Random Thoughts After LaMarcus Aldridge and the Spurs Split

https://www.spurstalk.com/lamarcus-a...agree-to-part/

Thanks, LA, tbh

Great writeup! Thanks for posting.

Will be interesting to see what happens through the deadline.

San Antonio is reportedly hopeful that something could happen within the week but I see it stretching out until the March 25th deadline for trades.

Is this based off old information or new?

The report from Woj was "next week". So just want to confirm if this isn't an error in writing.

Imo spurs need to hurry up and trade him ASAP... as things get closer to the deadline teams will have already made moves or they will like what they have... was reading different fan sites of teams reportedly interested in LMA and they ain’t excited about it or think that there team wont offer much

if suddenly Drummond or another big gets bought out or something that will hurt LMA value potentially if they go to a team that made an offer for LMA

people gave me before the draft for saying the Spurs would have to settle for buying out LMA, yet here we are.

Brian Wright needs to prove he can provide value as a GM in the trade market. While not the end of the world buying guys out, if someone has value you need to get assets. Small markets need as many assets as possible.

LMA's whole story might be very different if Kawhi doesn't get hurt in the Zaza game. Being a major piece on a team winning 67 and 61 games in his first two seasons, making it to the Western Conference finals, and being up in game one on the road against an all time great team represents some pretty impressive lines on an NBA resume.

I think it would've helped immensely if he'd starting threes in higher volume three years earlier than he did, but I don't know if that was entirely stubbornness on his part, or mostly him following coaching staff instructions.

Originally Posted by DPG21920

Brian Wright needs to prove he can provide value as a GM in the trade market. While not the end of the world buying guys out, if someone has value you need to get assets. Small markets need as many assets as possible.

The priority is likely to find a team LMA wants to play for. The longer term establishment that this is a franchise that will do right by its FA signings is more valuable than any small assets he's likely to bring.

Originally Posted by R. DeMurre

LMA's whole story might be very different if Kawhi doesn't get hurt in the Zaza game. Being a major piece on a team winning 67 and 61 games in his first two seasons, making it to the Western Conference finals, and being up in game one on the road against an all time great team represents some pretty impressive lines on an NBA resume.

I think it would've helped immensely if he'd starting threes in higher volume three years earlier than he did, but I don't know if that was entirely stubbornness on his part, or mostly him following coaching staff instructions.

The Zaza game was the excuse, but neph would have found a way to stab the team in the back regardless.

Originally Posted by Mr. Body

The Zaza game was the excuse, but neph would have found a way to stab the team in the back regardless.

Perhaps, but if they win the championship that year I think LMA's legacy looks quite a bit different.

Good write-up. Thanks Timvp.

He carried the Spurs on his back, post ZaZa, and kept the Spurs relevant probably longer than they should have been. He was a damn good Spur in my book, he just had the curse of trying to fill the shoes of one of the NBA’s top 5 players of all time. The Spurs should have shriveled into a 20 win team after the Big 3 were gone and that never happened, in large part due to LMA.

Goodbye big fella.

The Spurs went from beautiful basketball to me-ball with LMA, which is why I don't have a great attachment with this dude. He didn't age gracefully as Timmy did, he didn't display the type of smarts old school Spurs did. Besides that, thankful he helped keep the Spurs compe ive.

Originally Posted by R. DeMurre

LMA's whole story might be very different if Kawhi doesn't get hurt in the Zaza game. Being a major piece on a team winning 67 and 61 games in his first two seasons, making it to the Western Conference finals, and being up in game one on the road against an all time great team represents some pretty impressive lines on an NBA resume.

I think it would've helped immensely if he'd starting threes in higher volume three years earlier than he did, but I don't know if that was entirely stubbornness on his part, or mostly him following coaching staff instructions.

The 67-win team was one of the best in NBA history (only ten teams have ever surpassed an SRS of 10 ... the Warriors have three of those squads). And they didn’t even get to the point of facing the Warriors after that annoying Thunder series.

He almost won them game 2 down the stretch, but couldn’t pull it off. Feels like had the Spurs won that, matchup with GS was inevitable a year earlier than the Zaza game. LMA was balling then.

A couple of things that I’m hoping somebody can clarify for me:

1. Wasn’t Poeltl starting a result of a LMA injury rather than (and more justifiably so) his stellar play off the bench, spearheading at the time one of the league’s most devastating 5 man attacks.
Does this transition occur this season if not for that?

2. Where is he going to get a starting gig, or play a ton of minutes for a team who can utilise his skill set?
Wouldn’t it have been better to play out the rest of the season in SA, sign a farewell contract with Portland in the off-season and call it a career?
He wasn’t going to be buried behind Eubanks (I assume), just not sure I understand why he couldn’t give a reserve role a try.

There def. seems more to this story.
I appreciate LMA’s time here and wish him well in his future moves but not at the expense of the Spurs and their current/future aspirations.

Originally Posted by PhantomDashCam

A couple of things that I’m hoping somebody can clarify for me:

1. Wasn’t Poeltl starting a result of a LMA injury rather than (and more justifiably so) his stellar play off the bench, spearheading at the time one of the league’s most devastating 5 man attacks.
Does this transition occur this season if not for that?

