretty good big. DRob was a monster.

[Genjuro]

and to think splitter was the best player(mvp) in his leauge before coming to the nba. i can imagine what kind of talent is in that league.damn..

Not that much anymore, tbh. The best players keep going to the NBA at an increasingly younger age, and there has been a huge economic crisis in Spain since 2008, so the league has gotten significantly worse. But here's a list of previous MVPs:

2010: Tiago Splitter
2009: Felipe Reyes
2008: Marc Gasol
2007: Luis Scola
2006: Juan Carlos Navarro
2005: Luis Scola
2004: Andrés Nocioni

Splitter looked great that last season in Spain. It took him years, but he was finally the go-to player in his team, and he was finally a consistent low-post threat. In the NBA is harder for him because opponents are bigger and more athletic, of course, but also because it's easier to strip the ball without getting a call, since the hands are considered part of the ball, and Splitter has very weak hands.

You all know he's a guy who badly needs rythm to be offensively decent. He always struggles off an injury, and it takes him long to recover his previous level. So you can't evaluate him just for what he's been doing these days.

[Capt Bringdown]

I doubt he'll ever live down getting stuffed by LeBron in the finals. I saw it in an NBA promo the other day.
Like Craig Ehlo, he'll be seeing that film clip for the rest of his life.

[DMC]

Splitter is an awkward kid who grew faster than he could teach his muscles to move. He's that way now. He's got some good moves, sets good picks if the ball handler would wait for him to get planted (and if he'd stay that way) but he's a decent 2nd big at best. The Spurs have him in a primary role that requires disguising his flaws the same way they disguised Blair's, only not at pronounced as Blair's.

Spurs fans are spoiled with Tim being a big with the agility and footwork of a guard. There hasn't been many of those guys in the history of humanity, much less the NBA. Splitter is above average for bigs in the NBA though.

[DMC]

I doubt he'll ever live down getting stuffed by LeBron in the finals. I saw it in an NBA promo the other day.
Like Craig Ehlo, he'll be seeing that film clip for the rest of his life.

If Lebron didn't get him, he's sticking the front of the rim anyhow because he has a tendency of taking off too early and he did that against Lebron as well. It was a desperation attempt, or a fake attack so to speak. No way Splitter finishes that even without Lebron there. Lebron just saved him from looking like a real idiot. A lot of people have been blocked at the rim, even Timmy by Amare some years back.

[ElNono]

Still needs to finish better around the rim, IMO

[dallasmaverickslose]

At least he can hit his free throws............