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Splitter is a net negative. That's the bottom line.
The defense has been fine without him and both Kawhi and TP look much better without him clogging the lane...
Will people now respect Splitter, and understand why we got mauled by Grizzlies when Pop refused to play him, and why we swept Memphis last year? Crucial player, who not only gives us much better protection against centers, but can constantly force difficult shots by crafty guards (like curry last game) when he switches the pick and roll
Splitter is a net negative. That's the bottom line.
The defense has been fine without him and both Kawhi and TP look much better without him clogging the lane...
What is pissing me off about Tiago is his soft approach to the basket, how other players treats him like a girl, and those lame ass layups and dunks.
Is not that important in regular season, but in the playoffs things really change, that Leflop block appears every 2 minutes on NBA TV, it makes me sick.
In my Kawhi Leonard voice. "We still got the win soooo it dont matter"
Davis and Pekovic are both studs and can put the ball in the hole, Splitter wouldn't have made much of a difference.
Davis is averaging 19.6 ppg...so I don't think him dropping 22 is some sign that we couldn't contain him. Same goes with Pekovic...he averages 18.3 ppg. Giving him 22 points really isn't some sign of horrible defense. Especially considering we held Love to only 14 points.
However, I disagree with the guy who said Splitter is a net negative. The problem isn't Splitter...it's the Splitter/Duncan pairing. They shouldn't be on the floor at the same time unless it's a specific matchup where it makes sense (Memphis and Indiana, to name two specifically) IMO.
Parker/Green/Leonard/Diaw/Duncan
Mills/Belinelli/Ginobili/Bonner + Ayres/Splitter
Those should be our starting and bench rotations. Bonner vs. Ayres depends on the matchup. Both have played well in Splitter's absence though.
That same guy wants to trade Belinelli for JR Smith. Just letting you know what you are dealing with.
Without Tiago queefing up the paint on the offensive side of the ball Leonard has been able to take the ball off dribble and pull up to hit shots.
Tiago creates horrible spacing because he camps right near the block
Only thing I didn't get from the last Twolves game was why didn't the Spurs let Baynes beat on Peckovic a little,
Timmy was getting damn man-handled out there and the refs weren't calling it.
Every time Timmy tried to go to the basket Peckovic was literally had at least one hand and sometimes BOTH hands on Timmys waist,pushing him away from the basket. A few more minutes rest for Tim woulda been good IMHO
Timmy EARNED that $$$ that night
People need to stop blaming Splitter for messing up spacing. It's not his fault. He had the same game last year when the spacing was fine and the offense was rolling. It's that Duncan is camping in the paint too this season. He's killing spacing by essentially shirking his role as mid-range shooter and moving inside, making himself a center on offense instead of a PF like he was last season.
We can all rejoice in Duncan find the fountain of youth again this season, but it's come at a high cost. Now, the team has to deal with putting a worse defensive unit out there.
JR Smith has played some elite defense is the past, and on the other end he's just as good as Beli, probably even better off the dribble...
He'd be instantly the second best two way player on the team after Tim...
The kicker is that he has to be healthy again, I have no idea how serious his knee problem is or not... But yeah for such an upgrade I'd trade Beli and others...
Imagine going small with Green JR Smith Kawhi playing together, that's some serious perimeter D and some incredible spacing...
And you can get that for chump change right now... His contract is not even that big for a reigning 6MOTY and pretty short too...
I can't think of a move with a bigger potential reward if it goes well, the risk is quite high due to health concerns but I'd do it in an heartbeat...
^ Beli also offered the pipe to a fan on twitter tbh, seriously was hoping for a defensive breakdown in the second half instead of the drama stuff...
Players that get under people's skins are valuable in the POs tbh... Right now we have too many betas... Besides Pop has been in love with him from day one, I think he could really get the best out of him.
Didn't read. There's no good argument for adding JR Smith to this team. It's no ones fault but your own that you are too stupid to see the very plain reasons why.
I wouldnt say there isnt a argument but george karl his ex coach said of late spurs would be the best place for him and I think he has a pt tbh
JR Smith would be SJax Part II here.
Did you watch the video? Pretty much, Smith is horrible on offense outside of spot up shooting. He was even worse than Green last year at being consistent in hitting his season averages. Maybe he's a decent defender when healthy, but there are much better alternatives out there for that.
Only much, much worse from both a head and a financial standpoint.
SG is not our problem. I'd rather get a 3/4 then pick up yet another 2. , I'd rather get a quality point guard before rolling the dice with Smith.
Good job comparing apples to tennis balls. If there's one thing Jax may not have liked off the court but respected on it was the ability to work within a role and play off others. Something JR has never been able to figure out.
the truth is any basketball expert will tell you Splitter is a class A bigman in the league at the moment. Sure, he's soft as brazilian cotton, but what he lacks in toughness he gives in IQ, mobility, spacing and plain sleekness ten-fold, not to mention he can run AND defend the pick and roll like the Devil himself. I'd say Splitter is the smartest defensive current bigman behind Duncan, the Gasol brothers and KG. Splitter would easily get a huge contract from numerous teams out there.
Sure, he's not at the level of Hibbert, Howard, Love, Aldridge, Gasol Jr., etc (which are max franchise players. But he is in the tier just below that. And for what we pay him, Splitter is a damn STEAL
to summarize, only a damn idiot would complain about Splitter being on the team
You're not a steal when you're paid double digit and have zero go to move and were the weak link in consecutive elimination series... Any basketball expert telling you he's A class is a liar tbh. He's class B at best... Given his limitations, his terrible fit Tim and Kawhi and past PO struggles only an idiot wouldn't at least wonder if we should really bet the last shot of the Tim era on this guy.
except said idiot did not wonder. He concluded Splitter is a negative and we are better off without him
now tell me, who would this said idiot trade Splitter for? which available bigman would be a better pair with Duncan for his "last shot" at a le?
The problem with Tiago is that while he is a good defender, he is good at things like positional defense, pick and roll defense, and help defense. He's not a shot blocker or even a shot intimidator other than standing with his arms outstretched. he's a good defender at what he does, but to the naked eye, i.e., the eye that only sees blocked shots, he doesn't seem to be that great a defender.
agree. Splitter is also a great defensive rebounder, good passer, commits almost no mistakes and almost never fouls. Things that an average nba fan does not pay much attention to, but they are the lifeblood of the Spurs scheme.
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