FanNation: Wizards-Spurs deal in works?

http://www.fannation.com/truth_and_rumors/view/106273-wizards-spurs-deal-in-works

The Wizards are said to have an offer for Manu Ginobili on the table, but the details are not known. A deal that makes a lot of sense for both sides is a swap that consists of Mike James, Etan Thomas, the fifth pick in this year's draft, and Nick Young for Ginobili and Fabricio Oberto. Nick Young would provide the Spurs with the promising young shooting guard they tried to acquire in J.R. Smith and with the fifth pick they could go a number of different ways. Jordan Hill or DeMar DeRozan would look awfully nice in a Spurs' uniform.

Lots of trade talks concerning the Wizards and Manu Ginobili lately. This is just the latest in a string of reports, but I don't give it much substance. Pop has already stated that unless someone just throws a ridiculous deal at the Spurs, Ginobili isn't going anywhere.

Express News: Person of interest: Jermaine Taylor

http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/courtside/2009/06/person-of-inter-3.html#more

By Jeff McDonald

We continue our look at draft prospects the Spurs have auditioned with a glance at Central Florida's Jermaine Taylor.

As we have noted before, one of the Spurs' priorities for this offseason is to get younger and more athletic on the wing -- particularly at small forward, but also at shooting guard. Taylor, a 22-year-old, 6-foot-4 scorer, would help there.

Taylor was a breakout star at the Portsmouth pre-draft camp in April, and worked out for the Spurs in May. Possessing a heaping helping of athleticism, a precocious slashing ability and a decent-enough jump shot, Taylor is a scorer's scorer. The MVP of Conference USA last season, Taylor averaged better than 26 points as a senior at UCF, the third-best scoring average in the nation.

Taylor can be a defensive liability, which certainly doesn't help his stock with the Spurs. And he will have to work to develop NBA 3-point range.

Still, Taylor has had an impressive set of workouts over the past several weeks, and there is talk he could jump into the bottom of the first round. If that's the case, the Spurs would have to trade up to get him, if they want him.

Spurs.com: Spurs to Celebrate 10th Anniversary of 1999 Championship

http://www.nba.com/spurs/news/090612_99championship.html

Spurs.com will take fans on an insiders look back at the Championship run with a different feature each day during the 10-day run.

SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Spurs won their first NBA Championship in 1999 and to celebrate the 10th Anniversary, Spurs.com will highlight 10 days of exclusive content beginning Monday, June 15 and running through Wednesday, June 24.

Spurs.com will take fans on an insider’s look back at the Championship run with a different feature each day during the 10-day run. Highlights include exclusive interviews with Sean Elliott, Avery Johnson and Brandon Williams, the 14th man on the 1999 Championship team. The site will also feature a 4-part video series highlighting the Spurs 1998-99 season and playoff run to the 1999 NBA Championship, as well as a ‘where are they now’ section and photo gallery.

Log on to spurs.com starting Monday, June 15 to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Spurs first NBA Championship.

Spurs 2009-10 season tickets are on sale now by calling 444-5050 or by visiting spurs.com.

MassLive.com: Robinson Tough To Coach Against, But Garry St. Jean Admires Man As Much As Superstar

http://www.masslive.com/basketball-hall-of-fame/index.ssf/2009/06/david_robinson_tough_to_coach.html

David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs, a member of the incoming Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2009, and teammate Tim Duncan get ready for tip-off during a game in 2003 in San Antonio.

By Ron Chimelis

Over the course of Garry St. Jean's NBA career, he faced the challenge of coaching against David Robinson, who will be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in September.

St. Jean's memories of Robinson, though, have as much to do with the man as the superstar.

"I hate to be cliché-ish, but David is just a beautiful person," St. Jean said. "He never tooted his own horn, and he was comfortable in his own skin.

"A beautiful player, too. So graceful."

St. Jean, who coached at Sacramento (1992-97) and Golden State (2000), and also served as the Warriors' general manager, saw Robinson's San Antonio Spurs often in Western Conference games.

The Chicopee High School and Springfield College graduate could not help but notice the personal character and presence of an admired opponent.

"I used to get a cold chill, just watching David stand at rigid attention at for the national anthem. A simple thing like that," St. Jean said.

Robinson was a proud Navy man. Long after his 1987 graduation from the Naval Academy at Annapolis, he represented it well, St. Jean said.

Robinson's NBA career was delayed for two years after graduation, while he fulfilled his Navy commitment. Later, he served the military branch as a reserve.

