With many players changing teams this offseason throughout the NBA, a lot of teams may have improved on paper. The San Antonio Spurs have done their share of player movement by adding Tiago Splitter, James Anderson, Gary Neal and re-signing Matt Bonner and Richard Jefferson. Also, it's still possible the team might add a piece or two before their summer is done.

But what about the rest of the Southwest Division? Did those teams make moves which could spell trouble for the Spurs in the upcoming season? Let's find out.

New Orleans Hornets

Roster wise this team is the same as last year. Their summer work has been so far highlighted by hiring former Spurs Monty Williams as their new coach and Dell Demps as their new GM. Despite Chris Paul's trade request, it is highly unlikely that the Hornets will grant his wish with two more years left in his contract. Also if there should be a Paul trade, Emeka Okafor's contract will be required as part of the trade which will not be an easy task to move.

How they stack up? Paul remains one of the best point guards in the NBA. Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton round out a deadly rotation of combo guards. However, with David West and Okafor upfront, this team needs more size in the middle.

Memphis Grizzlies

This team has a nice young core in Rudy Gay, Marc Gasol, O.J. Mayo, and Mike Conley. They have a big front court combo with Zach Randolph and Hasheem Thabeet. The addition of defensive stopper Tony Allen was an "under-the-radar" type signing which could do wonders for this young team to add a seasoned veteran like Allen. Of course their draft picks of Xavier Henry and Greivis Vasquez might also help.

How they stack up? A young and athletic team that should be an exciting team to watch. If Gay and Mayo can continue to provide the offense with Gasol and Randolph operating inside the paint, this team might surprise a lot of people next season. Especially if Thabeet finally grasps how to play in the NBA.

Houston Rockets

A gritty veteran team that plays hard every game. Luis Scola, Trevor Ariza, Shane Battier and Aaron Brooks are solid players. Key for this team is how Yao Ming will play after coming back from injury last season. They also fortified their front court with the acquisition of Brad Miller and rookie Patrick Paterson.

How they stack up? With their main core intact, expect one thing from the Rockets -- hard fought games. Their front court is a combination of hard working big men and imposing length. Stopping Houston's inside game could be a problem for most teams.

Dallas Mavericks

This is a team loaded with offensive weapons. Dirk Nowitzki remains one of the best scorers in the league while Jason Kidd, Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood, Jason Terry and Shawn Marion are nice supporting casts. Getting Tyson Chandler from the Charlotte Bobcats gives them more length and athletic ability up front. Also their draft pick, Dominique Jones, who can create his own shot, will be a nice addition to the Mavericks. There are also rumors that Tim Thomas wants to get back with the team.

How they stack up? The Mavericks are loaded with talent. However, with all this firepower, defense will be key. They have a bunch of scorers, explosive bench and a real deep front-line which includes Haywood, Chandler, Ian Mahinmi and Alex Ajinca. If they can improve on their defense, with Nowitzki, Butler, Terry and Marion taking care of the offense, they could be a very tough team to beat.

What it means for the San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs will be in for some tough competition in the division this upcoming season. The Southwest Division remains one of the toughest division in the entire NBA and the divisional rivalry in the Southwest could be a fierce one in the upcoming season.

Ranking the South West

The Mavericks won the division last year and with their new lineup, they could do it again this coming season. The Rockets are a hard-working, solid veteran team, the Grizzlies could have a breakout season and the Hornets are facing a lot of on and off court distractions at the moment with Paul demanding a trade.

The Spurs still have Duncan, Ginobili and Parker and are their offseason player movements will help out in their push for a fifth NBA title.

Having said that, barring serious injuries from each of the teams, the Southwest Division could end up like this: Mavericks, Spurs, Rockets, Grizzlies and Hornets in that order.

But come playoff time, it might be a different story. Remember what happened during the first round of the playoffs last season? I am sure Mavericks fans don't want to remember.

What do you guys think? Give us your take and send us your own rankings.

