Catching Up With The Toros

Time to catch up with the Toros. They've been busy and they've been having a good year.

Whole Mess Of Stuff Going On

Here's a big giant dump of press release info. All in the last three weeks.

GEE SIGNS WITH WASHINGTON WIZARDS Alonzo went to the Wizards on a 10-day contract on March 7th.

D-League Introduces Their Center Court Phone App Link for those that want it. Scores and such I imagine.

Wizards Sign Gee to Second 10-Day Then he signed another 10-day contract on March 18th.

Marcus Williams Returns to Toros On March 22nd, Marcus Williams returned to the Toros. He spent the year in China. The Zheijang Cyclones finished one game out of the playoffs.

AUSTIN’S CURTIS JERRELLS NAMED NBA DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE PERFORMER OF THE WEEK For week of March 15. CJ had quite the week.

For the week, Jerrells averaged 32.7 points, shooting 56 percent (37-of-66) from the field, to go with 6.3 assists and 5.7 rebounds.

Spurs Sign Curtis Jerrells Yep, on March 24th the Spurs signed Curtis Jerrells. Then assigned him to the Toros. He is listed on their official roster at the games. That's cool.

NBA D-League Green Week 2010 In an attempt to really fit in to the Austin scene, the Toros "are asking fans to bring their plastic grocery bags to the arena along with a list of other recyclable items in exchange for a free ticket. The team will also auction off green balls in a raffle with the proceeds going to local environmental and conservation groups." The game is tomorrow night. The 31st.

PR First Responders & Pet Adoption Yep, pet adoption night at the Toros. Feeling very Austin.

David Robb Interviews Coach Snyder David is the Statesman beat writer for the Toros. Very cool guy and he did this great article on Coach Snyder and how he isn't missing college basketball.

AOL FanHouse: Spurs Find Loopholes to Keep Talent System in PlaceIs it really a loophole? Or is it just being intelligent? Oh well. Either way, this article, by that no talent ass clown Matt Moore, things we are doing good stuff. OHHH. Nevermind. The no talent ass clown is Michael Bolton. I'd like to highlight one line by Matt. The Spurs are investing long-term in Jerrells. Remember that for later.

AUSTIN’S DWAYNE JONES AND MARCUS WILLIAMS NAMED NBA DEVE LOPMENT LEAGUE CO-PERFORMERS OF THE WEEK Dwayne's numbers

Jones averaged 21.0 points, shooting 54 percent (26-of-48) from the field to go with 14.8 rebounds.

and Marcus's numbers

Williams averaged 25.3 points, connecting on 61 percent from the field, to go with 5.5 assists and 4.3 rebounds.

TOROS TO HOST 2010 DENNIS JOHNSON MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL ALL-STAR GAMES The Toros continue to pay tribute to the great Dennis Johnson by hosting a pair of area all-star games.

AUSTIN’S ALONZO GEE SIGNS WITH SAN ANTONIO SPURS Yep, the Spurs brought super-Alonzo back. We'll see if he stays with the team or gets assigned to the Toros.

The Roster

There have been a lot of roster changes for the Toros during the year. It's not unusual in the D-League. Right now, without counting Gee, the Toros are playing 4 guys they started the season with. Curtis Jerrells, Dwayne Jones, Squeaky Johnson, and David McClure. They added Matt Bonner's brother Luke. Luke is a massive man.

The addition of Marcus Williams really helped them in Alonzo's absence. If the Spurs assign Gee back to the Toros, which I think is likely, they will head into the playoffs with a hell of a team. Playoffs. Are you talking playoffs?

Where The Toros Stand

Yes. Yes I am. They just clinched a playoff spot. They are playing tonight. Plat tomorrow night. Then finish up the season with games on Friday and Saturday. If Rick Adelman wants to see a ridiculous schedule. He should look at the Toros set up. Here it is: 19th, 20th, 23rd, 24th, 27th, 28th, 30th, 31st, 2nd, 3rd. For those counting at home, that is 10 games. 5 back to backs in 14 days. The final 6 games are played in 8 days. Coming into tonight, the game on the 30th, the Toros are riding a 5-game win streak.

Did you know the Spurs can assign up to three players to the Toros? I'd like to see Gee and Temple join them. Wouldn't that be fun?

Investing For Later

Back to Matt Moore's quote. "The Spurs are investing long-term in Jerrells." Yes and no. If by long-term you mean another 6-months, then yes. What the Spurs are doing is giving him a little paycheck. They keep him through summer league where he will probably get another little paycheck. Then they have him for training camp where they will probably give him another little paycheck. For these guys, those little paychecks are a decent chunk of change. The D-League doesn't really pay that well. The paychecks also let the guys know the team cares about them. The paychecks let the guys know that they need to keep working. The paychecks also build trust with the organization. They tell the player they are willing to spend on him. My big brain tells me that means a lot to the guys.

Think about this. Going through summer league and heading into training camp next year, the Spurs should have the following guys:

• Malik Hairson -- Two years in the system.
• Ian Mahinmi -- Two full years in the system.
• Marcus Williams -- Parts of three years in the system.
• Alonzo Gee -- One year in the system.
• Curtis Jerrells -- One year in the system.
• Dwayne Jones -- One year in the system.
• Garrett Temple -- Half a year in the system and a year more of experience.

That's a hell of a Summer League team with a couple of draft picks still to go. Especially if DeJuan joins them. In addition, a lot of these guys -- certainly, everybody but Marcus and Dwayne -- will be practicing and preparing with the team during the playoffs. Which equals more experience and more coaching more evaluation.

The Toros postseason is worth paying attention to. You can watch online for free. FYI, Marcus Williams is a nasty pick-and-roll man with the ball in his hands. Filthy. Great natural passer.