Reserves Resting or Rusting?

By Bill Ingram
for HOOPSWORLD.com
Dec 2, 2006, 08:34


When Manu Ginobili fell to the court while trying to make a defensive stop against the Dallas Mavericks, the Spurs lost more than possession of the ball. Manu landed on his tailbone, and the resulting numbness has kept him out of three games so far - with the best estimations saying he might miss a couple of more before he's fully ready to run. In his absence the Spurs have struggled, and the biggest reason for those struggles revolve around their supporting cast.

Michael Finley was tapped to start in place of Manu, and in three games he's been less than stellar. Of course he's not the bundle of crazy energy that Manu is, but Finley hasn't even been the reliable veteran shooter that he has been in his tenure with the Spurs. His ten points against the hapless Sonics were almost superfluous. Seattle can't stay with many of the Western Conference's plethora of strong teams. Brent Barry dropped in 12 points off the bench and that was plenty to complement a 20-point blow-out. The real trouble was coming when the competition got a little stiffer.

Finley scored 18 points against the Golden State Warriors, but it was one of those strange games in which his scoring didn't look all that great. He shot only 5-of-13 from the field against a team that played no defense and he brought little else to the table. His stiff-legged defense allowed Jason Richardson to dominate, scoring 26 points to lead the Warriors (who played without floor leader Baron Davis) to a shocking win. Two nights later, when the Spurs really needed a solid contribution, Finley all but disappeared. The Utah Jazz were leading the division and the conference at the time that the Spurs paid their visit, and Finley's three points (1-for-8) were a big part of why the Jazz won with relative ease.

Finley can't shoulder all of the blame, however. Fellow veteran Robert Horry has been particularly ineffective this season - even missing those key threes that earned him the nickname "Big Shot Bob." Like Finley, Horry made a decent contribution against the defenseless Sonics. He scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds off the bench. Also like Finley, when the competition got tougher Horry sunk lower. He saw just five minutes of action against the Warriors and failed to score. Against the Jazz he was a dismal 1-for-5 from the field and scored three points to go with his three fouls.

The one saving grace for the Spurs against the Sonics was that their other veteran reserve was more effective. Brent Barry scored 12 very important points off the bench against Seattle, making him the fifth Spurs in double-figures. Unfortunately, even Barry's 10 points off the bench couldn't get the Spurs past the Warriors. Barry struggled as much as anyone against the Jazz, managing just two points in 29 minutes. So three of the four guys who normally make up the bulk of Gregg Popovich's second unit were completely ineffective. Small wonder the team has lost two straight games.

So three of the reserves are acting their age. Horry, Finley, and Barry have all seen their share of NBA action, and all are starting to look like guys who should be serving in a reduced role. The problem is that Gregg Popovich's unwillingness to play the young guys is preventing him from ramping them up while slowly ramping down his vets.

Jackie Butler finished the 2005-06 season strong for the New York Knicks and even had a good showing in preseason for the Spurs when he actually got minutes. Given that he is the only center on the roster, it might not hurt to give him a few minutes here and there. Likewise, Matt Bonner was a regular in the Raptors' rotation last season and proved he could give the offense a boost with his ability to shoot from anywhere on the court. Why doesn't Bonner get a look when the offense needs a shot in the arm? He can drop the three, he makes good decisions with the basketball, and he is an excellent free throw shooter.

On the flip side, it has been nice to see Beno Udrih getting more consistent minutes. He had a strong showing in the 2005 playoffs and then slid right into Popovich's doghouse for most of the 2005-06 season. The team tried to trade him over the offseason but was unsuccessful. Now he's paying dividends as he starts to look more and more comfortable in the offense. If he can continue to get minutes it's reasonable to believe he'll continue to improve.

It sure beats rolling out another aging pair of legs like Jacque Vaughn. There's very little up side to be found there. Even in his prime he was little more than a serviceable back-up.

It's not time to panic, Spurs fans, but it is time for Popovich to start giving his young guys a chance to earn playing time and gain experience. At this point in the season Manu's injury doesn't devastate the team. If he - or heaven forbid Tim Duncan - were to go down in April the Spurs would be well served to have some more experienced young players ready to check in than the tired old legs they're using now.

I think it is time for Pop to shuffle the rotation a bit.Let Bonner,Butler and even White play some solid minutes.

The olders will get older.But we must test our young players now so we can use them later.

I liked the way the writer talked about ramping up young players while ramping down the aging veterans. I would be surprised if this wasn't Horry's last season. Finley played the pre-season great but so far this regular season he hasn't looked like he has much left. With that said, it is never an easy thing to sit down veterans unless you're willing to accept more mistakes from less experienced players. And honestly, we have younger players shooting as poorly as older players right now.

My main concern about the Spurs right now is more of a physical toughness thing than a mental age thing. And it starts with players 1-5.

I have watched the Spurs get off to slow starts and fall behind early in several games. I also saw them get outplayed in Golden State, out-physicaled in Utah, and last night they played tissue paper soft defense against a Kings team without their toughest player and defender.

Even player #1, Tim Duncan, has recently been getting outplayed and outphysicaled by guys like Boozer and Biedrins. Boozer's capabilities when healthy are no secret. But Biedrins?

The Spurs are getting beaten on the boards frequently and teams seem to be getting to the rim much more often than they used to. Tim Duncan's physical presence as a defensive anchor seems to be on the decline right now. Granted, Pop has him playing in smaller and less physical lineups which I personally think plays to the opponents strengths. Oberto isn't a physical defensive presence. He is a finesse player who seems to be more in tune with the offensive end of the court rather than his duties at the defensive end.

Can you imagine how good the Spurs would have been if Alonzo Mourning had signed here this offseason? Duncan would be able to play more freely on the defensive end of the court knowing that someone has his back and that he wouldn't need to grab every big rebound.

I have to think that the Spurs might be better off playing Francisco Elson more minutes in an attempt to give the team a physical presence, focusing him primarily on rebounding and shot-blocking. And Eric Williams has been a rugged defender for much of his career. Although his legs are admittedly as old as the other veterans, maybe he can fill a different role for the Spurs than defensive liabilities like Barry and Finley. Anything to try to get Spurs on the floor to play more physical.

So far the Spurs bench players like Finley, Barry, Horry and Udrih appear to be too much finesse and (poor) shooting and not enough defense and boxing out. Other teams have figured this out and are now starting to exploit it.