Minnesota would still have Beasley, Johnson, and Rubio, which is more than Orlando can boast. It would still shock me to see Howard sign off on the deal by extending though.
This. If he thinks he can't win in Orlando, why the would he want to go to a cellar dweller, especially since they won't have Kevin Love anymore.
Minnesota would still have Beasley, Johnson, and Rubio, which is more than Orlando can boast. It would still shock me to see Howard sign off on the deal by extending though.
Minny does love point guards, maybe they want TP?
Thanks Bruno for the translation
Exactly.
No chance the Timberwolves give up Love and the 2nd pick for Howard, who would definitely leave them after next season. If there's a (supposedly) good chance he doesn't stay in Orlando, then there's a zero percent chance he stays in Minnesota.
Smith, I could see the Spurs looking into him, but I doubt they actually acquire him. Varejao is probably most likely, if they trade for a big. Short of that, I could see them taking a flier on a guy like Clark.
As far as Parker's comments, he first says they're done as contenders, then says they could be in the Mavs' position had they got the right match-up. Which one is it?
One year is a big difference when your best players are 35 and amost 34.
He said they are done as contenders because he felt this was the last year they could win a championship in a league chalk full of young, up and coming talent. Realistically, the Spurs had their shot and blew it.
Where to start....
1) Someone disagreeing with your assessment doesn't make them a hater. That would be like me calling you a TP nut-hugger because you don't agree with me and always try and stick up for him and everything he says.
You can't call someone a "hater" when their body of posts doesn't indicate that. When someone is very "fair" all the time and then outlines a position about their favorite player they see as a harsh truth, it doesn't make them a hater. At all. That is you being sensitive.
2) Fair share? So does that mean that everyone deserves equal blame? Or do some people deserve more blame than others? I never said that he is the only person to blame, but every team has someone who gets the majority of the blame because ultimately it comes down to your best players. Like it or not, it's how this works.
When I evaluate how a player did, I look not just at the numbers but the situation. You also look at expectations. The harsh reality is that the Spurs lost to an inferior team. In fact, they got upset in one of the more dramatic fashions in NBA history.
Within that, this team is comprised of a big 3 who get all the credit when they win, and with that, comes all the blame when they lose (overall and rightly so). The fact is the team went away from Tim over the past couple of years and became more Manu's and TP's. This is something they wanted. The fact is that when looking at the Grizz we knew a couple things: 1) Tim by far had the hardest match up on both ends. 2) Manu was injured and had probably the second hardest match up with all of the wing defenders they can throw at him. 3) TP was the youngest of the big 3 and the offense was his this year. He also had the most favorable match up.
The expectations were that it was going to be TP's time to shine anyways because he was the youngest, healthiest and it had been going that way this year. They you look at the match ups and it was TP's time to play great. Not only did he not elevate his game, he played the worst playoff series of his life since he became "TP". This was the biggest moment in his career as far as being the "man" when the Spurs needed him and he didn't step up. Especially early on when they needed him (Manu missing game one). Because of that expectation, in my opinion, TP deserves the blame and I think it's fair. It doesn't mean I hate him. Even if his numbers look "ok" everyone saw that he played so far below his normal level with no injury excuse and the most favorable match up. In these situations when you are clearly the better team and you have guy in Manu who is injured and Tim who is older, guys like TP need to step up and elevate their game (which he normally does), not go backwards. Because of that, TP as the youngest star of the team deserves the majority of the blame.
If everyone deserves their "fair share", then you should be on TP for completely throwing the front line under the bus while at the same time saying "Hey, I just missed some shots and didn't play that well, but it was the front court where we got dominated and we need more help there...". Doesn't seem like he is placing the fair share of blame around either.
I think he knows that even if they were in the WCF, they aren't really contenders to beat who they would have to face in the finals anymore. Just like I have said all year, and Pop recently echoed, they have/had zero margin for error and that only gets worse as the years go on.
I find it most interesting that Tony basically admits that he took the extension since he had been hurt and wanted the security- not so much that he wanted to stay in SA.
^TP has said numerous times, both before and after his extension that his preference was always to stay in San Antonio. Sure, maybe his injuries and a few other factors played into the final number, but he wanted to be in SA and SA wanted him here.
