San Antonio Spurs: Grading The Offseason

Heading into this summer, the San Antonio Spurs were facing one of the most important offseasons in franchise history — no small thing for a franchise that’s won five championships ever since it drafted Tim Duncan back in 1997. Coming off a disappointing first round playoff exit, the Spurs had questions to answer.

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With so many players coming off the books and only so much cap space to go around, a few players were bound to go their own way. But San Antonio faced even bigger questions, such as:

Will Tim Duncan and/or Manu Ginobili retire? How much will it take to re-sign restricted free agent Kawhi Leonard? Can the Spurs land a big-name free agent like LaMarcus Aldrdidge, and if so, what has to be sacrificed in order to do so?

As always seems to be the case with this team that never seems to die, we shouldn’t have doubted the Spurs. With a number of fresh departures and new faces compared to last year’s roster, it’s time to take a look at the San Antonio’s summer and pass out grades for every single move the Spurs made this offseason.

Next: The Draft

Drafting Nikola Milutinov and Cady Lalanne

From the very beginning of the summer, the Spurs were positioning themselves for the big score of the offseason. In the 2015 NBA Draft, San Antonio used its first round pick (No. 26) on Nikola Milutinov, a Serbian that the team will keep overseas for a year or more as a draft-and-stash pick.

A 230-pound seven-footer, Milutinov could be a great addition to the Spurs down the road. He’s only 20 years old, so San Antonio won’t be in any rush to bring him stateside with his cap hold currently off the books. But as we’ve come to expect from this franchise, don’t be surprised to see him come over in a few years and suddenly develop into a stud out of nowhere.

On the more negative side, while ducking the luxury tax is important, it’s worth noting that Kevon Looney — a lottery-level talent if not for his hip injury — was still available at No. 26.

As for Cady Lalanne, who the Spurs selected with their second round pick at No. 55, he’s done well for himself in seven games of Summer League action, averaging 7.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 19.8 minutes per game.

He’s only shooting 38.3 percent from the field and is averaging an outrageous 4.3 fouls per game, but he’s a 6’9″ big with a pretty smooth looking jump shot and the ability to protect the rim. If San Antonio wants to sign him, they can do so for pretty cheap. These are both passable moves, but they don’t move the needle much for the time being.

Grade: C

Next: Offseason Priority No. 1

Re-Signing Kawhi Leonard

Last season, Kawhi Leonard won the Defensive Player of the Year Award despite missing 18 games. He led the league in steals, developed into the closest thing to a terror on the wing that the league has seen since Scottie Pippen, and given his athleticism, offensive potential and youth (he’s only 24), it’s a no-brainer that re-signing him to a long-term deal was priority No. 1 for the Spurs this summer.

With a five-year, $90 million extension, San Antonio got the job done and locked in the only player in NBA history other than Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon to win a Defensive Player of the Year Award and an NBA Finals MVP Award.

Despite never playing more than 66 games in any of his first four NBA seasons, the slightly injury prone Kawhi Leonard has been healthy for every postseason and has been seen as Tim Duncan’s silent successor for years now. Paying $18 million a year might seem like a lot now, but it could wind up being a bargain in a couple of years.

Coming off a season in which he averaged 16.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game — not to mention a playoff series in which he was easily the best player on the floor for San Antonio — the Spurs are confident he’s the future of the franchise, and rightfully so.

Grade: A

Next: Clearing Cap Space

Trading Tiago Splitter

Taking a draft-and-stash player is one thing, but having to give up a useful defensive presence like Tiago Splitter was easily the roughest move the Spurs had to make this summer in order to clear out enough room in the boat for the trophy fish they were chasing.

Despite being injury prone last season (he missed 30 games) and his seemingly mundane averages of 8.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, Splitter is a skilled big who fit in perfectly with San Antonio’s excellent ball movement and imposing interior defense on the other end.