He had a kindred spirit in San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich, an Air Force Academy graduate and a man St. Jean knows well from NBA circles.

Popovich was briefly a member of Golden State's staff in the early 1990s. By 1997, he was coach of the Spurs when Duncan came out of Wake Forest.

That gave Robinson the support he needed to help San Antonio win two NBA titles before "The Admiral," as Robinson was called (even though his actual Navy rank had been Lieutenant, Junior Grade) retired.

"Gregg used to say that when you've got David Robinson and Tim Duncan, it's a great life," St. Jean said.

St. Jean's description of Robinson portrayed not only a great player and a Renaissance man, but a family man, too.

"I met his dad, who had as big a smile as David," St. Jean said. "We were doing some charity function, and I mentioned it would be nice if we could auction off a pair of David's shoes.

"He took my address, and sure enough, about a week later, the shoes were there."

Express News: Paris-Bound Parker Promises To Stay Healthy

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Paris-bound_Parker_promises_to_stay_healthy.html

By Mike Monroe - Express-News

Spurs All-NBA point guard Tony Parker is headed to France in a few weeks to begin training with Les Bleus, the French national team that will attempt to earn the final berth in EuroBasket 2009 in an additional round of qualifying next month.

During a stopover in San Antonio after a lengthy European vacation, Parker took time to visit the team's youth basketball camp, where he engaged in some spirited pickup games with youngsters barely topping 4 feet in height, and in spirited commentary on reports that Manu Ginobili believes a trade away from the Spurs no longer seems impossible.

“I don't know why he said that, but I don't think he's going nowhere,” Parker said. “Everybody loves him here, and I love playing with him, and I don't think he's going anywhere.

“If I was him, I wouldn't second-guess anything. He's like God here. Come on, man. He speaks Spanish and everything. He's not going anywhere.”

Parker is going back to France soon, where he will conduct his own youth basketball camp. During his visit to the Spurs' youth camp, at University of the Incarnate Word, he discovered a nemesis wearing a Dirk Nowitzki No. 41 Mavericks jersey, a youngster with a sweet perimeter shot he used to beat Parker in a game of H-O-R-S-E.

The Spurs star didn't mind. At the end of the day he hollered, “Hey, Nowitzki, come here.”

Then Parker invited the young man, and two other campers, to attend his basketball camp in Paris in July.

“I love spending time with kids, teaching them and having fun,” Parker said. “I'm going to do the same thing in Paris, between July 4-14. Pop (Spurs coach Gregg Popovich) is coming, too, between July 7-12.”

Parker joked with a local sports anchor that he could come to cover the camp if he would pick up the tab for the kids. He got an instant turndown.

“I guess I'll have to pay,” Parker said, laughing.

Parker will be in France for another camp too: In mid-July, he'll train with the French national team, seeking to claim the final berth for EuroBasket 2009 in an additional qualifying round next month.

Parker will be the only Spurs player involved in international play this summer, and he's confident he is young enough to compete for his homeland and still be fresh through an 82-game NBA season.

“Maybe after I'm 30 years old I will worry about it ... 31, 32. Then it might be tough to play a full season. But right now I'm young. Hopefully, everything will be fine.”

Parker said he was encouraged by the pronouncement this week that Ginobili, his teammate who suffered a stress fracture in his right distal fibula in early April, believes he will be 100 percent healthy by the start of training camp.

“I'm sure, I'm sure,” Parker said. “It's just one season. Everybody gets injured. Even Michael Jordan missed (most of a season) with his foot. ... So I'm not worried about anything. It will be good for us. It will be good for everybody.”

He recently returned from a European vacation that included stops for French Open tennis and a Spanish soccer tournament to watch his friend, soccer star Thierry Henry. Parker said there was one sports event that had not gotten much attention from him: the NBA Finals.

“I haven't even watched,” he said. “I know (the Lakers) are up 2-1. I'll watch Game 4 tonight.”

HoopsWorld: Fixing The San Antonio Spurs

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=12922

It's an odd-numbered year, and for the first time since 2001 the San Antonio Spurs are not competing for a championship in the NBA Finals. In fact, they didn't even make it out of the opening round as they fell to the Dallas Mavericks in five games.

It's hard not to overreact, but when you consider everything that the Spurs went through this season it was actually a year that many other franchises would kill for right now. However, the Spurs are not content with anything other than being a championship contender.

