James Anderson

[Nolan]

I always thought we gave up on him a little early, injuries really held him back early on. He's looked pretty good with the 76ers so far this year and he's only going to get better.

So do you guys think we gave up him too early?

[imagump1313]

Can't say I miss him all that much. Not that I didn't like him, its just guys like him(size and skills) are a dime a dozen in the NBA. I'm glad he's getting time in Philly though, good for him. Hopefully Deshaun Thomas has a bit more potential.

[devindixen]

Same here.

He's had every opportunity to get into the rotation and couldn't take advantage. Instead, it was Danny Green.

My last hope for him when he was a Spur was when it was training camp a couple years back and Tony Parker declared James Anderson to be the best player in camp. Then to start the season, he's getting playing time and was aggresive offensively but wasn't hitting shots. After a while, the misses start to pile up and you just wonder if he's doing things he's not able to do or if he's just in a slump. Got replaced in the rotation and never crack it again.

Personally, I didn't see him in college so I don't know why he's so highly touted when we first drafted him, but in his 3 years in San Antonio, he showed me nothing. Not a shooter. Not a slasher. Not super athletic. Isn't a defense guy. No court vision. Those are important things you must have to be a SG in this league.

Even in Philly, he's had one good game where he scored 36 points and yet, his season average is just 9 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists in 33 minutes. Gary Neal is having a better season.

[Nolan]

Same here.

He's had every opportunity to get into the rotation and couldn't take advantage. Instead, it was Danny Green.

My last hope for him when he was a Spur was when it was training camp a couple years back and Tony Parker declared James Anderson to be the best player in camp. Then to start the season, he's getting playing time and was aggresive offensively but wasn't hitting shots. After a while, the misses start to pile up and you just wonder if he's doing things he's not able to do or if he's just in a slump. Got replaced in the rotation and never crack it again.

Personally, I didn't see him in college so I don't know why he's so highly touted when we first drafted him, but in his 3 years in San Antonio, he showed me nothing. Not a shooter. Not a slasher. Not super athletic. Isn't a defense guy. No court vision. Those are important things you must have to be a SG in this league.

Even in Philly, he's had one good game where he scored 36 points and yet, his season average is just 9 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists in 33 minutes. Gary Neal is having a better season.

I don't know about that i've watched way too many Philly games this year and so far Anderson has been contributing in a lot of different ways. He's really improved as a defender and play maker and his offensive game is a lot smoother now. He's not just a jump shooter anymore.

[marcusaurelius]

I was really impressed before his injury his first year. He hadn't really gotten to practice much because he was coming off an injury in college. For the first 6 or 7 games he was looking really solid all around for a rookie. Given some time (a couple of years or so), I thought he might really be a good player.

Then he gets injured, and never really seemed to come back from it. The Spurs gave him some time, but it just wasn't looking real positive. Personally, I would of signed him to some kind of minimum salary and given him a couple of more years. But I completely understand that the Spurs moved on.

What I don't understand is how they can keep somebody like DeColo on the team for $1.5 million, when they could of kept Anderson for $500k. DeColo has never show me as much as Anderson did in his first 6 games. I just don't get the logic there.

[devindixen]

We didn't have the option to keep James Anderson for 500k. We declined to use our Team Option to give him his 4th year, which cost more than 1 mil. Don't remember exactly the number. By declining the option, it makes him a free agent.

It becomes his decision to go play elsewhere. And I'm sure he wouldn't return here for a paycut. If you're James Anderson, a different opportunity should be what you're looking for, especially after we chose to sign Danny Green and he cemented himself as our starting SG.

Anyway, his play so far with 76ers hasn't really given me a reason to wish he's a Spur. Unless he breaks out into a star, or even a really good role player, don't think he'll ever make me feel like I wish he's here.

[marcusaurelius]

Depending on how much the Spurs would have had to pay him his last year, I would of thought about keeping him. And after that year, sign him for the minimum, if possible. My point is, that I think that he would of been worth a minimum salary (around $500k).

Then, if he had better offers, he could decide between a team that had shown him some loyalty and someone else.

Would I have paid him 1.5 million? No. Too big a risk. But $500k (relative to NBA salaries) isn't that big of a risk. I just don't see the logic in not wanting to spend a little bit on him, but then spending a lot more on Decolo. Decolo has never looked as good as Anderson did in his first 6 games.