McFarlane Tim Duncan Figure

I tend to share McFarlane's DC action figures more than I ever do their sports figures but I do love their sports figures just as much.  This Tim Duncan figure was released in 2002.  I'm a Duncan fan like so many others.  He's called The Big Fundamental.  He wasn't flashy but everything he did, he did amazingly well.

    We see a classic Spurs look here.  Duncan's arms and head will move though there really isn't much you can do with his arms that makes him look right.

The back is good again showing the look we're used to.  I took the grandsons to I Had That in Belleville, IL during the Christmas timeframe.  Found Duncan for under $20.  He is used and not in perfect condition, but I had to have it.  You can see a few imperfections on the back of his jersey.

The base is fine with Duncan's name and the Spurs logo.  I don't get why they face opposing directions though in the end it really doesn't matter.

You can see I move his head here, but it doesn't look right.  I think that since they have enough detail on the neck area, which is great, that it just doesn't work well when you turn the head.

There are other McFarlane Tim Duncan figures.  While Timmy dribbling isn't a look I think of when I think of him, I probably won't chase the others.  You can see a Tim Duncan shirt in the background.  I bought that after watching the amazing 2013 Spurs-Heat NBA Finals on TV with my sisters while visiting them in Texas.

An outside shot just for a little different look.  NBA Playoffs start next week so this felt like a fun post leading up to those.  

Tim Duncan Retires

Tim Duncan retired after 19 great years in the NBA.  Duncan was a great player and nothing short of one of the all-time greats.  I loved how he just went about his business consistently playing a great overall game helping the Spurs win five championships.  He was a two time NBA MVP, three time NBA Finals MVP, adding 10 time All-NBA first team selections (15 total), and 15 time All-NBA defensive team selections.   You can go on and on but it still wouldn't do him justice. 

Personally I enjoyed watching him play and was happy he was able to bring to the Spurs such a great run of success.  My favorite Duncan moment didn't happen on the court.  After the 2013-14 conference finals San Antonio returned to the NBA Finals in a rematch with the Miami Heat who had defeated the Spurs in the Finals the year prior.  That was a great series that will go down as one of the all-time greats.  When asked about playing Miami he stated that Miami is no doubt who he wanted to play still stinging from the tough loss.  He didn't shy away from the question and it was out of character but it showed you the competitor he was.  And the Spurs took it to the Heat winning the series easily.  I'll always remember that turnaround jumper that befuddled so many defenders but off the court it was that moment I'll always  associate with Tim Duncan.  I'll definitely miss him. 

San Antonio Spurs Dominate in Route to 5th Championship

This was not the NBA Finals I was expecting.  It was the one I had hoped for but I did not expect what I saw.  Watching San Antonio lose a heart breaking series last year I dreamed of a rematch in which the Spurs take out the Heat.  While his comments scared me, I wanted Tim Duncan and the Spurs to say "We want the Heat".  I would want nothing less.   They should be pissed they lost last year and should want to take out the "last year of having to live with it" on Miami. 

Other than game two this was a total domination by the Spurs.  And game two was very winnable had it not been for four straight missed free throws in the fourth quarter and iffy defense by Duncan on Chris Bosh in the last 30 seconds of the game.  All the talk has been about the Spurs' dominating play, the coaching, the passing and the play by Spurs players not named Duncan, Tony Parker, or Manu Ginobili.  But none of it was overstated.  San Antonio was all over the place on defense never letting LeBron or other Heat players get comfortable on offense.  The Spurs' offense was either running and gunning or constantly in motion.  Miami could never keep up on defense.  San Antonio seemed to have found the fountain of youth while Miami looked like a team who just couldn't stay with them.  Coach Gregg Popovich seemed to know what to do each game and when to do it.  Whether it was moving Tiago Splitter to the bench for the last three games or lighting a fire under Kawhi Leonard he didn't seem to make a mistake.  And the "non big three" players all did their part.  Even Patty Mills was a starred during game five. 

Miami for it's part looked lost and beaten down.  Wade isn't the star he once was and Bosh wasn't a banger but a spot up three pointer guy.  Heck Chris Anderson had more rebounds than Bosh.  It wasn't pretty.  No matter how bad it got Erik Spoelstra never had an answer.  His tinkering didn't work.  I think it was two things.  The talent around LeBron wasn't there and they didn't adjust when the Spurs' suffocating defense took away what had worked for them all year.  San Antonio was just too good to allow the Heat to win on pure talent like they could against everyone else in the NBA.   