According to www.pittsburghlive.com, the San Antonio Spurs will play a preseason game against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Pittsburgh, the home of Spurs' forward, DeJuan Blair:

Blair and the San Antonio Spurs are slated to play the Cleveland Cavaliers in a preseason NBA game in mid-October at Petersen Events Center, according to multiple sources.

The official date will be announced when the NBA preseason schedules are released in mid-August.

The Spurs have released their home preseason game schedule but not their away game schedule. However, aside from the game in Pittsburgh, the Spurs will play an away game in Mexico against the Los Angeles Clippers.

The San Antonio Spurs have signed their 2010 NBA Draft pick, James Anderson:

The San Antonio Spurs announced today that they have signed James Anderson. The Spurs drafted Anderson with 20th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. Per team policy, terms of the deals were not disclosed.

It's been a busy off-season for the Spurs as they have signed Tiago Splitter, Richard Jefferson, Gary Neal, and now Anderson.

San Antonio Spurs' guard, Tony Parker, recently made a guest appearance for children in France. After taking some questions, Parker proceeded to instruct the children on which team they should clap for and which team they shouldn't:

After lunch, drive up to a real, provided by coach "TP": "In basketball, you must listen to instructions. When I say "Spurs" (the team of San Antonio which is the basketball player), you clap twice, and Lakers (Team Los Angeles) you clap not because they are our enemies!"

On this episode of the Spurscast, Project Spurs welcomes back to the show News 4 WOAI's sports reporter, Humberto "Humbie" Cervera, to discuss the latest news on the San Antonio Spurs.

On the show, we discuss the news of Richard Jefferson re-signing with the Spurs and if Spurs fans will see a different Jefferson than the one last season. We recap the Spurs Summer League and discuss the newest Spur, Gary Neal.

Also, Mike and Humbie decide to put me under the spotlight and try to find out if I got married to some random woman while I was in Las Vegas covering the San Antonio Spurs at the 2010 NBA Summer League.

Thanks to Humbie for taking time out to join us. Make sure to check out Humbie's Blog for more Spurs news.

The Spurscast, the first and original Spurs podcast!

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Music: "Kickstart my heart" by Motley Crue

Check out San Antonio Spurs' forward, DeJuan Blair, singing in this video which is dedicated to his friend Antonio Hampton.

P.O.P. Featuring DeJuan Blair
2 Hard Living

The San Antonio Spurs have announced their preseason home games for the 2010-2011 season.

The home preseason games kicks off in style as the Spurs will face the new look Miami Heat with LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade on October 9, 2010. Then on October 16, the Spurs will host Tiago Splitter's former team, Caja Laboral.

The rest of the home preseason schedule is as follows:

• October 18 versus the Oklahoma City Thunder.
• October 21 versus the Houston Rockets.

Make sure to make it out to the AT&T Center for these games to get a look at the new players such as James Anderson and Splitter and to welcome back familiar faces such as Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker.

For more information on tickets visit Spurs.com.

LAS VEGAS -- In the 2005 NBA Draft, the San Antonio Spurs selected Ian Mahinmi from France with their first round pick. This left many Spurs fans scratching their heads. Many questioned who he was and why the Spurs drafted him. He even wasn't listed among the 128 players in the league's draft guide.

As Spurs fans got to see him play in the 2006 Rocky Mountain Review and in the D-League with the Austin Toros, they saw an atheletic freak which left them yearning for him joining Tim Duncan in the post.

Then came the injuries, the constant send backs to the Austin Toros, fouling out of games, all which led to the frustration of Spurs fans and may have led to the Spurs announcing they would not be picking up the last year of his contract.

With things not working out well for Mahinmi in San Antonio, he made the decision to sign with the Dallas Mavericks as a free-agent this summer and is ready to begin a new chapter in his NBA career.

While I was at the 2010 Summer League, I got a chance to talk to Mahinmi about his time with the Spurs, joining the Mavericks, and more.

