Spurs add 3 to training camp roster

The San Antonio Spurs announced today that they have signed free agents Desmon Farmer, Devin Green and Darryl Watkins. Per team policy, terms of the deals were not disclosed.

Farmer, a 6-5 guard, spent last season playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the NBA Development League.  He appeared in 33 games, averaging 24.7 points (ranked second in the D-League), 4.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 38.3 minutes. He shot .473 (260-550) from the field, .418 (89-213) from three-point range and .840 (205-244) from the line.  The former USC Trojan started 2006-07 season with the Seattle Sonics seeing action in eight games and averaging 1.6 points and 1.1 assists in 4.0 minutes before being waived in January.  He spent the rest of the season with the Tulsa 66ers of the D-League, averaging 19.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 32.8 minutes in 32 games. He spent all of the 2005-06 season with the 66ers. For his career Farmer has played in 88 D-League games, averaging 16.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 29.8 minutes. In four seasons with the Trojans he averaged 13.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 121 games.

Green, a 6-7 swingman, played on the Spurs summer league teams in Las Vegas and at the Rocky Mountain Revue in Salt Lake City.  He averaged 10.3 points and 3.7 rebounds in 25.7 minutes while shooting .522 (12-23) from the field in three games in Las Vegas.   At the Rocky Mountain Revue, Green appeared in four games, averaging 10.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.25 steals in 28.0 minutes. Last season he split time with the L.A. Defenders in the D-League and Siviglia Wear Teramo of the Italian SerieA League.  Green played in 24 games for the Defenders averaging 16.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 34.9 minutes while shooting .489 (153-313) from the field, .333 (20-60) from three-point range and .791 (68-86) from the foul line.  He saw action in 11 games for Sivglia averaging 10.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 26.4 minutes. During the 2005-06 season Green appeared in 27 games for the L.A. Lakers averaging 0.9 points in 5.0 minutes.  Green played four seasons at Hampton University and averaged 14.3 points and 6.2 rebounds in 123 games.

Watkins spent part of the 2007-08 season with the Sacramento Kings averaging 1.3 and 1.3 rebounds in 7.9 minutes in nine games before being waived on 12/10.  The 6-11 center then joined the L.A. Defenders of the D-League.  He saw action in 18 games, including 16 starts, averaging 4.9 points and 5.7 rebounds in 19.8 minutes.  Midway through the season he was traded to the Iowa Energy where he played in 22 games, averaging 8.5 points and 5.9 rebounds in 22.4 minutes. For the season Watkins played in a combined 40 games, averaging 6.9 points and 5.8 rebounds in 20.1 minutes while shooting .523 (112-214) from the field and .654 (53-81) from the line.  Watkins played four seasons at Syracuse University averaging 6.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.48 blocks in 106 career games.

The Spurs roster now stands at 17.

Summer winners

Aside from a Bulls shooting guard who scores a lot and feels he’s worth more than the $10 million per season Chicago is reportedly offering, every notable free agent in the league has a contract for the upcoming season. So, although more signings may occur, winners from this summer in the deals department are becoming clear.

The 76ers signed Elton Brand. They’re paying him a lot and didn’t get a steal, but what they are getting is an All-Star level power forward who, assuming he’s as good as he was before getting injured and stays hungry, can do damage in the East. This was the most impactful signing of the summer.

The Bucks traded for Richard Jefferson, and gave up no proven pieces in the process. They traded Mo Williams away for Luke Ridnour, who as a passer fits the team’s need at point guard more than Mo did. They drafted Joe Alexander, a dunking, running forward to come off the bench. They’re a winner for adding RJ.

The Blazers drafted extremely well, adding Jerryd Bayless, a hard-to-guard scoring point guard who appears ready to drop 20 points anytime he feels like it, and Rudy Fernandez, an impressive, already-successful overseas talent. They’ll also have Greg Oden active this year, though he was added to the squad a year ago thanks to a very lucky day in the draft lottery.

The Heat may have lucked out when the Bulls drafted Derrick Rose, because Michael Beasley may be the better player of the two.

The Bulls, thanks to draft lottery luck, are summer winners for getting Rose at all.

The Rockets traded for Ron Artest and didn’t give up any proven pieces to get him.

The Timberwolves traded for Mike Miller, giving no stars up in return, and got Kevin Love in the draft. Those are two nice players to put next to Al Jefferson. The team will still probably struggle, but there’s some interesting stuff on paper in Minnesota.

Possible winner: The Raptors traded TJ Ford for Jermaine O’Neal. If JO can stay healthy and transform into the All-Star player he used to be, Toronto is a big winner. But in recent seasons, even when healthy, O’Neal has been closer to “good” or sometimes “very good” than great.

Possible winner: The Clippers lost Brand, which obviously isn’t good, and Corey Maggette signed elsewhere, but they signed Baron Davis and traded for Marcus Camby. With B-Diddy, rookie Eric Gordon, Al Thornton, Camby and Chris Kaman, they now have a weird lineup that could be fun to watch. Worth keeping an eye on, but probably not a winner.

Watch InsideHoops.com for similar, longer features like this. They’ll appear in the regular portion of the site and may not be mentioned in any blog entry.

Mustafa Shakur to Spain

Euroleague.net reports: Tau Ceramica has completed its roster for the upcoming season by inking playmaker Mustafa Shakur to a one-year deal. Shakur (190, 24) arrives from Prokom Trefl Sopot, where he averaged 7.6 points and 2.1 assists in seven Euroleague games last season. He scored 4 points against Tau in Vitoria last season.