Thank god somebody agrees with me, was starting to feel like a dip $**t out here

So I'm guessing Lma is staying ?

Ag Natural said:

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The formula for beating GSW includes perimeter length on defense, great rebounding and good iso offense. Rudy Gay is an A or A+ in all those areas. Yeah, we don't know if he can play great team defense for sure. But at 6'9" and athletic he should be effective.

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You're correct that you need length on the perimeter to defend the warriors, but that's not all. You need guys that are capable of guarding multiple spots to truly try and slow them down. Rudy Gay is a terrible defender, so he really doesn't help there at all. He's solid rebounder for a wing, so I'll give you that point. But since when has pure isolation offense been the key to beating any good NBA team? You've got to take care of the ball and be efficient, which he's certainly not efficient.

If you had a team that had zero guys that could create any kind of offense, then a guy like Gay would look enticing. We don't have that struggle and I see zero reason to throw a chunk of money at him to clog up minutes on the wing.

The_chum said:

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Thank god somebody agrees with me, was starting to feel like a dip $**t out here

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People disagree, but we're all just dudes on the internet speculating. No need to feel stupid.

azulAg said:

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So I'm guessing Lma is staying ?

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So far, yes. As much as most of us would have liked to move him, PATFO knows his value and wasn't going to give him up for peanuts.

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If you had a team that had zero guys that could create any kind of offense, then a guy like Gay would look enticing.

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Other than Kawhi who do we have that can do this? Manu used to be that guy. He's not as efficient anymore. Simms can in spurts when he's not turning the ball over.

I agree that the Spurs need versatile defenders to beat the Warriors which is why Simms should be a priority. But if we strike out on him there are far worse options than Rudy Gay.

Cleveland showed two years ago that iso ball works. They switch everything and a motion offense typically just leads to turnovers that fuels them. You are better off attacking mismatches. This year Cleveland did it again and scored plenty. Problem was their defense was appreciably worse this season.

I think if the Spurs can find one legit playmaker to go with Kawhi and yes Aldridge in the post. Then they will have a shot. Simmons showed flashes and Murray showed potential but one more proven guy who doesn't kill you on the defensive end would be great. I personally think Gay can play defense if properly motivated.

I think the plan all along was to bring the core group back for one more year unless some fantastic opportunity fell in their lap. Parker's injury throws a wrench in to that plan, in that Murray will now be starting earlier than hoped, but thems the breaks. Next season Parker and probably LMA come off the books, and the Spurs will have money to burn.

One thing to keep an eye on... lots of teams are spending a lot of money this off-season. Next year doesn't have a ton of superstars in free agency, but plenty of nice role players to go with the handful of big names. Might be a good time to snag a couple key pieces at slightly better values.

I don't get why some people think Houston is going to be this big threat to GSW. They might beat the spurs this year but so what? They're not going to win the title and isn't that all that matters? All they're doing is possibly mortgaging their future with a declining Paul if they decide to resign him next year. I guess most rockets fans are happy with MAYBE being better than the spurs though. I have no problem with returning all of our role players that know Pop's system and have chemistry together. Reality is the spurs are still as close as anyone to defeating the warriors which more than likely isn't possible without a Durant or Curry injury. Kawhi is going to be on another level next season.

We are still better than Houston. CP3 notwithstanding.

D'Antoni is still their coach, and we won't spot them a game and play without our two leading playoff scorers again.

This year was the year for them to beat us.

Exactly. I think CP3 makes them better, but not as good as they are hoping. It will be a lot like Durant and Westbrook in OKC, a kind of you then me take turns running the offense, which as we've seen can become extremely inefficient.

Agree to disagree, but get what you're saying but both players are extremely ball dominant and neither has played off ball at any point in their career. Even when harden was with OKC he was the primary ball handler when he was on the court. If Harden learns and accepts to play off ball than it will work, but I need to see it first. Your point about defense was spot on, as I think that is what ultimately will set the spurs apart.

summer league starts at 8pm against the jazz on the tres

http://www.espn.com/nba-summer-league/game?gameId=400959063&league=nba-summer-utah

George Hill to Lakers on 1 yr deal. That is frustrating to see.

