Sports Illustrated - 21.10.2019

† INJURED L AST YE AR ( 2017 – 18 STATS)

Starters

Getting DEJOUNTE MURRAY

back is like adding a

big free agent. The

emergence of DERRICK

WHITE is going to help

them bring along

Dejounte [from his

right ACL tear] at a

more balanced pace.

To me that’s their

upside; as long as their

guys are healthy, their

system is just going to

breed wins.... You can

definitely play Murray

and White together,

especially because

White can shoot it, then

slide DEMAR DEROZAN to

the three. We’ll see how

confident Dejounte is in

his shot after working

on it while he was hurt.

That’s the next phase

for him.... BRYN FORBES

was a great value last

year. He has a lot of

the same qualities

PATTY MILLS offers.

They find guys....

TREY LYLES is basically

a poor man’s stretch

four with the size to

play some center.

He’s had pockets of

seasons where he’s

been productive. He’s

a wild card.... They’re

so good at getting

their best players in

positions to succeed.

LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE can

shoot it so easily; they

get him to his spots

and can be really

efficient. Even RUDY

GAY. I mean, he’d never

shot 50% before....

You need one guy who

can take and make

tougher shots late in

the clock, and that’s

DeRozan. He doesn’t

shoot the three but is

still efficient because

he gets to the line....

With all their guys,

you see the second-

year jump in summer

league, and it usually

translates to a 15–20

minute role. White

and Kyle Anderson are

good examples. So I’m

interested to see how

LONNIE WALKER develops.

TELLING NUMBER

The Spurs’ competitive longevity

has begun to border on comical:

Their three most recent first-round

picks weren’t even born the last time

the team missed the postseason.

That adds up to 22 CONSECUTIVE PLAYOFF

APPEARANCES, with multiple artful reinventions

along the way. LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar

DeRozan return as mainstays, but the development

of young guards Derrick White, Lonnie Walker IV

and Dejounte Murray makes this group intriguing.

With the instincts to play and defend either guard

spot, the 6' 4" White was arguably San Antonio’s

best player for much of the first-round, seven-game

loss to the Nuggets. Brought along slowly as a

rookie, Walker provides a downhill style of play

that the team has lacked at the two. And Murray

has innate creativity and big-time defensive

potential at point guard. It’s hardly a transition

year, but watching the Spurs evolve in real time

promises once again to be a treat. —Jeremy Woo

22

Projected Lineup

Bench

SF

DEMAR

DEROZAN

21.2 PPG; 6.2 APG;

6.0 RPG; 48.1 FG%

ENEMY LINES

A rival scout weighs in

PF

LAMARCUS

ALDRIDGE

21.3 PPG; 9.2 RPG;

1.3 BPG; 51.9 FG%

SG

PATTY

MILLS

9.9 PPG; 3.0 APG;

42.5 FG%; 39.4 3FG%

PF

RUDY

GAY

13.7 PPG; 6.8 RPG;

50.4 FG%; 40.2 3FG%

SG

DERRICK

WHITE

9.9 PPG; 3.9 APG;

3.7 RPG; 47.9 FG%

DEJOUNTE

MURRAY†

8.1 PPG; 5.7 RPG;

2.9 APG; 44.3 FG%

PG

JAKOB

POELTL

5.5 PPG; 5.3 RPG;

0.9 BPG; 64.5 FG%

C

96

GREG NELSON

SAN ANTONIO

2018 – 19 RECORD 48– 34 2nd in Southwest

Spurs COACH GREGG POPOVICH 24th season with Spurs

∂47 wins ∂Lose in 1st round ∂Pop will get tossed intentionally to let Tim Duncan coach.

THE
WEST

Crystal Ball: