Reflecting on What Went Wrong

[bigfan]

Outstanding assessment TIMVP and I agree with you on damn near everything but two issues I didnt see you address were the Oberto situation and Splitter splitting. Ive always believed Fabricio is a servicable center, not a great one but ok, but I think the heart issue is a big problem for the guy. No coach wants to chew ass on a player to player harder on the court then have him drop dead like Pistol Pete or whoever. Re Splitter, this is one where the front office should have known the guys plans before they wasted a pick on him (and counting on him to show up). Im looking forward to your comments on the upcoming season, keep up the good work!

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

I agree with most of it, good stuff. Looking forward to the future.

IMO, the most important thing you noted was this: Even if fully healthy, the Spurs were not winning a le. All of the other stuff is trivial really (Injuries, coaching mistakes...). I think every fan, although hard to admit, knew this.

I think the coaches knew this and so did Tim, TP and Manu. So all of the other problems do not matter (injuries do obviously) relatively speaking. The Spurs need major upgrades to close the wide gap between them and the Lakers.

Who knows if it is possible within the Spurs system? But healthy or not, the Spurs cannot win unless they upgrade significantly.

If they knew they weren't going to win, it made no sense to give Finley the run he was given, or give up on guys like Hill and Hairston.

Call a spade a spade - Pop had his worst coaching job in a good 6-7 years last season.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

not if they trade both for superstars

Lol, ducks advocating trading Tim and Manu, yet keeping Parker. I'm shocked.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Matt Bonner was Pop playing what he was delt. Had the front office known Oberto would have zero gas left, and Mahinmi would injure his ankle for 15 months in a row, i guarantee you we sign another big man some way, earlier.... which is why you saw us go after Gooden when he became available.

I just hope Mahinmi isn't a total abortion, if the guy can jump (and is not a wuss) he will already improve our front court dramatically, beyond that we need length and athleticism. ASAP.

We had Gooden, Pop still rode the Red Rocket into the off-season.

[DPG21920]

If they knew they weren't going to win, it made no sense to give Finley the run he was given, or give up on guys like Hill and Hairston.

Call a spade a spade - Pop had his worst coaching job in a good 6-7 years last season.

We all acknowledged Pop had a terrible year (except EricPark). The point is that even if he had his best year, the Spurs do not win.

He should have gone with Hill, especially given the cir stances, but it was one of Pop's admitted mistakes.

[lurker23]

Good post timvp. I'm glad that you put injuries first; as much work as this roster may need, anyone who says injuries weren't the #1 contributing factor to the Spurs first round exit needs to go back and look at playoff video of a healthy Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan.

One thing that was striking to me toward the end of the year was the poor defense the Spurs were playing. I think your comments about George Hill and Bruce Bowen were a factor in this, although I think you also have to consider the important role of chemistry. The only time the Spurs were stable throughout the year was early on when Manu and Tony were out; the team showed true Spurs resolve, chemistry, and defense. From that point onward, there always seemed to be pieces being pulled in and out of the system, and no consistency or chemistry could form; this lasted all the way through the first round. Some of this can be blamed on injuries, and some can be blamed on Pop. Nevertheless, I look forward to the refreshing possibility of having the same lineup in for 20 straight games next year.

Back in late January, you and I had the following exchange regarding Matt Bonner:

Matt Bonner is looking more and more like a legitimate NBA starter. Against the Blazers, I was pleased with the level of tenacity he illustrated on the defensive end. At times he’d make a mistake or find himself out of position but instead of giving in, Bonner fought through it and ultimately turned in a very good defensive performance. He pestered Aldridge and also pulled down nine rebounds – many of which were highly contested. On offense, Bonner played under control and knocked down a number of key buckets.

-I'm so happy for Matt Bonner. Before the year I said a lot of things like "Bonner is a legitimate NBA player" and that he could be a "solid contributor" if given the proper minutes. However, I'd probably be stretching the truth a bit if I said I expected him to be a legitimate starting big man on a championship-contending team. I just hope he can keep it up in the playoffs.

Great call. I remember you being one of the few who insisted during the summer that Bonner's best was yet to come. I honestly thought that he'd never gain Pop's trust. Thankfully Bonner has played well and Pop has gone the extra mile to give Bonner every opportunity to succeed in the last few months.

In retrospect, I think we were deluding ourselves a bit. Any good role player can look like a legitimate starter for periods of time, but in the end they are role players for a reason. Whether that reason be stamina, consistency, clutchness, or cajones, they eventually show you why they are just role players. As big a Matt Bonner fan as I am, I think we saw in this past season that Bonner is a good role player, but, at least in this point in his development, is not a legitimate starter, particularly on a playoff team in prime time situations.

[wildbill2u]

"The perceived lack of interest from Pop by the time the playoffs came around was heart breaking. Game 3 against Dallas has to be up there with the worst display of disinterest from a coaching staff for a playoff game. That one game really hurt. I thought it resumed pretty well what the end of the season was like from a coaching standpoint: stick with my stubborn plan until we flame out. And flame out we did."

I kinda tthought the same thing at the time: Pop isn't into this game. Is he throwing it? Then I thought about it.

Maybe Pop was showing someone in the FO or the owner that the team needed to be revived by a big roster shakeup and more money spent. We simply haven't kept up with the rest of the league in the roster from spots 4-12.

