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05 spurs were comparably baller to 99 spurs
The 1999 Spurs were the highest ranked post-Jordan team on the list. It'd be interesting to see where the other Spurs team rank but the rankings below the top 10 are insider-exclusive. Nonetheless, San Antonio has been incredibly fortunate.Ranking the NBA Finals teams
There have been 33 NBA Finals matchups since the NBA-ABA merger, so we at ESPN.com decided to rank all 66 teams that have played on the NBA's biggest stage in the modern era.
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My premise was to look at three factors in rating greatness: regular-season performance, postseason performance and, finally, whether the team won a championship. See the box to the right for all the gory details.
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If the IMG doesn't work:
1999 Spurs:
A forgotten great team because of the lockout, the Spurs began the year 6-8 … and then went 46-7 the rest of the way, with nary a losing streak. An awesome defensive squad led by big men David Robinson and Tim Duncan, San Antonio's 84.7 points allowed per game is far and away the least of any of these 66 squads. That 15-2 postseason mark ain't too shabby either, including sweeps of the Blazers and Lakers. So stingy was the defense that only twice in 17 playoff games did San Antonio's opponent muster 90 points.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playof...=Finalists1-10
Last edited by Cane; 06-04-2010 at 04:33 AM.
05 spurs were comparably baller to 99 spurs
When he first released the list, I believe in '07, all of the other rankings were free. I can't remember exactly where the other three ranked, but they were all fairly high if I recall.
Speaking of post-Jordan, I know it's neither here nor there, but I honestly believe the '99 Spurs would have beaten the Bulls in '99 had they kept the vast majority of their team from '98 intact. People forget, but the '98 Bulls were running on fumes throughout much of that run and looked vulnerable. So much so that both the Pacers and the Jazz probably should have beaten them that year.
Now imagine them being a year older and having to go through a historically great defensive team playing at an incredibly high level. I can't see them pulling it off. I don't care how good a defender Rodman was, the reality is he's severely undersized compared to Duncan. It's hard for me to see that Bulls front court being able to matchup with the twin towers. Jordan, great as he was, the only other defense he had to go through that was comparable to the '99 Spurs was the early 90s Knicks. True, he got through them, but he was also much younger then.
I wish I had been older and understood the game better, but that team made me love defense. Or maybe it was the le, won through our defense, that made me love defense.
Probably both.
I was a freshmen in highschool when they won that first championship. I remember that first river parade and that march to the alamodome.. It was an amazing time for the city. 99 spurs will always be my favorite.
No way was 15-2 better than 15-1.
Nobody beats that 12 playoff game wins streak. Ever.
been pretty much my opinion all along. nobody beats the '99 Spurs post-Jordan. Tim/Drob versus Gasol/ Bynum...LOL. it's too bad that that team never got a chance to repeat. still, they stand alone as the greatest Spurs team every assembled, and best post-Jordan team, for sure.
2003
sjax
kerr
duncan
robinson
ginobili
rose
willis
parker
claxton
ferry
bowen
that team was absolutely our best team.
No you werent
Personally from a matchup standpoint against any team that has won, I agree because that '03 team matches up well with just about any team. Oh, steve Smith was on the bench with not much playing time but I thought a worthy mention. lol
Talent-wise there were plenty of teams better than that one. But that team just "clicked". They were SICK defensively. I think they would have beaten any of the other Spurs le teams because they had good close-out perimiter defenders that would have denied the three, and then they just SHUT DOWN the paint with a young Duncan and borderline-superstar level Robinson.
Despite all the talent that the 2003 Spurs had, most of those players were still young and hadn't reached their potential. That team still relied primarily on Duncan dominating the ball, and the '99 team would have made him work harder for every point than any team we've ever played against, with Robinson and Duncan rotating on him with the other coming with the occassional double team. He fought through the '05 Pistons front line, but they weren't at the level of the '99 Spurs' frontcourt. Elie and Sean were smart enough to deny players like Jackson and Manu at the 3 point line, and would make them rely on their inconsistant midrange games. I think people underestimate just how much better David Robinson was in '99 than in 2003.
The 2005 and 2007 le teams had similar talent levels, with Manu and Parker emerging as genuine stars. But again, against the '99 Spurs they would have struggled to get into and finish in the paint, and been denied the 3 point line. Duncan was slower than he was in '03 and I think the Spurs of those years would have struggled a lot more with the '99 Spurs on the interior (because BOTH Robinson and Duncan could score, unlike Ben Wallace) than the '99 Spurs would with containing either Manu or Parker on the perimiter.
