Chris Bosh: And here’s some buzz (sorry) on the team itself: San Antonio’s not dirty, but they certainly are physical. There’s a reason Tim Duncan made that turnaround hook off the glass for 20 years: he’d gladly put an elbow in your face, throat and chest while doing it. That’s the Pop ethos: give it to ‘em nasty. The fans feed on that. They start wanting blood during warmups.
Tim Duncan Rumors
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Tim Duncan
Position: -
Born: 04/25/76
Height: 6-11 / 2.11
Weight:259 lbs. / 117.9 kg.
Earnings: $245,964,351 ($307,745,968*)
Born: 04/25/76
Height: 6-11 / 2.11
Weight:259 lbs. / 117.9 kg.
Earnings: $245,964,351 ($307,745,968*)
Chris Bosh: I was a freshman when Tim Duncan won a championship in his second season. Watching someone weaponize the fundamentals the way he did—earning his nickname in the process—made me realize how much I needed to work on my own. The summer TD brought home his first title, I was in Dallas, working with Kenny Blakeney and Thomas Hill on my fundamentals in any gym we could find. Kenny, who’s about to start coaching Makur Maker at Howard, helped expand my very idea of what the fundamentals could be. Sure, I learned the Triple Threat that summer. But I also came to understand that if I wanted to devote my life to basketball, I’d need to rely on my mind as much as my body.
Marc Stein: Tim Duncan will not be here at Walt Disney World on the Spurs’ bench … The team says Duncan, in his first season as an assistant coach to Gregg Popovich, stayed in San Antonio with a few Spurs medical and performance staffers to supervise LaMarcus Aldridge’s injury rehab
Tim Duncan not in Orlando
Don Harris: I can confirm that Spurs Asst. coach Tim Duncan is NOT with the team in Orlando. Spurs tell me Tim and a few members of the medical and performance group are directing LaMarcus Aldridge’s rehabilitation program.
Until this season, Kuzma, having spent four years in college, was older than most of his teammates. In this new scenario, Kuzma keeps himself grounded by looking around the league. “I just look at Kawhi Leonard for an example,” Kuzma said of the All-Star forward, citing his early days in San Antonio with veteran stars Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker. “He was a Spur for three, four, five years, whatever it was, waited his time behind Duncan, Ginobili and Parker, and did his thing. So I just take away progression mindset to get better every day, focus on what I can control, and my time’s coming.”
CEO John Doleva told the Globe the Hall will decide this coming week whether to retain the Aug. 28-30 window, which will begin at Mohegan Sun and then return to Springfield for the induction. Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, and Tamika Catchings are among those in the class of 2020. Doleva said the Hall will move the ceremony from Symphony Hall (capacity 2,611), which has housed the event since 2009, to the MassMutual Center (capacity, 8,319), allowing patrons more room for social distancing. Doleva added alternate dates would be over the Columbus Day weekend, Oct. 9-11, or in the spring of 2021. The Hall is not considering a combined ceremony for the classes of 2020 and 2021. “I do want to make it very clear we will have a separate event for the class of 2020 because of the notoriety of that class and, frankly, every class deserves its own recognition,” Doleva said. “There is a potential next calendar year that we could have two enshrinements.”
06 Jun
03 Jun
28 May
2020 Basketball Hall of Fame ceremony delayed to 2021
Count the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame as the latest institution to have its best-laid plans felled by the coronavirus. Jerry Colangelo, the chairman of the board of the governors for the Hall, told ESPN on Wednesday that enshrinement ceremonies for the Class of 2020, one of the most star-studded lineups ever which includes Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and the late Kobe Bryant, will be moved to spring of 2021.
Colangelo said the original dates of enshrinement weekend, Aug. 28-30, and the proposed alternate dates of Oct. 10-12 are “just not feasible” in light of the coronavirus pandemic that has killed over 100,000 in the U.S. and has rendered large gatherings taboo. The board of governors will convene on June 10, he said, to explore spring dates.
“We’re definitely canceling,” Colangelo said. “It’s going to have to be the first quarter of next year. We’ll meet in a couple of weeks and look at the options of how and when and where.”
Colangelo stressed there will be separate ceremonies for the Class of 2020 and the Class of 2021, even though both events will now be held in the calendar year 2021. “We won’t be combining them,” he said. “The Class of 2020 is a very special class and deserves its own celebration.”
RJ Marquez: JUST IN: @SpursGive and the Tim Duncan Foundation are donating $200K to @safoodbank as part of new Spurs Café initiative. With this donation, the Food Bank will deliver 25,000 meals to families in low-income apartment complexes across San Antonio. #KSATnews #KSATsports #Spurs pic.twitter.com/l9KnW9Z8ze
Doc Rivers may have the largest All-Time starting five squad ever. Austin Rivers joined his father on the GO OFF podcast, where the two talked about All-Time starting fives, Kobe stories, and their player/coach dynamic. When it comes to an All-Time starting five, Doc Rivers is in favor of size. “I’m going Kareem at the center,” Rivers said. “I’m going Tim Duncan at the four, because those both are two-way players. I’m going Michael, and Magic at the one and two. This may be the biggest team ever. And then LeBron at the three.”
