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And yes, I realize that the Spurs end up with two point guards in that mock draft, but I have to go with my gut. Gut > Logic when it comes to what the Spurs will do on draft day.
The 2007 NBA World Champion San Antonio Spurs head into the draft with three selections and a couple needs the team could look to fill. The 2007 NBA World Champions (so nice I had to say it twice) don’t have great roster flexibility at this point, but this draft is deep enough that they could try to make some room.
The Spurs have the 28th, 33rd and 58th picks in the draft. Since the 28th pick is in the first round, the player the Spurs pick in that spot will get a guaranteed contract. Picks 33 and 58 land in the second round, which means that the Spurs won’t automatically be on the hook for a guaranteed contract.
The biggest needs for San Antonio heading into the draft reside at backup point guard and depth at small forward. While Jacque Vaughn and Beno Udrih have both had their moments, neither one appears to be a long term solution. At small forward, the Spurs have 36-year-old Bruce Bowen but no one else on the roster who is a true small forward.
With Fabricio Oberto opting out of his contract, there could also be room on the Spurs for an additional big man. However, it appears that Oberto is likely to be re-signed at some point this summer.
Heading into the 2007-08 season, the Spurs have Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Bruce Bowen, Michael Finley, Brent Barry, Robert Horry, Francisco Elson, Beno Udrih, James White and Jackie Butler under contract. Fabricio Oberto, Matt Bonner and Jacque Vaughn are free agents, but the Spurs are expected to attempt to re-sign each of them. Melvin Ely is also a free agent, but the Spurs aren’t expected to retain him.
Roster spots, or the lack thereof, are of main importance when figuring what the Spurs will do with their draft picks. Including the players under contract and the players the Spurs are expected to re-sign, the Spurs have already accounted for 14 of the available 15 roster spots. Moreover, the Spurs are expected to consider bringing over Luis Scola or Ian Mahinmi, two players the Spurs have the rights to who currently play overseas.
As previously stated, this draft is a deep one. Even into the second round, teams will be able to land quality NBA prospects. Since that is the case, the Spurs’ options going into the draft will be as varied as ever.
Option #1: Draft three players who will stay overseas
The Spurs have excelled in their international scouting over the years. To add to their foreign talent pool, the Spurs could decide to go ahead and pick three international prospects who they plan to let cultivate overseas. In this scenario, the Spurs would build for the future without having to find the roster spots for the incoming players.
Option #2: Use one or more of the draft picks to open up a roster spot
If San Antonio wants more roster flexibility, they could package a draft pick along with a player such as Udrih or Bulter for a future draft pick. If the Spurs decide to go with this option, they could then conceivably draft a player who is ready to come in a play right away. An example of such a trade would be the rumored Udrih and the 28th pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers for a future first round selection.
Option #3: Pick now, worry later
Since this draft is so stocked with talent, the Spurs could opt to put off fretting about roster spots until a later date and instead simply pick the best players available at each selection. However, with as calculating as the Spurs’ front office has been over the years, this option isn’t too likely. Unless a trade is made, the team doesn’t have room to add more than one prospect who is ready to play right away. And the Spurs might not even have room for one, depending on what happens with their free agents plus Mahinmi and Scola.
Option #4: Bundle the picks and move up
If the Spurs are eyeing someone they want who could be off the board before it’s their time to pick, the Spurs might decide to package their picks together and try to move up higher in the first round. While the Spurs have never traded up in the first round in the Gregg Popovich era, San Antonio has attempted to do so in the past. Depending on who they like, that could again be the case this year.
Option #5: Stockpile picks for the future
The Spurs, for all we know, could be unexcited by the prospects in this draft. If that is the case, the Spurs could simply decide to trade away each of their picks to the highest bidder. Since their roster is so jammed, this scenario could hold some water. After this upcoming season, only Duncan, Parker and Ginobili will remain on the books. Having multiple draft picks in the upcoming years could be important in terms of replacing the aging role players.
