San Antonio Spurs

Spurs close in on signing Maggette!!!!

Blondie — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 17:00:21 +0000

According to multiple reports this morning Maggette will, indeed, wind up in the Texas Triangle, and he could very well turn out to be the piece that gets his new team a championship. If all goes according to plan, Maggette will finally join the San Antonio Spurs, who were very much in love with him a couple of seasons ago when his last contract came up.

Read the rest of this story and post your reaction in our Spurs Trade Rumors/NBA Draft forum.

Spurs Interested in Bulls’ Gordon

Blondie — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 03:58:20 +0000

Spurs have shown interest in obtaining the services of Gordon. “There’s absolutely no question Gordon would make the Spurs better, and would make them the odds-on favorites to win the West.” according to Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld.

Read the rest of this story and post your reaction here.

Barry Opts Out

Blondie — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 01:31:27 +0000

Fan favorite Brent Barry has opted out of his contract with the Spurs, and is already being courted by the Houston Rockets. Barry, a career .407 3-point shooter, averaged 7.1 points in 31 games with the Spurs last season and 5.2 points during the playoffs.

Click here to read the entire story and post your reaction in our fan forums.

FIRST ANNUAL TONY & EVA PARKER CELEBRITY CASINO NIGHT

Blondie — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 01:25:37 +0000

Eva Longoria Parker announce today the First Annual Tony & Eva Parker Celebrity Casino Night Benefiting Eva’s Heroes, to take place on Saturday, August 9, 2008 at Pedrotti’s North Wind Ranch. The event, complete with a number of Hollywood and local celebrities, including San Antonio’s own Spurs players, will be a fundraiser benefiting Eva’s Heroes, the actresses’ non-profit organization.

The Tony & Eva Parker Celebrity Casino Night will be the first of its kind for the organization, which completed its Inaugural Celebrity Golf Tournament in October 2007.

The Celebrity Casino Night will be one of glitz, glamour and exciting casino games. Guests will feel like they just stepped into a Las Vegas Casino with roulette and blackjack tables in every corner. In addition, there will be a Texas Hold’em Poker Tournament that will begin at 6:30 p.m. A silent auction will take place during the event to raise additional proceeds for Eva’s Heroes.

Tickets for the Tony and Eva Parker Celebrity Casino Night will be available for purchase starting Monday, July 7, 2008 by visiting www.evasheroes.org or by calling 210.694.9090.

WHEN: Saturday, August 9, 2008
Doors Open - 5:30 p.m.
Cocktails and Dinner - 6:00 p.m.
Poker Tournament - 6:30 p.m.

WHERE: Pedrotti’s North Wind Ranch
13715 FM 1560N
San Antonio, TX 78023

COST: $100 for Dinner & Casino
$300 for Dinner and the Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Tournament

Tickets will be available for purchase by visiting www.evasheroes.org or by calling 210.694.9090 beginning on Monday, July 7, 2008.

CONTACT: Lisa M. Martin - Missy Rodriguez
Creative Civilization Creative Civilization
(210) 227-1999 ext. 129 / (210) 227-1999 ext. 130
(210) 381-2206, Cell / (210) 710-2622, Cell

lmartin@creativecivilization.com mrodriguez@creativecivilization.com

The Spurs’ Offseason: The Drama Begins

libri — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 23:28:56 +0000

Some say that a good story starts with a dramatic event. If that’s the case, then the Spurs’ offseason plot will be intriguing.

Their endeavors to better their roster commenced at the 2008 NBA Draft. While the better known names of players remained on the board, the Spurs bewildered fans and spectators by choosing with the 26^th pick the little-known George Hill from IUPUI.

Far from being a random pick, the Spurs targeted the 6’2 guard who according to Popovich will “make our team better right off the bat.” Draft night remained busy and San Antonio went on to acquire Malik Hairston and James Gist. Both will have a more difficult time landing a roster spot but may be assigned to the Spurs’ NBDL team, the Austin Toros.

So now what? Next on the Spurs’ list is the summer league, where they will evaluate talent. Europeans, Robertas Javtokas and Viktor Sanikidze, might be given another opportunity to demonstrate that they are ready to contribute on an NBA team.

Also, the Spurs will turn their attention towards the free agent market where they are expected to sign an additional player using their mid-level exception.

The Spurs will soon find themselves with choices to make. Ian Mahinmi is expected to get some playing time and there is now word that Robert Horry has decided to play another year, preferably with San Antonio.

So with limited roster spots available, who stays and who goes? There will be enough time to answer these questions. For now, we know that the Spurs’ offseason, like a good story, has begun with an interesting twist.