It’s safe to say the Chicago Bulls’ rebuilding efforts after the second retirement of Michael Jordan didn’t go very well, but it reportedly wasn’t for lack of ambition. According to NBA veteran Jamal Crawford, who was drafted by the Bulls eighth overall two years after Jordan left the team, general manager Jerry Krause plan to launch the team back into title contention was simple. Sign Tim Duncan, Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill.
Crawford’s retelling of the plan: My first year and second year, we’re the youngest team in the league, right? And the fans knew, like, “OK, it’s going to be a rebuilding year.” But my rookie year, Jerry thought he was going to get Grant Hill, Tim Duncan and T-Mac. So, obviously, MJ just retired, right? We have all this cap space, and so we have all these rookies. And he was like — go back and look, I guarantee Grant, Tim and T-Mac were all free agents. And Jerry wholeheartedly believed we would get all three of them. Even if we get two of them at the time, boom.
On what he can learn from assistant coach Tim Duncan and teammate LaMarcus Aldridge, All-Stars at his position. Jakob Poeltl: “Tim and LaMarcus have helped me a lot. Working with Tim on a regular basis, him giving me tips and tricks for games. Going against L.A. in practice on a daily basis has really helped me improve my game. I’m trying to take advantage of that opportunity as best possible.”
Doc Rivers sets record straigh on Tim Duncan recruitment
Rivers cleared up the story saying Duncan affirmed to him he was set to join but had to speak with Gregg Popovich first. That meeting with Popovich ultimately ended any chance at Duncan joining Orlando. “That story isn’t told correctly because it’s true we talked about it and I actually told him absolutely families can fly not all the time but families can fly every once in a while. That story is not told correctly,” Rivers said. Said Rivers: “As a matter of fact what I remember the most about that was Tim Duncan looked at me and said, ‘I’m pretty sure that I’m actually coming to the Magic. I just need to go back to San Antonio because I love Pop and I want to have my last meeting with Pop.'”
Corey Benjamin: “I had Arn Tellem as an agent and Arn represented a lot of star players. The Bulls were trying to sign free agents. I hosted Tracy McGrady, Tim Thomas and Jermaine O’Neal when we brought them in. I was there personally for those [meetings] because we were all represented by the same agent (Arn). I remember Jerry Krause told me, ‘If you can get them to sign, I’ll renew your contract.’ I don’t remember Tim Duncan coming in, but I know we wanted Duncan. But we weren’t offering them the money that other teams were offering. I remember Tracy and Jermaine telling me, ‘They’re offering me peanuts.’ They weren’t trying to max these guys out; they were trying to give these guys smaller contracts.”
Corey Benjamin: “I had Arn Tellem as an agent and Arn represented a lot of star players. The Bulls were trying to sign free agents. I hosted Tracy McGrady, Tim Thomas and Jermaine O’Neal when we brought them in. I was there personally for those [meetings] because we were all represented by the same agent (Arn). I remember Jerry Krause told me, ‘If you can get them to sign, I’ll renew your contract.’ I don’t remember Tim Duncan coming in, but I know we wanted Duncan. But we weren’t offering them the money that other teams were offering. I remember Tracy and Jermaine telling me, ‘They’re offering me peanuts.’ They weren’t trying to max these guys out; they were trying to give these guys smaller contracts.”
O’Neal blasted the Spurs’ five titles on an episode of his show “The Big Podcast” claiming the Spurs 1999 title should not count because it was a shortened season. He also claims he personally wouldn’t claim an “asterisk” title since in his opinion it does not count. “I’ll tell all of San Antonio to its face – you only have four. It’s an asterisk. That’s what I think. I would tell Mr. Duncan to his face you have four rings. It says you have five but the asterisks don’t count. In anything I do I never want asterisks about it.”
NBA Central: Bruce Bowen’s Top 5 Players of All-Time 1) Michael Jordan 2) Kobe Bryant 3) Bill Russell 4) Magic Johnson 5) Tim Duncan (Via @GetUpESPN )
13 May
Kevin Love: Just reflecting on the 2020 HOF class and missing the game. Tim Duncan — Best Power Forward Ever. Being in the Western Conference my first 6 years, we had a lot of battles. He gave me my welcome to the NBA moment 4 games into my rookie season. Having that experience and watching Tony Parker drop 55 on us was a lot for a fat white boy from suburban Oregon who turned 20 y/o only 2 months prior. As I’m writing this I’m just realizing it’s his birthday…so, HBD to the 15x All Star, 5 time Champion, 15x All NBA, 15x All Defensive, 2x MVP, 3x Finals MVP, 97-98 Rookie of the Year. I wouldn’t have the success I’ve had in our league without learning from #21. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Appearing on ESPN’s First Take, when asked my Mex Kellerman who the next best player is after Jordan, his answer was none other than the Big Fundamental. “Tim Duncan was a marvelous player. He played the game from the four, the five position. He was one of the unique players, like a Michael Jordan, who could get to spaces on the court you couldn’t do anything about.”
