FIO Preview: San Antonio Spurs

2008-2009 San Antonio Spurs season preview and fantasy impact, courtesy of Fantasy Insider Online. Read the team preview here in the Yard, and then visit the FIO link for the rest. - Zach Harper Last Season Recap: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly It was another boring 50-win season for the San Antonio Spurs and another appearance in the Western Conference Finals. If you count the lockout season of 1999 when the Spurs were on pace to win over 50 games, they have won 50+ and made it to at least the Western Conference Finals in six of the last 10 seasons. Although the Spurs often struggle coming out of the gate, once the rodeo comes to town and they're sent out on the road, they manage to pick up the pace. However, last season, they started out hot by winning 17 of their first 20 games. And when the rodeo came to town (literally), the Spurs continued to win by taking victories in six of their nine straight road games. The Spurs were the third best defensive team (by opponents' points per game) in the NBA and the best in the West by far. The Spurs had another successful season by executing and acting like professionals. They won 56 games, finished tied for second in the West, and had an extremely tough march through the playoffs. Despite crushing the Suns in the first round and somehow out lasting the Hornets in the second round (they won Game 7 in New Orleans), San Antonio was not able to beat the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. They were annihilated in five games and failed to win their fifth championship in 10 years. The Spurs put up one of the most overlooked defensive performances throughout the season. San Antonio gave up 100 points or more just 14 times and had the fifth best opponents' field goal percentage with 44.43%. They were one of only three teams to allow less than 35% of opponents' three-pointers to connect. The team was once again led by Tim Duncan, who, despite having a down year, still had a spectacular season. Duncan averaged 19.3 points and 11.3 rebounds while blocking 1.9 shots per game. Manu Ginobili showed why he was the second best shooting guard in the NBA behind Kobe Bryant (thanks to Dwyane Wade being injured too) by leading the team in scoring 19.5 points per game even though he started just 23 of his 71 games played. He also averaged 4.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists on his way to winning the Sixth Man of the Year award and making the All-NBA Third Team. Tony Parker had another fantastic season with 18.8 points and 6.0 assists per game. During mid-season, the Spurs traded Brent Barry, Francisco Elson, and their 2009 first round pick to the Sonics for Kurt Thomas to give them some added, veteran beef in the middle. This move proved to be another brilliant one by RC Buford, who has helped construct this team over the past six seasons. The Spurs were simply too strong mentally for the Suns in the first round of the playoffs and took advantage of the weak mentality that the Phoenix players possessed. They used their experience and resilience against the Hornets by taking a 3-2 deficit and winning Game 6 at home and Game 7 on the road. Unfortunately, they weren't talented enough or deep enough to contend with the Lakers in the Conference Finals. The Lakers beat them in close games and blowouts. They made plays when they had to and avoided fouls (or did they?) when it would hurt them the most. The Spurs' magic and resilience simply could not match the overall skill and depth of the Lakers roster. San Antonio's offensive futility in that series (88.4 ppg) came from surprisingly great Lakers defense that allowed just 42% shooting from the field for the Spurs. The Spurs also shot themselves in the collective foot by shooting 75.5% from the free throw line. Other than this series, the Spurs really didn't do anything wrong this season. They were able to withstand key injuries (Parker missed 13 games and Ginobili missed 8). They were one of the best teams in the league for the tenth straight year. It was just another typical Gregg Popovich-coached team. 2008 Draft Impact (Very Low) Ever since Tim Duncan joined the San Antonio Spurs, the organization has been drafting toward the bottom of the first round and trying to find hidden gems among a lot of players who will be valet parkers within five years. This summer, the Spurs drafted George Hill out of IUPUI with 26th pick to be a point guard option of the future. Hill was a surprise pick because many expected him to be a mid-to-late second round pick. He is a player who excels at getting into the lane and creating opportunities for himself and everyone around him. However, he's a very inconsistent shooter who forces the action at times. He'll have to be conditioned (probably in the D-League) by Gregg Popovich & Co. to remain fundamental in his approach to the NBA game. In the second round, the Spurs acquired two players (one from a trade with Phoenix and then their own second round pick). The Spurs traded second round pick Goran Dragic to the Suns for Malik Hairston out of Oregon. Hairston was the 48th pick of the draft and is a pretty good scoring option at the shooting guard position. He's strictly a D-League player right now unless San Antonio suffers more injuries, but he could definitely be a solid third shooting guard on an NBA team someday. They also drafted James Gist out of Maryland with the 57th pick. Gist is a great athlete who is a marginal NBA prospect. He doesn't really have a position between the forward spots, but his athletic ability can make up for his shortcomings. He's also a