Spurs Select IUPUI Guard George Hill

Blondie — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 05:23:31 +0000

George Hill’s lifelong dream became a reality on Thursday night when he was selected 26th overall by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2008 NBA Draft. The 6-foot-2 guard declared for early entry in this year’s draft after averaging 21.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists last season for the Jaguars, earning Summit League Player of the Year honors.

With the 45th Pick the San Antonio Spurs select Goran Dragic

With the 57th Pick the San Antonio Spurs select James Gist

Visit our NBA Draft and Trade Rumor Forum for more Spurs off-season news.

Manu to miss Olympics?

Blondie — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 20:37:01 +0000

Manu Ginobili has admitted he could miss the Olympics Games in Beijing this summer as he battles a lingering ankle problem.

The San Antonio Spurs guard was hurt during the NBA play-offs series against Phoenix and told a press conference on Wednesday that scans of his right ankle have found some ligament damage.

Read the full article and post your reaction in our fan forum.

Spurs’ Draft Night Decisions

libri — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:12:08 +0000

On May 6, news came that the Spurs’ 2007 first round draft pick, Taigo Splitter had reached an agreement to sign for four years with his current Spanish team Tau Cerámica. San Antonio was counting that the 6’10 Brazilian would be part of the team’s efforts to rejuvenate. How will the Spurs approach this year’s draft, especially with their 26th first round pick?

As the draft date nears, there are several unknowns regarding the Spurs in the 2008 draft. The team would like to improve by getting younger either through the free agent market or the draft. San Antonio has had both good and bad experiences drafting foreign players. Their success is most noted with Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili but the drafting of Luis Scola and Tiago Splitter has left a bitter taste.

Finding talented foreign players and transferring them to the NBA has become more difficult, with no guarantees that they will play in the states. Players stationed in Europe are now willing to extend their careers overseas rather than coming to America.

Why would a player decide to remain in Europe instead of playing in the NBA? Jonathan Givony of Draft Express has identified several reasons that would make NBA teams cautious of drafting, in the first round, players from European leagues.

The most obvious is financial security. Some European teams are now able to offer hefty contracts, more than what an NBA player would receive in his first years. This has now become a bigger issue considering the value of the U.S. dollar to the euro. Foreigners who may be stars overseas may not have that same success in the NBA and may not be offered the desired contract.

Apart from this, the agent receives a much larger percentage from his player’s contract if he stays in Europe, than if he decided to play in the states. Moreover, European teams are not as willing to give up players who they would consider vital to their teams success and it maybe that the prestige of playing in the NBA has lost some luster around the world.

Will this deter the Spurs from drafting a foreign player in the first round? During the last ten years, the Spurs have selected from college twice, Felipe Lopez in 1998 and John Salmons in 2002, both immediately traded for point guards Antonio Daniels and Speedy Claxton. During that ten year span, San Antonio has, for the most part, traded the pick or chosen a foreign player. The last time the Spurs have chosen a college player in the first round and kept him for a considerable amount of time was Tim Duncan in 1997.

What options do the Spurs have with their first round pick?

They can choose a college player who the Spurs believe may contribute during his first years and who they can develop over time. This has not occurred in the last ten years. There is also the risk that a late round pick may not develop as expected. For example, Marcus Williams, who was chosen at No. 33 and later waived by the Spurs, could have easily been drafted in the first round.
San Antonio can choose a college player and then trade him for another more experienced player who will contribute immediately. As cited, Antonio Daniels and Speedy Claxton were acquired in trades involving the Spurs’ first round picks.
The Spurs can draft a young foreign player who has potential but is virtually unknown or overlooked. Someone who they can sign immediately or develop in one or two years. Such has been the case with Parker, Udrih, and Mahinmi.
They can also draft a foreigner who is well known and is a regular contributor and take the risk of not being able to sign him. Scola and Splitter have been the noted cases for the Spurs.

Each of these options has risks and rewards. Whether the Spurs decide to draft a foreigner or a college player or to use the pick in a trade will be known on draft night. Until then, we will have to wait to find out.

T.J. Ford to the Spurs?

Blondie — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 02:10:39 +0000

It’s becoming clearer and clearer that the Toronto Raptors and TJ Ford are going to part company. They will do so amicably, they’ll part friends, but they’re going to part company nonetheless. Ultimately, Jose Calderon is just too good to come off the bench and TJ has too much trade value to keep him sitting around. The word is that despite Ford’s injury history and price tag, his upside (how about the determination it took to come back from that neck injury?) makes him a hot commodity for the many teams who need help at the point.