By trading him to the Atlanta Hawks, the Spurs received the rights to a protected 2017 second round draft pick and the draft rights to Georgios Printezis, but the most important aspect of the deal was clearing out $8.5 million in cap space to pave the way for unrestricted free agent LaMarcus Aldridge.

Had the Spurs missed out on Aldridge, a move such as this would’ve been a serious blow to the team’s depth, continuity and defense, even with the cap room to find a Splitter replacement. A frontcourt of Duncan and Aldridge just won’t be as good defensively now that Splitter is gone, but since San Antonio’s offense was so vastly upgraded, this was a necessary evil for the betterment of the Spurs’ 2016 title hopes.

Grade: B-

Next: A Big Fundamental Move

Re-Signing Tim Duncan

Re-signing Kawhi Leonard was San Antonio’s biggest offseason priority, but bringing back Tim Duncan ensures that the Spurs remain perennial title contenders. Signing him to a two-year, $10 million extension is not only a steal well under his market value, but it also guarantees that San Antonio is in the contender category for the next two years as Leonard and Aldridge grow into their roles as the team’s new leaders.

Until the day he retires, Duncan will remain the face of the franchise. He’s won five titles in San Antonio and cemented his legacy as a top 10 player of all time. At age 39, the Big Fundamental is probably on his last legs, but those legs have lasted him for 18 years without a drastic dip in his play from year-to-year. Hell, last season, he was an All-Star and averaged 13.9 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.

Aldridge is accustomed to being the best offensive player on his team, but another year of Duncan puts a capable defensive big next to LMA. All of this is before you mention that he’ll be a terrific mentor for Aldridge, who will eventually replace him as the Spurs’ power forward of the future.

Between R.C. Buford, Gregg Popovich, Aldridge and Leonard, the Spurs are perfectly positioned for life after Tim Duncan. They’re going to be just fine. But everything San Antonio has built since the last 90s, that whole championship culture? It starts with Tim Duncan, and letting him play into his 40s on a bargain of a contract was a tremendously underrated move in the middle of such a splashy summer.

Grade: A

Next: One More Round For Manu

Re-Signing Manu Ginobili

Unlike Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili’s twilight years haven’t been quite as graceful. But to think his time as a productive NBA player is done would be a mistake, since San Antonio’s trio of Duncan, Ginobili and Tony Parker just never seems to die. For years we predicted the Spurs’ age would finally catch up to them, and every time they proved us wrong.

Last season, Ginobili averaged 10.5 points, 4.2 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game as his shooting percentages dipped to 42.6 percent from the floor and 34.5 percent from three-point range. He disappeared in the playoffs and at age 37, it’d be easy to doubt his ability to fill that sixth man role the way he once did.

But Ginobili has been steadily treading water down this stream for a few years now, and this upcoming season, he’ll have others to defer to in that sixth man role. When Parker struggles, Ginobili has been the guy that attacks the basket and opens things up for the rest of the offense.

For $5.7 million over the next two years, Ginobili took a deal well below market value and the Spurs should be thrilled to have whatever he has left in the tank at that kind of bargain price. Ginobili deserves to be a Spurs lifer, so even though his career is winding down, this is a cheap deal to keep him — and whatever production he has left to offer — in San Antonio until the end.

Grade: B

Next: Going Green Discount

Re-Signing Danny Green

It was originally reported that Danny Green would be re-signing with the Spurs for four years and $45 million — a major discount given his market value and the impending rise of the NBA’s salary cap. Giving San Antonio such a bargain not only kept Green’s three-point shooting and elite wing defense around for the long-term, but it also kept max cap space open to land Aldridge.

But that discount took a serious step into absurd territory when it was reported that his deal was actually worth an even $40 million over the next four seasons, with a player option for the final year. It didn’t save the Spurs any additional cap space, but it did save owner Peter Holt some money.

