The Not Timvp's - Preseason grades:

[DespЏrado]

From top to bottom I think the Spurs had about as good of an off season upgrade as could have been had. With the exception of Splitter being absent the Spurs had a typical preseason with a few more cuts than normal.

Duncan- you have to like his game shape, in that he is in it. He is ready to go. We're all waiting for the season to start Duncan is already ready for the playoffs. He looks lean mean and determined. In fact why isn't there an onion article out already asking the NBA to consider just scrapping everything and playing the playoffs now. He averaged 9.8 points and 7.8 rebounds this preseason. A+

Manu- Still lacks his dead eye 3 point shot but is otherwise rolling with the team doing everything the Spurs ask of him including coaching. I got the impression he was just passing the time on the floor. His elevation and the fast first step all seem to be right back to where he needs them to be. He can dunk again without hesitation. His game will be balls to the walls when it's needed but the only question mark is will he be able find his shot enough to prevent the opposing team from backing off too much. He hit 8 of 22 3 point shots at a 36% clip. shots. A-

Parker- is a little harder to judge, he seems to be back to going back and forth between being doing too much and not being aggressive enough. However as with Hill's early faults, getting new players used to the spurs system seems to take the longest for the point guards to acclimate to. Tony thrives on ordered chaos and that fails when people don't know where to be. But he looks healthy and most importantly his burst speed is completely back. He scored at times at will for 13.7 ppg and dished out 3.7 assists this preseason. B

Hill- I think Hill has exactly the same problem as Tony. And the learning curve that they are put in charge of teaching takes them away from their comfort zone for at least awhile. This is why he has always had horrible summer leagues. For as bad as he was he still put up reasonable backup numbers of 6.7 ppg and 2.7 assists per game and still manages to be a very good rebounder for a point guard @ 2.5 rb/g...But his 3 point shooting was 6%. He hit just 1 shot from beyond the arc in 6 games. Yikes. (he gets an incomplete which probably translates to a C-)

Blair- My god man how high is this kids ceiling? I'm starting to think this might really be Blair's team right now. And Duncan will just play defense next to him. He's still not as smooth or as automatic as Duncan but he's got so much strength it just doesn't matter. Ok his defense could continue to improve but he seems to have gotten more comfortable with that side of the court too. He averaged 12.6 pts and8.7 rebounds per game this preseason A+

RJ- Hey he might just have gotten a bit better. He's moving better, he's shooting more in rhythm and without hesitation. I don't think we've seen the end of how much his off season work is going to improve his game. The comfort level alone should make those shots a bit easier. More importantly is that he seems a bit hungrier for the game. He was 5 for 10 on threes and grabbed 3 or more rebounds every game B+

Dyess- Really didn't see much of him. But old creaky knees is going to be there when we need him. He seems to have no problem with whatever role the Spurs give him and that at ude is just going to be all kinds of beneficial over the long season. Anyone ever notice Mcdyess almost always scores at the exact same rate he rebounds. For the preseason that was no different 6ppg and 5.8 rpg. He gets a solid B for not needing crutches. Remember when no one thought he would ever recover from his knee surgeries?

Bonner- Is still getting minutes? Ok I have to give him his props for his late game play against Houston, he hit a big preseason shot to help win the game. I still hope his minutes take the most dramatic dip with the arrival of Splitter. He's Bonner so he still gets a C, just because.

James Anderson- Is progressing. He isn't bad, and he's done nothing to look like he doesn't deserve every chance to earn his way into the rotation this season. I've said it before but I'll say it again. He looks like he could be good, but he's definitely a little raw still. I'm seeing him as a guy who people are begging to play in the playoffs this year but will probably just end up observing the same way Blair and Hill were forced to do at times as a rookie. He did hit 36.4% of his threes but if he's going to play SF he has to be a better rebounder than a paltry 1.9 per game. B.

