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I told you signing American free agents was a good idea.
Mike and Nick: Road Warriors
LAST UPDATE: 9/2/2005 12:09:08 AM
http://www.woai.com/spurs/story.aspx...A-38305C1219D7
By LJ Ellis
SpursZONE.com
Despite 59 victories and a third NBA championship in seven seasons, the San Antonio Spurs have completely rebuilt their bench within the last few days. Adding Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel not only adds firepower to the reserves, it also addresses a glaring need heading into next season.
As good as the Spurs were last year on the way to the NBA le, the team wasn’t without noticeable flaws. An overlooked yet vital fault was the team’s struggles to win on the road. Not only was their road record of 21-20 the worst mark in the Tim Duncan era, it was the worst road record by an eventual champion since the 1978-79 Seattle Supersonics.
Comparing how the Spurs played on the road to how they played at home, where San Antonio finished with a franchise best 38-3 record, the statistic that stands out the most is three-point shooting.
At home, the Spurs shot 39.4% from beyond the arc. On the road, that percentage dipped to 33.3%.
Of the five Spurs players who made at least 50 three-pointers for the season, only one of them shot noticeably better on the road than at home. Not surprisingly, that player was playoff hero Robert Horry.
This is where Finley and Van Exel come in. Both players have a history of shooting well on the road. Last season was no different.Code:PLAYER H% R% Difference Horry 36.6 37.3 +.7% Bowen 40.3 40.4 +.1% Ginobili 39.2 36.1 -3.1% Barry 42.4 29.7 -12.7% Udrih 48.5 33.8 -14.7%
It was Finley’s second consecutive season making at least 40% of his three-point attempts on the road. As for Van Exel, it was his fifth consecutive season shooting a better percentage on the road than at home from beyond the arc.Code:PLAYER H% R% Difference Finley 39.0 42.7 +3.7% Van Exel 37.3 40.0 +2.7%
As good as the Spurs were last season, expect Finley and Van Exel to make this team even better by adding some deadeye shooting beyond the friendly confines of the SBC Center.
I told you signing American free agents was a good idea.
I feel good about our weakness now... shooting and free throws.
Neither of them gets to the line very often, so don't expect a dramatic team FT% increase.
NVE & Finley are pretty good 3 point and free throw shooters. Also Chip will help the team shoot better at free throws.
Good catch.
Here are the leaders on the (new) team in FTA/40 minutes:
Duncan 8.3
Ginobili 8.1
Mohammed 5.4
Parker 4.7
Marks 4.6
Brown 4.2
Horry 3.1
Udrih 3.1
Barry 3.1
Finley 2.3
Van Exel 1.8
Bowen 1.7
Rasho .7
Where they will help is from beyond the arc.
3PM/40 minutes:
Van Exel 2.5
Barry 2.3
Finley 2.0
Udrih 2.0
Ginobili 1.8
Bowen 1.6
Brown 1.5
Horry 1.5
Parker .6
as a long time season ticket holder, I'll gladly take a .500 record on the road in the regular season for a almost perfect home record and a 7-4 playoff road record any day of the week and twice on playoff sunday
I am more worried about free throw shooting % than road winning record. Fix the small details an the wins will come
As Spurminator pointed out, Finley and Van Exel will do next to nothing to fix the FT% problem. Your best hope is for Chip to perform some type of miracle and make players like Duncan and Parker respectable free throw shooters.
This will be one nasty team next season. Nastier if TD regains the form that he had when he shot 76.1% from the line in the 1999-2000 season and 79.9% in 2001-02. If TD is stroking it like that the Spurs will be incredibly tough.
Good read....
OOOOOh, I can't wait for the season to get underway....
Because Barry's not an American?
Udrih's a rookie. No one can expect him to be as consistant on the road.
Bowen and Horry are both consistant, FInley and Van Exel are just better shooters. But Bowen and Horry are better defensively.
The only one who surprises me is Manu. I wonder if his road performance will improve next season? THe Spurs seem to be figuring out how to pace him - last season it was a lot of trial and error.
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