| Are The Spurs Done? Authored by Leigh Ellis - June 2, 2008 - 10:03 pm
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The Spurs have been the league’s most dominant and consistent franchise over the last decade. They have been to the Finals four times, winning it on each trip (1999, 2003, 2005 and 2007). They have advanced to the Western Conference Finals on three other occasions (2001, 2006 and 2008), giving them seven appearances in the last ten years. The three years that they didn’t make it that far they at the very least qualified for the playoffs (2000, 2002 and 2004), a record any franchise would be proud of.
Yet, while Spurs fans have had lots to celebrate over the last decade, there is evidence to suggest that the sun might be setting on what’s been a golden era in Southern Texas.
Firstly, they are aging. Of their core, Tim Duncan is 32-years-old, Manu Ginobili is 30, Bruce Bowen is 36 and Michael Finley is 35. The only good news on that front is that Tony Parker is only 26.
Coach Gregg Popovich refused to use age as an excuse for his team’s demise in the playoffs, but even he must realize that his team will require an injection of youth if they want to continue to challenge for the NBA crown.
The Western Conference was by far the deeper and stronger of the two conferences this year and it figures to get even tougher next season. Portland, New Orleans and Utah – among others – have promising young teams and the Spurs will struggle to keep pace with their current roster.
The only problem San Antonio’s continued success has given them over the last decade is that they have never been able to rely on a high draft pick to keep their roster strong. Instead they have been forced to do their homework on lesser-known players and to trust their very reliable scouting staff.
Since taking Tim Duncan with the first pick in the 1997 draft, the Spurs have never had a pick higher than 24th yet they have still managed to draft Tony Parker (28th, 2001), Manu Ginobili (57th, 1999), Luis Scola (56th, 2002) and Beno Udrih (28th, 2004). Scola and Udrih of course are no longer with San Antonio, after they were basically given away this season. It’s not that San Antonio gave up on them, they just didn’t have space for them in the rotation. Scola and Udrih both excelled so vastly with their new teams, that San Antonio might now regret giving them away so cheaply.
The Spurs will hope to make another shrewd selection this year with their pick, which is currently slated to be 26th.
Secondly, at some point it’s reasonable to expect that the desire to keep on winning might start to fade for some of these players. Several guys from last year’s triumph returned this year for a shot at repeating and while everyone likes to win, for players heading towards the end of their career, once a championship is secured, the burning flame to compete can sometimes diminish.
However, Duncan’s hunger appears to still be as great as it’s ever been. He is the ultimate professional and has won pretty much every major team and individual accolade a player can, most on more than one occasion. He doesn’t need to prove anything more to anyone. Regardless of what happens from here, he’ll be considered one of the best to ever play the game.
What makes Duncan’s achievements even more amazing is that he’s done it all while playing for one team and he’s only played for one coach. Popovich and Duncan came together when the Spurs drafted Duncan in 1997. They have remained together ever since and it’s hard to imagine one without the other. There is an easy, respectful rapport between them and you wonder if they have ever had a bad word to say to one another.
While Duncan is still the leader of this team, by winning last season’s Finals MVP award, Parker has proved that he is ready to take over the reigns.
Thirdly, they say that familiarity breeds contempt. That may be true, but in San Antonio’s case, that’s not such a bad thing. They are only familiar with winning. You only need to look at the first round of the playoffs when they dispatched the Phoenix Suns in five games. Then again, San Antonio always beats Phoenix in the playoffs. Upon reflection, that first round series probably said more about the direction the Suns were heading in rather than the Spurs.
In San Antonio’s second round matchup with New Orleans, the Spurs had to rely on all their playoff experience to beat the younger Hornets. The signs were there though, as the Spurs looked tired at times during the series. In hindsight, it was probably only the Hornets’ lack of playoff experience that prevented them from defeating the Spurs.
When the Spurs and the Lakers met in the conference finals, it was billed as a classic rematch of their earlier playoff battles. It wasn’t to be though as the Lakers comfortably defeated the Spurs in five games. Much of the credit went directly to Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, but it’s possible that L.A. beat up a weary opponent.
One of the major reasons why San Antonio has been so successful over the last decade has been their adaptability – they’ve changed, yet remained the same.
Several players have come and gone and most have abided by a code which trades ego for the chance to win. They only true constants throughout the decade have been Popovich and Duncan.
It would be foolish to write the Spurs off completely, but it would be equally foolish to think that they can continue winning forever.
If the sun is setting on this current Spurs’ dynasty, at least they’ve got one helluva tan to show for it.
To read more from Leigh, please visit http://thedailyhurt.blogspot.com or e-mail him at thedailyhurt@hotmail.com. |