This deal is easy to feel good about, not only because Danny Green is such a talented player, but because he showed incredible loyalty to the Spurs and their pursuit of championships. Green returned the favor for the franchise that gave him his shot at being a relevant NBA player and turned him into one of the league’s most coveted 3-and-D free agents this summer.

Green’s playoff shooting woes — 34.4 percent from the floor, 30 percent from three-point range — helped doom San Antonio in their epic first round series with the Los Angeles Clippers, but pairing him with Leonard gives the Spurs quite possibly the most terrifying defensive wing tandem in the league. Keeping Green was a big offseason priority, but only the Spurs would be able to accomplish that task while also swaying him to take a discount to keep cap space open for the summer’s biggest haul.

Grade: A

Next: The Big Score Of The Summer

Scoring LaMarcus Aldridge

The reason so many people are ready to anoint the San Antonio Spurs as the future representatives of the Western Conference for the 2016 NBA Finals? This acquisition right here.

By landing Aldridge with a four-year, $84 million max contract, San Antonio has somehow made last year’s title contender even better, securing the long-term AND short term future of the franchise no matter how well Duncan and Ginobili are able to play this season.

Aldridge was the NBA’s top free agent this summer (among those who were actually leaving), so anytime you’re able to land that kind of player, you’re doing something right. Now San Antonio’s long-term replacement for Duncan at the 4 is a 29-year-old who averaged 23.4 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game last season while expanding his range to three-point territory.

The loss of Splitter hurts the Spurs on the defensive end, and the reason the Phoenix Suns’ pitch was so strong was they came into the meeting with a bonafide defensive presence at the 5 in Tyson Chandler. In San Antonio, Aldridge may have to log time at center, a position he’s not as comfortable with and nowhere near as suited for given his mediocrity on the defensive end.

However, any qualms about San Antonio’s defense or their loss of depth in order to acquire Aldridge should be dismissed once you remember that this team, which was considered a title contender last season, just added one of the best three power forwards in the game.

Even as Aldridge heads into his 30s, San Antonio’s starting five is now as good as any in the NBA. So even though it remains to be seen how Aldridge’s one-on-one skills mesh with the Spurs’ patented ball movement, LMA provides them with a bailout option on offense and plenty of rebounding on the other end. Those damn Spurs just always have the answer, and this summer it was LMA.

Grade: A-

Next: West Goes West

Adding David West

Danny Green taking that home-team discount to stay with the Spurs was exemplary of why this franchise has been able to sustain its championship culture for so long. But David West forgoing his $12.6 million player option with the Indiana Pacers to join a contender at the veteran’s minimum ($1.4 million) hammered the nail of that point ALL the way down.

At age 34, West still had plenty to offer in terms of veteran experience, toughness, physicality down low and efficient midrange shooting. For a team that lost a fair amount of depth in its pursuit of Aldridge, West will bolster the bench after averaging 11.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game last season.

West reportedly has a second-year player option in his massively underpaid contract, but what’s most significant about the sacrifice that he’s making in his quest for a ring is that he turned down more money from teams like the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers to play with Duncan and Aldridge. That is a HUGE deal, especially since he’ll join Boris Diaw as the third/fourth big off the bench.

Only the freaking Spurs could pull off this kind of coup. David West isn’t your typical NBA player, and he’s certainly putting his money where his mouth is (what little money he’s making, anyway) to have a better shot at a championship. As has been the theme so far, David West’s agreement with the Spurs is yet another candidate for “steal of the summer.”

Grade: A

Next: Taking Advantage Of Kings

Trading For Ray McCallum

Ray McCallum doesn’t really move the needle too much, but for a team that lost Cory Joseph to a massive four-year, $30 million offer from the Toronto Raptors, he’ll provide the Spurs with a third-string point guard behind Parker and Patty Mills. And considering the fact that San Antonio fleeced the incompetent Sacramento Kings for this 24-year-old, this is yet another great deal.

