Reply With Quote
You missed Jimmer.
Much has been made of the Spurs' sacrificing depth so they could make a splash in free agency. Some analysts have argued that the Spurs lost two of their biggest strengths in depth and chemistry when they gutted the team to acquire Aldridge.
But is our bench really that much worse than last year's?
Position 2014-2015 2015-2016 PG Patty Mills, Cory Joseph Patty Mills, Ray McCallum SG Manu Ginobili, Marco Bellinelli Manu Ginobili, Jonathan Simmons SF Kyle Anderson Kyle Anderson PF Boris Diaw, Matt Bonner, Jeff Ayres Boris Diaw, David West, Matt Bonner C Aron Baynes Boban Marjanovic
From a position-by-position analysis, it seems that on paper:
- McCallum is a downgrade from CoJo.
- Simmons is a downgrade from Bellinelli.
- The fact that we no longer have Bellinelli means that we will likely have to give Anderson minutes at the 3, which is also a downgrade.
- West will likely take Baynes' minutes at the 5 and is an upgrade over him.
- Marjanovic is also slight upgrade over Baynes, and he'll be filling the Jeff Ayres / 6th big role.
- Matt Bonner might actually see an improvement since he spent much of last season with a injured elbow. Being healthy could allow him to regain the three point shooting ability that made him an asset in certain matchups.
In summary: Our backcourt has gotten worse since we downgraded from CoJo and Bellinelli to McCallum and Simmons. Exchanging a proven veteran in Bellinelli with an unproven sop re in Anderson is also a potential downgrade at the wing. However, we upgraded our frontcourt by replacing Baynes' minutes with West, adding Marjonovic (who is also better than Baynes) to play the sixth big role, and regaining a healthy Bonner.
So while some analysts have declared that the Spurs aren't as good as advertised because they gutted their depth, I'd argue that our bench overall is only slightly worse than last year's, and in some respects, even better.
You missed Jimmer.
You missed Mills being health all season long.
McCallum >>>>>>> Cojo
Source: RC Buford, GM of the San Antonio Spurs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Splitter
lol what?
I trust Simmons,KA and Boban to be helpful and have a good season,and I'm not sure McCallum is that much of a downgrade from CoJo
Beli is a big loss as despite being useless on defense he could eat minutes from Manu and hit some timely shots
We shouldn't overlook the fact that we'll hopefully have an healthy Patty this season,even if CoJo played well we missed him a lot
West is obviously a big upgrade over Baynes,Ayres etc. he could be a starter in many teams
Still nearly everything depends on Manu and Boris,if they bounce back,and part of me expect them to do (especially Manu,as this might be his last chance to win a le),they'll be the biggest improvement over last season's bench,abd if they're able to find a good chemistry with the other guys asap this year's bench might be even better than last year's
CoJo > McCallum
Beli > Simmons, Anderson ( though expect fanboys to jump on this )
West > Baynes
Boban > Ayres
I'd say slightly better, as the West role is the most significant of these. Plus hopefully Anderson has improved. Plus health. Too many new faces though and if Manu isn't sharp as a distributor this 2nd unit might struggle.
Sorry but McCallum is not better than CoJo.
Disagree with a few assessments.
1. As for the PG position: I'd argue that having a healthy and confident Patty Mills for the whole regular season + adding McCallum is a net improvement over last years back up point guard proposition. (Last year, Patty was out the 1st half of the season and it took him nearly the whole year to rediscover his game and confidence. This led Pop to playing Cojo a lot more than anticipated. Also, is anyone aware of how Ray ended his season last year? The young 24 year old point guard avg. 33 mpg for the month of April and averaged 12 points, 5 rbs, 4 assits an 2 steals while shooting 48% from the field and 44% from 3. As RC pointed out in a recent interview, he's actually an improvement over Joseph when it comes to actually running point guard and setting up the offense -- being a facilitator. I'd also argue he's a better scorer and three point shooter than Joseph. Taking all this about McCallum into account and also considering Patty being physically and mentally ready for the whole season is an improvement over last year's back up PG situation. I'd say Spurs improved in this area.
PG's of 15/16: Healthy Patty Mills, Ray McCallum > 14/15' Cory Joseph, Injured/Unconfident Patty Mills
2. As for the 4th wing spot: While Belinelli provided great three point shooting off the bench, I actually thought Belinelli's overall game regressed from the previous year. He wasn't as confident having the ball in PnR situations and didn't put the ball on the floor as effectively as he did in his first year as a Spur. While Simmons and Anderson are unproven, there's reasons to be optimistic about the two players.
