Columnists
Summer’s coming
They’ve turned out the lights in San Antonio and Los Angeles. The Spurs and the Kings have risen to the top and are now on euphoric holidays. The Miami Heat and the New York Rangers will have to regroup this summer, to prepare for next season.
In a surprising finish, the Spurs trounced the Heat in the final game of their series. Most of the experts had picked the Heat to win their third consecutive National Basketball crown. After all, they have the “Three Kings” of basketball: LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade. They are all great players, but they were not on the same page in the final game.
The Heat started well, blowing the doors down in the first quarter. They hustled out to a lead of 22-6, and left little doubt that game six would be in Miami. The Spurs regrouped, quickly, and that was all she wrote. At one point in the third period they outscored the Heat 50-20. The Heat had run out of steam.
As the game wore on, Miami attempted to cut the lead. The Spurs caught a couple of breaks when the referees missed two calls. Splitter blocked a Wade layup off the glass, clearly a goaltending misdemeanour. A Heat player drove the lane, but was called for charging by an official, obviously out of position. The Spurs then relied on an Australian to nail down the win.
Patty Mills, an aboriginal from Down Under, cranked several threepoint shots through the hoop to seal the deal. Chris Bosh tried to retaliate, but was zero for five from outside the arc, until one finally dropped through the mesh. It was that kind of night for the Heat. Nothing seemed to click.
LeBron James, without question the best basketball player on the planet, sat dejectedly on the bench as the clock ticked away. He knew, with about five minutes remaining, that his season was over. The fans in San Antonio got out of their seats and cheered their boys on to victory.
For Tim Duncan, this was not his first taste of success. He has won the title five times, all with the Spurs. It brought to a close his 17th season in the NBA. He has been a teammate of Manu Ginobli, from Italy, and Tony Parker, from France, for 12 seasons. Coach Greg Popovich has been behind the bench their entire careers.
Duncan has been the quiet leader on that team for his entire career. A perennial allstar, he has been selected as the MVP on several occasions. He was always willing to share the mantle with incoming teammates, ready to pass instead of shoot. Therein lies the key to the success of the Spurs. It is, after all, a team game.
Another international player on the Spurs is now playing his second NBA season. Cory Joseph hails from Pickering, Ontario. He spent his first couple of high school years in Pickering, then headed to Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nevada. He was born in Toronto, and is 22 years old. He was drafted 29th overall by the Spurs, and has played internationally for Team Canada on several occasions.
I will continue to beat the drum on this observation: Joseph does not start for the Spurs; he does not play many minutes for the team. But if he does not practise hard against the starters, if he does not crash and bang them under the basket, they will not win. There are not many players on an NBA team. It is up to the non-starters to work the stars hard in practice, to get them ready. The same applies in every professional sport, but more so in the round ball game.
There are rumours that LeBron is headed to Toronto. That would be exciting for the Raptors. His pal Drake is there, cranking the tunes for the faithful. Just rumours, at this point. Kudos to the Spurs and the Kings. Pass me the sunscreen!
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