D-League talent right now but may serve as a nice defensive option in the future. Off-Season Impact Moves It seems rare that the San Antonio Spurs go into an offseason in order to reshape the roster. They never overspend and always seem to just bring in whichever veteran role player is tired of losing and wants a shot to win the championship. They get players for great values and never spend money for more than one or two years at a time. They're basically the NBA's New England Patriots. This offseason wasn't any different. They re-signed the role players they had for under their market value and kept their core unit intact. Kurt Thomas and Michael Finley decided to stay with the Spurs by re-signing with the club for two years each. Finley gives them a competent shooting guard in the starting lineup who has the ability to knock down big shots and give the Spurs the flexibility to still bring Manu Ginobili off the bench. The Spurs will be able to have that same flexibility with Kurt Thomas. He will be interchangeable with Fabricio Oberto, and they can start either one depending on the match-up awaiting them on given night. The Spurs also went out and signed two guards to add depth to a very thin backcourt. The Spurs signed Roger Mason away from the Washington Wizards to compete for the backup point guard position with Jacque Vaughn. Mason had a breakout year with the Wizards last season by filling in as the backup for Antonio Daniels after Gilbert Arenas went down. He hit 130 threes (97 more than his career-high) and averaged 9.1 points per game. The Spurs also signed Salim Stoudamire away from the Atlanta Hawks to give them an extra shooter off the bench (which they lost when Brent Barry signed with the Rockets). Stoudamire was a dynamic shooter in college and has struggled to find consistency in the NBA. His minutes, scoring, three-pointers made, and three-point percentage have declined every season in his three years with the league. But he has also been on bad teams with no post presence. He'll get plenty of open looks on the court with the Spurs. Preview for the 2008-2009 Season Team MVP: Tim Duncan, PF - You know what Tim Duncan is pretty good at doing? Playing basketball. Timmy is and has always been the driving force of this team since he was drafted in 1997 and put alongside David Robinson. Through those 11 seasons, the parts and role players have been changed and replaced on this team and Tim Duncan has been the centerpiece for every combination. He's the greatest power forward to ever play the game and is still one of the 10 best players in the NBA today. Duncan will get his 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks again this year while leading his team to 50 wins. He may not be exciting, but he's consistently deadly. Breakout Player: Roger Mason, PG - In the final 66 games of the season, Roger Mason became a lethal shooter who was tough for opposing benches to contain. He averaged 10.4 points per game during this time and hit 123 three-pointers. He also shot 45.7% from the field during those final 66 games. Now that he's on the Spurs, Mason has much more legitimate weapons to draw the attention away from the three-point line. Mason isn't great at running an offense, but he will be utilized as someone who stretches the floor, and he flourishes in that role. Bust Player: Bruce Bowen, SF - It's just a matter of time before this guy finally breaks down and stops being so useful on the court. His defense did slip a little bit last season, but he's still one of the top on-the-ball defenders in the NBA. He turned 37-years-old this offseason and will return to a team that won't have Manu Ginobili for possibly the first third of their games. Increased minutes and another season of physical pounding under his belt could spell the end of the "Bruce Bowen being effective" era in the NBA. Playoff Contender or Pretender? This team is definitely a contender in the NBA. They have a championship pedigree and arguably the best coach of the past 10 years (yeah, you heard me, Lakers fans). They have one of the best big men in the game in Tim Duncan and a dynamic backcourt with Ginobili and Parker. They have key role players in Kurt Thomas, Jacque Vaughn, Michael Finley, Bruce Bowen, and Fabricio Oberto, who will step in and make big plays no matter what the situation is. The Spurs are not only a great home team but they're also an exceptional road team. Over the past seven seasons, the Spurs are 235-52 (81.8%) at home and 176-111 (61%) on the road. 61%!!!! Ask every other franchise in the NBA if they would accept winning 61% of their games over the past seven seasons (average of 50 wins) and every single one of them would take it. Then ask them if they would take that percentage in just their road games and they would be figuring out their ring size for their championship jewelry. Why is this team so good? Because they are a top-run organization from RC Buford (who's calling the shots), to Gregg Popovich (who's instilling the mental toughness), to Tim Duncan (who's leading by example), and down to guys like Robert Horry and Steve Kerr (who have been constantly prepared to prove they belong on title-winning teams). Tim Duncan is treated like any other player on the team and will have to run just as many wind sprints as Matt Bonner and Ime Udoka when the team has performed poorly. This team has accountability and incredible knowledge of their system. They execute better than anybody since John Stockton and Karl Malone were running the pick-and-roll. Yes, San Antonio is still a contender and they will be a team to be feared once again this season. How boring.