Wojnarowski: Spurs consider bidding for Stoudemire

[Xylus]

amare could suck pretty bad w/o a good pass-first point guard (hint hint nash), that said, i don't see him a good fit in SA.

Amare has averaged over 20 points his entire career (save for his rookie year), with or without Nash. His shooting percentage went up after Nash arrived, which is to be expected.

These days, Gentry runs a lot of isolation plays for Amare. He's left alone at the elbow to attack the rim as he pleases.

[dbestpro]

Amare has even said that he wants to go a playoff caliber team with a good passing point guard. Obviously, this is because this is how he gets his dinner table set. I love Amare's game and even think Timmy would defer to Amare, but I do not think Tony can be effective in such sets. Tyrus is intriguing and very well may not be any better than Ian. The problem is the decision has already been made to pass on Ian in the fall. If Tyrus works, then the Spurs will still have him for next year. I really don't care who the Spurs get as long as they get somebody that Pop trusts to play along side Duncan. Once he ditches small ball everything else will fall into place.

[cd98]

I don't think I'm overrating his trade value by saying that the Spurs don't really have what the Suns are looking for, besides the fact that the Suns would never trade a player of Amare's caliber to a Western Conference rival.

Also, I don't think I'm overrating his trade value by saying he's a very large improvement over Yi Jianlian. I mean, seriously. Amare generally averages 21 and 9 while shooting 55%. Compare that to tissue-soft Yi, who averages 15 and 7 on 42% shooting, while playing the same minutes. It's laughable to even compare the two players. Regardless of what general Spurfan bias might dictate, Yi is a worse defender than Amare Stoudemire.
The Suns' primary weakness on the defensive end these past couple of years has been on the perimeter. Nash and JRich can't defend worth a , and Grant Hill is too old.

No offense, Suns fan, but your management has shown it is all to willing to part with talent to save a few bucks. And I will spare you the pain of rehashing all the players you could have drafted if your management had not traded them away to save cash.

Also, most teams are second thinking an Amare deal. For one, he is in the last year of his contract and will want big money, which is very risky for a player coming of microfacture surgery (how long will those knees hold up in his career?). For another, it is questionable how well he can mesh with other teams that don't have a Steve Nash to maximize his potential. Finally, people don't really see him as a top tier talent anymore. Sure, the fans voted him to the all-star team, but he's been injury prone and his defensive deficiencies have raised flags.

The Suns are willing to trade (as he's leaving them in the offseason anyway), but they don't appear to have many serious takers (Bulls, Kings already backed out). I really think a little bit of young talent and a few expiring contracts will do.

[DPG21920]

I don't think I'm overrating his trade value by saying that the Spurs don't really have what the Suns are looking for, besides the fact that the Suns would never trade a player of Amare's caliber to a Western Conference rival.

Also, I don't think I'm overrating his trade value by saying he's a very large improvement over Yi Jianlian. I mean, seriously. Amare generally averages 21 and 9 while shooting 55%. Compare that to tissue-soft Yi, who averages 15 and 7 on 42% shooting, while playing the same minutes. It's laughable to even compare the two players. Regardless of what general Spurfan bias might dictate, Yi is a worse defender than Amare Stoudemire.
The Suns' primary weakness on the defensive end these past couple of years has been on the perimeter. Nash and JRich can't defend worth a , and Grant Hill is too old.

Spurs do have theoretically what is realistic to get Amare; young talent and expiring contracts. In fact, they have some of the best of those two with Ginobili and Blair and Splitter.

He is solid improvement over Yi, but Yi is getting better while Amare is not. Yi is much cheaper and the upgrade in Amare over Yi might not be worth it. Especially when you consider he won't make them a contender.

[Phenomanul]

Wow, Lets give the rockets a starting future center to go with scola for battier who is overpaid. Great plan

Shane would help us address a defensive need now. And the guy can hit the corner three. Obviously, Splitter can't help us this year, and even under the best case scenario he is not likely to drastically impact the Spurs' winning percentage next year... the likelyhood that he could perform at an all-star caliber level in his first year in the system would be unprecedented.

The Spurs championship window revolves mostly around Duncan's play, his health and age and to a smaller extent, around the chemistry of the Big 3. That window is rapidly closing. Don't get me wrong, Tiago is undoubtably a great player with a high ceiling but we can't expect him to work wonders right off the bat. Timmy is playing elite ball right now and the Spurs' FO realizes that they need to win now. If they went all in for Splitter we would have to wait for him to grow into a complimentary role alongside Duncan.... by then, however, Duncan's championship window is likely to have closed behind him.

Here's the catch... unlike the Scola trade, the Spurs would actually receive a servicable player...

[dbestpro]

I still like the three way trade,

Suns get Miller, Bonner, Mahinmi,
Bulls get Stoudamire, Mason, Finley,
Spurs get Thomas, Salmons, Pargo.

[Brazil]

What we need is for Houston to continue their own losing streak. If that happens, they might be willing to make a trade to help shore up the height of their front line for next year. At that point a Scola + Splitter reunion might seem enticing to them, Splitter being a legit seven footer to back up a broken down Yao.