Last edited by ajh18; 06-04-2010 at 10:16 AM.
99 Spurs was the best team the Spurs ever had, even though I have to admit that the 03 team was loaded. 1999 Sean Elliott, 1999 Mario Elie, and 1999 Avery Johnson were all better perimeter defenders than anyone on the current Spurs team, or probably anyone since 99 other than Bruce Bowen. Both David Robinson and Tim Duncan in 1999 were better interior defenders than anyone in the league in 2010. I think it's easy to forget how good that team was because their brilliance was on the defensive end and they didn't score at lot. They held opponents below 85 ppg on 40% shooting for the season. Ridiculous.
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Here's Hollinger's list ranking the Finalists since the Merger (doesn't include 2010 Finalists):
1. 96 Bulls
2. 87 Lakers
3. 86 Celtics
4. 91 Bulls
5. 97 Bulls
6. 85 Lakers
7. 92 Bulls
8. 99 Spurs
9. 09 Lakers
10. 08 Celtics
11. 83 Sixers
12. 89 Pistons
13. 01 Lakers
14. 98 Bulls
15. 90 Pistons
16. 07 Spurs
17. 00 Lakers
18. 93 Bulls
19. 05 Spurs
20. 02 Lakers
21. 81 Celtics
22. 03 Spurs
23. 82 Lakers
24. 04 Pistons
25. 80 Lakers
26. 84 Celtics
27. 97 Jazz (highest rated Finals loser)
28. 88 Lakers
29. 77 Blazers
30. 94 Rockets
31. 96 Sonics
32. 89 Lakers (highest ranked team to be swept -- injuries killed them)
33. 85 Celtics
34. 06 Heat
35. 06 Mavericks
36. 84 Lakers
37. 98 Jazz
38. 08 Lakers
39. 92 Blazers
40. 88 Pistons
41. 79 Sonics
42. 91 Lakers
43. 80 Sixers
44. 05 Pistons
45. 93 Suns
46. 03 Nets
47. 09 Magic
48. 94 Knicks
49. 82 Sixers
50. 95 Rockets
51. 95 Magic
52. 00 Pacers
53. 83 Lakers
54. 86 Rockets
55. 87 Celtics
56. 78 Bullets (lowest ranked Finals winner)
57. 04 Lakers
58. 90 Blazers
59. 07 Cavaliers
60. 01 Sixers
61. 77 Sixers
62. 02 Nets
63. 79 Bullets
64. 78 Sonics
65. 99 Knicks
66. 81 Rockets
Thanks, FromWayDowntown
05 Spurs beat 99 spurs in a 7 game series IMO
Agreed.
The 99 team would win in 5, maybe 6
The 99 team was fantastic on D. Very physical and you don't remember that team missing any rotations. The help were so great that allowed a very young Mali Rose to guard Shaq and wait for the help of TD and Robinson.
I had more fun watching the team with TP, Manu and Bruce in 03/05 and 07 but I believe the 99 team could play a decent series against the Jordan/Bulls
The '05 pistons took us to the fourth quarter of game 7 tied. The '99 Spurs were better than that Piston's squad, and matched up better with the '05 Spurs.
In '05, Duncan manned up against the Wallaces. Duncan and Robinson in '99 though were better, smarter defenders than that Pistons frontcourt. Plus, they could both go for 30 on any given night, and the '05 Spurs had no second defensive big man who could have covered either of them.
That Pistons team had Prince as a perimiter defender, but the '99 Spurs had both Ellie and Ninja. Parker wouldn't have been able to score in the paint against that team either. I agree, '99 Spurs win that series in 6.
99 and 05 Spurs teams were by far the best. Especially with Duncan not playing at 100% during the postseason. Manu was an absolute beast and Horry and Barry coming off the bench was killer.
No way; not with Duncan's ankle injuries that were causing him to fade in a lot of fourth quarters as those playoffs dragged on. The 99 Spurs would take that series in 5. David Robinson pretty much shut down all penetration in that playoff run and Mario Elie would body and frustrate Manu the same way Artest did in the 06 Sacramento series. Even though 05 Duncan was a more complete player, I'll take healthy 99 Duncan in that matchup too.
How are the '07 spurs ranked higher then both '03 and '05?
And PublicOption, the Lakers had that streak, not the spurs lol
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