Can Kawhi Leonard and the Spurs get past the Warriors and win the title? What moves do they need to make?
Our NBA Insiders preview San Antonio's 2016-17 season.
1. What's your take on the Spurs' offseason?
Amin Elhassan, ESPN Insider: They did the best they could do under the circumstances and managed to bring talent in the door, but my concern is an overall erosion of Spurs culture over the last few seasons.
Part of what allowed San Antonio to remain consistent was the strength of its culture and its ability to bring in guys who exemplified and continued it, limiting "non-Spurs guys" to a couple a season. Looking at the roster now, it feels like the outliers outweigh the old guard.
Rome didn't fall in a day, folks.
Michael C. Wright, ESPN.com: None of the moves San Antonio made in the offseason could offset the loss of Tim Duncan. And the Spurs were never truly in the mix to land Kevin Durant, as Pau Gasol was this team's prime target all along. San Antonio managed to land Gasol, who provides an upgrade offensively over Duncan, but the team also added athletic bigs such as Dewayne Dedmon and David Lee to bring depth and help on defense.
Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN.com: Sensible. Skeptics might point to Gasol and David Lee as potential flies in the ointment of San Antonio's vaunted defense, but the Spurs have a long history of absorbing imperfect players and maximizing their strengths.
Jeremias Engelmann, ESPN Insider: The departures of Duncan and David West were probably unavoidable but obviously hurt. The trade of Boris Diaw for Olivier Hanlan (and cap space) has me baffled; the Spurs definitely could have used Diaw. I'm not a big fan of David Lee, but I definitely like the signing of Gasol, even if he's already 36.
Kevin Pelton, ESPN Insider: They did what they could to offset the loss of Duncan. Realistically speaking, Gasol was the best replacement for Duncan they were going to get, and I like the addition of Dedmon to give them a more athletic roll man and rim protector. Still, this Spurs team is worse defensively and far less deep than its recent predecessors.
2. What is the biggest issue facing the Spurs this season?
Wright: The Spurs lost three of their four rotation bigs, not to mention promising youngster Boban Marjanovic. But the most pressing issue this season is the same one that knocked the Spurs out of the postseason in 2015-16, and that's the bench. Just two players -- Manu Ginobili and Patty Mills -- off last season's second unit return, and while the acquisitions of Dedmon and Lee look good on paper, it's unknown how they'll fare in their new surroundings in San Antonio. Lee is the only bench big with significant experience.
Elhassan: Can they maintain the culture of selflessness without so many of their mainstays, most notably Tim Duncan? This might be the first year in a long time we see the ball stick on offense and defensive rotations lapses for the silver and black.
Arnovitz: The usual: The potential that the burdens of age will finally catch up with the Spurs. We witnessed how San Antonio's athletic deficiencies hurt the team last spring. Is it possible that that could manifest itself over the course of an 82-game season? Those who have bet the "yes" in recent years have lost.
Engelmann: I'm concerned about their age and their depth at the 4 and 5. After the departure of four big men, the Spurs are left with replacements like 33-year-old David Lee and journeyman DeWayne Dedmon, who has never played 900 minutes in a season. Gasol can't play 38 minutes per night anymore.
Pelton: Their ability to match up with the Warriors. If San Antonio is to get back to the NBA Finals, it will almost certainly require beating Golden State, and the Spurs looked hard-pressed to do so last season. Perhaps Gasol and LaMarcus Aldridge can create enough problems in the post to allow San Antonio to play big against the Death Lineup, but I'm not confident in that.
3. What's the biggest source of hope for the Spurs this season?
Wright: The fact the Spurs' roster contains two marquee players in their prime in Leonard and Aldridge should help the Spurs net at least 50 wins, and the plan is to ride both as point guard Tony Parker is now being asked to be more of a facilitator than a scorer.
For several years, the Spurs have viewed Gasol as a perfect fit, and although he's a downgrade on defense from Duncan, he'll provide more offensive firepower than the team had in Duncan's last two seasons.
