I'd rather see Dan Gadzuric. He's got size, he's a solid rebounder, and he's a better post defender than Bonner.
Grab Wright and Ajinca - both would be projects, but because of the scheduling being squeezed together they would get some playing time and might develop. A 6'8" SF and a 7'2" C - how bad could they really be? At least you're getting a shot blocker in Ajinca.
I know it's desperate, but standing pat is even more desperate. Spurs have to address their lack of length - Leonard's definitely a start but why stop there?
Spurs have enough projects already, no more needed at this time..If they would take a 1 yr contract, maybe, if not, save your cap room for next season and go after some real players
Joey Dorsey: playing in Europe. Not that we wanted his under-achieving ass. Every time I see that name, though, it reminds me of Houston and Batum.
D.J Mbenga: can be counted on to average a double-double. Meaning 2 points and 2 boards.
Alexis Ajinca: Would be a perfect replacement for Bonner... except he can't shoot the 3. And he averages about 8 fouls per 36 minutes.
Jason Smith: Passive-aggressive. Except for the aggressive part. Anyone looking for a 7-footer who has developed a fair outside shot so that he can avoid all that ugly contact around the basket? At least he isn't foul-prone.
Francisco Elson: Stupid smart person, or smart stupid person? Always in the right place to get the rebounds that bounce his way.
Dan Gadzuric: Tall. Shoots FT's badly enough to be a Spur. Tall. By signing him and Elson, the Spurs could virtually OWN all fans from the Netherlands. Isn't he tied to a contract in China?
Troy Murphy: Will probably play for about half of what he got paid last season. We still can't afford it.
Leon Powe: Boston fans would love to see him return. He wants to return to Boston. Boston needs some help in the middle. The Celtics announced they are "not interested in Leon Powe". They know him better than anyone. Take a hint.
Reggie Evans: 6'8". Actually rebounded at a higher rate than Blair last season. Shoots like those people trying to hit the trashcans at halftime. Basketball IQ is as high as most of the Silver Dancers.
No one mentioned the corpse of Joe Smith who, at 36, might still be better than a lot of the other names on the list.
Well done GSH 10/10 hahah
sounds like a good plan, but at this point I'd predict these 2 players have a better chance of panning out than the Spurs FO has in signing a real player.
I keep hearing "next year", but what makes the Spurs in that much of a better position "next year"? Timmy's contract's up, but even with that extra $ the Spurs are not necessarily a more desirable situation for a free agent. The chances of overpaying become more of a danger at that point.
If the Spurs are waiting for "next year", why not shed some of the dead weight this year?
Ajinca is one of the most frequent foulers in the nba, worse than Hasheem Thabeet or Johan Petro in the fouls per 48 minute category. He's coincidentally tied in that category with a former famous spurstalk luminary: Ian 'The Savior" Mahinmi.
Spurs will need to add a big before the season starts. It's just a matter of who at this point. Someone at training camp, a D-leaguer, somebody off our radar, who knows? I'm liking the idea of Tiago really getting thrown in the fire, but we'll have to get someone else. I am excited to see JA and Kawhi get some pt, especially with Neal out. Hopefully the hungry youth and the wise veterans can work together and surprise a few folks......
Having a guy willing to foul would have helped a lot against Gasol and Randolph last year.
lol GSH. Pretty much.
That's the problem I have with Bonner. Instead of giving up the easy basket or the and-one he should take the hard foul. It might dissuade guys from attacking him so much.
I see what you're saying, but I'm not even sure the hard fouls are necessary. The simple fact that Bonner can't bother anyone's shot is a huge problem. Mahinmi might foul out in ten minutes, but that's the better of the two choices. Guys hitting baskets create momentum, and free throws disrupt it. The last thing you want is a bunch of guys on the other team feeling like they're having a good shooting night.
The spurs need to start Tiago not en Bonner.
True, but that's not even the problem. Bonner has been in the big man rotation since he's been on the team, which is not what he does. Just because you can put a tape measure up to the top of his head and get close to seven feet doesn't mean he's able to play the 4 or the 5 in the NBA. He's a shooter who happens to be tall, so you can put him in situations where you need someone to shoot, but he should only be in there as long as he's hitting shots. That's never been the case with him, and logic means nothing to the coach who keeps putting him (and the team) in a position to fail.The spurs need to start Tiago not en Bonner.
One guy I would look at as a trade target would be Donte Greene of the Kings. He had a disappointing 3rd season last year, but his 2nd season stats were interesting: 3pt % of 37.7%, FG% of 44%, 8.5 ppg in 21 mpg, but more importantly he is thought of as a defensive specialist, and considered by some to be the best defender on that team. He's 6'11" now, having grown at least 2" since he was drafted in '08. Espn lists him as the 3rd SF in the depth charts behind Salmons and Francisco Garcia, so it possibly wouldn't take much to land him. His shooting percentages took a nosedive last year, but his defense only got better and he actually had a small positive on floor/off floor rating. At 6'11" he could be a 3rd string PF against less bulky opposing bigs, and as a SF he'd be an improvement defensively over Jefferson. His salary this year is 1.68 million. It wouldn't be an earth-shaking move, but it would be a cheap experiment that could help a bit.
you think Ajinca would play 48 minutes? He avg'd under 2.5 fouls in about 10 minutes last year, so that's 5 fouls in about 20 minutes - more than mpg than he should play. A big that is foul prone is better than big that plays no defense and can't rebound.
Well, Spurs picked Richard Jefferson as Richard Jefferson replacement.
He doesn't foul because he's playing aggressive defense. He's incredibly long, and can get off the ground. Anything right in front of him, and moving forward, he has a shot at blocking. Anything moving laterally he has a problem with, and he has to reach. They aren't tough, banging fouls. They're cheap, send-em-to-the-line fouls.
The other really bad sign - when a guy that big shoots .444 from the floor, there's a reason. He should be making a lot of his points right at the basket, and shooting around .500. He's not strong enough, and doesn't have any moves in the post. He's very close to dead wood.
not too concerned with his offense, but it's still comparable to Bonner's Fg%/PHP and you'll get more blocks and rebounds too. I don't think you're asking for a lot of lateral movement from a 7 footer. He weighs 250 lbs - teach him how-to foul since that's easier than teaching t-rex to jump.
Given the development of KL and Green, as well as RJ's decent level of play, would we have been better off with any of the players on the original list that signed for the MLE or less?
, would we have been better off with any of the players who signed for more than the MLE?
I don't think so.
Wait, are you saying the Spurs front office, who've put together 4 championship teams in 13 years, know what they're doing? And 90% of Spurstalk posters who repeatedly bashed them/Pop prior to this season were wrong?
That's not what I was saying.
No. And yes. Caron Butler is looking pretty good, a definite upgrade from RJ.
However, I get your point and agree that things have worked out well. I favoured amnestying RJ and going ahead with Leonard/JA/Green before the season, but RJ provides pure shooting that JA clearly can't at this point, and we saved the amnesty, so it has worked out well so far.
I would agree that you can make a case for Butler, but I'd rather have RJ with the possibility of the amnesty than Butler at 3/24.
I had the same opinion that you expressed in your second paragraph, but I'm happy with the way things turned out.
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