Rank the hardest opponents we've played

[SilverPlayer]

We've ranked our 99 03 05 07 team to death; now rank the opponent's series if you will: during those championship runs.

1) 03 Lakers- Kobe cries and a dynasty dies.
2) 05 Pistons- Took all we had and then Horry had to save our asses
3) 03 Mavs- Dirk + Finley + Nash, Kerr came up huge to save our asses.
4) 99 Trailblazers- don't let the sweep fool you, Duncan had Wallace in his head. Bonzi was a monster
5) 99 Lakers- not quite the Lakers team we came to fear and loathe. But close.
6) 07 Suns- This Nash lead Suns were mean and nastier than ever before. And they came with revenge on their minds
7) 05 Suns - Nash had just won his first MVP and some guy named Amare came storming onto the scene
8) 99 Wolves- a battle royale with KG matching Duncan pivot for pivot. He was gonna shock the world.
9) 99 Knicks - What can I say. They were tough and a hell of a lot scrappier than I ever expected them to be. Camby and Sprewell were amazing.
10) Special mention goes to last years Kings. Artest and Bonzi were special.

[whottt]

The 03 Suns were a bitch...you left them out.

Edit: They were much tougher than the 05 Suns.


05 Sonics were also tough...

And you are assuming we have won the title this year...

[gospursgooo]

How about 03 Nets?

[BeerIsGood!]

The 2001,2002,2004 Lakers.

[whottt]

If you are ranking every series of the Championship era or something...

Well Lakers, Lakers, Lakers, Mavs.

[GSH]

My vote for toughest opponent goes to Joey Crawford.

[whottt]

My vote for toughest opponent goes to Joey Crawford.



The same Joey Crawford who has reffed more Spurs playoff wins than any other ref since 1998?

[timvp]

The 03 Suns were a bitch...you left them out.

Edit: They were much tougher than the 05 Suns.


05 Sonics were also tough...

And you are assuming we have won the title this year...

Uh the '05 Suns would have swept the '03 Suns. 1st seed versus 8th seed. Nash versus Marbury. Amare rookie versus 40 ppg Amare.

Not sure where you pulled that analysis out of.

[ATXSPUR]

the 03 suns were tougher than the 05 or 07 suns imo

[whottt]

Uh the '05 Suns would have swept the '03 Suns. 1st seed versus 8th seed. Nash versus Marbury. Amare rookie versus 40 ppg Amare.

Not sure where you pulled that analysis out of.



If you had been a fan in 03, you wouldn't need it explained to you...

It's ironic that you listed Nash versus Marbury as a reason the 05 Suns were tougher.

[ATXSPUR]

Uh the '05 Suns would have swept the '03 Suns. 1st seed versus 8th seed. Nash versus Marbury. Amare rookie versus 40 ppg Amare.

Not sure where you pulled that analysis out of.

the 03 suns were much more physical than the 05 suns...and marbury was giving it to parker up the you know where.

[timvp]

If you had been a fan in 03, you wouldn't need it explained to you...

It's ironic that you listed Nash versus Marbury as a reason the 05 Suns were tougher.

Just because the Spurs struggle with a team they should sweep doesn't make them a "tough" team. That's like saying the 2005 Sonics were "tougher" than any team the Spurs played in '99.

[GSH]

The same Joey Crawford who has reffed more Spurs playoff wins than any other ref since 1998?

I was mostly thinking about one particular game in Dallas. He was pretty much insurmountable. But I also thought it was obvious that it was an attempt at humor...even if it wasn't a very good one. Are they giving bonus VBookie bucks for being a prick or something?

[slayermin]

The '03 Nets weren't great but they beat Detroit that year and took the '04 Pistons to seven games.

[aaronstampler]

I think the '05 Pistons were the toughest challenge we've ever had. The '03 Lakers weren't that great. Hell, the '02 Lakers weren't that great, they needed Stern to get them past the Kings.

The '03 Lakers had to go after Malone and Payton in the offseason because they realized that letting Horry play 35 mins a night at PF wasn't the greatest idea.

[SilverPlayer]

the 03 suns were much more physical than the 05 suns...and marbury was giving it to parker up the you know where.


Not sure where the 03 Suns should rank. At one level, they were only that good because they were playing against us, and Starbury was playing for a contract. So they matched up with us extremely well, but they weren't that good or better than the 05 or 07 Suns. But they played us tougher than the '05 suns.