Other notable games include the Spurs’ NBA Finals Game 5 series clincher versus the Heat, classic Spurs-Lakers battles, hotly contested Spurs-Mavericks games with the day topped off with a couple of amazing performances from Hall of Famer Tim Duncan.
Tacko Fall: Who are your top 5 basketball players of all-time? There’s no way I can pick 5, there are so many. From the old school guys, I’m a big fan of Kareem, Bill Russell, Hakeem, Dikembe, Tim Duncan, LeBron…
“I kind of asked (Popovich) some questions and different staff asked different questions like, ‘What are you doing now? What are the players doing?” Cooper said. “Someone even asked him why he benched Timmy (Duncan) in Game 6 (of the 2013 NBA Finals against Miami), and I was like, ‘Oh, man.’ But he was just a real blessing to the staff. He gave us some good insights about leadership and getting through tough times. It was cool to see.”
To be going in with this vaunted class — with Kobe and Duncan — how special does that feel? It’s perhaps the most star-studded Hall of Fame ever. Kevin Garnett: The achievement itself is supremely over the top and the culmination of the things I’ve worked on, the countless hours you’ve put into a craft. It’s something special. The way I came in: Not going to college, taking a real bet on myself and betting on my work ethic and pushing myself night in and night out, being a professional and doing it the right way. Never taking shortcuts. Going hard as I can, you want to be able to look back on it and say that it was worth something. To meet Kobe early, we had a friendship and a real bond. To go up against Timmy and the countless battles, it’s just … I couldn’t put this story, with all the minor details … I couldn’t make this story more compelling than it already is. This is the perfect way to end a dope story.
You had a rivalry with Tim throughout your career, mostly because of the beast that was the Western Conference and the power forwards across the conference, including him, Rasheed Wallace and Chris Webber. How ironic is it now that you and Tim are going in together? Kevin Garnett: Yeah, man. In the sense of having a career, you never know how long it’s going to go. You don’t even know if you’re even going to have one. So to have one, and be pretty good at it and you can look back at accolades and won some things and most importantly, left your print on the game … Timmy, for me, him and Rasheed were always the pinnacle. They were always the more tougher matchup for me personally. Lot of times going into matchups, I had a lot of upside when I came in. I can say that these two were one of the difficult ones for me.
NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal participated in NBA TV segment “Start, Bench, Cut” in which he had to choose among three players which one to star, which to bench and which one to cut. One of the questions was about the 1990’s number one picks Tim Duncan (1997), Allen Iverson (1996) and Chris Webber (1993). Shaq picked AI to start, Chris Webber to bench and Tim Duncan to cut. “Fundamental is one of those players he’s got a lot but he has a lot of bodyguards too. C-Webb didn’t have a lot of bodyguards. Imagine Tim on a regular team. Would he be Tim? C-Webb has some s—. Imagine if you put C Webb on that Spurs team tell me what you got,” he explained his choices.
Still, Duncan would go on to wear Adidas for the rest of his career. A staple of the company’s “It Takes 5” mantra and “Brotherhood” campaigns, Duncan traded in his D-Cool signature model to headline the brand’s many Team Signature models towards the end of his prime. In the early 2010s, Duncan enjoyed perhaps his two biggest highlights with Adidas. He wore a skeletal exclusive of the TS Commander, featuring cartoonish bones along the top of the foot and underneath the shoe’s clear outsole.
Duncan’s partners on the court were instrumental at his side and both sent heartfelt following his election to the Basketball Hall of Fame. “Congrats… Hall of Fame, well deserved. It was an honor to play with you,” Parker said. “In my book, the greatest power forward ever. It was just a blessing to play with you every night. All those championships. I will cherish those memories forever.”
“I can’t say that I am surprised that this is happening but getting inducted into the Hall of Fame is a big thing,” Ginobili said. “It goes without saying, one of the best players to ever play the game. Amazing teammate. Great person. So well deserved.”
04 Apr
Kobe, Duncan, Garnett, Rudy T elected to Hall of Fame
Shams Charania: Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett will be inducted into the Naismith Basketball @Hoophall Class of 2020, sources tell @The Athletic @Stadium. Formal announcements will be made on Saturday.
Virgin Islands native and NBA legend, Tim Duncan, has partnered with Seaborne/Silver Airways to get displaced college students from the Virgin Islands and in the Virgin Islands back to their respective homes, a release issued today has made known.
Mr. Duncan along with Silver Airways partnered on the effort in a move to unite families during the national crisis caused by the coronavirus — the deadly pathogen that causes the Covid-19 disease — without creating another financial burden on families, the release said. The Tim Duncan Foundation and Silver Airways on Thursday encouraged students to be certain they have not contracted COVID-19 before coming in contact with family members, particularly elders.
