The San Antonio Spurs have the #29 and the #59 picks in the NBA Draft on Thursday. I think the Spurs need another young big guy for the rotation and the future. I have a feeling that PF/C Jeremy Tyler could be available at #29 and he would be a nice fit for the Spurs. They could also take a SF like Kyle Singler out of Duke and pick a big man later. Whoever the Spurs pick, they will likely be brought along really slowly as they try to play for an NBA title once again in 2011-12.

The San Antonio Spurs have a solid rookie trio that knows their roles and they excel at them. 26-year old guard Gary Neal was undrafted out of Towson State but you wouldn’t know that based on his play. Neal has played in 60 games (0 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 20.3 minutes, 9.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. Neal has shot 41.3% from three point range so far this year and he has given the Spurs instant offense off the bench this season. 26-year old center Tiago Splitter has been solid when on the court this year. He has played in 44 games (0 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 11.3 minutes, 4.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. He is shooting 51.2% from the floor so far this year as he is making the most of his shots. 21-year old SG/SF James Anderson missed a lot of time due to injury but he’s back now. Anderson has played in 14 games (0 starts) for the Spurs so far this year and he is averaging 12.8 minutes, 4.4 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Anderson is shooting 43.8% from 3-point range so far this year for the Spurs. The Spurs are energized by the talent of the rookie class which makes the roster a very, very deep one.

The Spurs have selected 19-year old power forward Ryan Richards with the 49th overall pick of the NBA Draft. Richards played in 9 games (0 starts) in Spain last season and he averaged 12.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. He played in 12 games (0 starts) in his two years in Spain and he averaged 10.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Richards looks like a developmental project but one with a nice upside.

The Spurs have selected 21-year old shooting guard James Anderson with the 20th overall pick of the NBA Draft. Anderson played in 33 games (all starts) for Oklahoma State last season and he averaged 22.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He played in 101 games (99 starts) in his three years with the Cowboys and he averaged 17.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 steals per game. This was an outstanding pick for the Spurs as Anderson will give the offense a boost when he’s on the floor in 2010-11 and beyond.

The Spurs have the #20 and #49 overall picks in tomorrow’s NBA Draft. The Spurs will likely be targeting small forwards and big men with their picks. The Spurs could also dangle George Hill or Tony Parker tomorrow might to see if they could get a huge return for one of them. The Spurs need to start getting younger if nothing else on the bench so they don’t get too old too quick.