Grading San Antonio Spurs' Final 15-Man Roster

The 2014-15 NBA regular season has officially begun, which means the San Antonio Spurs have nailed down their final 15-man roster.

A couple key role players are currently sidelined, but Gregg Popovich's team is still carried by the longtime Big Three of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.

But beyond those stars and role players, how does the remainder of the squad for the defending NBA champions shake out?

The following grades account for individual production, system fit and team chemistry while factoring in collective depth and expectations.

Point Guard

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Active: Tony Parker, Cory Joseph

Injured: Patty Mills

As long as veteran point guard Tony Parker is healthy, San Antonio has an excellent chance to win a second straight NBA title.

There aren't many players in the league capable of running the pick-and-roll like Parker, who can attack the rim, pull up for jumpers and draw defenders to pass inside or outside at an elite level.

Patty Mills was a key part of the championship squad, burying triples off the bench in the vaunted second unit. According to Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News, the earliest Mills can return is January, and the team will immediately improve offensively when he does.

In his absence, Cory Joseph provides a defensive-oriented style that complements his fellow second-unit teammates. His offense isn't stellar by any means, but the fourth-year guard is an adequate and experienced fit with the reserves.

Grade: A-

Shooting Guard

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Active: Danny Green, Manu Ginobili

Injured: None

The Spurs have a simple rotation at shooting guard: Danny Green starts the night, Manu Ginobili finishes it.

Over the last three seasons, Green established himself as a premier three-point shooter and an above-average defender. His offensive role is essentially to find an open perimeter location and convert, something he's done 42.5 percent of the time with San Antonio.

Ginobili is the better-known commodity, famous for completing borderline impossible passes and acrobatic shots and providing stingy defense.

However, both players are plagued by completely random inconsistency. Green sometimes can't hit water if he falls out of a boat, while Ginobili's stellar playmaking can revert to disastrous decisions within a possession.

After the season-opening win over the Dallas Mavericks, per Paul Garcia of Project Spurs, Popovich said the southpaw "was like zero for 50 in the preseason and had like 19 turnovers per game, but tonight he was Manu Ginobili."

Ultimately, projecting which Green or Ginobili will appear on a given night is a futile exercise. The tandem can certainly be electric, but they can be unbelievably frustrating too. 

Grade: B+

Small Forward

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Active: Kawhi Leonard, Marco Belinelli, Kyle Anderson, Austin Daye

Injured: None

Yes, Kawhi Leonard has been sidelined due to an eye infection and missed the season-opener. According to Dan McCarney of the Express-News, however, the fourth-year forward was cleared for the first game, but Popovich held him out.

He's set to return on Friday, Oct. 21, per McCarney, so any concern about the reigning Finals MVP should be alleviated that night, and his humble trek toward superstardom will continue.

While Marco Belinelli is realistically a 2-guard, the system technically slots the Italian at the 3. The Spurs need him to produce consistently from long distance, especially while Mills is sidelined.

Belinelli was red-hot beyond the arc during the first half of the 2013-14 campaign before cooling significantly over the latter portion. Quite evidently, consistency is a major snafu for the San Antonio 1s, 2s and 3s.

And oh, what to make of Kyle Anderson? It's not perfectly clear how Pop will utilize his only rookie, but small forward—where he contributed during the preseason—is his commonly designated position. Anderson could spend part of the season in the D-League, but we just don't know.

As for Austin Daye, well, he's under contract and has a championship ring, so his professional career is probably better than yours or mine.

Nevertheless, any position spearheaded by the Finals MVP remains a formidable unit.

Grade: B+

Power Forward

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Active: Tim Duncan, Boris Diaw, Jeff Ayres

Injured: None

To steal the most overused, meaningless sports cliche: Tim Duncan is a winner. Really though, if there is any player to whom that terrible phrase actually applies, it's the 18-year pro.

Slow, deliberate, old: Feel free to label him whatever seems sensible, but Duncan simply produces on a nightly basis.

Additionally, since Swiss army knife Boris Diaw is his replacement, the Spurs can be extremely comfortable with the talent they possess at power forward.

"A renaissance man, Diaw has made defenses pay from every spot on the court and in numerous ways," Bleacher Report's Garrett Jochnau said. "His ability to orchestrate in the interior adds to the team's top-tier ball movement, and his balanced scoring attack makes him a consistent threat for defenses."

Barring serious counts of injury, Jeff Ayres won't register many significant minutes, as is the case with Daye. He provides a physical rebounding presence, but a soon-to-be-discussed backup center is easily a more imposing force.

Grade: A

Center

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Active: Matt Bonner, Aron Baynes

Injured: Tiago Splitter

Though glamorous will never be an adjective associated with Tiago Splitter, the Brazilian complements San Antonio's front line by adding competent defense, rebounding and finishing. Nothing is elite, but nothing is completely terrible—despite what it seemed like during the 2013 NBA Finals.

Splitter is the foremost role player for the Spurs, because while everyone else steals headlines on occasion, he never will.

Without Splitter—who has a history of sustaining injuries and is currently battling his back—the Spurs are forced to employ Matt Bonner as the starting center. Sure, he understands the system and can bury three-pointers, but Bonner has little long-term value.

Aron Baynes is a promising youngster who performed well for Australia during the FIBA World Cup, yet the physical center is unproven at the NBA level. He's an upgrade over Ayres and deserves more action, but for now, there are still questions surrounding the career 9.3-minutes-per-night player.

San Antonio should survive no matter who its center is, but Pop's team performs at its best when Splitter roams the post.

Grade: B-