Richard Jefferson is a man on a mission.

After agreeing to a restructured deal with the San Antonio Spurs in the offseason, he dedicated his time over the summer to work and improve his game.

Four games into his second season with the Spurs and it seems Jefferson's offseason regimen is paying off. He currently leads the team in scoring at 20 points per game, and is shooting 65.9 percent from the field, including 53.3% from behind the three-point line.

If there is any doubt he has regained his old form, his performance against the Phoenix Suns could keep skeptics on hold. Jefferson scored 28 points, made all of his six shot attempts in the final quarter, including four 3-pointers that turned the game into the Spurs' favor. The result was a thrilling finish with the Spurs winning it 112-110 in Phoenix.

When Jefferson arrived in San Antonio a year ago, the Spurs and their fans had high hopes and expectations for the team. However, Jefferson was inconsistent during his first year with the Spurs and finished the season averaging 12.3 points per game. His lowest scoring average since his rookie year.

However, with one year under his belt with the Spurs' complex system, Jefferson appears to have exorcised the ghosts which haunted him in his previous season with San Antonio. Last year, Jefferson looked hesitant and at times seemed lost on the floor. This season he looked more confident, focused and aggressive. And he knows when and where to pick his spots.

He chose to stay with the Spurs, improved his game and is trying to prove his doubters wrong.

It's still early in the season, four games are too few to tell how will Jefferson's sophomore year as a Spur will end up. Nonetheless it has been a good start and if his early rebound continues, then the Spurs will be a tougher team to beat in the NBA.

Former San Antonio Spurs center Fabricio Oberto has announced he will retire from the NBA due to health issues:

Portland Trail Blazers center Fabricio Oberto has announced his retirement from basketball due to recurrent palpitations stemming from a prior cardiac condition.

"I made this decision to put my health and my family in front of basketball," Oberto said. "It was a tough decision to make after playing for so many years, but it was the right one."

Oberto was signed by the Portland Trail Blazers this season but was suffering from dizziness during a game against the Milwaukee Bucks which prompted his decision.

He was a member of the Spurs 2007 team which won an NBA title against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

From a Spurs fans point of view he will be missed on the court. He brought the energy, the never-give-up attitude and not to mention the funny dance he did in San Antonio's Alamodome in celebration of the Spurs 2007 NBA title.

We here at Project Spurs had the pleasure to interview Oberto this offseason. He spoke about his cardiac condition and was looking forward to playing this season.

To listen to the interview we did with Oberto click HERE.

Editors Note: The following interview was done by Mikkayla Guillett, staff-writer for Toros Nation a Project Spurs site.

By Mikkayla Guillett

Austin Toros (the San Antonio Spurs D-League affiliate) veteran Cardell ‘Squeaky’ Johnson is set to join new head coach Brad Jones and first round pick Dominique Archie at training camp on November 9. Drafted in the second round of the 2007 NBA D-League draft, Johnson continues to be a solid sixth man off the bench.

His work ethic and love for the game is displayed season after season.
“We’re excited to have Squeaky back for his fourth season,” said Peter Lubell, Austin Toros Chief Operating Officer. “He’s led us to numerous wins in Toros history.”

One of those wins includes last season’s game three of the first round of the playoffs. Johnson propelled the Toros in to the second round with a season high 19 points off the bench. His ability to connect from 3-point land (4-of-6) and his eight rebounds earned him Adidas player of the game.

With numerous displays of his ability to help the team when needed, one would hope that this is the year for Squeaky to earn his first Gatorade Call Up.

“I want to continue to get better,” said Squeaky. “Let those things (call ups) take care of themselves.”

Instead of worrying about stats and when he will receive a call from an NBA team Squeaky does his part to help the Toros organization in any aspect he can. From taking it upon himself to inform Austinities about the Toros on his free time to volunteering in numerous community events, Squeaky does it all.

“I love getting out and meeting new people. I especially love the food drives because they really appreciate us.”

