It is very rare in sports that we find consistency for a team, coach or player for an extended period of time. Obviously we have teams like the Yankees back in their days of Babe Ruth, or there are Showtime era Lakers back in the 80s. Those days are somewhat over, and with players and coaches bouncing around to big market teams, namely in the NBA, teams are no longer consistent. However, there has been one team headed by one coach and player duo that has kept the team consistently in the hunt for a championship for nearly the past 19 years. The San Antonio Spurs, led by Hall of Fame power forward Tim Duncan and coach Gregg Popovich, are one of the last symbols of consistency in the NBA or sports in general. Coach Pop and Duncan have won 930 games together, the most in NBA history. While naturally a story of this magnitude that happens to involve the Spurs will be died down by ESPN and other major media publications, it is hard to argue against the opinion that Duncan and Popovich are the best coach-player duo of all-time and are a team that is unlike any other.

Gregg Popovich became the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs in the summer of 1996 and had both the role of head coach and general manager. A move that both surprised and angered many San Antonio fans, the fan base did not have much success in which to build high expectations. The face of the franchise at that time was the Admiral, David Robinson. Expected to be the leader of the team in the ‘96-‘97 season, Robinson sustained a season-ending injury which led to the Spurs ultimately tanking the rest of the way and finished with a dreadful 17-47 record. Some critics gave Pop the benefit of the doubt saying that the lack of health on the team was the cause of the team’s downward spiral that year. Others were not as kind, as fans called for the firing of Pop after only one year. The Spurs ended up receiving the first pick in the draft, an event that would change the future of this franchise forever. 

The 1997 draft was one full of intrigue and hype. Highly talented players in the draft featured Tim Duncan, Chauncey Billups and Tracy McGrady. It was a no-brainer for the Spurs, as they selected the power forward from Wake Forest, Tim Duncan, with the first overall pick in the draft. Duncan grew up on the island of St. Croix, where his primary sport of choice was actually competitive swimming. Expected to be an Olympic swimmer, Duncan first played the game of basketball starting with his freshman year of high school. The 6’11” big man attracted a lot of attention and was given a scholarship to Wake Forest. 

Duncan came into the league as the premier rookie in the league and was the main attraction for a Spurs team that was looking to return from a horrendous previous season. Duncan and David Robinson soon became the most dominant big men duo in the league. Duncan averaged a double-double with an astronomical 21.1 points per game and 11.5 rebounds per game. It was evident from the start that the Spurs would be a real contender in the NBA with both Duncan and Robinson in the front court. 

The ultimate dream in San Antonio came true when the Spurs demolished the New York Knicks four games to one to win the 1999 NBA Finals. The first in San Antonio’s history, and this would not be the last one either. In the 2003 season, the Spurs were champions once again in David Robinson’s final season. It was finally time for Duncan to take over. With many doubters believing the Spurs would not flourish without Robinson, Duncan and Popovich quickly proved the doubters wrong and went on to win the 2005 and 2007 NBA Finals. Duncan and Popovich were the NBA’s newest dynasty and then it just stopped.

After the 2007 championship, a new era of basketball came into effect. The era of star players teaming up began with the “Big Three” era in Boston. When Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce teamed up, the dynamic of transactions in the NBA was changed and the traditional Spurs suffered. The Spurs managed to make it to the Western Conference Finals in 2008, only to be destroyed by the Lakers. The following years were no easier for the Spurs as they fell in the second round two years in a row. It looked as if the Spurs dynasty was fading and Tim Duncan was slowly, painfully leaving his prime. The 2011 season was a bright spot in the regular season, but the Spurs were unable to make anything of being the #1 seed in the West, as they were upset by the Memphis Grizzlies. 

Going into the 2012 season Popovich decided he needed to make a change. With Duncan aging, Popovich felt it was time for point guard Tony Parker to be the center of the offense. Duncan gracefully accepted being the secondary player in the offense. That year, the Spurs also brought in Kawhi Leonard from San Diego State. The Spurs proceeded to go 50-16 in a shortened season due to the lockout and were the best team in the West. The Spurs looked as if they would cruise through the playoffs after sweeping the first two opponents they played and won the first two games of the Western Conference finals. The series ultimately ended with the Thunder winning the next 4 games and eliminating the Spurs. But that is aside the fact, the Spurs finally found the formula that would bring them back to supremacy. 

The following two seasons consisted of the Spurs making the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. In the 2013 season it looked as if the Spurs would return to glory in the final few seconds of Game 6. Fate, on the other hand, had other plans it turned out. Ray Allen stunned the Spurs with a game-tying three and the Heat went on to win the following two games. In 2014, the Spurs managed to make it back to the big stage and this time they did not have plans to give it up. The Spurs crushed the Heat winning the series four to one. Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich received their fifth ring and were at the pinnacle of the NBA’s elite, if they weren’t there already. 

What the Spurs, namely Duncan and Pop, have been able to do for the last 18 years has been nothing short of incredible. Tim Duncan is 38 years old and is still one basketball’s best players. The level of consistency and team work that the team has had over the years is nothing we have never seen before, and it is all thanks to Duncan and Pop. Pop and Duncan have 930 wins together over Duncan’s career; that is the most of any player-coach duo in the league’s history. Pop also reached 1,000 wins this year and was not only the third-fastest coach to do so, but is the only coach to do so with one team while winning at least one title. 

The most amazing thing to me is that no matter what the experts say, the Spurs always prove them wrong. I don’t know how they do it, but they always out play everyone. Duncan is still nearly averaging a double-double and has 25 double-doubles this season. Along with that, the threesome of Duncan, Parker and Manu Ginobili has the most wins in playoff history. It is only fitting that a quiet, humble, yet great town like San Antonio, Texas, has a player that embodies those characteristics. Duncan has 872 career double-doubles and is easily the greatest power forward of all-time. Even though he can barely walk, Duncan was also elected to his 15th All-Star game; which is third all-time in the NBA. 

It is hard to argue that Pop and Duncan are not the greatest player-coach duo of all time. A case for Phil and MJ can definitely be made but their win total together does not even hold a candle to that of Pop and Duncan. Duncan and Pop have done nothing but overcome the odds that were never in their favor, and take down giants like the three-time defending champ Lakers, the Ben Wallace-led Pistons and the two-time defending champion Miami Heat. The Spurs have never signed free agent superstars to enhance their team. Pop has always been able to surround himself with great assistants such as Becky Hammon, the first female assistant coach in the NBA, and under-the-radar shooting coach Chip Engelland, who is solely responsible for the emerging shooting games of Tony Parker, Kawhi Leonard and many more Spurs. The Spurs do it the right way and will continue to do so.

Pop and Duncan have been nothing but elite and full of class over their span together. Shame on ESPN and other media outlets for solely focusing on the glamor and flare of players like LeBron James. The NBA will have players with the personality and popularity of James for years to come in the future; but they will never see something as beautiful and simple as the relationship and showmanship that these two great men have displayed over their illustrious span. There is nothing sweeter than seeing Timmy’s boring bank shot go in at the exact angle it should. There is nothing more entertaining than Pop’s short, two-sentence interview. The fans of the NBA should not take this duo or this team for granted. They are something truly special no matter how boring or fundamental they are. They play the game as James Nasmith intended it to be. Whether Tim and Pop leave the game in one year or in five, fans better start appreciating the show that this team puts on display because it will never come around ever again.

Reach Staff Reporter Jeffrey Dubrof Here