SB Nation - Roger Mason Jr.

Fantasy Ballin' with RaptorsHQ

Raptors HQ - Vicious D — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:36:12 -0000

More photos » by Wilfredo Lee - AP

Mario Chalmers was a steal for Vicious D in the later rounds of his draft.

Vicious D and Franchise give some quick accounts of recent fantasy leagues they've joined along with various other media-types. Find out who he picked, why, and tell them how you would have drafted!

To tell you the truth, I really dislike Fantasy Basketball. Well...not that I absolutely abhor it, it's just that I'm more of a fan of the real game I guess.

Now before everyone arrives outside of my condo with pitchforks, torches, and guns, there are a few things about fantasy ball that I do really like. One of them is that you get to look at the game from a purely statistical standpoint and see players you may have forgotten about. For example, I would never have thought Ronny Turiaf had the 3rd highest block totals last year.

Another good thing about these kinds of drafts is just who is involved. We've got uber TSN reporter Tim Chisholm, newly Faux-Hawked Eric Koreen, the Fan 590's Zack Cooper and a who's who of the Raptors blog-o-sphere.

Dr. J. Naismith, Raptors Forum, @RaptorsForum
Romes, Hip Hoop Junkies & Hoop Heads North, @romyaquino
AltRaps, The AltRaps Blog, @altraps
James Borbath, Dino Nation Blog, @dinonationblog
Nat, Heels on Hardwood, @Nat77
Eric Koreen, National Post & A Snack and an Ego Stroke, @ekoreen
Raps Fan, Raptors Republic, @RapsFan
Vicious D, Raptors HQ, @RapHQVicious
Cuzzy, Cuzoogle, @cuzoogle
Jeff Wong, PeteMarasmitch.com, @Marasmitch
Tim Chisholm, 3 in the Key on TSN.ca, @timpchisholm
Zack Cooper, FAN590, @ZCooperstown

The league is played in two divisions and is set up in head-to-head style. (Follow the action at Raptors FANtasy League ID# 232122 through Yahoo Sports.) The league will also have no trades, no waivers, and no changes, which means no micromanagement! Everyone is active whether they're playing or not, so it's really quite a low-maintenance league.

So what about my strategy?

Well, I thought I'd try my hand at building from the center/power forward position and work my way from there. I was looking to acquire players who would be better rebounders, shot blockers, and high percentage scorers in the league, while leaving the scoring to the later rounds. As a result, here are some of my notable picks and why I chose them.

Chris Bosh - Toronto Raptors (Round 1)
Amare Stoudemire may have been the pick that would had yielded higher gains, but I chose Chris Bosh because he's in a contract year and I believe he has the potential to have another 20 and 10 year. He'll be solid, and Chris Bosh has always been a solid late Round 1 pick up. I just wanted for my first pick to be a low-risk/good return player; someone who will play more than 70 games in the season. Toss in some added muscle, and hopefully we'll see a healthy and vibrant Bosh. I picked up Tim Duncan soon after to compliment Bosh on my front line. Both players may go on streak where they put up some heavy numbers, but I'm looking for a consistent set of numbers in categories that aren't focused solely on points scored. Both Bosh and Duncan fit that bill.

Jose Calderon - Toronto Raptors (Round 3)
After grabbing two bigs, I was in the 3rd round with few options at point guard. However, my strategy going into this draft was to choose players that would help me win in the less offensive-driven categories. Jose Calderon satisfied my need for a high assist, low turnover point guard. Michael Grange believes that Calderon will not rack up as many assists this season but I'd still like to see if that's really going to play out. Turkoglu is bound to take away from some of his assist totals but at the same time, Calderon is a deadly enough shooter that he will gain some of his lost stats back on the offensive side. Oh yeah, he has an extremely high free-throw percentage which will off-set people like Tim Duncan. And yes, I ridiculed myself mercilessly for taking two Raptors in the first three rounds. Jason Kidd and Rajon Rondo both were available at this point, but I don't believe Kidd will stay healthy if Dallas intends to be a quick and agile club, and Rajon Rondo is someone I've always disliked thanks to his relatively high turnover ratio and free-throw issues.

Jason Richardson - Phoenix Suns (Round 7)
Around round 7 I started to look for some potential scorers. In the previous round, I had taken Shawn Marion, who I expect will not be taking many 3s this year. However, Shawn would be a good supplement to the front line I was building with his rebounds, assists, and blocks. J-Rich on the other hand, is going to go play with Steve Nash. On a team going back to a running style, Richardson will plan an important roll as a guy who will spread the floor thanks to his 3-point shooting and scoring. He traditionally has had some decent rebounding and assist numbers which will help out over the course of the season as well.

Al Harrington - New York Knicks (Round 8)
While I was trying to figure out my 3-point shooting situation, I was looking at both Jason Richardson and Al Harrington for Round 7. Imagine my surprise when he fell through to Round 8 and I was able to grab a big body who could also light it up from beyond the arc. Jason Richardson made 129 three-pointers last year. Al Harrington? 171! That's from your PF/Center position! As one of the more solid offensive weapons on the Knicks, here's hoping Harrington has another good year.

Mario Chalmers - Miami Heat (Round 9)
Fresh off of taking Ronny Turiaf in round 8 due to his previously mentioned blocked shots totals for last year, I was looking to bolster my steals category. Mario Chalmers was 22nd overall in assists, and made over 100 3-pointers. Playing next to Dwayne Wade, Chalmers managed to keep the Heat's offense running but what stood out for me was the fact that he was third overall in steals. Finishing third behind Chris Pauland Wade, he managed to rack up 160 steals to tie him with Jason Kidd.

Roger Mason Jr. - San Antonio Spurs (Round 12)
Finally, I wanted to find someone who was going to dish the ball and push my assist totals up as well as possibly help out my 3-point shooting. Roger Mason was 10th overall in 3-points made last year, managed to rack up almost 200 assists last year, and shot 89% from the charity stripe. As a late round pick, I was struggling to figure out if I was going to get Stephen Curry or not. In the end, I took the safer bet, not trusting Don Nelson's style of coaching towards rookies.

The entire league will run throughout the year. We're all interested to see how our picks will pan out and how the head-to-head match ups will work. Check out the progress throughout the year by visiting our league and for a full breakdown of the rounds of selection, please check out this Google spreadsheet.

VICIOUS D

I too jumped into the fantasy deep end this year and for the second straight season, entered a squad into the "Charity Stripe" basketball league.

Charity Stripe has also been composed of various media types, from folks at TSN and the CBC, to bloggers like myself and various fantasy experts from places like Rotoevil.com. The winner each year picks a charity of his choice (hence the league name) and we all donate $25 to that cause.

Last year wasn't a great one in my league as I had the most injury-riddled team of all time. At one point I had SEVEN players out, including key pieces like Al Horford, Stephen Jackson, Carmelo Anthony and Marcus Camby. It wasn't a pretty sight and I missed the playoffs as a result.

This year I'm back for revenge with a slightly tweaked draft strategy. While last year I was focussing on winning the "tough-to-get" statistical categories, this year, I tried to lock down a few specific ones early on; scoring, rebounding, 3-point shooting, steals and hopefully, free-throw percentage. I also had the first pick overall, so a certain Mr. Lebron James is anchoring my team, always a good way to start things off.

From there I looked at unique players such as Rashard Lewis and Antawn Jamison who hit a large number of 3's while still posting solid rebounding numbers from a forward position, and then moved along trying to bolster the categories I previously mentioned.

Sleeper picks?

How about Luis Scola, Louis Williams, Tyreke Evans and Ramon Sessions.

Risks?

Baron Davis, Marcus Camby, Mike Dunleavy Jr and the currently injured Kevin Love.

I'll be giving updates on this league as well throughout the season and it can be viewed here, but safe to say that it's going to be a very interesting squad that I've put together...

...and hopefully one that brings home the title.

FRANCHISE

Kevin O'Neill and the Link on D to the 2009-10 Toronto Raptors

RaptorsHQ - Franchise — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 12:33:23 -0000

More photos » by John Raoux - AP

Way back in 2003-04, Marshall was part of one of the Raptors' best defensive clubs. Franchise hopes this coming season's incarnation can come close to replicating that feat.

Browse more photos »

Franchise takes a look at the 2003-04 Raptors under Kevin O'Neill and wonders just how great of a defensive club they were...

Aaaah the Friday before Film Festival here in Toronto.

For about the fourth year in a row, I got up at the crack of dawn to try and get tickets, only to have the Film Festival's horrific online booking path crash.

You'd think by year four (or longer actually) they would have gotten this thing figured out by now right? I mean, it's not like suddenly this year there are going to be way less people trying to book online!

Talk about maddening.

And of course by the time I probably get through later today, the tickets will all have been snatched up.

So what does this have to do with our beloved Raptors?

Well nothing really...except that my plan today was to talk about the 2004-04 version of the Toronto Raptors and as I was typing I realized that there is a common link between the two:

Both were frustrating as hell to endure.

Remember this incarnation of the Raptors? Kevin O'Neill at the helm and an unbelievable 23 different players who donned a Dinos' jersey that year? It was a motley crew indeed, and one that had future NBA All-Stars like Robert Archibald, Mengke Bateer, Lonny Baxter, Corie Blount, Rick Brunson, Dion Glover, Jerome Moiso, Milt Palacio, and Chris Jeffries.