During my interview with him, I did notice that despite how things turned out for him with the Spurs, he knows where it all began for him and appreciated every moment, "Those three years with the Spurs were unbelievable," Mahinmi said when I asked him about his time in San Antonio, "I improved a lot every year. Even though I broke my ankle three years ago, I still improved. Its been a long process and I think the main thing I learned from the Spurs is that toughness, that mental toughness of the game. To make sure what you are doing on defense and do it everyday."

Though Mahinmi has been in the NBA for three years, he is fully aware the journey to becoming a better player is still a work in process and that process couldn't have started better for the young player than to have Spurs forward, Tim Duncan, to learn from.

Now he will be playing with another great forward in Dallas, Dirk Nowitzki, and he is looking forward to that learning experience, "Its great for me. It's great to be around those guys and I think that will pay off. If I keep working and I keep listening to those vets. It’s a very great experience for me being able to play alongside two great guys like that."

Credit Mahinmi for knowing it took more than just Duncan to learn from. He recognized the other players he was with in San Antonio who helped his development, "But I played with many great guys like Robert Horry, (Antonio) McDyess. It was just great for my experience."

Now he is taking the lessons learned in San Antonio to Dallas, “My main thing is to keep improving. Keep helping my team no matter what I got to do," said Mahinmi when I asked him what he is looking forward to as a new member of the Mavericks.

“I just want to keep improving on another winning team. I just want to win some more. I think we got a great organization. I got great teammates like Jason Kidd, Caron Butler, (Jason) Terry, Rodrigue Beubouis, Dirk (Nowitzki). There's good players all over the place. I think we got a good group of guys and we are very talented. I am looking forward to next season and I am going to do everything I can to help my team win.”

However, there is one date he is going to circle on his calendar once the 2010-2011 NBA season schedule is released, "You look forward to those games,” said Mahinmi when I asked him about the first game he will play against the Spurs next season, “I really got great memories, three great years. Its going to be weird to go to the visitors locker room in the AT&T Center. As a matter of fact I never been in there!”

“I am just looking forward to that game when I go play the Spurs and hopefully we do good and we win. Now I am all the way with the Mavs. If we (Mavericks) can beat them (Spurs) by 40 let’s do it!"

And if the visitor's locker room in the AT&T Centeris going to be a new experience for him, he is also joining the other side of the heated Spurs-Mavericks rivalry, “Its especially weird," Mahinmi told Project Spurs when asked about joining the Dallas side of the rivalry, "The first time I wore my blue jersey … I'm just used to that black and silver jersey. I told my trainer, 'It's funny, everything is weird, everything is blue!' But after a while, I’m used to it and I like it.”

Mahinmi is ready to prove himself after being unable to showcase his talents in San Antonio. He has the skill set to be a solid NBA player and while some Spurs fans feel he was a draft day bust, he holds no ill will towards them and wishes the Spurs a good season, “I hope they (Spurs) have a great season next year. I hope the Spurs organization gives a good show to the Spurs fans because they deserve it. They been very great to me. They are very great fans and I think the Mavs have great fans too.”

Of course during my interview with Mahinmi, he showed he is ready when it comes to joining the Mavericks side of the rivalry, “Hopefully we will meet in the playoffs next season and we can beat them!”

After an impressive showing at the 2010 NBA Summer league, the San Antonio Spurs have signed Gary Neal to a three year deal according to Draft Express.

Neal's performance in Las Vegas opened eyes who were in attendance especially after his 26 point game outburst against the Memphis Grizzlies where he connected on 6-10 three-point shots.

With Neal signed, this adds another guard to the Spurs team. The team now has a log jam at the position with Tony Parker, George Hill, Malik Hairston, James Anderson, and Manu Ginobili. The odd player out could be Hairston unless Neal is sent to the Austin Toros.

While I was at the Summer League, Neal showed he is a steady shooter in most of the games and was the leading scorer for the Spurs averaging 16 points on 50% shooting from both the field and the three-point line.