Larry Brown: "Thank God Pop is a good friend of mine"

[Bruno]

I have absolutely no idea about what Spurs are trying to do about their end of the bench bigmen.

Before the trade deadline, I was expecting Spurs to salary dump Mahinmi. They kept him and traded Ratliff.
Have Spurs even tried to trade Mahinmi? The game against Nets really looks like a showcase but he hasn't been linked to a single trade rumor and I'm convinced he could have been traded to New Jersey.

After the trade deadline, I was expecting Spurs to sign a big and they haven't done it.
Spurs have signed Temple so it isn't a money problem. Have they looked at available PF/C and haven't found a good one or are they fine with what they have?

I don't have a good scenario that allow to connect all the dots. If there is a bigger picture, I don't see it. The 2 least likely explanations I have, are:
- Spurs have fully given up this year. They don't give a about their end of the bench. They are quite sure Splitter will be a Spur next year and that's why they aren't looking a young bigmen available.
- Spurs have fully changed their stance on Mahinmi. They now like him and want to keep him for next year. They are now trying to give him enough playing time to please him and to work with him but they are also limiting his playing time to hide him from other teams.

Non of these scenarios fit very well with the past events. I hope what will happen in the future will allow to see what was the true reason behind these moves.

[SenorSpur]

Pop gives Larry Brown Raja Bell and Theo Ratliff and Larry gives Pop... ing Jackie Butler and the team loses Scola because of it.

I forgot to reconnect those dots.

Brown should now turn around and do Pop a solid and trade Tyrus Thomas to the Spurs over the summer.

[tmtcsc]

I agree with that. The Spurs haven't won anything once he left the team.

Are you being sarcastic ? We won 2 Championships without Sjax. Pistons and Cleveland.

[Cane]

LOL @ forum fans... what's your le? internet hack? What happened to TPark or EricB?
And tell me, how can you claim just two posts ago that we are extremely 'deep' in the front court bigs department, and now claim we had no other choice than to play small because we had to rest our bigs?
Especially when our only two legitimate shot blockers (outside of Duncan) were sitting on the bench watching small ball getting us murdered.
And the night before Toronto we played the freaking Wizards. A team that was 10-21 at the time, so please, spare me.

The Spurs did have a deep frontcourt when Theo was on board AND they wanted to rest the veteran bigs. Not sure how you're having trouble understanding that; its not one or the other. There are all sorts of reasons why the veteran bigs didn't play and I've covered them; you don't have to like 'em but they're there for whats its worth (the old bigs have injury histories, they potentially don't match up well against younger and faster guys, some minutes were going to guys who would be bigger players down the road, etc). LOL @ you getting offended over 'forum fan' and then trolling that I'm someone else or some

And sorry what I meant by prior game was the earlier game in the season against Toronto when Duncan was out.

That was actually a typo. I actually meant 20 mins/game, honest.
And please, do tell me what message was Pop sending to Dice against NJ, when Dice actually played his usual 22 minutes in that game?

To refresh your memory: Dice was playing like not only in that game but for a lot of the time early on in the season. Ian was the last guy on the bench and suddenly he got minutes to play - he earned his 20 minutes through making an impact and hustling. In the two games that followed, McDyess got the hint and started to fill up his statsheet and got more minutes.

Also, it's so apparent that Pop brought Dice to start that 60 games in, he only started 33 games.

He was brought in to start alongside Duncan but he struggled mightily (ditto with all the entire team basically); that wasn't expected nor was the surprise known as Blair and to an extent, Bonner's relatively great season. Pop's renowned for making lineup changes and all players outside of Duncan were showing that it was needed since they were almost nothing but inconsistent.

Furthermore, how can you still cling on that bull that Theo was being saved for the playoffs, when you know as well as I that when the rotation for the playoffs get set, nobody that played less than at least 15 minutes a game is going to make it. 'Corporate knowledge' and all that jazz.
Everything is so clear to you, except that reality doesn't agree with you.
And really, the only one being a 'passionate dissenter' here is you. When that offer for Theo came around, Pop didn't hesitate one second in shipping his 'shot blocker for the playoffs' dude out of town.

Do you know anything about Theo or the Spurs? The guy's old and has a history of injuries and the Spurs have always rested those kinds of veteran bigs during the regular season so they could be healthy for the playoffs. The Spurs have the mentality of better being healthy than it is injured and fatigued come playoffs time even if it means not having HCA. Had he stayed with the Spurs he'd likely get more minutes as the playoffs approached. And with the surprise of Blair and Bonner, Dice picking it up, Duncan being Duncan, and Ian hungry for any action...it still would've been tough to crack in that rotation over anyone not named Ian. Thats a lot of players to rotate and it was inevitable for it to be shortened.

Yes, it sucks not having another option in Theo. But from the Spurs perspective they saved $$$, got a pick, and sent a veteran to a decent ballclub where he could log more minutes and play under his old coach. Shame that they couldn't have done a similar trade with Finley and Mason Jr. but at least Mason Jr. spoke up and almost got traded for a pick from Miami.

[taps]

I have discovered the reason the league is trending toward "smallball":

Larry Brown has all the centers.

[Bigzax]

Pop has been sabotaging the Spurs all year and dating back to last year...based on his recent track record, it wouldn't surprise me if he was responsible for the planes mechanical trouble in 2008.

[jjktkk]

Now who was that re that claimed Ratliff is nothing but a stat padder for blocked shots? Pretty sure it was jjktkk, since he's been peculiarily absent from this thread.

TJastal, what kinda of junk you trying to stir up now? You remind me of that ditzy, gossip girl in high school who likes to write notes to her friends and say, "did you hear soanso went out with soanso the other night and now their definitly going out now". Sorry TJastal, I never said anything of the kind about Ratliff.

[purist]

As always, spurs fan/poster knows best. Spurs fan thinks Theo, Blair, Ian, Hairston,Gist, Haislip, should all get 30 minutes a game for silver and black. I know gist and haislip aren't here anymore, but that won't stop spur fan from lamenting their lack of playing time.

If Pop were to have given Ratliff minutes over Blair or McDyess, spur fan would have slammed him for wasting the draft's steal and a proven veteran for another old dinosaur of a player taken by the spurs on the cheap.

guaranteed!

[TJastal]

TJastal, what kinda of junk you trying to stir up now? You remind me of that ditzy, gossip girl in high school who likes to write notes to her friends and say, "did you hear soanso went out with soanso the other night and now their definitly going out now". Sorry TJastal, I never said anything of the kind about Ratliff.

Ahh, you're right jjktkk. It was your butt-buddy-in-training Cane that said it. Not that it really matters, you both spout the same nonsense in every thread.

Nah, Theo is just a stat padder with little to no impact on the game; worse than even Marcus Camby and he'd likely get eaten alive in the West. Who the is EricB?

And now you pulled out bull that we could've gotten Thomas and say I'm "sugar coating" that failure? GTFO, no wonder you can't start threads

The only trades available were to cash in expirings like Mason and Theo for future draft picks unless they throw in Blair, Hill, or Ginobili which would be dumb as .

[jjktkk]

Ahh, you're right jjktkk. It was your butt-buddy-in-training Cane that said it. Not that it really matters, you both spout the same nonsense in every thread.

Wow I've noticed you and your fellow s always like to reference people like myself who admire Pop as a coach as Popsuckers butt-buddy, etc. How old are you, 12? Or all these phobic slurs you like to spew, your cry for wanting to come out of the closet? Maybe you need to let it out BJastal, you might feel like a huge weight has been lifted off you.