San Antonio Spurs: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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This version of the Spurs was very different from the team that had won the title a few years earlier. The Spurs had remade their team in an attempt to dethrone the three-time defending NBA Champion [[Los Angeles Lakers]]. Second-year French star [[Tony Parker]], drafted by the Spurs in the first round of the 2001 NBA Draft, was now the starting point guard for the Spurs. The squad featured a variety of newly acquired three-point shooters, including [[Stephen Jackson]], [[Danny Ferry]], [[Bruce Bowen]], [[Steve Kerr]], [[Steve Smith (basketball)|Steve Smith]] and Argentina product [[Manu Ginóbili]], a 1999 second-round draft choice playing in his first NBA season. Mixing the inside presences of Duncan and Robinson with the newer outside threats, the Spurs earned a 60-22 record. In the [[2003 NBA Playoffs|playoffs]], the Spurs defeated the Suns, Lakers and [[Dallas Mavericks]] en route to facing the [[New Jersey Nets]] in the [[2003 NBA Finals|NBA Finals]]. The series against the Nets marked the first time two former ABA teams would play each other for the NBA Championship. The Spurs won the series 4-2, giving them their second NBA Championship in franchise history. Duncan was named both the NBA Regular Season and Finals MVP for the season.

====The big three: Duncan, Parker and Ginóbili (2003-present)====

The Spurs suck!

[[Image:Spurs White House.jpg|thumb|left|330px|The Spurs visit the [[White House]] after their championship in 2003.]]

The suns are way better!

In the [[2003-04 NBA season|2003-04 season]], coming off their second NBA Championship, the Spurs, playing with 9 new players, struggled early as they missed the presence of David Robinson while the new players struggled to fit in, as they held a 9-10 record on December 3rd. However, the Spurs would turn it around, as they ended December on 13-game winning streak and quickly climbed back to the top of the NBA standings. The Spurs would battle all year for the top spot in the Western Conference, as they ended the season on another strong note winning their final 11 games. However, they would fall 1 game short of a division title and the best record in the West, posting a record of 57-25. In the playoffs, the Spurs remained hot as they swept the [[Memphis Grizzlies]] in 4 straight games. In the second round, the Spurs found themselves in another showdown with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Spurs' winning streak would continue as they captured the first two games at home, bringing their winning streak from the end of the regular season up to 17 games. However, as the series shifted to Los Angeles, the Spurs would suddenly have trouble finding the basket, as they lost both games as the Lakers evened the series. The series was playing out similarly to the match-up between the two teams a year earlier. In Game 5 at the SBC Center, Tim Duncan seemingly delivered the Spurs a 73-72 win as he gave the Spurs a lead with a dramatic shot with just 0.4 seconds remaining. However, the Lakers' [[Derek Fisher]] would launch a game-winner as time expired which would go in, giving the Lakers a stunning 74-73 win to take a 3-2 series lead.<ref>"Parker perplexed once again", ''San Antonio Express-News'', May 14, 2004.</ref><ref>"S.A. is heartbreak city", ''San Antonio Express-News'', May 14, 2004.</ref><ref name=Fisher>[http://www.nba.com/games/20040513/LALSAS/recap.html Fisher’s Jumper Gives Lakers Dramatic Game 5 Win], NBA.com, May 13, 2004. Last accessed February 7, 2007.</ref> The Spurs protested the shot, arguing that the clock started late, which the Spurs claimed was why replays showed Fisher got off the shot in time.<ref>[http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2004_3764146 Triple Crown bid nabs viewers], ''Houston Chronicle'', May 17, 2004.</ref><ref name=Fisher/> An AP report and the three officials in attendance stated that replays showed the shot was released by Fisher before time expired.<ref name=Fisher/><ref name="was">[http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A25850-2004May13?language=printer No Time to Lose], ''The Washington Post'', May 14, 2004, Last accessed February 7, 2007.</ref> The officials, however, could not consider the Spurs' claim that the clock did not start immediately when the ball was inbounded. After the stunning loss, the Spurs traveled to Los Angeles for Game 6, where they lost the game and the series. The Spurs spent the following offseason tweaking the team.

