Manu Ginobili
Teams
San Antonio Spurs - 2002-18
Playoffs
Appearances - 15 (2003,2004,2005,2006,2007,2008,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018)
Conference Finals - 8 (2003,2005,2007,2008,2012,2013,2014,2017)
NBA Finals - 5 (2003,2005,2007,2013,2014)
Championships - 4 (2003,2005,2007,2014)
Awards and Honors
All-NBA Third Team - 2 (2008,2011)
Sixth Man of the Year - 1 (2008)
All-Time Ranks
Three-Pointers Made - #39
Total Steals - #61
League Leads
none
Manu Ginobili's path to the NBA was different from almost any other on this list. He had played 3 years of professional basketball in Argentina and one in Italy before entering the NBA Draft, where he was drafted by the Spurs with the second-to-last pick in the 1999 Draft. Rather than joining the team immediately, he played 3 more years in Italy, where he earned 2 MVP awards and a Finals MVP.
When he finally joined the Spurs in 2002, he was already 25 years old. As a rookie he was a minor contributor, putting up only 7.6 points per game, but his role increased a bit in the playoffs, and he was able to help the Spurs win a title in his first season.
His role and level of play both increased over the next couple of years, and he was a full-time starter in his third season, when he averaged 16 points in the regular season, which increased to 20.8 in the playoffs, and he was runner-up to Tim Duncan in the Finals MVP voting after earning his second NBA championship.
He was slowed by foot and ankle injuries the next year, and the Spurs were eliminated in the second round, but both Ginobili and the Spurs bounced back the next year. Manu was moved to the bench midway through the season to provide a spark, and it worked perfectly, and the Spurs plowed through the playoffs on their way to their 3rd title in 5 years, with Ginobili still playing a major role.
The next year was possibly his best individual season, with averaged of 19.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.5 assists, mostly as a backup, and he was rewarded after the season with the Sixth Man of the Year award and a spot on the All-NBA Third Team. Just like in the seasons after their previous 2 championships, the Spurs again failed to repeat, falling in the Conference Finals to the Lakers.
Ginobili was injured for most of the next season, including the playoffs, and it was the only time in his career in which he didn't participate in the playoffs, though his team did make it. He came back healthy in his bench role the next year, then was elevated back into the starting lineup in 2010-11, and he responded by posting his second-best scoring average with 17.4, and made his second All-NBA Third Team. He also averaged over 20 points per game in that season's playoffs despite playing through an injury, but the team lost in the first round.
He returned to his bench role for the rest of his career, starting only 10 games in his final 7 seasons, but he was able to help the Spurs reach the NBA Finals 2 more times, winning a 4th title in 2014, with Ginobili again raising his play in the playoffs. He played 4 more seasons with the team, finally retiring in 2018 when he was 40 years old.
Ginobili was never regarded as a superstar during his career, but he played a very important role on a Spurs team that was always a title contender while he was there. He always played his best ball in big moments, whether it was the playoffs or the Olympics, where he won the Gold Medal with Argentina in 2004, and he is the only player in this countdown to win Gold for a country other than the US. Add it all together, and you have one of the greatest players of all time.
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