Looking at the Western Conference in its entirety, the Spurs are quickly starting to slip down the rankings. Currently the future in Denver, Portland, Houston, and Los Angeles looks brighter than it does in South Texas. With that in mind, we make our attempt at fixing the San Antonio Spurs:

What Went Wrong

There's nowhere else to start other than the Beijing Olympics. Against the will of the Spurs, Manu Ginobili suited up with the aspirations of leading Argentina to a gold medal as he did in 2004. Argentina settled for the bronze and Ginobili headed back to the states in need of surgery on his left ankle. While the Spurs were far from pleased, they were hopeful that it would lead to Manu having his first 100% healthy season in years.

Manu only missed 12 games to start, but it became a recurring theme throughout the season that just as everyone thought he was peaking Manu would suffer another setback. Early in April Manu was ruled out for the rest of the season because of lingering pain in his right ankle.

Tim Duncan struggled with injuries of his own, especially late in the season. By the time the playoffs came around Tony Parker claimed Duncan was basically playing on one leg.

Ian Mahinmi, although not as vital to the team's success as Duncan and Ginobili, was unable to play a single game this season because of persistent ankle pain. Coach Popovich had high hopes for Mahinmi this year and was undoubtedly planning on giving him a chance to be an impact player for the team.

For years the Spurs have always been amongst the oldest teams in the league, but their age never played as big of a factor as it did this year. Usually reliable veterans Kurt Thomas, Jacque Vaughn, Bruce Bowen, and Fabricio O'Berto (mainly due to various health ailments) were nowhere near as productive as they were the year prior.

What Went Right

This past season was a career-year for Tony Parker, who put the rest of the league on notice as to just how good he really is. For years Parker's talent has been slighted because he played alongside two other superstars, but there is truly no denying now that he is one of the league's biggest stars. With Duncan's retirement just a few years away the Spurs can rest safely knowing in Parker they have another franchise player.

The Spurs also managed to add two nice young pieces in Roger Mason Jr. and George Hill. The two were major bright spots this season despite the fact that their play tailed off somewhat towards the end of the season. They did play the most minutes of their short careers this past season, so it's logical to think that they hit the proverbial wall late in the year.

At the trade deadline several names were thrown around in association with the Spurs including Richard Jefferson, Rasheed Wallace, and Vince Carter. Unable to find a deal to their liking they decided to stand pat. Thankfully they were able to add a very valuable piece for nothing in Drew Gooden after he was bought out by the Sacramento Kings.

Gooden had some great moments for the Spurs, but was too banged up to change their fortunes.

Michael Finley played especially well down the stretch, providing some much needed offense in Ginobili's absence but the Spurs as a whole just didn't have enough this year.


Where The Spurs Go From Here

It's been years since the Spurs appeared to be this far away from contention. They've always found a way to make minor tweaks that make a major difference, but it may take more than that to get back in the mix in the West.

The Spurs are fully prepared to make some drastic changes though. They have over $30 million expiring contracts, including Manu's deal worth $10.7 million alone. Manu certainly has value around the league and although it's hard to imagine the Spurs parting ways with someone who has helped them accomplish so much, it may be time.

The Wizards are said to have an offer for Ginobili on the table, but the details are not known. A deal that makes a lot of sense for both sides is a swap that consists of Mike James, Etan Thomas, the fifth pick in this year's draft, and Nick Young for Manu Ginobili and Fabricio Oberto. Nick Young would provide the Spurs with the promising young shooting guard they tried to acquire in J.R. Smith and with the fifth pick they could go a number of different ways. Jordan Hill or DeMar DeRozan would look awfully nice in a Spurs' uniform.

Considering their track record though it's hard to imagine the Spurs pulling the trigger on a deal of that magnitude without getting more proven talent in return. Word is that the Spurs do have strong interest in purchasing their way into the first round of this month's draft. Should the trade up into the 20-30 range expect them to look a proven collegiate player like Eric Maynor, Wayne Ellington, or Danny Green. Omri Casspi was someone who they were very impressed with, but he's unlikely to stay in the draft.

This summer the Spurs will have the mid-level exception at their disposal, which they could use to try to convince a proven veteran like Rasheed Wallace to accept. Wallace is said to want $8 milion, but when he sees how down the market is and the opportunity the Spurs present he could be persuaded to take their offer.

Whatever direction the Spurs do go in don't expect them to jeopardize their salary cap space in 2010 unless something spectacular comes along. Only Duncan, Parker, and Hill are under contract for the 2011 season, making them big-time players for some of the top free agents. LeBron James and Dwayne Wade are the big names, but don't be surprised if Chris Bosh is really intrigued by the idea of playing with Tony Parker closer to home.

