Spurs become the debate team

[Jimcs50]

June 14, 2007, 12:51AM
NBA FINALS
Spurs become the debate team
With fourth le nearly secure, talk turns to comparing San Antonio's run with NBA's best


By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

CLEVELAND — Having found so little real challenge from the Cleveland Cavaliers, the San Antonio Spurs took their 3-0 NBA Finals lead toward what now seems an inevitable clincher and found far greater compe ion.

They moved within a game of their fourth championship in nine years and there were the Celtics of Red Auerbach and Bill Russell. Look around and they could see the Lakers of George Mikan, or the Showtime Lakers of Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and, of course, Michael Jordan's Bulls.

The word dynasty began careening about Quicken Loans Arena, and suddenly, finally the Spurs had worthy compe ion wherever they looked.

"When I think of dynasties, two come to my mind real quick, UCLA and Bill Russell," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "Everything else is just talk after that."

Perhaps, but watching the Finals has been considered difficult, and playing is not an option for most. That leaves the talk — and the question.


More work to do
Are the Spurs a dynasty?

"No," Spurs forward Robert Horry, who is one win away from winning a seventh championship, said immediately. "My thing is I've always looked at teams that have done something within a 10-year span, and won over half of the championships in that span.

"I don't look it as a dynasty yet. You look at what the Bulls did or the Celtics did, those were dynasties. They ... dominated for 10 years. It probably would have been more than six if Mike didn't take those two years off. You have to win consecutive (championships) at some point. Or you have to win five or six in a 10-year period. If we win it this year, there's still two years left to do something. I think six (in 10 years) makes you a dynasty; five makes you every other year."

But Horry brings up the problem in defining the Spurs' run. For sustained excellence, it measures up with most and exceeds some of the best. But they have not won in consecutive seasons, compared to the Bulls' twin three- le runs and the Celtics' 11 championships over 13 seasons.

"It's hard to say dynasty," said Will Perdue, a member of the Bulls' first three championship teams and one with the Spurs. "If you want to talk about dynasty, you have to start with the Celtics, the Lakers, the Bulls. That's where you start. That's your benchmark. You go to the Spurs next.

"Because of the fact they haven't won consecutive championships, I think it carries a little more weight. To repeat the next year, isn't that supposed to be the hardest thing to do?"

Repeats, however, do not seem to be an unimpeachable measure. With another championship, the Spurs would seem to surpass the Shaquille O'Neal-Kobe Bryant Lakers, winners of three consecutive les.

"I hate to say it, but they are probably surpassing us to be honest," former Lakers guard Derek Fisher said. "We had that great four- or five-year period. You have to kind of step in the Bulls, Celtics and Lakers teams of the '80s that dominated a 10-year period. Obviously, the Bulls (run) was six out of eight years. The Celtics won like every year in the '60s. I can probably say they are surpassing us in recent dynasties.

"They've become the class in this league, no question about it."


Sweeps in Finals are rare

The Spurs have become more than that, and without question have become more than the young Cavaliers have been able to handle. A sweep would be just the seventh in the Finals. And only the Celtics have had a run as long with just one player, Russell, around from the first championship to the last as the Spurs have had with Tim Duncan during their run.

"Everybody wants to talk about if they're a dynasty. What's a dynasty?" Perdue said. "I'll say if the Bulls are a 9.5, the Spurs are a 9. You talk about the consistency factor, I think the most impressive thing is you go from 1999 to now, there's one guy left. They've had a complete face-lift. Then you talk about where they got these guys in the draft."

"I'll put it this way, if Tim Duncan doesn't get hurt in 2000, this is a totally different story."

There is another way to put it. The word might not be dynasty, but "remarkable" came up a lot. If nothing else, the Spurs have become the league's standard, and that is a great deal.

"You have a lot of people around the NBA very envious of that type of success," Spurs guard Brent Barry said. "It's certainly a lot easier when you can bring in a guy like Tim Duncan to start it all off, especially having built on the foundation that David Robinson had begun.

"It's really remarkable in the modern era to keep your team together for that long, at least your core group together for that long, and have a sustained level of success for that long is a remarkable accomplishment."

It's been remarkable enough that the Spurs have become compe ion not just for the best of the East, but for the best ever.

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[Jimcs50]

"Everybody wants to talk about if they're a dynasty. What's a dynasty?" Perdue said. "I'll say if the Bulls are a 9.5, the Spurs are a 9. You talk about the consistency factor, I think the most impressive thing is you go from 1999 to now, there's one guy left. They've had a complete face-lift. Then you talk about where they got these guys in the draft."

"I'll put it this way, if Tim Duncan doesn't get hurt in 2000, this is a totally different story."

This was a point that I brought up on Tuesday. The Spurs could very easily be going for their 7th le. Bad luck and unfortunate incidents cost them in 00, 04 and 06, where they were the best team and the favorites to win the championship in those years. If not for bad luck, there would be no discussion about dynasty or not and even Pop would have had to give the Spurs their due.

[Rummpd]

Mr. Feigen

Nice article and very balanced on the Spurs place in history and I see an improving and healthier Houston as a team to give them a run to keeping them from 5-6 les as much as anyone with their coaching change.

I for one think that due to Duncan in the middle (although Rodman would have given him some trouble) and Parker, Bowen and Ginobili this Spurs team could have had a fabulous run of head to head series vs. the Bulls and Jordan (assuming Horry on Spurs) that probably would have resulted in some wins by either team and series that could go either way.

A sophisticated computerized simulation series of that would be fabulous to see Bowen on Jordan, Manu vs. Pippen, Duncan vs. Rodman etc. with the wildcard being whether of not Parker is shut down by Pippen or someone.


Regards,

PDR (Sent)

[maxpower]

If(and when) they get their 4th le it will make it not only their 4th in 9 years but ...it will be their 3rd in 5 years.

[Russ]

June 14, 2007, 12:51AM
NBA FINALS
Spurs become the debate team
With fourth le nearly secure, talk turns to comparing San Antonio's run with NBA's best


By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

CLEVELAND —

Are the Spurs a dynasty?

"No," Spurs forward Robert Horry, who is one win away from winning a seventh championship, said immediately. "My thing is I've always looked at teams that have done something within a 10-year span, and won over half of the championships in that span.

"I don't look it as a dynasty yet. You look at what the Bulls did or the Celtics did, those were dynasties. They ... dominated for 10 years. It probably would have been more than six if Mike didn't take those two years off.

Be careful, Rob, you just cost yourself two rings.

[BlackFlagg]

Be careful, Rob, you just cost yourself two rings.

[michaelwcho]

sophisticated computer analysis?

I'm picturing an NBA live simulation of the great Celtics team with Russell against this year's edition of the Spurs. It's on ESPN. Who would win in their primes?

(cue Rocky music...da da dada da dada da da da)

It's a tight game in fourth quarter.... Russell blocks Duncan on the last possession and the Celtics win! Duncan starts talking a little when interviewed in real life....Russell starts getting pissed off...decides to start training again. Goes back to their old gym, dust off some old-school ball racks... hang up some peach baskets....They challenge the Spurs to an exhibition match! Short shorts in green, on old legs, vs. the young bucks Spurs!

[Mark in Austin]

somewhere, Rick Pitino is screaming.