As some others have said, he's a post player, 4 or 5.
Defensively he matches up on opposing 4s and 5s.
If you start Horry or Finley (SB©) next to him, he's a 5. If you start Rasho or Nazr or Elson, he's a 4. If you start Oberto, you ask Duncan what he is and make sure everbody calls him that. If you call Duncan the starting point guard, does it make a difference? It's a judgment call in my opinion. Coaches may be requred to fill out lineup sheets, but I doubt there are positions listed for any reason aside from just keeping things organized.
Moses Malone was once a PF who converted over to center when he landed with the Rockets. He didn't mind being referred to as a center once he made the position change.
TD is a four but he can operate as a five. He can do everything a five does but he's a natural four.
Perfect. Totally agree with slayermin.
My best guess is that Duncan wants to be listed as a PF for the following reasons:
1. As a PF, he is probably the best of all-time at the position. As a C, he would be compared to Chamberlain, etc.
2. Consistency in career stats. There is always some moron who will say "How can Duncan be the greatest PF of all-time when he played half of his career at C?"
I'm sure someone will object and say this is beneath Tim Duncan, but how else do you explain his personal insistence on this point?
I believe his offical position is:
"BAD ASS MOTHER Lebron James Rejecting, Phoenix Suns Dominating, Boston Celtics are still crying, 5 time NBA le to San Antonio bringing ER"
at least that's what Darryl Dawkins told me.
"There were eighteen in the class; I selected two captains and had them choose sides. When the teams were chosen, I placed the men on the floor. There were three forwards, three centers, and three backs on each team. I chose two of the center men to jump, then threw the ball between them. It was the start of the first basketball game and the finish of the trouble with that class." -
Dr. James Naismith, December 1891 recalling the very first basketball game in Springfield, MA.
...and thus, the first jump centers.
Duncan is a center who will go down historically as a power forward.
Offensively, the vast majority of his time is spent in the low-post. Not that he can't face-up or go high post, because obviously he is very capable of doing those as well, but he is predominantly a low post player on offense.
Defensively, he is adept at playing either power forward or center, but he's probably defended more at the power forward position over the course of his career.
I think if you wanted to get technical about it, he probably should go down as a center. But, I don't think it matters much.
Tim Duncan historically played at PF
C Robinson
PF Duncan
----------
C Rasho
PF Duncan
----------
C Nazr
PF Duncan
----------
C Elson/Oberto
PF Duncan
Just be sure to always refer to Duncan as a Power Forward. It's what he wants to be called.
And what Duncan wants we give him.
Easy there, duncan228. This is a forum, not a cult.
A lot of basketball offenses use the 4 and 5 the same way.
Look at most motion or transition schemes where the ball is evenly shared and the 4 and 5 positions are interchangeable. Popovich likes to have the first post player down the floor in transition set up low post and the trailing Big set up at the point or top of the key and then flow from there (i.e. Wildcat Transition). You probably have noticed this if you are a watching the game within the game at Spurs games. If nothing develops, the Spurs expect their Bigs to execute screen/rolls...especially late in the shot clock. Naturally, Tim is their best player so they want him to get plenty of touches but he is what he is, an all-time great post player.
Maybe a little bit of a cult...
And there are others on ST that may be brave enough to say they're members of that cult.
Duncan is that good.
He could deserve a cult following.
I have this answer somewhere, in Duncan's own words. I'm not sure if I have it in my system or in hard copy.
I will see if I can find it in the next few days.
But there is a reason and it has nothing to do with personal accolades or how he'll go down in the record books.
Remember, he wanted to be Magic when he first started to play. IIRC, it has something to do with that, and his brother-in-law's teaching as he grew in height and ability through high school.
I know that the vast majority of Spurs fans want to stay true to their dogmatic beliefs that Tim Duncan is a completely selfless ego who has no desire to contemplate how his legacy is viewed. But, everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, has some egocentric ideas about themselves, especially when they are as great at something as Tim Duncan is at basketball.
Remember a few years after a season of being listed at 7-foot, Tim Duncan insisted that the NBA list back at 6-11 so that it made more sense that he'd be a power forward. Is that insistence at being listed 6-11 have anything to do with his brother-in-law's teaching or wanting to be Magic?
Come on. Everyone has a little bit of an ego. Even your precious Timmy.
Duncan has an ego. Any player in the NBA has to have an ego to survive. (Personsal opinion.) I would imagine with as good a game as Duncan has, with being the most decorated active player, that his ego is enourmous.
I went through his height arguement a while ago in the Hakeem/Duncan thread.
The Spurs listed Duncan as 7 feet to play the "Twin Towers" angle up in marketing.
When Robinson retired Duncan asked that they list him at his true height.
In the Hakeem thread are links that relate that story, I'm too tired to search now. If those links aren't enough I have more that tell the same version of his height "change."
Pop has said that Duncan wants to be called a Power Foward and that's what Pop calls him.
I don't think it matters what we call him. He plays under the basket. He plays where he needs to be.
, he's brought the ball up on occasion. (Not pretty.)
Whatever he's called, however he's written up in the history books, he is and will always be one of the best this game has seen.
That's enough for me.
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