David West pins his hopes of making it to the Finals to joining the Spurs. (Photo : REUTERS)
Indiana Pacers Power forward David West has agreed to join the San Antonio Spurs on a veteran's minimum contract of one year, $1.4 million in his quest of joining a championship contender.
West said that at this point of his career, it's all about winning and that he wants to be in a spot where he can "taste" the Finals.
An excellent mid-range shooter and physical defender, West opted out of his $12.6 million player option with the Indiana Pacers.
He averaged 11.7 points and 6.8 rebounds on a 47.1 percent shooting last season.
West played for the Indiana Pacers the last four seasons. Aside from having little hope of making the Finals by sticking it out with the Pacers, West is also reportedly fed up with his role as a leader in the locker room.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and Washington Wizards were also interested in signing West.
The Spurs used up a good amount of salary-cap space by agreeing to a long-term deal with LaMarcus Aldridge and in re-signing Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green.
After hooking up with Aldridge, the Spurs aggressively pursued West, who was also very interested in signing a cap-friendly contract with the Spurs.
West also doesn't expect to be a start with the Spurs since Aldridge also plays power forward.
San Antonio still has to fill out its roster as their bench currently consists of West, Kyle Anderson, Boris Diaw and the returning Manu Ginobili.
The inclusion of West certainly makes the Spurs look like a championship contender, at least for the coming season.
After signing Aldridge, the Spurs odds to win the West improved to 2-1 and its chance of winning the NBA title was pegged at 4-1, behind only the Cleveland Cavaliers, who were tagged a 9-4 favorite.
It's interesting to see how the commitment of West plays out on the Spurs odds of winning it all.