Speaking of appreciation I think it’s necessary that we take a minute to discuss Squeaky’s hair. If you have yet to see it in person you are missing out and need to catch a game this season at the Cedar Park Center. The New Orleans native has not cut his hair since 2001. no comments

It was the kind of game expected between the San Antonio Spurs and the Phoenix Suns -- a down-the-wire finish. With a big game from Richard Jefferson, the Spurs (3-1) came out with a 112-110 victory over the slumping Suns (1-3) and make it two-in-a-row on the road.

The Spurs hit some big shots down the stretch to win this game. Now, let's check some of the stats on how the Spurs got this one.

54.5 - The Spurs shot the ball well, making 42-77 (54.5%) attempts from the floor, including 11-13 from Tim Duncan.

44.6 - For the second straight game, the Spurs have held their opponents below 50% shooting from the field. The Suns converted 41-92 (44.6%) of their shots for the game.

42.9 - The Spurs missed nine of their first ten 3-point attempts before making their last five. They finished the game converting 6-14 (42.9%) of their shots from behind the arc. The Suns connected on 8-21 (38.1%) from the three point area.

45 - With George Hill out with an injury, the Suns' bench torched the Spurs' reserves 45-26, with Hakim Warrick scoring 19 .However, the Spurs won the rebounding battle, 45-40. With 17 boards coming from Duncan.

25 - Duncan had a great all-around game as he scored 25 points, grabbed 17 rebounds, blocked three shots and dished out two assists. Duncan also became second in scoring in franchise history by surpassing George Gervins' 20,708 point total and is right on the heels of Spurs' legend David Robinson.

23 - The Spurs were sloppy in this game and it nearly cost them. They had 23 turnovers compared to the Suns' 13.

21 - Jason Richardson led the Phoenix Suns with 21 points and 3 rebounds.

6 - Jefferson was 6-6 from the floor in the fourth quarter and made all six free throws for the game, he had a game-high 28 points. The Spurs also held Suns' starting forward Hedo Turkoglu to just 6 points.

4 - Jefferson hit 4 fourth quarter three-pointers including the go-ahead basket with 1:38 remaining in the game. DeJuan Blair also has 4 points and seven rebounds for the game.

Rookie Watch: Tiago Splitter looked more comfortable on the floor on his second game, he had 7 points and 3 rebounds in 15 minutes of action. James Anderson is steady off the bench, he had 6 points and 3 assists, with two of those resulting into a Jefferson three-pointer in the final period. Gary Neal only played 7 minutes but had two points and a steal.

What's Next? The Spurs will try to extend their winning streak to three when they face the Houston Rockets in San Antonio on Saturday.

Official press release:

SAN ANTONIO, (Nov. 3, 2010) - Spurs guard George Hill will not play tonight at Phoenix. Hill is suffering from muscle spasms in his right trapezius after being fouled by Craig Smith in the second quarter of the Spurs 97-88 win over the L.A. Clippers on Nov. 1. Smith received a flagrant foul 2 and was subsequently ejected from the game.

Hill is “feeling better” but the San Antonio Spurs, to no one’s surprise, have decided to err on the side of caution. Jeff McDonald reports Hill was thinking as if it would be a game-time decision, but the Spurs nipped that in the bud just moments later – no need to risk anything lingering for the fourth game of the season.

What can’t help but linger are the images seared into the mind of this Spurs fan from the last time the Suns were the opponent. San Antonio looked old, beaten down and out of gas, as the Phoenix Suns ran pick-and-roll after pick-and-roll to the success of 4-0.

Nash and Dragic broke containment time after time and Hill was taken advantage of it seemed just as often. After having what was a break-out series against the Mavericks, Hill had almost as equally a disappointing series against the Suns – his redemption and-or ability to put Spurs’ fans minds at ease after an off-season of improvement will haveto wait for another day; though his second-half defensive performance against Chris Paul in the Spurs’ 90-99 loss the Hornets gave some reason for optimism.

