New Faces + New Attitude = Great Chance of Repeating
Congratulations to Gregg Popovich, his staff, and the whole Spurs organization on a job well done last season. Now onto the new season and all the changes that come with it.
First off the loss of David Robinson will be big, not only on and off the court but in between. If you don't catch my drift, I'm talking about in the locker room. Watch the championship videos of '99 and '03 and you'll see what I mean. Hand slapping, encouraging, leading the players impromptu meeting on the bus two years ago. David's presence and leadership will certainly be missed.
On the court, David will be replaced by Rasho Nesterovic. Rasho, in my opinion, is an adequate replacement. Not the one I expected, but certainly better than the alternative of nothing. After the championship there was talk of PJ Brown, Karl Malone and Jermaine O'Neal coming to the Alamo City. We all know where Malone ended up, and the other two opted to stay home which is admirable. Rasho on the other hand took less money and in his words, "A better shot at a ring" by joining the Spurs.
I like Rasho -- good offensive game, good head for the game, moves well and has great potential. He fits in well because I think the Spurs are going with a more offensive-oriented game plan than normal this year. His defense and block shots will come with the teachings of Gregg Popovich and staff. I don't think you'll see the total fruits of their labor until 2004-05. It took Pop and company two summers and a full NBA season to rid Stephen Jackson of his Swiss cheese D and I think Rasho will fall into this category.
Rasho was criticized in Minnesota for soft defense and not helping out Kevin Garnett. I think the Timberwolves put unreal expectations on Rasho and wanted him to be a superstar. He would fit in better as a Vlade Divac type player. Grind, scrap, bring 12 points, 8 boards a night, good shooting range and low post game that will make teams not double Duncan as soon as he checks in the game. Rasho brings a new attitude to the team that is young, hungry, and wanting to impress. Whether that improves the team, and whether that's enough to keep him in there for more than 20 minutes at a time will be seen.
Hedo Turkoglu is an interesting acquisiton that, while somewhat disappointing so far this preseason, will shake out this season. I believe Turkoglu will evolve into the one that will replace Bowen in the starting 5 next year. One only needs to get out the game tape of the Sacramento Kings two years ago to see what a healthy and in shape Turkoglu can do.
His shooting range, handles, height, and nose (excuse the pun) for the game are what stand out. How he fits in will be easy. He will fill the Manu Ginobili role off the bench as an offensive spark for the team this year. He'll be better than last year's Manu in that he has a much better shooting stroke and he's been in playoff pressure and situations as well. Hedo will shape up well for this team and become a fan favorite. He has something to prove in that Sacramento at one time considered him untouchable. This summer they practically game him away. A lot of people are saying he was a flash in the pan and will not turn out into the player he was supposed to be. He is on a new team and has a new attitude. This new attitude will help the team in my opinion.
Ron Mercer, Robert Horry and Anthony Carter are key factors to whether this team will succeed.
Will Horry get his three-point range back? Well, so far so good. Horry looks like he did 2 to 3 years ago when he was a major factor in the Lakers winning rings. Mercer looks decent although his shot needs to get a lot better. And Anthony Carter will be a small minute back up and should bring what Speedy Claxton brought -- speed, good defense, and some points going to the hole.
The rest of the team shakes out like last year. We know what Willis, Duncan, Bowen, and Rose will bring. But the intangibles of this season will be Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker. Already this preseason, both have injuries -- Parker with his ankle and Manu with his groin strain. For the Spurs to win, Ginobili has to be better than Jackson of last year and Parker has to be more consistent, play more minutes, and play better in big games. Before his injury, Ginobili's jumper looked improved. His knowledge of the offense and what to do obviously is getting better, and his ability to create for himself and others looks to be even better than last year if that's at all possible.
My advice for fans that are worried about the upcoming season -- just enjoy it, especially opening night. I can remember last year at this time like it was yesterday.
The Lakers were getting their rings and fans were worried if the new young players would fit in well enough to be competitive. Well now this opening night the Spurs are getting their rings, and the question for the upcoming season remains the same. Will the new young players fit in and contribute enough to lead this team back to the promise land? And will it be enough to beat the Lakers? I'm hoping this season is like Déjà vu and finishes just like it did last year. Will it? Well, your just going to have to sit down and enjoy and watch, won't you?
