Joined: 28 Mar 2011 Posts: 652 Location: Lakersfield!
Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2018 2:25 am Post subject: The Fall of the Spurs
For a team that won their last championship in 2014, their fall in recent years has been quite rapid. Let's look at how the team fared immediately after.
2015: They got beat out by the Clips this year, even after going up 3-2. To have lost to perennial Playoff chokers must've not tasted good.
2016: Acquired LaMarcus Aldridge, a player who the Lakers coveted at that point in time. And despite setting a franchise record for the most wins in a season, they got beat out by a hungry Thunder team in 6 games. Later on, the corpse of Tim Duncan would go on to retire. The Duncan Era was over.
2017: With Kawhi at the helm, the Spurs made it to the WCF, but the journey had cost them several players, and a reignited Warriors team with KD in tow swept them handily.
2018: This was when the true woes of the Spurs began, as Kawhi Leonard missed the first 27 games. He wouldn't play in a lot of games and ended up having to rehab an older injury that apparently wasn't treated right. Despite his worries, his team still wanted him to play hurt, and this formed a rift between Kawhi and the Spurs organization as a whole. A rift that we're seeing the true effects of in recent weeks.
Now Leonard wants out of San Antonio, and the future doesn't look so bright for a team that is often hailed as one of the best and classiest in the NBA.
So is this it for San Antonio? Since the 90s, they have always been a competitive team and that hadn't shown any signs of slowing down until now. And it sure got ugly fast. What do you guys think the future holds for them? Will they be able to turn this situation around, or will they be relegated to being a lottery team for the forseeable future?
Spurs will probably get relegated after Pop leaves (potentially next year).
Best bet is to move on from Leonard (point of no return) and to get as many assets (picks + Young players as possible) so they can setup the new regime better.
Spurs had a very good run at top, but you can be there forever.
Joined: 27 Jul 2004 Posts: 18222 Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2018 4:35 am Post subject:
They've still got RC Buford but you've got to wonder how much harder will it be for him to find talent without Pop's blueprint and leadership to make pieces fit.
Spurs have been good for so long and the town has no other professional sports franchises. Even before they were winning championships they've provided their fans with an entertaining product. They haven't really had a long string of losing seasons since the mid-80s in between the Iceman and Admiral years. I imagine their fans will stay loyal even in downturn years. _________________ "Suck it up. Don't be a baby. Do your job." - Kobe Bryant
Joined: 24 Dec 2007 Posts: 35854 Location: Santa Clarita, CA (Hell) ->>>>>Ithaca, NY -≥≥≥≥≥Berkeley, CA
Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2018 6:07 am Post subject:
They really screwed up with the Kawhi Leonard situation. They didn't even need to rebuild after Duncan retired until they screwed things up with him. Now, they don't even have any good young players since they hadn't been in the lottery.
I imagine Popovich will retire soon and then they'll really be screwed. _________________ Damian Lillard shatters Dwight Coward's championship dreams:
If this is the end for the Spurs, then that was one helluva run for a team in an average (if that) market that is not glamorous. If you want to hate on them, I have zero problem with it. I don’t like the Spurs, either. But damn, what a run that was.
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