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Trade up for Casspi, sign Hairston for extra depth. Gist might be able to spend some time at SF too.
Wasn't sure where to post this. Feel free to move to the Think Tank.
Offseason Breakdown: Small Forward
The one spot on the Spurs roster that deserves a stick of dynamite is small forward. The frontcourt needs work, but the type of work that merely adds to a solid core. You understand this. You’ve left a hundred comments amen-ing the sentiment. The reconstruction of the Spurs’ wing is not an easy project. Essentially, the Spurs need to replace Bruce Bowen’s defense, add another ball handler, find someone who can score off the dribble and has three point range.
At this point, you should be laughing. Doesn’t every team want a player like that? And of course it would really help if said player were Hedo Turkoglu long. But while it’s not an easy project, it’s not an impossible one either.
It’s easy to see that combination of skills and toss your arms to the sky in a hopeless exhale. When players like that come along, teams lock them up with big contracts. The sort of contracts the Spurs can’t afford apart from landing a cap crushing salary dump. But don’t despair.
It’s not inconceivable that the Spurs simply hit reset on their small forward situation. They can do this by trading Bruce Bowen’s semi-expiring deal (or waiving it) and letting Ime Udoka walk. That would leave only Mike Finley as a SF reserve, assuming he opts in for the final season of his contract.
As I’ve thought about the Spurs wing situation, I’ve become increasingly hopeful. Why? Well, the Spurs do not have to arrive at their final destination overnight, they just have to start moving in that direction. If they can find one player this offseason who improves their wing rotation, then they’ve gone a long way. He doesn’t have to be a perfect composite of all the things listed above, but he needs to bring a couple of those characteristics. Adding depth behind such a player would then become a high priority, but the Spurs can show patience in that process. This is the first reason not to worry.
The second reason is that the Spurs should have plenty of options this offseason—the summer is setting up nicely for San Antonio. I would be amazed if the Spurs went into next fall without having made at least one significant move toward small forward recovery. And I suspect they’ll have taken two large steps on that front, one through trade or free agency and the other through the draft. Let me explain.
The Spurs are walking into an offseason that presents a perfect storm of possibility. Think about it. The price on free agents is coming down due to a hard economy and the ever present class of 2010 looming large in the background. Teams won’t want to spend. And some of those same teams will want to rid themselves of overpaid but otherwise useful players. This combination puts the Spurs in a good spot–they’ll have opportunities to improve through the trade market or in free agency, if they want.
I’m not going to pretend to know which direction the Spurs will choose, whether they’ll make a bold move or cleverly refine the edges. Personally, I like some of the oft-discussed bold move scenarios, and others not so much. The same is true of more subtle refinements. I’m stating the obvious, but it depends on who we are talking about and how much they cost.
But I came away from the Combine with a sense of optimism about the offseason ahead. The Spurs should be able to pull a decent Austin-bound prospect out of this draft. If they move into the first round, as recent rumors suggest, they could land a player who gets a shot at meaningful minutes next season.
So, I’m not going to include a list of players in this post. I’ll let you do that in the comments, and for good reason. Rather than publish the laundry list–one that ranges from Vince Carter to Tyler Smith, and stops at all points in between–I’ll let you talk it through. How do you think the Spurs should fix their small forward situation? Your conversation will demonstrate my point: they have plenty of opportunities to improve themselves at wing. There is reason for optimism.
http://www.48minutesof .com/2009/...small-forward/
Trade up for Casspi, sign Hairston for extra depth. Gist might be able to spend some time at SF too.
This position can be a role player behind out Big 3. The player doesn't have to be an all-star like many people want--but he has to be a quality role player who can match up to good NBA compe ors.
Think of these type of players on the elite 4 playoff teams: Pietrus, Birdman, Brown, etc. Could they move up to a starting role on our team with our system.
I'd love to see the Spurs flip over some expirings for a legit quality starting small forward or a center and then use the MLE for whatever position we don't trade for.
SPURS is also one of the team which is very unwilling to spend in this summer. It's not like all other teams are operating in a budget whereas SPURS have a lot to spend
+1 and perhaps check out Marcus Williams again, couldn't hurt to test him in nba situation early in the season
Richard Jefferson is the answer.
trade up with who?
BTW, rookie contracts are 3 years minimum, doesn't jive with 2010.
Thats fine with me, now what the do you trade for him that the Bucks want?Richard Jefferson is the answer.
They want cap space and to get out of RJ's contract. RJ would be a perfect Spur, but there are plenty of options.
like.....
Name any sf in the league on a team looking to get under the cap. Did you read the article of the thread in which you are posting? Not to mention, you could go the FA route or the young draft route.
The plenty of options was with regard to addressing the SF spot. If you are asking for the home run (by this I mean big names and gambles) trade options at the SF spot or via FA:
RJ
Ron Artest
Ariza
Deng
Gerald Wallace
Marvin Williams
Kleiza
Stephen Jackson
Outlaw
Last edited by DPG21920; 06-01-2009 at 06:39 PM.
You can take Wallace and Artest's names off of there along with Jackson's name.
They aren't going anywhere.
The more I think about it, RJ could work out well. Obviously from a skill standpoint and a talent standpoint, RJ would be a huge upgrade over Finley. He would give the Spurs a true "big 4".
The enticing part to me is the combination of upside and his ETO. If the Spurs could obtain him and if that indeed (coupled with some other moves like the MLE on a big) was enough to put the Spurs over the top, he could be convinced to opt out of his final year in 2010, then sign what would probably be his last long term contract.
Explain. Is it likely they move, probably not, but I know that the Bobcats tried to move Wallace last year.
There are plenty of teams that might be interested in trading a first round pick for the exact reason that you stated. I have already pretty much scrapped the notion that we are going to pull a big name in 2010. TBQH, all we really need are a couple of super subs to add to our current big three.
Casspi has already implied that money is not really an issue. If we wanted to maintain a little bit of flexibility in 2010, we could structure his contract much like we did Hill's...with a salary reduction in 2010.
lol i dont think outlaw is worth the total MLE....
deng doesnt impress me much, he seems overrated imo who underachieve on that bulls team....
kleiza has size and hustle...its either him or go after anderson...throw the MLE at one of these players...i reckon the nuggets would let one of them go.....
Trevor. Ariza.
Pistons have needed depth at the 3 since the summer of 2004. We get 1st dibbs on any good ones, k?
Nachbar, obviously.
If the price is right.....
Personally, I consider the Spurs SF position to be in much more dire straits than the author admits. The fact that the Spurs are at the end-of-the-line for both Finley and Bowen and with Udoka rendered as an ineffective, this position is, by far, the worst on the team and needs the most help.
Sure the issue can be rectified, but the solutions ARE NOT currently on this roster. The best way to fix it would be for the Spurs to explore a trade a reasonably priced, mid-career vet (i.e. Salmons, Ariza) and draft a young player with pick #37, who perhaps along with Gist and Marcus Williams, could pay some dividends at some point during the season.
It'd be sweet to throw 7 mill a year to Ariza...
I totally agree. But we could only sign him for one year so he won't join us.
Amen!!!
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