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I'm not sure if he's the only player in NBA history to do it, but it is true that he has never had a teammate to average 20 PPG in a championship season.
I recall a few years back, after a championship run...i believe it was the 2005 championship, There was a stat that said something like, "Tim Duncan is the only player in NBA history to not have another player on his team to average more than 20ppg on their way to a championship".
Does anyone know if they have that quote? I believe it was in one of those sports illustrated commemorative books that recap the entire playoffs and finals.
I'm not sure if he's the only player in NBA history to do it, but it is true that he has never had a teammate to average 20 PPG in a championship season.
Isiah Thomas of the Detroit Pistons in 1989 and 1990 did not have a single teammate average 20 points in a championship season. , he didn't average 20 points himself.
Chuancey Billups of the Detroit Pistons did not have a teammate average 20 points in the 2004 season.
Hakeem Olajuwon of the Houston Rockets in 1994 and 1995 did not have a single teammate average 20 points in both seasons.
This should be correct. I am not sure about the rest though.
see thats what i figured...i knew about hakeem and billups, but i do recall something along those lines being said in one of the articles. ill have to dig through all my spurs memorabilia when i got back to my parents house in SA
I believe Rick Barry also won in 1975 with the Golden State Warriors without a teammate with a 20 ppg average. The most amazing thing is that they did not play their playoff series in Oakland at all. I think that has to be the ultimate playoff run.
It's really not that rare.
Kobe didn't have a 20ppg teammate last year or this year. The Celtics didn't have a single 20ppg scorer this year or in 2008. Jordan didn't have one in 4 of his 6 le seasons.
We are looking for players who did not have a single 20 ppg teammate in all of his championship runs. Hope that makes it clearer.
Ahhh....
Comparing multiple championship winners to players with one ring isn't exactly a level field then.
In any event, add 79 Sonics and 78 Bullets to the list with no 20ppg scorers and the 77 Blazers with only one.
I am guessing Bill Walton played for the Celtics in 1986 and had Larry Bird on his team, even though Walton was already a sixth man. Unfairly, Bill Walton does not get to be on that premier list of Duncan, Thomas, Olajuwon and Barry, but whatever.
Hakeem and Duncan are the only NBA superstars to lead their teams to NBA championships without a single all-star or all-NBA teammate.
Manu was an all-star in 05 and Tony was an all-star in 07...?
'03 and '99.
ahh yes! i believe this was the gem! thanks! it was quoted in the 2003 Finals sports illustrated commemorative issue.
'99 doesn't count. There was no all-star game that season, but it's a near certainty that Robinson would have made the team along with Duncan.
I have my own Tim Duncan question:
If he is weidely considered by most the greatest power foward of all time, why do those same people not consider him top 10 all-time regardless of position?
Most diehards consider Duncan to be top 10 all-time, the only people that don't are casual fans that have no knowledge of the game, or some of the media..the hardcore media guys like Bill Simmons, the guys from Yahoo and Hollinger have said he's in the top 10..when you look at his accolades and stats, it's impossible to leave him out..he doesn't get the benefit of the media like a guy like Kobe does..
As for this thread, Duncan is one of 2 players in NBA history to win a le with his #2 option averaging less than 15 PPG in the playoffs IIRC..Hakeem is the only other guy that did it(2003, 1994)..that 2003 season was just a dominant peak, only matched by 2000 Shaq in this era IMO..
excellent post!!
Duncan is also one of two players, the other being Bill Russell, to win championships with two rosters that had only themselves in common. In Duncan's case, there was not one player left from the 99 team in 2007. Technically, if you're talking only about the playoff rosters, then 2005 counts against 99 as well. Malik was traded in February.
Didn't Hakeem have Drexler (a 20 ppg scorer and All Star) with him for the 95 championship?
Correction: He did not make the All Star team in 95 (although he made it almost every year before and AFTER that season), but he did average over 20ppg both in the regualr season AND during the playoffs.
re-watched spurs-lakers game 6 playoffs 03... good times... good times...
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