The '03 net's deserve no place on this list. Ok maybe if I followed my own rules and only took teams that we beat during a championship run they'd be number 10. But they weren't very tough.

[whottt]

Just because the Spurs struggle with a team they should sweep doesn't make them a "tough" team. That's like saying the 2005 Sonics were "tougher" than any team the Spurs played in '99.


He asked to us to rank the hardest opponents...

That 03 Suns team gave us fits...

I am not saying which team was more talented...

I'm saying the 03 Suns were harder opponents...for us.

They took us to 6 games, and it seemed like we barely won a couple of those games...the 05 Suns would have been swept if the Spurs had been in the mood to do it.

[Infamous]

The 06 Mavs.

And of course next postseason, it'll be 08 Mavs.

[whottt]

I was mostly thinking about one particular game in Dallas. He was pretty much insurmountable. But I also thought it was obvious that it was an attempt at humor...even if it wasn't a very good one. Are they giving bonus VBookie bucks for being a prick or something?


Just sayin'...

Javie and Crawford get all this hate on the board.....they don't deserve it...well Crawford does now...but I hardly call seeing him ref a Spurs game as a sign we are in for a tough game.

[GSH]

We've ranked our 99 03 05 07 team to death; now rank the opponent's series if you will: during those championship runs.

2) 05 Pistons- Took all we had and then Horry had to save our asses



The 05 Pistons took all we had, including Horry, plus a screw-up by Rasheed. That series could easily have gone the other way, and we played hard. For the record, I have a lot of respect for Rasheed's game. He knew after the game that he had made a bad decision. If he hadn't, we might be discussing "what might have been" in 05. That was a very tough team.

[Budkin]

05 Pistons... that game 7 was gut wrenching until the end...

[ATXSPUR]

I am tempted to put the 05 Pistons at the top...but the Lakers are the Lakers....

[The_Worlds_finest]

Im gonna say the Spurs sweeping the lakers in the last playoff series played in a basketball monument such as the forum is classic

[Supergirl]

We've ranked our 99 03 05 07 team to death; now rank the opponent's series if you will: during those championship runs.

1) 03 Lakers- Kobe cries and a dynasty dies.
2) 05 Pistons- Took all we had and then Horry had to save our asses
3) 03 Mavs- Dirk + Finley + Nash, Kerr came up huge to save our asses.
4) 99 Trailblazers- don't let the sweep fool you, Duncan had Wallace in his head. Bonzi was a monster
5) 99 Lakers- not quite the Lakers team we came to fear and loathe. But close.
6) 07 Suns- This Nash lead Suns were mean and nastier than ever before. And they came with revenge on their minds
7) 05 Suns - Nash had just won his first MVP and some guy named Amare came storming onto the scene
8) 99 Wolves- a battle royale with KG matching Duncan pivot for pivot. He was gonna shock the world.
9) 99 Knicks - What can I say. They were tough and a hell of a lot scrappier than I ever expected them to be. Camby and Sprewell were amazing.
10) Special mention goes to last years Kings. Artest and Bonzi were special.

I totally agree with your first 3.

I'd bump the 07 Suns up to #4, and slide everyone else down.

[TampaDude]

9) 99 Knicks - What can I say. They were tough and a hell of a lot scrappier than I ever expected them to be. Camby and Sprewell were amazing.


Yup...the Knicks would not go quietly in Game 5...had the game been a second or two longer, the Knicks probably would have won. Sprewell was playing like a man possessed.

[gaKNOW!blee]

How about this years Nuggets? they were basically in every game and it seemed like Melo made every shot he took.

[Oh, Gee!!]

Dallas last year

[sa_butta]

We've ranked our 99 03 05 07 team to death; now rank the opponent's series if you will: during those championship runs.

1) 03 Lakers- Kobe cries and a dynasty dies.
2) 05 Pistons- Took all we had and then Horry had to save our asses
3) 03 Mavs- Dirk + Finley + Nash, Kerr came up huge to save our asses.
4) 99 Trailblazers- don't let the sweep fool you, Duncan had Wallace in his head. Bonzi was a monster
5) 99 Lakers- not quite the Lakers team we came to fear and loathe. But close.
6) 07 Suns- This Nash lead Suns were mean and nastier than ever before. And they came with revenge on their minds
7) 05 Suns - Nash had just won his first MVP and some guy named Amare came storming onto the scene
8) 99 Wolves- a battle royale with KG matching Duncan pivot for pivot. He was gonna shock the world.
9) 99 Knicks - What can I say. They were tough and a hell of a lot scrappier than I ever expected them to be. Camby and Sprewell were amazing.
10) Special mention goes to last years Kings. Artest and Bonzi were special.After the first 3, Id have to say 07 Suns. I had my doubts at the begining of the series.

