Spurred (no pun intended) by the Full-Court Press blog over at MLive, we pose the following question (first presented by Hoopsworld):
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Ben Wallace for Manu Ginobili and Rasho Nesterovic, would you do it?
You all know how Matt and I feel about Ginobili, but even we have to admit that our blind hatred of Balki is more due to his dogged determination and frequent flops (which remind us a former Piston or two). And Manu’s perpetual motion certainly fits the “Goin’ to work” persona of the current squad.
So, if Spurs fans have really turned on Ginobili to the point that they’re ready to start anew without him, would Detroit fans accept him as a member of the Boys in Blue? And what, if anything, does that do to the starting lineup? Could a rotation of Rip, Ginobili, and Prince offer enough minutes to placate whoever was forced to play the role of sixth man (like Stack does for the Mavs)?
Again, this is more hypothetical than rumor, as Full Court Press was very quick to point out, but it is an interesting thought nonetheless. (Besides, discussion of this sort allows us to pretend that the whole “Dwyane Wade and Shaq winning a title” thing isn’t really happening.)
I though of this too!!!!!!!!! Although we might have to shell off another player such as Mo Evans or Delfino though… Oh and while theyre at it, why not throw Barry in as well??? hehe
Obviously, no way this would happen but…
32 minutes each for Billups, Hamilton, Prince and Ginobli would be something to see. Not sure all of them would be happy with it though.
On the Spurs side, that would be a fearsome defensive frontcourt with Bowen, Duncan and Wallace. But, the Spurs would be silly to break up their Parker-Ginobli-Duncan core which basically makes them contenders for the next five years.
Oh, and regarding the finals… They say that one play can change a series? I submit the play in closing minutes of Game Three where Shaq shoved aside Dampier got the rebound and got fouled. Shaq inexplicably made both free throws.
If they had called that foul, I’m pretty sure Dallas pulls out that win and we’re looking at a sweep.
even worse than that play in game 3…is the game tying shot last night with Wade driving the baseline, dipping his shoulder into Griffin and knocking him down before burying the easy jumper off the glass..
even he admitted that he had to “give him a bump to get some space” (his words at the postgame interview)..funny
and no…Balki doesn’t fit into our offensive scheme at all…where would Tay play? Balki isn’t our answer as Billups’ replacement either…
I would not be able to be a pistons fan if manu came. I would have to wait for him to leave for me to be able to watch again. I still think delfino can be that 7th man(6th obviously dice).
Sleeping with the enemy is preferable to sleeping with family… erm…..
This probably won’t happen, but the boys at Hoopsworld are properly credentialed with the Texas teams, so when they report a Mavs/Spurs/Rockets rumour, you can usually book it as factual.
Ginobili is a very capable combo guard. I could see him backing up Hamilton and Billups, at both positions in much the same way McDyess backs up Ben and Sheed. People may not like him, but Manu’s got 2 rings, which last time I counted was at least 1 more than any Piston not named Lindsey Hunter.
Not to mention that Manu is in his prime and signed to an affordable deal.
Rasho? Decent shotblocker, can be a good rebounder, lousy scorer.
Rasho is just lousy in general. If you want to have an ineffective center, a guy who just gets penciled into the 5 spot because he’s 7 feet tall, then he’s your guy. As far as Manu, the “talent” of the package, he’s a soccer flopper who’s consistency and health were a complete crapshoot last season. And I don’t think there’s room for him. We’re looking for players who can reduce the backcourt and Tay’s minutes by maybe 5-7 a game, if that. Would you really make a deal for Balki if he’s only playing 15-20 minutes a night? I would only want to give up Ben for a package where the talent would be filling in the 4 or 5 position. Like for Jermaine O’Neal or Kevin Garnett. And since none of those deals are going to happen, let’s just sign BODY!
So you wouldn’t want a championship caliber SG coming off the bench or relieving a starter?
I wouldn’t be so quick to assume the Pistons core will stay healthy and play every game indefinitely. This team has a serious talent deficit on the bench. Dallas and San Antonio are proof that you can win with pseudo starters coming off the pine.
I would be happy to have Manu coming off the bench. I just wouldn’t give up my 4-time DPOTY to make it happen.
Thanks to the Toronto Raptors, I guess I don’t have to worry about this deal coming to fruition. Whew.
Bringing in Manu probably means trading Rip or Prince. Depending on what we get in other trades, it’s wise. Manu brings energy and penetration, and those are both things the Pistons need badly.
ok, forget about rasho, he just got punk’d. hehe
Ginobli is a Flopper. Just saying.