With the 2010 NBA Draft inching closer and closer, the San Antonio Spurs continue to evaluate players who might fit their needs when the team drafts at number 20 and 49.

According to The Trentonian, on May 12, 2010, the Spurs worked out Rider's Ryan Thompson.

Thompson talked to The Trentonian by phone before boarding a flight for San Antonio, where he'll work out Wednesday for the Spurs.

Thompson is a 6'6" shooting-guard/small-forward who averaged 17.2 points, shot 42% from the field, 32.4% from the three-point line and averaged five rebounds for Rider. During the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, he led the tournament in scoring and was named to the all-tournament team.

Thompson is also the younger brother of Sacramento Kings' Jason Thompson.

San Antonio Spurs' point-guard, Tony Parker, has been at the center of many trade rumors recently. There were reports he was offered to New Orleans for Chris Paul, rumors he wanted to play with New York Knicks, and finally Parker saying he wants to remain in San Antonio.  But just because Parker says he wants to remain a Spur does not mean the Spurs will entertain offers for him. The following is from the Ohio News-Herald.com.

The Spurs will listen to offers for guard Tony Parker over the summer, but they are not "shopping" him. He is entering the final year of his contract worth $13.5 million.

Spurs' guard, Manu Ginobili and wife, recently gave birth to twins, Dante and Nicola.  So what did Spurs' coach Gregg Popovich have to tell Ginobili on being a father?

"The only thing we've told him is, ‘You have no clue how your life is going to change; and double so with twins,' " Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said.

Rumor has it that Real Madrid is willing to dish out some serious money to acquire Tiago Splitter and other players to remain competitive.

According to talkbasket.net, Real Madrid is targeting Splitter among several other players.

The main targets of the club this summer are:

Sergio Rodriguez, Vassilis Spanoulis, Milos Teodosic, Alan Anderson, Mike Batiste, and Tiago Splitter. The club is particularly interested in Vassilis Spanoulis and Tiago Splitter.

The club is said to be willing to spend up to 8-10 million euros net on each player in order to secure both Spanoulis and Splitter, because the club believes this would allow them to win the ACB and Euroleague championships next season.

Now there is no official statement from Real Madrid so take it for what it's worth.

However, if true, then this could present a problem for the San Antonio Spurs in convincing Splitter to play for the team next season for the mid-level exception and pass up a pay-day from Real Madrid.

In case you missed it, on February 18, 2010, San Antonio Spurs' guard, George Hill, had his college jersey retired from his alma mater of IUPUI.  He became only the third player from IUPUI to have his jersey retired.

Congratulations to Hill. Well deserved!

We'll hear a lot of names thrown around this summer as part of the big free agent class of 2010. It's still unsure, though, if the Spurs will do much, considering the most they can offer is the mid-level exception, which some expect will go to Tiago Splitter.

Going into free agency, the Spurs' biggest need is a shot-blocking center that they can start aside Tim Duncan, so I've decided to highlight some of the free agent bigs available and list them by tier.

The "Keep Dreaming" List

Chris Bosh, Amar'e Stoudamire, David Lee.

Unless there's a sign and trade involving one of the big three or possibly rights to Splitter and a few other players, this is still very much a pipe dream.

The "Do We Really Want Him Back" List

Nazr Mohammed, Kurt Thomas, Francisco Elson, Rasho Nesterovic, Fabricio Oberto.

I thought Rasho was a bit underrated when he played for the Spurs and while Oberto was not the shot-blocking imposing center the Spurs needed, he did the small things that were missed this season. I might think about bringing Thomas back, but he is 37 and the Spurs could use some fresh legs in the post.

The "Modern Maturity" List

Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Ben Wallace, Jermaine O'Neal, Brad Miller.

While Ben Wallace is no longer the imposing force he once was, he still gets work done on the boards and swats his fair of shots when given playing time. I can't see O'Neal taking that big a pay-cut.

The "Please Make It Happen" List

Joel Przybilla, Tyrus Thomas (restricted), Brendan Haywood, Kenyon Martin, Tyson Chandler.

Pryzbilla has been on my wish-list for a while now. He's a shot-blocking beast and with all of the bigs Portland has signed, I'd be surprised to see him stay with the Blazers. I've always been of fan of Thomas and I think he showed in the playoffs that he is more than potential. Haywood had some very good games with Dallas, but he'll likely stay there and I'm interested to see if Chandler is more than just a system player. Martin may not be a center, but he's a very good defensive player and he'll swat his share.

The Rest

Jason Collins, Shelden Williams, Jamaal Magloire, Joel Anthony, Primoz Brezec, Darko Milicic, Oleksiy Pecherov, Josh Boone, Jarron Collins, Channing Frye, Kyrylo Fesenko.

Or we could just keep Ian Mahinmi. But I think he may have a better chance of not fouling out of a game than getting re-signed by the Spurs.

With the San Antonio Spurs 2009-2010 season over and all the Tony Parker trade rumors, Tiago Splitter talk, etc., here is some great news we here at Project Spurs overlooked but deserves its proper recognition.  Our bad!

Alonzo Gee was named the 2010 NBDL Rookie of the Year.

"Austin Toros guard Alonzo Gee, who ranked in the top 10 in the NBA D-League in regular season scoring, has been selected by the League’s 16 coaches as the NBA Development League’s 2009-10 Rookie of the Year. Gee will be presented with the award by Chris Alpert, Vice President of Basketball Operations and Player Personnel for the NBA D-League . . ."