Yikes.

And did you remember that other names such as Roger Mason Jr., Rod Strickland, Michael Curry and Jannero Pargo were part of that group?

I know what you're thinking: "playground sensation Rod Strickland was a Raptor?"

It was a strange season and indeed a tough one on the fans.

Prior to the start of the season, there was actually new hope thanks to the arrival of coach O'Neill. Fans had lamented that previous coach Lenny Wilkens had been too soft on his troops and hadn't implemented any sort of defensive system. As a result, while the team (when healthy) was still a joy to watch, the results just weren't there in terms of wins and after previous success under Wilkens, the club's record plummeted to 24 and 58.

It was time for a change and GM Glen Grunwald did just that by essentially hiring Wilkens' opposite. KO was a defense-first, no-nonsense coach and the hope was that a healthy core of Carter, Williams, JYD and Davis, along with the addition of promising rookie Chris Bosh, would when combined with KO's philosophies, return the Raptors to the playoffs after a one year absence.

We all know how things turned out.

Davis and JYD were shipped to Chicago for a collection of players including Jalen Rose and Donyell Marshall, and while the club won nine more games, the end of the season marked the end of both O'Neill's coaching tenure in Toronto, and Grunwald's General Manager status as well.

However historically, many look at the 2003-04 Raptors as the best defensive club in the franchise's history and recently, current Raptors' coach Jay Triano re-established a link to this era. He indicated that one of his assistants, Marc Iavaroni, would be implementing many of KO's old defensive philosophies from their time together in Memphis, and the assumption is that Raptors' fans will again see many defensive traits from that 03-04 club.

One of our readers remarked recently that KO's defensive system though could have been vastly overrated. To the agony of fans, O'Neill implemented a snail's pace scheme at both ends of the court meaning fewer possessions for both the Raptors and their opponents, and perhaps this was the real cause of defensive fortitude.

I thought this was a very interesting point and not only that, I remembered that back in 2003-04, the NBA style of play was still quite different as well; hand-checking on D was much more common, immobile big men were still the common theme in the post, and the game was not as dominated by the uber-athlete swingman.

Yes, Kobe was clearly one of the best in the game, but at this point he was still sharing the limelight with Shaq, and 2003-04 marked the rookie year for the likes of Lebron and D-Wade.

For proof of this, one only needs to gaze at the NBA Finals, where a non-star laden Detroit Piston club surprised the favoured LA Lakers and using a KO-esque slow-down pace and tough defensive style, captured the NBA title.

But getting back to the Raptors, was the club truly a great defensive team that year?

Gazing at some metrics from basketball-reference.com, it looks like yes, this was a very sound team on D. The club improved from a defensive rating of 26th in the NBA (fourth worst) under Wilkens to 7th, a huge leap. And considering that for a good portion of the year, players like Jalen Rose (not exacty a great defender) were key cogs in Toronto's system, it's hard not to say that O'Neill implemented a defensive system that was very effective despite his individual players' shortcomings. His club kept opponents from shooting above 43% offensively and across the board, the D was much improved over previous seasons.

But what about pace? Did KO slow things down to such a halt that it made the Raps' defensive numbers look better than they appeared?

Well this could be part of things for sure. Toronto that year played at the 3rd slowest pace in the league (27th out of 29 teams.) However that's not really a black and white resolution. The previous year under Wilkens, Toronto still played at a reasonably slow pace (7th slowest in the league.) So while it may have appeared that KO ground things to a halt, I think the reality was that he simply did a better job of installing defensive principles in his troops, something that admittedly is now a bit shocking considering the amount of personnel changes the club went through. It's one thing to have a full training camp with core players and teach them the ropes on D, it's another when most of those players get traded away a few months into the season and you have to constantly re-teach your philosophies.

So am I lauding the job KO did?

Yes, I suppose I am to a certain degree.

But more than that, looking over the stats from the 2003-04 has me admittedly excited to see just what coach Iavaroni can do to help this club's wonky D. Everyone agrees that Toronto should have one of the most potent offensive clubs in the league and if they can play some semblance of defence, then suddenly this could be a very dangerous club.

And while I have stated in the past that coaching in the NBA is overrated compared to the NCAA, I do feel that it's in areas like this that coaches can have a profound impact. No one would have picked the Magic to be the league's top defensive club last year Howard or no Howard and yet Stan Van Gundy coaxed a solid wall against opponents from a group that individually, weren't top notch stoppers.

Hopefully Mr. Iavaroni can do the same.

And hopefully the transition from one of the worst defensive teams in the league to at least one that can hold its own, for the viewing public, isn't akin to purchasing these film fest tickets...

...which over an hour later, I'm still unable to do.

FRANCHISE

My Team Is Better Than Yours: Toronto Raptors Edition

BlaseE — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 05:22:22 -0000

No funny caption. I just really love the look on Manu's face in this pic. It makes me happy.

via assets.espn.go.com

Finally, we are out of the bottom of the West and on to the mediocrity of last year's Eastern conference. Ten teams in the league finished with winning percentages between 39.0 and 52.4. All ten were Eastern conference teams. That is pretty crazy to me. The West had 6 teams lower than 36% and 5 lower than 30%. The Eastern conference only had 1, the Wizards, and I think they will be much improved next year. The East is a place where every team thinks they can make the playoffs. The West is a just a shakedown of how good the good teams are and how bad the "developing" teams are. The Knicks were the team at 39%, but I'm skipping them for now. That means we've broken into teams with greater than 40% win records. That is the Raptors.

I didn't have any music about raptors, dinosaurs, Canada, or Toronto. I could have gone with some classic Our Lady Peace, but JRW emailed me some music picks for this one. Enjoy.

US3 - Cantaloop (via DreamVidz)

Paul Gilbert - Technical Difficulties (Racer X) (via Imitationnigger)

FSN Season Stats Head to Head

They were almost as bad at offensive rebounding as us (28th to our 30th). That felt great to write that. As bad as we are at offensive rebounding, we are tops in limiting opposing teams from getting offensive rebounds. I bring this up because we finished the season giving up only 34 more shots than we took. Toronto gave up a little over 150. That is just under a 2 shots a game.

I just scrolled through all the stats looking for some gem of a comparison. There is a general trend that the Raptors follow a lot of the patterns the Spurs follow. The major exception is defense though. The Raptors give up a better shooting percentage than they make themselves. They have more assists than us but are still in a negative margin to their opponents. One thing I really like about the stats is that the Raptors got to the line fairly well and were the top free throw shooting team in the league. That is very un-Spurs-like.

Last Season's Games

Sat, December 20 Toronto We win 107-97. "Parker posts 24 as Spurs spank Raptors to snap 2-game skid"

100 of our 107 points are still on the roster. KT had 4 points on 2 of 6 shooting (he was a monster on the boards though and got 12 compared to Timmy's 7, Manu's 7, and Parker's 8), and Bruce had 3 points on 1-2 shooting in 4 minutes. George Hill played 9 minutes and finished with 1 turnover and 2 fouls. That's it. Anthony Tolliver and Ime Udoka combined for 0-8 shooting in 12 minutes of play. This game is all you have to see to completely understand just how awesome our roster will be next year. Let me put it another way. Every player on our roster that wasn't a rookie and is still on our roster next season scored double digits in this game on a minimum of 50% shooting. Sorry for the rant of a bullet.
Stat Comparison: Spurs were +10 boards (4 offensive), +13 assists, +7 blocks, -4 steals, and +6 turnovers.
We took 35 threes in this game and made 16 (tied franchise record). Six misses were by Udoka and Tolliver. Our starters and Manu made 15 of 27. The Raptors shot 4 of 12 for 3. We finished +36 points on 3 pointers for us.
They killed us on turnovers though finishing with +9 points off.
Parker finished with 24 points, 10 assists, 8 rebounds, and only 1 turnover.
Jermaine O'Neal, Chris Bosh, Jose Calderon, and Jason Kapono all played well enough. Chris Bosh went 1 of 7 and then made 5 of his last 7.

Terrible Defense....
via www.nba.com

Wed, February 11 @ Toronto We lose 89-91. "Ginobili scores 32 but Spurs enter break on down note"

87 of the 89 points are still on the team. Kurt Thomas had 2 points.
Our bench shot 14 of 30, and Manu shot 12 of 23 from the bench.
Finley and Bonner were a combined 1 of 7. Mason was marginally better at 4 of 11.
Our big 3 scored 74 of the 89 points.
Bargnani (23), Kapono (21), and Ukic (22) scored 66 of Toronto's 91. Roko Ukic just destroyed us off the bench going 9 of 13 and 2 of 3 from 3. He also had 3 assists. Chris Bosh and Jose Calderon didn't play either. I feel sick....
Stat Comparison: +7 rebounds (5 offensive), +8 assists, +4 steals, -4 blocks, and -1 turnover.
Our bench (-Manu) and Finley and Bonner let us down this game. Someone needed to step up and no one did while Roko Ukic just killed us.

Informal Study in Facial Expressions

Parker: Where did this guy come from? I thought I'd have a night off after having to play Devin Harris last night.

Ukic: It's great not to be on the scouting report.

