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San Antonio Spurs: Best Move They Did And Didn’t Make

By Josh Cornelissen

May 10, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich gives direction to his team against the Oklahoma City Thunder in game five of the second round of the NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
May 10, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich gives direction to his team against the Oklahoma City Thunder in game five of the second round of the NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports /
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The San Antonio Spurs saw one of the all-time greats retire this offseason. Did they make the right moves to replace him? And how did they do in the draft?

The NBA offseason kicks off every year around the first of July, and fans of every team fill their hearts and message boards with dreams of what player their team could sign. The possibilities of this superstar pairing with that superstar make every team a possible contender.

Offseasons never go the way teams expect, either. For every move a team makes, there are 10 that they didn’t make. The Golden State Warriors signed Kevin Durant, but they didn’t find a way to keep Festus Ezeli, or to accumulate enough depth to replace their bench. What’s done is never enough, and what lies undone is almost always more tantalizing.

Related Story: Cleveland Cavaliers: Best Move They Did and Didn't Make

Starting with the defending champions, and moving down the list of early title favorites to end up in Brooklyn, we will walk through each team to praise them for the best move they made this offseason — and call them out on the best move they didn’t make.

The San Antonio Spurs won the most games in franchise history last season, but it wasn’t enough to reach even the conference finals in the West. With Tim Duncan retiring, did the Spurs make the right moves to stay in contention? What move was out there that they didn’t make?

Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Dejounte Murray (Washington) greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the number twenty-nine overall pick to the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Dejounte Murray (Washington) greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the number twenty-nine overall pick to the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports /

Best Move They Made: Drafting Dejounte Murray

Good teams are able to put together seasons of greatness, where everything comes together and they make a deep run in the playoffs. Last year the Toronto Raptors made it to the conference finals with just such a run. Two years ago the Houston Rockets won a pair of playoff series.

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But the truly great teams sustain that success season after season after season. LeBron James brings that greatness around with him, and teams such as Dallas and Miami have retooled numerous times to stay relevant and win titles.

The San Antonio Spurs have been the premier franchise in that regard, picking late in the first round every season and still finding ways to fill out their depth and replace production as stars rotate out.

Tim Duncan replaced David Robinson, and when he was no longer able to carry the offensive load the team acquired Kawhi Leonard in a draft-day trade. LaMarcus Aldridge joined the team last year as Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker began to slow down.

The latest move has been to find Parker’s eventual replacement in Dejounte Murray. The one-and-done point guard out of Washington is raw, but is full of an incredible level of potential. He slipped in the draft due to a lack of production at Washington, including a high turnover rate. But he is brimming with athleticism and upside on both ends of the court.

Mock drafts on the eve of the draft say Murray going as high as 10th; for him to slip to the Spurs is a coup for the league’s model franchise. San Antonio is a team ready to win now, and the temptation to select an older, more polished player was surely present. The good teams draft seniors and trade their first round picks for veterans. The truly great teams draft with their eyes on the future.

There is no guarantee that Murray will be a future All-Star, or even be a starting-caliber point guard once Tony Parker hangs up his hat. But working with the best shooting coach in the world, in the best infrastructure in the league, Murray is being set up to succeed. And if he emerges as the next great point guard, everyone will yet again tip their hats to San Antonio and their never-ending reign of success.

Apr 9, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls center Pau Gasol (16) backs down Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) during the second half at the United Center. Chicago won 105-102. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 9, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls center Pau Gasol (16) backs down Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) during the second half at the United Center. Chicago won 105-102. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports /

Best Move They Didn’t Make: Replacing Duncan With A Defensive Center

Tim Duncan was the league’s second-oldest player last season, and on offensive his age showed. He averaged the fewest points per game of his career by far, relegated to the fifth option when on the court.

But on defense he was still a Hall-of-Famer, ranking second in the league in ESPN’s Defensive RPM statistic. The Spurs put together one of the best defenses in NBA history, and that was with aging Tony Parker losing another step from an already shaky defensive portfolio. Duncan was, quite simply, one of the best players in the league on defense.

What the Spurs needed to replace Duncan with was someone to fill that roll, guarding the rim and rotating well behind the elite wing defense offered by Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard. Instead the Spurs signed Pau Gasol.

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    • Gasol is a very intelligent basketball player, and he fills up the box score in points and rebounds. On offense he has range out to the three-point line, and is an above-average passer from the center position.

    But he’s not young, he’s no longer the athlete he once was, and on defense he’s dissolved into a rotating door around the rim.

    The Spurs have players who can make plays with the ball in their hands. Between Parker, Ginobili, Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge, there is no lack of offensive options. What this team needed, especially with players such as Boban Marjanovic and David West departing, was someone to protect the rim.

    There were options available in a flooded big man market. Festus Ezeli, while struggling to overcome his “fragile” label, cost half of what Gasol got. Bismack Biyombo signed for only $2.5 million more than Gasol did, and he is 13 years younger. Ian Mahinmi and Roy Hibbert are capable team defenders at this point in their careers.

    Cole Aldrich was the man on the market the Spurs could have worked their magic to bring aboard. The Spurs have a great weapon in their small-ball lineups, with Aldridge at the 5, so bringing on someone to play 25 minutes a night at center would have worked great.

    Aldrich flashed serious rim protection skills on the Los Angeles Clippers last season, and was efficient as a scorer, rebounder and passer when L.A. had the ball. He would have made a great, low-cost addition at center.

    More hoops habit: San Antonio Spurs: 2016 Offseason Grades

    Pau Gasol is a talented player, and he raises this team’s offensive ceiling. But what the Spurs needed to replace was the rim protection from an all-time great. Gasol offers nothing on defense, and that may come back to hurt the Spurs as they try to take down the offensive juggernaut looming in Oakland.

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