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great stuff. finally something good to read about the spurs.
has MW used up all his allowed time in the d-league?
We're very fortunate as Spurs fans to have a quality blog like 48MOH! Thanks for the link.
It will be hilarious if Williams pans out after so many of us trashed him all this time.
great stuff. finally something good to read about the spurs.
has MW used up all his allowed time in the d-league?
I wasn't a fan of his drafting and was lukewarm about his career so far, but this interview makes me an instant fan. His humility, intelligence, and respect for the team and game are refreshing and deeply admirable. If he doesn't make it in the league, I can see him in a Monty Williams type role somewhere.
what a gr8 interview... loved every single minute of it
He can't be assigned to the DLeague by an NBA team. If he is cut, he can go back as a free agent.
Talked to him the other day . Marcus is Hungry . Marcus has mad confidence on what hes going to bring to the spurs .
williams>finley
Good read. Seeing as how we haven't heard so much of a peep about the Spurs looking at a veteran point guard, it sure looks like the Spurs really do have some confidence in Williams' ability to play PG.
possible. and not that I'm all against a try. just can't see how he will keep the TOs down. Marcus had 4 TO per game in the D-league, what will happen when he meets NBA defense? and Pop hates it, when the back up PG starts to turn the ball over. (maybe the major reason why JV did enjoy a 3 years career with the Spurs)
Well, he was playing 43 minutes a game, so I'm not sure how all that will translate to the NBA. He did seem to turn the ball over more later in games, so fatigue may have been a factor -- but that's just speculation. I'm not expecting him to get much in the way of regular minutes unless someone is injured.
If he can be a Marquis Daniels type for us I'll be very happy.
MW said that pop told him that as long as he was active and agressive, and played D all the time, he could have TOs...
He is certainly saying all the right things. I like the point that Blackjack made about playing him at the point and playing Hill at the 2 sometimes. That could work out nicely match up-wise.
He will probably never be strong enough to be considered a great defender, but if he can hustle and play hard on that end he should be OK. He has enough length to bother most guards, so if he shows he can stick to his fundamentals and make his rotations during camp and the preseason he should be able to make the team. I don't see him having a lot of trouble offensively. He pretty much knows the system and what is expected of him on that end.
Certainly a fair point. But are those TO's a red flag that he'd struggle as a PG at the NBA level? Or do we not need to worry about it since at the NBA level he would just need to be the guy who can keep the offense moving as opposed to his role in Austin where he was pretty much the guy who had to carry the team?
I'm going to have to see it to believe it, as far as Williams being NBA-ready goes.
It would be nice, but NBDL s om does not necessarily translate into anything once he is playing with the big boys.
I think that is what everyone is doing EHJ. I don't think anyone is sold, even those like Chump who follow him very closely. He has certainly improved and the Spurs seem to like him, but we have heard this song many times before.
SL brings a lot of promises.
Did he actually play that much when he came back to the Spurs? I recall him going in to one game for the last minute and hitting a turn around jumper, but that was about it.
I'm guessing Pop and the FO are impressed by his work ethic, willingness to work with his D league coach, and spend time improving his pick and roll defense. I don't hear of many young players focusing on their pick and roll defense, so perhaps his at ude won them over.
As others have said, even if he's improved considerably, it will be difficult to get PT. I like the idea of Hill and MW getting a shot together on the court, but if they're both out there, and we assume Manu is on the court with the second team, what about Finley? I can't see MW getting time in front of Finley.
Anyway, I hope these young guys pan out and give Pop difficult decisions to make in regards to playing time. That would be a good problem to have, not to mention plenty of material for posters to complain about. Ha.
I love this kid's at ude. I hope he works out.
His body type is similar to Bowen's. Maybe he can convince Bruce to be his personal coach and teach him a few tricks. Great at ude but he'll have to deliver the good on the court if he wants to make the team.. go talk to Bruce!!
If MW fails, it'll likely be on defense. From an NBA perspective, his lateral quickness is average to below average.
He'll definitely never be in the discussion as a Bowen replacement; the lateral quickness and foot-speed overall, just isn't there.
Having said that, in terms of a team defender, he's actually got good length and instincts to be a pretty good one. The fact that Marcus made a point of mentioning a guy like Barry, who would never be confused for a good on-ball defender, is probably a good thing.
Barry was actually a pretty decent team defender. He was smart, long and had a knack for getting his hand in the way of an entry pass or disrupting a kick-out from the post on a double team. Things Marcus is more than capable of eventually doing.
His lack of quickness, at first glance, leads you to believe his chances of sticking on a team coached by Pop would be pretty slim. But when you look at the type of defenders the Spurs have had on the perimeter not named Bowen in recent years, it's hard to say Williams' foot speed/lateral quickness isn't at least on par with the likes of those players.
Marcus' ability to space the opponent with his length defensively, intelligence and diligence with a scouting report should be enough to get him on the court if he's capable of being a legit point/utility-forward on the offensive end. I don't think Pop's under any illusions that Marcus' role will ever be that of Bowen, so it seems, at least to me, that Williams' success is tied more to his ability to excel on the offensive end of the floor, while not being a liability on the defensive end.
The Jury's obviously still out whether Marcus can translate the success and unique skill set he offers at the NBA level, but if he proves capable of being a legit point-forward?
I think he's got the tools to be an adequate enough defender to keep his self on the court; especially if he's playing alongside a defender like Hill for stretches, with that guy named Duncan at his back.
theoretically he could be part of a "big plan", with Hill and Hairston as the two other pieces for a future back court. I mean, on paper the abilities and talents of the 3 would compliment pretty nice and MW alongside Hairston worked well in Austin. of course, we still don't know if anyone of the 3 will ever be a legit NBA player.
(and with the one big big obstacle: none can be expected to ever become an above average 3pt shooter).
however, considering that the Spurs didn't exactly invest lottery picks in this 3 and that Pop also is pretty pragmatic and in win now mode, I don't think that we can already see the Spurs future in Hill-Hairston-Williams. (add Ian here)
more realistic might be, that one or more of them will be part of some trade package, salary dump, roster spot opener scenarios within the next season.
The Spurs would need McClinton and Gist to agree to play overseas in order to keep their rights. If they don't agree, the Spurs have no choice but to tender contract offers to them. They wanted Marcus to play overseas, but he refused and was cut at the end of camp in 2007.
It's possible..
They do all compliment each other pretty nicely and are at ages that they could grow together, but it'd be a stretch to think the Spurs were that sold on the idea. -- As you also alluded to. --
I'm not so sure about that.
Hill was a pretty solid shooter throughout his college days and I'm pretty confident he'll be able to shoot the spot-up 3 at a respectable rate.
Hairston, I've often wondered if the 3 wasn't something he should just almost abandon, with how well he shot that mid range shot in college. But his D-League stint showed enough flashes to think that he just might be capable.
If nothing else, I feel both he and Hill can hit the 3's available in the Spurs' offense given the time to develop/get comfortable and that Hairston will make shots in the clutch that you wouldn't normally expect him to make; he's kind of had a knack for it in the past.
I agree with Williams, though. I don't feel too comfortable in his prospects of developing a consistent 3-point shot.
Agree.
I hope not, especially in the case of Hill and Hairston, -- Williams, while I'm hopeful, has yet to convince me -- but it's definitely a possibility.
Last edited by Blackjack; 09-12-2009 at 12:10 PM. Reason: The word allude, eluded me..
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