Kobe Bryant. Dwayne Wade. Shaquille O’Neal. All flashy players, all recent NBA champions. Petyon Manning. Tom Brady. Ray Lewis. Michael Strahan. All flashy players. All in commercials and tabloids, all recent Super Bowl champions. David Ortiz. Derek Jeter. Josh Beckett…well, you get the idea by now. Despite the sport, the champions of the past number of years have had big, big personalities. You see players on magazine covers, in photo spreads, and in an insane number of commercials. You hear players shouting or bragging after a title, guaranteeing a win, and other absurd acts of that nature. Now the question: have you ever heard of a San Antonio Spurs player doing…anything? Hell, did you know the Spurs are closing in on their 5th title in 9 years? Let’s take a broader look at things for a second.

In times of free agency and mega blockbuster trades and contracts handed out worth over $150 million every off-season, it has become the most difficult time to establish a dynasty. But there were some of course, in all of the 4 major sports during our generation the past few years. The NBA had Kobe and Shaq’s Lakers in 2000, 2001, and 2002. The NFL had Brady’s Patriots in 2002, 2004, and 2005. The MLB had the Yankees in 1998, 1999, and 2000 and even more recently, the Red Sox in 2004 and 2007. And in the NHL, since 1996 the Avalanche, Red Wings, and Devils have won it all a combined 7 times in 12 years. Every team with a story to tell, and every story was heard from every angle. There is no doubt that these teams deserved their respective rings as champions of their sport, but what about the Spurs? Have NBA fans and sports fans as a whole forgotten? Do we simply discard them to the side because they aren’t harassed by paparazzi and don the cover of magazine after magazine? It’s been said their “boring” style of play is terrible to watch, thus causing fans to grow tired of them.

Let’s make this understood: The San Antonio Spurs are not only the greatest NBA team of our generation, but the greatest team in all of sports. They have 4 championships since 1999 and are working on a 5th as we speak. But you won’t hear about them, no. If they do win a 5th, it’ll be popular for a few days and quickly fade away. No TV specials, no ESPN specials, nothing like that. If you’ve ignored the Spurs I suggest you tune in to their Western Conference Finals against L.A. starting Wednesday. Tim Duncan isn’t getting any younger and people need to fully appreciate this team before they ride into the sunset in a few years when other teams are able to climb to the top.

Let’s start with 1999 when the Spurs won their first of the four before mentioned titles, this one against the Knicks. The regular season was shortened by a lockout but the Spurs went 37-13 anyway. Tim Duncan was MVP and was part of the “Twin Towers” with David Robinson. But let’s say you remember those 2 big guys, they’re both fantastic. But what about everyone else? Sean Elliot? Jaren jackson? Antonio Daniels? Steve Kerr? Malik Rose? Those don’t exactly shout Wheaties box kind of players. But what made it work was their chemistry and high basketball IQ. Steve Kerr knew he was on the back end of his career, and knew the deep threat was his role. Sean Elliot is probably only remembered because he came back from stomach surgery, but he played his role of sniper like shooter and good defender. This team gelled under coach Gregg Popovich. They say the best defenses win championships. Take a look at these numbers: 77, 67, 81, 89, 77. That’s how many points the Knicks scored in each of the 5 games. That’s simply mind boggling.

Fast forward to the 2003 Finals when the Spurs won their second title. This was first time in 4 years the Lakers wouldn’t be playing for the trophy as San Antonio had knocked them out. Want to know how? Remember that defense? How about these numbers: 89, 87, 79, 77, 83, 77. That’s New Jersey’s point totals in all 6 games. Sure, Jersey pushed them to 6 games, but did the Spurs get nervous? Please. This team

doesn’t get rattled. After losing game 4 which evened the series at 2-2, they held the Nets to 83 points in their own building and went on to win that game and the clincher back home. Again..the role players: youngsters Parker and Ginobli, old timers like Kevin Willis and Danny Ferry. But each player knew if they played outside their game or outside their potential, they had former Navy man/head coach Gregg Popovich to explain to. Half court basketball. Slow the game down. Feed it into Duncan. It’s like a broken record, and it worked every time. You think it’s boring? Then beat them. If you can’t, shut up and respect this talent.

Again in 2005 the Spurs reached the Finals when they weren’t expected to, and again, fans tried to tune out the defensive minded Spurs. But they were playing the Pistons who were a carbon copy, but not nearly as talented. These finals were the NBA’s worst nightmare, the viewership was hitting all time lows. Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince, Chauncy Billups: all fantastic stars that were shut down for the most part. By who? Well this time it was guys like Nazr Mohammed, Brent Barry, and Robert Horry. Horry, already 28-time champion, became Mr. Big Shot. Mohammed ruled the glass in his bench minutes and scored at the most crucial of times when Duncan could not in the paint. Brent Barry, how old was this guy, 90? Age doesn’t effect his ability to jump off the bunch (or slowly walk off it) and drain 3’s like nobody’s business. Title number 3 was in the books.

Everyone knows what happened last year against the Cavaliers. LeBron James was a 1-man show who carried the Cavs on his back past the Pistons and into the finals. But that kind of offense doesn’t work against the now seasoned, shut-down Spurs defense. They clogged the lane, rotated defender after defender on him, and their role players were superior to the Cavs role players. LeBron’s highest output of the sweep? 25 points. That’s called knowing who your opponent is and neutralizing the attack. Their offense didn’t change either. Slow the game down. Make the extra pass. Dump it into Duncan. Get to the line. This was Spurs basketball. Whether you liked it or not, they just won their 4th ring.

So entering tonight’s game against the fast paced Hornets in New Orleans, was there any doubt the Spurs would find a way? They played a good first half, but it was close. Then they outscored the Hornets in the 3rd quarter 20-14 to build a lead that went as high as 17. They did it by driving to the hoop and dishing out to the open man. They held Chris Paul to 18 points. When Parker and Duncan couldn’t buy a bucket, Ginobili bailed them out, finishing with 26. The role players now are Kurt Thomas who was big on the glass, Michael Finley who had timely shots, and Ime Udoka (who?) who chipped in 8 points, 4 boards, and 2 dimes in limited time, including a key basket in the 4th.

You hate the Spurs, don’t you? You find them disgustingly boring. You’re tired of Tim Duncan shooting his jumper off the window. You hate seeing games that end in scores of 80-75. You’re tired of seeing them win. This team isn’t just good at what they do, they’re one of the best teams of all time in sports. It’s not going out on a limb saying they’ll win their 5th title in 9 years this year. But even if they fail, you know they’ll be back next year knocking on the door. They find the right people to play every position. They use their bench better than any team in the league.

They’ve flown under the radar of most sports fans for years now. No commercials, no endorsements, no holdouts, no trade demands, etc. This is just an old school basketball team that knows the game and knows how to play defense. You may hate the way they play but you have to respect their ability to win. Don’t like em? Beat em. Doesn’t look like anyone can. And don’t think that their run is ending any time soon.

Don’t be surprised if this “boring” big man gets his 5th ring this year

photos from flickr.com, viewimages.com, lonelypinoy.blogspot, and aperionedge.com