Spurs sign David Lee per Woj

[Drom John]

538 Carmelo for David Lee
Wins Above Replacement Projection
Category: ROTATION PLAYER
5-yr market value: $9.5m

10 most comparable players
1. Anderson Verajao 2016
Other similar former Spurs in non-Spurs years, Rasho Nesterovic, Nazr Mohammed, Antonio McDyess and Frank Brickowski

2017 Value $4.4M
936 MP

[Bearcaught]

Absolutely detest his game and not a fan of signing White American basketball players in 2016(no racist, but 100)

so you wouldn't be a fan of signing jj re ?? seems like a sweeping generalization

[lefty]

Better PG than Porker ......

[I. Hustle]

[I. Hustle]

that has to be the worst signing in spurs history. holy christ, two years..

@ 3.2 mill

[21209]

im happy with this signing. he wont be the "difference maker" but look at gs from 2015 finals and gs from 2016 finals; what was the difference?

No Andrew Bogut in games 6 or 7 for the Warriors.

[TimDunkem]

Raven is a ing idiot.

[SAGirl]

Those 'ol good days.
Spurs "Big Three" not playing in the road but still, the score is close.

We had games like that this season too... won them too (not kept them close)... but there was Boban.

[SAGirl]

538 Carmelo for David Lee
Wins Above Replacement Projection
Category: ROTATION PLAYER
5-yr market value: $9.5m

10 most comparable players
1. Anderson Verajao 2016
Other similar former Spurs in non-Spurs years, Rasho Nesterovic, Nazr Mohammed, Antonio McDyess and Frank Brickowski

2017 Value $4.4M
936 MP

Note all these guys are centers, just FYI.

[SAGirl]

If Pop and RC sold Lee on a "great role" I doubt this is just an insurance signing.

I don't know enough about Dedmon's game to know how Lee fits with him, but I'm sure he'll get a good amt of minutes. Another pick and pop option, not on the LMA level, but another threat

He doesn't Pop. He's a roller and so is Dedmon. He's an undersized center.

[Spur|n|Austin]

kevin martin is a lot better

a lot? come on...

[Leetonidas]

If you're whining about the spurs signing a backup big on a min deal you are re ed tbh. solid addition. spurs needed some scoring from the bigs on the bench. Of the available options he's not a terrible one imo

[BillMc]

According to Bertans, the Spurs told him he'd be playing the four exclusively (though that could just be something that got muddled in the translation). So if you combine that with Anderson playing almost exclusively at PF in the SL, I think Lee is more the third center than he is the full-blown second PF. As I said earlier, this was the type of guy I think the team needed to sign to shore up their front court, which I still expect to go small quite often. Now, they still need depth on the perimeter, and someone like Forbes or Arcidiacono being able to shoot from outside helps address that need as well.

If that's true and Lee was really promised a big role by RC and Pop. Then is our most likely bench line up Mills, Manu, KA or Simmons, Bertans, Lee? Does Dedmon get sent to the deep bench? Or does Lee play the 4 and its Bertans or Kyle who is pushed to garbage time, DNPs?

[DAF86]

So we switched Boris for Diaw?

[Dverde]

I noticed none of the highlights have him in a celtics or mavs uniform. It's an okay signing. Surprise of the offseason for the Spurs.

[SAGirl]

If that's true and Lee was really promised a big role by RC and Pop. Then is our most likely bench line up Mills, Manu, KA or Simmons, Bertans, Lee? Does Dedmon get sent to the deep bench? Or does Lee play the 4 and its Bertans or Kyle who is pushed to garbage time, DNPs?

It was described as a "great role" not a big role. There is a difference because a "great role" lends itself to subjective interpretation. I shudder to think of Bertans/Lee frontcourt. If we were thinking last season's turd towers were bad those two together are likely to be worse.

Bertans has stated that he's been told he will be a 4. http://www.tvnet.lv/sports/basketbol...egribeju_runat There are some translations in the comments section of http://www.poundingtherock.com/2016/...tract#comments. This is what he said:

I don’t speak loudly about NBA and didn’t want to. But I was pretty certain. Basically we had an arrangement that the next step this summer will be SanAntonio. I just don’t like to speak about things like that until it’s 100 percent with the signatures on.
In SanAntonio i will play at power forward position. For now that’s all I’ve been told. I know that defense and rebounds will be priority. Offense will come by itself. I’ve played for coaches who wanted me to play just at SF spot. For example Bagatskis (NT coach) wanted me to play at PF position. I’ve played both forward spots and don’t have problem to adjust.