Pop: ERROR....(Well the I can't crack that code but maybe something like "I remember that time I killed like 50 communist Nazis in Croatia. Shit, I hope I'm not this kid's dad."

via images.dailyradar.com

"We shouldn't have lost this one," Ginobili said. "It's important to go into the break feeling good about yourself and on a good stretch. We were playing a team that isn't doing so well and has two injured players, so we should have done much better."
This was the 5th game of the rodeo road trip and last game before the All-Star break. It was also a SEGABABA. We beat the Nets by 15 the night before.

Raptors Roster Changes

They drafted Demar DeRozan. I have no clue who that is but he has twice the "De" DeJuan Blair has. He went to USC so he is probably a really great athlete and a good player. He is 20 years old, 6'7" and 207 lbs. That sounds pretty solid for a number 9 pick. He is a 2-3. Draft Express confirms all of my USC stereotypes listing things like "lateral quickness, athleticism, size for position, and solid frame" as strengths and "lacks offensive polish, defensive fundamentals, not ready to contribute immediately, and average basketball IQ" as weaknesses. ATS microscoped him. I recommend it if you are interested in him.

So conveniently, a trade went down last week to get rid of the thorn in our side, Roko Ukic. The Bucks traded for him so I think this was a secret part of the RJ trade. We'll know for sure if he gets sent to Europe. They also traded Carlos Delfino and got Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems in return. Both are pretty much unproven players. Amir Johnson has been somewhat functional in a backup role in Detroit.

ARGENTINE SHOWDOWN!
via farm3.static.flickr.com

They've lost Jason Kapono, Shawn Marion, Kris Humphries, Nathan Jawai, Roko Ukic, Anthony Parker, Pops Mensah Bonsu, and Carlos Delfino. They are better off without Marion. Kapono was a great shooter, but his stock is pretty high right now so it was probably a smart move to let him go.

They've added Hedo Turkoglu. This is the huge move. Not just because they got him, but because they snaked him (or he snaked himself) out of Portland which is great for the Spurs. The Raptors also added Marco Belinelli, Antoine Wright, Reggie Evans, and Jarret Jack in addition to Weems and Johnson.

It is worth mentioning that we played them twice last year when they had Jermaine O'Neal and Jamario Moon and never played them after he was traded for Marion.

Jake Voskuhl and Joey Graham are unsigned free agents from last year's roster.

I couldn't find it listed anywhere, but they got Rasho, too.

The Match-Up

Starters

PG: Tony Parker versus Jose Calderon: Advantage Spurs: One of them is a a better distributor and the other is a better player. Both players are great point guards.

SG: Roger Mason versus Marco Belinelli: Advantage None: Mason is marginally better in just about every stat, but if Belinelli really starts I think he will see a jump in minutes. Mason played almost 10 more per game last year.

SF: Richard Jefferson versus Hedo Turkoglu: Advantage Raptors: Hedo is better and is coming off a career year. I think he will continue playing good basketball and really improve this team.

PF: Antonio McDyess versus Chris Bosh: Advantage Raptors: Chris Bosh is better.

C: Tim Duncan versus Andrea Bargnani: Advantage Spurs: Bargnani is a terrible rebounder for his size. He can shoot the 3 though. I think he is compared to Dirk and that seems fair looking at the stats. Poor man's Dirk. It seems like he would be awesome as a backup to Bosh at PF and then get a true center. Maybe they should start Rasho even though he is a downgrade overall.

Bench:

Point Guard: Hill vs Jarrett Jack and Marcus Banks: Raptors win this one. Jack is proven while Hill isn't.

Wings: Manu, Finley, Hairston, and Williams vs DeMar DeRozan, Sonny Weems, Quincy Douby, and Antoine Wright: Antoine Wright started for Dallas last year and is decent. Weems and Douby have not done much in the limited minutes they have been allotted so far in their careers. DeRozan is an unproven rookie. Manu and Finley are much better.

Front Court: Blair, Mahinmi, Bonner, Haislip, and Ratliff vs Amir Johnson, Rasho Nesterovic, Reggie Evans, and Patrick O'Bryant: We dominate them here. They are pretty shallow in the front court. Hedo is going to need to get like 6 rebounds a game at least. Rasho is the only one I see getting any sort of major rotation. Reggie Evans can get maybe 10-15 a game.

Coaching: Advantage Spurs.

Result: I really like the moves they've made. Their starting unit will really compete and probably dominate some teams. If some young guys step up then they can have a pretty solid team, but I just don't see it. I like the Raptors and a lot of their players so I'll be rooting for them to make the playoffs, but I'm not sure they have really separated themselves from the pack despite improving. Rebounding could be the death of their team.

The Schedule

Mon, Nov 9 vs Toronto: We have a back to back then 2 days rest before this game. It is the the third home game of the season and the first home game of a 12 home - 3 road game stretch. We really need to prove our mettle in this stretch of the schedule in order to earn Manu and Duncan rest in the later months

Sun, Jan 3 @ Toronto: SEGABABA with an at Wizards the night before. After this game we get 2 days of rest and then a 4 game home stretch. I think this will allow us to go all out in these games if needed.

So that is my Spurs-Raptors preview for next season. Next up are the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that always defies their roster and plays us incredibly well. Plus, they now have Roko Ukic.....

For more information on the Toronto Raptors, check out Raptors HQ.

Past entries in this series: Golden State Warriors, Timberwolves, Grizzlies, Thunder, Clippers, Wizards and Kings.

Poll

What is the top Spurs-Raptors match-up story line for '09-'10?

PG Match-up: Parker vs Calderon

64 votes

SG Match-up: Manu vs Bellinelli

14 votes

SF Match-up: RJ vs Hedo

119 votes

Frontcourt Matchups: Duncan, Bosh, Rasho, Dice, Bargnani, Blair......

115 votes

Rookie Impact Match-up: DeJuan vs DeMar

40 votes

Cheering for Ex Spurs in defeat: Rasho and Hedo

12 votes

I'd vote redemption for the loss, but they don't have Roko Ukic anymore.

11 votes

All the international players!!!

93 votes

2 more wins for SA.

73 votes

Raptors trying to make the playoffs and prove they can beat the "haves".

109 votes

650 votes | Poll has closed

My Team Is Better Than Yours: Minnesota Timberwolves Edition

BlaseE — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 01:17:29 -0000

We go from Memphis to Minnesota. We saw one awesome sophomore in the last edition (O.J. Mayo), and now I get to look at one I like even better (Kevin Love). I like Al Jefferson a lot too and think that Minnesota has him in a Spursian type contract of great value for the right price. I've always had a preference for Corey Brewer as he was touted as a long armed, 3 point shooting, defensive specialist when he was drafted. I've read his progress is sketchy though. I know Randy Foye and Mike Miller are gone, but I'm not too sure who is new. I'm really curious to do this one.

George Hill blocks Kevin Love's shot (via dvyoung05)

No research was done on Kevin Love's twitter so this may not be up to date. Please comment if I'm wrong on anything he has updated on his twitter. I do know Rambis is their new coach though.

I have a feeling most people on here wouldn't like this band, but the music for this one is Taking Back Sunday's Timberwolves at New Jersey. It is one of my favorite songs by the them.

FSN Season Stats Head to Head

They gave up 102.7 points a game. Can I stop there?

Guess not. They shot the second worst at 44.1% and gave up the 5th worst percentage at 47.4%. They are a good offensive rebounding team. They ranked low in offensive boards given up and defensive boards per game so I figure those stats are skewed by their poor defensive shooting numbers. They were 5th in offensive boards and 18th in defensive boards given up.

They were the second most blocked team and had the 3rd least blocks on defense. We're number 4 though. The Wolves were pretty average in assists and turnovers.

Last Season's Games

Wed, November 5 @ Minnesota We win 129-125. "Parker's jumper sends game to second OT as Spurs win"

We had lost our first 3 games going into this one. It took two overtimes and 55 points and 10 assists from Parker to get our first win. Mason and Duncan added another 56 points. Al Jefferson (30) and Mike Miller (25) put up 55 for the Wolves. Kevin Love was very impressive for a rookie in his 4th game.

Tony Parker (55 points 10 assists) (via iDarthVader)

Fri, December 12 @ Minnesota We win 98-86. "Spurs hand Wolves eighth straight loss"

Al Jefferson goes off for another 29 on us. Mike Miller is held to 3 points though. Manu is back, and players still on our roster account for 88 of 98 points. Kevin Love only scores 4 points but gets 10 boards (5 offensive) in 25 minutes off the bench.

Tue, December 23 Minnesota We win 99-93. "Parker, Spurs send Wolves to 13th straight loss"

Players still on our roster score 92 of the 97 points led by Parker's 36. Al Jefferson drops another point from the previous match up and only gets 28, but we hold him to 6 rebounds. Randy Foye put up 26. Mike Miller didn't play. Kevin Love was held to zero offensive boards. Our bench let this one get closer than it should have losing the 4th quarter 26-16. Anthony Tolliver got 11 minutes if that gives you any indication of the rotation.

George Hill's vicious dunk in slow motion (Timberwolves @Spurs) (via dvyoung05)
This dunk cost Hill many minutes in the playoffs....Nice pass by Manu though. Hopefully this highlight serves as an appetizer for '09-'10 full of Hill and Manu off the bench highlights.