Neal- I'm still high on the guy, he lets it fly with impunity, and that isn't a bad thing. He is going to be streaky at times but I'm not seeing the downside to him getting minutes as long as he buys into the system and gives 110% effort on defense. His shooting is desperately needed and if he can deliver he's going to be very useful. He's already hit 1 against the 4 game winning shots that RMJ did while he was here so I think he has it in him. (see Chazley's horrible bring back RMJ thread) He hit 36.4% of his threes and managed to average 7.3 points which isn't half bad for a new guy. Granted he grabbed only six rebounds the entire presseason but he did manage 2 assists in almost every game. B.

Temple- He just had a disappointing preseason, but I gave Parker and Hill a pass so I will give Temple one as well. I hope he doesn't make the Spurs regret trading Jarell's but given that he has had a steady hand for the spurs in the past, he deserves a little leeway. (incomplete)

Simmons- I want this guy to work out for the Spurs more than he is seemingly able to produce. Let's hope it is just rust and we didn't just start the season somebody who makes Steve Smith look like the roadrunner as our only true backup at SF on our roster. Otherwise the Spurs have Matt Bonner and James Anderson. He had more turnovers than assists he did pull down nearly 3 rebounds a game and he hit a very respectable 40% of his threes (2 for 5). F.

Popovich Everything that is great about Pop is still there. He is still the best at getting the team in a position to win every game. He rotated the minutes in the preseason to perfection starting with players least likely to make the team and ending it with the stars. He still doesn't seem to get a few basic things. He still can't get his team to defend the high pick and roll something the Lakers kill us with and Houston has started to use with impunity. He still has blind spots for certain players when defense used to be all that mattered to him. He still loves small ball when he hasn't yet assembled a team that could actually play it at an elite level. That said he's one of the best around, let's hope he remembers to stop out thinking himself and go with defense first last and always. B.

Edit- Please forgive the many edits, was trying to get the wording right/ added some stats etc.

[mountainballer]

appreciate the work you put into it.
but it's always the problem when fans are not able to take off the rose-colored glasses and call what they want to see "grades".
it doesn't help to give players, who played a bad off season an incomplete, to avoid a D. (or whatever would be accurate). give an incomplete whenever a player just played like 2 games. if he played 6 games he needs to be graded. even if it might destroy the picture you try to paint.

Hill was just bad. period. his shooting was cold as a Siberian Gulag.
Dice was just what we can expect. no more no less. why not give him the C.
Temple was mostly a disappointment. doesn't look to have improved. if you are nice you grade him D.
Simmons is not a legit NBA player any more. sad but true. E. (ok, give him an E+, just because he didn't die on the court)

and all the other grades can just be reduced by one step to become somehow accurate.
Jefferson a B+ ???? either your expectation are very very low, or you somehow mixed him up with a player from an other team. he is still our starting SF, who makes more than 8 M this season and 40M over the next 4 seasons. it's ok to expect a bit more till you are satisfied with what you get.

sorry if that all sounds a bit harsh. I just try to stay objective.

[DespЏrado]

You're right of course almost on all points. I may try adjusting it a bit more, but bottom line I was looking at health and springyness from our vets and potential in our youth. That's all the preseason really counts for in the long run. And I had Simmons as an F, it just messed up on an edit.

[DespЏrado]

Just trying to wrap up some kind of summary for all of this into a prediction for the season:

Overall: the Spurs improved where they could. And they are at least giving themselves a pretty good shot at overcoming the obstacles to the le. Splitter coming in is a huge unknown at this point and he's going but he's going to be a difference maker for the Spurs. The Spurs have no legitimate answer to who backs up Jefferson without fudging the positions a bit which could very quickly devolve into a huge liability.

Offensively: This team has more weapons than it will know what to do with. They should have a huge scoring advantage in the paint this year with Blair, Timmy and Tony wrecking havoc down low. They have a fresh set of 3 point assassins with absolutely 0 nba big game experience but the pedigree to be promising. And they have a familiar system which should get them over the century mark more times than not.

