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Isn't the game Thursday?
Mike Monroe: Relatively good news about Hill's thumb
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Ordinarily, you would not be happy about a medical report that calls a thumb injury a bad sprain, but the Spurs were moderately relieved on Wednesday to discover that rookie point guard George Hill does not have a torn ligament, nor a broken bone, in the left thumb he injured in Tuesday's pre-season game in Grand Rapids, Mich.
"It's a bad sprain but, no ligament damage or bone damage," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich reported after a morning practice session at Gund Arena here ." He’ll probably miss a couple games. That’s better than a cast and out for six weeks."
Hill injured the thumb late in the first half of the Spurs' 86-64 victory over the Pistons at Van Andel Arena, in Grand Rapids, their first victory in three pre-season games. The Spurs' first-round draft pick had scored eight points and handed out four assists in 16 minutes, 48 seconds of first-half play.
Popovich said Tony Parker, who did not suit up for Tuesday's game because of minor soreness in his left Achilles tendon, will start tonight's game at Gund Arena against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Veteran Jacque Vaughn will back him up, with spot help from both Roger Mason, Jr., and Ime Udoka.
Salim Stoudamire, who has yet to go through a full practice because of a right groin strain, said he feels sound enough to consider asking Popovich to give him a few minutes in tonight's game, as well.
"I'll see how I feel in the morning," he said, "but I'm thinking about asking Coach Popovich to give me a little time."
Isn't the game Thursday?
alrite....good news for a change.
Hopefully all our injuries will be out of the way for awhile now...I hope.
Awesome news.
Hill has been playing great and the Spurs can't afford to lose his versatility.
Good bad news.
At this point, I'll take it.
Hallelujah!
Last edited by SenorSpur; 10-15-2008 at 03:17 PM.
Very good news.
I hope he's ready for the opening night
in addition to Hill's condition i like what i bread about Stoudamire willing to ask Pop for some minutes...
I didn't see this post and linked to it in another thread...
The Hill injury brings new gravity to this camp's best subplot. IMO Hill is already the back up point. JV has played like he plays. He is who he is. And right now, he's the third point.
Meanwhile, Farmer and Hairston are not going quietly into the night. I can see one landing a roster spot, and the other being welcomed in Austin.
But now, with Hill injured, Salim Stoudamire should get good minutes, if he is able to play. Should he play well...
Unfortunate off season. But camp has me perky, even with the injuries. The Spurs could open the season with a vastly improved offense (in terms of scoring ability) compared to last season. In my estimation, their defensive personnel, top to bottom, is slightly better too.
Parker/Hill/Stoudamire
Mason/Ginobili/Farmer
That's plenty of back court scoring with a good mix of penetration and shooting. The Spurs could play really fast too.
I'm not 100% sure but I don't think Farmer could end up with the Toros. I'm pretty sure the Vipers get the first crack at him if he's released back into the D-League pool. Hairston, on the other hand, would become property of the Toros if he decides to play in the D-League.
It'll be interesting to see if this factors into the way the Spurs ultimately shape their roster. Perhaps they will let Hairston go with an agreement that he'll be picked up by the Toros. I like Hairston much more than I like Marcus Williams so it'd be a nice avenue to venture if Hairston is down for the plan.
I like that backcourt as well. I'm guessing you're choosing not to include the other guys for the sake of argument. Guys like - JV, Finley, Udoka, and Bowen. That only leaves 5 more spots. As we all can guess, Salim and Farmer are probably not both making the team.
I wondered the same thing this morning and asked ChumpDumper. He said all the things you did, so I think you are correct.
I completely agree with you re: Hairston and Austin.
During the summer league I knocked on Hairston but that was clearly premature. He could develop into a rotation player in a year or two. I hope he ends up on the Toros. The only think that stinks is that the Spurs have no protection against call ups.
If the Spurs must choose between Hairston and Farmer, I'd lean toward Farmer for two reasons. 1) He can score now and 2) he couldn't go to the Toros, but over the long term I like Hairston more as a player.
No, not exactly. I see Udoka, Bowen and Fin as 3s, the others are 1s and 2s. Fin is a tweener, but I'm not sure he'll play much.
So...
Parker/Hill/Stoudamire
Mason/Gino/Farmer
Bowen/Udoka/Fin
I'd like to see JV waived. I realize that comes with risk, but it's a risk within reason. I'm not a JV hater, but he helps defenses when he's in the game because of his shaky O. Of course, this assumes Stoudamire plays well. If he doesn't then take his name out his name and put Vaughn's in to the above scenario. It's not that big of a deal. That player won't play much.
The other reason I favor Stoudamire is because I don't want the Spurs to have to find a third point next summer. I'd rather that money go elsewhere. Spend the 1.2 on Vaughn now so you don't have to spend it next summer on his replacement. Hire his replacement now. Let him learn the system, etc...
Surely another team would love for us to let Hairston go to the Toros, so they could snatch him up for themselves, no?
I like this idea too. I think Farmer is the better player for right now, especially with Manu out, but over time Hairston looks like he could be better.
Who would you say has the better defense between Hairston and Farmer right now? That's the other point I am most interested in. There's nothing I like more than great defense and reading about the way George Hill and a few of the others have played defensively in these first three preseason games is great.
A cruel irony would be Phoenix snagging him.
Hairston is a better defender now, with a solid frame, if a little chubby. Farmer is never going to be a great defender, and Hairston's D could get much better as he improves, both mentally and on the court.
Darn it. Maybe we shouldn't let Hairston go to the Toros then.
What if the Spurs set him up somewhere overseas for the season?
Probably too late for that.
Parker, Hill, Mason, Ginobili, Bowen and Udoka are all good defenders, so I'm not sure Hairston's defensive prowess really matters at this point. The Spurs defensive system--not to mention Duncan and Thomas--can hide someone like Farmer during the spare minutes he'll play. But if the Spurs need a scorer on the floor, I think Farmer could give them more buckets than Hairston.
Nice
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