Here is what Toros' coach, Quin Snyder had to say on Gee winning this award:

“On behalf of the Toros and Spurs organizations, we are pleased and excited to have been able to share in Alonzo’s success this year. It has been a privilege to coach him,” said Quin Snyder, Toros head coach. “He has been relentless in his commitment to develop as a basketball player and most importantly, Alonzo is a great teammate. He is a young man that has had a positive impact on all of us, and we congratulate him on the award.”

Congratulations Alonzo!

This season, Gee was called-up to the Washington Wizards where he averaged 7.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 16.5 minutes.

The Spurs have a team option to pick up his final contract year which is set to pay him $762, 195.00. Gee was signed by the Spurs late in the 2009-2010 NBA season.

During the season, the San Antonio Spurs did not pick up Ian Mahinmi's final year on his contract. A move by the club which could possibly signal the end of Mahinmi's NBA career with the Spurs.

Currently, Mahinmi is a free-agent and though he would love to stay with the Spurs, he did make one thing clear -- he wants more playing time.

In an interview with the French radio station RTL-L'Equipe, Mahinmi had this to say about his future with the Spurs and the NBA.

“My decision will be only based on the playing time,” he said. “If a team offers me a consequent playing time, I will thus sign with it. If the Spurs offered me a good project, I will stay in San Antonio. I would love to stay in San Antonio.”

Mahinmi has not worked out as fans and perhaps the Spurs coaching staff would like. Though an athletic freak and still young, he has dealt with injuries which have stunted his development early in his NBA career, is a fouling machine, and more importantly, needs to work on his basketball IQ.

However, there is some hope. This past season when he did get considerable minutes he did have good games.  For example his 15 points and nine rebounds against the New Jersey Nets. But it's his inconsistent play which draws frustration with fans and perhaps the coaching staff.

Thoughts? Should Mahinmi be re-signed by the Spurs and be given a more playing time to prove his worth or have you seen enough from him to not care if he signs with another team which is willing to give him more time on the floor?

In an article by Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express News, the San Antonio Spurs were close to acquiring Vince Carter instead of Richard Jefferson.  But the deal broke down when the Spurs wanted the Nets' draft pick.

Before the Spurs recruited the Pistons to help them complete the pre-draft trade that brought Richard Jefferson to San Antonio late last June, they tried hard to pry Vince Carter away from the Nets.

Offering the same players who ultimately were included in the three-team deal for “R.J.” — Bruce Bowen, Kurt Thomas and Fabricio Oberto — the Spurs also were willing to send Roger Mason Jr. to the Nets to get Carter.

Trouble was, they also wanted the Nets' spot in the first round of the draft, 11th overall. That made the Nets balk.

Interestingly, with all the recent talk of Tiago Splitter coming or not coming to the Spurs next season, the Nets wanted Splitter's draft rights but the Spurs declined the request.

According to Eastern Conference insiders, the Nets countered with a request for the draft rights to Brazilian big man Tiago Splitter, the Spurs' top pick in the 2007 draft and a star in the Spanish League.

Convinced they would have a fighting chance to extract Splitter from Spain this summer, the Spurs turned their focus to Jefferson.

Here we are today with Jefferson for at least another season if he picks up his option to remain a Spur. Jefferson has said he might opt out of his contract and explore his options. Yeah right! No way does he pass up a guaranteed 15 million dollars contract in the hopes another team will give him similar money.

Let's not forget the Spurs also made efforts to acquire Corey Maggette to fill the void at the small-forward spot prior to Jefferson. Who knows how that would have worked out?

Click HERE to read the complete article by Mike Monroe.

Recently I had the privilege to interview NBA TV analyst and former Spur Brent Barry on "Boston and the Sports Babe" with John Karalis and Jackie Taylor.

In the interview, I asked Barry his thoughts on the Tony Parker trade rumors, Richard Jefferson's first year as a Spur and if Spurs fans and the media were too harsh on him. I also get his take on the Spurs being swept by the Phoenix Suns in the playoffs, and if he is still doing those HEB commercials in San Antonio.

Of course leave it to Jackie, an avid Los Angeles Lakers fan, to remind him about being fouled by Derek Fisher in the 2008 playoffs right before my interview with him begins.

Thanks to John and Jackie for giving Project Spurs time to do this interview. For everything Boston Celtics, please go visit RedsArmy. The best blog on the internet for all things Celtics.

And now enjoy the interview Spurs fans:

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To hear the complete interview, click HERE.

With the firing of Mike Brown from the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Cavs search for a new head coach will begin and it seems they would like to dip into the Spurs' coaching ranks yet again to fill the position.

According to Brian Windhorst of Cleveland.com, Spurs' assistant coach, Mike Budenholzer, is on the Cavs wish-list to take the head-coaching spot for the Cavs:

Nonetheless, the Cavs do have a list. Here's a look, according to sources, at who is on it.

If the Cavs consider a candidate without head coaching experience, figure Budenholzer to be at the top of that list. He's been with the San Antonio Spurs for the last 16 seasons and for the last three has been Gregg Popovich's lead assistant. He has a relationship with Ferry and other members of the Cavs organization.

The belief is that Budenholzer is the coach-in-waiting for when Popovich decides to give up coaching duties. The Spurs may not be willing to give him up.

This wouldn't be the first time the Cavs dip into the Spurs' assistant coaching ranks. Brown was an assistant coach for the Spurs for three seasons before leaving to Cleveland to take the head coaching spot in 2005. 

As much as losing Budenholzer would hurt, he does deserve a shot at a head coaching position in the NBA.