[TampaDude]

After the first 3, Id have to say 07 Suns, I had my doubts at the begining of the series.

Yeah, the Suns were tough...really tough...Nash was awesome.

Thanks, Horry! :lol

[sa_butta]

Its really tough to call for the 4th spot because 05' Amare was much tougher than 07' Amare.

[Spurs Brazil]

4) 99 Trailblazers- don't let the sweep fool you, Duncan had Wallace in his head. Bonzi was a monster

Bonzi wasn't in NBA in 99

That team had Rider and JJ as SGs

[L.I.T]

Facetious answer: Whoever our next opponent is.

[tlongII]

The 08 Blazers.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

03 Suns was a damn tough series! They grabbed the first game on a banked 3 by Starbury to put it into OT when we let them back into it, then won it on a banked 3 by Amare in OT! I watched that game in Boseman, Montana, and man was I pissed off afterwards. That was a BRUTAL series that we were fortunate to win (we made slightly fewer mistakes than them is all). Should definitely make somewhere in the 10...

Also, Denver 07 gave us a good scare until we realised that AI would shoot them out of every 4th Q. Deserves an honourable mention...

Lakers 03 at number 1 works well though. ;)

[MrChug]

I'm voting for last year's Mavericks. Although the '05 Pistons were a formidable match the refs controlled that series more than the teams did. How do you explain 2 dominant performances by the Spurs then 2 dominant performances by the Pistons? The tide doesn't change that radically in any 7 game series without some help. The Mavs played us straight up and just beat us over 7 games. Period.

[Mavs<Spurs]

Good topic for a thread.

I like it.

I agree with most of your choices.

I agree with Timvp against Whott about the 03 and 05 Suns.

[DisgruntledLionFan#54,927]

I'm voting for last year's Mavericks. Although the '05 Pistons were a formidable match the refs controlled that series more than the teams did. How do you explain 2 dominant performances by the Spurs then 2 dominant performances by the Pistons? The tide doesn't change that radically in any 7 game series without some help. The Mavs played us straight up and just beat us over 7 games. Period.


Agreed. The refs bailed out the Spurs in the first two games and in G5.

[ShoogarBear]

How can the 2005 Pistons or the 2006 Mavs not be #1?

[td4mvp21]

Agreed. The refs bailed out the Spurs in the first two games and in G5.

That is definitely the reason why we won...it had nothing to do with having better offense and defense than the Pistons.

[DisgruntledLionFan#54,927]

That is definitely the reason why we won...it had nothing to do with having better offense and defense than the Pistons.

Why not? It's a valid excuse and at least the Pistons lost.

Whining about the officiating when you won the title is probably the dumbest sports take I have ever heard or seen.

[LavaLamp]

That is definitely the reason why we won...it had nothing to do with having better offense and defense than the Pistons.


Isn't it true that refs can only influence a game's outcome if the two teams are playing fairly closely anyway?

[MadDog73]

We've ranked our 99 03 05 07 team to death; now rank the opponent's series if you will: during those championship runs

God, can any of you people even read?!?

The question excludes 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, & 2006. If you want to make a thread about those years, do it, but that's the reason the 2006 Mavs aren't included: it wasn't during a Championship year!

That said, I agree with whottt: 2005 Sonics have to be up there. That was a brutal series, and if not for Tim Duncan willing us to victory, could have been another losing year.

[Dave McNulla]

only going by championship seasons, so i leave off this season until it's over

1 05 Pistons 7/7
7 05 Suns 5/7
4 05 Sonics 6/7
6 05 Nuggs 5/7

worst spurs team, imo
12 03 Nets 6/7
11 03 Mavs 6/7
2 03 Laker 6/7
5 03 Suns 6/7

best spurs team, imo
10 99 Knicks 5/7
3 99 Trailblazers 4/7
8 99 Lakers 4/7
9 99 Wolves 4/5

[BeerIsGood!]

God, can any of you people even read?!?

The question excludes 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, & 2006. If you want to make a thread about those years, do it, but that's the reason the 2006 Mavs aren't included: it wasn't during a Championship year!

