which year was the best chance to repeat?

[td4mvp3]

i don't think it happens in 08. i think it was 2000. lakers were still on the brink so still beatable, the pacers wouldn't have posed too big an issue. now, the west just gets tougher and tougher and i think the repeat window has closed. they may still get another trophy or two, but i think the repeat remains an eluded dream..

[Spurs Dynasty 21]

all the years really, prob last year though


but 08 they will repeat

[CosmicCowboy]

last year.

*sigh*

Tims foot was the difference. If '07 Tim had been playing that Dallas series wouldn't have even gone 7 games, much less come down to one stupid foul. Spurs would have owned Miami.

[marini martini]

last year def. we lost cuz Timmy's ankle

[johngateswhiteley]

i agree with 2000, but they could have done it each time. btw, i think the Spurs will be right there in 2008...

[Cant_Be_Faded]

I think 2004.

Let's start with the facts. The spurs played one of the most dominant playoff 6 game stretches I had ever seen in my life to start the playoffs. Parker was in some kind of freak zone nailing like 4 threes a game.

Yes, we all know thats not his game, but if you're hot you take it.

Horry was on fire those playoffs as well IIRC.

Then Phil Jackson pulls the logical move of taking away penetration. This befuddled Pop for some reason, yet we still had a chance to take all that reclaimed momentum LA built up during the point four game. People forget that Tim Duncan undoubtedly hit the absolute Toughest Shot in NBA History that night. Yes it was total trash, but that was magic, i swear it was. Pure magic:

A one-handed, palmed 26 footer with Shaq's big fat forearm blatantly fouling your shooting arm, the entire time your face is looking at the wrong basket. Magic.



And human error stole that magic away. If Derek Fisher doesn't steal that shot away, the spurs win that game and theres no fucking WAY LA holds us after that game. Likewise, after they won that game, there was no fucking way SA could win the series. It was one of the most emotional 2nd halfs I had ever seen from this club, and the loss just shattered every fiber of morale they had going into the playoffs (and they went into the playoffs on one of the hottest runs already IMO).

If Derek Fisher misses that shot, or the clock gets started when it should have, the spurs win that series, and we go on to play a wounded Minnesota team that we had a 50/50 shot of beating if it were healthy. Plus Flip = trash and we all know it.

Then we meet the Pistons in the finals, which would have been a battle of titanic propoprtions, but this is a Pistons team that had not been "battle proven" yet, they had not had a history of "thriving as the underdogs" or "winning with their backs against the wall". That whole mentality doesn't happen if the Spurs win that point four game.

Who says basketball gods don't exist? And by those gods I swear they wanted us to win that year and repeat. (sidenote: paybacks a bitch eh--the lakers later got theirs and we ended up winning the following year...)
We all were sick to our stomachs watching LA roll over a wounded Minny team, thinking the worst. Then look what happens: Justice.

That was our repeat year.

[spurtime]

2004...easy. We were on such a roll.

[slayermin]

I agree it's '08. If they haven't learned anything from the last three tries, they don't deserve to repeat. But then again, it's an even year so who knows.

[Spurs rock]

2006, they woulda beaten the Suns and Heat pretty easy IMO.

[duncan228]

Repeating seems harder than winning in the first place.
The entire league has a target on your back and every team brings their 'A' game when they play you.

If Duncan comes into training camp in the shape he did this year I like our chances in '08.

As for the other three chances I think '04 was the best shot at it.

[mjnxn]

Wtf are you guys talking about? Repeating in '04 was damn near impossible. We lost Sjax, D-Rob, & Speedy and replaced them with scrubs like Hedo, Rasho, and Charlie freakn Ward. We were not on the same level as the 03 squad, and even if .4 didn't happen, that Detroit team was super deep and matched up with us very well. Tony wasn't the 07 tony and Manu wasn't the 05 manu. I doubt we would have won the finals.

I think 06 was probably the best opportunity had it not been for Manu and Timmy's health.

Here's to hoping our fortunes change in 08!

[Cant_Be_Faded]

We had a long three smart guy, Pop said he was the best rebounding Small Forward he'd ever seen in Spurs uniform, sure he was not tracy mcgrady but I'd still take a Hedo over a Barry.

[Brutalis]

2006 for sure. Manu let it alllll go for us.

[Brutalis]

last year def. we lost cuz Timmy's ankle
Wasn't so much Tim's injury rather than Manu's mistakes.

[ObiwanGinobili]

last year

[RogerIsEatingASandwich]

easy,2006.