Theoretically, yes. But I'd be surprised if Duncan and Ginobili significantly drop off next season. I know even a marginal drop off, this team couldn't take, as far as contending goes, but say it is a shortened season, it could actually benefit them. I don't think they're any less likely to contend next season than they were this season.
I'm not crazy about a Varejao trade, but McDyess' partially guaranteed contract, Blair and the 29th pick for him, is a realistic trade (the Spurs would have to add filler to make the salaries work; a third team could be brought in to help facilitate the trade). And if you add Varejao to Duncan and Splitter, you're talking about an elite defensive front line, which has been their biggest weakness the past few seasons. The perimeter firepower would still be intact. I'm not saying that vaults them back into being one of the odds on favorites, but it should improve them and it definitely doesn't make them worse.
DPG, fair enough.
Last edited by TD 21; 05-18-2011 at 06:00 PM.
Fact is the Spurs are in one of the hardest spots to be in, in the NBA.
They are "tweeners". Not quite contenders, not quite terrible. No financial wiggle room and long-term contracts on the books.
It's going to be interesting to see how things shake out, but I can see a whole lot of nothing major and the Spurs just being an up and down team with no real shot at a le (like every team but 4 or so) and no real "blow up and rebuild".
SA has been done as a contender every year for the past 5 years, even before their last ring.
It's just a cyclical thing.
I take back what I said about them not being any less likely to contend next season. What I meant was, I don't think they'll be any worse a team. In fact, they could be slightly better. The problem is, the Heat, Bulls, Thunder and Grizzlies, are all likely to be better.
Phila, just so you know, something like TP/RJ/Hill for Joe/Smith works in your scenario to give an idea of the type of money.
But to also put that in perspective, it would be an additional 50M+ over the next 4 years or so for that trade.
While Joe is clearly better than TP from a talent perspective and Josh is 10x better than RJ, that is a ridic amount of money and no way the Spurs do something like that. If it was me not caring about money, then sure, those two would make the Spurs better short-term, but that isn't how it works in the NBA.
Everyone has said that the Spurs have been done as contenders for the past few years.
I guess hearing Tony say it is the shocking thing?
The problem is not with disagreeing. The problem is with being excessive.
Saying "Conley tore him up" is excessive and false. It isn't a matter of opinion, it is a matter of facts. Like it or not but being excessive makes you a hater.
Parker isn't throwing the front line under the bus. He is throwing the front office under the bus for failing to built a good front line. There is a huge difference between putting the loss on a player like you do with Parker and saying that this team has some huge weaknesses in the way the roster is built.
JJ and JS are both owed 30 mil next season..With the departure of TP and RJ the spurs would save 21 mil. If the spurs got word that TD opt out of his contract to maybe 10 mil per year then the spurs would lose no money at all for the coming season. Just a thought
Saying the front court got dominated while at the same time saying "I just did too little too late" is throwing them under the bus. He didn't say that the front office did them in, he said the front court and that is the players.
I explained why I don't feel it's excessive. You failing to look at all of my posts about TP overall (and not this one thing) and calling me a hater because of this one thing makes you a TP nut-hugger because you are taking one comment that was explained with reasoning and not an over-reaction filled with cursing TP out as me being a TP hater.
Also, in any of my post above did I say "Conley tore up TP"? I said he was outplayed and then elaborated on how based on the situation and expectations and how TP is an elite player, that he deserves the majority of the blame?
Do you think that everyone deserves equal blame? If so, do you think TP is giving out the blame equally by his statements?
Capspace, Love and Derrick Williams are great assets. Trading that for something that could only be an one year rental of Howard is a little crazy. Now, as you said, Kahn can always do something stupid...
Don't get me wrong, I don't imply that you're making up stuffs but I think that there is nothing serious behind what your source told you.
Taking the contracts of Parker and RJ is not exactly shedding salary.
Others have said it, but renting Howard for one season makes no sense. I don't think even is that stupid.
Exactly. That's why I'm not opposed for a TP trade, that can make us better as far as championship contention( very unlikely) or better for the post Manu/Duncan retirement.
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