Somebody upstairs needs to tell Mitch that Castle has to play more

[Silverheart80]

All the Pop hate cracks me up. The idea that he's masterminding Mitch every night.

The man had a STROKE. The only thing Pop is masterminding is how to raise both of his arms over his head.

Roster decisions from night to night are a Mitch Johnson production. And his show is a bomb right now. I can accept being destroyed on the boards and on defense because the roster has no Victor, no true center, has a 39-year-old point guard, and has overdrafted mightily on 6'-6"-and-under players. It's horrific basketball. And I understand if the horror becomes bloodier over the next 28 games.

What I don't understand is Mitch not playing Castle 30 minutes a night so he can get reps and evolve, which is a wise use of this terrible season. 100% on Mitch. As I've said elsewhere, despite the most recent team spin -- there's no guarantee that Victor will ever be healthy enough to play a full regular season, plus full playoffs. He'll be a Spur again, but right now, you have to play Castle as if he's the young centerpiece of the franchise. Because within the things that are actually controllable for the foreseeable, he is.

The trick is getting him his minutes while also showcasing Vassell enough so that he can boost his ill-advised shots percentage and be a better trade asset this summer. Because Vassell's gotta be moved this summer for this roster to evolve. Can be done, and it'll create big losing streaks, but Castle's development into a reliable star is the only true progress we still have a chance for this season.

[dn0774]

All the Pop hate cracks me up. The idea that he's masterminding Mitch every night.

The man had a STROKE. The only thing Pop is masterminding is how to raise both of his arms over his head.

Roster decisions from night to night are a Mitch Johnson production. And his show is a bomb right now. I can accept being destroyed on the boards and on defense because the roster has no Victor, no true center, has a 39-year-old point guard, and has overdrafted mightily on 6'-6"-and-under players. It's horrific basketball. And I understand if the horror becomes bloodier over the next 28 games.

What I don't understand is Mitch not playing Castle 30 minutes a night so he can get reps and evolve, which is a wise use of this terrible season. 100% on Mitch. As I've said elsewhere, despite the most recent team spin -- there's no guarantee that Victor will ever be healthy enough to play a full regular season, plus full playoffs. He'll be a Spur again, but right now, you have to play Castle as if he's the young centerpiece of the franchise. Because within the things that are actually controllable for the foreseeable, he is.

The trick is getting him his minutes while also showcasing Vassell enough so that he can boost his ill-advised shots percentage and be a better trade asset this summer. Because Vassell's gotta be moved this summer for this roster to evolve. Can be done, and it'll create big losing streaks, but Castle's development into a reliable star is the only true progress we still have a chance for this season.

Nah he’ll get 13 minutes and like it.

[AFBlue]

All the Pop hate cracks me up. The idea that he's masterminding Mitch every night.

The man had a STROKE. The only thing Pop is masterminding is how to raise both of his arms over his head.

Roster decisions from night to night are a Mitch Johnson production. And his show is a bomb right now. I can accept being destroyed on the boards and on defense because the roster has no Victor, no true center, has a 39-year-old point guard, and has overdrafted mightily on 6'-6"-and-under players. It's horrific basketball. And I understand if the horror becomes bloodier over the next 28 games.

What I don't understand is Mitch not playing Castle 30 minutes a night so he can get reps and evolve, which is a wise use of this terrible season. 100% on Mitch. As I've said elsewhere, despite the most recent team spin -- there's no guarantee that Victor will ever be healthy enough to play a full regular season, plus full playoffs. He'll be a Spur again, but right now, you have to play Castle as if he's the young centerpiece of the franchise. Because within the things that are actually controllable for the foreseeable, he is.

The trick is getting him his minutes while also showcasing Vassell enough so that he can boost his ill-advised shots percentage and be a better trade asset this summer. Because Vassell's gotta be moved this summer for this roster to evolve. Can be done, and it'll create big losing streaks, but Castle's development into a reliable star is the only true progress we still have a chance for this season.

Castle played less than 40 games last year. I get that he's young, but the rookie wall is a real thing. I'm glad they're not burning him out by managing his workload in year one.

[Obstructed_View]

The Spurs definitely love to condition guys who are incapable of playing 40 minutes once playoff time rolls around.

Not making the playoffs solves that, tbh. Outside the box thinking.

[scott]

All the Pop hate cracks me up. The idea that he's masterminding Mitch every night.

The man had a STROKE. The only thing Pop is masterminding is how to raise both of his arms over his head.