In 2004 that Pistons team was playing damn good, not sure we could have gone all the way and beaten them with Hedo.

[DDS4]

Last year. And we match up really well with the Heat.

I had no doubt in my mind we could take down the Heat if we made the Finals.

[peskypesky]

Last year, 2006, shoulda been ours. Manu and Pop screwed that up.

I do like our chances for next year though. I think Tim and the boys will be on a mission to repeat.

[boutons_]

"Tim and the boys will be on a mission to repeat."

Tony said on Letterman that they wouldn't be a dynasty until they repeat. I doubt he's not the only Spur who thinks that.

And I bet Pop DOES "give a shit" about it.

I know I do.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Wtf are you guys talking about? Repeating in '04 was damn near impossible. We lost Sjax, D-Rob, & Speedy and replaced them with scrubs like Hedo, Rasho, and Charlie freakn Ward. We were not on the same level as the 03 squad, and even if .4 didn't happen, that Detroit team was super deep and matched up with us very well. Tony wasn't the 07 tony and Manu wasn't the 05 manu. I doubt we would have won the finals.

I think 06 was probably the best opportunity had it not been for Manu and Timmy's health.

Here's to hoping our fortunes change in 08!

Absolutely agree. Also don't forget that Tony was hurt in game 6 of the Sacto series and didn't look the same against the Mavs. Last year we would have owned the Suns and Heat, although NVE at back point hurt us all season.

Can't be Faded, you hurt your case by stating "let's look at the facts" then quoting incorrect facts about 2004:

1. Parker was "hot", sure he was, and the likelihood that continued all the way through the Finals with his old shooting form = very close to zero.

2. Duncan's amazing shot was 20ft, not 26ft (26ft is a metre beyond the 3pt line) - exaggeration detracts from your case... the shot was incredible, you don't need to exaggerate.

3. the Pistons hadn't been "battle tested" - yes they had by the first three rounds of the playoffs, and they were riding Sheed's wave. I think they would've beaten us because Hedo would've shat himself, just like he did all playoffs (great regular season player who folded in the playoffs for us, unlike what he did in Sacto).

Barring serious injury, I think we repeat next year though. Put simply, we have the best TEAM in the NBA by a long way, and the 4th Q composure they showed all playoffs was repeat championship material.

[romain.star]

if we find a way to stop Dirk, that's gonna be a repeat in 2008

[Texas_Ranger]

The Derek Fisher 04 year.

[MrChug]

I dont know...I remember 2000 sooooo f'in vivid. Sure that was the beginning of the Laker mini-dynasty but we were playing rediculous ball (and we had David). Anyone remember why we didn't win it all that year? That's right, Timmy's ankle was hurt (against PHX I believe) and he was out for the rest of the playoffs. That sucked. Still hurts me today. I really think we would have beaten a Kobe that young.

[Reggie Miller]

I try to look at the big picture. Yes, the Spurs blew a golden opportunity in 2005-2006. However, would you trade a three-peat for shortening Timmy's career? Obviously, we'll never know, but I think that it was probably better for the team to get TD off of his feet sooner, rather than later.

I also question whether or not the Spurs would have beaten the 2003-2004 Pistons. That Spurs team was not as mentally tough as the subsequent versions. The current Spurs team would have recovered from Fisher's 0.4 and won that series.

The way it stands now, Timmy is healthy and the Spurs are 4-0 in the Finals.

[FromWayDowntown]

I dont know...I remember 2000 sooooo f'in vivid. Sure that was the beginning of the Laker mini-dynasty but we were playing rediculous ball (and we had David). Anyone remember why we didn't win it all that year? That's right, Timmy's ankle was hurt (against PHX I believe) and he was out for the rest of the playoffs. That sucked. Still hurts me today. I really think we would have beaten a Kobe that young.

Tim got hurt late in the regular season (on April 11) in Sacramento that year and it was his knee, not his ankle. He was injured (IIRC) in the early part of the 2nd half, but came back that night and played through the overtime as the Spurs won.


Tim Duncan shook off a knee injury to collect 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Spurs (50-28), who reached 50 wins for the seventh time in 11 years and are virtually tied with Phoenix (49-27) for fourth place in the West.

"It still hurts a little bit," Duncan said. "I'm having a little problem with my knee but I just went back in there, pushed on it and it started feeling better."

"We explained to him that he has 12-14 years left on his career and it's no time to be a hero," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "But he said, `No, I can go, it's getting loose,' so we'll find out tomorrow if he was fibbing to us or not."