THE 2007 NBA DRAFT PROSPECTS
Key
**** - A great fit on the Spurs
*** - A very good fit for the Spurs
** - A decent fit for the Spurs
* - A bad fit for the Spurs
The Cream of the Crop
These are the players who the Spurs would have to trade up to draft
Greg Oden – Has all it takes to become the NBA’s next great center. ****
Kevin Durant – A great all-around player who has superstar talent. ****
Al Horford – A rugged power forward with advanced skills. ****
Mike Conley, Jr. – A speedster who is the best point guard in the draft. ***1/2
Joakim Noah – Florida’s emotional leader who has an improving game. ***1/2
Corey Brewer – Has the potential to be a great defender. ****
Yi Jianlian – A Chinese prospect with a world of talent. ***
Jeff Green – An all-around threat out of Georgetown. ***1/2
Spencer Hawes – A big center with good hands. ***
Brandan Wright – Skilled yet raw power forward prospect. ***
Acie Law – Clutch shooter who is never scared. ***1/2
Al Thornton – Athletic beast out of Florida State. ***1/2
Nick Young – An improving USC sharpshooter. ***
Javaris Crittenton – Extremely raw point guard prospect. ***
Rodney Stuckey – Small school, big time potential. ***1/2
Julian Wright – Multidimensional wing from Kansas. ***1/2
Jason Smith – A superbly athletic bigman prospect. ***
Thaddeus Young – 6’8 and can play multiple positions. ***
The Players in the Mix
These are the players who could be available at 28 and 33 for the Spurs
Derrick Byars – An all-around perimeter threat from Vanderbilt. ***
Jared Dudley – A good character big wing who plays to win. **1/2
Rudy Fernandez – A Spanish wizard with buyout issues. ***
Tiago Splitter – A Brazilian brute with buyout issues. **1/2
Petteri Koponen – Finnish point guard with nice potential. **1/2
Daequan Cook – A young gun with upside out of Ohio State. ***
Sean Williams – A problem child with a knack of blocking shots. **
Wilson Chandler – Long and raw small forward prospect. **1/2
Marco Belinelli – Italian gunner who can score in a hurry. **1/2
Morris Almond – Sharpshooter out of Rice. **1/2
Nick Fazekas – A big who can shoot lights out. **1/2
Josh McRoberts – A big with good perimeter abilities. **1/2
Taurean Green – Florida’s point guard who can run the show. **
Glen Davis – Big Baby has big skills and big waistline. **1/2
Ramon Sessions – Playmaking point guard out of Nevada. *1/2
Gabe Pruitt – Combo guard with an improving game. **1/2
Marcus Williams – A swingman with a good handle. **
Dominic McGuire – Highly skilled but red flags about character **1/2
Demetris Nichols – Can shoot the lights out but not much else. **
Alando Tucker – College superstar looking to make the transition. *1/2
Zabian Dowdell – Long combo guard out of Virginia Tech. **1/2
Aaron Brooks – A small scoring point guard. *1/2
Arron Afflalo – Tough and defensively advanced guard. **
Kyrylo Fesenko – Ukrainian bigman who can jump. **
Aaron Gray – Giant center with huge frame. *1/2
Zoran Erceg – Croatian bigman with a feathery outside touch. *1/2
Marc Gasol – Pau’s brother who doesn’t skip a meal. **
Reyshawn Terry – A potential defensive stopper out of North Carolina. **
Stanko Barac – Bosnian center with decent mobility. *1/2
Renaldas Seibutis – Lithuanian shooting guard with decent all-around game. **
Kyle Visser – Wale Forest center with a big body. *1/2
Bottom of the Barrel
These are the players who could be available at 58 for the Spurs
Carl Landry **
Quinton Hosley *1/2
Ali Traore *
