Here's What Tony Parker Said About Spurs at Summer League
During the San Antonio Spurs' matchup against the Golden State Warriors Sunday night at the Vegas Summer League, Spurs legend Tony Parker stopped by the NBA TV broadcast booth at the Thomas & Mack Center to do a quick interview with former Spur Steve Smith.
Smith played with Parker during the Frenchman's first two seasons in the NBA. The two caught up on life after retirement and reminisced on the days of winning a championship in 2003.
But when asked about the direction the Spurs are going after selecting three 19-year-olds in the 2022 draft and trading away All-Star guard Dejounte Murray, another former teammate of Parker's, the 40-year-old was honest in his assessment of the team's current makeup. He said he "can't wait" to talk about it with coach Gregg Popovich over dinner next week.
"I have no idea what we're doing as a franchise, so I can't wait for my dinner with Coach Pop," Parker said. "On July 20 we have a big dinner ... I can't wait to have a dinner with him and catch up on the team and what we trying to do."
Parker's "no idea" comments could potentially be taken out of context a bit, as someone saying they have "no idea" what a team or player is doing is usually meant as a slight.
But Parker, who just won his third-straight title as a team owner of LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne in the EuroLeague, is a busy man in France, making it hard to keep up with all the roster overturn over the past few months. The San Antonio front office is still likely trying to figure out what the end goal is as well. Same goes for Spurs fans.
With so much going in his post playing career and the change within the Spurs' roster as of late, Parker says he doesn't know "75 percent" of the current players in San Antonio.
"We have a very, very young roster. I don't know 75 percent of the team to be honest, and I'm in the basketball world, I'm scouting! I'm scouting and I'm looking at the names like 'man, who is this?'" Parker said with a laugh.
While the Summer League tends to serve as a bonanza for NBA celebrities to come and gather, Parker said he's doing some scouting work to help keep his team competitive fresh off a title.
"I was talking with my scouts cause obviously we here too to scout for Europe," he said. "My team plays in the EuroLeague ... the second-best league in the world and so you have a lot of good talent we can find in the Summer League."
Parker, who had his No. 9 jersey retired by the Spurs in 2019, is a four-time champion and 2007 Finals MVP. He is first in franchise history in assists (6829), fourth in points (18,943), fifth in steals (1,032), eighth in total rebounds (3,313), and second in both total games (1,198) and minutes played (37,276).
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