Second Thoughts on Michael Finley's Exit

[Chomag]

There hasn't been a Spurs player in recent history who has gotten so many unwarranted minutes.

Actually Bogans is competeing for that Honor and I think he is giving Fin a run for his money there.

[silverblk mystix]

I have been a spurs fan since 1973---or whenever it was that they came from Dallas (Chapparrals---I think?)...
always believed through good and BAD seasons...

last season was the first time i ever remember thinkin and saying out loud the following;
``if Finley is still here next season...i am done as a spurs fan..."...

of course he was...and (like sequspur )...i still remained a spur fan...

but it was agony everytime i saw finley play and start over mason, hairston,etc...

the worst part of the finley era to me was pop and his strange and complete change of character... for example--- pop would absolutely go nuts on defensive lapses and missed assignments---except when it was finley...

the most glaring example i remember that demonstrates just how bad pop became was this;

when he rested several starters in a second game of a back to back in Denver---the big three and finley---and in one of his interviews----actually stated he rested...THE BIG FOUR...

On top of all that...the Bruce Bowen treatment...i believe was all because of Finley...

that was a disgrace...

i still wish the best for finley....and I pray that Phil Jackson...falls hard for the..finley mystique....and plays him long,long minutes....

[bdictjames]

Players' egos can still develop at their late 30's, and I'm glad Fin didn't complain about it publicly. Perhaps he knew that he wasn't doing well in the Spurs system, and would like a change of atmosphere. Perhaps he knew that he was hurting this team, so he had to go. Who knows, just best of luck. We are an organization of class, and I hope that remains.

[z0sa]

Finley over Bowen?





Wow.

[doobs]

It was probably tough for Mason to watch Finley taking ANY of his minutes. Finley leaving is a good thing.

[SenorSpur]

Like anyone else, I'm burned about Pop's coddling of Finley and the sudden cannonization of his tenure with the Spurs.

Good God, George Gervin wasn't afforded the luxury of such a gracious exit as Finley has gotten.

[timvp]

Finley gone because he's whined? Sounds like a standard "leak" to justify the Spurs actions. CIA and all that. Why can't they just waive a noncontributing player and keep their mouth shut.

Finley's gone because he asked out of his contract. He's not gone because of any other reason. Other players are the ones saying Finley has been complaining about a lack of minutes. In fact, Pop has gone out of his way to make sure it is publicly noted that he wishes Finley were still on the team.

[TJastal]

Like anyone else, I'm burned about Pop's coddling of Finley and the sudden cannonization of his tenure with the Spurs.

Good God, George Gervin wasn't afforded the luxury of such a gracious exit as Finley has gotten.

Finley's departure would be much more satisfying if Popovich had paired it with benching Bogans and limiting Bonner's minutes.

If this first game is any indication however, it appears that Bogans and Bonner are going to be the beneficiaries of Finley's absence and play even bigger roles.

Which is almost certainly going to doom any hopes this team has of competing for a championship. :sad

[TJastal]

Finley's gone because he asked out of his contract. He's not gone because of any other reason. Other players are the ones saying Finley has been complaining about a lack of minutes. In fact, Pop has gone out of his way to make sure it is publicly noted that he wishes Finley were still on the team.

Popovich is an idiot, pure and simple.

[Dex]

My only problem with Finley leaving is I feel that his motive is a little underhanded.

If Finley wanted to go to a team that he is going to get minutes, he'd be willing to go any team. Or at least a semi-contender. In other words, a team where he might be able to find a solid role.

From what I'm hearing, it sounds like Finley has just been knocking on the door of all the favorites like LA, Boston, Denver, and Portland. These are all teams where Finley will probably be exactly what he was in SA: insurance.

That doesn't sound like chasing playing time to me. That sounds like he is chasing another ring, and he didn't think the Spurs were going to be able to give it to him. Rather than go down with the ship that brought him his first le, it's like he is trying to hop boats.

Pretty surprising move for a guy who was otherwise regarded as a total professional and locker room favorite.

[TJastal]

Who the knows what Finley's motivation was, be it PT or rings. You got Popovich claiming he still wants Finley on the team even though its clear the team has needed to part ways w/ Finley for years.

I just think Pop found his new love in Keith Bogans and Finley had to move on.

[SenorSpur]

I don't care what he's chasing. I'm just glad he's gone.

[Amuseddaysleeper]

What's funny is he ended up starting his final game as a Spur. To show how bad he wanted to play, he finished the game 0-for-2 in ten minutes to go along with no rebounds, no assists, no steals, no rebounds, no fouls and a plus/minus of -15. Way to state your case for more PT, Fin.

And Mason is the same way too. These guys ask for trades/more playing time and then put up these incrddible games of double digit minutes and virtually no field goals. Worst of all, if they can't shoot well, they are absolutely useless.

I was relieved Finley left on his own terms. I just hope it's not too late for Hairston to overtake Bogans for minutes. Spurs still have 26 games to go before playoff time. I think of Hairston can replace Bogans and get around 20 minutes a game, our 8 man rotation should be set.

Of course, this could all be pipe dreams

[mando6599]

Finley's gone because he asked out of his contract. He's not gone because of any other reason. Other players are the ones saying Finley has been complaining about a lack of minutes. In fact, Pop has gone out of his way to make sure it is publicly noted that he wishes Finley were still on the team.

