For the San Antonio Spurs, most of the summers over the past few years have been about adding a few minor pieces to the roster. Their core was usually intact, and the team never had too much cap space in free agency. However, this past July was a memorable one for the Spurs as they were actually a serious contender in the free agent market with maximum cap space available. The Spurs not only re-signed core pieces in Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili,
In the past, a handful of players have come over from Europe and made a big impact in their rookie seasons in the NBA. Pau Gasol came from Spain to win NBA Rookie of the Year with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2002. Coming off two straight Italian League MVP awards, Manu Ginobili gave the San Antonio Spurs the extra push off the bench they needed to win the NBA title in 2003. Luis Scola and Juan Carlos Navarro were immediate contributors as
What is the next big surprise? When will it happen? We are inside of 48 hours until the league’s moratorium ends, so fasten your seatbelts, folks. This summer’s free agency period has provided as much suspense and excitement as the NBA Finals. The San Antonio Spurs have agreed to terms with LaMarcus Aldridge and David West while retaining Tim Duncan, Kawhi Leonard, Manu Ginobili and Danny Green in hopes of returning to the Finals. West said he wanted to play for a title
In Game 1 of the Western Conference first-round series between the Clippers and defending champion Spurs, San Antonio was overwhelmed by the energy of the home team. Los Angeles, even when making mistakes in defensive rotations, did so with so much speed and commitment that it often didn’t matter. The Clippers, with an assortment power dunks from Blake Griffin and power spikes from DeAndre Jordan, had the capacity crowd at Staples Center in a frenzy all night. The Spurs didn’t have an
Anyone who has spent much time in South Florida knows what happens when heat mixes with thunder — an intense downpour. Tonight at the AA Arena, it will be raining points indoors. [Read more…]
As good as the Spurs have been during the last 16 years, there is an inevitable point each season when gloomy forecasts surface. We had one here recently. At times, doubts are legitimate. The Spurs have won five titles, but 11 other times, they had problems that kept them from winning, although some of those can be traced to the excellence of opponents. When a team like the Lakers had Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant in their primes, losing to them was
Every time someone summons up the nerve to ask, “What’s wrong with the Spurs?” the defending NBA champions have provided an emphatic response: Nothing. They did it in November, beating the Clippers and Warriors on the road on consecutive nights after losses to Houston and New Orleans. They did it again in December, beating the Clippers to end a four-game losing streak that included back-to-back excruciating triple-overtime losses. And they did it again last night, beating the Rockets for the first time
Kevin Durant $10900 scored 30 points in 19 minutes on Thursday before rolling his ankle. Though it’s not a serious sprain, his status tonight is unknown. Russell Westbrook $11500 might have to carve up L.A. by himself, with a little help from Serge Ibaka $6800. [Read more…]