Roster decisions from night to night are a Mitch Johnson production. And his show is a bomb right now. I can accept being destroyed on the boards and on defense because the roster has no Victor, no true center, has a 39-year-old point guard, and has overdrafted mightily on 6'-6"-and-under players. It's horrific basketball. And I understand if the horror becomes bloodier over the next 28 games.

What I don't understand is Mitch not playing Castle 30 minutes a night so he can get reps and evolve, which is a wise use of this terrible season. 100% on Mitch. As I've said elsewhere, despite the most recent team spin -- there's no guarantee that Victor will ever be healthy enough to play a full regular season, plus full playoffs. He'll be a Spur again, but right now, you have to play Castle as if he's the young centerpiece of the franchise. Because within the things that are actually controllable for the foreseeable, he is.

The trick is getting him his minutes while also showcasing Vassell enough so that he can boost his ill-advised shots percentage and be a better trade asset this summer. Because Vassell's gotta be moved this summer for this roster to evolve. Can be done, and it'll create big losing streaks, but Castle's development into a reliable star is the only true progress we still have a chance for this season.

Nice post! I hope you’ll post more.

[Ice009]

All the Pop hate cracks me up. The idea that he's masterminding Mitch every night.

The man had a STROKE. The only thing Pop is masterminding is how to raise both of his arms over his head.

Roster decisions from night to night are a Mitch Johnson production. And his show is a bomb right now. I can accept being destroyed on the boards and on defense because the roster has no Victor, no true center, has a 39-year-old point guard, and has overdrafted mightily on 6'-6"-and-under players. It's horrific basketball. And I understand if the horror becomes bloodier over the next 28 games.

What I don't understand is Mitch not playing Castle 30 minutes a night so he can get reps and evolve, which is a wise use of this terrible season. 100% on Mitch. As I've said elsewhere, despite the most recent team spin -- there's no guarantee that Victor will ever be healthy enough to play a full regular season, plus full playoffs. He'll be a Spur again, but right now, you have to play Castle as if he's the young centerpiece of the franchise. Because within the things that are actually controllable for the foreseeable, he is.

The trick is getting him his minutes while also showcasing Vassell enough so that he can boost his ill-advised shots percentage and be a better trade asset this summer. Because Vassell's gotta be moved this summer for this roster to evolve. Can be done, and it'll create big losing streaks, but Castle's development into a reliable star is the only true progress we still have a chance for this season.

That's a good take about Pop probably not masterminding this, and you could be right.

Having said that, maybe he's had a few words to him as I am sure Pop speaks with RC and the other front office staff regularly, and may have simply relayed the message to Mitch on what they want to do. They could even have already decided what they're going to do with the rest of the season.
They could be trying to not win games, so that could be a reason for Castle not playing as much. Maybe they think the more they play him, the higher the chances of winning. Also, like you said, they could be trying to showcase Devin and maybe some other players for the rest of the season while simultaneously not actively looking to win games, or maybe they want Castle to not get too big of a head after the all-star weekend (I doubt it's this as his minutes were inconsistent before the all-star weekend). Then there's the likelihood of Chris Paul being promised a starting role to sign with the team, and if so, they can't really go back on that. Even if they have made some decisions, I still think one of their top priorities should be trying to develop Steph as much as they can and fit everything else around that, but we don't really know what their plans are. If this isn't one of their main priorities going forward, then it just doesn't make sense.

Then there's the simplest answer that Mitch could just be doing a poor job and mismanaging the rotation/team since trying to see how Fox fits with all the other guys.

[ismael-robert]

Hey solid post...throwing ur own ideas at wall to see what sticks like everyone else...notice how u asked Scott a question n he replied he doesn't know...then found video we all could find...no intel just perception

[Ice009]

All are valid. Anyone of them could be true, but after tonight's game, just looks like a mess and Mitch is out of his depth. No Victor, and he's really getting exposed. To top it off, Steph looked really poor out there, so Scott's probably right that they're not, not playing him because he'll win them more games.

[BatManu20]

[scott]

I see a lot of takes like this, and I just wanted to say that this isn't really a good argument for starting Castle. The team's objective isn't to maximize Castle's individual stats, it's to win games... so saying "Player X is better when they start" isn't a good reason to start them.

With that said, there are plenty of other good reasons why Castle should start (he's better than Vassell, we don't need an undersized two PG backcourt, we want to prioritize his development, etc).

[cd98]

If the Spurs promised CP3 that he would start, he should start over Castle. As a franchise, it would be a mistake to give a player your word and then go back on it after that player signs a contract. Plus, the overall offense has looked solid with CP3 until Wemby got injured. With Wemby out, there is no rush to try and win games and if they release CP3, then they will be starting Castle. They are giving him great minutes at important times in the game. His development is not hindered at all by coming off the bench.

