![]() ![]() rebounds: 11.2 Favorite book: “Jurassic Park” Favorite f ood: Steak & shrimp Favorite color: Black Football team: Chicago Bears Croix Age: 37 College: Wake Forest Degree: Psychology Years in NBA: 16 Championships: 4 Games played: 1,180 Games started: 1,178 Playoff games: 204 All-Star games: 14 Avg. In it, he called the Spurs power forward the best player of his generation, better than Bryant, a guy who “probably led the league for 16 straight years just in throwing an arm around a teammate’s shoulder.”īorn: Christiansted, St. Grantland’s and ESPN’s Bill Simmons, a Boston Celtics fan, posted a rare (for sportswriters) ode to Duncan this week. He cares only about Ws, and to many fans, that isn’t sexy unless a player makes an ass of himself or talks trash incessantly. Are you starting to see why the he’ll never be voted prom king? The father of two simply doesn’t care about such things – popularity, ratings. We’ll talk again in five years.īack to Duncan. ![]() What has he done in the playoffs that puts him in with Tim Duncan?”įair enough. “Is he a top three or four player? Yes, without question, but you can’t include him in this conversation. Tim Duncan is the model of longevity, consistency and championships,” he said. “It’s unfair to compare Kevin Durant with Tim Duncan. See those banners?īefore we delve any deeper, Fratello, who spent a collective 15 years coaching the Atlanta Hawks, Memphis Grizzlies and Cleveland Cavaliers, would like to make one thing clear: Durant doesn’t belong in this debate. Is he a fighter and a champion? You best believe it, and if you don’t, look up. “Tim has laid the groundwork for how he wants his NBA career to be handled,” TNT and NBATV analyst Mike Fratello said, explaining that Duncan has chosen to stay in one of the league’s smallest markets, alongside a coach he trusts, Gregg Popovich.Ĭan he be charming and funny? Of course he can. Why well-rested Spurs have edge in Finals Bryant has five, a feat Duncan’s teammates hope he will soon match as the Spurs sit at home waiting to learn who they’ll face in the NBA Finals after dismantling the Memphis Grizzlies. Then there are those rings: four of them, 1999, 2003, 20. None of the Trinity has reached the postseason every year. ![]() James, Durant and Bryant have impressive career stat lines but not double-doubles.ĭuncan’s numbers are a smidgeon higher in the playoffs, which his Spurs have reached in every season since he joined the roster. It’s human nature to be fascinated by the bizarre or the crazy or the flashy and not the mundane.”įor 16 years, the two-time NBA MVP has averaged a double-double, tallying about 20 points and 11 rebounds (plus more than three assists and two blocks) per outing. “It’s true that there’s a fairly hypocritical nature, not just to sports fans but human beings. “Why do people watch reality TV? Why do people watch the Kardashians? Just consider your audience,” he said. Kerr, whose 15-year playing career included four seasons with Duncan and the Spurs, said he can’t explain it. The recent news of Duncan’s possible divorce from his wife of 11 years is one of the few, maybe only, instances of off-court negative press in his career. That can’t be argued, and with his résumé, it’s curious he doesn’t get more credit – and that less-talented fellows like Metta World Peace get more press, even if it’s because of their antics.įans profess to yearn for good guys, yet when presented with a stalwart, they yawn or change the channel. ![]()
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