*being finalized

As you should

duck79 said:

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George Hill to Lakers on 1 yr deal. That is frustrating to see.

*being finalized

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Good, we'll get him next summer once Tony realizes he should retire.

AustinAg2012 said:

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duck79 said:

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George Hill to Lakers on 1 yr deal. That is frustrating to see.

*being finalized

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Good, we'll get him next summer once Tony realizes he should retire.

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hopefully, we won't need him

True.

Hill must not be getting the offers he thought he would.

Summer league is hard to watch. Murray is getting lots of opportunities but looks pretty bad. Still loose with the ball, out of control, and getting smoked on defense. He can play better than this but needs to play a LOT better than this.

There's a reason the major tv networks don't cover it.

The product stinks. I'd just look at the box scores until the regular season.

I watch every year. I have a problem.

If you add up the good plays and bad plays, it's probably almost even for Murray... but he's a sophomore and it's summer league and people think he can start in the NBA this year.

You're a glutton for punishment.

I'd probably have to be wasted to watch summer league

grapespda2525 said:

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I'd probably have to be wasted to watch summer league

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you're not? It's Saturday and church was canceled.

Would the Spurs be interested in Monta Ellis? He might be released soon.
http://fox59.com/2017/07/03/report-pacers-talk-buyout-with-monta-ellis/

I lover watching summer league. You just need to adjust your expectations. Just watch see the young guys. You rarely see quality basketball, only glimpses.

Btw, Murray was atrocious. If the Spurs are waiting to see how he looks this summer before making a move for a veteran PG... then warm up the phones. Utah had two guys who looked very good (Exum and Mitchell ) . Either would have a great chance to start in SA.

So... scouting report.

If I were coming in cold with no idea who these guys are, I'd probably be most impressed with Murray. He's clearly one of the rangiest, most coordinated guys on the court. Made a number of nice steals and passes. Unfortunately, knowing that he has an NBA season under his belt and that the spurs really need him to contribute as a point guard, the airballs (2), ugly turnovers, loose handle, and physical weakness are big problems. You'd really like to see him toy with summer league defenses. Plenty of time for him to find a rhythm and he has played better than this, but based on this one game he looked two years away from contributing.

Bertans was trying to show off his range, but was setting up too far out and ended up taking a ton of bad shots. Had one really nice pass, although it didn't result in an assist because it actually wasn't a very smart pass. Another guy that you would like to see play better than he did after the international and NBA experience.

Derrick White looked fine. He was probably the spurs player of the game (low bar though). Generally made the right plays without doing anything especially impressive. It'll be interesting to see how he builds on this: does he have more upside or is this his level?

Cory Jefferson worked hardest, but looked like a glue guy which is not a good sign in summer league. LJC had some decent finishes and looked pretty coordinated, but all of his offense was generated by other people. Forbes was just kind of there. Blossongame managed to play 24 minutes and I can't remember a thing about him. Bentil and Whittington are stiffs.

The overall impression was a below average summer league team with very little upside talent on the roster.

Agree with Ag Natural that Exum and Mitchell were the best players on the court by far.

Derrick White looked like a lot more of an NBA player than Bryn Forbes. In fact they didn't even look close to each other. I think Forbes won't make the team this year.

Cory Jefferson looks like he has enough tools to be the 13th man ala Joel Anthony.

Blossomgame doesn't look like an NBA player.

Those were my 1 game takeaways. Obviously a lot can change by end of summer league.

Edit - oh yeah, Murray is far from being able to start. He's going to get killed against other starting PG.

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I think Forbes won't make the team this year.

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The Spurs would have to buy-out his contract. He's due $1.3 million next season.

I wouldn't take much away from the first game since any of these guys have played since vacation. Let's wait and see how the rest of the tournament goes.