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too bad, I'd rather he get three minutes a game than Elson
Other teams are making moves, it'd be nice of the Spurs to speed along Mahinmi's development.
Spurs assign Mahinmi to Austin
February 1, 2008
SAN ANTONIO (TICKER) -- The San Antonio Spurs on Friday assigned rookie center Ian Mahinmi to Austin of the D-League.
Mahinmi was recalled by the Spurs on Monday but did not appear in a game. He has appeared in six games this season, averaging 3.5 points.
In 24 games with the Toros, Mahinmi is averaging 18.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.20 blocks
too bad, I'd rather he get three minutes a game than Elson
Other teams are making moves, it'd be nice of the Spurs to speed along Mahinmi's development.
I know. I wish I would have got to see him play instead of Matt "I everything up and picked up 3 fouls in 1 minute" Bonner or Francisco "I just stand around and cant play basketball" Elson.
I think they've let him know that he is part of their future. I doubt being called up and sent back down occassionally is scarring him as a player. Obviously this is just to open a spot for Damon.
At least they haven't cut/re-signed him several times. Playing in the D-league, knowing you're under contract w/ the Spurs and knowing they want to keep you around I'm sure doesn't deflate his ego or shatter his confidence in himself.
Last edited by Ed Helicopter Jones; 02-01-2008 at 05:31 PM.
It's more like he was tearing up the D-league so maybe Pop wanted to get a closer look at him...
And now he's gotten a closer look at him, in practice, and figures he's better off getting more time in the d-league.
It was only to be able to let him hang out with the team during the road trip.
wtf man. I think Pop is just screwing with the guys on the Toros. Drinking wine during the evening, laughing. "Hey lets call this guy up! Let em get all excited, and then send him back down! That'll shatter his ego, eh? haha!"
People act like these guys hear about their status the same way we do.
Mahinmi looks up Spurs.com... "Mahinmi reassigned to Toros" ... Mahinmi - "WTF? I thought this was my chance! I wish they'd told me they weren't bringing me up permanently! We never talk!"
I guess Pop couldn't see any way to give him significant PT, which he will be getting in Austin.
I don't get this move...
Not that I expected Mahinmi to stick on the big club for the rest of the year, but there is PRIME opportunity for Mahinmi to get practice with the squad over the next 5 days.
I get that they would send him down, but why after only one or two practices with the team? Something's fishy....
Mahinmi going back to Austin after the first leg of the RRT was planed since he has been called up.
Mahinmi was call up just before the Utah game and Mike Monroe wrote in the post game notebook :
LinkIan Mahinmi was back on the roster for the Spurs for Monday's game against the Utah Jazz, called up Monday morning from the Austin Toros of the D-League.
He also was back on the inactive list, sitting behind his teammates in a black suit and tie.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said Mahinmi is on the first leg of the rodeo road trip, a three-game stretch that goes from Salt Lake City to Seattle to Phoenix, strictly for the camaraderie he will gain with his teammates.
"We just wanted to bring him up and spend some time with the team," Popovich said. "He can make friends with the guys and enjoy himself a little bit. It's more that, a personality thing for him to be around the guys."
Popovich wants Mahinmi, a 21-year-old, 6-foot-10 rookie who was the team's first-round draft pick in 2005, to get all the seasoning he can in Austin. Mahinmi has played well for the Toros, and joined the Spurs after a 32-point, nine-rebound performance in Austin on Sunday.
"I was happy," Mahinmi said, "not so surprised. I've been working hard."
Mahinmi said he understands he likely will return to Austin when the first leg of the trip is complete, but he believes he has improved to the point he could help the club if called on.
"I just keep improving on my offensive game and defensive game," he said. We run a couple of Spurs sets, too, so I think my understanding of the game is better, playing a lot and getting experience. I think I have improved on every aspect of the game."
Right on.Mahinmi said he understands he likely will return to Austin when the first leg of the trip is complete, but he believes he has improved to the point he could help the club if called on.
But what if he never saw that article? What if he forgot about it? We cannot risk damaging his fragile confidence.
This is all by design. Ian has a couple of NBA players to play against tonight. It's good for him.
At least he got to scope out some Krispy Kreme stores in Utah, Seattle, and Phoenix.
By the looks of him he could use a few KKs.
If he needs to put on a few pounds, San Antonio is definitely the place to be!
The good ones though.
Not the ones that Me and some of the my fellow San Antonian's have
I don't know what Spurs plan to do with Mahinmi but I doubt they still want that he gains a lot of weight. After all, Mahinmi is a PF and not a C.
Sure would've been nice if Ian could've "sniffed" a few minutes.
Pop was at the game tonight to watch Ian.
Ian looked pretty good at the game tonight. It was cool that Pop was there.
This is all we get?
I posted it in another thread, but here you go:This is all we get?
Ian was in foul trouble for most of the game. When he wasn't, he had trouble getting in the paint against Fesenko (the Ukraine center that the Jazz drafted).
When he did get the ball down low, he either threw up a baby hook or took a ty shot. He doesn't have a good back-to-the-basket game yet. His best plays were "scrap" plays...offensive rebounds, blocks in transition.
He was solid on defense. Got muscled out on the boards, but did a great job protecting the rim. There were few layups for Utah when Ian was in the game.
To be fair...Fesenko is the size of a freaking house. He's prety solid. I'd imagine muscling guys around is one thing he does well.
We got to meet him after the game, seemed like a nice kid.
Edit: A nice kid who is as big as a house.
To me Ian looked like he's put on a lot of muscle compared to most of the videos I have seen of him. He's built a lot like DRob or Elson though...not like Duncan. He's always going to have to fight for position without having a wide base.
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