Tue, March 17 Minnesota We win 93-86. "Without Duncan, Parker helps Spurs gain ground in postseason race"

No Duncan, Manu or Al Jefferson is just a gut punch as an NBA fan wanting to see good basketball. 61 of our 93 points are still on the roster. Parker scores 24 to lead all scorers. We are terrible from 3 and Minnesota outshoots us but we win by outshooting them on the charity stripe and getting offensive boards. That felt weird to write that. Kevin Love starts in Jefferson's place and goes for 17 points and 19 boards (3 offensive).

Wolves Roster Changes

They drafted Ricky Rubio, Jonny Flynn, Wayne Ellington, and Henk Norel. A lot of people are crazy for Ricky Rubio. Last I read, he is definitely getting out of his current contract, but that doesn't mean he is playing in the NBA. I've also heard he is trade bait. I somewhat doubt this. Jonny Flynn is another PG, out of Syracuse. According to DraftExpress, he led the NCAA in assists per game and 19th in points. He is said to be turnover prone but he seems to be an offensive weapon, creating for himself and others. Wayne Ellington is a SG out of UNC. I'm not sure if his 3 pointer has NBA range, but by his college numbers, the guy appears to love to shoot. DraftExpress says he was the most efficient shooter they looked at in the draft, but he had half as many possessions as some of the other guards they looked at. Henk Norel is a 21 year old PF/C from the Netherlands. He is 6'11" but only 212 pounds. DraftExpress says Norel is a best case Jeff Foster and worst case Oberto. He supposedly has great touch and movement off the ball but lacks offense. I don't know if he will be playing in the States next year or not. They have the roster spots but he may be better served to stay in Europe.

They also traded Mike Miller, Randy Foye, Mark Madsen, Sebastian Telfair, Craig Smith, and Etan Thomas for Darius Songalia, Oleksiy Pecherov, Quentin Richardson, Chucky Atkins, and Damien Wilkins. Mike Miller, Randy Foye, Craig Smith and Sebastian Telfair are all notable losses as they accounted for 46.1 points, 15.2 rebounds, and 14.5 assists per game. Songaila is a solid addition. Richardson is a decent addition. He can score. Atkins is a great veteran presence to back up their young guards and hopefully serve as a mentor. Someone needs to tell Pecherov he isn't Dirk. He is 7' and has taken just under half of all of his FGA's from the 3 only making ~30% of them. He will see limited minutes behind their front court though.

Kevin Ollie and Shelden Williams left in FA, and Rodney Carney and Jason Collins are still unsigned FA's.

The Match-Up

Starters

PG: Tony Parker versus Ricky Rubio: Advantage Spurs: Tony gets to show a 19 year old European top PG prospect what the NBA is like. This should be a fun match up because of the international hype these two bring.

SG: Roger Mason versus Damien Wilkins: Advantage Spurs: This is who ESPN says will start for you, Minnesota. I think you would be better off with Ellington or Richardson here. Wolves fans, please comment on this position. Mason is better than all of them at this point though.

SF: Richard Jefferson versus Ryan Gomes: Advantage Spurs: I know very little about Gomes. On a stat comparison, I'm going with RJ. Gomes will definitely be in a position to up his scoring and take on a big role if he has it in him.

PF: Antonio McDyess versus Kevin Love: Advantage Wash: Looking at Kevin Love, he is a younger McDyess. They are a statistical tie. I give Love the advantage on athleticism and Dice the advantage on veteran knowledge.

That is a block. via www.nba.com

C: Tim Duncan versus Al Jefferson: Advantage Spurs: Duncan gets the advantage, but this is the closest match up we have had for him yet. As a basketball fan, I hope Jefferson stays healthy all season and that he dominates like I think he can (just not against us). He went for 29.0 and 11.0 last year against the Spurs.

Bench:

Point Guard: Hill vs Flynn, Bobby Brown, and Chucky Atkins: I'm going to give this to Minnesota. They have two players that can take good minutes off the bench. Atkins is a smart veteran and Flynn is a top prospect rookie. Hill is more than welcome and more than capable to prove me wrong though.

Wings: Manu, Finley, Hairston, and Williams vs Wayne Ellington, Corey Brewer, and Quentin Richardson: Spurs win this one hands down.

Front Court: Blair, Mahinmi, Bonner, Haislip, and Ratliff vs Darius Songaila, Brian Cardinal, and Oleksiy Pecherov: Songalia is decent but so is everyone on our much deeper rotation.

Coaching: Advantage Spurs. Back in the very early 90's when I was 7-9 years old, my older brother started collecting basketball cards. Kurt Rambis was like a bad omen card. My friend and I burnt one, ripped it to shreds, and flushed it down a toilet when we were teenagers upon finding it amongst our other non-binder worthy cards. That fills my terrible Kurt Rambis/ teenage pyro anecdote quota for the year.

Result: Spurs win all three games. We get to see some exciting front court match ups if everyone is healthy, but the Wolves back court is too unproven and just not deep enough.

The Schedule

Tue, Dec 29 vs Minnesota: After a back to back of @ Bucks and @ Knicks, we have one day of rest before this game.

Fri, Mar 12 at Minnesota: First of a back to back with Clippers at home next. After the Clips, it is one day off and then another back to back (@ Heat and then @ Magic.

Mon, Apr 12 vs Minnesota: Last home game of the season.

So that is the Spurs-Wolves preview for next season. Next up is the Golden State Warriors.

Past entries in this series: Grizzlies, Thunder, Clippers, Wizards and Kings.

Poll

What is the top Spurs-Wolves match-up story line for '09'10?

Just Duncan vs Jefferson

71 votes

Parker vs Rubio (he better be in the league after all that hype)

49 votes

Duncan, McDyess, and our front court vs Jefferson, Love, and theirs

32 votes

Can Parker go for 56 and 11?

42 votes

Just 3 more SA wins.

71 votes

Sophomore Impact Showdown: Hill vs Love

8 votes

Rookie Impact Showdown: Blair vs Flynn/Ellington/Rubio

15 votes

Spurs backcourt is going to destroy the Wolves without Miller and Foye.

41 votes

329 votes | Poll has closed

The Spurs Roster and Front Office - Method? Or Madness?

Wayne Vore (ATS) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 02:34:21 -0000

Theo Ratliff is a San Antonio Spur!!!! Fire up the outboard on your river float. Another championship is coming our way! What? You don't think Theo is the missing piece of the puzzle?

For your listening pleasure while you read, I present Radio Citizen featuring Bajka doing The Hop. I really like Bajka. I didn't select this for any reason. It is what started playing on Radio Paradise when I started writing this.

Now, About That Roster

With the signing of Theo Ratliff, the Spurs have 15 guys under contract for the 09-10 season. However, the common belief is that Malik Hairston and Marcus Williams have unguaranteed contracts. Odds are, the Spur have the option on these until after training camp. However, that is just speculation on my part. I'm not sure when their contract guarantee dates are. The current roster is:

Why Theo?

Lots of discussion has arisen regarding Theo being our 7th big. I'm not sure it really can be seen as much of anything. I don't think it is an indicator of future moves. I think it was more a case of something that was the best thing to do at the time. Here's why.

I can't speak to Theo Ratliff's skills and whether or not he fits the Spurs system. If the Spurs front office signed him, I have to think they think he will be useful. You know, because that is what they do and it is NOT what I do. I give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to evaluating talent and how it fits their system. I'm benevolent like that. You may bow before me and my magnanimosity (I spelled that correctly without even looking it up. Score).

What I can say, is that he was CHEAP. He signed for the veteran minimum. He's an old vet, which means the league picks up the tab on like half his salary. Maybe it doesn't even count against the luxury tax which makes him that much more of a bargain.

The Spurs System and Balance of Skills

Before bashing the front office for signing a 7th big, I think you have to look at how the Spurs seem to put pieces together. In general, over the last few years, the Spurs have constructed the roster so that we didn't have many duplicate parts. Different people brought different things and nobody was redundant.

In many ways, the Spurs consider their 4's and 5's to be interchangeable so I don't think it is worth breaking down into PF and C. The fact that we call Matt Bonner a center is proof enough.

In the front court, Kurt Thomas was a banger and had a mid-range jumper. Fab was a banger with passing ability and no jumper. Matt Bonner had 3-point range. Francisco was a jumper who could run.

Last year we had: Tim, Matt, Kurt, Fab, Ian, and Drew Gooden

This year, up front, with Tim are Antonio, Matt, Ian, DeJuan, Marcus, and Theo. We have quite the variety of skills and a little more depth. In addition, Haislip can be considered a 3/4. Last year we didn't have a 3/4.

The Spurs also use their 2's and 3's pretty interchangeably. On the wing, Bruce played tenacious D and hit the corner three. Ime was a power defender who could handle the rare powerful small forward that gave Bruce problems. Brent Barry was the 3-point specialist who could pass and was good if the other team didn't have a wing that required a good defender. We were as likely to see Manu and Finley as Manu and Barry or Finley and Bruce.

I think the place we got the extra room for the 7th big is at the point guard. We have always carried three point guards. Three true point guards. Tony, Nick, Beno. Tony, Beno, The JV. Tony, George, The JV. Ok, I'm busted. George isn't quite a true point guard, but I think he is close. NOTE: I use true point guard and not pure point guard. By true point guard, I only mean somebody who adept at getting the ball up the court and the team into their offense. For all the knocks we throw at Tony, you can't pressure him. He would destroy you.

