I don't know what to expect from the 2008-09 Spurs

[exstatic]

you can expect a lot of jumping on and off the spurs bandwagon - a lot of fans calling for manu's trade by november, and pop's head by february.

and then the same fans back on towards may.
that, you can expect.

+1

[JPB]

I think the regular season could be a bit more exciting this year due to the arrival of several new young intriguing players.
It will be interesting to see how they're doing and if they could contribute and help spurs get another le (or not).

Last RS were more boring from this point of view.

[mystargtr34]

It definately feels different this season to past seasons.... i dont think there has been this much uncertainty since i can remember.

[mystargtr34]

which is about 3 years.

[ShoogarBear]

- With Barry gone, our offense is going to struggle a lot; he was perfect for our motion offense, great passer, great shooter, great IQ, and a real catalyst off the bench.

When did Brent Barry become the 2008 version of The Great Overrated Steve Kerr? Yeah, he finished strong, but it's not like the Spurs weren't perfectly capable of big-time struggling on offense even when he played. Sure it would have been nice to have him around as a 9th or 10th man, but he's not an irreplaceable cog.

- I like the additions of Hill, Gist and Mason, but what is to expect? Is Pop going to change the way we play on offense?
Gist and Hill are athletic players, and Mason is mostly a 3 point shooter.
George Hill, unlike Jaques Vaughn, seems to be an aggressive scorer

The biggest thing Pop has to do is realize that he doesn't have veterans like Finley, Barry, and Horry who he can give a string of erratic time or DNPs to and then just throw out there and expect them to produce. He needs to give Mahinmi, Hill, Mason, and yes Bonner consistent PT no matter what for the first few months so that they can really know what they can do. This will probably cost the Spurs a few games, quite possibly one of the worst first half-seasons in the Duncan era (which is saying something).

Pop's going to have to coach his @ss off, 2003-style. Even then, the Spurs may only end up with 50-52 wins, but it will be all about where the young guys are at the end of the year.

I'm starting to have serious reservations about The Savior. He's looking like a more defensively-aware Francisco Elson. His offense seems to be a lot of finesse/junk that I don't think will play in the big leagues. And I don't see anything that makes me think he will be a consistent rebounder. Hopefully I'm wrong.

I am on the James Gist bandwagon. If he can defend his man in the low post (not just help on others), he may be more of what we'd like Ian to be.

Truthfully, I have no idea if George Hill is going to be the second coming of Alvin Robertson, or the second coming of Jacque Vaughn.

- Michael Finley: we know he is mostly a jump shooter now; he can make big big shots, but he can also have ty series (as in the 08 WCF); he lives (yes he is still alive) and dies by his outside shooting.

I'd still rather have Finley taking a big shot outside of anyone out of the big 3. As long as he's a 9/10/11th man, I'm fine with keeping him. If Pop insists on playing him starter's minutes, the Spurs are in trouble.

- Manu Ginobili: we need a 100% healthy Manu to win the le; period.

No duh. Which is why people need to STFU about him not getting a lot of PT during the regular season. The book is closed on whether he can play big minutes, and the answer is no.

- Matt Bonner: if Horry leaves, will Pop give him more minutes? what can he bring to the Spurs beside his outside shooting? I wish I had the answer.

My biggest concern about Bonner is that he has shown a distinct lack of clutchness with the Spurs. He's had a fair number of open shots at crucial moments, and I don't recall many of them falling. Lots of things can be overcome with more PT, but usually clutch is something that either you have or you don't.

- Oberto: he owes us big time; he played like last season, to the point he got outrebounded by Farmar and Fisher
What-The- .
He's good at passing the ball, moving without it, and boxing it out, but what about, hum, rebounds ?????

Oberto is what he is. A known quan y. That's not going to change. He will hurt teams that forget about him, but if somebody puts even a little effort into stopping him, he will not be a factor.

- Kurt Thomas: no concern here; super pro, excellent defender and can knock down the mid-range J consistently.

I'm hoping to see a little more from him on offense than they got last year.

- Tim Duncan: as long as he is healthy, he is the best player in the league; period. But he is gonna need help, he can't win it all by himself

And, like Manu, he can't get burned out in the regular season. Which is why it's key that Mahinmi and maybe Gist get some minutes.

- Tony Parker: I don't know if he can get to the next level; I don't think he will; yes, he is a perennial all-star, but that's it; yes, he was the 2007 Finals MVP, but it was against a ty defense.

Cleveland was a sh!tty defense? Fail. Maybe not the best defense to stop a Tony Parker, but the only strength they had besides LeBron was D.

- Bruce and Ime: Bruce is still important for us; he played amazing D in the first 2 round of the 2008 playoffs, but you could see he was tired against Kobe Bryant.

