Current Lineup

[Holt's Cat]

Starters
1 Parker
2 Ginobili
3 Bowen
4 Duncan
5 Oberto

Bench
1 Stoudamire
1 Vaughn
2/3 Finley
2/3 Udoka
4 Horry
4 Bonner
4/5 Thomas

The Thomas trade added some balance to the frontcourt rotation, something which needed to be done with Horry not fully integrated back into the rotation and Elson not showing any improvement in his second season with the Spurs. Anyways, here's a quick rundown by position.

1 - Obviously, Parker's health is a concern. It's good that there doesn't seem to be much pressure to rush him back. With Vaughn and new acquisition Damon Stoudamire the Spurs can wait a little for TP to heal. I like Vaughn, I truly do, but sometimes he can be a little shaky. But he plays hard and focused. His jumper makes one nervous. Stoudamire definitely has an opportunity to get some minutes and take some shots if he can bring more consistent play. If so, the Spurs will have their best backup 1 in a while. Overall, this is the deepest the Spurs have been at point in quite a while.

2 - Manu. Manu. Manu. Save some of that for May and June. I think right now you have to be comfortable with him and Finley. Hopefully Manu's minutes can be curtailed with Parker's return to rest him a little for the postseason. The Spurs have lost some depth and flexibility here and at the 3 with Barry's exit.

3 - I think the Spurs are fine here. Some are starting to think about reaching for the panic button with respect to Bruce, but he'll be fine come the second season. I'd much rather he not overly exert himself right now. The Ime Udoka acquisition looks better and better. He does look capable of being the small ball 4. Consistency would be nice. But he's on the right track.

4 - Keeping on keeping on. Another season for Tim Duncan. His FG% is down slightly from last season, but his FT% is up 6% to 70%. His rebounding is up, his blocks are down, but so are his TOs. Horry started this season in street clothes and really hasn't found consistent playing time until the last 10 or so games. Of course, it's February. New acquisition Kurt Thomas should help to make this the best position for the Spurs (helped in no small part by the aforementioned Duncan). Thomas should help on the glass, on defense, and provide a little better spacing on offense. With TD seeing half of the game at the 5 it is important that the Spurs have a quality reserve big to play the 4. Matt Bonner was not able to establish himself in the rotation earlier this season.

5 - This position had deteriorated to its worst since DRob left. That includes Radoslav, so that's saying something. Oberto is enjoying his finest season as a Spur, at least statistically, but still plays half a game. The two headed monster that was enough to win it all last season faded during the 1st half this season, primarily due to Elson, who unfortunately regressed after his first season with the Spurs. At least last year Pop could go with one or the other on most nights for half of the game and give TD the other half, before the postseason. Now with Thomas, the bigman rotation is solidified and Pop has some flexibility. Rebounding and toughness have been added. Some new wrinkles will be added on offense.


It will be interesting to see how this season shakes out for the Spurs. They aren't where they were last season, when they were among the league leaders in offensive and defensive field goal percentage. But there are signs that they are slowly rounding into post-season form. In an ultra-compe ive Western Conference that has seen some interesting player movement over the last month, it will be imperative that the Spurs tighten things up and settle into executing at both ends of the floor. That starts obviously with getting Parker back and getting a rotation set for the post-season. If Barry is indeed bought out by the Sonics, it would be nice to have him back for depth and experience (if healthy). Right now many claim that the West is wide open, perhaps it is. The Spurs have again been relegated to also-ran status by the same pundits who placed them there last year and in championship years prior. However, the Spurs don't play for the pundits but rather for rings.

[Sense]

I'd make Thomas a starter and put the other Argie off the bench.

[z0sa]

I'd make Thomas a starter and put the other Argie off the bench.

He needs time to learn the system ... Thomas' work ethic and toughness on both ends of the court have been exhibited at times throughout his career, so I'm hoping he catches it soon enough to make the spurs better come playoff time.

[Sense]

He needs time to learn the system ... Thomas' work ethic and toughness on both ends of the court have been exhibited at times throughout his career, so I'm hoping he catches it soon enough to make the spurs better come playoff time.