This year, we have Tony and George. In addition, two of our wings are capable of running the point as well. Both Roger Mason and Manu can get the ball up court and the team into their offense. With that flexibility, I think the Spurs front office felt they didn't need to sign the third point guard. NOTE: I know Tim at 48MoH is big on Marcus Williams as a point forward. I'm not hopping on that bus until I see him do it a few times. Even if it is in the preseason. I'll acknowledge that Tim has me intrigued and I would like to see it, but I'm not counting as a yardbird just yet.

I Declare

I think it is method. I think we used the extra point guard spot freed up from the flexibility of our guards to add some flexibility and insurance to our frontcourt.

We have a lot of youth in our frontcourt and we have a lot of age in our frontcourt. I don't think we can expect a lot of production out of Blair, Mahinmi, and Haislip. I'll take it. I just don't think we can count on it. I don't think we can expect a lot of minutes out of Tim, Antonio, and Theo. And, in fact, I won't take it. I don't want them a logging a lot of minutes this season. I want them to be healthy at playoff time.

If you think about it, their isn't a lot of redundancy. Maybe Theo and Ian would be providing similar things. Maybe Haislip and Bonner are providing similar things. If Ian and Marcus end up being good enough to make Theo and Bonner not useful, that's a good thing, right?

I think the 7th big is a very good thing. I don't think it is costing us anything from our squad by doing it.

My Team Is Better Than Yours: Washington Wizards Edition

BlaseE — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 07:45:16 -0000

Welcome to Episode 2. In case you missed Episode 1 on the Kings, click here.

via photos.upi.com

Dang, none of these guys wear the same jersey next season. This is going to be more difficult than expected.

Click for Reading Music

FSN Season Stats Head to Head

As expected, we dominated them in almost every stat. They had more offensive rebounds but expect this sentence in every single preview. Like the last preview, we have another horrible team. Their best player was out the entire season, more or less. Really, its just a mess. 24th in assists on offense and giving up 103.5 pts on defense. They even gave up the most assists per game on defense. This team has a lot of room to improve going into next season.Game Recaps

General Notes: Both game dates are very close which is kind of sad in terms of general team head to head comparisons. Luckily both were later in the season. No Manu or Arenas in either game.

Sat, February 21 @ Washington We win 98-67. "Mason performs well against his former team as Spurs roll"

Awkward picture of Mason and only one I found of him from the game. Chip Engelland looks on at Mason's dribbling, footwork. via cache.daylife.com

This was the last game of the rodeo road trip, and the 31 point win was our biggest road victory of the season and our second biggest victory. The Golden State episode is going to be interesting but I won't talk about those games yet. This game was an absolute beat down by Mason in his home town against his former team so as a tribute to him I won't mention another Spur in this recap.

"Oh, the humiliation! The player that got away, Roger Mason, comes back with the San Antonio Spurs and drops 25 points -- on a night the awful Washington Wizards post their lowest points total in six years."

Mason finished on 9 of 16 shooting for 25 points (5 of 9 from 3). He also added 3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals.

"Mason certainly could have been a fourth option on a night when Caron Butler (24 points), Jamison (16) and Darius Songaila (15) accounted for all but two points scored by the entire Wizards roster through the first three quarters." I lied. Udoka scored 9 points in 7 minutes off the bench almost beating the entire Wizards bench that scored 10 points in a combined 85 minutes of play. Ouch.

He missed that 3. They shot 0 for 9 in the game from beyond the arc. via geofflivingston.com

Everything in the Game notes is really interesting so here it is:

"The Spurs have won six straight over the Wizards by an average of 16.8 points. ... Popovich, who majored in Soviet Studies at Air Force, took the Spurs to visit the Holocaust Museum in Washington on Friday. ... Washington's Andray Blatche missed four consecutive free throws over a 12-second span in the second quarter during the Spurs' 10-0 run. ... Duncan on the road trip: "Every year, we seem to make something out of it. There's no way to deny it. Every year, we come out of this road trip a better team. We find a way to bond. We find a way to do something on the road. It works for us." ... Mason said he had requests for 50 tickets for the game. "I'm glad we only play these guys once" in Washington, he said."

Fri, March 6 Washington We win 100-78. "Parker, Spurs dominate helpless Wizards"

I can't figure out what is going on here. Was he just blocked by someone else? via nimg.sulekha.com

"Where did this one get away? It got away when we first started playing," Jamison said. "When you play an elite team like San Antonio, you've got to make it difficult for them." I could end the recap there but I feel like we need to relish in as many of these before I have to write and you have to read the Orlando recaps. This was a team effort. Duncan only played 18 minutes and finished with 5 points and 5 rebounds. Tony finished with 19 to lead the team. Tony also added 7 of our 27 assists and 2 steals. Our bench took 39 of our 75 shots making 22 of them for 56.4%. This was higher than our starters percentage due to Bonner and Mason 3 of 13 in their 39 minutes of play.

Deshawn Stevenson and Caron Butler sat out this game. The Wizards never had a chance. We finished +10 rebounds, +15 assists, and +5 blocks.

Wizards Roster Changes

They traded their pick. They add Mike Miller (PTR had a love post for him at one point) and Randy Foye (Simmons thought we should trade Parker to get him...wow, still wow). They have also added our very own Argentine giant Fabricio Oberto to their lineup keeping him in the NBA and not letting him leave to the Euroleague. Nice job, Wiz.

They lose Etan Thomas, Darius Songaila, and Oleksiy Pecherov. Not one of them played more than 20 minutes a game for the Wizards last year.

I'm just going to say it, the Wizards really took advantage of this offseason. They want to win now and they are going to look good next season. I expect them to be the 4th seed in the East. I know that is a bold prediction but Arenas was huge loss last season. They dump some guys they aren't using for two guys they can give heavy minutes to. They also don't have to waste any time on a rookie. It's about veterans and winning now. They might even be better than the Cavs. Actually, they are better than the Cavs if both teams are healthy. Their bench would throttle Boston's too. Washtington, please stay healthy and entertain me this season.

The Match-Up

Starters

PG: Tony Parker versus Javaris Crittenton: Advantage Spurs
SG: Roger Mason versus Gilbert Arenas: Advantage Wizards
SF: Richard Jefferson versus Caron Butler: I have to give this one to Butler. It's close but Wizards get my vote here. I'm open to arguments in the comments section though.
PF: Antonio McDyess versus Antawn Jamison: Advantage Wizards
C: Tim Duncan versus Brendan Haywood: Advantage Spurs

Bench: Manu, Hill, Blair, Mahinmi, Finley, Bonner, Haislip, Ratliff and Hairston over Miller, Foye (may get starting PG duties or starting SG if Arenas wants to run point), Andray Blatche, DeShawn Stevenson, Fabricio Oberto and Nick Young. It's close considering Blair, Mahinmi, Haislip, and even Ratliff all being speculative as to what they can contribute next year.

Coaching: Advantage Spurs.

Result: I am very excited about the two games against this team. They will have a HUGE turnaround this year. I like our odds because Duncan really doesn't have a match and RJ and McDyess aren't blown away by Butler and Jamison.

So that is the Spurs Wizards preview for next season. Next up is the Clippers.

Poll

What is the top Spurs-Wizards match-up story line for '09'10?

Argentine reunion: Manu and Oberto

100 votes

Just good games between two healthy deep teams

135 votes

They aren't nearly as good as you think and we will just destroy them. No storylines here. Keep walking.

156 votes

Manu vs Arenas

69 votes

FO battle: Foye and Miller vs RJ and Dice (impact, not head to head...)

21 votes

RJ versus Butler

55 votes

Other...Please Comment.

11 votes

547 votes | Poll has closed

Let's Keep Quentin Richardson on the Move, Shall We?

Ben Q Rock — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:00:20 -0000

More photos » by Fernando Medina - NBAE/Getty Images

Browse more photos »

Monday afternoon, the Los Angeles Clippers and the Minnesota Timberwolves engaged in a fairly inconsequential trade. You can read more analysis at Clips Nation and Canis Hoopus, but the gist is this: L.A. shipped Quentin Richardson to Minnesota, receiving Sebastian Telfair, Craig Smith, and Mark Madsen. In Telfair, the Clippers have a solid backup point guard to Baron Davis, while Smith adds depth to a fairly beefy front-line which already includes Marcus Camby, Chris Kaman, and #1 draft pick Blake Griffin. Minnesota? It gains Richardson's $8.7 million expiring contract while simultaneously filling a void at shooting guard and small forward, a void created when it dealt Mike Miller and Randy Foye to Washington for the 5th overall selection in this year's draft. Two lottery teams are now slightly deeper and better off financially. So why do we care?

Because it's, frankly, amusing that Richardson has changed teams three times in the last three weeks. New York, for which he's played the last 3 seasons, traded him to Memphis for Darko Milicic. The Grizzlies, in turn, sent him to L.A. for Zach Randolph. Now, he's Minnesota-bound. The novelty of a career role-player being a hot commodity on the trade market appeals to us irony-craving folks, especially in the doldrums of the NBA offseason, with few marquee free agents left to sign and with most contenders having already filled out their rosters.

Richardson's third move in three weeks blew up the NBA Twitterverse. Richardson (@QRich), for his part, is taking his latest move in stride:

Round and round I go on this NBA tour. Where o where will it stop no one knows. Lol. Right now I'm a t'wolf. Tomorrow? Who knows? Lol.