He sure wasn't tired in game one. (Pop: ) But yes, this would be a good season for Pop to decide at the outset that Bruce is only going to play 25-30 minutes a game.

Udoka had a nice 1st season as a Spur; excellent D, and good scoring. He is comfortable in the Spurs system, and for that reason he should get more minutes during the regular season; that way, Bowen doesn't run out of gas towards the end of the playoffs.

Udoka had his moments, but he also showed a tendency to be nervous and unclutch with open shots. Hopefully this will improve, but like with Bonner, the lack of clutch has me worried.

Fortunately, they will have a chance to test Hill, Mason, and maybe Gist and Hariston for clutchness, and at least one may come through.

[AFBlue]

If Manu, Tim and Tony are healthy, the Spurs have a good shot at the le, as always.

But their depth is a huge question mark. If you assume Thomas, Tim, Bruce, Manu and Tony are the starting five, the rest of the team is sketchy.

Bigs
Oberto - We know what he can and can't do.
Mahinmi - Who knows if he'll be able to even log minutes against NBA compe ion without getting into fast foul trouble.
Bonner - Could be traded.

3/4's
Tolliver - Partially guaranteed contract. Could just be a summer league phenom and be cut by the end of training camp.
Gist - might not even make the team

Wings
Mason - Did he have a fluke shooting year last year, or did he actually improve?
Udoka - Extremely inconsistent. Wouldn't be surprised to see him traded.
Finley/Whoever - Probably won't see many minutes

Points
Hill - Didn't show any ability to finish in summer league, which is scary. Probably will be a decent shooter. Don't even know if he's good enough to beat out Vaughn.
Vaughn - Like Oberto, you know what he can do and can't do.

I just wish there were two guys on the bunch that were consistent and reliable. I don't think that the Spurs have that (yet). However, there are definitely a lot of "hopefuls."

Probably the most realistic breakdown I've read....even if it is pessimistic.

There are questions all the way up and down this roster with the exception of Tim and Tony, who should benefit from a long summer off.

1) Will Manu get healthy, stay healthy, and regain his form?

2) Will KT and Udoka step it up in their second year with the team?

3) Will Mason prove to be more than a one-year wonder and can he pick up the system quickly enough to be an instant contributor?

4) Will Vaughn and Oberto continue their consistent, albeit limited, production?

5) Will the young guns (Mahinmi, Hill, Tolliver?, Gist?, Hairston?) take advantage if given opportunity?

I think you're likely to see a mixed bag of answers to those questions above, but if the answer to the top three is "Yes" then the Spurs have a good shot at the le.

At this point I'm only really convinced with #2 and #4, and that's not going to be enough. I hope I'm wrong!

[DPG21920]

I think the regular season could be a bit more exciting this year due to the arrival of several new young intriguing players.
It will be interesting to see how they're doing and if they could contribute and help spurs get another le (or not).

Last RS were more boring from this point of view.

I just hope everyone can be patient and not place to high of expectations on the young guns. Hopefully they play hard on D, compete and learn what it takes to win at this level. We can not expect them to all be all-stars after week 1.

Should be fun to watch and see what Pop does, this is where you will see how good of a coach he is.

[timaios]

- Tony Parker: I don't know if he can get to the next level; I don't think he will; yes, he is a perennial all-star, but that's it; yes, he was the 2007 Finals MVP, but it was against a ty defense.

Game 1: SA 85, CLE 76
Game 2: SA 103, CLE 92
Game 3: SA 75, CLE 72
Game 4: SA 83, CLE 82

In game 1, 3 & 4 : average points for Spurs = 81 pts.
What a ty defense !!!

I hope he has matured a bit more; during the Hornets series, he went into 1-on-1 mode against CP3, causing a lot of careless turnovers; what the was that??? During the playoffs, against a contender ?????
This is not a pickup game, what was he trying to prove ?
He made a big shot in game 7, but he could have cost us the series as well

OMG

[Spurtacus]

I expect the 08/09 Spurs to contend for another le.

[lefty]

Game 1: SA 85, CLE 76
Game 2: SA 103, CLE 92
Game 3: SA 75, CLE 72
Game 4: SA 83, CLE 82

In game 1, 3 & 4 : average points for Spurs = 81 pts.
What a ty defense !!!



OMG

For Cleveland's D, I'm not talking numbers, but the way Parker penetrated at well, not to mention their bad transition defense

[timaios]

For Cleveland's D, I'm not talking numbers, but the way Parker penetrated at well, not to mention their bad transition defense

Or Parker was too good for them.
Whatever.

[Fabbs]

Game 1: SA 85, CLE 76
Game 2: SA 103, CLE 92
Game 3: SA 75, CLE 72
Game 4: SA 83, CLE 82

In game 1, 3 & 4 : average points for Spurs = 81 pts.
What a ty defense !!!