Spurs.com: Spurs Insider Takes a Look at the Admiral

http://www.nba.com/spurs/features/090609_admiral.html

Express News: Popovich: 'I cannot envision trading' Ginobili

http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/buckharvey/2009/06/popovich-to-ginobili-relax-you.html

By Buck Harvey on Jun 10, 09 06:06 PM

When Manu Ginobili flew back to San Antonio after the Beijing Olympics, Gregg Popovich was there to pick him up at the airport. Now Ginobili says he wouldn't be shocked if Popovich drives him back this summer to catch the next flight out of town.

Asked this week in Argentina about the possibility of being traded, Ginobili told a reporter there: "A year ago I thought this would be impossible, and today I believe there is a chance it could happen."

There's always a chance. "People get in trouble when they say never," Popovich said Wednesday. There could always be "a stupid offer" from another team, he said.

"But Manu Ginobili is someone I cannot envision trading," Popovich said. "He has been such a huge part of our heart and soul; people like that are hard to come by. You don't even think about trading somebody like that. I can't imagine a scenario where he would be traded."

Ginobili also talked about the Spurs halting contract-extension discussions with him last summer after the Olympics. "I do not know what they want to do," he told an Argentine reporter.

I think Ginobili knows what the Spurs want to do. They want to see if he can make it through a season before they decide whether they want to pay him, or how much they want to pay him.

He's been a bargain for the Spurs on both of his San Antonio contracts, including the one that will pay him about $10 million next season. But even if Ginobili does well next year, how much money should the Spurs invest in someone who will be 33 years old in 2010?

A June, 2009 guess: They would offer a two-year deal near his current salary.

WFTV: Spurs' Oberto Undergoes Heart Procedure

http://www.wftv.com/nba/19692045/detail.html

San Antonio, TX -- (Sports Network) - San Antonio Spurs center Fabricio Oberto underwent a procedure last week to help correct an irregular heartbeat.

Oberto suffered from atrial fibrillation -- a type of abnormal heart rhythm -- during the season and on June 4 underwent a successful ablation procedure to correct the electrical system of the heart.

The Spurs said Oberto will begin a conservative cardiovascular exercise program next week. After four weeks, and with doctor's approval, he can begin more strenuous workouts.

In 54 games this past season, Oberto averaged 2.6 points with 2.6 rebounds. He missed the first two games of the season with an irregular heartbeat and was sidelined for a few games in late March and early April because of the same problem.

Express News: Gooden Likely To Test Free-Agent Waters (And Other Clean-Out Day News)

http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/courtside/2009/04/gooden-likely-t.html

By Jeff McDonald

Drew Gooden arrived in San Antonio last March hoping to make it his home. He had bounced around the NBA for six-plus seasons in a nomad's career. He was finally ready to settle down.

Speaking to reporters at the Spurs practice facility this afternoon, Gooden reiterated his desire to remain with the Spurs after he becomes a free-agent on July 1, but intimated that he will test the market first.

"I had a great time here," Gooden said. "It was a great experience. Whatever happens, this will be a couple of pages in my book that will be memorable. I'd love to be a part of this organization, but we'll see this summer."

If Tuesday's Game 5 loss to Dallas was his last in a Spurs uniform, Gooden said he has no hard feelings with how it ended. He took a DNP-CD, as coach Gregg Popovich shortened his big-man rotation to use players most familiar with his system.

"We played a small lineup, small rotation, with the guys who have been here," Gooden said. "Some playoff games are going to be like that. If I've got to sacrifice playing to get a win, I'll do that."

In other clean-out day news ...

* Bruce Bowen said he hopes to finish out his contract in San Antonio. He is on the books next season for $4 million, only half of which is guaranteed. He doesn't want to go elsewhere.

"It would be a shock to me and my family, because this is home to us," Bowen said. "But if that's the case, we understand it's a business. Sometimes in business, there are tough decisions that need to be made."

* Michael Finley said he hadn't yet decided whether to opt into the final year of his contract with the Spurs. Finley is due $2.5 million, at his option.

"I haven't really thought about next year, to be quite honest," Finley said. "I'm going to sit back with my family now, enjoy this extended period of time off, and when the time comes that I have to make a decision about my future, that's when I'll make it."

That $2.5 million is free money to Finley, and he isn't likely to attract a better deal elsewhere. If Finley does return for a 15th season, it will probably be in a Spurs uniform.