What will be on display is if the Spurs have made any strides with regards to their frontcourt against the Suns small-ball attack. Because if Nash and Dragic weren’t the first image seared into your mind as a Spurs fan, all of the switching and 3-point shots or jumpers that followed certainly were – Duncan’s deterioration in mobility allowed him to be taken advantage of more than at maybe anytime in his stellar career (See: Hill, Grant). It should be interesting to see if the Spurs can take advantage of the Suns’ penchant for spreading the court with smaller players and if they can match up when it’s mandatory they go small; can the Spurs buy some time with Simmons at the 4?

An early-season outing and not too important in the grand scheme of things, but tonight’s game should provide for decent gauge of the newcomers and their ability to help the cause and address last year’s shortcomings – with Splitter, Anderson and Neal, two of the biggest areas of concern (pick-and-roll defense and 3-point shooting) are at least looking as if they’ve an opportunity for solid improvement.

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It was the take-down talked about by San Antonio Spurs fans -- Los Angeles Clippers' Craig Smith hard foul on Spurs' guard George Hill of the second quarter in the Spurs win over the Clippers this past Monday.

Smith was ejected and assessed a Flagrant-2 foul while Hill sat out the game with a bruised back and a bout of whiplash. He is now questionable for tonight's game against the Phoenix Suns.

However, Smith will attempt to appeal the flagrant- foul:

Just going to go out on a limb but with Smith grabbing Hill mid-air around the face/neck area, pulling him down to the court which sent Hill into a camerman and then slapping hands with fans as he exited out off the floor probably won't be in his favor.

It was a dirty foul. Plain and simple. Even Tony Parker called it dirty.

I doubt he will win this appeal.

After suffering a four game sweep at the hands of the Phoenix Suns in last year's playoffs, one area of concern for the San Antonio Spurs was consistent, reliable perimeter shooting.

Enter Gary Neal.

When the Spurs signed him many Spurs fans pondered "Who is this guy?" Some of you might have asked that question during the San Antonio Spurs game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Well, Neal played for Towson in college, went undrafted in 2007 and has spent the last several years playing overseas. He had a productive season in Italy and the Eurocup before coming to San Antonio

Neal had an outstanding 2010 Summer League performance in Las Vegas which earned him a 3-year guaranteed contract with the Spurs starting at $ 525,000. Although he was regarded as one of the top recruits overseas, his rookie debut did not come with any hype. He only played one minute and grabbed one offensive rebound in the Spurs' season opener against the Indiana Pacers.

However, with more playing time, Neal proved to be a dependable player that plays hard on both ends of the floor. Against the New Orleans Hornets, he was part of group that nearly completed a fourth quarter comeback. He scored eight points, had two rebounds and two assists while shooting 50% from the field in the teams' first season lost.

When George Hill was injured against the Clippers, Neal took advantage and provided the Spurs an instant offensive spark off the bench. His final stat-line for the night was 16 points, six rebounds and two assists. He also shot 6-10 (60%) from the field and 4-8 (50%) from behind the arc as he helped the Spurs to victory and overshadowed Tiago Splitter's NBA debut.

It's just three games, but Neal has shown confidence and he proves to be a savvy player too for an unconventional rookie. Let's not forget he has played professionally overseas.

His greatest asset is his willingness to take the open shot. He is definitely a tremendous catch- and-shoot threat from three-point area. If Neal keeps playing this way, the Spurs might have found another "gem" and it could very well make their bench a lot deeper than most people expected.

If the Spurs wanted to address perimeter shooting, seems as if they found the right person.

The San Antonio Spurs will continue their road trip as they visit the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Center. The Suns swept the Spurs in last seasons' Western Conference semifinals matchup, so expect the Spurs to play hard and try to get some payback.

The Suns (1-2) are coming off a 114-106 loss against the Los Angeles Lakers while the Spurs (2-1) won their last game against the Los Angeles Clippers 97-88.

