The weekly Belli thread...

[ElNono]

"New" is always a blank check, tbh. Also, most players give their best effort when they're on a new team... there's motivation there (for a guy like Neal so much more, since he was trying to actually make the league). I'm happy for him he did make it.

I thought he developed into "undersized talented offensive guard". There's a place in this league for him.

I also think the Spurs post-Kawhi started to zero-in again on defense, and at the SG spot, Danny started to need more minutes. Patty fills the PG spot much more naturally with the same offensive mindset. That's why I think the Spurs just didn't want to put a lot of money there. Marco is a bit bigger, you can alternate him and Danny at backup SF if you need to. On paper, I was pleased with the deal. Obviously, it's up to Marco to live up to expectations.

[blkroadrunners]

I just hope Marco doesn't phase out within these 2 years like Roger Mason Jr. did. At least Neal was consistent during his tenure with the Spurs, and had a few playoff moments.

[Captivus]

I need a bigger sample.
The only thing I can say is that I have seen Neal win games almost by himself, in those crazy shooting nights. And I dont think we can say that "Spurs lost this game becuase of Neal" because he was not responsible of winning, like the big 3, maybe even the big 4.

So, ATM, I like Belli, but he is like meh...and there were a few games this season in which I wanted to have Neal to come in and see if he could score like we know he can.

Bigger sample.
(my english sucks more than usual)

[benefactor]

Umm...the Spurs only loss is a game Beli almost won by himself.

[exstatic]

Umm...the Spurs only loss is a game Beli almost won by himself.

Yeah, he was drilling it vs Portland.

[CaptainLate]

Anything is better than Neal.

From what little action I've seen here in Boom Town west Texas, knowledgeable fans can see Belinelli's ball-handling will be a vast improvement over what Neal had to offer last year. Stupid (as in slow to learn, and now too late) Pop should have never used Neal as a backup PG.

[CaptainLate]

Yeah, he was drilling it vs Portland.

Buck Harvey has a recent article for the dying Express News "pay to read" crowd. Can't wait for the newsprint media to finally fold. 75% of the they put out is advertising.

[look_at_g_shred]

I really like the way he and Manu control the second unit. Moves without the ball well, good passer, and great BBIQ. Some of his shots are a little iffy. For example, his midrange off balance fade aways he like to do, but all his other assets make up for that. Plus, if all else fails, he can just give his defender something long and thick to eat!

[Cowboys_Wear_Spurs]

Marco gets it, not trying to do to much and learning the system with success.

That's the big one. You can tell he was struggling early on with the defensive rotation and even the offensive positioning of play. But things seem to click for him in the Knicks game, and it carried forward to the Philly game. Looking forward to seeing how he does tonight against the Wiz.

[Darkwaters]

Czar, there's a big difference with Gary though. With Gary there was seemingly room to develop him, and that invited more questions. Marco comes in as a much more seasoned player, and the question with him is "will he fit?".

In all fairness, I don't think the prevailing hope of anyone in the front office was that we could develop Neal. He was 26 when he came over for Summer League was already known as an established European player. The question was more, does he have enough ability to stick? Does he have that one undeniable skill that makes him an NBA asset? And frankly, he made that abundantly clear within just a couple of otherwise meaningless SL matches. The vast majority of his "development" just came from familiarization with the Spurs system.

[hater]

Anything is better than Neal.

[hater]

Marco is the best signing in Spurs history.

book it

told ya s

Using both Manu + Beli might be a good idea. I am for anything that avoids having Manu hog the ball at the point and then proceed to pass it to an open Heat player or the lady in the first row.

Marco = Class A player

Neal = Class B player

it's that simple

props to lefty, hifi and other quality posters too imo

yes !!!!


