Tim Duncan Becomes 1st Player in NBA History to Record 500 Playoff Blocks
All the San Antonio Spurs do is win, and all Tim Duncan does is make NBA playoff history.
The Big Fundamental registered four blocks in San Antonio’s 93-89 Game 2 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies, the last of which was his 500th career postseason swat, making him the first player in league history reach such a milestone.
Duncan’s 500 postseason blocks rank first all time (obviously) and are 24 more than second place Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (476) and 304 more than any active player. Pau Gasol’s 196 are the second most among active players.
That means Duncan will stand alone for awhile—a long while.
For his career, Duncan is averaging 2.5 blocks per playoff game, the second highest mark of any player who has appeared in at least 100 postseason contests (his 202 appearances rank seventh all time).
Adding to the significance of his latest feat is how it compares to some of the greats.
Abdul-Jabbar and Shaquille O’Neal—two of the best shot blockers to ever grace the hardwood—recorded fewer total blocks in fewer playoff games. Simply amazing.
Though Duncan won’t go down as the greatest shot-blocker the league has ever seen, it’s difficult to dismiss him as the Association’s best postseason shot-blocker ever. Not merely because he’s reached 500 but because of how he’s done it.
This is a guy who is averaging 2.2 blocks per game for his career during the regular season (still impressive) and just seemingly turns it on for the playoffs, elevating his play to a whole different level.
As is often the case with Duncan, he doesn’t receive enough credit. I mean, no one else is going to hit 500 for a long, long time.
Because we’re all into such things, Dwight Howard and Serge Ibaka have the best chance to become the next “Duncan.” Howard is 27 and has 166 career playoff blocks, while Ibaka is 24 and has 156.
To put that in perspective, by the time Duncan was 27 he had 224 postseason blocks, which may not bode well for Dwight. At 24, he had 73, so keep your eyes on Ibaka.
Don’t lose sight of Duncan, though, either. He’s eclipsed the 500-block plateau, but he’s not done yet.
*All stats in this article were compiled from Basketball-Reference unless otherwise noted.
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Ex-NBA player Predrag Danilovic seriously injured in bar fight
Danilovic played for the Heat and Mavericks from 1995-97.
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Kansas Star Ben McLemore Declares Himself Best Player in 2013 NBA Draft
Nerlens Noel will have something to say about this.
Speaking with Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com at the NBA‘s pre-draft combine, Kansas’ Ben McLemore declared himself the best player in his class.
“Deep down I think I am,” he said. “I have that mindset that I am. Just going out there and showing my abilities.”
McLemore is projected to duke it out with Noel for the top pick in the 2013 draft. Though Noel is widely considered the most coveted prospect, it hasn’t become clear whether his ACL injury will impact his draft stock. Based on need, McLemore could find his name being announced before Noel’s.
If he doesn’t go first, however, he’ll likely go second. There seems to be a significant gap in terms of NBA-readiness between him and fellow prospects such as Otto Porter, Anthony Bennett (also injured) and Trey Burke. To see him slide beyond the No. 2 spot would then be a surprise.
But is McLemore really the best player in the draft?
Being selected with the first or second overall pick doesn’t necessarily guarantee anything.
The timeliness of selections is a barometer for the player’s potential, not the end-all of stylistic assessments. Otherwise, history wouldn’t be burdened with a plethora of busts. Just ask Darko Milicic, Michael Olowokandi or Kwame Brown.
And so, McLemore‘s quest to be considered the best player in the draft doesn’t end with his selection; it begins. Whether he’s taken first, second or somehow slides further down the board (unlikely), his assertion cannot be confirmed or disproved until we see how the onset of his career plays out.
Given his size, athleticism and shooting prowess, McLemore has the gifts necessary to emerge as a premier talent at the next level.
Does he have enough of the tools to supersede the rest of his classmates upon entering the NBA, Noel included?
Despite what he says, we just don’t know, and his draft position will only tell part of the story.
People know what I did in college and know what I can do throughout my career. A lot of people know I really haven’t reached that point in my basketball life, so I know deep down inside that I have it in me. I’ve just got to keep working.
Once we see how far that work ethic carries him, then we’ll know—one way, or the other.
