The sight of Tim Duncan sitting on the bench during deciding moments of the Spurs-Warriors game Thursday sent me scrambling to the computer. The situation had to be unprecedented. When in playoff history has a player of Duncan’s stature sat down with the game on the line? Did that happen to Michael, Magic or Larry? What about Wilt or Russell? Kareem? Shaq? Kobe?
I didn’t even make it halfway when I stopped and started giggling. Michael Jordan sitting for the last 4:28? Magic Johnson? Those two insanely competitive players? Right. Such a thing is why the phrase “when pigs fly” was invented.
Hell, in 1961-62, Wilt Chamberlain averaged 48.5 minutes per game during the season. He sat on the bench for only eight minutes all year. So the chances of sitting four straight minutes in a playoff game are about the same as Lil Wayne singing opera.
But over the last few years, as intellect-based system of Gregg Popovich has continued to succeed, several sayings have developed in the NBA:
“Only in San Antonio.”
“Only Pop could do that.”
“Typical Spurs.”
You know the strange thing? In the current NBA, even though they have only four championships and trail the Bulls (six), Lakers (16) and Celtics (17), the team with the greatest working tradition is the San Antonio Spurs. And it’s because of Popovich and Duncan. And Thursday night is an example of why it is special.
Only in San Antonio, and only with Gregg Popovich, could a player who is arguably the greatest power forward in NBA history be confined to the bench at such a key moment in the series. And only Tim Duncan would have the intelligence and awareness to not only accept such a decision, but also endorse it afterward. When asked gingerly whether or not he simply thought Popovich was giving him a rest, Duncan said after the game:
“I don’t think he was giving me a break. I think I played three or four pretty bad minutes in a row.”
One similar situation occurred to me, although it was of far greater significance than Game 6 of a second round series. In the 1994 NBA Finals, Pat Riley watched from the sideline as John Starks imploded in Game 7. While Starks was in the process of shooting 2-of-18 from the field, including 0-of-11 from 3-point range and 0-of-10 in the fourth quarter, Riley paced the sidelines, obviously hesitant to make a change.
On the bench was four-time All-Star Rolando Blackman, whom the Knicks had acquired for exactly that sort of situation, But Blackman had been horribly underutilized and had played only 34 minutes in the playoffs. That was Riley’s choice.
Also on the bench was second-year guard Hubert Davis, who inexplicably had been given far more playing time than Blackman, but had shot only 36 percent from the field during the playoffs.
Riley had confidence in neither backup, so he could only watch as Starks put on a shooting exhibition that was supremely entertaining . . . to fans of car wrecks. The Knicks lost the game and the championship to the Rockets.
Such a thing would never happen in San Antonio, which is why, again, of the teams left in the playoffs, the Spurs have the best chance of upsetting the Miami Heat. Their chances are the rough equivalent of winning Powerball but I’m telling you . . . there’s a chance.
That’s not to overlook the Memphis Grizzlies, who as the No. 8 seed defeated the Spurs two years ago in the first round of the playoffs. The Grizzlies will be tough opponents, and the Western Conference finals have “seven-game series” written all over them.
But it is still the Spurs who are the biggest threat to the Heat for one reason – the effect of the Big Three. So much is made of San Antonio’s age, and those who constantly refer to it as a negative simply do not look at the entire picture.
For instance, anyone out there realize that the Grizzlies’ starting lineup averages 29.6 years of age while Spurs’ starters average age is 28.4?
Yes, Duncan is 37. And Parker has been in the league 12 years, even though he is only 31. They just seem like they are older than anyone else, but with Kawhi Leonard only 21 and Danny Green, Tiago Splitter and Gary Neal all 28 and under, the Spurs have a nice blend of age, youth, experience and potential.
Plus Duncan, Parker and Manu Ginobili have the classic superstar effect on the younger players. The combination of the Big Three makes everyone else on the team better. They elevate the play of the role players. As individuals and as a unit, they have the same effect on their teammates that all the great ones have always had.
The Spurs have a proven system with players who understand and embrace their roles. They also have a superstar in Ginobili who has no problem coming off the bench and they have a legend in Duncan, who has no problem sitting out a key moment of a playoff series if it helps the team.
The Spurs are the essence of what a team should be. Whether or not that is enough to win a championship remains to be seen.
But it can’t hurt.
(RELATED: In Give-And-Take With Popopvich, Reporters Usually Take)
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Jan Hubbard has written about basketball since 1976 and worked in the NBA league office for eight years between media stints. Follow him on Twitter at @whyhub.