Basically, I still see Lee as a depth signing. He's a great signing in context. We needed a veteran because our collective bench forwards are too unproven at this point, but they will get their chances, and there wasn't anybody else behind Dedmon in reality. Bertans still needs to earn his playing time on the defensive end... shooting is great and all but if he's not doing what coaches are asking on defense he will get benched on occasion, Pop style. I know Dedmon less, but he's not that experienced either, and although he's older than Bertans and Kyle, he might need even more coaching bc he started playing late in his life. So its a young frontcourt in the bench. Lee is likely to be the 11th man in the roster if others play well, but he needs to be ready to play more if others don't step up, there are injuries, rest, Dedmon is in foul trouble, etc. That can be a great role for a veteran viewed in context, and Pop always finds his veterans playing time. My $0.02 I kind of see him like Rasual Butler. If you remember Rasual had to step in late in the season when Simmons' mistakes got him benched. (then he got cut for Kevin Martin but that had nothing to do with Simmons and more with the shooting slumps of others in the team, and Rasual wasn't shooting well himself either).

[ViceCity86]

We signed the lead singer from Oingo Boingo. Woot!

[sasaint]

kevin martin is a lot better

Are you confusing Kevin Martin as a player with Kevin Martin's contract? IMHO, neither Lee nor Martin is a player the Spurs should have signed, however, Lee's 2-year deal makes him a worse signing.

[sasaint]

If that's true and Lee was really promised a big role by RC and Pop. Then is our most likely bench line up Mills, Manu, KA or Simmons, Bertans, Lee? Does Dedmon get sent to the deep bench? Or does Lee play the 4 and its Bertans or Kyle who is pushed to garbage time, DNPs?

Imo Dedmon must come through for the Spurs next season for us to be serious contenders. I believe he is the true X-factor. Consequently, I would rather have kept Bonner than signed Lee. Bonner would work much better WITH Dedmon.

[Kindergarten Cop]

Are you confusing Kevin Martin as a player with Kevin Martin's contract? IMHO, neither Lee nor Martin is a player the Spurs should have signed, however, Lee's 2-year deal makes him a worse signing.

Many here have mentioned the "2-year deal" when trying to degrade the signing, but it is a veteran minimum deal so the length of the deal is negligible and has virtually no impact on any other transaction that the Spurs will make (especially in the second year of the deal).

When comparing the deal to Kevin Martin's, I believe that you not only have to look at the money and length of the deal - but the expectations as well. Martin was signed to inject instant offense with our second unit and Lee is the 14th or 15th player on our roster with little to no expectations.

[Chinook]

I don't know why people are trying to push this idea that minimum contracts don't affect the cap, but it's coming from a place of ignorance. They do affect the cap, and for a guy like Lee, they affect if more than normal. Lee has the ninth-highest salary on the team, and if he is horrible or gets hurt of whatever, he'll likely have the 10th- or 11th-highest next year. For a team considering using cap space, it's a big deal. It's a REALLY big deal. Between that and Tim, the Spurs have $3 Million in cap space committed next summer to guys who might give the Spurs nothing (might not even be on the team depending on how things go). That's enough to fit in Anderson, Bertans, Simmons AND whichever UDFA makes the team -- combined.

[sasaint]

Many here have mentioned the "2-year deal" when trying to degrade the signing, but it is a veteran minimum deal so the length of the deal is negligible and has virtually no impact on any other transaction that the Spurs will make (especially in the second year of the deal).

When comparing the deal to Kevin Martin's, I believe that you not only have to look at the money and length of the deal - but the expectations as well. Martin was signed to inject instant offense with our second unit and Lee is the 14th or 15th player on our roster with little to no expectations.

I am not certain that Lee or Pop expects him to be a 14th or 15th man. If so, frankly, I would prefer Bonner.

[Mr. Body]

I don't think this is a depth signing, at least an end-of-the-bench signing. I think Lee will get decent playing time.

[Chinook]

I don't think this is a depth signing, at least an end-of-the-bench signing. I think Lee will get decent playing time.

Yeah, while I don't believe Pop straight-up committed to give Lee guaranteed playing time, I think he's the favorite for the 10th spot now. Someone like Simmons or Bertans would have to really out play him. That said, I think he could easily end up just being at center as much as he is at PF. It's just not his game, anymore, and with Anderson and Dedmon as the other front-court players, that just isn't tenable.

[Keepin' it real]

Nice signing by the Spurs.