The San Antonio Spurs make yearly trips to the depth of the NBA postseason, but as their star players age, they’ll have to start the rebuilding process now.
It was on shear whimsical luck; the Boston Celtics were favored to get the first overall pick in the 1997 NBA Draft. The Ping Pong Gods had other plans, bigger plans for the San Antonio Spurs.
Gregg Popovich was 17-47 as a first time head coach, but landing Tim Duncan, the skilled skyscraper from Wake Forrest, changed everything.
David Robinson had come back from an injury-plagued 1996-97 season and was ready to form a dynamic duo with Duncan in the paint. Surrounded by veteran influence, the Spurs, in a mere two-year span, went on to defeat the New York Knicks in the 1999 NBA Finals. Though winning one is never enough, and to sustain success, you must adapt — so they did.
With the second-to-last pick in the second round, the 57th overall selection, the Spurs plucked a 6-foot-6 guard out of uninhibited Argentina, untapped by the NBA. Manu Ginobili wouldn’t join the team until 2002, but we’ll get to that in a minute.
San Antonio, behind Popovich, was racking up 50-win seasons. But while Phil Jackson was pulling the strings of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant on a championship-riddled stage, the Los Angeles Lakers were ruining the Spurs’ fun each year. At least, that was until pick No. 28 of the 2001 NBA Draft. With the last selection of the first round, San Antonio went into Western Europe this time to nab a point guard, Tony Parker — Sacrebleu.
As a rookie, Parker averaged nine points and four assists a game during the last hurrah of the Kobe-Shaq love quarrel. The next season, Ginobili was tossed into the mix, and Popovich led his team back to the promise land.
At the time, the “big three” consisted of Robinson, Duncan and Parker, but when San Antonio took down the then New Jersey Nets (Brooklyn Nets), the Admiral called it a career.
Two more championships later, San Antonio finds itself licking its wounds after narrowly adding a fifth ring — thank LeBron James for that. But Popovich and the Spurs’ brass have more than kept the team afloat all these years. Every year “experts” toss adjectives like darts. The team is always “old.” The roster has been “without energy.” They don’t play “sexy” basketball. Yet, the Spurs are always there. They’re a fly on the wall, a snake in the grass.
So their history begs the question: how can they keep it going?
Parker has publicly denied rumors projecting his retirement after the 2016 Olympics, but Duncan and Ginobili are just about eye level with 40, and Parker’s entire game is structured by agility and speed — two attributes that leave quicker than a gold digging ex-wife.
So, assuming Popovich doesn’t step away from coaching if Duncan retires, let’s divulge into this year’s NBA Draft, a pool of prospects marveled to be as good as 1996 and 2003. Who can the Spurs target to keep the Popvich magic flowing?
1. Vasilije Micic PG 6-4 185 lbs, Serbia
Micic is not Marcus Smart or Dante Exum. He’s fairly new to the V.I.P. room referred to as “first-round projections.” However, he does remind me Ginobili with his ability to create something out of nothing. He’s very shifty (crafty may be a better word), but can also knock down the jumper both off the dribble and while spotting up — something required by Popovich’s mold of a point guard. Micic can facilitate the offense with a soft touch on his passes that doesn’t take away precision or speed. With his height, he can see over the defender and orchestrate the big men to move to their correct spots. His vision is good enough to keep defenders honest because the slightest sign of a commitment, and he’ll have already laid the ball off to a slashing teammate for an easy two. The lack of familiarity with Micic’s game could be a factor that retains him to the ladder half of the first round, possibly early in the second. There is also the chance he’ll choose to stay in Serbia for at least a year, which isn’t uncommon with foreign players. Look at Ginobili, he waited three years before he embraced the red,white and blue. Micic could be a perfect fit to slide behind Parker as a protégé.
2. Mitch McGary PF/C 6-10 255 lbs, Michigan
McGary intrigues me more than any other player. At times, he looks like he can be the cornerstone of an NBA franchise. Health has been an issue however, as McGary hasn’t played since December 14 after undergoing back surgery. With no timetable left on his return to the Michigan Wolverines, maybe McGary should focus on rehabbing and getting ready for the draft. He’s a flat-out stud on the offensive end of the court. Quick feet, active hands, and a knack for rolling off the pick-and-roll allows him to fit into any offensive scheme. He keeps his hands high in the post and on the offensive glass. McGary can finish with ferocity when he wants to. I’ve been most impressed by his unselfishness. He has phenomenal vision for a big man, and he makes the right decisions in key moments. McGary isn’t exactly a defensive liability either. As a freshman last year, he had a defensive rating of 90.2 (defensive rating is an estimate of points allowed per 100 possessions). He shows good anticipation in the passing lane and he runs the floor well for his size. He trails the fast break most of the time but crashes the board. If he can extend his offensive repertoire outward, he’ll have all the makings of an NBA All-Star. His back injury could keep him out of the first round, assuming he enters the draft, but San Antonio would be a perfect fit for him. Just as Micic could learn behind Parker, imagine what McGary could do under the tutelage of the NBA’s greatest power forward.
3. Patric Young PF/C 6-9 240 lbs, Florida
Kawhi Leonard looks like he’s going to be the focal point of the Spurs going forward, as he should be. Since he left San Diego State, he’s done nothing but perform at a high level for Popovich. He’s improved each year, but he’s going to need help inside. Once Duncan is gone, Tiago Splitter is not going to be the anchor (sorry Tiago). Enter Patric Young. He was once supposed to be a top pick, but a lackluster beginning to his collegiate career nixed those thoughts. This year, Young has found the consistency many hoped he’d stumble upon. As a senior, Young isn’t having a stellar-statistical year with about 11 points and six rebounds a game, but stats aren’t everything. Young is the kind of guy Popovich loves to have. He’s a versatile big who can guard either the power forward or center positions. Young has shown intensity, heart and a more consistent offensive touch. He’s improved his free throw shooting by 13 percentage points from where it was last season. In all likelihood, he isn’t going to be as good as Duncan or Robinson were. Though he can be a staple in the Popovich system based on his work ethic, commodity with his teammates and passion for winning. He’s also a bull in a china cabinet down low, so there’s that. Physical tools make careers, but intangibles prolong them.
The Spurs are guaranteed to have a lower pick in the first round because they’ll go deep into the postseason like they always do. In all honesty, they won’t have a dynasty-caliber team waiting in the wings once all three stars ride off into retirement, but the process can begin now. I can’t see Popovich steering that team in the wrong direction. He hasn’t done it before, he won’t start now.
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