2017–18 NBA Season Preview: San Antonio Spurs
This was an offseason of speculation when it comes to the San Antonio Spurs- first, rumors circulating Chris Paul arose, causing many to think CP3 would be soon taking his talents to San Antonio. But when he instead opted to go to the in-state rival Houston Rockets, many thought the Spurs would get a player like Kyle Lowry or George Hill. But this offseason of speculation quickly became an offseason of confusion. San Antonio didn’t get any prized free agents, and made a few head-scratching moves. Unless you blindly trust whatever Gregg Popovich does, there is good reason to be very concerned about the future of the Spurs.
Offseason Moves
Re-signed: Patty Mills, Manu Ginobili, Pau Gasol
Added: Derrick White (Draft) Joffrey Lauvergne (Free Agency), Rudy Gay (Free Agency)
Lost: Jonathan Simmons (Free Agency), Dewayne Dedmon (Free Agency)
Bringing back Mills was a smart move, considering the instant spark he can provide on the offensive end. But aside from that, this was an abysmal free agency period; largely due to the fact that they let Simmons and Dedmon, two players who can play significant roles in a hypothetical series against the Warriors, go for very cheap prices. At those values, the Spurs should’ve pounced on the opportunity to bring those two guys back. Signing Rudy Gay was already bad considering he consistently makes teams worse when he plays, and that’s forgetting the fact that he just tore his achilles, a very difficult injury to come back from at the age of 30. Lauvergne is still a project who has yet to prove his worth in the NBA. But worst of all was the contract extension they gave to Paul Gasol: three years and $48M for a 37-year old bigman who isn’t a good rebounder and is a flat out awful defender. He can’t stay on the court against the Warriors because he can’t guard anybody, and the Spurs just gave him a three-year deal worth almost $50M. Letting a rebounding specialist who can protect the rim excellently like Dedmon walk, but giving Pau Gasol $48M at this stage of his career is proof that for the Spurs, no single attribute is more important than being a foreign-born veteran in your late thirties.
The Key to Their Success
The Spurs have dug themselves a tremendous hole with the way they’ve invested boatloads of cash into bad defenders, which is practically a death sentence if you’re a team looking to challenge Golden State. They haven’t only fallen even farther behind the Warriors, but they’ve let the Houston Rockets surpass them thanks to the addition of Chris Paul. The only way San Antonio could possibly achieve its goal of winning the title is if on top of the Warriors and Rockets catching the injury bug, Kawhi Leonard becomes the best player in the NBA. It’s unfair to expect this of him when he’s playing at the same time as one of the three greatest players of all time, but that’s what will have to happen if they want any chance at the championship.
Player to Watch
With Tony Parker expected to be out with injury until the winter, Dejounte Murray is going to play a sizable role right away. He basically had a redshirt rookie season, only playing in 38 games. But, he’s shown when he’s played that he is ready for the challenge — once the 29th pick, he could end up being the steal of the 2016 NBA Draft.
Best and Worst Case Scenarios
Best case: Kawhi Leonard goes nuts, wins the MVP, and leads the Spurs to the Western Conference Finals, where they challenge the Warriors. LaMarcus Aldridge gets traded for a handful of young versatile and cheap players.
Worst case: The poorly constructed roster is too heavy of a burden for Kawhi to carry on his shoulders, the Spurs disappoint and don’t come close to sniffing a Conference Finals appearance.
Predicting Their Fate
The Spurs do what they always do and overachieve, but come nowhere near being a threat to win the NBA Finals because of their lack of quality defenders.
