Analysis The deep house of the San Antonio Spurs

[brazil]

Are we slowly becoming the deepest team in the league ? We did not play a single game fully healthy and yet we are 17-7 and just ass kicked a red hot Lakers on the road without our franchise player... what's going on ?

 

[The Truth #6]

The announcer said the team is statistically better on offense without Victor... so perhaps it's going to be on the coaches and more realistically on Victor to fit into current vibe of the team to continue the offensive dominance while also making the defense elite.. If he can do that, then "anything is possible!"

 

[OK Computer]

The drop off is after 9 players

Batch 1) We have a big four of
Wemby
Castle
Fox
Harper

Batch 2) Then your top vets of
Barnes
Keldon
Kornet

Batch 3) Then the other role players who we have higher expectations for but sometimes they show up, sometimes they don’t
Vassell
Champagnie

Batch 4) You’ll take what you can get from them because they only play if someone’s injured
Olynyk
Lindy
McLaughlin

Batch 5) Development pipeline - further from having regular rotation minutes
Carter Bryant
DJG

Batch 6) seems all hope is gone
Sochan
Biyombo

We need to evolve batch 5 players into batch 3 players. Carter needs to take Vassell’s spot in this hierarchy. We can afford to have players like in Batch 3, but we can’t afford them at Vassell’s pay. What I mean by that is that it’s ok to have role players who are inconsistent - they are role players after all. It’s on management to sit them for the other inconsistent player and see between them who can have a better night.

If it ain’t Carter taking Vassell’s spot, then hopefully a trade gets that player here.

 

[The Truth #6]

Good thoughts. I think Mitch has Oly in a special category or just in a higher tier, at least last night vs the Lakers when he played over Carter and Jeremy.

 

[Limguoguolo]

After just over a month of competition, it's hard to say. Is it “slowly” becoming one? Well, let's hope so, but things can change quickly in either direction. Chemistry is a science that can be a little unpredictable at times.

It's important to note the excellent choices made by the Spurs recently after drafting Wemby. There have been very few missteps, apart from the experiment with Sochan at point guard :

— Paul arrived at the right time, and the trade for Fox was to serve as a lieutenant rather than a star like Giannis, who could have disrupted the team's hierarchy.
— Vassell's natural evolution without giving in to an easy trade.
— The confidence placed in Champagnie, the last representative of past experiments, who is proving to be more than a 3&D player (and still underrated).
— The draft of Castle, who is already ready for the NBA (more so than the others in his class).
— The arrival of Barnes, who is not just there to play the role of father figure.
— The draft of smooth criminal Harper as a luxury sixth man alongside Keldon (the team's former number one option).
— And the finishing touch with the addition of typical Spurs-compatible players like Olynyk and Kornet.

I don't know what's deeper, the rotation or the Spurs' know-how.

Let's wait and see what happens next… Especially with the addition of Wemby. We haven't seen the whole team yet. And I would argue that there is no number one option on the team, but rather a playing philosophy much closer to that of the 2014 Spurs.

The number one option must be the player open in his spot. Victor or anyone else won't win titles in San Antonio by playing hero ball. Let's leave that to the big markets. The Spurs' culture, more than bench depth in my opinion, is cohesion and their playing philosophy. A game focused on international play and passing. Make the Spurs Great Again.

 

[OK Computer]

Good thoughts. I think Mitch has Oly in a special category or just in a higher tier, at least last night vs the Lakers when he played over Carter and Jeremy.

You’re right, they should be reversed. I edited my post.

 

[UbikRex]

Carter was out with illness last night
Sochan got the DNP for Stop Picking up your dribbles

 

[John B]

After just over a month of competition, it's hard to say. Is it “slowly” becoming one? Well, let's hope so, but things can change quickly in either direction. Chemistry is a science that can be a little unpredictable at times.

It's important to note the excellent choices made by the Spurs recently after drafting Wemby. There have been very few missteps, apart from the experiment with Sochan at point guard :

— Paul arrived at the right time, and the trade for Fox was to serve as a lieutenant rather than a star like Giannis, who could have disrupted the team's hierarchy.
— Vassell's natural evolution without giving in to an easy trade.
— The confidence placed in Champagnie, the last representative of past experiments, who is proving to be more than a 3&D player (and still underrated).
— The draft of Castle, who is already ready for the NBA (more so than the others in his class).
— The arrival of Barnes, who is not just there to play the role of father figure.
— The draft of smooth criminal Harper as a luxury sixth man alongside Keldon (the team's former number one option).
— And the finishing touch with the addition of typical Spurs-compatible players like Olynyk and Kornet.

