[David Aldridge] David West to Spurs

Funny thing at the end of this past season I thought SAS was a lock to repeat. They were playing great and then to be outed by the Clippers, I think they are on the decline but how much is the question.

 

In all seriousness, the Rockets tried a bench like this in 1997 and they wore down too without playing near the minutes Pops plays his bench.

The Lakers tried this too in 2004 and it didn't work so there are risks to having a veteran heavy bench.

 

The difference in SA is the coaching staff. They do a great job at making players work with their skillet. If it doesn't work, Pop is very good at putting the team first. That being said, I think Lin would do well in SA. But with Ginobili coming back, the high-TO/streaky slot has been taken.

 

There has to be a promise for a 2-year deal make up monet after this year. Who walks out of $12 M??????

 

Something ain't right. The discounts the Spurs are getting these players to take are absurd. I understand West wasn't gonna get the salary he walked away from, but 1 1/2 mil?! I hope years from now we don't find out about some sort of under the table scam they were pulling. You can call me a conspiracy theorist, but the winningest organizations in other sports leagues like the Patriots and Cardinals have had their share of scandals(videotaping and deflategate, and hacking into the Astros system).

 

Yup, everybody gets Nike tennis shoes.

 

Respect. Dude clearly wants a ring

 

What's annoying is that the media is gonna hype this up and anoint David West as a Saint who bought into the Spurs "winning culture" when all it is is a very dumb financial move that destroys the competitive balance set up by the CBA. Players like Duncan and West are why there is going to be another lock-out. Only the owners win with these kinds of moves.

 

He should've gone to the Warriors then. I think they're closer than the Spurs. And they could use him just as much once(if?) Lee is traded away.

 

Plus he was upset with Larry Bird / Pacers management. I don't know what mattered more here, wanting to win a ring, or not wanting to stay with the Pacers.

Rumors kept suggesting the Wizards as one of his other main options besides the Spurs and Cavs, so maybe it was more about leaving the Pacers than joining a legitimate contender.

 

You can't really compare it to the Rockets or the Lakers. LMA will be 30 and Kawhi will be 24. Those are two all star players in their prime. The Spurs won't need as much from their bench. And the Lakers had two old guys starting.

 

Who's going to care about it during lock-out though? Maybe some owners but not unanimously. Players won't care, since they still get their 50% something of revenue one way or another.

 

Bargnani, who then turns into borderline all star.

 

A multi-millionare who has had career success in terms of earnings, but wants career success in terms of contributing to an organization's success?

 

Spurs are the new Miami Heat.

When is Ray Allen taking his spot.

 

In my personal opinion, any player that take a significant pay-cut just to help a team win is an idiot (the only exception is when you are a star and winning a championship can help increase your endorsement earnings).
All they are doing is donating $$ to the team owners. In 20 years, nobody,, themselves included, will give a damn if they won a NBA championship or not but they'll sure miss that $10+ million though.

 

The Spurs have two old guys starting. Parker and Duncan. And Manu will be 38 at the end of the month, Diaw will be 34 next April, and West will be 35 next month.

It's a very talented team. But let's not deny it. They are old as dirt. And while West does help with their depth, their bench is still inferior to last year's. Bottom line, they can't afford any injuries to their key guys or they're screwed.