Again San Antonio dominated.  It wasn't even close.  Look at the series box score.  You thought when Miami went up 16 early in game five that the Spurs would have to claw their way back.  It wasn't even close.  They blew Miami away the rest of the game when Miami should have been able to steal a game.  I should have wanted a close series but every now and then you have to love a good ole butt whooping.  Especially when the story behind it is revenge.  And there are many stories besides just the fact they lost to Miami last year.  The Spurs are a team that has many angles to it.  A nice story at Grantland talks about this team.  They dominated in the regular season and sans an unexplainable hiccup against the Mavericks in the first series of the playoffs they were just as dominating in the post season.  They may not be one of the top five teams of all-time but I think they have made the top ten.  Even if they aren't I'd love to see them face off against any of those lineups.  San Antonio was fun to watch.  The Grantland article talks about it.  Commissioner Adam Silver said while presenting the trophy to the winning Spurs how San Antonio showed the world how beautiful basketball is (I'm paraphrasing).  But it was so true.  Their style is exciting and selfless.  The stats from this year's team are mind blowing.  No player average over 29 minutes per game or over 16 points per game while winning 62 games.  That just doesn't seem to add up but that is what makes this team so great.  Ok, I'm done gushing now but I loved watching this series.  It was fun to see the good guys win and see them enjoy a well deserved championship.  I hope I can be back here next year talking about their greatness again.  No matter what they do next year this team is one I won't soon forget. 

Miami Heat Win NBA Title #2 in the LeBron James Era

The Miami Heat win their third NBA title with a game seven win over the San Antonio Spurs.  LeBron had his best game of the series and cemented his title as King James despite a "lackluster" series in which he averaged 25.3 points, 10.9 boards, seven assists, 2.3 steals and almost a block a game and "only" shot 44% (35% on threes).  While his performance could be picked apart for the first five and a half games, the last quarter of game six and game seven he was on and carried this team to a championship.

Game 7:  To me this game came down to depth and LeBron and Wade stepping up.  Combine an effective three point shooter, in this case Battier, with those two having good games and they are tough to beat (i.e. the regular season).  Chalmers didn't have a great game but added a 30 foot three point shot to close out the third quarter.  To me that really hurt after Manu had gotten the Spurs up by two with 5 second left in the quarter.  I thought having Parker on the bench at the end of the game and Ginobili's really quick/forced three point shot with 28 seconds left doomed the Spurs. 

I think this was a great series even though some of the games weren't close.  Spurs fans will always replay the  "what if" scenarios in their mind as will the players.  The fact they didn't win shouldn't be a detractor from what Duncan, Pop and the rest of the Spurs have done for what seems like forever.  Should they have won it?  Probably.  But I think most people believe Miami was the better team going in and San Antonio was the sexy pick.  It just wasn't to be.  It was either LeBron or Spoelstra who said it takes a little luck to win games like game six and it went their way.

What I did enjoy seeing after game seven was the respect the players and coaches all showed each other.  The series was notable for the lack of trash talking, chest thumping,  and players getting into other player's faces.  I liked that.  It carried over after the series as you saw Pop taking time to actually say something and embrace the Heat before leaving the floor (and he did it with a smile on his face).  The Heat gushed over the Spurs as a team every time they spoke.  Again it was very refreshing to see two teams who were professional to a player just go out and play very hard with the intent to win and not to show anyone up or play the fool.  Good job.     

Like many I was really rooting for the Spurs.  Luckily I'm not a die hard Spurs fan because this series was so hard to watch and I know those fans are hurting.  "The agony of defeat..." probably puts it most apt...

Random series related links...
Yaj - Game 7 Recap

Interview with LeBron After the Game Seven Win

Spurs Thoughts on Game 7 Loss

48 Minutes of Hell Look at the Spurs Loss of the NBA Finals

Random gripe:  I get why teams will roll the ball up court to preserve time on the clock.  It annoys me when teams do it as much as Miami did in this series.  They did it early in the game when there was no reason to.  They didn't know if they needed extra time on the clock.  In some games they did it when they were winning.  Were they preserving time for Spurs?  Just a little thing that annoyed me.   

One of the great things about this series is I was able to watch the last three games with my sisters and their families to include by brother-in-law Curtis who got me hooked on the NBA in the late 70's with a game called Statis Pro Basketball.  We played a gazillion of those games and watched many a game together which was a blast.  Doing so again this last week was awesome and a great memory I'll always have of this series.   

Next is free agency, the draft, and hope that our teams will be challenging for a championship next year.  Or in the case of Atlanta Hawks and Portland Trail Blazer fans that each at least made the playoffs...