I don't know what's deeper, the rotation or the Spurs' know-how.

Let's wait and see what happens next… Especially with the addition of Wemby. We haven't seen the whole team yet. And I would argue that there is no number one option on the team, but rather a playing philosophy much closer to that of the 2014 Spurs.

The number one option must be the player open in his spot. Victor or anyone else won't win titles in San Antonio by playing hero ball. Let's leave that to the big markets. The Spurs' culture, more than bench depth in my opinion, is cohesion and their playing philosophy. A game focused on international play and passing. Make the Spurs Great Again.

You had to ruin it with MAGA Make the Spurs Great Again

 

[RC_Drunkford]

The drop off is after 9 players

Batch 1) We have a big four of
Wemby
Castle
Fox
Harper

Batch 2) Then your top vets of
Barnes
Keldon
Kornet

Batch 3) Then the other role players who we have higher expectations for but sometimes they show up, sometimes they don’t
Vassell
Champagnie

Batch 4) You’ll take what you can get from them because they only play if someone’s injured
Olynyk
Lindy
McLaughlin

Batch 5) Development pipeline - further from having regular rotation minutes
Carter Bryant
DJG

Batch 6) seems all hope is gone
Sochan
Biyombo

We need to evolve batch 5 players into batch 3 players. Carter needs to take Vassell’s spot in this hierarchy. We can afford to have players like in Batch 3, but we can’t afford them at Vassell’s pay. What I mean by that is that it’s ok to have role players who are inconsistent - they are role players after all. It’s on management to sit them for the other inconsistent player and see between them who can have a better night.

If it ain’t Carter taking Vassell’s spot, then hopefully a trade gets that player here.

like I been saying: trade Sochan and/or Olynyk for a batch 2 or 3 player and we got our 10

 

[mo7888]

The drop off is after 9 players

Batch 1) We have a big four of
Wemby
Castle
Fox
Harper

Batch 2) Then your top vets of
Barnes
Keldon
Kornet

Batch 3) Then the other role players who we have higher expectations for but sometimes they show up, sometimes they don’t
Vassell
Champagnie

Batch 4) You’ll take what you can get from them because they only play if someone’s injured
Olynyk
Lindy
McLaughlin

Batch 5) Development pipeline - further from having regular rotation minutes
Carter Bryant
DJG

Batch 6) seems all hope is gone
Sochan
Biyombo

We need to evolve batch 5 players into batch 3 players. Carter needs to take Vassell’s spot in this hierarchy. We can afford to have players like in Batch 3, but we can’t afford them at Vassell’s pay. What I mean by that is that it’s ok to have role players who are inconsistent - they are role players after all. It’s on management to sit them for the other inconsistent player and see between them who can have a better night.

If it ain’t Carter taking Vassell’s spot, then hopefully a trade gets that player here.

I like the way you broke that down. I think you nailed that one. On Carter though, I do expect him to make it to batch 3, I just think it'll take a year or two.

 

[Limguoguolo]

You had to ruin it with MAGA Make the Spurs Great Again

It's not MAGA, precisely. It's like when the other French usurper (Baby Trump) says, “Make our planet great again.” It's ironic reclaiming, reappropriation.

 

[RC_Drunkford]

did y'all realize that 8 out of those 9 players all average double figures? The one guy who scores under 10 points on average is Kornet. Everyone of our 9 main rotation guys is absolutely stuffing the stat sheet.

 

[OK Computer]

I like the way you broke that down. I think you nailed that one. On Carter though, I do expect him to make it to batch 3, I just think it'll take a year or two.

Yes, if the Spurs play their cards right then for the next however many years all they need to focus on with the roster is rotating players in and out based on their viability. For example, Barnes will be phased out eventually due to his age so someone like Carter hopefully has seen “promotions” in his rank from Batch 5–>Batch 3 and is ready to take another leap to Batch 2, while Barnes falls to Batch 3 or 4.

Meanwhile, whoever we draft in 2026 should take Carter’s current spot in Batch 5 and go through the same cycle.

It wouldn’t surprise me if the Spurs have some type of projected plan like this already. It helps to have foundational pieces, because it makes it easy to solve the lesser unknowns over the bigger unknowns.