2. Where is he going to get a starting gig, or play a ton of minutes for a team who can utilise his skill set?
Wouldn’t it have been better to play out the rest of the season in SA, sign a farewell contract with Portland in the off-season and call it a career?
He wasn’t going to be buried behind Eubanks (I assume), just not sure I understand why he couldn’t give a reserve role a try.

There def. seems more to this story.
I appreciate LMA’s time here and wish him well in his future moves but not at the expense of the Spurs and their current/future aspirations.

Eh, Pop has a history of using injury as an excuse to try to shake up the lineup. He did the same thing with Walker a couple of weeks ago. My guess is that Pop wanted to bench LMA and just waited for a good time to make the move. I also think LMA was probably expecting/hoping to be traded all season. Likely, this was a change that had been in the works for a long time.

One thing to mention from pops statement. He considered this a win-win for both parties. Now, a buyout wouldn’t mean a win for the spurs as its stretching out the remaining balance of the contract over multiple years correct? It sounds like the spurs have a deal or two in place.

Originally Posted by look_at_g_shred

One thing to mention from pops statement. He considered this a win-win for both parties. Now, a buyout wouldn’t mean a win for the spurs as its stretching out the remaining balance of the contract over multiple years correct? It sounds like the spurs have a deal or two in place.

Nah, it means it clears the way for others to get on the court. They were having trouble knowing what to do with Aldridge given his perimeter defense.

Originally Posted by Mr. Body

Nah, it means it clears the way for others to get on the court. They were having trouble knowing what to do with Aldridge given his perimeter defense.

Fair but Luka played zilch yesterday

I could ask for more but the reality is, luck was against the Spurs

Originally Posted by look_at_g_shred

Fair but Luka played zilch yesterday

That's because Pop was stupidly playing Trey Lyles. Samanic should get all the time Lyles would get.

Originally Posted by Mr. Body

The priority is likely to find a team LMA wants to play for. The longer term establishment that this is a franchise that will do right by its FA signings is more valuable than any small assets he's likely to bring.

Your post got me thinking. I agree that doing right by our players is the preferred route for various reasons. But I wonder if it really has a tangible impact in how other signings interact with SA. Perhaps it was a factor that brought LMA here. It didn’t make a difference with Morris. It’s a weird league with little loyalty. Egos and large amounts of money make things difficult. Anyway.

Originally Posted by Chinook

Eh, Pop has a history of using injury as an excuse to try to shake up the lineup. He did the same thing with Walker a couple of weeks ago. My guess is that Pop wanted to bench LMA and just waited for a good time to make the move. I also think LMA was probably expecting/hoping to be traded all season. Likely, this was a change that had been in the works for a long time.

Do you think this is as altruistic/beneficial as what is being reported between both Spurs and LMA re: there parting?

If what you’re suggesting about this change potentially being in the works for sometime (and I think you’re right on this based on Pops comments in the off-season - not winning a championship etc.), would it be unfair for me to say he wasn’t willing to buy into the new philosophy and somewhat ‘quit’ on the team?

The effort at times Of LMA this season has been less than ideal...

"and doesn’t regret the decision he made in 2015."

I would say asking to be traded in 2017 points to regretting his 2015 decision to sign here but that is just the personal opinion of a logical human being on planet earth...

Originally Posted by Mr. Body

The priority is likely to find a team LMA wants to play for. The longer term establishment that this is a franchise that will do right by its FA signings is more valuable than any small assets he's likely to bring.

Is it thought ? Cause I am trying to think of one player that we signed in free agency who said the reason why he chose the spurs is because they knew the spurs would do right by them when it was time to move on. I can't think of one player.

I think the nba is a cutthroat business. I think nba players know that and expect that. I think this "do right by the player" thing means absolutely NOTHING to players in the nba, because they have an expectation that they might get screwed over and traded somewhere they don't want to go.

Can anybody point to anything any other player who doesn't play in san antonio has ever said about the spurs "doing right by their players"

Originally Posted by look_at_g_shred

One thing to mention from pops statement. He considered this a win-win for both parties. Now, a buyout wouldn’t mean a win for the spurs as its stretching out the remaining balance of the contract over multiple years correct? It sounds like the spurs have a deal or two in place.

No a buyout means LMA and the Spurs agree on how much of his contract they are going to pay in order for him to be a free agent. If the spurs wanted to they could just pay out 100% of the rest of his contract and owe him nothing else and contractually it would be like he played out the last year of his contract. Now typically in buyouts players either want A 100% of the money they are owed or B they let the team pay them less than is owed on the contract BUT then the team has to pay them some money the next year.

You are thinking a bout a stretch provision, in which a player is waived and then the money left on the contract is automatically spread over a certain amount of years. This would be like if the spurs wavied lamarcus and he was still owed 24 million and they had to "stretch" those 24 million over 5 years so then lamarcus would be on the books for roughly 5 million a year every year for 5 years.