Actually that is "Pop O" cuttin it loose.

[T Park]

Tony Parker: I don't know if he can get to the next level; I don't think he will; yes, he is a perennial all-star, but that's it; yes, he was the 2007 Finals MVP, but it was against a ty defense.
I hope he has matured a bit more; during the Hornets series, he went into 1-on-1 mode against CP3, causing a lot of careless turnovers; what the was that??? During the playoffs, against a contender ?????
This is not a pickup game, what was he trying to prove ?
He made a big shot in game 7, but he could have cost us the series as well

One of the church of Manu's lead members slams Parker again for no reason.

Typical.

[lefty]

Actually that is "Pop O" cuttin it loose.

Exactly

[Obstructed_View]

The Spurs' biggest problem on offense was the inability for anyone to hit a mid-range jumper. Thomas, Hill and Mason can hit them, and I'm sure it will be a point of emphasis going forward. Add to that the abilities of the players brought in on the defensive end, and the problem has almost gone away. I'm not worried at all this season as long as everyone is healthy.

[Anti.Hero]

I fear NO will knock us out.

I just want an 07-08 December MANU in the 08-09 Playoffs.

[urunobili]

- Kurt Thomas: no concern here; super pro, excellent defender and can knock down the mid-range J consistently.

his J sucked ALL playoffs...

[AFBlue]

his J sucked ALL playoffs...

KT actually did pretty well considering he had spent less than half a season with the Spurs before the playoffs.

Thomas is a smart player with a consistent skill set...he'll be fine.

[urunobili]

KT actually did pretty well considering he had spent less than half a season with the Spurs before the playoffs.

Thomas is a smart player with a consistent skill set...he'll be fine.

i agree he did well... his J just wasn;t there...

[nfg3]

I see two basic factors effecting the Spurs - health and the new additions.

1) Health - TD and Manu in particular. Pop is going to have to manage their minutes so as to have them ready come playoff time. But a major injury to either of those two or TP and all bets are off.

2) Role/new players - they are going to have to get substantial minutes in order to fit into the Spurs system. This goes hand in hand with Pop managing the minutes of the above players. There are so many questions marks here:

Ian: Is he really ready to contribute or not? I see "ups" only to be followed with "downs". Very inconsistent but has upside to help the Spurs. Wait and see.

Mason: Kori stated it - was last year's stats a true improvement or just a flash in the pan. Was it real?

HIll: Can he be the backup PG we have been looking for? What did he do to impress the Spurs so much as the have them use the 1st rd pick on him? So far I've seen glimpses but nothing consistent.

Gist/Hairston: will either even make the team?

Bonner: do or die season. Inconsistent so far.

Udoka: Was improving towards the end of last year and maybe this year he steps it up. During the playoffs I saw times where he was very good only to be followed but times where he was forcing the issue. Can't guard athletic wingman like Bruce can - Kobe just killed him - but plays good D overall.

I just see a lot of inconsistency in our bench this coming season. A lot of untried and unproven players. Pop no longer has the luxury of inserting vets into the games all the time. We will have to live with these younger and more immature players in the hope that with sufficient PT they can overcome that disadvantage and start to contribute.

I expect to win less games next year but hope that by the annual RR trip things will begin to take shape and we can get rolling after that.

This next eseason is going to be a roller coaster one. I see a lot of ups and downs and ST will be busting a gut over it.

[Gino]

From an outsiders perspective, I think the key to the Spurs will be the Ginobili's health and the pure firepower of their role players.

[Brutalis]

All I know is, Manu better not it up this playoffs like he did the last series against LA. If people wanna use the injury excuse then he shouldn't have even played. Throwing the ball to random fans in the crowd and chucking up Gilbert Arenas type shots killed us. He ruined so many possessions and after we got sent home we all wanna complain that it was okay cause he was hurt. No.

[wisnub]

I expect they will go to West Finals..but I dont know whether they can pull it off...West is too strong as much as I hate to admit it. There will be lots of bandwagon jumpers, but i didnt give a ..People got rights to choose their fave team. Personally I dont like bandwagoners. The point is that Spurs will continue to be a top championship hunter,regardless of whatever people say..Im ing dissapointed in how this season end,but I always be Spurs fan,even if they're losing and playing. The loss taste bitter...but being in Western Conference Finals is a dream for some NBA teams. Spurs fan got extremely high expectation and accustomed in winning...i dont try to be a but we should be grateful and appreciative to the team that we support,whatever the result may be. Beside they are the ones who go to war,not us.

[wisnub]

I expect nothing..but i would love to see video of Spurs parade in SA famous river.....and see Manu's crying in joy

[tlongII]

It will be one and done for the Spurs in the 2009 NBA Playoffs.