Of course I don't mean tomorrow he should be a starter.. but I really doubt that Thomas will need as much time as other players needed for the simple fact that he's an established defender as it is and he seems to know how to play half court basketball...

He's just the ideal player that the Spurs needed to complete their defensive structure.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Starters
1 Parker
2 Ginobili
3 Bowen
4 Duncan
5 Oberto

Bench
1 Stoudamire
1 Vaughn
2/3 Finley
2/3 Udoka
4 Horry
4 Bonner
4/5 Thomas

The Thomas trade added some balance to the frontcourt rotation, something which needed to be done with Horry not fully integrated back into the rotation and Elson not showing any improvement in his second season with the Spurs. Anyways, here's a quick rundown by position.

1 - Obviously, Parker's health is a concern. It's good that there doesn't seem to be much pressure to rush him back. With Vaughn and new acquisition Damon Stoudamire the Spurs can wait a little for TP to heal. I like Vaughn, I truly do, but sometimes he can be a little shaky. But he plays hard and focused. His jumper makes one nervous. Stoudamire definitely has an opportunity to get some minutes and take some shots if he can bring more consistent play. If so, the Spurs will have their best backup 1 in a while. Overall, this is the deepest the Spurs have been at point in quite a while.

2 - Manu. Manu. Manu. Save some of that for May and June. I think right now you have to be comfortable with him and Finley. Hopefully Manu's minutes can be curtailed with Parker's return to rest him a little for the postseason. The Spurs have lost some depth and flexibility here and at the 3 with Barry's exit.

3 - I think the Spurs are fine here. Some are starting to think about reaching for the panic button with respect to Bruce, but he'll be fine come the second season. I'd much rather he not overly exert himself right now. The Ime Udoka acquisition looks better and better. He does look capable of being the small ball 4. Consistency would be nice. But he's on the right track.

4 - Keeping on keeping on. Another season for Tim Duncan. His FG% is down slightly from last season, but his FT% is up 6% to 70%. His rebounding is up, his blocks are down, but so are his TOs. Horry started this season in street clothes and really hasn't found consistent playing time until the last 10 or so games. Of course, it's February. New acquisition Kurt Thomas should help to make this the best position for the Spurs (helped in no small part by the aforementioned Duncan). Thomas should help on the glass, on defense, and provide a little better spacing on offense. With TD seeing half of the game at the 5 it is important that the Spurs have a quality reserve big to play the 4. Matt Bonner was not able to establish himself in the rotation earlier this season.

5 - This position had deteriorated to its worst since DRob left. That includes Radoslav, so that's saying something. Oberto is enjoying his finest season as a Spur, at least statistically, but still plays half a game. The two headed monster that was enough to win it all last season faded during the 1st half this season, primarily due to Elson, who unfortunately regressed after his first season with the Spurs. At least last year Pop could go with one or the other on most nights for half of the game and give TD the other half, before the postseason. Now with Thomas, the bigman rotation is solidified and Pop has some flexibility. Rebounding and toughness have been added. Some new wrinkles will be added on offense.


It will be interesting to see how this season shakes out for the Spurs. They aren't where they were last season, when they were among the league leaders in offensive and defensive field goal percentage. But there are signs that they are slowly rounding into post-season form. In an ultra-compe ive Western Conference that has seen some interesting player movement over the last month, it will be imperative that the Spurs tighten things up and settle into executing at both ends of the floor. That starts obviously with getting Parker back and getting a rotation set for the post-season. If Barry is indeed bought out by the Sonics, it would be nice to have him back for depth and experience (if healthy). Right now many claim that the West is wide open, perhaps it is. The Spurs have again been relegated to also-ran status by the same pundits who placed them there last year and in championship years prior. However, the Spurs don't play for the pundits but rather for rings.

Well said, sir.

I also wouldn't be surprised if Finley and Thomas start and the Argentines move to the bench. Whatever works, Pop will know soon enough.