Finley (or Bonner) + rights to Splitter for Shane Battier

That's a trade that would help both parties....

splitter for Battier ?

[GO SPurs Go]

Does someone have Pop's / Holtz / Buford's email address / mail address. I want to tell them how I feel losing Manu would hurt with everything he's done.

[duhoh]

i heard jefferson + bonner for amare.

that would be interesting.

[lurker23]

i heard jefferson + bonner for amare.

that would be interesting.

Where did you hear that?

[ffadicted]

Does someone have Pop's / Holtz / Buford's email address / mail address. I want to tell them how I feel losing Manu would hurt with everything he's done.

To quote a colorful character in the forums....

son, I'll cosign that

[exstatic]

Don Harris says the Spurs aren't trying to get Amare, but they are trying to get in on/help broker the trade to maybe pick up some young pieces or picks with their expiring contracts.

[bigdog]

Don Harris doesn't know anything.

[exstatic]

Don Harris doesn't know anything.

He probably knows more than a forum full of dip s.

[DPG21920]

He actually gets his rumors from here, then calls someone he "knows" to "confirm" then says he broke the story because "technically" he did.

[Blackjack]

Don Harris says the Spurs aren't trying to get Amare, but they are trying to get in on/help broker the trade to maybe pick up some young pieces or picks with their expiring contracts.

Yeah it got lost in the shuffle a few pages back, so for those who missed it:


Spurs may be involved in Amar'e Stoudemire trade
Reported by: Don Harris

SAN ANTONIO - With the Spurs season at a crossroads one of the biggest questions about the team is are they going to make a trade?

Two different NBA sources told me Tuesday the Spurs have come up in the Amar'e Stoudemire sweepstakes. Not that the Spurs would get Amar'e, but that they may be part of a multi-team deal to make it possible for Phoenix to move him.

The Nets, Bulls, Heat and Pistons are said to be the front-runners for Stoudamire. The Spurs may be burning up the lines trying to find something that's going to work.

All this after the Spurs fifth loss in six games Monday night. Coach Gregg Popovich has, admittedly, never tinkered with a lineup so much to try and figure out a winning combination. As the Spurs defense continues to struggle, Coach Pop only played eight guys Monday. Pop says the effort is there, just not the execution.

“Of course they're playing hard. And of course they're competing. That's got nothing to do with the losses or the wins here,” maintains Coach Pop. “The guys always compete and they always work hard. We need to shoot the ball better and our defense has to be more consistent. That's what it's all about.”

The bad news: It only gets tougher from here. I was digging deep, trying to find a silver lining for Spurs fans. But what I found inside the Spurs schedule and the road ahead was a dark tunnel with no light at the end.

Follow if you dare... of the Spurs 39 remaining games, only 14 are at home. 25 are on the road. If that's not bad enough, 15 of their 18 losses this year are against the good teams. Teams over .500. And of their 39 left, 27 are against those good teams. They play the Lakers three more times! Only 12 games remain against bad teams.

I hate to say it, but missing the playoffs is not out of the question.

But let's not be all doom and gloom. On a bright note, Sports Illustrated is taking notice of the great Tim Duncan this week. SI calls Duncan the NBA's metronome. The article says Tim is one of the top 10 players in NBA history and that he's better than ever.

------------------

Tyrus Thomas entered the equation from a scenario Andrew A. McNeil suggested over at 48MoH:

One scenario of the Spurs acting as the third team in an Amare trade would see the Spurs receive Tyrus Thomas of the Chicago Bulls and send Matt Bonner and Ian Mahinmi to the Suns. Phoenix would send Stoudemire to Chicago.

This is just one scenario in which there are many alternatives, but I feel like this is much more likely than the Spurs getting Stoudemire in a straight-up swap with Phoenix.

[Blackjack]

Don Harris doesn't know anything.

In this case, he just might; helps when your brother-in-law's Alvin Gentry.

[baseline bum]

Bonner and Mahinmi for Thomas? Man, I wish. That would be sweet.

[DPG21920]

He is probably right though and I cannot imagine the Spurs doing this deal or any deal like this after seeing how RJ has turned out so far.

[Big Empty]

Don Harris rules!

[Big Empty]

I want amare!

[Blackjack]

The Spurs have long had a desire to acquire Thomas (if you believe what's been reported over the last few years). And, personally, I'd love to see him on the Spurs.

People like to kill the guy for his supposed terrible BBIQ, but the guy's got a lot of talent that the Spurs could benefit from and the versatility defensively that should prevent Pop from going small (assuming he hasn't lost his mind; which is open for debate depending on whom you ask) If he can give anything close to what he gave the Bulls last year against the C's, he'd be a big help (pun not intended)

[DPG21920]

If you can get TT by only giving up Bonner+Finley or something like that, you do it.

[Blackjack]

[Chieflion]

If you can get TT by only giving up Bonner+Finley or something like that, you do it.

I sure would like to see those goaltending calls every day.