Sam Presti tried to do what anyone would have done in his shoes after just finding out that his franchise player had walked out the door. He put on a brave face and spun the worst day in Oklahoma City Thunder history this way:
“None of us are under the illusion that Kevin Durant would be here forever. We understood that this is a business and he has to do what is best for him, but we also understand that part of the NBA and part of sports in general is change, even when you'd prefer that wasn't the case.’’
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Now let those words sink in when you consider what we’ve seen for almost the last two decades with Tim Duncan and the Spurs.
The Spurs are not just lucky to have won the Duncan sweepstakes in the 1997 lottery. They’re also extremely lucky that Duncan did what Kevin Durant and other stars in the NBA’s smaller markets have often refused to do.
Duncan stayed forever.
The rumblings of a Duncan retirement got louder over the last few weeks. Now that it's official, it’s a good bet that we’ve seen the last of his kind.
Duncan goes down as one of the elite centers in the history of the sport, having spent the majority of his time manning the middle. But as much as the game has changed since he walked into an NBA where big men like Hakeem Olajuwon, Shaquille O’Neal and Patrick Ewing ruled, there might be another all-time big man somewhere down the line.
But what are the odds that the next transcendent player A) Lands in one of the smallest markets in major professional sports and B) Stays for his entire career, spanning almost two decades?
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This is why Duncan’s career has been unique as it was so memorable.
Through everything that happened to the Spurs since Duncan came on the scene — the rise of the Lakers as a competing powerhouse in the early 2000’s; the retirement of David Robinson; Derek Fisher’s three-pointer with three-tenths of a second left; Tony Parker entering the starting lineup; the break-up of O’Neal and Kobe Bryant; the Spurs changing the way they played, from a traditional halfcourt, inside-out team to a spread offense with three-point shooting; Duncan moving to power forward; LeBron James’ arrival in Miami; the Ray Allen 3-pointer; James’ return to Cleveland; and a whole lot in between — he never left South Texas.
He never was one for the bright lights of the big city, so right there he was so much different than Shaq, who wanted a Hollywood screen test as badly as he wanted to win. He never left because he needed to find a ready-made place to win, as Kevin Durant has done.
Through all the years, Duncan seriously thought of leaving as a free agent only once, in 2000, when he had one foot out the door to go to Orlando and join Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill.
Never again. He always stayed, perfectly content in sleepy San Antone. He always took less money to make sure the Spurs had plenty of cap space to tweak the roster, thereby always giving himself an opportunity to compete for the title. In that respect he was the anti-Kobe, as Bryant came to rue in his last two seasons, languishing on a terrible lottery team while counting his $50 million. He always placed his faith in Gregg Popovich and R. C. Buford when other superstars with me-first agendas might have left for Los Angeles or New York. He stayed and won big, winning five titles, making six trips to the Finals, all the while dealing with the media only grudgingly.
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He never won back-to-back titles, which is about the only thing missing off a resume that won’t soon be duplicated. Once I asked him about that gap and he looked at me as if I just landed from Mars. After an uncomfortable silence, he told me, “When I see what Michael Jordan did, I’m amazed. To win one title is very difficult. To win two in a row, I’ve never done that. But to win three straight? Twice?’’
Sometimes, players in the smallest NBA markets never win once. Ask Karl Malone and John Stockton about that. Sometimes, those places never get a Duncan. Ask the fans in Sacramento, Indiana and Memphis.
The Spurs’ accomplishments since landing Duncan may never be matched: 19 straight playoff berths, an NBA record, starting in his inaugural season of 1997-98. Winning at least 50 games for 17 straight seasons, another NBA record.
Now, almost 500 miles from San Antonio, another small market team and its loyal fan base have been left in a state of semi-shock, wondering if they’ll ever get another player like Durant, who made it to a Finals only once and couldn’t deliver a title. The story out of Oklahoma City is that he left because nothing lasts forever and part of sports in general is change.
To that we say, Spurs fans, count your blessings.
