Whatever happened to Ime Udoka

[Doctor J]

Hi guys,

Didn't Ime have a reasonably strong first season with the Spurs last year?

He had several good games against the Hornets in the playoffs as well, especially in the matchup with Bonzi Wells, didn't he?

He can defend the guys like Artest or Pierce - strong small forwards.

Now why is he completly out of ratation this season?

If you know the reason(s)..........

[Spursfan092120]

Hi guys,

Didn't Ime have a reasonably strong first season with the Spurs last year?

He had several good games against the Hornets in the playoffs as well, especially in the matchup with Bonzi Wells, didn't he?

He can defend the guys like Artest or Pierce - strong small forwards.

Now why is he completly out of ratation this season?

If you know the reason(s)..........

That is one of a question. Ime still gets in every now and then and when he does, he usually gives Pop some decent minutes. I think with the transition to more of an offensive game, it has kind of left Ime out in the cold. Kind of like Bowen. But that's just a guess.

[024]

i don't know why but he's regressed a lot. i think his confidence is shot. i had high hopes for him too but even i have to admit he's pretty much worthless now. poor offensive decisions, unable to consistently hit a 3, declining speed when already not very quick, and bad defensive decisions. he is 31 after all and getting older as time passes.

[tp2021]

Just like an increase in PT did loads for RMJ and Bonner, a deep cut in PT did Ime in early.

[Austin_Toros]

safe to say its his last season as a spur?

[holcs50]

Basically he sucks, thats why. He's never was consistent enough when he got decent minutes. He's undersized for what he can do, not very athletic and his outside shot is either on or horrendous. I will feel nothing when he is gone, unlike say losing barry.

[mountainballer]

safe to say its his last season as a spur?

I'm pretty sure Malik will take his spot and role. (5th wing in the rotation, 10-15 MPG)

[rapliketp]

Roger Mason happened.

[Harry Callahan]

....and George Hill. Michael Finley and expecially Matt Bonner are putting up 3's at a prolific rate as well as Roger Mason. This is a more talented team than last years (with all the guys on deck).

Ime just moved several spots down the bench as did Bruce Bowen and J Vaughn. His tweener size and the new guys cut his minutes a bunch. He still has the ability to help out the team in spots.

[TDMVPDPOY]

Roger Mason happened.

ghill looms

[gospursgojas]

He couldn't hit the broadside of a barn happened

[coyotes_geek]

Ime swapped places with Matt Bonner. Last year Ime was getting regular minutes and was playing with confidence. Bonner was buried on the bench and whenever he did get in the game was out of rythm and putting too much pressure on himself to hit shots.

This year, a role in the rotation opened up for Bonner, he's getting regular minutes and is playing with lots of confidence. Udoka lost the regular minutes he was getting, due to Mason, and now he's the one buried on the bench who is out of rythm and pressuring himself.

[SenorSpur]

That's a great question. Many of us had such high hopes for him after he arrived. He had his moments last year, but really seemingly struggled getting adjusted to the Spurs system.

Many of us expected to see the typical "2nd year leap" that most players got through after coming to the Spurs. The problem is it just never happened and he seemed to regress a bit, lost his spot in the rotation and has struggled ever since.

As others have said, he's a strong player, good rebounder with a great at ude. However, he's just not athletic enough or long enough to be the solid defender we need.

[hater]

I think Pop realized Udoka is as good as he's ever gonna be. Which is pretty dissapointing. He's got the body and quickness but he does not have the hunger and ball IQ to completment it.

[SenorSpur]

I think Pop realized Udoka is as good as he's ever gonna be. Which is pretty dissapointing. He's got the body and quickness but he does not have the hunger and ball IQ to completment it.

I wouldn't say Udoka doesn't have the hunger or BBIQ. You can't taken the path that he's taken (domestic and abroad) in getting to the NBA and be devoid of hunger and sheer determination. This is a guy that worked himself into an NBA job. I believe this may be his 11th or 12th stop in his long journey. It is one of the things about him that appealed to the Spurs. I have not seen any evidence to the absence of his BBIQ.

I just believe at age 31, he's as good as he's going to get. Probably doesn't have as much upside as a 22-23 year-old, first-year guy like Hairston.

[Dex]

Part of Ime's problem is he has 'wrong place, wrong time' syndrome. He always seems out of sync; his individual defensive talents rarely overshadow the fact that he's lost in the team defense, and his presence always seems to make the offense stall. To further compound the problems, you can almost see the lack of playing time affecting his confidence, and the only times he seems to hit shots is in garbage time when he's proving that he's not completely dispensable.

I know that's harsh, but I had high hopes for this guy coming in, and he's ended up buried deeper on the Spurs bench than Steve Smith.

OkeyDokey needs to step it up and bring back some of that stuff we saw against the Hornets, because I think he could be a valuable defensive piece to this team.

[superbigtime]

He plays hard, but he doesn't have game. He can't finish at the rim.

[SenorSpur]

Udoka has obvously lost some confidence, which has affected his play. That's understandable. However, that can't be an excuse at this level. I doubt anyone would ever hear Udoka using that as an excuse either. He simply needs to take good shots and make them consistently. He's always been a good rebounder, though his defensive prowess has been average, at best. Personally, I still believe Udoka can be a good rotational player. I just don't think it will be with the Spurs.

[TDMVPDPOY]

Udoka has obvously lost some confidence, which has affected his play. That's understandable. However, that can't be an excuse at this level. I doubt anyone would ever hear Udoka using that as an excuse either. He simply needs to take good shots and make them consistently. He's always been a good rebounder, though his defensive prowess has been average, at best. Personally, I still believe Udoka can be a good rotational player. I just don't think it will be with the Spurs.

trade his ass back to the blazers for aldridge

[Manufan909]

I wish Ime was playng like he did in the 2nd round, that Ime would be taking minutes from Fin.

[MoSpur]

Udoka doesn't seem interested in playing anymore. It could be because Pop hasn't played him significant minutes.

[jag]

I'm a big Ime fan, but the guy never brought the defense that everyone expected. He always seems lost out there.

[Obstructed_View]

Ime sucks ass.

[SenorSpur]

I wish Ime was playng like he did in the 2nd round, that Ime would be taking minutes from Fin.

Him stealing minutes from Finley was my personal expectation of Ime for this season. Of course, that would've also required Ime to overcome Pop's long-running man-crush with Fin. In other words, Ime's margin for error was slim to begin with.

trade his ass back to the blazers for aldridge

I know this is a facetious scenario, but I do love Aldridge as a player. There's no way Blazers would ever give him up. Actually, I'd rather have Nick Batum instead. After all, it would be a pretty fair salary match and a more realistic scenario. Of course, that arrogant head of a GM, Pritchard, would never go for such a swap.

[SpursDynasty]

Udoka > George Hill