Spurs Injury News: Tiago Splitter Still Struggling
Spurs Injury News: The San Antonio Spurs will be without Tiago Splitter‘s services indefinitely
The San Antonio Spurs got Tiago Splitter back for a total of 10 minutes before he experienced more tightness in his calf. After being cleared to play after several weeks and believing he was near 100 percent, the Spurs center will be unavailable while he meets with a specialist to discover the cause of his pain.
The San Antonio Express-News notes there’s some concern that it could be a nerve issue in his back that is radiating down to his calf. Here’s what coach Gregg Popovich had to say:
"“I don’t know if it’s his calf or his back or whatever it is. He’s going to get looked at again by someone here real soon. I don’t know when that is, but I’m told it is going to happen.”"
The Spurs have started 2-2 on the season and while the defense has been better than average (12th in points allowed, defensive rating), the offense has struggled badly. The team is averaging just 91.2 points per game, good for 26th in the league — and Splitter’s absence certainly doesn’t help.
A year ago, Splitter shot 52.3 percent in his 21.5 minutes per game, but his most impactful contribution came on the glass. Splitter averaged 3.5 offensive rebounds per-36 minutes, with an offensive rebound percentage of 11.4 — second best on the team to Aron Baynes‘ 13.6. Defensively, he was no slouch — averaging 6.8 rebounds per-36 minutes.
The incumbent starter — Boris Diaw — has just three offensive rebounds in 118 minutes and the Spurs rank 26th in the NBA with just 9.3 per game. They’ve really fallen off on the defensive rebounding side of things — going from No. 4 in the league in 2013-14 to No. 18 this season.
There’s no question that being without Splitter has a domino effect on the rotation, as well. Coach Popovich is a guy who doesn’t want to burn out his starters, and he’s had to play them much more than he’d like early this season. The Spurs will have to lean heavily on Tim Duncan, Diaw and Baynes to make up for Splitter in the meantime.