Tim Duncan is the greatest power forward of all-time. While that is unquestionably true, that doesn’t quite do him justice. Obviously Tim is a transcendent talent, because what else can you call a player who has won a championship in three different decades? He’s a 5x NBA champion, 3x Finals MVP, 2x NBA MVP, 15x All-Star (All-Star MVP in 2000), 14th on the all-time scoring list, 6th on the all-time playoff scoring list, the all-time leader in career double-doubles, 10x All-NBA First Team (3x Second Team, 2x Third Teamer), as well as being THE San Antonio Spur. He’s got myriad more awards and achievements, but what should be highlighted is the consistency and excellence he has brought to the league. In his 19 year career, he has NEVER missed the playoffs. Also important to note is that since 2000, the Spurs have won at least 50 games every year. That’s absolute insanity considering the lockout 2011-12 campaign only had 66 games.
As I was saying before, to say that Duncan is the greatest power forward of all-time understates his greatness. Wherever you rank him in your all-time list, his unparalleled excellence over the course of nearly 2 decades in the league (and four great years in college) warrants at least a conversation into the top 5. I’m not trying to tell you where he belongs, but to simply pigeonhole him as a power forward does not do Duncan justice. The clips shown here are obviously at the tail end of Timmy's career. I wish I could do more, and I might be able to down the road, but because of formatting issues, and overall quality (video quality, not ability), I'm not really able to do any of his early stuff (at least in this video). Obviously this isn't the only source of Duncan content, so I strongly encourage you to seek out some prime Timmy clips. MOREOVER, this video is about ONE SPOT. This video is meant to showcase how he ate the league alive from one spot, with basically one move and a few counters. Duncan does have a left hand, but it isn't showcased very much in this video because I CHOSE to do the left block (when you're talking about it from a post entry).
They didn’t call Timmy "the Big Fundamental” for nothing. He’s got everything you could ever want in a basketball player, to the point where if you sat down and watched any game of his, there is a strong chance your basketball IQ would benefit greatly. His footwork is flawless, his jumper wasn’t the prettiest, but by god did he make it work. He could bury you in the post, turn over either shoulder, have you flying by with a shot or pass fake, or in some cases, just moving you with his eyes. Tim could trick you every which way, and if you somehow managed to stay down, he’d just move onto to his counter (and sometimes the counter to his counter’s counter). If that wasn’t enough, he used his strength or his quickness, or just WILL a shot in (that 3 pointer against Phoenix in the playoffs in 2008 comes to mind). That bank shot won San Antonio at least a hundred games by itself. His post game, along with Hakeem and McHale, are what I study when I need to teach a move. His preparation was perfect and the greatest part about Tim wasn’t how much he won, but how hard he continued to work despite the accolades. As Pop said after Duncan announced his retirement: “he’s the same person as far as his values as the day he came in.” Thanks for everything, Tim.
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4 дек 2016
