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SAN ANTONIO -- The San Antonio Spurs responded to their most successful regular season in franchise history with the greatest turnover in Gregg Popovichs two decades with the team.Tim Duncans retirement played a large role in the reconstruction, but so did losing in six games to Oklahoma City in the Western Conference semifinals.Duncan is gone along with veterans Boris Diaw, Matt Bonner and late-season additions Andre Miller and Kevin Martin. While San Antonio added another veteran in Pau Gasol, they also brought in a lot of youth and athleticism as they prepared for life without Duncan, the power forward who led the franchise to five NBA titles in 19 seasons.Right now we dont know what were going to miss on the floor because we havent been through the season yet, Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard said. (But) just knowing hes not here, his personality isnt here. Jokes that he makes during practice, thats the things Im missing right now.Duncan will be with the team occasionally as an unofficial assistant coach, but San Antonio is placing the team squarely in Leonards hands. The 6-foot-7 forward finished second in MVP balloting after averaging a career-high 21.2 points and 6.8 rebounds last season. He also was named Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season.After spending his first five seasons adding a pull-up jumper and honing his 3-point shooting, Leonard spent this offseason working on something else: Just becoming a leader. Just making sure I know whats going on on the floor at every position. Just getting ready to get my mentality of just leading the group this year.Leonards evolution as a leader should be aided by Gasol. The 17-year veteran won two NBA championships while with the Los Angeles Lakers.One thing that makes me feel a little better with (Duncans) loss is Pau Gasol, Popovich said. He is a very intelligent man and he understands how to play and hes played for a lot of good people. Thats going to help us in that loss, but having said that, it will take time to get all the new guys to understanding exactly how we play and who goes with whom.Gasol averaged 16.5 points and 11.0 rebounds for Chicago last season while earning his sixth All-Star appearance. Duncan averaged 8.6 points and 7.3 rebounds in the final season of a Hall of Fame career.Gasols numbers will likely drop this season, though, as San Antonio will continue to develop around Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge.It starts with me and L.A. first, Leonard said. If we win a championship, its going to be up to us to lead the group.The duo earned All-Star berths last season while leading San Antonio to a franchise-record 67 victories. But the Spurs dropped four of five games to the Thunder in the West semifinals and San Antonio knew changes were needed. The Spurs drafted 6-foot-5 point guard Dejounte Murray and brought in 2011 second-round pick Davis Bertans at forward along with signing 7-foot center Dewayne Dedmon along with David Lee.Some other things to know about the Spurs, who open the season Tuesday night at Golden State:BACKGROUND NOISEAldridge struggled to fit into the teams offense in the first half of last season, but closed strongly to lead the team in rebounding and finish second in scoring. He said he was not bothered by reports San Antonio was willing to trade him.(Popovich is) a pretty direct person and this organization is first-class, so if that was the issue, I would have known way before the media knew, Aldridge said. So, I wasnt worried about it at all.BIG TWO?Point guard Tony Parker suffered a drop in scoring for his third straight season, which is a product of the teams evolution rather than any decline in his game. The 6-foot-2 guard averaged 11.9 points last season, but he had a career-low 1.8 turnovers per game and shot 49 percent from the field. It was the third time in four seasons that Parker has shot 49 percent or better from the field. He also shot 42 percent on 3-pointers, marking the second straight season he has shot over 40 percent on 3s. Fellow veteran Manu Ginobili said he will not decide if this his last season until after its done.BOUNCING BERTANSAfter averaging 7.9 points and shooting 47 percent on 3-pointers in 15 games for Baskonia in the Euroleague last season, Bertans is averaging 5.4 points and shooting 31 percent on 3-pointers in five preseason games for the Spurs. He has astounded his teammates with his leaping ability especially after right ACL surgery twice in the past three years.I think in the second ACL they put something special in there, Bertans said.FOUL TROUBLEDedmon is expected to be one of the teams primary frontcourt reserves if he can stay on the court. The 7-footer has struggled with foul trouble in his career, averaging 2.1 fouls in just 13.1 minutes per game. He is averaging 3.2 fouls in five preseason games, including fouling out in 22 minutes in San Antonios preseason opener against Phoenix.STEPPING INGasol has stepping into Duncans spot in numerous ways, not just in the starting lineup. Gasol has taken Duncans spot standing next to Parker and Ginobili during the national anthem and is also handling tip-off duties. Reggie White Super Bowl Jersey .Y. - New York City has been selected to host the NBA All-Star weekend in 2015, with the game played at Madison Square Garden and the slam dunk contest and other skills events held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Josh Jackson Super Bowl Jersey . After a lengthy wait, persistent rain finally forced the postponement of the Nationals game against the Miami Marlins on Saturday night. The teams, and a few thousand fans, waited nearly four hours from the 7:05 scheduled start time before an announcement was made shortly before 11 p. http://www.shoptheofficialpackers.com/Elite-Kevin-King-Packers-Jersey/ . That left plenty of energy for pitching books and swatting away free agency questions. Anthony had 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Knicks avenged an embarrassing home loss with a rout of their own, beating the Boston Celtics 114-88 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. Bart Starr Super Bowl Jersey . Collaros, 25, was solid last season, posting a 5-2 record as the starter while incumbent Ricky Ray was injured. Collaros also started Torontos 23-20 regular-season finale loss to Montreal — Ray didnt dress because the Argos had already clinched first in the East Division — but was one of three quarterbacks to play that day. Oren Burks Super Bowl Jersey . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. NEW YORK -- The Mets and Governor Andrew Cuomo honored the 2016 Little League World Series champions from Endwell, New York, prior to a game with the Miami Marlins on Wednesday.A group of 29 players, coaches, parents and siblings took the three-hour bus ride from Endwell to Citi Field. The players spent batting practice on the field, meeting the Mets players before Cuomo presented the team with an official New York State proclamation. Rather than read the entire proclamation to a room of 12-year-olds, Cuomo summarized, saying that as governor of the state of New York, we are all very, very proud of you and what you represent in your victory and your character and how you stand for all of the important virtues of this state.Endwell became the first U.S. winner since Huntington Beach, California, in 2011 and gave New York its first championship since 1964.I dont think they understand how big of an accomplishment it was, Endwell coach Scott Rush said.dddddddddddd Today, they get to be kids.Rush threw out the games first pitch.Captain David Wright and pitchers Robert Gsellman, Seth Lugo, Logan Verrett and Jacob deGrom -- the five players on the roster that spent time with New Yorks Double-A affiliate in Binghamton -- joined CEO Fred Wilpon and general manager Sandy Alderson for a brief reception before the governor addressed the team.Binghamton is our hometown team, Rush said.Im jealous of you guys, Wright said. Ive never been able to capture that world title. So just know that Im going to shake your hand, but Im going to shake it with a little jealousy because Id like to be where you guys are for sure. ' ' '