The Spurs have had a lot of injuries lately, so they might turn to 23-year old PF/C DeJuan Blair for help.  Blair has played in 57 games (15 starts) so far this year for the Spurs and he is averaging 13.4 minutes, 5.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  Blair only has 1 double-double this year for the Spurs.  He has now played in 284 games (165 starts) in his first four years with the Spurs and he is averaging 18.9 minutes, 7.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  The Spurs really hope Blair steps up after sitting in Coach Popovich’s Dog House for most of the 2012-13 season.

The Spurs are going to be without 30-year old point guard Tony Parker due to a badly sprained left ankle.  He was injured in last night’s game against the Kings.  This is a gigantic blow for the Spurs as Parker was playing the best basketball of his NBA career in 2012-13.  Parker has played in 56 games (all starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 33.0 minutes, 21.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and 7.6 assists per game.  Parker is shooting 53.3% from the floor, 37.9% from three point range and 82.9% from the free throw line so far this year, which is very, very impressive.  The Spurs are going to turn to 28-year old Gary Neal and 24-year old Patty Mills at point guard until Parker is ready to return to action.  Neal has played in 51 games (17 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 22.5 minutes, 9.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  Mills has played in 49 games (2 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 10.2 minutes, 4.5 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  Neal and Mills are really going to need to step up to keep the Spurs’ train rolling until Parker returns to action.

34-year old small forward Stephen Jackson is having a rough time for the Spurs so far in 2012-13.  He has played in 33 games (3 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 21.0 minutes, 6.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.  He is only shooting 37% from the floor, 27% from three point range and 69.2% from the free throw line so far this year and that just isn’t going to cut it.  Look for Jackson to lose more P.T. if he doesn’t start to step up in the very near future, as Kawhi Leonard is outplaying him badly so far this year.

24-year old point guard Patrick Mills is going to be needed when Coach Popovich decides to give half the team off to rest them. Mills has played in 15 games (2 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 12.1 minutes, 4.9 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. In his 2 starts this year, Mills is averaging 23.7 minutes, 7.0 points, 1.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game. I think Mills will play better as the year goes on as this is the first time his roster spot has been secure in his NBA career.

35-year old shooting guard Manu Ginobili is off to a slow start for the Spurs in 2012-13. He has played in 13 games (0 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 23.8 minutes, 11.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He is only shooting 39.7% from the floor and 27.8% from three point range so far this year, which is pretty awful. Look for the Spurs to limit Ginobili’s minutes until he starts to get hot (if he does).

The Spurs will be without 21-year old starting small forward Kawhi Leonard for the next 10-14 days due to tendinitis in both his right knee and right quad. Leonard has played in 9 games (all starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 28.9 minutes, 10.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Look for 34-year old Stephen Jackson to replace Leonard in the starting lineup. Jackson has played in 8 games (0 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 24.3 minutes, 8.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Jackson will likely do a solid job while Leonard gets back to health.

The Spurs have lost 28-year old backup point guard T.J. Ford for the next 4-6 weeks due to a torn left hamstring. Ford has played in 10 games (0 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 15.5 minutes, 4.2 points, 1.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. 27-year old Gary Neal will likely pick up most of Ford’s minutes until he’s ready to return to action. Neal has played in 5 games (4 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 21.4 minutes, 11.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.

The Spurs have lost 34-year old shooting guard Manu Ginobili due to a broken left hand. He is listed as out indefinitely, but it will likely be around 4-6 weeks. Ginobili has played in 5 games (all starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 23.2 minutes, 17.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.2 steals per game. The Spurs are really going to miss Ginobili due to his energy at both ends of the court and his knack for hitting big shots in the clutch. 22-year old James Anderson will replace Ginobili in the starting lineup until he’s ready to return to action. Anderson has played in 5 games (0 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 21.4 minutes, 7.2 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. The Spurs really need Anderson to step up while Ginobili is out of action.

35-year old power forward Tim Duncan is starting to slow down a bit. The Spurs wanted to limit Duncan’s minutes last year to keep him healthy and fresh. It worked as he played in 76 games (all starts) in which he averaged 28.4 minutes, 13.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.9 blocked shots per game. He’s a shell of his former self but that’s because he has entered the twilight of his NBA career. Duncan has now played in 1,053 games (1,051 starts) in his 14 years with the Spurs and he is averaging 35.8 minutes, 20.6 points, 11.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.3 blocked shots per game. Duncan is already the all-time leader in Spurs’ history in games played (1,051) and rebounds (12,013). He is also #4 in assists (3,296), #7 in steals (784), #2 in blocked shots (2,381) and #2 in points scored (21,663) in Spurs’ history. Duncan is one of the best power forwards in NBA history and he’s still a good, but not great player.

The Spurs have lost 34-year old starting power forward Tim Duncan for at least the next two weeks due to a sprained left ankle. Duncan has played in 69 games (all starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 28.3 minutes, 13.3 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.9 blocked shots per game. The Spurs limited Duncan’s minutes this year to keep him healty and productive and it worked until this week. The Spurs expect that 21-year old DeJuan Blair, 26-year old Tiago Splitter and 36-year old Antonio McDyess will step up with Duncan out of action. Blair has played in 69 games (63 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 21.7 minutes, 8.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.2 steals per game. He can handle getting more minutes going forward. Rookie center Tiago Splitter has played in 49 games (1 start) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 11.6 minutes, 4.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. Splitter has been brought along slowly by the Spurs in his rookie year but he has a ton of potential so he should do fine with extended P.T. Antonio McDyess has played in 63 games (6 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 18.3 minutes, 5.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He has a lot left in the gas tank and he will likely respond well to getting a few extra minutes per night going forward.