It's strange.
Chris Paul is 35. Everyone says he is still good. LeBron James is 35 and everyone says he shows no signs of slowing down too much.
We got Aldridge at age 35 and he plays exactly the way that Pop requires him to.
Him and DeRozan weren't brought in to be the replacements for ALL-NBA Tim Duncan and Kawhi Leonard.
However, if the chemistry is right, they only have to approximate the roles those players had in 2014.
So, in essence, TD in 2014 averaged 15.1 PPG, 9.7 RPG, 3.0 APG, .6 SPG and 2.3 BPG.
Kawhi in 2014 averaged 12.8 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.7 SPG, and .8 BPG
Combine those totals: 27.9 PPG, 15.9 RPG, 5.0 APG, 2.3 SPG, and 3.1 BPG
Last season LMA averaged 18.9 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 2.4 APG, .7 SPG, and 1.6 BPG.
DeRozan averaged 22.1 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 5.6 APG, 1.0 SPG and .3 BPG.
Combine those totals: 41.0 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 8.0 APG, 1.7 SPG, and 1.9 BPG
These 2 Spurs aren't the issue. For the Spurs to get better, the young guys, including Poeltl have to get better. I agree that the defense should be much improved with both Belinelli and Forbes no longer on the court. The team has lot of youth, length, varying levels of athleticism,
and now, they actually have some experience.
I actually see a path to where they both stay, on perhaps 2+1 deals but at Team Friendly contracts. As those young guys get better, re-balance the loads, and let's get back to The Beautiful Game.