DJ Strawberry **
Marko Tomas **
Giorgos Printezis **
Stephane Lasme **1/2
Sun Yue **
Herbert Hill *1/2
Bobby Brown *
Joao Gomes *1/2
Milovan Rakovic *1/2
Chris Richard *1/2
Jermareo Davidson *1/2
Ivan Radenovic *
Brad Newley *
Darryl Watkins *
Trey Johnson *
Jared Jordan *1/2
JamesOn Curry *
Ron Lewis *
Ryvon Corville *
Russell Carter *
J. R. Reynolds *
Brandon Heath *
Coby Karl *
Mustafa Shakur *
DaShaun Wood *
Sammy Mejia *
Mohamed Abukar *
Coleman Collins *
Justin Cage *
Mario Boggan *
Cartier Martin *
Adam Haluska *
James Hughes
Larry Blair *
Avis Wyatt *
Ekene Ibekwe *
Jeremy Hunt *
Curtis Sumpter *
Blake Schilb *
Ian Vouyoukas *
Terrence Roberts *
Nate Funk *
Marko Lekic *
Mirza Begic *
Saúl Blanco *1/2
Jonas Maciulis *
Luksa Andric *
Mirza Teletovic *
Yannick Bokolo *1/2
Kaspars Berzins *
Hrvoje Peric *
Luka Bogdanovic *
Gustavo Barrera *
Dimitri Sokolov *
Domen Lorbek *
Ralfi Silva Ansaloni *
THE 2007 NBA MOCK DRAFT
1 Portland Trail Blazers -- Greg Oden
2 Seattle SuperSonics -- Kevin Durant
3 Atlanta Hawks -- Al Horford
4 Memphis Grizzlies -- Mike Conley, Jr.
5 Boston Celtics -- Joakim Noah
6 Milwaukee Bucks -- Brandan Wright
7 Minnesota Timberwolves -- Jeff Green
8 Charlotte Bobcats -- Corey Brewer
9 Chicago Bulls -- Spencer Hawes
10 Sacramento Kings -- Yi Jianlian
11 Atlanta Hawks -- Rodney Stuckey
12 Philadelphia 76ers -- Nick Young
13 New Orleans Hornets -- Al Thornton
14 Los Angeles Clippers -- Acie Law IV
15 Detroit Pistons -- Thaddeus Young
16 Washington Wizards -- Julian Wright
17 New Jersey Nets -- Jason Smith
18 Golden State Warriors -- Rudy Fernandez
19 Los Angeles Lakers -- Josh McRoberts
20 Miami Heat -- Javaris Crittenton
21 Philadelphia 76ers -- Marco Belinelli
22 Charlotte Bobcats -- Daequan Cook
23 New York Knicks -- Sean Williams
24 Phoenix Suns -- Tiago Splitter
25 Utah Jazz -- Morris Almond
26 Houston Rockets -- Nick Fazekas
27 Detroit Pistons -- Derrick Byars
28 San Antonio Spurs -- Petteri Koponen
29 Phoenix Suns -- Wilson Chandler
30 Philadelphia 76ers -- Glen Davis
31 Seattle Sonics -- Zabian Dowdell
32 Boston Celtics -- Jared Dudley
33 San Antonio Spurs -- Taurean Green
34 Dallas Mavericks -- Gabe Pruitt
35 Seattle Sonics -- Renaldas Seibutis
36 Golden State Warriors -- Dominic McGuire
37 Portland Trailblazers -- Arron Afflalo
38 Philadelphia 76ers -- Demetris Nichols
39 Miami Heat -- Aaron Brooks
40 Los Angeles Lakers -- Reyshawn Terry
41 Minnesota Timberwolves -- Alando Tucker
42 Portland Trailblazers -- Marc Gasol
43 New Orleans Hornets -- Marcus Williams
44 Orlando Magic -- Aaron Gray
45 Los Angeles Clippers -- Kyle Visser
46 Golden State Warriors -- Kyrylo Fesenko
47 Washington Wizards -- Carl Landry
48 Los Angeles Lakers -- Ramon Sessions
49 Chicago Bulls -- Sun Yue
50 Dallas Mavericks -- Giorgos Printezis
51 Chicago Bulls -- DJ Strawberry
52 Portland Trailblazers -- Zoran Erceg
53 Portland Trailblazers -- Stephane Lasme
54 Orlando Magic -- Ali Traore
55 Utah Jazz -- Jared Jordan
56 Milwaukee Bucks -- Herbert Hill
57 Detroit Pistons -- Joao Gomes
58 San Antonio Spurs -- Marko Tomas
59 Phoenix Suns -- Yannick Bokolo
60 Dallas Mavericks -- Hrvoje Peric
THE CRYSTAL BASKETBALL
At 28, the Spurs will use the pick if there is a foreign prospect on the board that they still like. Candidates include Rudy Fernandez, Petteri Koponen and Marco Belinelli. If not foreign prospect they like is on the board, they'll trade the pick with Beno Udrih for a future first round pick.