They more than likely won't be the three point shooter Belinelli was, but they'll have a great chance being improvements over Belinelli in other areas of the game -- where Belinelli's weaknesses existed:
1. On ball Defense
2. Weak-side/Off-ball Defense
3. Transition defense
4. Better at defending/fighting through screens
5. Offensive Rebounding
6. Defensive Rebounding
7. Better creators off the dribble
8. Better finishers in the paint
It's not fair or objective to make a comparative assessment on this 4th wing spot in July when Simmons and Anderson have yet to step on the floor. What we do know is that Simmons and Anderson have a great chance at being improvements in many areas of the game as I listed above. We also know that the Spurs are very comfortable having Anderson/Simmons compete for Belinelli's role -- which is a great sign. This assessment should be more optimistic, yet inconclusive since its only July.
3. As for the front-court, Spurs improved immensely, as you implied. But you're missing a few key points.
LaMarcus is not only replacing Splitter and his minutes (20mpg), he's also replacing majority of Baynes' minutes as well (16 mpg). LaMarcus taking up the minutes of two players in compe ive games makes you realize how much deeper the Spurs actually are in the front-court. Aldridge will be the consistent work horse for the front court -- playing the most minutes night in and night out. Duncan will see the second most minutes and close games with LaMarcus but with the addition of David West, Pop will be able to rest him more than usual.
RC said at Summer League he believes McCallum will run the offense better than CoJo. Whether that's just spin, or encouragement to McCallum I don't know but RC is not the type to say things just fill space in an interview. We'll see how it turns out.
As somebody said, Mills being healthy is the key. Overall I think we a better. I think Anderson and Simmons will pleasantly suprise us.
Last edited by keepinitwill; 08-03-2015 at 08:53 AM.
Downgrade. These new bums still need to learn the system. Its not like you can just plug them in and then they'll immediately work. Its gonna take a season at least. Hopefully by the time the playoffs are here, everybody's healthy and clickin
We still have a deep roster probably better than last year
On paper, they're certainly thinner or less proven than last year in the backcourt. That puts more onus on Parker, Mills and Ginobili to carry the load, but it's also possible one of the new additions could surprise, be it McCallum, Jimmer or Simmons.
I don't think Jimmer's making the team.
What is cojo better at than McCallum?
Lol. gots thinking scruballum is better than cojo.
I don't look at this as a player vs. player transition
We have lost some corporate knowledge, 3 pt shooting and backcourt defense
We have gained front court offense, front court defense, and backcourt offense
I think we are as deep as last year's squad and our newly added mid-range game will make this team very tough to guard. Teams will either have to give up the paint, mid-range or 3 pt line.
Our starting unit was very inconsistent last season as well. If this year's starters can live up to their potential, the bench will flourish.
I'll trust RC assesment over anybody in this board.
What a weird thread. What if we had this discussion before ever seeing CoJo, Beli, Ayers, and Baynes in silver and black? I'd like to see how Pop utilizes the new pieces. We don't even know for sure Simmons and Anderson are going to be the replacement for Beli's production. Of the four players that left: CoJo and Baynes over achieved, Beli was right around what he should've been, and Ayers pretty much took the Spurs money from their cap, put it on the floor, dumped gasoline on it, set it a blaze, then peed on it to put out the flames.
With that said, the Mormons are coming...
He didn't say that tbqh. He said McCallum is ahead of where Cory was at the same stage of their respective careers. Keep in mind, Cory was a full two years younger in his second year in the league. RC did day that he thought Ray could run a team more effectively, but that's not the only measure of value.
I think the biggest gap between the two players is defensively, where CoJo is by far the more impressive player. In no way do I think they are comparable players, but fortunately I don't think they have to be. As others have stated, a healthy Parker and Mills combo makes the third string PG position a much less needed quan y.
Defense and offensive scoring efficiency.
If he shoots well enough, he will. The Spurs value shooting and floor spacers (see: Bonner, Matt), and that's definitively Jimmer's strength. They also have a hole in that role with the departure of Beli. If Jimmer can prove reliable enough to make open shots in the system, I think he sticks.
A bit weaker. Cojo leaving will hurt. Who knows how the ray kid will play or the giant for that matter. David west will be huge. Kyle, I'm afraid, will get significant minutes and that will hurt as well. Overall, a bit weaker.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