[timvp]

Nice breakdown. The only glaring hole in the roster right now is the lack of a quality fifth swingman. The Spurs need that fifth wing just in case something happens to one of their older players on the perimeter.

Starters
1 Parker
2 Ginobili
3 Bowen
4 Duncan
5 Oberto

Bench
1 Stoudamire
1 Vaughn
2/3 Finley
2/3 Udoka
4 Horry
4 Bonner
4/5 Thomas

After looking at that, one option would be to buy Stoudamire some minutes at shooting guard. It sounds crazy because he's short but if he could, the roster would be set. And a couple years ago during the '04-05 season, Stoudamire started a majority of the games at shooting guard when he was playing next to Van Exel in Portland. Perhaps Pop can try out a Stoudamire/Parker backcourt to see if it can survive defensively.

If Stoudamire can't play shooting guard, the Spurs need to bring someone in. I like Udoka but I'd feel more confident if the Spurs had a fifth wing with a consistent jumper. If Barry were to return, that'd be perhaps the best option.

The bigman positions are no longer a weak spot for the Spurs. Oberto, Thomas, Horry and Bonner next to Duncan is nice. Pop can now mix and match until he finds the two that are playing the best and set the rotation.

My only lingering concern at the moment is the health of Parker. If Parker can't come back at 90% at the very least, the Spurs likely can't win a championship. The next couple weeks are vital to see whether Parker is healthy or whether this injury will hurt him for the rest of the season.

Everywhere else now the Spurs are strong. Just add a fifth wing and the Spurs are set. If that wing turns out to be Stoudamire, the Spurs don't even need to do that.

[polandprzem]

So we've nobody who can provaide any offense of the bench.
Nobody.

The trade was much like a panic move for what LA did...

[TDMVPDPOY]

dont the spurs have a free roster spot?

sign some cheap ass for under 2m.....

[anakha]

So we've nobody who can provaide any offense of the bench.
Nobody.

The trade was much like a panic move for what LA did...

I'd say Ginobili will be the super-sub again come playoff time.

[polandprzem]

I'd say Ginobili will be the super-sub again come playoff time.

So we have punch of the bench and losing the best offensive player from the starting 5.

Prepare for spurs ad. 2001

[anakha]

So we have punch of the bench and losing the best offensive player from the starting 5.

Prepare for spurs ad. 2001

I'm a little confused here.

I assume the starting five in the playoffs will be the same as last year:

Parker - Finley - Bowen - Duncan - Oberto

With the main bench players being:

Stoudamire/Vaughn - Ginobili - Udoka - Horry - Thomas

While there might be a little downgrade in offensive production off the bench compared to last year, I honestly don't see where a reaction as extreme as yours is warranted.

After all, Ginobili came off the bench last year as well. And that was pretty successful, IIRC.

[polandprzem]

Well I was emotional about 2001 stagnat offense.

Ginobili will have to go out of the bench, cause if not the spurs easily would be destroyed in 2nd Q and at the begining of a 4th.

I was ing about spurs lacking of defense at the froncourt and rebounding at the froncourt positions. I was doing it almost all the time. Now we have Thomas and I can STFU.
But losing Barry is too much for spurs offense. He provided great ball movenment which spurs are extreamly lacking, and he could also hit the outside shot.
I wonder how much spurs right now will change the offense because of this trade. Cause Udoka is so much diferent player that some changes must to be made.

Other then that Udoka must to step up, Tony must be 100%, Gino must be Gino ad.2005 that means he must stay consistent what he was doing good this year, Bowen must start draining those treys he used to and Finley got to step up in a shooting matter. He had ups and downs. In the playoffs we need only ups.
I'm concerned, cause the thing the spurs don't want is a 4-down "looking at Tim" strategy. Lack of beaing able to run best transitions in NBA.

So, yea many things have to go right for the spurs to be succesfull this year.

[anakha]

many things have to go right for the spurs to be succesfull this year.

You could actually argue that this has always been the case for those championship years.

Who knows what could have happened if Horry had made that game winning shot for the Lakers the 2003 playoffs against the Spurs?