So it is in that spirit we suggest ways to get Richardson to the 26 teams of which he hasn't been a part this summer, with commentary on select trades. It all follows the jump.

to Atlanta for Jamal Crawford

The Hawks themselves just acquired Crawford, and he fits coach Mike Woodson's "type" as an undersized shooting guard who can shoot from distance, so it's doubtful they'd give him up. Then again, with no progress in their hopes to re-sign Marvin Williams, their starting small forward and a restricted free agent, they could pull the trigger on this deal for Richardson and hope to explore sign-and-trade avenues with Williams.
to Boston for Kendrick Perkins and Brian Scalabrine

Nope, I can't even reach for a basketball reason here: the Celtics have no need for Richardson, nor would they be inclined to part with Perkins, an outstanding post defender whose NBA experience (364 games over 6 seasons) belies his age (24).
to Charlotte for Boris Diaw

Not much of a reason for Charlotte to unload Diaw if all it's getting is Richardson, although it might enjoy divesting itself of Diaw's deal. The Bobcats have a lot of long-term money committed to mediocre players, so losing Diaw--although he's an above-average player--might be worth the financial flexibility down the line.
to Chicago for Kirk Hinrich

Well, Richardson's a finished product, so I'm not sure why the Bulls would want him. They tend to be more interested in younger players whose growth they can stunt, am I right, Matt and Kelly? Zing!
to Cleveland for Daniel Gibson and Delonte West

Yup, it'd be crazy for the Cavs, a championship contender, to part with two decent, young combo guards. Clearly, they're not worried about saving money, having traded for Shaquille O'Neal (owed $20 million) last month. But sources did tell Marc Stein last week not to be surprised if the Cavs traded West this season... wait for it... in order to save money.
to Dallas for Greg Buckner and Matt Carroll

Hey, the Mavs can add another thirtysomething to their rotation! Buckner, 32, has the age, but won't play for Dallas. Richardson? He could conceivably see the floor as a situational shooter, and will turn 30 in April. As a bonus, he could join homophonically named Quinton Ross on the roster.
to Denver for Nene
to Detroit for Tayshaun Prince
to Golden State for Stephen Jackson and Marco Belinelli

Jackson is a favorite of Ws owner Chris Cohan, which is why he got a hefty extension last season despite still having a few years left on his deal as it was. Given how awful the Warriors are now, it's probable that even Cohan would be willing to part with Jackson's silly deal in exchange for Richardson's cap relief. Plus, Richardson's three-point marksmanship--he's a career 39.8% shooter from beyond the arc--would blend well with Golden State's trey-happy offense.
to Houston for Brent Barry and Shane Battier

Houston will likely hit the lottery this season, having lost Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady for the duration. Richardson's expiring deal would give Rockets GM Daryl Morey plenty of flexibility next summer. Morey? With options? Frightening, and that's not me being pithy.
to Indiana for Jamaal Tinsley
to the L.A. Lakers for Adam Morrison and Sasha Vujacic
to Miami for Mark Blount and Yakhouba Diawara
to Milwaukee for Charlie Bell and Dan Gadzuric
to New Jersey for Keyon Dooling, Jarvis Hayes, and Eduardo Najera
to New Orleans for Rasual Butler and Morris Peterson

This potential trade is notable for its being comprised entirely of three players who Tweet regularly. We previously linked Richardson's account. Here's Peterson (@mopete9) and Butler (@RasualButler45). Also, the Hornets wouldn't be the Hornets if they weren't stocked with swingmen (don't forget James Posey and Julian Wright!) while their frontcourt is so barren they're forced to play Sean Marks and Melvin Ely heavily.
to Oklahoma City for Chucky Atkins and Nenad Krstic
to Orlando for Mickael Pietrus and J.J. Redick

Magic GM Otis Smith values flexibility as much as the rest of the league's executives, but not even he's willing to part with Pietrus, his starting small forward, for a few extra bucks next summer.
to Philadelphia for Willie Green and Louis Williams
to Phoenix for Leandro Barbosa and Jared Dudley
to Portland for Steve Bake and Martell Webster
to Sacramento for Beno Udrih

The Kings would accept this deal faster than Mavis Beacon can type "Richardson." Udrih, with a career Player Efficiency Rating of 12.9, is owed $26.7 million over the next 4 seasons.
to San Antonio for Matt Bonner, Michael Finley, and Roger Mason
to Toronto for Marcus Banks, Patrick O'Bryant, and Antoine Wright
to Utah for Mehmet Okur
to Washington for Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson

Spurs Hire Dream GM

Wayne Vore (ATS) — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 14:31:03 -0000

You know, I was thinking the other day that maybe the Spurs COULD hire some random web site writer to be their GM just like Bill Simmons has been lobbying. Of course, if they did their research, they would immediately rule out Simmons for being a dumb ass based on his "We'll give you Foye, our No. 6 pick and Brian Cardinal's 2010 expiring contract for Parker."

Let's see, the Wolves turned Foye and Miller into a #5 pick and some expiring contracts. You mean for Parker we could have gotten the #6, Foye, and Brian Cardinal? Awesome.

Follow me in, the Spurs just hired me, ATS, as their GM and I'm building a championship team. Let's start some internet rumors together. It will be fun and feel dirty, and you can't ask any more from life than that.

ATS, you high, nobody would hire you.

That's true. I'm pretty much unemployable in any field, but definitely in the NBA genius realm. Never stopped me from having an opinion though. Or saying said opinion out loud. Several separate discussions and news items have set off a firestorm of roster building ideas in this wee noggin of mine. It hurts, it's distracting, and I feel the need to share.

First and foremost of the items that brought me to my current A.D.D. state, the Spurs front office declared loudly last week with the Jefferson trade that they are willing to go into luxury tax range to win NOW. Other things that got me going were posts by Jaceman and Rikiddo, and an email exchange with Timothy Varner from 48MoH. Not everything I have is original. But, hey, there are great covers tunes out there. Like this one of Bob Dylan's 'Maggie's Farm' and this one of Bruce Springsteen's 'The Ghost of Tom Joad' by Rage Against The Machine (an awesome live version but the volume is too low, so if you like volume, listen to this one). 'The Ghost of Tom Joad' started to have a lot of meaning for me when I learned a couple years ago that my mom left home in 1955 at the age of 15 and worked as a migrant worker through the Southwest and West coast. It gives you a little extra something when you think about somebody sleeping under an underpass and that somebody may be your mom.

Let's not just win this year, let's win every year.

I don't want to mortgage the future for 1or 2 years of contenders. I want to build a team that will win a couple more titles for TIm AND be in a good position to compete 4 or 5 years down the road. I'm not a dreamer though. I don't expect the Mavs to trade us Dirk for expiring contracts, George Hill, and the rights to Tiago Splitter because they need to start over and Dirk needs to win a championship because he is such a great guy. I may not be able to get trades and signings done, but I think they are reasonable things to expect.

What is the budget?

This is the real wildcard for what I can do in my new role as GM. Right now (based on numbers from ShamSports), the Spurs are at $72 million for this year and appear willing to give Rasheed Wallace the MLE which would push us up to $77.5 million. I'm going to give myself another $5 million to play with (the Spurs still have to fill out there roster with vets and rookies at about $1 million a player) and cap us out at $82.5 million. You know why I can do this? Because I'm giving them HUGE savings in the front office where they hired me for $20 and canned RC.

What do we need?

A dominant front court. Our back court, as Rikiddo points out, is in good shape. It is certainly one of the top backcourts in the league. Tony and Manu are all-star caliber players. Roger, George, and FinDog provide a variety of great qualities off the bench. Shooting, defense, clutchness, athleticism, age, and veteran savvy. Richard Jefferson looks like a hell of a fourth wheel to me at the small forward. We are set there for the next two years.

My goal, as GM, is to get us a dominant front court without moving Tim, obviously, or any of Manu, Tony, and Richard either.

What about Manu after this year?

Yes, he could be considered a tradeable asset. Not by me though. I consider him a Spur. As the new GM of the Spurs, I plan on resigning him next season on a 3-year deal at $7 million/year. I'd sign him this offseason Right Here, Right Now (watch out, it's a Jesus Jones reference) to a 3-year extension. However, I wouldn't do it until all the other roster moves have been finalized. I could write an entire article justifying this value for Manu. Let's just say this is what I think he will be worth for the next three years. If he won't resign for this value, then I am going to let him play out his contract and see what the market bears for next year. I will NOT trade him. He's an extraordinary competitor and there is no WAY I am trying to get something else for him. I'm hoping I can resign him and I want to maintain the trust and camaraderie on the team and in the organization. Plus, my good friend Bellasa would shiv me, curb stomp me, throw me into the SA river, and set me on fire if I traded him. Not only would it be justified, I would deserve no less.

Ok, ok. Enough with this crap. Build us a contender. What are YOU going to DO?

Goody, goody. We are into the nitty gritty.

First, I'm signing Rasheed Wallace. Period. I want him for the mid-level exception for three years. That's probably one more year than he's got in him, but if that's what it takes to get him. I'm doing it. I would possibly be willing to pay more for him on a 2-year deal, say $7 milllion/year. I'll explain how shortly, but I don't think I will have to go there. Because before I sign him, I want to prove to him that he's coming to a winner.

You're a winner ATS? How so?

Because I'm a crafty mofo, that's how so.

