DaveyBoy123
Premium Gold
- Jan 26, 2003
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Warning - cynical post coming:
With a 4 game losing streak, and the news that Kawhi might be out for the season, and much more of a concern is that it appears to be Kawhi's decision which might be in conflict with what our own medical staff are suggesting (I'm not concerned about waiting for Kawhi himself to feel his body is ready to return, I am concerned about the conflict of opinions and the heavily rumoured discord between the parties), the devils advocate in me is thinking about this:
How important are the 50-win and playoff streaks? (If, like me, you believe that without Kawhi, and maybe even with, we arent a chance against the Top 2 in the West).
We are 35-25, with 22 games left.
At the moment, 43-45wins will get you the 8th seed in the west.
We could go 8-14, or 10-12 and still miss the 8 (thus getting into the lottery).
We could go around .500 the rest of the way, get a low playoff seed, and then a mid-to-late teen's draft pick.
We could go 15-7 the rest of the way, get 50W, and likely the 3rd seed (and a mid 20's pick) - but its looking less likely.
We could even completely tank, but with our current 35W, and the drop off in standings after Detroit, we could not win another game and likely still end up with only the 12th worst record.
If you're the organisation (Not necessarily Pop or the Players - because they will want to win every single game they can, although Pop has tanked, incredibly succesfully, with us once before - but that was with a lot more than just 1 major injury) what is the best outcome from here?
Personally I think it comes down to Kawhi and what we think he is likely to do in the offseason.
If we think Kawhi is done with the organisation and will reject a contract extension, then I don't think we have a choice but to win as much as we can. The only way to attract potential FA's/trades in a Kawhi-less Spurs is to show that Pop can still win with whatever players he has got, and that getting the right stars will just improve that. It might also mean that our team for the next few years is centred around LMA, and we chase players who complement him.
But if we are confident of Kawhi getting back to being healthy for next season and happily signing that extension, then I don't think dropping our playoff seed, and improvement our draft pick into the teens, is a bad outcome, because I don't think a worse record on a Kawhi-less team is going to put off any potential top level FA's if they think they will be joining a healthy Kawhi next year.
Hadn't thought of all that... & still a little unsure tbh... I think the 50 win streak is blurring my judgement too much, since continuing that is my 1st reaction. Defeating the Cavs on the road yesterday suggests it's still possible, although 14-7 with many tricky fixtures still remaining will be a tough ask.
The latest on Kawhi returning this season again seems contradictory if you are to believe Pop word for word. I don't see an issue with getting him back in 3 weeks time, playing 10 or so games and then hopefully having him build up through the playoffs if we are successful in progressing.