San Antonio Spurs vs. Portland Trail Blazers Game Thread

[anakha]

Sorry for necroing this post, but something occurred to me and I thought I'd mention it. Hairston was so good that Pop waited until the absolute last second to cut him, so that the other teams were set in their rosters and couldn't claim him. That was deliberate. You don't believe that he'd still be sitting out there if he'd been the first cut, do you?

Given the injury cir stances of the Spurs, is it an absolute given that they will make a play for Hairston (jettisoning Farmer if need be) once Ginobili's back?

[timvp]

Parker is coming off a game where he scored or assisted on at least 46 Spurs points, and he's not a playmaker? WTF?

Yeah, Parker had a hand in 20 of the Spurs 29 fourth quarter points this last game and he's not a playmaker. That included four consecutive assists to cut a 12 point lead down to a two point lead in a matter of 90 seconds. But that's not good enough for Spurs fans.

Amazing.

Sorry for necroing this post, but something occurred to me and I thought I'd mention it. Hairston was so good that Pop waited until the absolute last second to cut him, so that the other teams were set in their rosters and couldn't claim him. That was deliberate. You don't believe that he'd still be sitting out there if he'd been the first cut, do you?

Yeah, I think he'd probably be out there. Second round picks get cut all the time before the seasons starts and its very rare for them to latch on to another team right away. I can't even think of an example of that happening. Heck, the Spurs cut a much higher pick last year (Marcus Williams) and it took him playing well in D-League for him to get scooped up.

Hairston was decently impressive in preseason but there's not much there to label him much higher than a run of the mill talent. I think he'd be a good player for the Spurs to have around but if I'm another team, I don't see enough there to run out and pick him up.

We'll see if Hairston remains a free agent into D-League season. I expect if he plays well in Austin, the Spurs will cut Farmer and sign him to regain his rights. If he doesn't play too well in Austin, they'll probably continue to risk it.

[Obstructed_View]

Yeah, he's going to have to continue to improve. I liked the old days where Pop would give you a chance if you just played defense, and I'm obviously disappointed that guys like Gist and Hairston didn't end up on the team. I like an 81-75 win a whole lot more than a 102-99 loss.

[Obstructed_View]

Given the injury cir stances of the Spurs, is it an absolute given that they will make a play for Hairston (jettisoning Farmer if need be) once Ginobili's back?

There are no guarantees of anything, except when Pop develops a crush. I like Farmer, but I wanted him and Hairston to make the team over Tolliver, who's shown very little other than the ability to be tall when someone measures his height. If LJ's right, and second round picks don't get scooped up, then I'm okay with Hairston developing in Austin. If he's a legitimate defender and a bonafide NBA player he'll make the Spurs roster eventually. I just didn't want him to get away based upon what little I've seen of him.

[pauls931]

I never thought much of Barry thinking he was just a white stiff that could launch 3's but after seeing the alternative on the spurs, I think you miss him. I wish Phoenix could have picked him up.

[SenorSpur]

Hairston was decently impressive in preseason but there's not much there to label him much higher than a run of the mill talent. I think he'd be a good player for the Spurs to have around but if I'm another team, I don't see enough there to run out and pick him up.

I don't think it's a good idea to rush to judgement on this kid, because we've not seen enough of him to know for sure. If Bowen keeps up his current slide, the Spurs may need to inject him, or a player of his ilk, sooner than later.

[SenorSpur]

Sorry for necroing this post, but something occurred to me and I thought I'd mention it. Hairston was so good that Pop waited until the absolute last second to cut him, so that the other teams were set in their rosters and couldn't claim him. That was deliberate. You don't believe that he'd still be sitting out there if he'd been the first cut, do you?

I thought about that possibility of a CIA move too. I guess we'll have to wait until Manu comes back before we know.

[Obstructed_View]

I never thought much of Barry thinking he was just a white stiff that could launch 3's but after seeing the alternative on the spurs, I think you miss him. I wish Phoenix could have picked him up.

Barry was anything but a white stiff in Seattle. He was a great shooter, a great passer and could run the offense for you. He wasn't really any of those things as a Spur. I only miss him because he's a nice guy to have on the team. I do prefer him to Finley, but that's not really saying much so far. Finley's had a better first two games than Barry has.

[anakha]

Barry was anything but a white stiff in Seattle. He was a great shooter, a great passer and could run the offense for you. He wasn't really any of those things as a Spur.

Wasn't Barry playing PG in Seattle? IIRC, the system there allowed for a lot of freelancing, which favors Barry's skills.

Hindsight being 20/20, the Spurs' structured offense wasn't really the best fit for him.

[Obstructed_View]

Wasn't Barry playing PG in Seattle? IIRC, the system there allowed for a lot of freelancing, which favors Barry's skills.

Hindsight being 20/20, the Spurs' structured offense wasn't really the best fit for him.

It might have been if Barry had pulled the trigger a little more. I don't put Barry's relatively disappointing stint with the Spurs on anyone but Barry.

[The Franchise]

It might have been if Barry had pulled the trigger a little more. I don't put Barry's relatively disappointing stint with the Spurs on anyone but Barry.

You have to give some blame to the system. If you are asked to play out of your comfort zone, it can have your out on the floor thinking instead of just playing. I can't say that is definitely it, but he seems to be getting the green light in Houston. Whenever he's been open he doesn't seem to be shy about shooting it, and it may be because he has been allowed to. In San Antonio unless you are one of the big three you play your role period. If you don't you may never see the light of day again.

[Obstructed_View]

You have to give some blame to the system. If you are asked to play out of your comfort zone, it can have your out on the floor thinking instead of just playing. I can't say that is definitely it, but he seems to be getting the green light in Houston. Whenever he's been open he doesn't seem to be shy about shooting it, and it may be because he has been allowed to. In San Antonio unless you are one of the big three you play your role period. If you don't you may never see the light of day again.

I'll give you some benefit of the doubt because you're not a Spurs fan, but Pop has been screaming to the rooftops for a long time that shooters need to shoot. Nobody's light was any more green than the one for Bones. His only job on this team was to shoot when open, and sometimes when not so open, and he didn't do it. It's great for the Rockets that he's pulling the trigger, even when there's someone running at him within ten feet, but it didn't happen here. I'd submit that Brent was far more comfortable with the Spurs' system after years here than he is with the Rockets' system after two games. That actually doesn't bode well for his future there.

[E20]

Desmond reminds me a lot of Stephen Jackson. I think we should just keep him, you never know, he might mesh in with the Spurs. I'm liking Mason's start, he's the third best Spur right now. Other than that Spurs need to stay a couple games above 500 until Manu comes back.