SAN ANTONIO SPURS: Sustained Success

Caption:SAN ANTONIO, TX - April 11: Danny Green #4 of the San Antonio Spurs shoots against Marcus Morris #15 of the Phoenix Suns at the AT&T Center on April 11, 2014 in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2014 NBAE (Photos by D. Clarke Evans/NBAE via Getty Images)

 From the moment Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich arrived, the San Antonio Spurs went from an average franchise to one of the NBA’s well-respected organizations.  Since drafting future Hall of Fame player Tim Duncan, the 6"11 power forward from the Virgin Islands, number one overall in the 1997 NBA Draft, the Spurs have not missed the playoffs.  16 years of unprecedented success is simply amazing for a franchise to accomplish in the NBA.  Last night, the Spurs continued their push to clinching yet another playoff berth and one step closer to a renowned fifth NBA title.  The Spurs secured the league's best record posting a (62-18) mark in a comeback victory over the Phoenix Suns 112-104.  Danny Green had a career night with 33 points and the Spurs erased a 21 point deficit en route to their victory.  San Antonio took care of the Dallas Mavericks 109-100 Thursday night, without the services of Tony Parker who didn’t play due to rest. Their reserve point guard, Patrick Mills, continued his best season as a pro by posting a show stopping and game high 26 points.  While Kawahi Leonard grabbed a career high 16 rebounds. Now, let’s take a look into the bright days ahead for the San Antonio Spurs.

San Antonio Spurs' Tim Duncan (C) holds up the Larry O'Brien Trophy while teammate Tony Parker holds up his MVP trophy after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers to win the NBA Finals basketball series in Cleveland, Ohio, June 14, 2007. REUTERS/Hans Deryk (UNITED STATES) Photo: HANS DERYK

 A new group of young stars are in the making for San Antonio. Soon, the likes of Duncan, Ginobli, and Parker will no longer step through the AT&T Center locker rooms and the new era will take place in San Antonio.  Just as "The Admiral" David Robinson, everyone has their time to shine as well as their time to departure and pass the torch.  Robinson part of the "Twin Tower" days when him and Duncan were a dominant force in opposing NBA front courts, passed the torch to Tim Duncan.  Since winning their first title together in 1999, Tim Duncan and head coach Gregg Popovich continued to deliver championships and preceded to win the NBA Finals in 2003 against the New Jersey Nets , 2005 against the defending champion Detroit Pistons, and a unprecedented fourth title against the Cleveland  Cavaliers in 2007.  It’s been seven years since the Spurs last held the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy and after falling a game short  of their fifth ring last season, the Spurs are motivated to redeem themselves; however, this current group is running out of time. 

The San Antonio Spurs' Big Three—Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker—are showing off their savvy in the postseason. (AP Photo)

The "old" Big 3 in Texas has played together for some time now and the aches and bruises of consecutive 82 game seasons plus long postseason ventures sets in on any player let alone again players.  Duncan is no longer the young, up and coming elite power forward, he’s now 37 along with Manu Ginobli who is (36) and Tony Parker (31 years old) were the key components to the success of the San Antonio Spurs over the last decade. This season, we’ve seen all three miss substantial time on the court due to medical issues and despite being battle-tested, they are still among the elite teams in the NBA.  Head coach Gregg Popovich managed their minutes all season and will reluctantly rest his stars no matter their opponent or whether it’s a nationally televised game; however this strategy won’t last much longer.

San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard (2) and the bench celebrate his three pointer against the New Orleans Pelicans late in the game in the New Orleans Arena, Monday, January 13, 2014.(Photo by David Grunfeld, Nola.com |The Times-Picayune)

Entering the final week of the NBA season, the San Antonio Spurs now holds the league best record with (62-18) and is 3.5 games ahead of Oklahoma City for the best overall record in the league.  The Southwest division once again was claimed by the Spurs and as we say every year around this time, San Antonio is playing their best ball to date.  In March, San Antonio stunned the NBA as they posted an impressive (16-0) record, including a franchise record 18 straight wins, which dated back to February.  Popovich won his unprecedented 15th coach of the month award last month and Spurs just continue to find ways to win.  Whether they are playing from of their home crowd at the AT&T Center, or on the road the results continue to be victories.  This season, the Spurs have not only the best record at home throughout the season at the record of (32-8), but they also hold the best record on the road in the league as well at (30-10).  One of the biggest reasons San Antonio is consistently a dominant team each season is their efficiency as a team.  In Pop's system, each player has their own role and each performs at a high level night after night.  Currently, the Spurs rank first in assist with (25.2) per game.  They shoot the ball at a high and efficient level as well.  San Antonio is second in field goal percentage with (48.9%), fourth in free throw percentage at (78.3%), and shooting almost (40%) from behind the arc which is the best in the league this season. Between Ginobli, Parker, and Duncan, they average around 43 points a game while the majority of their young cast of players average almost double figures if not double-digits a night, which is amazing and allows San Antonio to have consistent success.

Oklahoma City Thunder small forward Kevin Durant (35) celebrates against the San Antonio Spurs during the second half of Game 6 in the NBA basketball Western Conference finals, Wednesday, June 6, 2012, in Oklahoma City. The Thunder won 107-99. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

In conclusion, my only concern stopping the Spurs from returning to the NBA Finals? The Oklahoma City Thunder.  Once again, the Thunder continue to have success against San Antonio as they posted a (4-0) record versus San Antonio this season.  OKC won a double digit game versus San Antonio on April 2nd, which was the game that ended San Antonio’s franchise record 18 game winning streak.  A possible second round matchup with the Houston Rockets could be in store for the Spurs, another team that’s giving the Spurs some issues this season.  They have not fared well against the Rockets at all this season. Every team has their bad days and off seasons but the level of consistency displayed by the Alamo boys can't go unrecognized.  After 17 straight consecutive playoff appearances, 11 division titles, 5 western conference titles, and 4 NBA titles, there’s nothing further to validate why the San Antonio Spurs is setting the example of what every franchise in the league would love to accomplish, many teams want to have success “The San Antonio Way”.  Whether they will win a fifth title or not is still to be determined, but one thing we do know is if they play Miami for the title, I don't believe anyone in San Antonio will be praying to "Jesus” because they will be ready for revenge.