The importance of Tiago Splitter

Tiago Splitter hasn’t been the player many were expecting when he arrived from Spain, where he was MVP of the ACB in his final season with Baskonia in 2010.

He isn’t particularly physical. He’s prone to tossing up weak shots around the rim, leading to moments like this. He’s kind of clumsy, in a strangely graceful way. In another life, he might have been a male model.

All Splitter does is make a difference.

NBA.com’s John Schuhmann illustrated how in his latest installment of One Team, One Stat. With Tiago Splitter in the lineup alongside Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green, the Spurs allowed just 87.7 points per 100 possessions, the top mark among 58 units that played at least 200 minutes last season...