Reply With Quote
I wonder if they'll try to deal RJ over the summer or before the deadline once the season starts. Or if they'll keep him altogether....
Extremely well said, timvp. I don't have a single thing to critique with your writeup for once. Good job, man.
I wonder if they'll try to deal RJ over the summer or before the deadline once the season starts. Or if they'll keep him altogether....
So you're sayin even if we Robert Horry'ed him in the regular season he'd still be ineffective playing 35+ mins a game in the playoffs?
Why can Nash handle all these minutes that the Spurs players can't? Steve has been playing 33-35 MPG for 10 NBA seasons.
i don't know if Manu's legs were starting to fail him because of age, or if it was the nose thing.
it's obvious that the Big 3 can't generate as much offense as they used to by themselves. i don't quesiton Manu's ability when he's spry, but imo humble opinion his legs just gave out. i don't see how his nose would have affected his driving ability.
that said, i look for blair to refine his game for next year, share some of the low-post scoring load. he was an obvious bright spot for the Spurs this year amidst all the dark. he's only 20 and will only improve. add in, potentially, Splitter and i think the decline of Manu and Tim is compensated for.
Now it is even worse. Now they also have to severely micromanage Tim's minutes as well. That is 2 of the big 3.
It puts you in a hole. It does not make it impossible.
Here is to the season
Next year should be better with the improvement of hill and blair. And hopefully with the addition of Splitter and a healthy hungry TP.
Has Nash had the injuries that Tim and Manu have?
Your legs don't go as quick when you only play on one end of the court.
spondylolisthesis
All in all, I don't see how Spurs fans can be that disappointed in this season, or that hopeless for next.
To me:
...if Parker was healthy all year, then Manu wouldn't have been worn down. And if Manu wasn't worn down and Parker was healthy, then the Spurs are in the running for a le. I don't care who the role players are.
...no one expected RJ to be such a bad fit all around. His game didn't fit with the Spurs, and I thought it was obvious that he didn't buy into the Spurs philosophy -- which had to wear on the locker room. Say whatever you want about Bruce Bowen's lack of offense, but he bled the Silver & Black philosophy. So, the Spurs will do whatever they need to do this offseason to get RJ out.
...George Hill made huge strides offensively this year. And though I think he was pretty bad defensively all season, the Spurs should have it figured out now what type of players he CAN guard. And the door should be shut on the idea of making him a starting PG... he averaged 0.8 assists in 34 mpg in the postseason. So next year, let him flourish in the SG role and have someone (Bowen?) work with him this summer on moving his feet defensively.
...Splitter is probably coming over -- and even if he sucks, it's a Bonner-upgrade.
...The Spurs have some good youngsters in guys like Blair and Hairston (and maybe Gee and Temple).
So basically, the Spurs will have to pick up a 2/3 that can defend and shoot the 3, sign Splitter, and maybe pick up a couple more role players. They don't need a major overhaul to contend next season -- they just need the right pieces. Unfortunately they rolled the dice with RJ this year and came up craps. But you can't fault Peter Holt/Pop from trying.
They might not be a le contender, but Alvin Gentry says o. Having depth makes all this difference when you've got older players. Just look at what it's done to Steve Nash, by having Dragic around they'll extend Nash's career by at least 2 years.
Totally agree, TPark.f you can add two 3 point versatile wings and one good big man to the young core. Than IMO they are championship level again. Better bench means reduced minutes all around.
Maybe because Nash has a quality back-up and only plays one side of the court.Why can Nash handle all these minutes that the Spurs players can't? Steve has been playing 33-35 MPG for 10 NBA seasons.
I haven't seen ploto this happy since the earthquake in Haiti . . .
Ew jes kant say tings like dat.
Unless he improves immensively in his playmaking ability, I'd much rather see him creating his own shot and driving to the hoop. He's more comfortable with that type, I think. When he has to pull back and set up again from a broken play, he just looks so confused.
To act as if I could ever be happy about death and destruction just shows your real character. This is about a silly game where you put a ball in a basket.
I was talking about the quaking of the earth, not the death and destruction.
