I for one believe that Finley-after the injuries and missed opportunities--relishes the idea of coming off the bench and keeping the wear and tear to a minimum. He just significantly extended his longevity as a player.
I think Pop will start Finley in situational/pivotal games similar to Brent Barry starting over Manu in the 2005 playoffs. There may be times when the other team's SF won't require the legendary Bruce Bowen defense. It remains to be seen but I think Bowen's mpg will have a significant decrease.
Pop didn't start Barry because the Spurs faced pivotal games against Denver and Seattle. Pop started Barry because the Spurs desperately needed an offensive force coming off the bench, and only Manu could realistically step back and provide that. The point of signing Finley isn't to change the starting lineup. It's to make sure that Pop won't have to put Manu on the bench against deep teams to ensure that the Spurs maintain offensive continuity.
Unless Pop has changed his philosophy since June 23, he's all about keeping things consistent -- that means you won't see much game-by-game tweaking of the starting lineup unless there are major injuries or a surprising decline from a starter.
I do think that Finley and Barry allow Pop to limit the minutes that Manu and Bruce play during the regular season without sacrificing games for that purpose. But in saving minutes, it will be the subs ution pattern that changes, not the lineup.
No.
Bowen will always be a great starter for the Spurs to dismiss the opponent top scorer, such as Allen, Carter, Wade, Marrion, Rip, Billup, etc.
Finley may play 2 or 3 when Manu or Bowen needs rest, or the Spurs need to adjust some play by occassions.
LOL
Bowen is going to DS kobe bryant this year
DS him i say!
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