Manu Ginobili says new-look Spurs 'need to be on the court together'

Over the past two decades, the San Antonio Spurs have served as a testament to the power of continuity.

The quartet of Gregg Popovich, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker have combined to produce five championships and 17 50-win seasons since Duncan's rookie season.

However, the addition of marquee free agent LaMarcus Aldridge presents the them with a new challenge. For once, the Spurs have to contend with change, and they'll need to re-learn how to play with one another with their new superstar serving as the focal point of their offense.

For Ginobili, the preseason presents the perfect venue for building familiarity.

"We all need to be on the court together, and make some mistakes now when they don’t count that much," Ginobili told Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News. "I want to play with (the new guys), to see how they act on a pick and roll, and how they want the ball and things like that."

Popovich, however, elected to rest his veterans for Thursday's preseason opener in Sacramento. The 66-year-old mastermind will be at home in San Antonio along with Ginobili, Duncan, Parker, and Boris Diaw. The decision was undoubtedly made with the hope of minimizing the miles on his veterans' well-worn tires.

That trend won't continue, however, as the coach is in agreement with Ginobili. No franchise values rest more than San Antonio, but for now, gaining experience trumps all.

"Usually we don’t give many minutes to Timmy or Tony or whoever," Popovich said. "But this preseason, they probably need to play a little bit with (newcomers) David West and LaMarcus Aldridge, so they know each other a little bit better than they do right now."

Aldridge, who spent his entire nine-year career to date as a fixture for the Portland Trail Blazers, is also wrestling with the challenge of fitting in with a new team.

"I was there (in Portland) for so many years, I was ingrained in the organization," Aldridge said. "This is a whole new thing for me, so I’m just trying to figure it out."

From 2012 to 2015, the Spurs played with no less than 11 holdovers on their roster from one season to the next. This season, Popovich and the Spurs will face the challenge of integrating up to six newcomers - including two pivotal rotation players in Aldridge and West - while coping with the departure of key contributors Cory Joseph and Tiago Splitter.

So if the Spurs want to recapture their form and rebuild the chemistry that they're famous for, they'll need to sacrifice a bit of rest.

"We need to play together," Ginobili said.