That said, I agree with whottt: 2005 Sonics have to be up there. That was a brutal series, and if not for Tim Duncan willing us to victory, could have been another losing year.

I can read, I just don't give a fuck to follow what was said.

[ambchang]

07 Suns by a mile, it's always tough to beat wusses vs. beating real men.

[BUMP]

I was mostly thinking about one particular game in Dallas. He was pretty much insurmountable. But I also thought it was obvious that it was an attempt at humor...even if it wasn't a very good one. Are they giving bonus VBookie bucks for being a prick or something?
:lol dang, dont piss off this guy

[td4mvp21]

Top 3 (Overall since 1999)

1. '05 Pistons
2. '06 Mavs
3. '03 Lakers

Top 3 (Just title years)

1. '05 Pistons
2. '03 Lakers
3. ????

[whottt]

How can the 2005 Pistons or the 2006 Mavs not be #1?


How can the 2001 Lakers not be...using your criteria?

[whottt]

The 2001 Lakers are like 10 degees higher than any other team we have faced in the Championship era.

[nkdlunch]

#1. joey crawford

[MrChug]

God, can any of you people even read?!?

Oh shit...I feel stupid, gotta admit :depressed

BUT---with that said, I have to say the more intriguing question is who was our toughest playoff competition/loss. I still think it was the Mavs last year.

[Findog]

Oh shit...I feel stupid, gotta admit :depressed

BUT---with that said, I have to say the more intriguing question is who was our toughest playoff competition/loss. I still think it was the Mavs last year.

Are you seriously putting the 06 Mavs ahead of the Shaq/Kobe Lakers, or by "toughest" do you mean hardest to stomach? True, they're the only two teams to send Tim Duncan fishing.

[GrandeDavid]

I think you have to consider Detroit as the toughest since they took the Spurs to seven games. After them, I think the 03 Lakers come to mind just for the fact that it was such a huge monkey on the franchise's back.

[GrandeDavid]

Okay, I know this is off the original topic, but since some people are chiming in with other seasons, I'll offer my two cents - if you are talking about the toughest opponent and/or most humiliating playoff defeat in franchise history, that's easy:

Lakers 2001.

[SilverPlayer]

Okay, I know this is off the original topic, but since some people are chiming in with other seasons, I'll offer my two cents - if you are talking about the toughest opponent and/or most humiliating playoff defeat in franchise history, that's easy:

Lakers 2001.


Yeah it's easy and too depressing for a thread. But that would look something like this:

2001 lakers
95 Rockets
06 Mavs
2002 Lakers
some of the mid 90s Jazz

[GrandeDavid]

Yeah it's easy and too depressing for a thread. But that would look something like this:

2001 lakers
95 Rockets
06 Mavs
2002 Lakers
some of the mid 90s Jazz

Good take, but the only disagreement I might have is with the 2002 Lakers series. The Lakers that season were strong favorites with home court. The Spurs had Parker as a rookie to support Tim and not much else. Yes, the Spurs got a split in LA to start, but they really didn't stand a chance against a still young and agile enough Shaquille O'Neal, not to mention Kobe Bryant.

Also, you should consider the 91 series against Golden State. The year prior the Spurs had cinderelled their way to a spectacular turnaround and near conference semifinals victory. Many Spurs fans thought championships would be soon to come...then came next season's ugly 1-3 letdown against Run TMC and Golden State.

[SilverPlayer]

Good take, but the only disagreement I might have is with the 2002 Lakers series. The Lakers that season were strong favorites with home court. The Spurs had Parker as a rookie to support Tim and not much else. Yes, the Spurs got a split in LA to start, but they really didn't stand a chance against a still young and agile enough Shaquille O'Neal, not to mention Kobe Bryant.

Also, you should consider the 91 series against Golden State. The year prior the Spurs had cinderelled their way to a spectacular turnaround and near conference semifinals victory. Many Spurs fans thought championships would be soon to come...then came next season's ugly 1-3 letdown against Run TMC and Golden State.

The 2002 Lakers still might have handled any team we threw at them, but you've got a point. And those three years kind of blur together as being years we endured unending humiliation at their hands, which incidentally is why I ranked them as the "toughest" opponent we've beaten in our championship runs over the '05 Pistons. In other words I may be giving the Lakers more credit than they deserve because beating them was just so huge.

And you're right about the 91 series, but my history with the spurs doesn't go quite that far back. I will have to trust the older ( and wiser? or is it just more senile?) fans to rank previous era defeats.