Who knows what could have happened if Horry had not made that game winning shot for the Spurs in the 2005 finals?

Who knows what could have happened if Dallas had not met its worst possible matchup in the first round last year?

A little luck is always needed to win a championship. It comes with the territory.

[polandprzem]

You are talking about luck.

I'm talking about lineups, possibilieties, strategy, streanghts and weaknesses on basketball areas.


Now I'm gonna get some dvd's, got to burn sthn'

[Bruno]

Spurs needs an extra swingman.
Spurs plays a lot of small ball this year.
Kurt Thomas won't really help Spurs to play less small ball because he is slow.
Spurs PG are midgets, a 2 PG lineup will have a hard time in most matchups.

In certain matchups, Spurs will only have 4 players (Ginobili, Bowen, Finley and Udoka) to play 3 position (SG, SF and PF). It's not enough.

[polandprzem]

Still few hours left.

If we can get a great swingman option for homemade pancakes I will be satisfied other then that I would like to see spurs adjusting to Thomas not Thomas to the spurs.

Generaly spurs got better defensivly and worse offensivly, but you want to avoid generalizing (or how it's written) in basketball

[urunobili]

Swingman needed... i don;t think stoudamire can keep up with way taller 2's

[wildchild]

Spurs needs an extra swingman.
Spurs plays a lot of small ball this year.
Kurt Thomas won't really help Spurs to play less small ball because he is slow.
Spurs PG are midgets, a 2 PG lineup will have a hard time in most matchups.

In certain matchups, Spurs will only have 4 players (Ginobili, Bowen, Finley and Udoka) to play 3 position (SG, SF and PF). It's not enough.

I'm sick with fear but I agree with Bruno.

I'll miss Brent's offense his 3's and his play with Manu and Tony.

I'd other trade like Bonner and Elson for Kurt and keep Brent.

[naico]

Spurs needs an extra swingman.
Spurs plays a lot of small ball this year.
Kurt Thomas won't really help Spurs to play less small ball because he is slow.
Spurs PG are midgets, a 2 PG lineup will have a hard time in most matchups.

In certain matchups, Spurs will only have 4 players (Ginobili, Bowen, Finley and Udoka) to play 3 position (SG, SF and PF). It's not enough.

Bring in Langford?

[polandprzem]

Bring in Langford?

Good chice esp. when he is not experienced in playoff ball, and is not femiliar with the system and NBA as well.

[Ghost Writer]

I see the starters and rotation a little differently:

Starters
1 Parker
2 Finley
3 Bowen
4 Duncan
5 Oberto

Bench
2/3 Ginobili
1 Stoudamire
4/5 Thomas
2/3 Udoka
4 Horry
1 Vaughn
4 Bonner



The second team need Ginobili to be the focal point of the scoring. With him coming off the bench, you don't need to have Mighty Mouse play the off-guard as timvp suggested.

Thomas will emerge as the first big man off the bench.

Udoku continues to split time with Bowen.

Vaughn and Bonner will move down the depth chart into relative obscurity come playoffs time.

[Holt's Cat]

Spurs needs an extra swingman.
Spurs plays a lot of small ball this year.
Kurt Thomas won't really help Spurs to play less small ball because he is slow.
Spurs PG are midgets, a 2 PG lineup will have a hard time in most matchups.

In certain matchups, Spurs will only have 4 players (Ginobili, Bowen, Finley and Udoka) to play 3 position (SG, SF and PF). It's not enough.

The Spurs' frontcourt was untenable as it stood before this trade. You had 3 guys you could trust in the postseason. In the swingman rotation you had 4. This is a big man's league. Looking at the other likely Western Conference playoff teams it was clear this was an area of concern. If Barry doesn't come back the trade still looks good because of this.

[hater]

Udoka is supposed to give us the offensive punch and he can play swing

[Holt's Cat]

Udoka is supposed to give us the offensive punch and he can play swing

He will need to step it up now.

[Ghost Writer]

You're not going to take issue with me moving Manu back to the first man off the bench or Bonner and Vaughn on the outskirts of a 8-man playoff rotation?