by Larry Muncy

Created on: April 29, 2008

Many people may not realize they are witnessing some of the most important moments in NBA playoff history every time the San Antonio Spurs take the court! Allow me to acknowledge I am not a Spurs fan. In fact, I am a fan of the New Orleans Hornets. However, I feel obligated to give credit where credit is due.

The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines "Spurs" as: recognition and reward for achievement. The Spurs have definitely brought recognition and rewards for their achievements to the city of San Antonio over the past decade.

The Spurs rewarded David Robinson with a championship for his hard work, class, and faithful devotion to the only franchise he played for while in the NBA. Surely, the fairy tale ending to David Robinson's career rivals that of any other athlete in any other sport (including the NFL's mighty John Elway story). However, much like the San Antonio spurs, the storybook ending to David Robinson's career is oftentimes overlooked. I do not want to overlook anything. I want to look back at some of the achievements the Spurs have accomplished in recent years.

The San Antonio Spurs won the 1999 championship to become the first ABA team to win the NBA championship since the two leagues merged in 1976. They also became the first team other than the Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets to win the championship since 1990.

The Spurs positioned themselves to say goodbye to the legendary David Robinson while saying hello to Tim Duncan. Tim Duncan has arguably established himself as the best and most underrated player in the NBA throughout his career. Shaquille O'Neal once referred to him as "The Big Fundamental". San Antonio management must have realized how fundamental Tim Duncan was to their franchise's success.

Over the years, management has continued to surround Tim Duncan with talented players. It has been rare for the Spurs to obtain a high first round pick because of all the winning they have done. Usually, all of the highly publicized players are gone by the time San Antonio is allowed to pick. Yet, this has not stopped them from obtaining underrated players who seem to turn into some of the NBA's best. How could this be? Apparently, management realized if they could not get the best players in this country, they would get the best players from other countries. Tony Parker (Belgium born; raised in France) was the 28th overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft, and Manu Ginobili (Argentine) was the 57th overall pick in the 1999 draft. Both players have become

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