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Welcome to LA S. Nash!
Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
It's kind of incredible what SA has been doing the past 5-6 years in this league. There are NOT the deepest team, or the most athletic or talented. They're actually just alright. Look closely at that roster. I am starting to seriously consider Pop as the greatest basketball coach of all-time. You give him a Euroball scrub and he'll somehow insert him into a scheme that will utilize his strengths.
Than I look at Duncan. IMO, he's still a top 10 talent all-time and his peak from 99' to 05' was impressive, a top 3 player every year...perhaps the best in a few of those seasons. But I've witnessed so many games in these past half decade from SA to conclude that Duncan is extremely overrated. SA just destroyed OKC in game 2 while Duncan (not surprising to me anymore) had a pretty crappy game. He's been doing this quite often. The reason he's so overrated is mostly because of him not being in a huge market and his nice guy persona. But seriously, no other basketball legend has ever gotten so much respect from the fans in general. Yes he once was an all around amazing players, but it's not so much his skills I'm really pointing too here. First off, his skills are NOT top 10 worthy. Maybe top 20. His accomplishments is where I really see the problem, in particular his success on the Spurs. The dude can literally play 30 MPG and miss a bunch of games due to age and his team hardly misses a beat. I have a hard time believing that Parker or Manu or the countless other players on the Spurs would be as highly regarded if they played for the Knicks or say Denver. It really is Pop that's doing the magic behind the scenes and its time to seriously realize that.
I don't think I've ever witnessed a more overrated athlete in sports to be honest. He hasn't been a top 10 player for ages it seems, yet SA continuously wins 50 to 60 games. He's had a few great games in these playoffs but SA has been stream rolling everyone. Seriously it's not the roster that's doing it, it's Pop utilizing his players to their absolute maximum. The fact that Pop himself has already said in the past that Duncan's resume might make him one of the ten or so greatest players just emphasizes what I'm seeing as well.
I'm not doubting how great Timmy was in his prime; he was one of the best players in a very competitive league for a number of years and his MVPs are deserving. I just think his accomplishments (in terms of team success) are a bit skewed. I see people saying he's better than Kobe and I just laugh every time. This current Spurs team that's stream rolling everyone in their path right now aren't even better than the team Kobe annihilated during his three-straight final appeances with Pau; destroying SA in five games. He's also outplayed Duncan in 01' by a huge margin. Has a clear advantage in the head to head match-up. People will pin point to Kobe having Shaq, yet completely ignore how Kobe simply outplayed Duncan in almost every single series. Kobe actually had to rebuild in his career, Duncan coasted with Pop along his side since he was drafted. Yet Kobe still has a more impressive resume.
I'd place him somewhere in the 9th or 10th spot to be honest...could easily make a case for guys like Moses being higher as well.
Kareem, Jordan, Magic, Kobe, Bird, Shaquille, Wilt, Hakeem, LeBron
There's no way in hell he's better than any one of those players. His longevity isn't that great and the fact that his team has been doing so well despite his obvious decline makes me realize the greatness of Pop not so much Duncan. I don't think Pop would have won a single ring from 99 to 05' without Duncan, because Timmy was that good and is obviously a legend...but he's overrated to an extent, mostly because people just don't comprehend how much he had to work with over his career. Case point, the last 4-5 years.
Last edited by rhythmic ; 05-22-2014 at 11:08 AM.
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Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
Duncan is ahead of kobe all time, let it go already
didnt read
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Curry: 0x Finals MVP
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
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NBA lottery pick
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
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Welcome to LA S. Nash!
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
Thanks for proving my point guys.
Adios till next time.
This forum has become a playground for the ignorant and trolls.
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Dirk top 15 all time
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
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The Beast In Me
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Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
when i see the spurs, i don't think of duncan first anymore. that stopped a long time ago. now when i see the spurs, i just see a team. all that passing, all the unselfishness, all those team-assisted buckets. that shit is on the players but it also starts with the coach in pounding that philsophy into their minds. popovich is so underrated.
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The Beast In Me
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
And I'll say this: if you think Duncan had more help than Shaq, Kobe, Magic, Kareem, Bird or Russell something is wrong with you.
You'll throw out the "deep" excuse, but Duncan has never played with a superstar (only signs of one in Parker/Manu for one or two seasons at a time).
Shaq played with Penny, Kobe, Wade, LeBron, Pierce, Nash, Garnett and Allen, and a bunch of fringe stars, and a lot of great role players. Yet he accomplished less than Duncan in his career.
Duncan won every single one of his titles without another All-NBA teammate. Jordan did that in '91. Hakeem did it in '94. Dirk did it in '11. Duncan did it in '99, '03, '05, and '07.
Oh, and what was Popovich's record before Duncan got there? I can excuse that because the team was banged up and probably tanking. But, in the grand scheme of things, what has he done since Duncan's decline? Phil was the GOAT before he even got to LA, and he was huge in developing Kobe. Duncan was a star out of college. Kobe was a near bench warmer before Phil got there, then he missed the Playoffs when Phil left, then he got the 7th seed and missed a whole season since his second departure. See the correlation there?
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T'Bagging LeBron Fam
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
Moreso Duncan. Id love to see Pop or Phil coach a team without hall of famers
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NBA Legend
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
Mmm op makes some nice points.
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... on a leash
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
didnt read duncan > kobe
[COLOR="White"]forreal though i like the effort&thought behind it.. not just some stupid blatant statements made without anything else[/COLOR]
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NBA Legend
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
I think it was a combination of both. Duncan being as great as he is, having great teammates coupled with having Pop as a coach is a formula for success.
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I hit open 5-foot jumpshots with ease
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
Per 36 doesn't tell the whole story, but this is still insane.
He's the fifth oldest player in the NBA right now, and all those other cats are either coming off the bench (Fisher, Allen, Andre Miller), or in Nash's case, perma-hobbled.
Duncan being this relevant to a potential chip team at age 38 is almost as impressive to me as his early-00's peak.
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The Beast In Me
Re: Is it really Duncan or was it Pop all along?
Originally Posted by obonpaxis
Per 36 doesn't tell the whole story, but this is still insane.
He's the fifth oldest player in the NBA right now, and all those other cats are either coming off the bench (Fisher, Allen, Andre Miller), or in Nash's case, perma-hobbled.
Duncan being this relevant to a potential chip team at age 38 is almost as impressive to me as his early-00's peak.
Emotional leader on the floor, defensive anchor, 18/10 averages since '09, and this guys think he's been a glorified scrub since '05.
Bird and Magic weren't in the league at 38. Shaq was playing half a minute a game. Nothing Duncan does at this point can't hurt his legacy.
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