The way I see it though, is that in 2 or 3 years, they will have SO MANY HOLES because most of the roster will be around the 40 yr mark. They may be able to bring some guys in though, but practically the WHOLE TEAM has to be replaced. ------------------ I'm looking for a job, so hire me "And I just have to smile and say 'well, I hope so' while I'm really thinking inside how I'd like to just strangle them and take their job."
Well, it seems they made the decision to jetison Anderson, and then proceed to throw their name into the Vinsanity sweepstakes come 2003. I'd say thats a worthy wager on their part. Oh and Clutch, you were right, Derek Anderson is a piece of (blank). ------------------
I apologize for not making it clear that I was talking about NEXT season. ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net [This message has been edited by MrSpur (edited July 25, 2001).]
More likely they would interested in Pierce and/or Jermaine O'Neal, among others...VCarter in SA? If only... ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net
DA is a good player, but not worth the hassle. Antonio Daniels played his butt off in the playoffs. Nobody can say that he didn't leave it all out on the court against the Lakers. DA should have taken note on how his replacement, AD played. Plus AD wants to play for the Spurs. They want him as a PG and he might be a better SG. JMO. Steve Smith SF, Antonio Daniels SG, Terry Porter PG. Tony Parker will fill in nicely. Antonio play some minutes at PG. Bottom line, the Spurs will be fine. ------------------
Now ESPN Insider is reporting that Bowen will sign for near the minimum with San Antonio. The Spurs may not have had the best summer possible, but I do think they came back with a better team. I'd swap DA for Smith and Bowen in a heartbeat. ------------------ Draftsource.net-- the premier source for draft info. Profiles, rankings, mock drafts, and more! The Mo Taylor Fan Site
"DA is a good player, but not worth the hassle. Antonio Daniels played his butt off in the playoffs. Nobody can say that he didn't leave it all out on the court against the Lakers. DA should have taken note on how his replacement, AD played." Pecos so you're happy with a guy who bust his tail and leads your team to... swell he led you to getting swept. DA played well all year long. For a majority of the season, up until the Lakers started their run in Feb. he was an integral part of the best team in the league. Now he is gone and Spurs fan say he didn't play hard. I've got two words for you "SOUR GRAPES" He played last year expecting the Spurs to take care of him this year. They didn't. Nothing against Steve Smith but DA is a much better played at this point in their careers. Steve has a sweet jumper which will help but he not as athletic as DA. So Spurs fan enjoy your offseason.
What did I tell ya!! Spurs fans are gonna make excuses and say that DA sucked anyways. I didn't live in San Antonio for 3 years and not learn anything ------------------ I'm looking for a job, so hire me "And I just have to smile and say 'well, I hope so' while I'm really thinking inside how I'd like to just strangle them and take their job."
The Spurs were swept in spite of the effort of AD. Perhaps DA would've provided a difference versus LA, but I doubt it. What player with any semblance of talent wouldn't with Duncan and DRob up front to work with? No one is saying he didn't play hard, just that they quickly tired of his demands to be treated like the Franchise. Incorrect. They are. He is getting paid, is he not? DA's shot selection is horrid. SSmith can produce the same on 1/3rd less shots. Sure, DA is more athletic, but he still struggles to create off the dribble in the halfcourt. Smith is definitely less athletic, but he's a smarter player on the court. SSmith will fit in well in the Spurs' offense. Overall, this is a net even replacement, IMO. DA wore out his welcome in Cleveland and SA...why? His attitude. The city loved him until this offseason. This started way before his announcement that he was headed out. ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net [This message has been edited by MrSpur (edited July 25, 2001).]
That's funny, that's exactly why I can't stand some Rockets fans. ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net
Mr Spur, Is it still expected that Stephen Jackson will sign for near the minimum? Also, how about Ferry? I know he won't command too much, but it would seem someone would pay over the minimum, and if I remember he and Kerr were good friends (Kerr is traded now). Assuming the Spurs get Bowen, I still think they are arguably the best team in the league... however, to make that happen, they do need to get a couple more role players signed for the bench. Who, besides Bowen, do you expect to sign in the next week or so? ------------------ Draftsource.net-- the premier source for draft info. Profiles, rankings, mock drafts, and more! The Mo Taylor Fan Site
Cat, SJackson is on the Spurs summerleague team...I would expect him to get the minimum. Of course, the Spurs are waiting on the trade to go through so that they can start filling out the bench. Ferry? I have no idea. There should be a little cap space left over ($1 to 1.5 mil) after the Smith deal goes through and that should go to Bowen...though there have been rumblings about Porter possibly going back to Miami for Bowen. The Spurs appear willing to give Ferry a two year deal at the vet minimum, perhaps with a player option after next season. I would expect Ferry to play more 4 next season. Kerr probably is miffed that he will have to move his family again, but should Portland waive him as expected, then he should be in line to pick up some extra $$$. I wouldn't even be surprised to see him return to SA, though at this point I think the Spurs definitely need to free up some roster spots. Jaren Jackson has one year left in solitary. There are some decent free agent role players who might come for the vet minimum. Those that come to mind are LaPhonso "Whatcha talking about" Ellis, Jim "Jermaine" Jackson, Dana "En Mi" Barros, Emmanuel "Sammy" Davis, Felipe "Davey" Lopez, Danny "Carol" Manning, Jelani "Not the Real" McCoy, Paul McPherson "Struts", Ruben "WWRD?" Patterson, Olden "Crooked Officer" Polynice, Isaiah "Because of your pay cut Dave, we got" Rider, Reggie "Jackson" Slater, Erick "Not Mark, Not Rod" Strickland, Cherokee "Shouldn't even be playing in the" Parks, Lee Nail-ed-on "Chronic", David "For Old Times Sake" Wingate, Gary "Vacation" Trent, Mark "Isn't he dead yet?" Bryant, and Don "Weed please, not" Reid. More or less what you'd expect to see floating around for the minimum. ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net [This message has been edited by MrSpur (edited July 25, 2001).]
