Who needs tickets?

Spurs add gritty defender who can guard big bodies and seem poised for title run

So the San Antonio Spurs finally did it, they gave in to the pressure and made a trade to get bigger and be better suited to face centers Pau Gasol of the L.A Lakers and Shaquille O’neal of the Phoenix Suns. This was a no-brainer. It was obvious that the Spurs had to do something no matter how confident they were about their actual roster. They didn’t have many holes in their team but they just could not stand still as they kept seeing their biggest opponents grow larger each day.

First the Lakers acquired Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies. Less than a week later, the Suns countered by landing O’Neal from the Miami Heat. Not to be left behind, the Dallas Mavericks grabbed all-star point guard Jason Kidd from the New Jersey Nets for five players and two first-round draft picks.

So now, it was the Spurs’ turn. In the deal San Antonio acquired veteran forward Kurt Thomas from the Seattle SuperSonics on Wednesday night for guard Brent Barry, center Francisco Elson and a 2009 first-round draft pick.

Despite the loss of sharpshooter Brent Barry I think this will benefit the Spurs and now they will be better prepared to face whatever the wild Western Conference throws at them and here’s why:

The Spurs picked up Damon Stoudamire, so Barry’s playing time was already going to be cut. Similar to Barry, Stoudamire can hit three pointers even thought he isn’t as pure of a shooter as Barry was. Furthermore with the way Manu Ginobili has been playing lately Barry was expendable. And remember that Barry, who is averaging 7.3 points in 29 games for the Spurs this season, has been sidelined for more than three weeks with a calf injury.

As for Thomas, well in short he’s a big upgrade over Elson (as long as he stays healthy). Thomas not only is capable scoring 10 to 12 points in a game but he gives the Spurs a rebounding presence whose ability to hit the 10-15 foot jumper can draw opponent’s big men away from the basket. The Spurs also get in Thomas a proven veteran with playoff experience who can play valuable minutes either behind Duncan or in the same line-up.

Thomas helps beef up that front line for the playoffs because he is a crafty big man who can defend the some of best big guys out there, giving Duncan even more room to operate. He can guard guys like Gasol as he’s one of those guys who can play bigger than his size and this will free up Duncan on the offensive end.

Thomas may not be that caliber of a player but he is a better defender and better on offense than Elson. His presence helps negate the effect of the Gasol and Shaq trades as he gives the Spurs another gritty defender who can guard those two and yet another body that can outmatch Eric Dampier in Dallas. In fact the Mavericks now urgently need to grab another quality big guy if they want to contend with Kidd in their lineup.

If there’s something that this trade frenzy has taught us is that if you want to just survive this gruesome race for the Western Conference’s top seed any time that you get the opportunity to grab an above average big man you take it, and Thomas fits that definition. He’s a good all-around player that can do anything you need him to. He can score, he can defend, he can rebound and he also can score a little.

Besides, Elson and Barry have expiring contracts that combined with the trade exception money left from the trades involving Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, should give the Sonics flexibility under the salary cap. Seattle got what they wanted in that and the first-round draft pick and the Spurs added another talented big man who due to his desire to win an NBA title will fit into the team philosophy without creating distractions.

The only part of this deal that I didn’t like was the Spurs giving up their 2009 first-round pick because the Spurs tend to do very well with those late, first-round picks, but strategically there’s no doubt that this is a solid addition for the Spurs.

Since they are the defending NBA World Champions and until they are knocked off, San Antonio continues to be the team to beat in the West. Now that they have no significant holes they are set for a run at its second straight title.