Well, before I sign Rasheed, I'm getting myself another quality big man. What, that can't be you say? I say it can be. Here's how. I'm going after one of the young big men on the free agent market, and I'm doing a sign-and-trade.

I have some assets I can trade. Bonner has an expiring contract and is a semi-decent situational player. Roger Mason has an expiring contract, is a good shooter, and is clutch. FinDog has an expiring contract and can be bought out. Marcus Williams has an un-guaranteed contract and can be cut, OR, crazy as it seems, is maybe a good value at $800K. We also have Ian and the rights to Tiago. Oh, and a first round picks in 2010 and in 2012 (I have 2011, but I can't trade it with 2010 or 2012).

Yes, the sign-and-trade.

I, if I can make the right deal, can go out and get a $8 million/year big man with a sign-and-trade. Consider the following contracts:

Matt Bonner - $3.26 million
Roger Mason - $3.78 million
Michael Finley - $2.5 million
Marcus Williams - $0.83 million

Since the I'm over the cap, in order to pull off a trade, the salaries involved have to be within 25%. For instance, in order to trade for a player making $10 million, I have to give up $8 million in salaries. To trade for $7 million, the Spurs have to give up $5.6 million. Read that again, $5.6 million. Ok, read it again, $5.6 million. Do you know that Bonner plus Finley equals $5.7 million? If I throw Marcus Williams into the deal, I go to $6.53 million which means I could trade for a salary of (6.53 * 1.25) $8.125 million. So, I can add an $8.125 million free agent in a sign-and-trade by increasing our salary by $1.63 million.

Oh, ATS, I'm all excited. Tell me more.

At the top of my list is Anderson Varejao because of a combination of skill, youth, and availability. He's not my favorite, as I'll explain later, but he's who I think I have the best chance of getting. Nobody out there is going pay him $8.125 million. I can. Now, I have to convince Cleveland to accomodate the deal. You can convince a team to accomodate a sign-in-trade by making it worth their while. How can I make it worth Cleveland's while?

Well, I have to give them something. Expiring contracts aren't as enticing in a sign-and-trade (because they weren't going to have Varejao's contract anyway. If they wanted that much money on the books they'd sign Varejao themselves) so I have to give them something they want, not something they can get rid of. In Cleveland's case, I think Bonner is actually a decent fit and they might like him. He's somebody that can spread the floor for LeBron and Shaq. That's not enough though for them. If I kick in next year's #1 pick though, that might be enough value. Remember, they aren't getting anything for Varejao anyway if they let him walk. So, let's say I can agree to terms with big AV for a 5-year deal at $7 million per year (which is more than just about anybody can offer him and I'd go up to $8 million/year), I can give them Bonner, Finley, and a first round pick. They buy out FinDog for about $1.2. They have a rather reasonably priced 4th or 5th big, and a first round pick. Is it enough? I don't know. I could throw in the rights to Tiago, Ian, Marcus, or other parts. You know, I'm thinking, Roger Mason would be a really good fit for them. A clutch shooter, keeps Gibson on the bench, hmmm, what about Bonner and Mason for Varejao? No, ok, I still might throw that #1 pick in there. The upshot is, the Cavs have to get something they want. I think I can make it happen.

Just to give you something solid. I'm saying Bonner, Mason, Marcus Williams, and the #1 pick.

But what if you can't get Cleveland to do the deal?

Well, there are other teams with young big men I can target with a deal that have the same parameters. Marvin Williams comes to mind. I'd sign him to a 5-year deal at $8 million/year. I think Atlanta might take a first round pick, Matt Bonner, Roger Mason, and FinDog -- as a buyout -- for him. It just depends on whether they want to invest long-term in him given they have Pachulia and Childess to sign, and Horford who's really a 4.

Why Marvin ATS? Why?

Marvin, or somebody like him, as an athletic 4 is who I actually prefer. Why, because if I am signing Rasheed I want somebody who can play better on the perimeter defensively. Tim's days of being a real 4 are over. With Rasheed, Anderson, and Tim I would have three post defenders. None of whom are good perimeter defenders. I want a Marvin Williams-type to guard the Dirks and Amares. In addition, I still want to bring Tiago over next year. Now, I would have four true centers.

Ok, Atlanta doesn't bite. You didn't get Marvin, ATS. Well?

I go after Paul Millsap. Especially if I think I can get him at about the full MLE. If I can get him with the MLE, then I'd be willing to do a sign-and-trade with the Pistons for Rasheed if I can pay Rasheed a little more to convince him to come to San Antonio. Maybe I get Sheed at $6.5 million for 2 years.

If I can't get Millsap, then I will explore obtaining a young power forward who is not a free agent from a team looking to salary dump. If that fails, I go to signing a veteran guy like Marion or Gooden on a 2-year deal in the 3-4 million range. What I WILL NOT do is go out on a limb to gt an older guy. If he wants to play for a chance at a ring for two years on the cheap, I'll take him.

Ok ATS, we have Rasheed and Marvin, where does that leave us for 2010?

Let's assume I gave up Bonner, Mason, Marcus, and a #1 for Marvin. I'd be willing to throw Tiago or DeJuan in to this deal to make it work. I'd have to be bowled over with Marvin to put George in it. Our 2010 roster is:

Up front

Tim Duncan
Manu Ginobili
Tony Parker
Richard Jefferson
Rasheed Wallace
Marvin Williams
George Hill
Michael Finley
Ian Mahinmi
James Gist (at 800K)
DeJuan Blair(at 800K)
Jack McClinton (if he can make the team at 800K)
Bruce Bowen (or other small forward) at the vet min

I like my chances with that line up. For about $81.3 million, with two roster spots open. I'll take it. I don't have to sign all of those young guys, but I do have the option. That last roster spot, if I traded Mason, will have to go to a third point guard or ball handler. Maybe Marcus Williams, if as the 48MoH guys, he is really a point-forward.

Sounds good ATS, but what about our future?

Assuming Manu at 7 per, Marvin at 8 per, and Sheed on a 3-year deal for the MLE, this is what we have for 2011:

Duncan, Parker, Ginobili, Jefferson, Wallace, Williams, Hill, Mahinmi(assuming I exercise his option for 2011 at $1.6, which isn't a gimme), Gist, Blair, McClinton for $73.9 million. If I still have the rights to Tiago, I'm trying to bring him over on a 3-year $3-million-per deal. And, I still have the rights to SpurNando.

After 2011, Tony's and Richard's contracts are up. Tim and Sheed are in their last year. I have Manu with two years left on his deal. I have a bunch of young guys I'm very high on in Blair, Gist, Ian, George, and Tiago. The only player I have with a long-term commitment of big money is a 25-year old Marvin Williams.

ATS, you still high.

Yeah, but that's what I would be trying to do if I reigned over the kingdom. This is my team. Six studs and a bunch of potential. Has a little bit nicer ring to it, doesn't it?

The Bar Has Been Raised

Tim C. — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 07:27:24 -0000

More photos » by Darren Hauck - AP

Just imagine what that's going to be like with Crazy Ron all over you, RJ.

Browse more photos »

By now, everyone knows that there's something of an arms race going among the teams considered legitimate NBA title contenders for next season. There's also been moves by teams who desperately want to contend, in an effort to make themselves better.

Rumors have been flying, and various jokers like Amare Stoudemire and Ron Artest have been tweeting about wild trade scenarios that had yet to materialize. Extra joker points go to RonRon for making people like me think he was joking about signing with the Lakers, then actually going out and doing it.

And then there's the great Rasheed Wallace sweepstakes, with 'Sheed having his choice of title contenders to sign with. No better way to counter crazy than with crazy and smart. Graydon Gordian seems to think so, and at this point the Spurs are running out of good options, with 'Sheed probably being the easiest of those options, if he can be convinced to come to San Antonio. The money is going to be the same no matter where he goes, so it just comes down to his own personal preference.

Let's review what's happened so far, and speculate on what's still to come for the Spurs.

Big Transactions For Contenders

So where do we begin? Well the Spurs got it started, but let's go over the big moves that have happened so far in this arms race.

Richard Jefferson to the San Antonio Spurs
-- Traded Bruce Bowen and Kurt Thomas to the Milwaukee Bucks, and Fabricio Oberto to the Detroit Pistons.

