Gary at the half...

[ElNono]

The biggest difference between Neal and RMJ for me is that Neal tries really hard on D. He's not afraid to body up and he's a lot tougher physically. I also don't cringe when I see him start dribbling the ball. But above all, even when not scoring, he's making good decisions out there (at least for a rook) as far as who to pass to or what to do when he can't take a shot.

[bigfan]

Ill tell you one thing, not being drafted and playing in Turkey and wherever has made him hungry. Having talent and being hungry is a good thing for the Spurs. I wonder what you would have to spend normally for a free agent to get Neal's points every night? Im glad he's here.

[Agloco]

Gary's already shown more in 1/2 season than RMJ ever did. He's shown that he can put the ball on the floor and not have it always be a disaster. He can go to his mid-range game, and he's shown an ability to kick out, particularly to Dice recently.

The biggest difference between Neal and RMJ for me is that Neal tries really hard on D. He's not afraid to body up and he's a lot tougher physically. I also don't cringe when I see him start dribbling the ball. But above all, even when not scoring, he's making good decisions out there (at least for a rook) as far as who to pass to or what to do when he can't take a shot.

This. It was always 3-ball or bust so to speak. If he ever got run off of the 3 point line, it was a disaster in the making. The guy couldn't make anything from 20 feet and in and it got worse the closer he got. Couldn't pass either.

It's clear that Neal >> RMJ

I just hope Pop doesn't destroy this guys confidence as well by making him play out of position. Both Neal and RMJ were brought in to shoot. Thus far, Neal has been allowed to fulfill his role.

[Seventyniner]

in RMJ's first couple of months with SA and playing well, i never bought into the hype. one of the reasons was because his shots were always REALLY hard shots. it seemed like half of his shots were either a foot behind the line or well-guarded or off balance. he was obviously playing well, but his confidence was what was carrying him, not his actual skill. once he started to bad we saw it was a fraud, so to speak, because we got to see what his skill level was.

RMJ shot more jumpers with a foot on the 3-point line than the rest of the league combined, it seemed. You're right that many of those were drifting to his left or right (which greatly increases the difficulty of the shot) or, like you said, were off-balance. He was more a chucker than a shooter (yes, there is a difference).

[Spurs Brazil]

When I first saw Neal was in the preseason game against the Clippers and I thought he would be RMJ II.
But he has been great all season. He’s a tough kid and I’m sure he’ll help us a lot in the playoffs. He’s never afraid to shot and that’s good. His D is getting better and better.
Excellent work for the Spurs front-office.

[BlairForceDejuan]

Gary Neal has no fear.

[boutons_deux]

Gary has tons of self-confidence, but without the hubris and over-confidence. You can see he's really displeased with himself when he screws up, his own worst critic.

Another Spurs undrafted diamond in the rough.

[Amuseddaysleeper]

Neal has been everything we hoped RMJ would be at 20% of the price. Great job by the FO x2 for finding the guy and then locking him for 3 years at the minimum.

That's the other thing with Neal. I remember being fairly surprised he was given a 3 year deal while being so unproven in the NBA.

But like you said, kudos to the FO, they locked up a very solid player at a bargain price.

[K-State Spur]

In addition to having a better rounded game compared to RMJ - you just have to look at RMJ's performance as an outlier.

Mason got off to a spectacular start in Spurs career, and then - just as inexplicably as he burst onto the scene - just wilted.

[ShoogarBear]

Let's wait and see what happens after Pop makes him play point guard in the playoffs.

[01Snake]

I bet Gary is saying WTF?

James Anderson $1,361,400
DeJuan Blair $918,000
George Hill $854,389
Gary Neal $525,000
Chris Quinn $804,131
Tiago Splitter $3,400,000

[Dex]

I bet Gary is saying WTF?

James Anderson $1,361,400
DeJuan Blair $918,000
George Hill $854,389
Gary Neal $525,000
Chris Quinn $804,131
Tiago Splitter $3,400,000

If I were Gary, I'd just be happy to be in the league and getting minutes, let alone with the league's leader.

If he keeps it up, he'll get his big paycheck.

[Sissiborgo]

Gary Neal is the deal we needed of the bench...