Which players have noted Fin's complaining, timvp? Was Bruce's reference on Twitter about Finley? thx

mando

[Mel_13]

Which players have noted Fin's complaining, timvp? Was Bruce's reference on Twitter about Finley? thx

mando

Whether any of this cons utes complaining is in the eye of the reader, but these quotes from Tim, Tony, and Manu are from Monroe's article:

Tony:
“He started talking about it about two weeks ago,” point guard Tony Parker said. “We had back-and-forth conversations about it after he told me. He wasn’t playing, and he wished he could be playing.”

Manu:
“We know how this works. He wasn’t playing, and a player wants to play. He still thinks he can contribute, and we all understand that, so no problems.”

Tim:
“He’ll be missed, but trying to be a player and be on the court and get out there, he just wasn’t getting the time here. I wish him well, and I hope that he finds what he wants and everything works out great for him, because he’s the best. He’s awesome.”

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/s...part_ways.html

[loveforthegame]

Not sure how you can bash Finley and give Mason a pass. Finley at least did this all privately while Mason made it public. Even if Finley is just chasing another ring I can understand that better than Mason chasing a big contract.

Why do Pop, Duncan, Ginobli, and Parker all talk Finley up as a great guy and teammate if all he's been doing is complaining the last couple weeks? They can be classy and give a standard response to his departure but they talk like he's the greatest guy to ever wear a Spurs jersey.

[mando6599]

Whether any of this cons utes complaining is in the eye of the reader, but these quotes from Tim, Tony, and Manu are from Monroe's article:

Tony:
“He started talking about it about two weeks ago,” point guard Tony Parker said. “We had back-and-forth conversations about it after he told me. He wasn’t playing, and he wished he could be playing.”

Manu:
“We know how this works. He wasn’t playing, and a player wants to play. He still thinks he can contribute, and we all understand that, so no problems.”

Tim:
“He’ll be missed, but trying to be a player and be on the court and get out there, he just wasn’t getting the time here. I wish him well, and I hope that he finds what he wants and everything works out great for him, because he’s the best. He’s awesome.”

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/s...part_ways.html

thanks Mel_13

[ohmwrecker]

Tony mentioned something about Finley complaining about playing time since he came back from his injury, but I don't think he was bothered by it, just stating fact.
Bowen's tweet was not about Fin. He specifically mentioned the mystery player's agent being vocal and there has been no evidence of Finley's agent being aggressively involved. All reports indicate that Fin went to Pop man to man and asked for a release. I'm still convinced that Bruce was referring to Mason (given the timing and mention of the agent) whether he will admit it, or not.
Also, it should come as no surprise to anyone that Finley expected to get PT after coming off the IR. Pop has shown undue favoritism to Fin in his years as a Spur.
You guys sound like a bunch of irrational teenage girls that just found out that an ex, that YOU dumped, is over you and wants to date someone else.
Untwist your panties and move on.

[spurtech09]

now that I know why the reason finley left im pretty disappointed in him.....I can understand that he wants some more playing time but come on hes not young anymore....he should be happy that he got a chance to win a nba championship le with the spurs...I know everyone ain't perfect but he is just greedy

[Fabbs]

Tim:
“He’ll be missed, but trying to be a player and be on the court and get out there, he just wasn’t getting the time here. I wish him well, and I hope that he finds what he wants and everything works out great for him, because he’s the best. He’s awesome.”

Just boggles my mind. Did Finley find a cancer cure for Tims kids or something?
( Not that Tims kids have or ever will have cancer )

[TJastal]

Tim:
“He’ll be missed, but trying to be a player and be on the court and get out there, he just wasn’t getting the time here. I wish him well, and I hope that he finds what he wants and everything works out great for him, because he’s the best. He’s awesome.”

Just boggles my mind. Did Finley find a cancer cure for Tims kids or something?
( Not that Tims kids have or ever will have cancer )

They all (and esp Timmy) just follow POop's line of thinking to the highest degree. They all knew POop and Fin had a "special" relationship so of course this is the reason for the contrived over-complimentary nature of Tim's comments.

[anakha]

If this first game is any indication however, it appears that Bogans and Bonner are going to be the beneficiaries of Finley's absence and play even bigger roles.

I'm sure McDyess being out had absolutely nothing to do with it.

They all (and esp Timmy) just follow POop's line of thinking to the highest degree. They all knew POop and Fin had a "special" relationship so of course this is the reason for the contrived over-complimentary nature of Tim's comments.

So now Duncan is a sheep?

If you're a troll, congrats. If you're serious about this, you're a re of the highest order.

[Brazil]

Best news of the whole situation? We will never have to see Finley guarding guys like Lamar Odom or Lebron James ever again!!

yes now we have bogans

[TJastal]

I'm sure McDyess being out had absolutely nothing to do with it.



So now Duncan is a sheep?

If you're a troll, congrats. If you're serious about this, you're a re of the highest order.

Everybody knows Popovich's word isn't questioned by reporter, writer, or player alike. Where have you been all these years?

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

1. Now everyone knows who Bowen was talking about when he said it wasn't Mase complaining about PT.

2. Finley, if you want PT you have to earn it. Which is amazing to say given Pop's mancrush for him.

3. It's clear Fin was complaining to others on the team prior to him leaving.

4. Good riddance.

5. He's kidding himself if he thinks he will go to any contender and get any run.

6. All you twits like Tpark who were talking about how great a guy he was, giving him the red velvet carpet leaving party, etc. owe the Fin critics an apology.

7. How ignorant is Pop? He talks about chemistry issues in the locker room, when his golden child was at the heart of the complaining about PT camp (with no legitimate reason for doing so - i.e., he was sucking when on the court).

8. I think you will see the team play better now. One more cancer removed.