Manu Ginboli Injury: San Antonio Spurs' Star to Miss Only Two Weeks

After an examination by the team physician, the San Antonio Spurs reported today that Manu Ginobili should miss about two weeks with a strained oblique that he aggravated Saturday night against the Los Angeles Clippers. The same report indicates that Tiago Splitter will also be out for close to two weeks because a strained right calf.

The injuries are an unfortunate side note to San Antonio's league-best 10-game winning streak, which has included a convincing victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder and the more recent overtime win in Los Angeles against the Clippers.

However, the Spurs are 15-7 in games played with Ginobili this season, and they don't appear to be particularly phased at the prospect of losing him for a while longer. With Tony Parker arguably playing as well as any point guard in the league right now, San Antonio has reason to be hopeful in the face of Ginobili's extended absence.

Though the Spurs will likely have to face the Chicago Bulls without Ginobili and Splitter, they'll also play the recently struggling Denver Nuggets twice and the always-struggling Charlotte Bobcats.

The Spurs' biggest concern may indeed be the loss of Splitter. The setback forced Gregg Popovich to play the 35-year-old Tim Duncan for over 41 minutes against the Clippers, a trend unlikely to continue in this season's condensed schedule.

Splitter has led San Antonio's bench in scoring at 9.4 points per contest and added needed size in the paint with 5.2 rebounds and nearly a block per game. Of course, the minutes he spares Duncan are perhaps most invaluable.

With an undersized DeJuan Blair and Matt Bonner (primarily a perimeter-oriented "spread four") the Spurs' only other options in the post, Splitter's size and energy will be dearly missed.

To that end, San Antonio signed forward Eric Dawson from the D-League, giving the team a bit of an insurance policy for the thin front line. In his 18 games with the Austin Toros, the 27-year-old Dawson has averaged 15.9 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocks.

Absent additional injuries, however, expect the Spurs to get by with a smaller lineup than they may be accustomed to using. Richard Jefferson got some experience sliding over to power forward last year, and rookie Kawhi Leonard is a strong candidate to do the same this season.

Meanwhile, a combination of Gary Neal, Danny Green and James Anderson will continue to fill in for Ginobili. The undrafted Neal, who's averaged 13 points over his last five games, continues to excel as San Antonio's sixth man, and Danny Green's active defense has earned him a temporary spot in the starting lineup.

As Popovich continues to make a strong case for Coach of the Year honors, look for San Antonio to keep pace in a tight Western Conference. In addition to Parker's standout performances, the ageless Duncan has averaged 15.8 points and 11.3 rebounds in February, reminding skeptics that the Big Fundamental is there when his team needs him.