Game Thoughts: Spurs vs. Jazz -- Nov 3, 2012

[superbigtime]

I think 78 is low for Neal. He did just what he is supposed to do and had zero turnovers. 11 points in 12 minutes and he gets a C?

[crc21209]

It's awesome to see TD doing what he's doing right now. Hopefully Pop can keep him fresh throughout the year to so he can continue to play at this level when it counts in April and May. I was loving the D for the 1st two quarters, and then the 3rd quarter happened, Yikes! But we all know certain guys can light it up in a matter of seconds, and one of those guys is Mo Williams. He's a chucker, but he can be an efficient chucker at times. So, I can't be TOO upset about the D. One thing I hope Pop gives up on is playing Neal at the backup point role. I'm tired of seeing him out there trying to handle the ball. I don't mind him at SG, but PG is another story....

[DPG21920]

I shudder to think about bench production without Manu. I don't think a star level big man is needed, just a different kind of role player than we have now.

Ya, the depth the Spurs have at SG is full of question marks. It would certainly be extremely taxing on the bench to lose Manu (as these early games have shown). It would be a very tough decision because would getting an upgrade of Josh Smith starting over Diaw be worth giving up Manu when Diaw has been a great fit in the starting line up already?

[ChumpDumper]

Ya, the depth the Spurs have at SG is full of question marks. It would certainly be extremely taxing on the bench to lose Manu (as these early games have shown). It would be a very tough decision because would getting an upgrade of Josh Smith starting over Diaw be worth giving up Manu when Diaw has been a great fit in the starting line up already?

I dunno. I can't say Smith would mitigate the resulting PR disaster either.

[DPG21920]

The PR disaster is definitely a huge factor. The good news is that Gino might be able to return next year to the Spurs as a FA (although that might be tough financially for that to be realistic). It would be a very tough decision due to all the factors if that situation actually presented itself.

After taking some time to think about it, my gut says that the Spurs should not trade Manu all things considered. Unless it was a no-brainer crazy deal, even if from a talent/age level the player (like a Josh Smith) might be better currently, I don't know if the net gain would be worth it.

[MaNu4Tres]

The only teams that would entertain Manu in a trade, are teams on the cusp of a le. (Why would teams in the middle of the pack covet a 35 year old player; much less give up valuable younger assets for it?)

If the Hawks, for example, were interested in more cap relief, certainly they could get more in return for Smith by trading for a large expiring of a player of less caliber than Manu ( meaning they'd get better assets attached to the expiring coming in return).

On the other hand, Spurs can't and won't get equal value back for Manu because of his age and with him being an expiring. Even if they could, I still wouldn't trade him. He's invaluable off the bench in more ways than we can count.

Imo, Even if Hawks were interested (which doesn't make sense to me), I don't think Josh Smith starting over Diaw would be worth giving up Manu, when Diaw has been a great fit next to TD.

Spurs just need to improve their 4th big spot in the rotation. One player I'd keep my eyes on is Carl Landry. Come February, once Warriors realize they have no shot at a playoff spot-- Landry will become available.

[snickles]

Emotions (and what could really be serious financial concern with trading Manu) aside - should Manu be on the trade block if it means landing an above average big man?

aside from the logical and emotional reasons against it, doesn't he have a giant trade kicker?

EDIT: google is my friend. he does, but its only 5%.

[DPG21920]

Agree with that - Smith was just an example. Manu only makes sense for a team that feels they can take the next step into legit contender. Not many teams in that realm that would also have a big man they might be willing to part with. The Diaw fit is another good point - I thought the same thing. With how good he has been, any upgrade could seemingly be marginal compared to the hit the bench would take sans Manu.

Really it's the Spurs 3rd and 4th bigs that need to be upgraded. Bonner is done. Blair is seemingly done with the Spurs and as much as some of us believe in Tiago, Pop does not seem to and his play has been inconsistent. Spurs need a legit 3rd big that Pop will trust to play consistently.

[timvp]

I see no realistic scenario in which Ginboili is tradeable. At very best, the Spurs would be simply shifting their area of weakness.

[DPG21920]

Probably agree - however the SG depth appears to be better than the PF/C depth.

[DPG21920]

Another couple interesting observations early on:

1) Pace: Spurs this year are one of the slowest paced teams in the league by rank after being one of the fastest paced teams last season (however, the pace of the league overall has quickened).

2) Offensive efficiency has dipped as well. Spurs are currently 9th with 103 points per 100 possessions when last year they were at 108.

3) Defensive efficency has improved since last year (98 points allowed per 100 possessions compared to 100 last year) but their league rank has remained largely unchanged.

[jesterbobman]

I don't think it makes sense for us to trade Manu, we just won't get enough back unless we're giving up on the season. If a team wanted expirings from us, it's easy to use S-Jax, Splitter, Neal, Blair to have 15m in expiring deals. Trading for an max contract big on an expiring is unrealistic, the other team could just keep him for the savings, or trade for a ty expiring deal + Assets.

I'd be interested in (semi realistic) things like a Jackson+Splitter for Nene swap(If Washington is terrible, would want to add a SF to play 12 minutes), Bonner+Neal for Amir Johnson, Splitter for Udoh(Would need to add a big Center). Doesn't make much sense to trade Manu if the aim is a le(Even if the chance is only 15%)