DeJuan Blair - Odd Man Out

[Mugen]

-He hasn't been the same player since going to the bench. He's shown flashes of what hes capable of since but there have just been too many missed rotations and blown layups to justify Blair getting heavy minutes in the playoffs over Tiago....DeJuan is pretty much screwed as soon as he misses the steal and his man gets the entry pass.

-Yes, Bonner by comparison is an inferior defender/rebounder but IF he does not choke in the playoffs like he always does then he can provide a different dimension that TD/Dice/Tiago are unable to: 3pt shooting. Also let's face it, Pop wouldnt bench Bonner even if a prime Admiral walked into the locker room...

-I just don't see DeJuan matching up well with any potential playoff opponents, especially the Lakers. His greatest skill is offensive rebounding and that skill greatly diminishes when hes going up against legit rebounding 7 footers.

-Tiago has shown that his rebounding has vastly improved from the start of the season and that hes already a far superior defender. I'm a big Blair fan but i just dont think these playoffs are for him.

I strongly believe Tiago should be given DeJuan's minutes when the playoffs start. I don't think Pop will do it but the Blair/Bonner disaster shows that an adjustment has to be made....I just hope Pop realizes this before it's too late....wishful thinking most likely

[TD 21]

I agree. I've been underwhelmed with him for much of the season. As much as this team needs someone like him, they don't. They need his young legs, athleticism, rebounding, energy and overall toughness in the paint. But they also need someone bigger, who has a defensive presence and who has a semblance of range.

That's the biggest problem with this team, is the fact that their bigs, while all useful individually, aren't great fits together. Duncan-McDyess are a good pairing (Duncan-Splitter might be, but we've only seen that for about 2 seconds this season, so who knows), but other than that, none of the others are a natural fit for one another.

It's why, if they can't win the championship this season, they should consider trading Blair, McDyess' expiring contract (if he is in fact retiring) and if they have to, either Anderson or their 1st and attempting to pry loose a young big, who's had some success in the league, but has fallen out of favor on his current team and could be had for below market value because their team is desperate to dump their contract. Guys like Biedrins and Blatche spring to mind. Not that I could see the Spurs trading for either, but players of that ilk.

Particularly if Splitter is going to start next season, which would leave Blair to again primarily play next to Bonner. Also, because of his lack of anterior cruciate ligaments, he's not likely to have a long career. I wouldn't necessarily shop him per se, but if the right player is available and attainable at a reasonable cost, then they should trade him.

As far as this season, I've been saying from the start that Blair should be the odd man out. Ultimately, if Bonner falters (considering his history, he should be on a short leash), then they should turn to Blair. Splitter needs to play and unfortunately, I can't see Splitter and Blair being compatible.

But against the Lakers, all five should be utilized. Splitter should be the first big off the bench and Bonner should play some three, so as to allow the Spurs to have more size without sacrificing shooting. Although, it would change the dynamics. If Bonner is playing three, then even if he's shooting well, he wouldn't be pulling Gasol/Odom away from the basket, because they wouldn't be guarding him. But it's still worth a shot in stretches. I'm not concerned with Artest or Barnes exploiting Bonner off the bounce consistently, but if the Lakers want to emphasize that match-up, let them. It takes the ball out of their four best players hands.

[itzsoweezee]

LMAO @ Bonner apologists.

[ElNono]

I love DeJuan, but he literally has no offense or defense. The offense is excusable because we already have guys to run plays for and that need the ball in their hands, and against certain matchups he can be a scrappy guy that gets points off putbacks or offensive boards. But the lack of defense we really can't afford.

Going into the season, I was hoping he would be able to use his superior sense of rebounding on the defensive end, but his lack of size looks insurmountable against certain teams. And if he's not grabbing boards, then he's not really useful out there.

[Capt Bringdown]

Trying to turn a player with Blair's limitations into a starting center is Pop's most bizarre experiment, worse even than the Bogan as centerpiece fiasco of last year.
This effort was not harmful in the regular season, but in the playoffs this cute trick will not help us AT ALL.

[TD 21]

But he's undersized, noticeably plays hard and doesn't look out of place, so he's absolved from criticism.

I'm not saying Bonner should be. As I said in the Bonner thread, I've ripped him relentlessly over the years and a month from now, I may very well be doing it again. But I'm not going to rip him over an extended shooting slump, which was inevitable the way he was shooting the ball this season. And I'm not going to act as if it's automatically foreshadowing. I'm going to give him time, as I do with all established players, to break out of his slump and I'm going to give him 2-3 playoff games.

I like Blair more than Bonner. I know it might sound like, based on some of my posts, I'm not a fan. But that's not true. It's just about what I think is best for the team fit-wise as far as the playoffs and being able to win a championship goes.

[HighLowLobForBig-50]

good take. i agree , he hasnt been the same. to say that its because he went to the bench makes sense, but tbh i have only been really worried for the last 3 or 4 games. pops gotta give him his minutes in the playoffs though, so i see tiago sitting out this year

[barbacoataco]

The last couple of games Blair has looked totally out of it to me. Bonner gets a lot of hate but I don't see that Blair is any better on defense. In the Denver game you could see that Splitter at least clogged up the lane and made it a little harder to drive to the basket. When Blair and Bonner were on the court together it was like no one was even trying to defend the interior. Spurs need to have at least one of Duncan-McDyess or Splitter on the court at all times, and two of them at a time against some teams. The only way that will happen is if Splitter replaces Blair or Bonner.