With the acquisition of guard [[Brent Barry]] from [[Seattle SuperSonics|Seattle]], and the later additions of center [[Nazr Mohammed]] from [[New York Knicks|New York]] (acquired in a midseason trade of [[Malik Rose]]), and veteran forward [[Glenn Robinson]] from [[Free agent|free agency]], alongside regulars [[Bruce Bowen]], [[Robert Horry]], [[Tony Parker]], [[Emanuel Ginóbili|Manu Ginóbili]], and [[Tim Duncan]], the Spurs finished the [[2004-05 NBA season|2004-05 season]] with the second-best record in the Western Conference at 59-23, and the best record in the Southwest Division. In the [[2005 NBA Playoffs|postseason]], the Spurs defeated the [[Denver Nuggets]] 4-1, the [[Seattle SuperSonics]] 4-2 and the [[Phoenix Suns]] 4-1 before advancing to the [[2005 NBA Finals|NBA Finals]], where they won the NBA championship for a third time in seven years on [[June 23]], [[2005]] by defeating the Eastern Conference champion and defending NBA Champion [[Detroit Pistons]], four games to three. [[Tim Duncan]] was named [[NBA Finals MVP Award|Finals MVP]], becoming only the fourth player to win the MVP award three times (joining [[Magic Johnson]], [[Shaquille O'Neal]], and [[Michael Jordan]]). Also, Manu Ginóbili established himself as a NBA star, earning local, national, and international fan praise (particularly in his home country of [[Argentina]]) and a berth in that season's All-Star Game.

[[Image:ATTCenter.jpg|250px|thumb|right|AT&T Center at night.]]In the [[2005-06 NBA season|2005-06 season]], the Spurs acquired veteran free agent Michael Finley who along with Tim Duncan, Manu Ginóbili and newly-named All-Star Tony Parker, broke their franchise record for wins in a season (63-19) and qualified for the playoffs for the ninth year in a row. (Until this season, the Spurs and [[Indiana Pacers]] shared the NBA's longest active consecutive playoff appearance streak with nine in a row — see [[Active NBA playoff appearance streaks]] - though San Antonio has qualified for its 10th consecutive appearance during the 2006-07 season, while Indiana's playoff streak ended.) However, the defending-champion Spurs were eliminated in the second round by the [[Dallas Mavericks]] in a 7-game semifinal series that, due to a quirk in the playoff ranking system, featured the two top teams in the conference.

After their disappointing defeat at the hands of the [[Dallas Mavericks]], the Spurs entered the [[2006-07 NBA season|2006-07 season]] refreshed with renewed determination, as they felt fatigue played a large role as they failed to win a second straight NBA Title. The Spurs would begin their 2007 season on foreign soil as they opened up their training camp in France in October 2006, which they thought could build camaraderie between players. The Spurs would get off to a strong start in the regular season, but as the season unfolded, the Spurs failed to live-up to their lofty expectations. Following a 9-7 record in January, the Spurs started February with a 1-3 record. They struggled down the stretch in many of those defeats, and the Spurs quickly found themselves far behind the [[Dallas Mavericks]] and the [[Phoenix Suns]]. In fact, the Spurs were, during this period, a mere 1.5 games ahead of the third-place [[Houston Rockets]] in the Southwest Division. Trade rumors began swirling around the Spurs. Unaccustomed to struggling during the regular season, the Spurs were frustrated. But despite the uncertainty, the Spurs had a reservoir of stability to fall back on, and it started with [[Tim Duncan]]. With the trade deadline quickly approaching, Popovich would have to chose whether or not to keep the team together. His decision was not to make a trade. Then, it was as if their whole season had magically turned around in one moment. With quiet determination, the Spurs spent the rest of the season flying under the radar, winning thirteen games in a row during February and March. The Spurs won those games with either tough defense or by hitting big shots down the stretch. With that streak, the Spurs began climbing back up in the Western Conference standings. Despite their massive turnaround, the Spurs would not catch the Mavs who would win the Southwest Division by nine games. However, with the NBA's top ranked defense and a 58-24 record, the Spurs entered the postseason in good shape. When the bell rang for the second season, they were able to put the [[Denver Nuggets]] away in 5 games. While the Spurs were bouncing the Nuggets, the Mavericks, who had a NBA best 67-15 record in the regular season, were unraveling, losing to the [[Golden State Warriors]] in six games. The Mavericks upset loss set the Spurs second round series against the [[Phoenix Suns]] as the key series in the entire NBA Playoffs, as some even called it the "real NBA Finals". The Spurs went on to win 4-2 in the very contentious and controversial series versus the Suns. Those who said the second round series against the Suns was the true NBA Finals would be proven right, as the Spurs easily dispatched the [[Utah Jazz]] in five games to reach the NBA Finals. In the [[2007 NBA Finals]], the San Antonio Spurs swept the [[Cleveland Cavaliers]] and captured their fourth title in nine years.

===Future outlook===