Tim Duncan
Teams
San Antonio Spurs - 1997-16
Playoffs
Appearances - 18 (1998,1999,2001,2002,2003,2004,2005,2006,2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016)
Conference Finals - 9 (1999,2001,2003,2005,2007,2008,2012,2013,2014)
NBA Finals - 6 (1999,2003,2005,2007,2013,2014)
Championships - 5 (1999,2003,2005,2007,2014)
Awards and Honors
Rookie of the Year - 1998
MVP - 2 (2002,2003)
Finals MVP - 3 (1999,2003,2005,2007)
All-NBA First Team - 10 (1998,1999,2000,2001,2002,2003,2004,2005,2007,2013)
All-NBA Second Team - 3 (2000,2006,2008,2009,2013)
All-NBA Third Team - 2 (2006,2009,2010,2014,2015)
Hall of Fame - 2020
*(actual in bold, deserved in italics)
All-Time Ranks
Total Blocks - #6
Total Rebounds - #7
Total Points - #18
Blocks Per Game - #22
Rebounds Per Game - #41
Points Per Game - #96
League Leads
Total Rebounds (#1-2002, #2-1998, #3-1999,2001,2003, #4-2000,2004, #5-2006,2007,2008,2009)
Rebounds Per Game (#2-2002,2004, #3-1998,2000,2003, #4-2001,2008,2009, #5-1999,2006)
Total Blocks (#2-2003, #3-2002,2005,2007, #5-1998,2013,2014)
Blocks Per Game (#3-2003,2005,2013, #4-2002,2004, #5-2007,2014)
Total Points (#2-2002, #5-1999)
Field Goal Percentage (#4-1998)
Points Per Game (#5-2002)
After being named the National College Player of the Year as a senior at Wake Forest with averages of 20.8 points, 14.7 rebounds, and 3.3 blocks, leading the nation in rebounding, Tim Duncan was drafted by the San Antonio Spurs with the #1 overall pick in the NBA Draft.
Tim Duncan was a superstar from day one in the NBA. As a rookie he averaged 21.1 points, 11.9 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks, easily winning the Rookie of the Year award and being named to the All-NBA First Team, a rarity for a rookie. Playing alongside David Robinson, Duncan and the Spurs reached the second round of the playoffs before losing to the Jazz.
Duncan posted almost identical averages across the board the next season, then led the Spurs on a dominant playoff run, losing only one game on their way to the first NBA Finals in team history. Duncan finished the decisive Game 5 with 31 points and rebounds, and was named the Finals MVP in just his second NBA season.
Duncan was having a great season the next year, averaging 23.2 points and 12.4 rebounds per game, but then he went down with a meniscus injury near the end of the season, which caused him to miss the playoffs, and without him, the defending champs lost in the first round of the playoffs.
He came back and played every game the next season, again keeping the same steady averages, and led the Spurs on another deep playoff run, meeting the Lakers in the Conference Finals. Those Lakers were one of the most dominant teams in history, reaching the Finals without losing a game, including a sweep of the Spurs in that series.
After the previous season's disappointment, Duncan took a step forward the next year, setting a career high with 25.5 points per game, along with 12.7 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game, and was named the league's MVP for the first time. In the playoffs, they met up with the Lakers again, this time in the second round, and fell again as the Lakers went on to their 3rd straight title.
Duncan set a career with with 12.9 rebounds the next year, along with 23.3 points per game, and led the Spurs to the best record in the West, which helped earn him his second straight MVP award. After leading the Spurs back to the Finals after missing out for 3 years, he averaged 24.2 points and 17.0 rebounds in the Finals as they beat the Nets in 6 games, earning him his second Finals MVP that year as well.
David Robinson retired after that championship run, and Duncan became the team's undisputed leader, though he had been their best player for years already. He had another very good season, but in the playoffs they ran into the Lakers again, and were beaten in 6 games in the second round by their archrivals.
Duncan averaged over 20 points and 11 rebounds for his 8th straight season to begin his career in 2004-05, then led the Spurs back to the Conference Finals once again, this time to face the top-seeded Phoenix Suns. After knocking off Phoenix in 5 games, they met the Pistons in the Finals, which they won in 7 games, with Duncan winning the Finals MVP for the third time in his career.
Duncan suffered through his worst season up to that point the next year, dealing with plantar fasciitis that slowed him down, and the Spurs lost to Dallas in the second round of the playoffs. He came back with another 20-10 season the next year, then led the Spurs all the way back to the Finals, where they swept the Cavaliers. Tony Parker was named the MVP of that series, though Duncan was still the team's best player.
At that point Duncan started a slow, graceful decline. He still averaged at least 10 rebounds per game in each of the next 3 seasons, and his scoring was still near 20 points per game for that time, but the Spurs couldn't get back to the Finals, losing once in each of the first 3 rounds during that time. Duncan was still a very good player, but had obviously taken a step back.
After averaging only 13.4 points and 8.9 rebounds in 2010-11, Duncan had a brief renaissance, improving his scoring over the next two seasons until he reached 17.8 points per game in 2012-13, earning him one last All-NBA First Team appearance. He also helped the Spurs reach the Finals again that year, where they met the Miami Heat, but the Spurs lost in 7 games, the first time Duncan had reached the Finals without winning a title.
The Spurs bounced back from that disappointment with the best record in the league the next year, with Duncan putting up a respectable 15.1 points and 9.7 rebounds per game on the season, and the Spurs reached the NBA Finals again, the first time they ever made it in back-to-back years. This time, they knocked off the Heat in 5 games, earning Duncan a 5th championship as well.
Duncan played 2 more seasons with the Spurs, but after his averages dropped all the way down to 8.6 points and 7.3 rebounds in 2016, he decided to retire at the end of the season. The only time Duncan missed the playoffs in his career was the year he was injured, and he had already helped his team clinch a playoff berth at that point.
The only category where Duncan ever led the league was total rebounds in 2002, his first MVP season, but he was only #2 in rebounding average, so he does not officially own a rebounding title. He was among the top 5 in rebounding 10 times, and is #7 on the all time rebounding leaderboard, while sitting at #6 in blocks. He is also at #18 in points scored, and was a 3-time Finals MVP, probably deserving a 4th, and he is definitely one of the greatest players of all time.
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