Streak Got Pop'd, But We Still Throwing a Fiesta - Official 20-21 San Antonio Spurs Season Thread

Bill Clinton was getting cozy with Monica Lewinsky. Gas was under $2. And Master P and No Limit weren't the only ones running a tank in 1997. That's the last time the Spurs missed the NBA playoffs...until 2020.

Makes sense though, right? 2020 truly feels like the darkest timeline.

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But if there was a silver (and black) lining to be found last season, it's that we finally got to see a glimpse of the future. LaMarcus Aldridge missed the playoff bubble following shoulder surgery. Patty Mills became a player-coach. Bryn Forbes' incriminating evidence on Pop got lost in the mail, so Pop finally benched him. And with that, we finally got to see...

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And of course we can't forget about

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The old heads still played their part too. DeMar DeRozan played possibly his best basketball of the season in the bubble. The same could be said for Rudy Gay.

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But will any of that translate to this season? Some cause for optimism: without the weight of the playoff streak hanging around, Pop may finally unleash the young guys. Even more cause for optimism, the Spurs drafted two guards in the draft, which all but guarantees Bryn Forbes will not return to the Spurs. DeRozan has opted in (not a surprise given the price tag), so the Spurs at worst still have their go-to scorer going into the season and, at best, have a valuable trade chip. Make that two valuable trade chips, as Aldridge and Portland seem destined to be reunited sooner rather than later.

If Pop does decide to go for a playoff spot in his (possible) swan song, could this be the lineup that gets him there?

PG: Murray
SG: White
SF: Johnson
PF: DeRozan
C: Aldridge

DeRozan excelled at the PF spot in the bubble, and positions are so interchangeable now in the NBA that this is a realistic lineup that is stout defensively on the perimeter.

Off the bench, you'd have:

PG: Mills
SG: Walker
SF: Gay
PF: Lyles
C: Poetl/Eubanks

And then it would be up to Pop on how to deploy any of his other young players. Is Luka Samanic ready for extended run? Are Devin Vassell and Tre Jones destined for a season in the G-league? We won't know until Christmas.

No matter what happens this season, we've already got the biggest W of all locked in:

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Draft Picks: Devin Vassell, Tre Jones
Key Free Agent Signings: Demar DeRozan (opt in), Jakob Poetl (re-sign), Drew Eubanks (re-sign), "loss" of Bryn Forbes​

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Immediate rep for the community reference


I wonder what the market looks like for Jakob. Demar playing PF in most matchups is a YES from me

 

Justifies the lack of three point shooting at that point. Plus if LA continues to shootout from outside like he did towards the the end of the pre-Rona season, we'd have LA, White and Johnson as solid shooters, with Murray being slightly less reliable from 3. Demar can be the point forward since he bullies his way into the paint at will. Rather him being the one kicking the ball out to shooters versus standing on the perimeter.

 

Take Lonnie off the leash and give him consistent minutes easing him into a starting Role at the 2 eventually.

 

Seen some badass Fiesta logo merchandise im gonna have to cop ASAP

 

Showed some flashes in the bubble. In any event, this is dirt cheap

 

I’m good with the young guys plus Derozan and LA being the only people to touch the floor all year.

 

That Lonnie hammer



Spurs Family
Fiesta Fiesta

 

Luka has bulked up...

I think he gets some run this year

 

I see Harry Giles is a free agent. This the kinda player I need the spurs to take a flier on. He has top end pedigree and is still only 22. Low risk high reward player.

 

9 mil a year seems about right given the market.

 

Another rebuilding year but at least the fiesta uniform is

 

we byke

 

Uni’s AND floor unfukkwittable this season, brehs.