At 33, the Spurs will pick the best domestic point guard available. Candidates inculde Gabe Pruitt, Zabian Dowdell and Taurean Green.
At 58, the Spurs will pick the a foreign prospect to stash overseason. Candidates include Marko Tomas, Giorgos Printezis and Saúl Blanco.
Last edited by timvp; 06-28-2007 at 06:44 AM.
And yes, I realize that the Spurs end up with two point guards in that mock draft, but I have to go with my gut. Gut > Logic when it comes to what the Spurs will do on draft day.
Nice.
God I hate watching the draft so freaking much.
Every single year the same GD thing happens.
Forget it, I give up, I'm not watching. BTW Taurean Green would be nice.
Nice write up!
They are idiots unless they try to get a Bowen apprentice in this draft.
I like Kaponen at 28. McGuire or Dudley at 33 and Stephen Lasme would be a good pick at 58.
And just think... ESPN charges for this crap.
Well done. Subscribing to this one. Thanks.
Great work, timvp.
This is free when ESPN is charging millions to read worthless pieces of crap.
I see you have Portland taking Durant with the first pick. That would be real interesting, but I don't see that happening.
I'm guessing OPTION #1 above with most likely happen for the spurs. Rudy Fernandez would be a great pick @ 28 if he drops that low and I think he could be ready to play right away.
Should be a great and deep draft.
Again, nice work.
Portland screws up, only this time they take the small when they should've taken the big?
Does this get re-worked for the Blazers informing Oden he's #1?
TIMVP Sorry You Do Not Contribute To This Site
Arronstampler
Problem is I don't see him in this draft unless the Spurs take a chance on a guy with questionable character.
Actaully, Oden at number two was an accident from copying the format of the SpursTalk Mock Draft. I assumed Oden was one.
It was too late to change after I noticed it. Perhaps CIA Pritchard will make me look good
Nice read, good work as usual!
Just read (don't know if it's been posted or not) that Acie Law has an invite to sit in the green room at the Draft.
That was lovely. I usually stay away from timvp's analysis (I get bogged down). However, with being so busy it was great. I have to start reading these more often.
Welcome to last Sunday
From now on I intend to only use the "!" to denote the player of whom I speak.
!
Welcome to last SundayThat's what I get for thinking certain writers have new information.
Yeah, ! could very well take care of that issue.
Where are you getting some of these assesments from? Spencer Hawes has good hands? Have you looked at his rebounding? He's got post moves out the wazoo, I'll give you...
Tiago Splitter is a "brute"? He's much more of a finesse player.
Daequan Cook is a very good fit on the Spurs? Why? He's an immature gunner, who doesn't put the effort in on D? To quote draftexpress:
Mcguire has character flags? Since when? I haven't heard of any, and there aren't any mentioned on the player thread...The Daequan Cook that we have seen since mid-January doesn’t even resemble the player that we saw through Ohio State’s first 16 games. Early in the year, we saw a shooting guard prospect with prototypical size and a killer mentality who honestly felt like he could score on anyone in the country, and that he did leading the team in scoring throughout that timespan. Since then however, we have seen a s of a player with no confidence and a complete lack of aggression on the offensive end, despite his immense talents on the offensive end. Against the Volunteers we saw flashes of his offensive prowess with his beautiful left handed pass to Matt Terwillinger inside and his explosive first step on a scoring drive to the rim. Aside from that, we just saw a player standing around on the offensive end and serving as a liability on the defensive end.
That's what I'm talking about!
James White!
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