[scott]

If the Spurs promised CP3 that he would start, he should start over Castle. As a franchise, it would be a mistake to give a player your word and then go back on it after that player signs a contract. Plus, the overall offense has looked solid with CP3 until Wemby got injured. With Wemby out, there is no rush to try and win games and if they release CP3, then they will be starting Castle. They are giving him great minutes at important times in the game. His development is not hindered at all by coming off the bench.

Slightly disagree on one point. We should want to see Fox and Castle playing together so they can build chemistry and see how they fit and play off one another. But right now about 65% of Fox's minutes are coming without Castle, and about 45% of Castle's minutes are without Fox.

Castle is also only playing 23 mpg since Fox came over. That number needs to increase.

I'm okay with Castle not starting, but he does need to play more and play more alongside Fox.

[cd98]

Slightly disagree on one point. We should want to see Fox and Castle playing together so they can build chemistry and see how they fit and play off one another. But right now about 65% of Fox's minutes are coming without Castle, and about 45% of Castle's minutes are without Fox.

Castle is also only playing 23 mpg since Fox came over. That number needs to increase.

I'm okay with Castle not starting, but he does need to play more and play more alongside Fox.

Maybe, but maybe not. It's possible that Castle plays the Manu role and never starts and hardly plays with Fox next season. It's also possible that Castle's game will look different than what it does now after another offseason to improve. If he's a better shooter, maybe that impacts how much he plays with Fox. Or maybe they draft the next backcourt mate with Fox this summer. I do think Castle will get his minutes and I would not be shocked if the Spurs waive Paul at the end of the season so he can join a contender and if that happens, Castle will get plenty of minutes to end the season. But I'm just not worried about it. I don't think Castle will be the same player next year that he is today so hard to know if we are learning much about him by playing throw away games at the end of the year.

[scott]

Maybe, but maybe not. It's possible that Castle plays the Manu role and never starts and hardly plays with Fox next season. It's also possible that Castle's game will look different than what it does now after another offseason to improve. If he's a better shooter, maybe that impacts how much he plays with Fox. Or maybe they draft the next backcourt mate with Fox this summer. I do think Castle will get his minutes and I would not be shocked if the Spurs waive Paul at the end of the season so he can join a contender and if that happens, Castle will get plenty of minutes to end the season. But I'm just not worried about it. I don't think Castle will be the same player next year that he is today so hard to know if we are learning much about him by playing throw away games at the end of the year.

Just FYI, the deadline to waive a player and have them be eligible for another team's playoff roster is this Saturday.

[Ice009]

Just FYI, the deadline to waive a player and have them be eligible for another team's playoff roster is this Saturday.

I was going to ask about a week ago when the deadline was. If you're already unsigned, that deadline doesn't apply, right? It's only for players currently on teams?

[onechance87]

castle looked bad.But coiaching staff needs to take blame for this.Gut this team from the top to bottom.

[Atl Spur]

They aren’t trying to win….

[slick'81]

They aren’t trying to win….

they havent been for 5 years apparently

[BatManu20]

Spurs need a real HC asap tbh.

[z0sa]

Mitch is a tool.

[Spursfanfromafar]

Spurs need a real HC asap tbh.

The Spurs must treat this as a development season and not a contention season. And that would automatically mean Castle should start. And rest CP3 and Barnes. Their trade value is their trade value.. There is nothing going to be known by playing them major minutes. If CP3 wants to contend, it is best to waive him and allow him to join a contender. If not, he can be told to wait for next season for Wemby to come back and then be in a position to contend again. CP3 has to come from the bench in that case, too. I am surprised that Mitch hasn't got the message or isn't delivering on this. The Spurs will be hurt if it picks up the 10th and 15th picks instead of the 8th and 10th picks. The latter is in the Hawks' hands and so it is a matter of chance. But the former is in the Spurs' hands. They can let the youngsters run the show ..allow them to fail and gain experience, increase their lottery odds and try to get in the top 4 of the lottery.

[cutewizard]

Might there be something else occuring that we don't know about?

[cutewizard]

This is very strange......

Why would you limit your star rookie?

[dbestpro]

Johnson brings back memories of Bob Weiss. Hopefully he will not be anywhere near the franchise when a new head coach is hired.

[Strategic]

This may just be a favor to Paul for getting him a last chance to get moved to a contender. Spurs would need to add another big piece to contend next year.