According to the San Antonio Express-News, San Antonio Spurs’ coach Gregg Popovich may stick to his preseason lineup once the regular season comes around.
Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Richard Jefferson, Tim Duncan and DeJuan Blair have made up the starting core through the first three preseason games.
“I want to give it a look and see how I feel about it,” Popovich said before the Spurs’ victory over the Los Angeles Clippers at Palacio de los Deportes. “I might make a different lineup for a couple of games, or I might leave it the same if I like it. It’s a little early to say, but I like what I’ve seen so far.”
The most significant moving part is not likely to be Ginobili, a former NBA Sixth Man of the Year, but Blair, a 6-foot-7 second-year center.
Popovich was hesitant to pair Blair with Duncan at times last season, preferring to play his All-Star power forward with big men who can spread the floor.
I don’t doubt that Popovich will try to move Ginobili back on the bench sometime this season to give his second unit another go-to scorer, and while Tiago Splitter could shake things up when healthy, it’s hard to argue against Blair in the starting lineup.
Through three games, Blair is averaging 15.3 points and seven rebounds per game.
