Most posters on the forum were big fans of his potential back in the "dark days" of the Spurs(2008-2010)..we would get frustrated with the lack of commitment towards him, especially with the lack of alternatives in the front court..to be fair, he didn't take full advantage of the opportunities when given to him, though..
With that being said, even as a fan, I'm very surprised that he has become as good as he is, this year..it could be a fluke year, as it's a little late to magically become a new player(29 years old), but he has been the 2nd best player(when healthy) on a playoff team, this season, and a legit MIP candidate(although McCollum has it locked)..
17 PER, 61% TS, great on/off numbers..similar numbers to what Tim has been doing IIRC
He still has trouble with fouling and staying healthy..
Anybody else surprised by the year he's having? Or do you believe it's an anomalous season?
He's been working on his game for a while. So a lot of it is just his improvement. But he's also really benefiting from the new style of play the Pacers are running with. When PG was the PF, you had that 1-in system that works great for finishing bigs. He's also in a contract year, and that can never be discounted, especially since this should be the most important contract of his career.
He always had the athleticism, he just could never figure it out. I guess with age and responsibility, you finally do figure it out.
Needs to be in the NBA forum.
He's got excellent timing. Having your best season in a contract year while heading into a summer when the cap explodes is brilliant. Hard to believe, but we're likely to see Ian Mahinmi get an 8 figure salary this summer. Talk about your genetic lottery winners.
Ian got an opportunity to break the starting 5 of Pacers and all the merit for him to have been able to take advantage of that. He did not change drastically at 29 y/o from his Spurs years tbh, he is just a player that can't get going with spot minutes here and there and feels more comfortable with steady minutes every game and the trust of the coach. Pacers and him have been "lucky" to figure that out but they deserve also praise to work on his fools trouble issues. I think Pop has not been patient enough, we know he hates giving opponents easy FTs, that's probably one specific drawback of a player that he cannot stand tbh
Now we will see if he can keep up and be consistent in this role which I personnally doubt, time will tell tho.
All in all, Ian is a good guy, very coachable, likeable... I'm happy for him.
He's basically on a similar career path as Brandan Wright except he wasn't a lotto pick. They are both slightly built centers who get in foul trouble although Wright is offense minded while Ian is on the floor for his defense.
Like I've been saying, if Ian's season isn't a fluke then he can play an Ezeli type role on a contender. If Tim retires & West doesn't opt-out then PATFO can go after Ian. (He can come off the bench with Boris while West starts: put an end to the Turd Towers!)
Pau suck on defense outside of rim protection so I'm not sure he's a good fit with LMA & Noah is a diva so I'm not sure he's willing to come off the bench.
Does Ian still have a relationship with the Spurs?(I assume he does with Tony and Diaw)
I think I remember seeing pictures of him working out with some Spurs during the off-season a few years ago, but I could be mistaken..
Yep, count me in as a fan of Mahinmi's potential while he was here. I never really understood why imo he didn't seem to get the time to develop here. There have been worse players with far less potential occupying the Spurs bench. During those years, when it looked as if Tim's wheels were about to fall off, I thought a young, athletic, defensive minded center like Mahinmi was exactly what the Spurs and Tim needed. Instead, if I remember correctly, the Spurs trotted out the likes of an undersized DeJuan Blair and old guys like Antonio McDyess and Kurt Thomas.
In any event, good for Ian. Seems like a good guy. I hope his success and development continues.
I remember a game, I think it was against the Nets in 2010, where Ian had a break out game..it was after the Spurs didn't pick up his option for next season IIRC
The forum exploded..he didn't play in the next game, which led to a subsequent meltdown
Back in the "Mahinmi and Hairston" savior days..the desperation to replace Keith Bogans, Kurt Thomas and Finley..
Summer 2013:
Good find, that's the picture I was thinking of IIRCSummer 2013:
Sign BOTH Hibby/IanSummer 2013:
if both Tim/Boban bolt.
Stfu got. Why don't you find another forum to up?
I think he was well liked by the Spurs.
I always thought they should have been more patient with him, however it's taken him 6 years post Spurs to get where he is today.
He has definitely improved his foul rate. This year he is at 4.5/36 minutes,his lowest by far.
As far as next year- I'm always hesitant about players having a good year in a contract year.
That's why you get Hibbert as an insurance
i'd rather have bonner back than bring hibbert aboardSign BOTH Hibby/Ian
Said no one ever.
We have a young guy in Austin, Youssou Ndoye, that is 7'0 250 lbs. and is getting some really good numbers in limited time. A project like Mahinmi, but already better and stronger than Mahinimi was at this age. (24) Actually they have some other interesting players up there.
Yes Tony, Boris and the staff of FNT are staying in touch with him obviously so Spurs have direct info if they want to. On top of that Ian has good relations with George Hill and we know George H still hang around with Spurs players... so yeah he is in Spurs sphere of influence let's say
I hear Beni udrih is available. Does that deserve its own thread?
i don't know, ian looks like he's in good shape
I wonder who that guy that looks like Bosh's mini-me is.Summer 2013:
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