Atlanta Hawks Free Agent Wish List: Tiago Splitter
By Brad Rowland
San Antonio Spurs center Tiago Splitter (22) goes up for the basket against the Golden State Warriors during the fourth quarter of game six of the second round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs at Oracle Arena. The San Antonio Spurs defeated the Golden State Warriors 94-82 to win the series. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
“Tiago Splitter? I’m about to read an article about Tiago Splitter?”
I’m positive that the prevailing thought around Tiago Splitter’s existence on my Hawks wish list will be similar to the sentence above, and at first glance, it makes sense. Why would the Hawks have big-time interest in a player with career averages of 8.3 points and 5.1 rebounds a game? To answer that, we have to dive just a bit deeper into the numbers.
First of all, Splitter’s per-36 minute averages are extremely good. In San Antonio, Gregg Popovich is famous for limiting the minutes of his top players, and as a result, Splitter only played 24.7 minutes per game despite posting the best season of his career. His per-36 averages were 15.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game, and he did this while shooting an ultra-efficient 56% from the floor. Certainly, these aren’t “superstar” numbers, but when you remember that he was performing this way as the 3rd/4th/5th option on the court at all times, they are very respectable.
Of course, that only covers the offensive end of the court, and Splitter makes a two-way contribution that not every big man can provide. Splitter’s defense has greatly improved over his three seasons, culminating in a 100 defensive rating (via basketball reference) that demonstrates that he’s a top-level defensive center at this stage. In addition, Splitter helped to anchor the Spurs (the #3 defensive team in the league) at the back-end with near-flawless pick-n-roll defense, and even surpassed the great Tim Duncan in win shares per 48 minutes (again, via basketball reference).
Speaking of Duncan, I firmly believe that playing under the tutelage of one of the best big men of all-time has done wonders for Splitter’s career. At 28 years old, he is far from “young” as a third-year player, but the strides he has made (especially defensively) have the marks of playing for the best organization in the league. Look no further than his defensive efforts against the Grizzlies (where he bottled up Mike Conley for entire stretches) to find that improvement, and his offensive efficiency has been top-notch.
What would we expect from Splitter if he was signed as a free agent? Well, that would certainly depend on his deployment. If he was given 30-35 minutes per game next to Al Horford, I firmly believe that Splitter could be a 15-point/10-rebound type of player, and with those “twin towers”, the Hawks could be a defensive wrecking crew. At age 28, this is probably the best stretch of basketball that Splitter will ever play, and for the next 3-4 years, he should be fully able to contribute at his maximum level.
As you can see by his inclusion on this list, I believe that Splitter should be a top target for the Atlanta Hawks this summer. He is an unrestricted free agent (versus Nikola Pekovic, who is restricted), and may not command the same type of salary as a guy who averages more points and rebounds (i.e. the “basic stats) than he does. The market should be interesting for a useful big man like Splitter, and he would be a great option should the Hawks strike out with the likes of Dwight Howard.