Buck Harvey: Manu's big error? Spurs see that now Web Posted: 05/24/2006 12:00 AM CDT San Antonio Express-News Don't blame Manu Ginobili for one play. Blame him for something bigger. Blame him for being too good. Blame him for raising the price of the next Manu. When the Spurs try to figure out what to do with Luis Scola, who looks to be everything Ginobili was, they stop partly because of one factor. Ginobili's success has made everything stickier. This wasn't an issue four years ago when the Spurs faced similar questions. In 2002 they also lost in the second round, and then some thought they weren't athletic enough. That's because they weren't. They didn't have many options that summer, just as they don't have many now. Then came the change. The Spurs brought over an Argentine who had been playing in Europe. Yeah, that was some mistake. Two titles later ? as well as a few thousand No. 20 jerseys sold ? Ginobili ranks among the best Spurs in franchise history. He will recover from Game 7, as will his franchise. The Spurs have enough to compete next season with the core that returns, although the Spurs might not win 63 games again in the regular season. The Clippers, after all, are young and improving. The Rockets will be better with Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady healthy. Amare Stoudemire will come back. And the Mavericks are just beginning their run. But Tim Duncan proved, with the best playoff series of his career, he's not exactly fading away. As long as he's on this level ? and this should go a minimum of another three years ? the Spurs will be among the elite. Still, the Spurs need a lift, and the same was true in 2002. That's when Ginobili, mostly unknown in the United States but considered the best player in Europe, agreed to play for a bargain price of $1.5 million. Why? At the time few understood the gold-medal power of the Argentines, and another example came in the draft that same year. Then the Spurs went back to their South American well and took the second-best player from Argentina, Scola. The Spurs thought enough of Scola to consider drafting him with their first-round selection, at No. 26. They instead traded the pick for Speedy Claxton. A full round later, with Ginobili not yet revealing what was possible, Scola was still available. The Spurs took him at No. 56 as they had once taken Ginobili at No. 57. Scola is about as old as Ginobili was in 2002, but they are opposites in style. Scola is a 6-foot-9 post player, and that's a negative for the Spurs. He plays, basically, Duncan's position. He doesn't spread the floor, either, which means he might have gotten Rasho-Nazr time in the Dallas series. Scola hasn't made a 3-pointer in 25 games in Europe this season. That's why, ultimately, the Spurs will consider trading Scola's rights for someone who fits better. But there's another side to Scola. He plays with Ginobili's spirit. Gregg Popovich defended Ginobili on Tuesday, though he really didn't have to. Most in San Antonio understand what Ginobili has meant to this franchise. But Popovich insisted, and he eventually came up with a phrase deserving of a plaque and a ceremonial presentation. Ginobili, Popovich said, is the "Stud of the world." That would make Scola the junior stud. He's a bull, banging and scoring with both intelligence and determination. That's why he ranks among the top five players in Europe, culminating with him being named to the All-Euroleague team. How this translates to the NBA: His Spanish teammate, a Brazilian named Tiago Splitter, is not as good right now, and Splitter will be an NBA lottery pick. So why not add lottery talent to a locker room that needs it? Why not sub Scola when Duncan sits, and sometimes combine them to punish some teams inside? The Spurs would do it today for Ginobili's old salary. But after what Ginobili has done, after everyone fully understands what the European leagues can produce, the price will be up to as much as $4million a year. That's a lot to pay someone who might not get many minutes. So the Spurs hesitate on the kind of talent that changed them in 2002. Why? It's clear whom to blame.
