Hubbard: Lakers vs. Spurs would be special

Sports is always in search of something special – rivalries, dynasties, the greatest.

In so many ways, the rivalry between the Lakers and Spurs should qualify as classic.

But the reality of the NBA is that there is one true lasting rivalry – Celtics and Lakers. One franchise has 17 titles, the other 16. They have met 12 times in the Finals with Boston holding a 9-3 edge.

Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson was Lakers-Celtics. Bill Russell vs. Wilt Chamberlain is the NBA’s greatest individual rivalry, so it was fitting that the last year Russell played, his team won the title by defeating Lakers with Wilt in his first year in Los Angeles.

Other rivalries come and go – Knicks-Heat, Bulls-Pistons, etc. And a number of teams think they have a rivalry with the Celtics and Lakers, but it is pretty much a one-way feeling.

The Lakers and Spurs, however, have a spirited recent history. It’s not a rivalry that stimulates the masses – perhaps because the Lakers have a greater rivalry with Boston and the Spurs are a small-market team that has never had a passionate national following.

They are beloved in San Antonio, with their proud small market style, and they are content with that.

Hard-core NBA devotees, however, are aware of Lakers-Spurs, particularly as it centers on Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan. Bryant arrived in Los Angeles in 1996 and Duncan was drafted by San Antonio in 1997. Since then, the two teams have met six times in the playoffs. The Lakers have won four; the Spurs two.

Each time, the winner went to the NBA Finals. Four times, the winner won the championship.

The matchup has had its share of storied moments – none greater than Derek Fisher’s dramatic shot late in Game 5 of the 2004 series.

That shot gave the Lakers a 1-point victory and the home court advantage in a second round series. It began on an inbound play with less than four-tenths of a second showing on the clock – how much less will always be disputed.

Regardless, less than three-tenths of a second had expired off the clock since an 18-footer by Tim Duncan had given the Spurs the lead. Duncan’s would have been one of the biggest shots in Spurs history – instead, it is a maddening memory in San Antonio.

The Lakers went on to win the series.

In the 13 years that began with the Spurs first title, the two teams have combined for nine championships and there is a healthy competition about who has a rightful claim to the title of “dynasty.” Obviously the Lakers, with one more title than the Spurs, are the leaders in the clubhouse.

Despite several obstacles, the two seem headed for another series and, thankfully for those of us who are unbiased and simply love basketball theater, it could be in the Western finals.

The winner, again, would go to the championship series.

For much of the last part of the compressed season, it looked as though Oklahoma City would be the top seed in the West. With the Spurs second and Lakers third, at best there would have been a meeting in the conference semifinals.

But the Thunder have slipped slightly – except for Sunday when they really gagged, blew a 17-point lead in Los Angeles and were defeated by the Lakers. You have to wonder how the Thunder will react when the stakes are higher. Again, the current team and has never defeated a team seeded in the top four

If San Antonio holds on to the top seed and the Lakers hold onto third, the two teams would need to win two playoff series to meet again in the Western finals.

The winner again would play for the championship.

That’s not to presume that winning two series in the West will be easy, but the Spurs and Lakers have championship pedigree. The only other team that has that is the defending champion Mavericks, and they certainly showed last season that they are capable of getting on a major roll.

But Dallas has had an inconsistent season and the analysis that has been incorrectly applied for the last few years finally fits. The Mavericks are showing their age.

The Spurs and Lakers are not. Bryant recently missed two weeks with his injury and San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich has regularly rested Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker.

The NBA also provided a preview of a Spurs-Lakers matchup by scheduling them to play three times in 10 days during the final two weeks of the season. They had not played this season until April 11.

What did we learn?

Hardly anything.

On April 11 in San Antonio, the two met with Bryant sidelined because of a shin injury. Center Andrew Bynum fulfilled every bit of his immense potential with a 30-rebound, 16-point performance that enabled the Lakers to win by 14 in San Antonio.

On April 17 with Bryant still out, Bynum had 23 fewer rebounds (seven total), but scored 21 points. With Parker scoring 29 and Duncan 19, the Spurs won in Los Angeles by 21.

On April 20, Bryant returned and for those who thought it would make a difference, it did not. The Spurs won by 24. Bynum inexplicably had only two rebounds – yes, 28 fewer than 10 days earlier – and Duncan, Ginobili and Parker had 21, 20 and 20 points, respectively.

“We figured out we should probably just block him out,” Duncan said, explaining the difference between 30 and two. “We started with that and obviously it was a focus for us as he hurt us earlier in that respect. It was a focus for us to keep him off especially on the offensive glass. What he does on the defensive glass I can’t take any credit for that, but on the offensive glass we just needed to limit his opportunities.”

Despite the Spurs taking two of the three meetings, there was nothing to be taken from the series, other than a desire to see the two play again. That’s nothing against the Thunder. If they break through, great. We’ll applaud them.

Same goes for the Mavericks. If they get hot and win another, Mark Cuban’s next championship ring will be only slightly smaller than a basketball.

Clippers and Grizzlies? Hard to see either winning three series, but if they do, may the basketball gods bless them.

But Spurs-Lakers would be great theater – another meeting in a rivalry that may not be the greatest, but has a special history and is fun to watch.

Jan Hubbard has written about basketball since 1976 and worked in the NBA league office for eight years in between media stints. Follow him on Twitter at @whyhub.