Offseason Breakdown: Drew Gooden and the Frontcourt
I plan a long series of posts considering the Spurs roster, with consideration toward individual players and larger roster issues. At points, these posts might overlap with thoughts on the upcoming draft (forthcoming shortly). But they will be tagged differently. I wasn’t sure where to start with my offseason analysis, but Pop’s DNP of Drew Gooden in last night’s loss seems like a good place.
Should the Spurs resign Drew Gooden? I think not. Let me explain.
The 2010 Cap Strategy
The Spurs are currently in good cap position for 2010. I think they could abandon their 2010 free agent strategy, but only for a few specific circumstances. One such circumstance would be the ability to take on a star player in a trade. I call this the Vince Carter Exception. But it could also apply to odd circumstance players such as Josh Childress. If the Spurs can land an impact player, they should. Damn the 2010 torpedoes. Otherwise, it makes sense for the Spurs to stay the 2010 course.
Resigning Drew Gooden for the full MLE (his asking price, methinks) messes with all this. He played well as a Spur, but I’m not sure he makes a lot of sense for the team going forward, especially if it compromises the Spurs ability to land an impact player via trade or through 2010 free agency. As good as Gooden is, he’s a role player. With the health concerns that surround the team’s age, they need to swing for the fences. The team needs to add a game changer. And they’ll need cap space to make that happen. Gooden only makes sense on a one year deal or if he’ll take a less than market value multi-year contract, but I doubt he’ll have much interest in those options.
The 2010 talks tends to center around bigs such Amare Stoudemire, Chris Bosh, Yao Ming and Dirk Nowitzki. But those players only have opt out clauses next summer. They may not be on the market. It will be interesting to see whether or not the cold economy discourages those guys from leaving money on the table. In that case, the Spurs might want to modify to a 2011 plan, or some such. You can find a helpful list of the player pool here. The current assumption, however, is that many of those players should be available. The Spurs should fall into a wait and see holding pattern.
Ian Mahinmi and Tiago Splitter
The three important things to know about Drew Gooden’s game is that he’s an excellent low post scorer, mediocre rebounder and below average defender. The Spurs are best served to find a post option that reverses Gooden’s characteristics. In other words, they need a player who is an above average post defender, solid rebounder and merely decent at scoring the ball.
The Spurs have two players in their immediate pipeline whom might answer those calls. The first is Ian Mahinmi, who is signed to an inexpensive rookie contract. Mahinmi has shown lots of promise, but no one really knows what the kid has to offer. He set out the season due to injury, but was scheduled to be a part of the rotation last season. I’m not suggesting he is at Gooden’s level, but, on a cost-benefit analysis, if he can give the Spurs 6 and 6 at only 1 million a season, he’s probably a better option than Gooden. He’s also an able shot blocker and post defender, something the Spurs need.
We recently learned that Tiago Splitter could be available to the Spurs in the near future. He’s precisely the sort of big that San Antonio needs to add up front. But he’ll cost the Spurs more money than a typical rookie. The Spurs can’t afford to tie up their frontcourt cap with Gooden if they plan to bring Splitter over.
Other Options
I haven’t said as much yet, but I’m operating under the assumption the Spurs could move much of their frontcourt in a trade(s). I don’t think there is any guarantee that Fabricio Oberto, Kurt Thomas and Matt Bonner will be on next year’s team. They could be, but their contracts may be needed to accommodate a trade. One of the reasons the Spurs should be fine moving one or all of those players is that they have a couple end of the bench frontcourt options available–players that would occupy the same pine that Fabricio Oberto did this season.
I’ve already mentioned Ian Mahinmi and Tiago Splitter, but let me throw out a couple more names. Robertas Javtokas‘ Russian contract has expired. He’s at least as good as Oberto and the Spurs own his rights. If he’ll sign at an affordable price, he’s a great option as a low minute rotation player. Another option is Toros standout Dwayne Jones. Jones has played professionally with the Cavs and now has a season with Austin on his resume. He’s a good rebounder who understands the system. The Spurs could sign him for 1/3 of what Oberto makes and get the same scoring and board production. Finally, the Spurs own the rights of James Gist, who is something of a combo forward. He’s a long shot, but would benefit from a Spurs roster spot and the opportunity at a season-long Toros assignment. With Gist, a lot depends on his summer league productivity.
(Finally, there is Pops Mensah-Bonsu, who is not available. That’s because the Spurs screwed the pooch by not buying out Jacque Vaughn and retaining Pops. We live. We learn. We try to move on. Hindsight is 20/20 this side of Manu Ginobili’s ankle injury, but I wish the Spurs had shown better judgement. This is not a Gooden/Mensah-Bonsu either/or. The Spurs should have signed both, but this was only possible by showing JV the door. Yet another regretful side effect of second-guessing George Hill.)
What Type of Player Could the Spurs Use?
Beyond the things listed above, we all know the Spurs could use a shot blocker. Tim Duncan has been the only true shot-blocker on the team since Rasho Nesterovic left, and Rasho’s defense obviously paled in comparison to David Robinson’s. Kurt Thomas is an excellent interior defender, but not as much of a shot blocking threat. Neither is Drew Gooden.
The Spurs could also use a big who can spread the floor. Matt Bonner is their current option, but he is not a Robert Horry replacement. Bonner’s virutal non-existence in the postseason, after a remarkable season in which he played to his ceiling, should have the Spurs thinking about pulling the plug on the New Hampshire Experiment. They’ve seen all that he has to offer. Perhaps they try something else.
The Spurs would also benefit from a big who is able to guard face-up 4s such as David West and Dirk Nowitzki. This is a long standing roster need. The combination of Matt Bonner and Ime Udoka is not the right answer.
Rasheed Wallace
Rumors of Rasheed Wallace’s desire to join the Spurs began back in February, and they continue down to the present. Wallace meets all of the Spurs frontcourt needs, save one. He’s old. But that’s actually not a bad thing this time around. Signing Wallace on a one year deal for part or all of the MLE fits within the Spurs 2010 strategy and answers current roster needs–he can block shots, defend and knock down threes. Signing Wallace to a short term contract also gives the Spurs roster flexibility in light of other possibilities, such as adding Tiago Splitter in 2010.
Verdict
In all likelihood the Spurs are better served to let Drew Gooden walk, especially if they’re able to sign Rasheed Wallace in free agency. Under that scenario, the Spurs would look to include the contracts of one or two bigs in a trade deal for an impact wing. Maybe that’s possible, maybe not. In any case, if the Spurs aim high they could remake their frontcourt rotation this offseason. After the dust settles, I’m hoping they return a roster of 5 bigs that looks something like:
Duncan/Wallace/Thomas/Mahinmi/Javtokas or Jones
This scenario is hopeful that Thomas steps away in 2o1o and is replaced by Tiago Splitter.
It’s a risky gamble to take on a few pairs of old legs. But it preserves their 2010 aspirations and provides some correctives to current roster issues.
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