Crunch-time performance by Mason impressive
By Mike Monroe
A final warmup game that went down to the final second Friday night was a perfect way for Roger Mason Jr. to close out his first preseason with the Spurs.
Signed as a free agent this summer, then thrust into a bigger role because of the ankle injury that will keep Manu Ginobili sidelined until December, Mason was on the floor for the final five minutes of the Spurs' 96-93 loss to the Miami Heat at the AT&T Center.
Running the team from the point guard spot, he showed his new teammates a willingness to make plays in tight situations. His 3-pointer with 24.9 seconds left trimmed a Heat lead to a single point. After Miami's Michael Beasley made 1 of 2 free throws with 19.7 seconds remaining, Mason drove from the 3-point line for a layin that tied the score at 93.
“It was definitely a good stretch for me,” Mason said. “I was glad (Coach Gregg Popovich) put me back in. I want to get a little rhythm before this thing gets started. I finally did that, and I feel real good going into the season.”
Mason has struggled a bit learning the nuances of being on the court with different groups of teammates. He started Friday's game, along with Tony Parker, Michael Finley, Tim Duncan and Fabricio Oberto. He played 30 minutes and finished with 12 points and three steals, but had four turnovers, further indication he is in a learning situation.
“The biggest thing for me is playing with different groups, getting a feel for where I need to be in different situations. It's a little different when you're out there with Tim and Tony. You're in different spots.”
Tough choice: With Friday's preseason finale behind them, the Spurs' coaches must make a very difficult final cut before Monday's deadline to be down to 15 players.
With forward Anthony Tolliver missing Friday's game for personal reasons, Popovich took a long look at Desmon Farmer, the small forward who played last season for the Rio Grand Valley Vipers. Malik Hairston, the Spurs' second-round draft pick, did not play.
“Obviously, we're down to one more guy to get to 15,” assistant coach Mike Budenholzer said. “It's really difficult. We got another look at Desmon. We've had Malik all through summer league, and between those two guys it's hotly debated. At some point we're going to have to pull the trigger soon.
“We also want to start getting our guys ready and get more minutes for Roger Mason and for Ime (Udoka), closer to what they're going to play in the regular season. If you move towards that, it makes it harder to play those guys.”
Got game?: The Spurs' NBA D-League affiliate Austin Toros are to hold an open tryout Sunday at the San Antonio Factory of Champions, 8227 Broadway. Toros coach Quin Snyder and his staff will evaluate players, who can earn an invitation to the team's training camp, scheduled to begin Nov. 14 in Austin.
Registration is to begin at 9 a.m. The session is to conclude at 6 p.m.
Last edited by duncan228; 10-25-2008 at 12:10 AM.
Wow. Given that no one suspected that Tolliver was out for personal reasons (hope its nothing bad), I wonder what Farmer's performance means? Given that he had one of the higher +/- on the team, and given Pop's halftime interview emphasizing team play, it might be that Farmer actually passed this last test.
Though that still doesn't explain why Hairston didn't get any run.
Looks like Farmer is gone.
Pop sat Hairston because the choice was already made.
Tolliver is on the team, and Farmer was only given run, so that other NBA teams can see him play and possibly land somewhere else.
The Spurs traded for Hairston this year in the 2nd round and to watch him leave would be painful. They got him because they felt he was a player. He has proved this pre-season that he is all around. He can score, board, and most importantly defend.
Tolliver and Hairston made the team.
Too bad because Farmer busted his ass and played like a stud.
Well, there you have it. Tolliver was never in doubt. That's so ed up.“Obviously, we're down to one more guy to get to 15,” assistant coach Mike Budenholzer said. “It's really difficult. We got another look at Desmon. We've had Malik all through summer league, and between those two guys it's hotly debated. At some point we're going to have to pull the trigger soon.
Yeah, you're probably right. Maybe they didn't play Hairston because if Hairston played bad and Farmer played well, then it would look unfair to cut Farmer.
I had similar thoughts myself.
I see Hairston didn't see any action. I wonder if that means he's gone.
the suspense is killing me, I'm sure it must be killing them to know who it is.
There is no question in my mind that it is Farmer. Tolliver was a lock to make the team.
Where did it say that Farmer is gone? i thought the same thing too, but this latest article has changed my mind. It makes a good point about Malik having been with them all summer. The Spurs know exactly what Malik can do by now so they didn't really need to give him more court time.
Farmer on the other hand only just got here a few weeks ago so they wanted to see what he can do some more. I think Farmer's team game today may have given him a bit of a boost actually.
It's ridiculous is what it is. I mean if Tolliver shot like this in Summer League he probably wouldn't have made training camp, and if he did and followed it up with this same shooting he'd have been cut by now.
I'm going to be very mad if Farmer is cut. He's shot just as well or even better than Tolliver did in Summer league against better compe ion.
Bonner probably would have averaged 20 plus ppg in summer league.
Farmer to make the team or be cut?
Farmer's gone.
Mason showed us that he has not lost any confidence whatsoever even though he didn't play well at times. Good game from Mason tonight.
Yeah, he seemed to relax and just start to play. Hopefully he keeps that up. Bonner did a good job of that, too.
Farmer gone.
agreed, farmer is gone and will be picked up another team probably...
Bye Farmer.
Agree.
Farmer stays. Everyone guesses..that's mine. He's the better player.
Is Farmer and Mason's game similar?
Pop has seen Malik for SL and Preseason. He needed to check out Farmer once more. I think Farmer stays if Pop liked his performance. I bet he told him to give more all around play or he heard the interview.
Compared to whom? I think he's better than Tolliver, but not better than Hairston.
Compared to Hairston. Hairston has a nice all-around game but I think Farmer has more offensive skills than Hairston. The Spurs can teach defense but as we've seen in the past, we struggle to put the ball in the basket at times.
He also showed some fight in him. The play that stands out to me is when he was literally hit in the mouth during a loose ball. He had a bit of a scowl on his face when he came down the court. He promptly took and nailed a 3 pointer. I know it sounds a little bit silly but I thought that showed something. Kind of like how Manu plays better when he feels he's been disrespected.
Was it the Cleveland game ?
Anyways, Hairston seems like a good prospect too. I don't see why we don't send him to the Toros to keep learning.
I agree with an earlier post that mentioned Tolliver's shooting performance. If he hadn't played so well in the Summer, no way would he still be on the roster. I'd like to know what happened to his game. Was the summer a fluke or this latest stretch ?
Don't know man...most 27 yr old players are pretty set in their ways. He probably is what he is. See Finley, Michael
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