The Spurs might face the Suns without George Hill who suffered an injury after receiving a hard foul from Clippers' Craig Smith. If Hill cannot play, Gary Neal and James Anderson could see more playing time. It would be interesting to see if Tiago Splitter will get more action in this game.

The Suns will meet the Spurs for the first time since Amar'e Stoudemire signed with the New York Knicks, but they will have some frontcourt help from their newcomers Hedo Turkoglu and Hakim Warrick.

Keep an eye out on Tim Duncan. He could leave Phoenix as the second leading scorer in Spurs' history. Duncan is 23 points shy of matching George Gervin's total of 20,708 for second in franchise history.

KEYS TO THE GAME

SPURS:

Offense -- Against the Suns' thin frontline, Duncan could have a great game. Also, the Spurs are sharing the ball well and averaging 27 assists in the first three games (good for third in the NBA). Tony Parker, Richard Jefferson and Manu Ginobili are leading the teams' offensive attack and Neal and Anderson are hitting their outside shots.

Defense -- The Suns are a team that can score and it will be key for the Spurs to contain Steve Nash and his play-making ability. The Spurs have to dictate the tempo of the game to keep the Suns off-balanced and try to take away the Suns' running game.

SUNS:

Offense -- The Suns' offense starts with Nash, but he gets a lot of help on offense. Entering the game against the Spurs, five Suns players are averaging in double figures.

Defense -- The Suns have to be wary of the Spurs' outside shooters especially if they opt to double Duncan down low. Also, containing Jefferson, Parker and Ginobili will be key.

INJURIES

Spurs -- George Hill - trapezoid muscle (day-to-day), Matt Bonner - sprained right ankle (out). 

Suns -- Josh Childress - sore hip (day-to-day)

PREDICTION: Last seasons' playoff ouster is still fresh on the Spurs' minds. Expect them to play hard and bring their game against the Phoenix Suns who are still integrating new players on their rotation. This will be a close one, but exciting if the Spurs continue to run-and-gun. The Spurs should win it by seven points or less.

To know inward is to have the ability to look outward. To know is to acknowledge what you do and do not have or have the knowledge for. It’s having the intellectual curiosity or need to ascertain the requisite resources to enlighten or inform. To know is to have the tried and true, the answer to the question. Knowing is after the fact.

Each year brings its own set of question marks. Some more than others and others easier to define, but question marks nonetheless. They’re questions that can’t be answered, only addressed: “Have we covered all of our bases, has this team the potential to be its own answer?” The key is to give yourself a genuine and legitimate opportunity, not guarantee an outcome.

The San Antonio Spurs managed to capture four championships over a ten-year stretch while giving themselves a genuine and legitimate opportunity to win as many as seven or eight. They had the foundation of David Robinson, the greatness of Tim Duncan, arrivals of stars in Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili and the complimentary “glue” surrounding them all along the way.

All teams have pieces to create a framework, the Spurs’ fortune came from the foundation for which theirs was built -- the humility and selflessness of Robinson gave way for Duncan’s greatness to thrive undeterred, and it provided the conditions for which a system could be built. The questions could now be defined and the pieces could now be put into their rightful place. The Spurs became tried and true.

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During last night's San Antonio Spurs victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, George Hill was driving for a layup when Clippers' Craig Smith laid a hard foul on Hill in the second quarter which sent Hill hitting the floor hard.

Smith was given a flagrant-2 foul and was ejected from the game. Hill sat out the rest of the game with a spasm in his right trapezius muscle.

Tony Parker weighed in on the hard foul and had this to say:

“It was dirty,” Parker said after the game. “Just a dirty play. It was dangerous. Just no need to do that.” (Express News)

Got to agree with Parker. Indeed it was a bit too much from Smith. As the replay shows he wrapped his hands around Hill's neck and seems to not be going for the ball.  The ejection was appropriate.

In case you missed it, take a look and leave us your thoughts.