Elhassan: Watching Leonard's growth offensively over the last two seasons has been refreshing, and it is intriguing to try to imagine how much more his game will grow now that he's so clearly the face of the franchise.
To a much lesser extent, I'm excited to see what Kyle Anderson will do with more minutes. Pop has already alluded to the fact they'll lean more heavily on him and Jonathan Simmons.
Pelton: Their infrastructure and history of developing quality role players. They're going to have to do that this season with so many bench mainstays elsewhere. If young players like Jonathon Simmons and Kyle Anderson step up, Gregg Popovich will have a lot more options come the postseason.
Engelmann: Advanced metrics attributed a negative offensive impact to Duncan last season (though a positive defensive impact). With Gasol in his place, there's a chance we'll see a more fluid offensive style again, which should lead to easier shots and improved offensive efficiency.
Arnovitz: There's great power in continuity in the NBA, and no team has refined its system more effectively than San Antonio. Whatever flaws they have on the roster, the Spurs are able to press play every season en route to a ton of wins.
4. What trade would make the most sense for the Spurs?
Wright: Well, blame colleague Zach Lowe for this thought, but he's absolutely correct in saying the Spurs should consider moving Aldridge if the team fails for the third consecutive season to make it to the conference finals. Aldridge is six years older than Leonard, and at age 31, his trade value will probably be as high as it will ever be after this season. That would allow the Spurs to snatch up multiple young players that line up closer to Leonard's timetable.
Arnovitz: There's nothing obvious on the board. They clearly have assets other teams would covet -- Danny Green as one example -- but the Spurs also don't have a lot of expendable players.
Engelmann: I see Tony Parker as the weakest link, by far, in the Spurs' starting lineup. It would probably never happen, but if they could trade him to a team looking for "star power" and get a decent point guard or big man in return, that'd be great. As for trade targets, I'd like to see them go after Ricky Rubio or Goran Dragic.
Elhassan: San Antonio is in a tough spot. On one hand the Spurs are a highly competitive, well-coached team with a young superstar (Leonard) and a secondary star who is in his prime (Aldridge). On the other hand, I feel like a massive roster overhaul is maybe a matter of months away. Point guard is probably the first area of concern in terms of finding an heir apparent.
Pelton: The challenge for the Spurs in making a midseason trade will be matching salary. I could see San Antonio making a move for another wing -- say, Kyle Korver or Thabo Sefolosha if the Atlanta Hawks struggle and decide to move their expiring contracts -- but the Spurs would have a hard time putting together enough salary to take on Korver without giving up a key rotation player.
5. Fact or Fiction: The Spurs are a championship contender.
Elhassan: I'm going to say fiction. I think they will have a top-three record in the West, and I think they'll be a tough out in the playoffs, but I don't see this team as championship-caliber anymore. The picture of Dorian Gray no longer ages in the rafters of the AT&T Center, as it looks like the Spurs are going to have to face a reality they successfully avoided for two decades: What's next.
Arnovitz: Fact. When the Spurs are clicking on all cylinders, they're still the league's best-oiled machine -- one that can solve problems in a seven-game series with surgical precision. Know any teams that want to draw that in May?
Wright: Fact. Although the Spurs are still reeling from the loss of Duncan, internally the club believes it can be even better than it was last season.
San Antonio views Gasol as a perfect fit largely because of his passing ability, which should open up scoring for Leonard and Aldridge. Too many times in the playoffs last season, the Spurs needed a bucket they couldn't get because Oklahoma City found ways to shut down Leonard and Aldridge. Gasol gives San Antonio a legitimate No. 3 scoring option similar to Parker in his ability to facilitate for teammates.
Engelmann: Fact. The Spurs are the second-best team in the league. Although the Warriors are projected to be dominant, the Spurs' chances of winning the title are still decent. Part of that is other Western Conference teams -- particularly Houston, Oklahoma City and Memphis -- taking a step back in recent years.
Pelton: Fact. We're still seven months removed from the Spurs having a superior point differential to the Warriors and being in the mix for the top seed in the Western Conference, so despite Duncan's retirement and the other defections, I think they have to be considered contenders.