It was just a season ago that the San Antonio Spurs signed Alonzo Gee with hopes that he’d turn in to a productive back up for Richard Jefferson. Gee didn’t pan, playing only five games with the Spurs before being waived and signing with the Wizards and eventually landing in Cleveland to finish out the year. The Cavs liked him enough that they brought him back for the 2011-2012 season, where Gee has in fact turned in to a productive rotation player for Cleveland.
Gee, along with Cavs head coach Byron Scott sat down with Slam Online for a Q&A. Coach Scott said the part about Gee that stuck out is how hard he worked on his game during the extended off season.
“Just the fact that he’s really worked on his game this summer. We talked a lot about his shot and his footwork. He’s worked on his outside shot a lot this summer. The one gift that he has is that he’s athletic and he plays hard, so it’s not that hard to work with a kid like that,” Scott said. “He wants to be good, so just putting a lot of work on his shot and his footwork has done a world of good. He’s come back with a lot of confidence.”
Scott added that he sees Gee sticking with Cavs for “a while” which is great since Gee has bounced around so much his first couple seasons in the league. In talking about Scott, Gee says Scott has taken a lot of pressure off him and that Coach Scott has given him a ton of confidence.
You’re probably asking yourself whether the Spurs gave up on Gee too soon. I’d say yes, but I’m not sure Gee is any better than any of the Spurs wings they have now. Gee is averaging nine points and just under four rebounds a game. His three point shooting is at 37 percent, which isn’t great, so overall I would say no, the Spurs didn’t give up on him too early. His numbers aren’t even as good as Richard Jefferson’s and wouldn’t another back up just get in the way of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green’s development?
Gee is in the perfect situation. He’s playing for a coach that believes in him on a team that has very low expectations. This will allow him to grow as a player without the pressures of playing for a team contending for a title.
