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Jul 13, 2005, 04:50
Battle Blog -- Should The Spurs Trade Rasho?
By Spurs Fans
SpursTalk.com
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When Spurs center Rasho Nesterovic went down with an ankle injury late in the season, Nazr Mohammed took over his spot ... and kept it. Should the Spurs look to trade Rasho? Spurs fans debate.
E20: With the acquistion of Nazr Mohammad midway through the season, Rasho Nesterovic saw his minutes decline to the point to where he was a non-factor in the playoffs.
Although Rasho's and Nazr's numbers are similar, Nazr produced those numbers in less minutes. Even though Nazr's defensive rotations are slow and he needs to work on his ball control, a summer with the Spurs and a full training should help to cure those ailments.
The difference is Nazr brings aggressiveness to the table that Rasho doesn't, which leads to more putbacks, offensive boards and filling up all the hustle stats on the box score. With his aggressive play, it wouldn't surprise me to see Nazr average around 12 or 13 points a game this coming season.
With that in mind, the Spurs front office should trade Rasho. Seeing that most teams need a seven-foot defensive-minded center, the Spurs could get back a player that could help them.
ginobili_is_god: Rasho should not be traded and will not be traded. Although his point production was not always there throughout the regular season, Rasho Nesterovic helped this team tremendously. Defense is what Pop wants Rasho to bring and that he does.
The Slovenian center might not be the league’s best shot blocker, but he changes tons of shots. A mobile seven-footer with good defensive instincts and no ego is hard to come by these days. What would have happened if we played Miami in the Finals this past year? Nazr picks up fouls quickly and he isn’t capable of containing Shaq by himself. That is where Rasho comes in.
Secondly, even if the front office wanted to trade Rasho, it would be very difficult to do so. The Spurs, like most teams, will be over the salary cap. The only way to get rid of Rasho is to trade him straight up for another player making the same amount of money. And right now, there is no one in the league making Rasho’s amount of money that could be a suitable replacement. We are deep at every position besides center and to lose Rasho would be a disaster.
While I agree that Nazr is more skilled than Rasho, I believe that Rasho is going to be an important part of our team for years to come, whether or not he is our starting center.
E20: During the run in the playoffs, Rasho didn't bring any defense -- he was on the bench. Nazr proved his value and was second to Tim Duncan in crashing the boards and was also being aggressive. His style of play left other team’s bigs in foul trouble.
There are no “what ifs”. The Spurs didn't play Miami, yet they had to play an even better frontcourt in Detroit.
Currently, Nazr has only played half a year with the Spurs. Given more time to learn the system, he’ll become sharper defensively and more comfortable in the Spurs system.
Right now the Spurs are lacking a young small forward. Bowen isn't getting any younger and the Spurs could use a young prospect at that position. Most NBA teams could use a center like Rasho who is willing to rebound and play defense.
That’s why I say to trade Rasho to a team looking a quality center for a young small forward that the team can mold into a future replacement for Bowen.
ginobili_is_god: I do believe that Nazr is the center of the future, but I think Rasho is more than a capable backup. When Rasho used to start, I wanted him to come off the bench. For some reason, he plays his best ball when Duncan is NOT on the court, as strange as that seems. His best stretch even was a season ago when Duncan was hurt for a couple of weeks. Rasho stepped in and put up double digits in points and rebounds.
Nazr plays center but does not have a center’s body. He is only 6’10, can sometimes get knocked around against bigger opponents and picks up fouls at a high rate. Nazr is a very good offensive rebounder and has better offensive skills than Rasho, however he is not the defender Rasho is. Rasho will be needed next year as a reliable backup. An injury to Nazr would be devastating to our team if we did not have a backup like Rasho. Why not keep two good centers on the team?
And Bowen still has a couple good years left in him. His best season, in my mind, was this past one. Ginobili and Devin Brown can play small forward just fine. Good centers are hard to come by these days – as opposed to small forwards. Rasho must stay!
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