The Spurs definitely got better with this move, but they tipped their hand by pulling the trigger on this so soon. Within 24 hours, news broke about the next big trade. Another consequence of this was a severe reduction in frontcourt depth and salary flexibility. The Spurs frontcourt now consists of Tim Duncan(GOAT), Matt Bonner(not an NBA starter), Ian Mahinmi(Mr. Glass Ankles), and DeJuan Blair(rookie with no ACLs). We'll address the frontcourt situation further below.
Shaquille O'Neal to the Cleveland Cavaliers
-- Traded Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic, a 2010 second-round pick, and $500,000 in cash to the Phoenix Suns

This gives Cleveland a marginal improvement on the offensive end, but Shaq's defensive play is suspect at best at this point in his career. I don't think Cleveland is done yet, but this really isn't much of an upgrade, especially when you consider Shaq's salary.
Vince Carter to the Orlando Magic
-- Traded Rafer Alston, Tony Battie, and Courtney Lee to the New Jersey Nets (The Nets also sent Ryan Anderson to the Magic)

When news of this trade broke, it seemed as though Orlando was adding another much-needed scorer to their lineup, and that this would make them better. Then came news that Hedo Turkoglu was opting out of his contract. And as of this writing, Marcin Gortat appears to be headed to the Dallas Mavericks. For the record, I like Courtney Lee and think he will add to a nice young lineup in New Jersey. Unless they pull some better move out of their hindquarters soon, I don't believe this was a good move by Orlando. In fact, it seems as though they may have been weakened as a result of this trade.
Ron Artest to the Los Angeles Lakers
-- Signed via Free Agency

If we view this trade at face value, the Lakers have somehow managed to make themselves better. Particularly disconcerting is the potential for LA to dominate on the defensive end. Then again, there was a certain advantage to having Trevor Ariza - as the little o points out, the Lakers made a habit of having Ariza guard Tony Parker, which was disturbingly effective. Ron doesn't have the foot speed(especially at his age) or length to bother Tony. Also, he's a notorious chucker, which does not bode well for him in the triangle offense. The jury's out on this one right now, but I still think this is an upgrade for LA. UPDATE: Manuwar wrote a nice opinion on the trade here that's worth the read.

Like it or not, it seems as if our trade for Jefferson made some other GM's very nervous. Seems reminiscent of how the Gasol trade got all the other teams to make hasty decisions a couple of years ago. So that's it for the contenders. There's been other moves, but we'll leave that for the "experts" to discuss.

What This Means For The Spurs

The Good: Small Forward

The Spurs made a good upgrade at the SF position, one that has been badly needed for several years now. The only thing that would make it better is if Bowen came back and we could dump Michael Finley. As things stand right now, the SF rotation seems to be Jefferson/Finley/Marcus Williams. Depth is still a legitimate concern, but the starting SF position has been greatly upgraded.

The Bad: Frontcourt Depth

After the big trade, the Spurs got lucky in the draft and filled one of the many holes in the frontcourt with DeJuan Blair. But DeJuan isn't a starter, and this team needs a decent big who can stand in there with Tim Duncan and take some pressure off of him on the defensive end.

So how might we find this elusive 2nd big man?

Option 1: Free Agency

Timmy is one of the best help defenders in the game, so a big who can play excellent man defense would be ideal. We won't need a lot of offense from our 2nd big, but a guy with a decent shooting stroke, who could help spread the floor for Timmy on the offensive end and knock down the open shots, would complete the ideal package. I wonder if there's a free agent available who fits that profile?

Hellooooooo, SiMA!

A lot has been written about Rasheed, and whether or not he would be a good fit for the Spurs - in fact, the subject has been beaten to death. But if looking at in only basketball terms, it becomes pretty clear that this is the perfect player to complete our team. Yes, there's a chance he has character/chemistry issues that sink the team's hopes - but those chances seem pretty remote from where I'm sitting. I'd actually be more worried about RJ's assimilation to the Spurs, since Buford and Pop have designated him as our new defensive stopper.

Of course, there are other free agents out there, and this has been discussed at length here. Antonio McDyess, Zaza Pachulia, Rasho Nesterovic, Glen Davis and some others are still available - but we can expect that well to dry up fast right after Wallace makes his decision.

Option 2: Trade For a Big Man

There are still some big men available on the trading block, but their numbers are dwindling as of late. After the Clippers traded Zach Randolph to the Grizzlies, Marcus Camby doesn't look as available anymore. The Hornets are still looking to cut salary, so Tyson Chandler is available. They might also be willing to part with David West, and aren't exactly in a great position to negotiate. Andris Biedrins was almost involved in a trade for Amare, so perhaps he's available as well. There are plenty of possibilities here, but it's late and I don't want to thiink about salary matching at the moment. Feel free to leave all the trade suggestions/scenarios you want in the comments - the more the merrier.

It's pretty clear that the Spurs front office has a plan, even though they're staying mum about it at the moment. In the coming weeks, we may witness that plan unfolding brilliantly, or crashing and causing improvisation. Either way, it will be fun to watch.

The Same: Backcourt

Between Tony, Manu Ginobili, Roger Mason, and George Hill, we've got an awesome backcourt rotation. This could be tweaked by an extra PG to offer added depth, and another wing(Hairston? McClinton?) to fill out the roster and spell the old farts. But the Spurs's backcourt is among the best in the league, if not at the top, so this area is most assuredly not a cause for concern.

The Bottom Line

The Spurs have already had a very productive offseason, and finally seem to be implementing their plan to transition the team into the twilight years of Timmy and Manu, if not beyond. Getting your ass kicked in the first round, then watching the Euroleague star you traded away for peanuts frustrate the Lakers for 7 games will do that to you. Stampler was right, this team needed a beatdown to get back in gear. With that said, the front office has been doing a hell of a job so far this year, but their job isn't done by any stretch of the imagination.

Let's hope the good times keep rolling, all the way to another river parade.

Poll

Which "contender" has done the best job improving their team?

Cleveland Cavaliers

85 votes

Los Angeles Lakers

401 votes

Orlando Magic

67 votes

San Antonio Spurs

920 votes

1473 votes | Poll has closed

San Antonio Spurs Guide To Free Agency and Free Agent Primer

Wayne Vore (ATS) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 06:17:36 -0000

Free agency kicked off Tuesday night at 11:01 SPURS time. At this point, all they can do is talk and make offers. No contracts can be signed. Here's my rundown of the situation. What we have? What we can spend? Who we want?

What do we have?

With Michael Finley exercising his player option, we have upped our current roster to 10.

We also have our draft picks and old draft picks. None of those guys, however, are signed to contracts and should be considered iffy.

What Can We Spend?

My trusty bean counter at Sham Sports tells me that the salaries for the above 10 players comes to $72,054,727. We are WAY over the salary cap area and almost assuredly over the luxury tax already. While the numbers won't be official until about a week from now, last year's luxury tax was in the $71 million range and it is expected to go down.

What does that mean? Well, it means we are limited to using the mid-level exception, the biannual exception, and the veteran minimum to sign guys. The mid-level exception is about $5.5 million (again, the number won't be official until the next week), the biannual dohickey was $1.9 million last year, and the veteran minimum was $1.2 million.

What can I take from this? We can sign one decent to good player for the $5.5 million. Then we can sign as many scrubs as we can find for the minimum. OR, we can spend the $5.5 million on two OK players. Then sign as many scrubs as we can find.

Who Do We Want?

Well, 'who' is really dictated by 'what'. What we need are big men. And more than one. If you look at the guys I listed on the roster, you'll see that we have 3 -- yes, 3 -- big men. We normally carry 5-6 big men. In 2008, we have Tim, Horry, Bonner, Fab, KT, and Ian. Last year, we had Tim, Bonner, Fab, KT, Drew, and Ian. Right now, we have Tim, Bonner, Ian. That won't fly. We need three bigs. One or two will come from the draft guys though, so we'll probably target just one big man in free agency. The free agent list is LONG. Peruse at your leisure.

What Bigs Will We Get?

That $5.5 million MLE is going to the best big the Spurs can attract. I think #1 on their list will be Rasheed Wallace. He fits EVERYTHING the Spurs like in a big man next to Tim. 1) He can shoot the three. 2) He's a solid defensive player. 3) He has a very high basketball IQ. 4) He's old as dirt. Do you guys realize that Tim is the second oldest player on our roster and Manu is the third? Pop isn't going to let that fly.

If we can't snag Rasheed, I'm not sure where we go. I give the thumbs down to McDyess. I think he has less in the tank than Rasheed. Gortat seems like a guy who will be overpaid. Rasho wasn't that good when we traded him 3 years ago. Birdman...please.

I'm firmly on the Sheed bandwagon, but I think McDyess might be the next best fit. Don't discount Drew Gooden. I could see the Spurs going with him if they could get him on the cheap. A combo of Pachulia and Gooden might be interesting.

What About the Non-Bigs?

I want Bruce back. I think Bruce, at the veteran minimum, as the back up small forward would be fantastic. We don't really need another guard. Tony, Roger, Manu, George, and FinDog (FinDog is more of a SG than a SF) should be more than adequate. I think with the emergence of George, and Roger's and Manu's ability to run the point in a pinch, we don't need the Jacque Vaughn veteran-savvy third point guard this year. With the addition of Jefferson, there is no way we are spending any money at the small forward position and whoever we bring in will have to be dirt cheap.

Unless the Spurs pull off another trade, I really don't see us doing much in free agency besided chasing a big man and signing a few guys for the minimum. I'll bet those minimum guys are familiar faces.

Odds and Ends

The Pistons have a TON of cap space. Do you think they'll sign Artest? Please, pretty please.
What's up with Allen Iverson? I haven't heard anything. Nothing. Zero. About anybody being interested in him.
Jerome James is available. I think Tim would like it if we signed him.
Several former Spurs big men are available: Rasho, Malik, Sean Marks, Francisco, Melvin Ely
Anybody heard anything about Shawn Marion going somewhere? Me neither.
Do you remember how the Suns fans were all stoked about the signing of Matt Barnes? They can't wait for him to get out of town now.
Chris Wilcox is a free agent. If the Spurs are looking for a talented guy who needs a fresh start, he might be the man. He'd be cheap.
Hmmmm, what about Joe Smith?
Or Anderson Varejao? Hold it he's now #2 on my list ahead of McDyess. I forgot about him.