The NBA Draft is coming up, which means The Game Haus will be doing draft profiles for each NBA team. Each day, a new team will be analyzed for their past season, their team needs and targets. Today, the San Antonio Spurs will be evaluated.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOk0–vx8Bk
Summary
San Antonio finished the season with a 48-34 record and qualified for the playoffs as the seventh seed in the Western Conference. They lost to the Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs, but were able to take them to seven games. The combination of LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan had a solid first season together, but they will be looking to take a step further next season with Gregg Popovich leading the way once again.
The Spurs ranked in the middle of the league in a lot of different categories. They were 18th in points per game, 12th in points allowed per game, 21st in rebounds per game and 16th in assists per game. They did, however, rank first in the league in three-point shooting.
Rudy Gay, Dante Cunningham, Quincy Pondexter, Chimezie Metu and Donatas Motiejunas are all free agents this summer. DeRozan, Aldridge, Patty Mills, Davis Bertans, Marco Belinelli, Bryn Forbes, Jakob Poeltl, Lonnie Walker, Derrick White and Dejounte Murray are all under contract for next season.
Picks
The Spurs have three picks in the 2019 NBA Draft.
First Round: Picks No. 19, No. 29
Second Round: Pick No. 49
Team Needs
Wing- If Gay leaves in free agency, the Spurs will need to find another player to play next to DeRozan next season.
Point Guard- The Spurs have some decent young players who can play point guard, but the team likely won’t win any titles until they find someone to run the offense like Tony Parker did.
Rebounding- Aldridge is a solid rebounder, but the Spurs need to improve their ranking of 21st in the league on the boards.
Potential Targets
First Round: Pick No. 19: Tyler Herro, Guard, Kentucky
The Spurs may want to take a wing player to replace Rudy Gay, who could leave in free agency. Herro can shoot really well and has a nice offensive game. He also brings good effort on defense. While the Spurs don’t need more three-point shooting, Herro can help them space the floor even more. It isn’t hard to imagine Herro running around screens and hitting big shots for the Spurs, much like Danny Green used to do.
Pick No. 29: Carsen Edwards, Point Guard, Purdue
San Antonio hasn’t had a great point guard since Tony Parker. Players have shown flashes of potential, but none have solidified themselves as a top point guard in the league. The Spurs could select Carsen Edwards to help solve that problem. He is limited by his height and athleticism, but Edwards can score from anywhere and is also a decent facilitator. Edwards may not be the final answer at the point guard spot, but at the very least, he can provide a real spark off the bench.
Second Round: Pick No. 49: Jontay Porter, Forward/Center, Missouri
Porter missed last season with a torn ACL, but did have a solid freshman season for Missouri. His brother Michael is more of a perimeter-oriented player, but Jontay provides some good athleticism for a big man. While they’ll have to make sure they are fine with his health, the Spurs can wait before giving Porter a huge role with the team. He could help them on the boards and give them a quality backup. If he progresses, he could eventually be a starter that they got in the second round because his draft stock fell due to the injury.
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3 Comments
Wow . . . The Spurs need a point guard? You must not watch teh Spurs much.
So we have 7 guards under contract and you think we should target 2 more in the 1st round ?? Your not being serious right
Have you actually watched a Spurs game over the last two years? No point guards? You must be kidding, right?