The Spurs organization has always found a way to put the perfect role players around their superstar Tim Duncan. If it wasn’t through the draft it was some key free agents or perhaps a trade.
In 1999 they selected Manu Ginobili the 57th pick, but little did they know he would turn in to the all-star he is now, or did they? Over the years their scouting has be on a level of its own, better then any team in the NBA right now. Three years ago with the last pick in the first round they selected French man Tony Parker who has turned in to one of the better starting point’s in the league. Last years pick was Beno Udrih the 28th pick who has played some very valuable minutes this season off the bench and it looks like they’ve ran away with another steal once again. And in 2003 they drafted another Argentinean in Luis Scola in the 2nd round and he’s been playing very well and it seems like he will come over next season and will be a major contributor.
This off-season they signed Brent Barry who has been so important off the bench for the San Antonio Spurs, and even more vital in the finals. A few seasons back the Spurs signed Big Shot Bob who hit that three at the end of game 5, the Spurs would probably not win the championship if it weren’t for Big Shot Bob. Spurs management have showed that they can find talent that is often over looked with the likes of Bruce Bowen and San Antonio native Devin Brown. And right after Glenn Robinson was cut the Spurs got right on it to get the scorer and he’s been valuable at times when they’ve needed scoring.
The trade that propelled them more then anything this season was the trade for Nazar Mohammed. Malik Rose was a nice player and all but Nesterovic wasn’t getting it done as a starting center. They sent two first-round picks to the Knicks and Malik Rose for Nazar Mohammed. And if the Spurs keep it up at this pace those picks will end up looking more like 2nd rounders.
The Spurs seem to replenish everything around Tim Duncan year in and year out. That is why they’ve won 3 championships in 7 seasons and 2 championships in 3 seasons. Back when they won their first championship the Spurs were filled with a bunch of veterans like; Sean Elliot, Mario Eile, Avery Johnson, Steve Kerr, Malik Rose, Antonio Daniels, and oh yeah David Robinson. Then they remarkably switched their gears and turned a team full of veterans in to a relatively young trio of Timmy, Manu, and Tony.
They should be able to attract some veterans at a very cheap price. With the new CBA in place teams will be able to cut players with huge contracts so that a certain player wouldn’t give them a hit in the luxury tax area. Players rumored to be cut are Allan Houston, Michael Finley, and many others. I’m sure the free agency class will be filled with players willing to take a pay cut to win. That’s why I wouldn’t be surprised if they repeated.
2 replies on “Spurs: The model franchise”
Couple things “A few seasons back the Spurs signed Big Shot Bob who hit that three at the end of game 5, the Spurs would probably not win the championship if it weren’t for Robert Horry.” – Split this up into two sentences, or put a conjunction after the comma. You should probably also switch Big Shot Bob with Robert Horry.
“Bruce one of the premier defenders in the league who went un-drafted is showing how the Spurs management is brilliant in finding talent that is often over looked.” – That’s a complete disaster, just rewrite it.
“who also went un-drafted much like Bruce Bowen.” – No need for the much, he went un-drafted exactly like Bowen.
Get rid of the “And” at the beginning of the second to last paragraph.
“They sent two first-round picks to the New York Knicks and Malik Rose” – switch “and Malik Rose” with “to the Knicks”
Delete the “And” at the beginning of the next sentence.
“All in all” isn’t needed at the beginning of the next paragraph. “the big man” momentarily confused me. Maybe I’m just dumb, but you might want to put Duncan’s name in there somewhere, just to help with the flow.
“Back when they won their first championship they were a bunch of veterans with the likes of; Sean Elliot, Mario Eile, Avery Johnson, Steve Kerr, Malik Rose, Antonio Daniels, and oh yeah David Robinson.” – I’m not sure what point you’re trying to make with that, but it seems disruptive and you might want to flesh it out or just get rid of it.
A stronger closing sentence would be nice if you could think of it, maybe think of something they could do this offseason that would go along with the theme you presented throughout the article (like drafting a sleeper Euro or signing a veteran who’s available this offseason).
Thanks Done, done, and done. I appreciate the constructive criticism. Hopefully it’s clearer to read now. Please do tell me if there’s something else I should add/delete, etc.