Defensively: The Spurs are still all question marks all around. Duncan and Manu are the best defenders on the team and they are not as quick as they once were. Hill has got to be able to stop guys like Nash from lighting him up before the team ever even considers him for the stopper role again. But Splitter should help and Anderson has shown promise, it's just a shame he won't be guarding his natural position.

Current Projection: Second Round Exit unless they get lucky with the seeding.

Keys to the le?
-The three point shooters are going to have to make their shots when it counts. It hurts to say this but the Spurs must have a big year from beyond the arc to advance as currently constructed.
-Splitter and Blair have to play very good defensively. I would go so far as saying that Splitter might have to make the all 3rd defensive team to give the Spurs a chance at the le.
-Health. They have to have Tony, Manu, and Tim at as near 100% as possible to have a chance.
-Manu has to be able to make space for himself by hitting his shots or he has to be healthy enough to drive every time.

[DespЏrado]

1 response? Come on peeps. That's how you raise the bar?
Seriously maybe I should have written the following:

Bonner deserves an A+ for the actual quality of his game this preseason.
Neal should start and is going to be >>> James Anderson who is a bust in the making.
Tony Parker should be traded in the next few weeks to get the most value for him.
Dejuan Blair is an illusion that should be traded now before his knees give out. He may be this good now but he only has a few seasons in him.

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Theres just not much real basketball talk on this board it seems. People would rather talk about comic books and the demise of the NBA it seems.

I realize that everyone likes to bag on Bonner but hes not nearly as bad as people claim.

Appreciate the writeup.

[duncan228]

I think the news about whottt stunned the board today. As it settles you'll get replies.

[DespЏrado]

I think the news about whottt stunned the board today. As it settles you'll get replies.

Whottt is a part of this family and will always be a part of this family... That's all I can say about him, and no disrespect is meant to his loss.

[Cry Havoc]

I think the news about whottt stunned the board today. As it settles you'll get replies.

This.

You make a great post DespUrado, however it's hard for me to talk hoops when we just lost one of the most influential members of SpursTalk. Not that I mind it, I just find it tough to be as excited as I normally would be.

[ohmwrecker]

I agree with your assessment. I might have been a little harsher with the grading just because it's preseason. You just hope that the guys who performed well are going to do it when it counts and that the guys who struggled are going to put it together when the games start to matter. I'm not sure I would been so tough on Simmons. I'm cautiously optimistic that he is going to get better incrementally once he gets in shape mentally and physically. I like Anderson, but it would be great if he could play more 2 than 3. If Simmons can play well enough to afford that luxury, the Spurs' bench will be in the better for it.

I am not very familiar with whott, but I sympathize with those who are feeling the loss.

[duhoh]

blair's actually hitting some jumpshots

good to see something expanded in his game. 12 and 8 so far eh? that's what i'd expect from him during the regular season at the very minimum.

[Libri]

It looks like rebounding has improved and this without Splitter playing. Once he is incorporated into the lineup, the Spurs will have a very nice rebounding front court. I'm confident that this will bear fruit.

[mingus]

Spurs will be versatile enough on offense to play either a half court or fullcourt style very effectively. Parker, Hill, RJ, and Manu (more with his passing at this point in his career) all great guys to have running fastbreak. Meanwhile RJ's improved 3-point shooting and Blair's improvement will complement our Big 3 who have been able to get it done in the halfcourt for the last 10 years. And we haven't even seen Splitter yet. This team reminds me quite a bit of the '03 team that could play an up-tempo or halfcourt game.

[mingus]

Only hole on this team is there is no great perim. defender. unfortunately that's a pretty damn big hole. I mean, if a guy like Kevin Martin is going to light the Spurs up, what about Lebron, Durant, Kobe, Dwade, Paul Pierce, etc? Hopefully Hill can assert himself as one of the league's best wing defenders this year. if he can't maybe the Spurs need to make a trade because I don't think they'd be able to overcome it.