San Antonio Spurs: In defense of LaMarcus Aldridge

The NBA Postseason can be a cruel, unforgiving place for near-max players who don’t live up to expectations. San Antonio Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge is the latest victim, but he doesn’t deserve the hate.

During the San Antonio Spurs’ series against the Memphis Grizzlies and earlier in the Houston Rockets series the national media noticed that Tim Duncan wasn’t playing anymore, and a similarly skilled player named LaMarcus Aldridge wasn’t as good as the Big Fundamental.

The criticism was deafening.

Fortunately, Aldridge submitted much better performances in Games 2-4, despite playing with a knee injury – something that wasn’t often mentioned by critics – and the Spurs won two of those three games. However, it is very possible the criticism comes back, louder than ever, if the Spurs are beaten at home in Game 5.

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Much of the criticism about Aldridge centers around his near-max four-year, $84 million contract, which has only one more guaranteed year on it. There is no doubt his hefty salary – and that of Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and Pau Gasol – has inhibited San Antonio’s ability to build a deep, flexible roster, which was their staple for many championship seasons.

Here is a list of players who were paid similarly to Aldridge in 2015 or 2016 contracts:

Enes Kanter (4-years, $70 million)
Chandler Parsons (4-years, $94 million)
Harrison Barnes (4-years, $94 million)
Joakim Noah (4-years, $72 million)
Kent Bazemore (4-years, $70 million)
Allen Crabbe (4-years, $75 million)
Evan Turner (4-years, $70 million)
Ryan Anderson (4-years, $80 million)
Victor Oladipo (4-years, $84 million)

All of these players are clearly insufficient second options on playoff teams – let alone contenders. Aldridge isn’t that – he just isn’t quite the player the Spurs were hoping he’d be. He hasn’t improved in the ways they’d hoped, but then again he wasn’t necessarily supposed to.

He was 29-going-on-30 when he signed with the Spurs. He has stayed relatively efficient, even though the game has changed and his iso-midrange game has gone out of vogue. He is an underrated passer and defender. The only glaring weakness in his game is that he hasn’t added the three point shot ball, which was on full display against his trigger happy counterpart, Anderson.

The San Antonio Spurs need a better second option, but Aldridge is more than just a role player (like the guys above, who are paid similarly). Fans, owners, and media members need to reevaluate expectations of near-max players, especially in a summer where rapidly aging players like Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Paul Millsap and Kyle Lowry all can potentially earn $200 million or more. If any of those guys is a team’s best player and is eating up cap space, said team probably doesn’t have money for a better second option than someone like LaMarcus Aldridge.

Is signing a 32-year-old Paul Millsap to a potential four-year, $130 million deal truly smarter or more enviable than the deal the Spurs gave a 29-going-on-30 year old Aldridge? One team will surely find out – if Atlanta doesn’t offer him a five-year max.

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Aldridge is a victim of his salary, but he is a very good role player and secondary – if not second – option. Teams considering paying non-First Team All-NBA players this summer may well end up creating the next LaMarcus Aldridge. His name may be Paul Millsap, Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Kyle Lowry, Serge Ibaka, or Isaiah Thomas.