 

[brazil]

As for now the deepest team in the NBA is obviously OKC but what Spurs are achieving is pretty remarkable tbh... and Spurs are actually well equipped to deal with dat OKC depth

 

[scott]

The drop off is after 9 players

Batch 1) We have a big four of
Wemby
Castle
Fox
Harper

Batch 2) Then your top vets of
Barnes
Keldon
Kornet

Batch 3) Then the other role players who we have higher expectations for but sometimes they show up, sometimes they don’t
Vassell
Champagnie

Batch 4) You’ll take what you can get from them because they only play if someone’s injured
Olynyk
Lindy
McLaughlin

Batch 5) Development pipeline - further from having regular rotation minutes
Carter Bryant
DJG

Batch 6) seems all hope is gone
Sochan
Biyombo

We need to evolve batch 5 players into batch 3 players. Carter needs to take Vassell’s spot in this hierarchy. We can afford to have players like in Batch 3, but we can’t afford them at Vassell’s pay. What I mean by that is that it’s ok to have role players who are inconsistent - they are role players after all. It’s on management to sit them for the other inconsistent player and see between them who can have a better night.

If it ain’t Carter taking Vassell’s spot, then hopefully a trade gets that player here.

Great breakdown.

A big difference between us and OKC is that OKC doesn't just give up on the bottom third of their roster. They utilize SRPs, two-ways and UDFAs a lot more effectively than we do.

They also have a multi-year head start on us far as roster building goes, so I will give us a pass for now. But this is an area we can't continue just accept guys like Bismack, Minix and Ingram. Really the way you lay it out, Batch 4 and Batch 6 need improvement. Batch 5 is fine, you gotta have those guys.

 

[inagra]

Seems like a fitting thread to put this stat

10-0 vs teams under .500
7-7 vs teams over .500

 

[Guru of Nothing]

An impressive feat, Memphis, but watch out for those T'Wolves!

 

[scott]

Interesting observation: the 5 teams who have beaten us all have .500 or worse records against winning teams.

 

[Raven_]

the team has been very deep for the last few years, it really is nothing new. Fox just happens to be a lot more reliable than anyone we had in a decade, when the team needs it.

 

[spurraider21]

Interesting observation: the 5 teams who have beaten us all have .500 or worse records against winning teams.

i have no idea what to make of that tbh

 

[spurraider21]

if before the season somebody was going to tell me that the spurs were going to have great depth this year, i certainly would have thought sochan was a part of that. the fact that he's out of the rotation and it still feels this way is indicative of the strength of the roster

it also helps that Keldon, a guy who long looked like the odd man out is suddenly an indispensable player off the bench

vassell has at least somewhat rediscovered his attention to defense, such that even when his shot isn't falling like yesterday, he's still having an overall solid impact. vassell's defense has been better than the last couple of years, and he's also gotten his 3pt% up to 39.5. and similarly, champagnie has suddenly become an impactful rebounder while also bringing his 3pt% up to 38%

there also werent necessarily doubts about harper, but there always are the "is he ready" questions for rookies, and he has come right in and become an integral rotation player. the kornet signing has been a big win, a much appreciated change from the failed Zollins extension

so many things seem to be coming together, and if Sochan is a write-off now, we still have Carter Bryant (and to a lesser extent, David Jones-Garcia) in the talent pipeline

 

[scott]

i have no idea what to make of that tbh

A different way of looking at things... there are only 6 teams in the entire league who have winning records against winning teams. They also happen to be the Top 3 seeded teams in each conference.

So one way of looking at it... winning against good teams is hard... and it's what separates the top teams from everyone else.

Having a .500 record against good teams puts us right where I think we belong... in that second tier in the west behind OKC/DEN/HOU.

 

[mo7888]

A different way of looking at things... there are only 6 teams in the entire league who have winning records against winning teams. They also happen to be the Top 3 seeded teams in each conference.

So one way of looking at it... winning against good teams is hard... and it's what separates the top teams from everyone else.

Having a .500 record against good teams puts us right where I think we belong... in that second tier in the west behind OKC/DEN/HOU.

I kinda think its okc/den in that top tier and we're in the 2nd with Houston

 

[scott]

I kinda think its okc/den in that top tier and we're in the 2nd with Houston

I think we have the potential to be up there with HOU (and surpass them) but IMO it's fair to want to see how we look when we add Wemby. I'm confident it will be great... but there are enough fair questions to want to wait and see.

But... my joke thread last night about the "one acquisition to make"... I really am kind of looking at this as a .750 team (9-3) that is about to add Wemby to it without losing anything. People talk about adding Giannis... but we are quite literally about to add Wemby to a 9-3 team! I'm pumped.

 

[brazil]

the team has been very deep for the last few years, it really is nothing new. Fox just happens to be a lot more reliable than anyone we had in a decade, when the team needs it.

Not sure I understand your definition of deep... deep meaning a lot of net negative players getting minutes ?