[Man In Black]

I would prefer he started still. I only have a problem with Blair's game when he RUSHES a play. Sometimes, it's actually smarter to just get the offensive rebound and throw it out to a guard, but more often then not, he wants to go back up. It's fine if he's got a clean look but today's young athlete, raised on the letter, wants to make a play of the day. Wes Unseld had the same size limitations but he was eons ahead of DeJuan. I had hoped that DeJuan would lock himself in a room and just watch film of players his size who have fulfilled the undersized post player position perfectly. I've seen glimpses but...since the benching, I've seen more back slippage. He's got to play SMARTER.

[Cane]

Duncan ( 37.3) and Dice (24.7) combined for 62 minutes per game in the last playoffs. That leaves 34 minutes for their subs although it seems likely that Duncan and Dice might play even more minutes against the Lakers. In the last playoffs, Bonner averaged over 17 mins and Blair and Ian each averaged around 9.

I expect Bonner, Blair, and Splitter to be struggling with foul trouble in the playoffs so they should all be seeing minutes anyway. Splitter still needs to get in game shape in order to really log heavy minutes and he still gets pushed around in the post way too easily but he does have great positioning and help defense. He is specifically awesome at taking charges and sacrificing his body however that also relies on veteran officials to make a call for a rookie in the playoffs against the defending champ stars which is risky but we'll take it. Unfortunately it also seems likely that his lack of experience with the Spurs and the NBA will show up for the worst since even veterans can be exploited.

Blair can bring in a lot of great energy, much needed rebounding and hustle points. His defense relies a lot on his quick hands and length but he's also surprisingly quick laterally. He was surprisingly effective in the two earlier games against the Lakers and had his moments throughout the season. However teams are just going to attack him especially if he's out there with Bonner. Imo Blair needs to develop a consistent jumpshot if he wants to be a starter and Tiago needs to refine a lot of his post moves and work on his shot as well. Both players need Ginobili/Parker to really be effective and make the opponent work on defense. Neal and Hill don't compare to those guys when it comes to overall court vision especially Hill imo. When McDyess retires it'll free up a starter position and Duncan will probably average fewer minutes next season so thats more time for the young bigs.

When it comes to Bonner he's got the most NBA experience of the subs and seems to always be a huge +/- guy. He's still a respectable floor spacer and seems to have only improved but I could live with him averaging fewer than 17 mins.

[chazley]

The fact is, Blair plays his best when he's with McDyess or Duncan. He sucks playing with Bonner because he's undersized and he's competing against two bigs for every rebound because Bonner's rebounding is so bad. When Blair isn't rebounding, he looks lost. When he's able to play PF, he looks much better.

[greyforest]

Blair and Bonner have always been defensive liabilities. DeJuan is at least good at boards, but both are notably crappy defenders for various reasons. They are really potent on the offensive end, which is why they are valuable.

[Fireball]

here is hope that Pop at least tries a different rotation where Bonner and Blair do not have extended minutes together in this stretch run to keep the #1 seed

[boutons_deux]

"They are really potent on the offensive end"

Bonner is shooting 22% 3G in the last 9 games.

[Capt Bringdown]

"They are really potent on the offensive end"

Bonner is shooting 22% 3G in the last 9 games.

Obviously the pressure's mounting...the annual collapse of Pop's favorite son?
Let's not be hasty, it's going to be different this year (rimshot).

[greyforest]

"They are really potent on the offensive end"

Bonner is shooting 22% 3G in the last 9 games.

and is still the NBA's best 3pt shooter this season

http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/pl.../stat/3-points

it is time for his annual nosedive though.

[Spurs7794]

Blair makes a couple hustle plays but he forces up atleast one bad shot, or one stupid spin move which gets him nowhere but out of control, or tries that re ed in and out dribble which always trickles out of bounds. I think he should be the 5th big.

Now if Bonner struggles in the playoffs, then I think Blair should play.

Of course this all hinges on Pop getting his head out of his ass and realizing that Tiago needs to play in these playoffs.

[Mugen]

BUMP, because this guy is flat out horrible right now.

Start TD/Dice and bring in Splitter/Choker off the bench, Pop. Blair has to be out by the playoffs.

[alchemist]

Blair is terrible right now, he's getting minutes so it's strange that he's not taking advantage of them. The hustle that he showed last year is not there anymore, is it by design from the coaching staff? I doubt it, the kid has shown that he can be very effective offensivley, we need that back.

[Mugen]

Blair is terrible right now, he's getting minutes so it's strange that he's not taking advantage of them. The hustle that he showed last year is not there anymore, is it by design from the coaching staff? I doubt it, the kid has shown that he can be very effective offensivley, we need that back.

i think that move to the bench really affected him. he has zero confidence right now.

he's playing like he was at the start of the season and the spurs simply can't afford to wait for him to get used to this bench role.

[Mel_13]

TD/Dice
Splitter/Bonner

That should be what we get once TD returns.

[weebo]

Blair needs to be the guy that comes in and causes havoc for the other team. In other words, play aggressively with fire shooting out his ass.

[DesignatedT]

Splitter has shown he can bring the same type of rebounding that Dejuan can and is miles better defensively with his size. Not sure what Dejuan brings except a little more corporate knowledge and better hands offensively.

[Rummpd]

tonight Splitter again >> Blair and Dice is 90% of time, Blair has also looked better at times, it is Bonner and Blair together that kills SAS time and time again.