Cat, you are letting your love for Tim Duncan cloud your judgement. There is no way the Spurs will even be close to the best team in the league. That title will go to either the Lakers, Kings, Blazers, Sixers, or Magic. The Spurs are screwed. ------------------ Protrolls.com! Keep the ???? alive! The ZRBucks!
Oh really? The Spurs were the best team in the NBA for almost all of last season, until the Lakers caught fire in the playoffs and Anderson went down with an injury. Was Derek Anderson so important to that team that replacing him with Steve Smith, Bruce Bowen, and Stephen Jackson will screw them? My guess is no, considering that the Spurs were one of the most dominant teams ever in their 1999 title run with a lineup of Johnson, Elie, Elliott, Duncan, and Robinson. I've read what you've said about the Spurs this offseason, and it's obvious you don't understand. The zone is not going to limit then to 83 points a game. The zone will not have much of an effect anyway, and if it does, teams with great 3 point shooting like San Antonio will thrive. And, players at the NBA level don't dwell on a loss like you do. The Lakers were playing great ball in the playoffs. The Spurs weren't ready, and had a poor showing. They aren't going to be mentally affected by this next season. ZRB, how about you get in on the bet, in the Spurs: Making a run thread? ------------------ Draftsource.net-- the premier source for draft info. Profiles, rankings, mock drafts, and more! The Mo Taylor Fan Site
Smith ~ DA. Yes, DA is more athletic, but he needs more shots to be effective. Smith doesn't. Smith is a heady player. I could understand it if DA could consistently get to the rack in the halfcourt, but he couldn't. The key for the Spurs is to find athletic players at the 3 and backup 2. They have them at the 1 in AD and Parker. The thing to recognize is that last season the Spurs ended up with the best record in the NBA with Danny Ferry as their starting 3 man and a hobbled Elliott as his backup heading into the postseason, with Malik Rose filling in when Elliott couldn't go. I can't say I'm thrilled about this deal, but at the same time I don't hate it...as long as SA does not give Smith that extension. I would've preferred the Mercer/Artest 3way deal for DA, but that is dead, unless Smith becomes adamant about the extension and Jabba decides that he must have SSmith. ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net
The one thing that killed the Spurs between '99 and thereafter was the league changing the rules on handchecking. Elie became a revolving door defensively at the 2 after that. The new rules are made for teams with shotblockers like SA...now even a player like SSmith can play passable defense, and a player like Bowen is only that much better defensively. These rule changes are supposed to open up the game, but I see the opposite. It's going to be ugly. ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net
That 1999 Spurs team was worst championship team over the last 20 years. Not that they weren't a very good team, but their path to the ring included very weak teams. I actually don't think the Spurs 1999 team would have beaten the Spurs 95 team. This doesn't take away their accomplishments, an earned championship is an earned championship, but I wouldn't overstate their "dominance". TD did get completely screwed that year in the MVP race, Malone's was not deserved. The Spurs will be good next year, but I don't see how anyone thinks they have had a "good" offseason. The obvious missing components to last year's team were athleticism and having all-around players around the twin towers. Losing DA, Walker, Johnson and Elliot (though admittedly he could no longer provide any anyway) hurts them tremendously. While getting Steve Smith is better than nothing, the Spurs defense and athleticism from the 1-3 is now so bad even as good of defenders the twin towers are won't be able to erase enough mistakes. Thus while the Lakers and Kings have gotten better, and the 6ers stood pat but will likely get healthy, the Spurs have gotten worse. Still a top 5 team, but now there is a bigger gap between them and the team that swept them last year and in my opinion will be overtaken by 2 other teams as well. I don't see another ring in SA until they add a couple more very well-rounded starters, with DA they maybe only needed one more piece (Aaron McKey might have done it), now they need 2 more pieces. It will be hard for them to acquire them and Bowen certainly is far too 1-dimesional to be one. [This message has been edited by Desert Scar (edited July 25, 2001).]
anyone know the age difference between Smith and Anderson? what about Smith's contract status? Anderson seems the better player right now and I know he's at least somewhat younger, but I'm wondering if Smith's contract was appealing to the Spurs? And let's face it, as long as they have a guard who can shoot some, they'll always contend with Duncan and the Admiral.... ------------------ "Considering Mobley for His First Son's Name"
DA is 27, Smith is 32. Smith has two years remaining on his deal. DA has 6 years. DA is a good player, but requires more touches to be effective. The thing is, he's not a dominant perimeter player in the halfcourt. The Spurs will need to replace his speed and quickness on breaks. AD starting will help there. Of the two, SSmith is the smarter player. You can debate about which one is better all day long. I like SSmith's versatility and I like DA's athleticism. The thing that killed me about DA was his shot selection. SSmith will be a definite improvement in that area. ------------------ It's a cool site, this clutchcity.net
