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Also, if anyone finds any errors or a gramatically better way of putting a statement that I made above, feel free to point it out.
The Spurs went into the offseason looking at 3 needs, with one of them being a younger swingman to replace either Michael Finley or Brent Barry, preferably Finley. Among most of our favorites were Corey Maggette, Mickael Pietrus, Kelenna Azubuike, JR Smith, and even Ramunas Siskauskas.
But again, the Spurs went on another path very few of us actually thought they would go by signing 6'5" swingman Roger Mason Jr. from the Washington Wizards.
The basics of Roger Mason Jr.:
D.O.B.: 9/10/1980 (currently 27 years old)
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 212 lbs.
Years Pro: 4
College: Virginia
Now let's see what are the pros and cons of this new Spur:
PROS:
- He's younger than our current swingmen. Being 27 years old and bringing along a good skillset of passing and defense, somewhat similar to Brent Barry, it looks as though he's already got a spot in the rotation.
- His shooting abilities emerged last year, averaging 44% FG, ~40% 3PT, and 87% FT.
- He has the ability to play point (again very Barry-like). Although he averaged only 1.7 assists per game, he's a better passer than what the stat can say.
- He can play defense. With that alone, we should feel much better about the defense, instead of having frickin Michael Finley out there.
- He doesn't have an at ude problem. He has class and hasn't had any run-ins with the law or has any bad blood with former teammates.
CONS:
- He's not exactly that young of a player we were counting on. Sure he's 27, but in a couple of years we'll have the age problem rising up again.
- The price. He came to us for ~$7.5M over 2 years, which is ~$3.75M a year. That seems pretty reasonable, but considering he soaked up more than half the MLE kinda puts a damper on the rest of the offseason. We're left with ~$1.9M of MLE and the same amount of LLE.
- He's not a good rebounder. Not that we're in dire need of a rebounding swingman, but , he averaged less than 2 in 21 minute a game.
Overall, the Spurs didn't exactly find their fourth scorer in this FA market, but they did find a relatively better swingman than both Barry and Finley. Time will tell whether this was a good signing, but as of now, it doesn't look so bad.
Oh yea, and he has poofy hair.
Grade:
B-
Welcome to San Antonio, Roger. I'm sure you'll have a pleasant stay.
Last edited by Mr.Bottomtooth; 07-09-2008 at 09:07 PM.
Also, if anyone finds any errors or a gramatically better way of putting a statement that I made above, feel free to point it out.
Figures we would sign the least athletic FA on the market!
Seems a bit high price for him....I figured maybe 2 m at the most
agreed....good analysis
i honestly think ppl are overreacting to this whole..."were too old" thing. all we need is maybe 10-15 points off the bench and we will be set.
hill looks to be a solid developing PG, who will catch a lot of people by surprise. im guessing he averages around 5-7 ppg.
Mahimni im guessing will average around 7 ppg also.
mason looks to be a solid SG. hopefully he can shoot and play defense very well.
he would've been nice for the LLE with the MLE going to Maggette, Kalenna or JR....
Good post Mr.Bottomtooth
It's not a great sign but I think is solid.
Mason numbers are very similar with Kelena.
I think the Spurs wanted a guy for a 2 year deal and don't want to wait on RFA. That's why they choose Mason.
Do you think he will start or come off the bench?
I believe if the Spurs feel as though Manu needs to get back to the bench, he's definitely gonna be the one starting. Right now, it's basically him or Manu.
Magette vs Mason
Can a comparison be done. It is a given that Mason plays better D so lets look at the offense.
Cory played on a team where the ball was in his hands alot. Here in SA he would get shots but not be able to control the ball as he would have to share with the big 3.
As a result Cory shot a ton from the foul line with the ball in his hands and may not get the same here with SA. Mason had to get his when he could and is more of a pure shooter. So the only way to compare them offensively because of their different styles and ball control is to look at their points on the floor.
Magette scored an average of 1 point every 2.52 minutes not inlcuding free throws.
Mason scored an average of 1 point every 2.58 minutes not including free throws.
Mason has a career free throw average of 87%.
Magette has a career free throw average of 82%.
Magette costs 10 mil per year.
Mason about 3.5 mil per year.
So now who do you think got the better deal?
You could delete the "Pro" that says he's a good shooter to "he shot well last year".
I'll say it again, the guy didn't have good shooting numbers in his first three years and will have to prove to me that last year wasn't a statistical anomoly before I anoint him a "good shooter".
When Corey signed with GS there were no "fourth options" left on the market. The Spurs opted to take a flyer out on a guy who is going to be an upgrade over Finley, who looks like a perfect compliment in a Tony Parker lead lineup (IE he can catch and shoot without hesitation.)
And his contract is just right to be an extremely tradable asset at the deadline. Package him with a resigned Kurt Thomas and I think you might have one of the best package deals to offer at the deadline of any team. Along with our draft picks and Udoka the Spurs can meet any teams needs at almost every position in a trade.
He looks like J.Jackson in 01-02
I give it a c to c-...signing him for $3.75 mil is overkill...$2.5, maybe $3 mil a year, but since we consumed most of our MLE, they get a lower grade from me.
This offseason can't get any worse
Nice hair and nice car.
Back at you!
Nicely done
The guy dropped 32 and 31 points in games this past season.
He can play.
Willie Burton once scored 50 points in a regulation NBA game.
Just saying. I think Mason was a solid signing.
Why would you not include free throws in scoring? They do actually count on the score board.
The two teams I follow most closely are the Spurs, because I love the way they play, and the Knicks, because I was born and raised in NY. Here are the most common posts (paraphrased) that I've read from the forums and blogs of those two teams in the last month.
The Knicks:
"Do you think it's possible that we maybe make the playoffs this year??"
The Spurs:
"Our Front Office ing blows 'cause they can't sign a fourth star to play along with Duncan, Parker, and Ginobili! RC should be killed! Pop should be shot! I'm so in' pissed right now!"
Once Maggette went bye-bye, I was hoping to split the MLE between Mason and Najera. It wouldn't be a "sexy" offseason, but I think it would greatly improve the team over last year's edition.
Now, whether we have enough left over for Najera (or if that's even a direction that Pop/RC are interested in going) remains to be seen.
This guy can play, and he is an absolute gunner. He will have his moments where he gets the Spurs out of there patented scoring slumps. Didn't realise he was 6'5 which is decent size for a SG, I always thought he was around 6'2.
I think he is a good signing, but like other people have said, if this is the only signing then it is very underwhelming. Spurs have overpaid a bit as well. But this guy is better than Duhon who got the full MLE. I would of preferred for the Spurs to not split the MLE and go for someone who could have more impact, but oh well.
How good this signing is really depends on whether there is another signing/trade etc...
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