Finally someone with cojones !

timvp... not so much

I should clarify on the Neal comparison: If you're comparing Belinelli to the plantar fasciitis+calf strain+achilles tendinitis Neal that we saw a majority of last season, then yeah Belinelli is better. But if you're comparing Belinelli to the Neal of his first two seasons and the Neal that began last year, Neal is probably better. Belinelli has room to improve (Neal doesn't) so maybe Belinelli can surpass what a healthy Neal could provide but it's far from a lock.

oh and my man rogue who's usually 100% on point, thank me for not pulling up your initial thoughts either

[ElNono]

In all fairness, I don't think the prevailing hope of anyone in the front office was that we could develop Neal. He was 26 when he came over for Summer League was already known as an established European player. The question was more, does he have enough ability to stick? Does he have that one undeniable skill that makes him an NBA asset? And frankly, he made that abundantly clear within just a couple of otherwise meaningless SL matches. The vast majority of his "development" just came from familiarization with the Spurs system.

I don't know about "established", but he was certainly a known prospect. I mean, if his game was so well known, another team would've picked him up before we did. It's difficult making the jump from Europe. Most players need a season or two to get acclimated to the NBA.

[Darkwaters]

I don't know about "established", but he was certainly a known prospect. I mean, if his game was so well known, another team would've picked him up before we did. It's difficult making the jump from Europe. Most players need a season or two to get acclimated to the NBA.

Definitely established. I'm not saying he was a superstar, but he had great success playing both in Spain and Italy. I saw him in person once in Treviso where he was the lifeblood of that offense. Trust me, he was established.

There are plenty of players that are tearing it up in Europe that wouldn't be able to translate their game to the NBA. Neal looked like one of those guys. The biggest knock on Neal has always been his limited athleticism and, to a lesser degree, his less than ideal height for the 2 guard. That scared teams away. But the Spurs needed shooting pretty desperately, and a Summer League invite isn't much to wager in a hail mary that maybe nets you something worthwhile. Neal was that hail mary, and despite his flaws, his shooting was good enough that he warranted a roster spot. The rest is history. Neal was never a "can't miss" prospect. If he were he probably never goes to Europe at all. But when given a small window of opportunity he seized it. You gotta respect that.

[CGD]

Damn good value. Upgrade over Neal.

We we should be asking this about Ayers tbh

[ElNono]

Definitely established. I'm not saying he was a superstar, but he had great success playing both in Spain and Italy. I saw him in person once in Treviso where he was the lifeblood of that offense. Trust me, he was established.

There are plenty of players that are tearing it up in Europe that wouldn't be able to translate their game to the NBA. Neal looked like one of those guys. The biggest knock on Neal has always been his limited athleticism and, to a lesser degree, his less than ideal height for the 2 guard. That scared teams away. But the Spurs needed shooting pretty desperately, and a Summer League invite isn't much to wager in a hail mary that maybe nets you something worthwhile. Neal was that hail mary, and despite his flaws, his shooting was good enough that he warranted a roster spot. The rest is history. Neal was never a "can't miss" prospect. If he were he probably never goes to Europe at all. But when given a small window of opportunity he seized it. You gotta respect that.

I'm 100% happy he made the league. He worked hard for it. Thanks for the other info.

[temujin]

Neal in Europe had at ude problems.
He was fired by Treviso, for example, and for a reason.
He has been always capable to shoot and Pop's system worked wonders for him.

As for Beli, he is ahead of schedule in terms of how he fits.
He is more than average on defense, in my opinion.
What I think Pop likes is that he has a high BB IQ.

On the other hand, I thought he could do better with his shot.
I think I see some changes in the mechanics and I wonder whether Engelland has something to do with it.

At any rate, I do expect him to take a few "ignorant shots" of his, and he could win as many games as Neal did last year.

[SpursDynasty21]

The Spurs should keep Belinelli around longer than just the contract he signed. He's a great fit.

[jeebus]

Anything is better than Neal.

[hater]

Anything is better than Neal

Neal 14pts 3rbs 4ast 53% from 3

Beno 2pts 1rb 1ast 0% from 3

- no longer in the nba

[Spurs Brazil]

He's playing well, his defense is better then I expected

[spurraider21]

I liked Neal and still do. He was a good backup player and good shooters with scoring ability will always find a spot in the league. Bellineli's ball handling ability makes him more useful for our squad though with Manu aging

[monkeypunk]

- no longer in the nba

actually plays for Utah but with their team, might as well be unemployed...

[jeebus]

Neal 14pts 3rbs 4ast 53% from 3

Beno 2pts 1rb 1ast 0% from 3

- no longer in the nba

Anything is better than Neal.