The goal of the San Antonio Spurs for the upcoming season is simple and clear: repeat or bust. Most will look to the veterans like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker or even a rising star like Kawhi Leonard to carry the championship hopes, but Cory Joseph is the forgotten piece that will be more valuable that anyone realizes.
One of the biggest advantages that the Spurs hold over their opposition is their bench. The ability to play ten deep is not something most teams and coaches have the privilege of wielding freely, but Gregg Popovich exercises this option with strategic intent. He showed this with his use of Patty Mills last season. Mills’ role expanded as the season went on because of his production and ability to relieve Parker.
With Mills out for at least the first three months of the season, Joseph is next in line to fill Mils’ backup point guard role. While only averaging five points and 1.6 assists last year, Joseph still came up big for the Spurs in stretches. One stretch included the close-out game of last season’s Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. With Parker out due to injury, Joseph started the second half and helped the Spurs outscore the Thunder by 17 points in the third quarter.
Joseph has been patiently waiting in the shadows for the past three seasons, listening and learning from one of the greatest teams in sports history. If San Antonio will have any chance of repeating as champions, Joseph must deliver. Now his time has come and his performance may alter the Spurs’ future as we know it.
Winston Harris is a San Antonio sport writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on twitter @winstonharris34. “Like” him on Facebook and add him on Google.
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