Tuesday, June 30th, 2009...9:39 am
Michael Finley Opts In
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The Spurs have just announced that Michael Finley will play out the final year of his contract. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you a very classy back up to Richard Jefferson.
14 Comments
June 30th, 2009 at 9:58 am
No big surprise. For all his faults, I’ll be glad to see Fin in silver and black for one more season.
June 30th, 2009 at 10:04 am
I’m also glad he is coming back. The only problem I see in him is the fact that he plays extended minutes. With RJ on board he will be used 10-20 minutes and/or in specific situations when shooters are needed.
Exactly as it happened with RJ and the 2010 Free Agency, we might not get the best we could but we got something good (for a backup) and we got it now. As opposed to a “maybe”.
June 30th, 2009 at 10:29 am
Yes, it’s better to have him, a proven veteran that knows our system, than to have a gaping hole behind RJ in our roster that would likely be filled by two Toros instead of one (Hairston?), which is likely this season.
June 30th, 2009 at 12:33 pm
Clearly, Fin has lost a step or two, but if you consider his contract ($2.5 million) and his outside shooting alone, he still gives you a good bang for your buck.
Even if we considered him primarily as a shooter off the bench (and I think he has more than just that to give), his deal is much, much better than comparable veteran shooters (think Kapono at $5.8 million, Korver at $5.0 million, Dunleavy at $9.0 million, etc.).
June 30th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Too bad he’s not a competant back-up to Jefferson at this point in his career.
June 30th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
A really satisfactory move by Finley. I think he knows he’s second string and I’m sure he’s willing to play an outsized Steve Kerr role in order to win another ring.
June 30th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
My only issue with Finley is that when he first joined the Spurs, he did so poorly off the bench that Pop tried the Ginobili-as-6th man experiment. While that proved to be good for both Manu and the Spurs, Finley proved he only plays well when he starts. So, will he have to start next year?
I like Finley, and always have (even when he was a Mav), but unless he goes back to starting SG, I’m not sure how much he’ll help. And if he starts, will he get “starter” minutes? I think the Spurs will be be better off giving the Mason-Ginobili-Jefferson trio the bulk of the wing minutes.
I hope Finley can produce with a reduced role, but we’ll have to wait and see.
June 30th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Finley will play the Steve Smith role on the 2003 Title team. It’s a great role and veteran presence that could give you a lift in some games here and there.
He stays in great shape and is a true professional and is still a decent athlete for his age…at $2.5 million he’s not hurting the Spurs and is an insurance policy to Manu, Jefferson and Mason.
Get ready fans, the Spurs have quickly turned around a very marginal roster outside of the Big 3 and frankly, will field the most talented roster they have had since that 2003 title team - Especially once they have secured a solid big with their MLE.
I’ll even quit complaining about Bonner with this squad. In a reduced role, Bonner can contribute. As a top 3 rotation guy at the 4 and 5 - that’s ridiculous.
That’s like saying Lebron will win an NBA title with Mo Williams as the second best player on the team…please. That’s not the way the NBA works.
June 30th, 2009 at 5:46 pm
Fin improves our depth at the 3, he knows the system inside and out by now and if he can play effectively off the bench in more limited minuted, should still be a valuable part of the squad.
Welcome back Mr Finley.
I’d personally still like to see Hairston in the squad somewhere though. He has a chance to turn into a handy swingman himself, and would benefit greatly from running with this squad. (Practices with Manu, R-Jeff and Fin would have to help a young wing player learn what it takes, right?).
July 1st, 2009 at 6:36 am
Grizzled malice FTW! Maybe he can play the Steve Kerr role this year.
July 1st, 2009 at 6:57 am
Krista rightly noted that Finley played poorly off the bench on first coming to SA. But I’d like to think we can expect good bench numbers from him as a backup because whereas he didn’t know the Spurs’ system on arriving, he certainly does now. Asking him to shoulder starting minutes was perhaps a mistake last year, except that we had few alternatives. With RJ offering a strong first option and scoring punch, dreams of Finley the specialist shooter probably are pretty realistic.
July 1st, 2009 at 10:25 am
Josh, I hope you’re right.
You do make a good point about Finley not knowing the Spurs system that first year.
July 1st, 2009 at 11:09 am
When people write things like ‘Finley will play a Steve Smith 03 role’ . . .
You guys do remember that Steve Smith started the season in 02-03 as the starting shooting guard, right? And that he only was replaced when he got injured. Finley does not get injured.
July 1st, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Finley was fine off the bench. The problem was with Ginobili, Parker, and Duncan all on the floor at the same time. Ginobili and Parker are penetration guards and Duncan has an inside offensive game. There isn’t enough paint for all three of them. Thus, Pop observed that he could have Ginobili come in off the bench and get the majority of his minutes when Tim or Tony is sitting on the bench. Then the Spurs have Manu as a go-to offensive force in the second unit. Also Ginobili has had injuries so this also enabled Pop to manage his minutes while maximizing his contribution.
Finley has slowed down and never was an outstanding defender. Having him as the backup SF is a fine role. He won’t be challenged on defense against the opposing teams backup SF, and he is a great spot-up shooter from the corner, which is has been the main SF role in the Spur’s offense in recent years with Bowen. As a veteran, Finley will make good decisions on the court, so he’s a better backup than Hairston, Marcus Williams, or some other random rookie they find.
If the Spurs find a better backup, having Finley as a 3rd string perimeter player is also a nice luxury.
Unlike one of his critics above, I think Finley can even spell competent.
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