[lotr1trekkie]

It's such a to be a Spurs fan! Kudos to TIMVP for laying out the problems of last season. However the mistakes started with trading Scola's rights before Splitter was signed. Then Mahimni's ankle! Then Manu's ankles! The botton line for every team in the West is----HOW DO YOU IMPROVE ENOUGH TO GET PAST THE LAKERS? If the Spurs can't they should stick to the 2010 plan. Thomas, Vaughn, Ime, Bonner, Oberto & Finley are all one demensional players and expendable. When any of the BIG 3 were inoperative, last year's bench was inadequate to make up the difference. End of story.

[SenorSpur]

Glad the time off helped recharge the batteries. Excellent write up.

Of the 3 main concerns outlined, there are 2 that concern me most. In fact, it's the 2 areas that CAN be positively affected: Coaching Mistakes and Lack of Talent.

The coaching mistakes were the most puzzling because Pop's forte has always been solid execution at both ends of the floor, maximizing the talent he has and putting his team in the best possible positions to succeed. He failed miserably with both the Mason backup PG experiment and the unexplained and unnecessary banisment of Hill. Also, it should be mentioned that Pop failed to cultivate anything from the end of his bench, during this lost season. With Manu's injury ending any chances for a sustained playoff run, there was a golden opportunity presented to get longer looks at Gooden, Hill, Hairston and Williams. Utilizing Bowen over Finley was a given. In my opinion, there was nothing to be gained from Pop's stubborn decision to overplay unproductive veterans.

The lack of talent was all too obvious - even before the awful drubbing at the hands of the Mavericks in the first round of the playoffs. Injuries not withstanding, how the FO could've deluded themselves into thinking this bunch could compete with the Fakers, is beyond me. The 2008 WCF series loss to the Fakers was indictment enough to warrant the type of quasi roster overhaul that we're expecting this summer. In my opinion, there was nothing to be gained from not having upgraded the talent level more so than they did, last summer.

[Yuixafun]

wow, great piece of work!

a few thoughts:

I wouldn't rank Pop's try to play Mason at the point as a coaching mistake in the first place. I think it was a try for a damage control. RM was running out of gas in the middle of the season, not a persistent athlete to begin with, he also had to compensate for the loss of Manu at the begin of the season. Mason had to play 30+ minutes and had to defend the starter SGs from other teams, usually guys much more athletic than him. that depleted him. I think Pop tried to find a new role for him, one that was less exhausting. didn't work as we know. still worth the try IMO.
the question is: what role is Mason able to cover next season.
(in the best case Manu is back totally healthy and plays his usual 30 minutes and RM takes what is left at SG and a few in other line ups, likely small lineup alongside Manu, so his minutes are limited to about 20.)

lack of talent: that's probably the dark spot in the decisions of Pop and RC of the last years. limited money, late picks etc. are of course a big reason, but there are still some questions remaining. from whatever perspective we look at it, many decisions of the last years don't look good. and it can't always be blamed on the others to be responsible. the lack of talent is the result of a lot of misjudgement.
however, even the failed tries from the last months give hope, that it could have went into the right direction, because at least the ideas looked right. like trading for Salmons. (probably they should have tried harder and added some more teasers). or Mike Miller. or for Camby. or sign Maggette. (no matter what people say today. if he had signed for the MLE last year, our season would have looked better). even the plan to sign Bouroussis wasn't a bad idea IMO. (luckily also the not so good ideas failed. like signing Najera or Giricek)
so let's hope there is still the willingness for a significant move this summer, to at least get a quality role player.

Excellent post. That's the way I saw it go down with Mason too, but your words added clarity.

Glad to see some people are willing to dig deeper and use their own intelligence, when it's easy to just say Pop "DESTROYED Mason's confidence! He sucks!" and other hot potato phrases attempting to be passed off as knowledge.

The status of Ginobili had to play a part in the vacillation of the FO on making a strong move in one direction when there were several gaps to address.

Having a healthy hungry Manu will be a revelation.

The most frustrating aspect of this season for me was the lack of execution, the mental mistakes, especially so late. It's tough enough to win against an opponent, but when you battle yourself too?
I never heard Duncan say "it was a mental mistake on my part" as many times as he did during this season. Hard to fault him though with the amount of pain he was playing through. The team on a whole just failed to convert on those little plays that wins games.

The season wasn't a total wash. Hopefully it adds a little more fire to our boys belly that was lacking. Pop had an opportunity to try some different looks, strategies even if they didn't work out. Now he knows. And we learned Hill is a playoff guy. I love what I heard from his interview after the Spurs were eliminated. He gets it.

[slayermin]

Nice post.

I still like the Red Rocket. He isn't clutch but true clutch players are rare. He is a viable option against certain teams and in that respect, he's an asset. He shot 44% from three last season. Hedo wasn't considered clutch either but look what he did this year with the Magic. I do know he's gonna give you everything he's got. I saw improvement in him from the previous year.

George Hill in the playoffs showed he isn't scared. I want to temper my expectations for him but it's hard to expect big things.

Man, I hope Manu comes back healthy.

[timvp]

Thank you Pop for letting me come back from my vacation before making the trade

[Mel_13]

In the coming 48 hours, I hope to outline my beliefs of what the Spurs should do during this offseason to return to the top.

This job just got much easier!

[timvp]

This job just got much easier!

I was almost done with the next thread. 1200 words down the drain.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]