Thanks Timvp & Kori! Great analysis as always. You made me feel a tad better this evening-still disappointed the way the Spurs second season ended-no fun getting swept......immediate reaction during this series=absolutely zero...I had not positive vibes about the Spurs after the Game 2 loss....in comparison to the Dallas series I had a feeling they would prevail.......I actually had a fantasy of an "oldies" championship series: Spurs vs Celts w/Spurs winning a close game 7....
...I know, fool's gold but I guess I was getting hyped, considering I didn't think the Spurs were no longer an "elite" team and wouldn't make the playoffs...glad I was wrong about that...at least the latter.....
At what point do the Spurs start the rebuilding process...not in tanking but bringing in younger players as the big 3 or the big 2, Duncan & Ginobili, age?
And as for trading RJ-who would want him? Or...will he get it and be the player in 2010-11 that the Spurs thought he'd be this season?
Well onto the offseason....Go Spurs 2011!
I'm proud of the Big 3. The Dallas series was all them + Hill. I also thought they did all they could against the Suns, but their bench was >>>>> our bench. We need to find a better supporting cast, and if we can, move RJ's contract.
I think they all have enough in the tank to give it another shot. They do need some help, and that's going to be the to-do for the FO this summer.
At least we know Tim can still play, Manu is healthy and will be around, and Tony has to heal, but he has fight in him.
Considering I didn't think we had enough, especially defensively, getting to the 2nd round was a big plus. I overly enjoyed having conversations with everyone here, and I want to thank those that produced stuff here regularly, like you, timvp, Duncan228 with the newsposts and the stuff from 48MoH. Now, let's enjoy the offseason, which I'm sure will be again fairly active.
Damn got called to the carpet and fights back with the it's just a game
I think pop needs the big three to start
and make hill and jefferson come off the bench and gel
rj does not work with duncan
let rj dominate the ball
he can score
Manu has to go back to the bench. It's simple math. In order to keep him at 25-30 minutes, but still fresh to play about 8 minutes in the fourth, he can't start.
I think TP and Hill should start and RJ and Manu off the bench. They just have to find the right fit at SF to start imo.
His PER was 22.54, which was 12th in the entire NBA. Sure, he didn't always shoot consistently, but this was his best year ever as a passer and I think he actually went to the basket more this year than in '08, then he had his best season ever as a scorer. That Ginobili was just unconscious from three and would never miss an open one. This one was streakier.
In general though, I agree with your point. It's not good, long term, for Manu to have to carry the team for two months like he did in March and April, just like it wasn't good for Timmy to have to carry it in November and December. Tim burned himself out in the first half, and I think Manu also expended too much gas late.
For the Spurs to be a contender next year, they'll need their five or six best players to be fortunate enough to be healthy all year. Tony and Manu need to combine for 140+ regular season games, period, at around a 60 combined mpg. Timmy meanwhile needs to sit out all B2Bs, mandatory. I want him playing about 65 games.
Mainly what this group needs though, is for Hill to take another quantum leap in his development, Blair to work on his defense, and to find a fourth guard they can count on. I don't know if that's Temple, that French guy we drafted last year, some kid we'll draft this year, or what, but it can't be
Bogans or Mason.
At small forward we have to hope and pray that RJ improves in his second year in the system, but I'm very pessimistic. He's just too much of a headcase IMO. Plus, he's not a 3 pt shooter. I think if he's going to be here, then Pop has to spend some time scheming to figure out how to use his strengths and hide his (considerable) weaknesses.
I would also hope that Hairston will be a rotation player next year. I don't like this three guard lineup of TP-Manu-Hill. They do alright on offense, but ultimately it hurts too much on D. Just not much size or rebounding there. I think we need to play a legit SF at all times.
Finally, I hope they re-sign Bonner. Yeah, he's not a great player, but I don't think he's the problem. He fits into our system, he generally shoots pretty well, his offensive game is getting better slowly but surely now that he can put it on the floor a bit, and I think he's still a worthwhile 4th or 5th big. Pop's system calls for a big guy who can hit threes and there simply aren't too many of those guys around. I think Bonner showed good character ending the year with two solid games. A lot of guys would've just gone into the tank and sulked and hanged their head. Bonner competed, no matter what the haters think.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