As the Kings seemed on the verge of implosion, San Antonio swooped in for McCallum and only had to give up a 2016 second-round pick for a player who will make less than $1 million next season. The son of a head coach, McCallum has a high basketball IQ and does a lot of little things right, making him a great fit for the Spurs on paper.

In his second NBA season last year, McCallum averaged 7.4 points and 2.8 assists per game in 68 games (30 starts) for the Kings. His three-point shooting dropped from 37.3 percent as a rookie to 30.6 percent last year, but if anyone can help him develop his all-around game, it’ll be the Spurs.

McCallum won’t be usurping Mills for the role of backup point guard anytime soon, but he does provide the Spurs with a little more depth following CoJo’s departure. He still has a lot to prove heading into his third NBA season, but this could work out quite nicely in San Antonio’s favor by the second half of the 2015-16 season.

Grade: B-

Next: THE RED MAMBA!

Re-Signing Matt Bonner

You can rest easy, Spurs fans. You may have lost quite a bit of depth this summer, but the Red Mamba is here to stay after signing a one-year extension for $1.5 million.

Bonner, who’s been with the team for the last nine seasons and is now 35 years old, doesn’t have too much to offer San Antonio off the bench. He’ll be playing year-to-year from here on out, but he’s been a 41.2 percent three-point shooter during his time with the Spurs and for the sake of continuity, bringing him back on a minimum deal isn’t a bad idea by any means.

Last season, Bonner averaged a negligible 3.7 points per game while shooting 40.9 percent from the floor and 36.5 percent from downtown, so he’s more than likely approaching the end of his career. But he also played in 70 games and for a team that lost some of its three-point shooting off the bench with Marco Belinelli‘s departure, Bonner is a solid end-of-the-rotation option.

The Red Rocket is essentially San Antonio’s Brian Scalabrine, and outside of Duncan, Parker and Ginobili, he’s the team’s longest-tenured player. With the Spurs still avoiding the luxury tax, Bonner on a minimum deal isn’t a bad move by any stretch of the imagination.

Grade: C+

Next: Overall

Overall

This summer, the San Antonio Spurs lost something that’s become one of their patented trademarks over the last few years: their depth. One through 12, the Spurs became renowned for their high basketball IQ, their passing ability, their defense, their selfless teamwork and their perimeter shooting. Remember that dominant 2014 NBA Finals? That doesn’t happen without depth.

Tiago Splitter, Aron Baynes, Cory Joseph and Marco Belinelli are all gone, and that will hurt San Antonio’s bench. In the case of Splitter, it’ll hurt their defense. In the case of Belinelli, it’ll hurt their three-point shooting. The Spurs definitely had to sacrifice something in order to be able to afford Aldridge.

But if you seriously think any of this negates the impact of bringing LaMarcus Freaking Aldridge down by the River Walk, let me direct your attention to what should be the biggest takeaway of San Antonio’s summer:

Turning Splitter and Baynes into Aldridge and West is pretty darn good. San Antonio also did a great job bolstering the bench with what little cap space was left by trading for McCallum.

With Kawhi Leonard eligible for an extension, Danny Green and Matt Bonner becoming free agents and the futures of Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili looking uncertain, there could have been a lot of change this summer in San Antonio. Instead, the Spurs re-signed ALL of them to home-team discounts, keeping around fan favorites, superstars and faces of the franchise while also preserving their ability to reel in the offseason’s biggest fish in LaMarcus Aldridge.

The defending champion Golden State Warriors the deeper Los Angeles Clippers and the healthy Oklahoma City Thunder are as good as anyone out West, and the Cleveland Cavaliers are reloading for a title run out East. But is there anyone in the league that would look forward to playing this revamped Spurs team in a seven-game series next year?

This was the biggest offseason for the Spurs since 2000, when Duncan thought about joining Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill on the Orlando Magic. This shouldn’t be a surprise for the franchise that never dies, but the Spurs nailed it in every single way.

Grade: A

Next: Charlotte Hornets: Grading The Offseason

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