FanHouse JacqueVaughn

Crystal Ballin' takes a team-by-team look at what should, could, and probably will happen in the June 26th NBA Draft.

San Antonio has a solid foundation with Tim Duncan and Tony Parker, but for the most part, the rest of their roster has gotten very old all of a sudden. That's what happens I guess when you've been competing for titles for the last nine years. It would be great for the team to get some young talent who could step in and contribute right away, and for years to come as well.

Picks: #26, #45, #57.

Needs: Interior defense and rebounding, and someone who can spell Parker at the point guard spot.

Best case scenario: Mario Chalmers is still on the board, because he's experienced and could probably get some of those Jacque Vaughn minutes fairly early in the season.

In another of our continuing series, five things to keep an eye out for tonight in the Spurs-Suns game today.


1. This Ain't Baseball: 3-0 is fine in baseball. It's got the capability to wrestle momentum in a single inning. It's got a much more random set of variables. In basketball, it comes down to matchups. Your five guys versus my five guys. And the Spurs five guys have been phenomenally better than the Suns' five guys in this series. There's a reason the 3-0 deficit is considered a death knell. The question today is simply how much pride this Phoenix team has. While it might be better to end the Suns' fans misery and get the San Antonio Spurs' slow killfest off of national television, to get swept in the first round would be pretty embarrassing for a team that was supposed to contend for a title. Of course, losing 4-1 won't be much more dignified.

2. Which One Goes Off: Game 1: Tim Duncan. Game 2: Manu Ginobili. Game 3: Tony Parker. How about Game 4: Fabricio Oberto? Or Bruce Bowen? Which player for the Spurs are the Suns going to let torch them this time? The Suns have been completely unable to do anything defensively, and now they're turning on their coach. Shaquille O'Neal can't defend Parker's speed or Duncan's range. Nash can't keep up with Parker and can't rotate effectively to cover the shooters. And Amare always seems to make the wrong decision in key situations. That's to say nothing of the offensive and defensive liabilities that are Leandro Barbosa and Boris Diaw, despite their pleasant boxscore. Maybe it's Jacque Vaughn day in Phoenix.

After watching his point guard play with a painful bone spur in his left heel for the past several weeks, Gregg Popovich finally decided to give Tony Parker some rest. How much rest? At the very least a couple of games, but if he's as serious about getting his team healthy for the playoffs as he says he is, Parker could end up missing a couple of weeks, if not more.

Fortunately the Spurs have a capable backup in Jacque Vaughn who's clearly chomping at the bit for more playing time ...

Popovich informed Vaughn that he was starting for the fifth time this season, just as the 11th-year veteran was coming back into the locker room.

Vaughn stood in the doorway of the locker room with a stunned look on his face and finally said, "Uh ... OK."

Yikes, that doesn't instill much confidence, does it? As it is, Vaughn has already seen much more action lately than anticipated due to Brent Barry's injury, and his performance in Tuesday's loss to the Sonics (four points and four assists in 37 minutes) in place of Parker suggests the Spurs will be stuck if they can't get help soon ... preferably in the form of free-agent-to-be Damon Stoudamire.

According to ESPN's Chris Sheridan, Popovich was scheduled to speak with Stoudamire on Tuesday on evening. Stoudamire was also expected to talk with Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, the Raptors are believed to be interested and of course there's the persistent Boston rumors that even his family is starting to believe, but if immediate playing time on a legitimate contender is Stoudamire's primary concern, the Spurs certainly seem to have the leg up.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a rundown of last night's NBA action from a fantasy basketball perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.
Cup of Coffee
So you know, the third leading scorer in the National Basketball Association was Chris Quinn. And so you know that I know, yes the headline has probably already been used once or twice. But whatevah. Quinn's 22 points off the bench -- the return of Jason Williams prompted his removal from the starting lineup -- are fairly interesting. For one, the Heat suck. Shaquille O'Neal got dominated by Brendan Haywood. (Roll that one around in your brain this morning. It hurts.) So they need scoring. Quinn connected on six of 10 three's against the Wizards, and with Dorell Wright playing the Jekyll-Hyde role (his box scores are like roller coasters), one has to wonder how long Pat Riley is going to let this squad stay on the floor without a true perimeter gunner in the mold of Jason Kapono from last season. In admittedly little time, Quinn's hit 35 percent from beyond the arc since coming into the NBA, so don't be surprised if he gets more run as Riles tries to rest J-Dub and find another source for scoring.

Hot Cakes
I suppose I really shouldn't make fun of Haywood -- he is having a career season so far in 2007-08. Last night marked his ninth double-double of the season, and with Etan Thomas out of DC, he's finally getting the run he needed to actually gain some legitimate fantasy value. Yes, he's always been proficient at picking up blocks, but it seems like his one-trick pony show could be a thing of the past. 10 points and seven boards aren't exactly Chamberlinian numbers or anything, but they're a vast improvement from the Brendan of old. Just another reason to hate Carolina. Don't be afraid of picking up on the chance these numbers bottom out.

Tony Parker, who, um, has some other things going on right now, missed last night's game. With Tim Duncan already on the shelf, things got ugly for the Spurs. First of all, Jacque Vaughn ran the point. Into the ground. For about 20 minutes. Vaughn will get some assist numbers but unless Parker misses more time than Timmy, he's not going to be worth much in fantasy. Deeper leagues certainly want to make the add though, as the Spurs have indicated Parker could miss more than one game.

The bigger concern though, is Manu's play. He's been superb this year and that won't quit ... providing he's not the number one (and only) option for offense on his team. If he's forced into ball handling duties, has to become the primary offense threat and play 40 minutes a night, things are going to get ugly for fantasy owners and the defending champs. Yes, the points will (maybe) rise, but so will the turnovers, while the percentages plummet. If you're treading the line there, now's a nice time to sell Manu with his value so high.