I'm not sure that a team that was 53-29 for the season was playing ridiculous ball, either -- unlike other years with crazy finishing kicks, the Spurs were 21-12 after the All-Star Break that season; by contrast, LA closed out the 1999-2000 season on a 30-4 run (but I will grant you this -- 2 of LA's 4 post-break losses were to the Spurs). It would have been interesting to see what the Spurs might have done, but I'm not sure that 2000 was really their best chance at repeating.

[SAGambler]

I certainly like our chances for an 08 repeat.

If Tony does anything to add to his game over the summer, he is going to be an absolute monster on the floor.

I think we do need to get a better backup PG than Vaughn. Although, I can't really fault him for anything he did terribly wrong, he still just scares me shitless when he's controlling the ball out there.

Tim, as long as he stays healthy, should have another monstrous post season left in him.

I look for the team to win about 57 games during RS, and do it while not wearing out the starting five, so they are relatively fresh and healthy come playoff time. We could well end up being 3 seed again in the West and possibly have to go through the same teams to get to the finals.

But the Spurs will still be the Champs until someone takes it from them. And I look for them to be focused on a repeat. That's about the only thing missing from a decade of great basketballl for them. And I think they want to see it happen prior to Duncan hanging it up.

[SpursDynasty]

Weren't the Lakers 67-15 in 1999-2000? No way we could've beat them, because teams who win 67 games win championships! Well, at least LA did in 2000. Can't say the same about other 67 win teams. :lol

2004 was a rob. Late clock start.

2006 was also a rob. Duncan fouled out for getting stepped on. Also Manu messed up at the end there, but who cares, we got the trophy back.

2008 is wide open. Dallas and Phoenix have proven to be non-championship contenders. How many years have we seen Dirk putting up points, shooting a high percentage and Dallas with a bunch of free throws? Or Nash running and gunning with the assists and Stoudemire dunking repeatedly? All that hasn't amounted to anything but a Spurs championship. Unless we see something drastically new next season, the championship is the Spurs' to win.

[spursreport]

if we find a way to stop Dirk, that's gonna be a repeat in 2008

Put Dirk on his ass anytime he drives to the hoops. Dont give him any space to breath or any comfort zone. If you do that, Dirk becomes a scared streaky jump shooter who will refuse to want the ball late in games.

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

2008

The "Big 3" have really become the Big 3. We used to rely on Tim throughout games and Manu in spurts, but now Manu, Tony and Tim can all take over a contest. Teams used to focus on Tim and make someone else beat them which is no longer an option. The Spurs are built for playoff basketball and 2008 will be their best chance at a repeat.

The West is so amazingly strong though that a repeat will once again be tough. Teams need a lot of breaks to win it all and even-numbered years have not been kind to my Spurs in that regard.

[ancestron]

last year we had a good chance. Setting a franchise best regular season record at 63-19, winning the division. I think the quick turnaround from the Sacramento series, which should have been won 4-1, to Dallas was rough, and once they beat Dallas in the first game they let their guard down mentally. Also Joey Crawford played a huge role in determining the outcome of that series when he fouled duncan out in game 3 i think it was. it was clearly an offensive foul on Dirk. I dont remember the final score to that game but i know it wasnt by more than a couple points. Also Dallas was playing out of their minds that series, and still the Spurs pushed them to 7 games, and took a 3 point lead with 30 seconds left after being down 20. arrrggghhhh....
in my mind the Spurs won that series.
There is the argument that Tim and Manu were hurt and wouldn't have won the Finals even if they had gotten past Phoenix, which they probably would have, but I think if the Spurs had pulled that Dallas series out after being down 3-1, it was all downhill from there.
They have a great chance to repeat in 2008, barring any miraculous tragedy that seems to happen to the Spurs in even numbered years. They look very confident and fully aware of their abilities and strengths now. They have evolved from all the past mistakes and successes. They were playing phenomenal basketball ever since the All Star break, and I think they really have it set in their minds that they want to repeat this time.

[sanman53]

I'd say 2006. That game 7 against Dallas was a lot of fun. However, when they went into overtime, I knew it was over. Games 2-6 sucked in that series. After the series was over, it was obvious Timmy was going to carry us to all the way this year.

If Timmy comes into this season injury free (stays that way all season and playoffs), and has the burning desire to repeat, 08 is our best chance of repeating. IMO, it all rests on Timmy.