The San Antonio Spurs proved to be one of the best teams of all-time with a dismantling of the Miami Heat in the 2014 NBA Finals. These Spurs absolutely blasted the Heat in these past three games. Last night, the withstood a 22-6 barrage to start the game and won the game 104-87. The Heat were so dejected at the end of the game that Lebron visibly quit with about 5 minutes left in the game and the Big Three was removed with 2 minutes left. This "super team" couldn't handle the unselfishness and passing ability of the team. San Antonio is the ultimate team with their unselfish play. It never mattered who got the headlines (as it hasn't for the entire Duncan-Popovich era), just that they came out on top. This team was destined to finish on top and all of this was by design, I will tell you how this championship was won.
Tim Duncan Is Historically Great
It is time we start finally appreciating Tim Duncan for all he has accomplished in this league. The guy just won his 5th championship. He has three Finals MVPs, he has two regular season MVPS (robbed of at least two more), 14 all star appearances (12 starts), and yet is underrated. Nobody ever talks about Lebron as one of the truly all-time greats. Lebron and Kobe get compared to Jordan, but not Duncan and it doesn't make sense to me. For the record, Jordan is the best-ever, but Duncan might be the 2nd best I have seen, and no I am not kidding.
Duncan is certainly one of the best defensive players of this generation. He has been rated by basketball reference as a top 5 defensive player every season of his NBA career. This guy rates as the #1 active player and number two defensive player of all-time. For defensive win-shares, Duncan received the highest scores in 5 different seasons. For blocks per game Duncan has the 2nd most active and is #15 all-time. Rebounds per game he is 2nd for active players and #24 all-time. Total rebounds Duncanis #2 currently, and #11 all-time. Total blocks, he is #2 currently and #7 all-time. Duncan has 14 all-defensive 1st or 2nd team awards (5 of those are 2nd team).
We can add in the offensive statistics to. For points per game, Duncan is no slouch. He has averaged 19.9 points per game over his brilliant career. That is good for 10th among current players and 55th all-time. Despite, being one of the most unselfish players in history, the 5 time champ, has shown he can score when he needs to. Let's not forget the record setting pace for double doubles. Again, according to basketball reference, Duncan is #1 currently for win-shares for the entire league over his career. He is #6 all-time ahead of both Lebron and Kobe. For the record, Kobe is 17 and Lebron is 18.
Look again, I am not saying Duncan is the best ever, but looking at his career and his 5 championships, it is time to put him in the conversation.
Popovich Also All-Time Great
Some people credited Duncan and some people credited Pop. Finally, I think everyone is crediting both of them for this historic amount of success. They are the best organization in sports currently and it starts with those two. The unselfish play of Tim Duncan has to be credited slightly to Pop, and also slightly to his mentor, David Robinson. The unselfish play of the entire team and the system he used has to be credited to Popovich. This guy made this team the most unselfish in sports that I have ever seen. It really is incredible what they have done. While this team was built around Duncan, it was perfected by Popovich and he deserves credit for that. Maximizing talents of guys like Danny Green and Patty Mills is something nobody else has been able to do.
No Excuses About Help
Look this win is about the Spurs and how every player, even the great Tim Duncan, is so unselfish that it doesn't matter who gets the glory. This has never happened with one of Lebron's teams. Lebron always gets the glory. I do not consider myself a Lebron hater, but give it a rest already. The help excuse went out the window when he teamed up with two other current top 10 players to form this Super Team. He said he wouldn't get 1,2,3,4 titles, he claimed he could get more. This guy acted like he could run through the NBA with no resistance now that he finally got help. Also I know that he's old, but they had Ray Allen too.
Don't forget the important parts though. The personnel moves demanded in Cleveland. Lebron begged Cleveland to get an over the hill Antawn Jamison (a move that strapped Cleveland financially) and give up valuable picks right before he left. He held the team hostage with saying they needed to make moves. His team was never good enough. While he was on Cleveland, they had an all-star in Carlos Boozer and a young guy by the name of Danny Green. None of it was ever good enough for Lebron. Danny Green was so terrible in fact, that he ended up being cut by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Well, look at Green now.
Right behind Tim Duncan, is that same Danny Green. That same Danny Green that Lebron couldn't make better. That same Danny Green who was not good enough. That same Danny Green is a starter for the unselfish team, the San Antonio Spurs.
Kawhi Leonard Has Arrived
Let's not forget what Kawhi Leonard has done. this guy for two straight years has been the answer for Lebron James. Sure, the Heat won last year, but save that miracle finish and questionable officiating in Game 6, Kawhi wins an MVP last year too. This guy was out of this world. He defended Lebron very well for three straight games and outplayed him even. He certainly outhustled Lebron. This guy wanted it more. This team wanted it more.
Now, the rest of the world sees what San Antonio sees and what I have been saying. Kawhi Leonard is a superstar and he has arrived. At 22 years old, he already has one Finals MVP trophy. Don't be surprised if he picks up a few more in his career.
The Other Guys/The Other Effects
Many guys are afraid to admit that they are wrong. Not me. I thought that Manu Ginobili was finished, I thought he played to wreckless at times. However, that was not the case. Manu Ginobili just needed an offseason of rest. The guy plays so much basketball and just needed a break. At 36 years old, Manu has still got it. Manu can still play and after Game 5 of these finals, the NBA was put on notice. This legend is not done yet.
One guy I was not wrong about was Patty Mills. The great Patty Mills has such a great shot and is very useful off the bench. There is nobody that is more likable on this team than Patty. My sister texted me last night, "I love Patty Mills." How can you not love this guy? His energy, his playmaking ability, his demeanor, his selflessness, it is all unmatched. Well unmatched by anyone outside this Spurs organization. In some ways, Patty Mills is the face of this franchise. That is that he never has given up. When counted out, he never gave up. On the court he never gives up. That is the difference between these Spurs and other teams, they never give up on a possession ever.
Finally, I can say that I told you so. I told you that as soon as David Stern retired and they stopped letting Joey Crawford ref closing games the Spurs would win a title. Sure, I didn't go out and say the NBA was fixed, but it looked questionable. Joey Crawford's career reffing Spurs games has been highly questionable. David Stern has long been accused of fixing outcomes. The Oklahoma City-Miami Finals of two years ago was very suspicious. These type of things happened under Stern frequently. However, it didn't happen under Silver. Silver did not try to manipulate the outcome. The NBA is better for not having a meddling owner. This guy could bring a lot of fans back to the NBA, this seemed legit.
This was an awesome season and an awesome outcome. I have very much enjoyed this season and loved last night. The NBA is finally back and I could not be happier. They still got some kinks to work out with the refs, but they are oh so much better. This all just feels right. The Spurs are back where they belong. An unselfish team won the title. Tim Duncan and Greg Popovich got ring number 5.
The San Antonio Spurs are NBA Champions!
-Noland
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