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Trial set for former NBA player in squatting case (Yahoo! Sports)
PHOENIX (AP) — A trial date has been set for a former NBA All-Star accused of squatting in a Paradise Valley home and then trying to list the place for rent on Craigslist.
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Harry Giles Jr. will be the next player with Andrew Wiggins-type buzz
Harry Giles Jr. will be the next player with Andrew Wiggins-type buzz.
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College Basketball Recruiting: Greatest Asset of Each Top Player in 2014 Class
Although Andrew Wiggins’ commitment to Kansas is putting the 2013 recruiting class in today’s headlines, coaches around college basketball are well aware that it’s already time to worry about their 2014 recruits. As the nation’s best high schoolers prepare for their senior seasons, many have already established top-tier skills that they can count on to earn them playing time at the college level.
One prime example of that phenomenon is athletic SF Jalen Lindsey, set to take over Wiggins’ starting job at Huntington Prep. Lindsey may not have his predecessor’s versatility, but he can throw down a dunk with highlight-reel panache.
Herein, a closer look at Lindsey’s finishing ability and the biggest strengths of the rest of ESPN’s top 20 recruits for 2014.
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Duke Basketball: 5 Most Important Traits Mike Krzyzewski Looks for in a Player
Mike Krzyzewski is the winningest coach in the NCAA Division I men’s basketball history.
With four national championships, 957 wins, and a few more years of coaching ahead of him, Krzyzewski will finish his career as one of the greatest coaches in the history of sports.
Krzyzewski became Duke’s head coach in 1980 and has turned the basketball program into an iconic force.
The players who commit to playing for Coach K at Duke receive an incredible amount of exposure, adoration, and criticism. In order to thrive in this environment, Krzyzewski has to be very particular about the players he recruits to Durham, NC.
Each player that commits to becoming a Duke Blue Devil must exhibit the following five traits.
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Indiana Basketball: 5 Most Important Traits Tom Crean Looks for in a Player
The qualities that make a successful coach are often reflected in the players he recruits. Indiana’s Tom Crean is no exception.
When Crean accepted the job in Bloomington, several changes had to be made immediately, leading directly to the undermanned 2008-09 roster that, at one point, famously boasted only two scholarship players.
After a few seasons of rebuilding, Crean has the Hoosiers humming again by adhering to a few particular criteria.
Here’s a look at a few of the attributes it takes to become a Hoosier in the Crean Era.
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NBA Exec Says Andrew Wiggins Would Be Max Player in NBA Right Now
Few phrases carry the same weight as “max contract” through basketball circles, particularly under the more stringent salary-cap guidelines set forth by the most recent collective bargaining agreement.
Trust me, those two words are worth an addition to your hoops vernacular in preparation of the upcoming free-agent frenzy.
Even after a tumultuous debut season with the Los Angeles Lakers, Dwight Howard seems guaranteed for a massive payday this summer. But will those same astronomical contract figures be granted to either John Wall or Josh Smith? Is there still a team willing to take a max-deal gamble on the hobbled Andrew Bynum?
These are all questions that will be addressed in the upcoming months.
But in the case of one potential superstar, a player who’s yet to log even a single minute of college basketball, it’s only a matter of when, not if, that massive contract offer sheet slides across the negotiating table (via Zach Lowe of Grantland.com):
Granted, this is completely stricken to the hypothetical realm at this point.
Andrew Wiggins, the top-ranked player of the 2012-13 high school class, isn’t actually eligible for any NBA contract for another year. The league’s age-limit rule prevents the young phenom from making a preps-to-pros leap, thus the reason for his recent announcement that he’ll be attending the University of Kansas this fall (via Jim Halley of USA Today).
A 6’7″, do-it-all small forward, Wiggins is a dynamic athlete making incredible strides in all facets of his game. Eric Bossi of Rivals.com hails him as “perhaps the top defender in high school basketball,” while his future coach Bill Self labeled him as “an assassin, an alpha dog” (via Nicole Auerbach of USA Today).
Genetics surely benefited his athletic side.
His father, Mitchell, was the 23rd pick of the 1983 NBA draft and scored nearly 4,000 points in his six-year career. His mother, Marita Payne-Wiggins, was a Canadian Olympic sprinter and silver medalist (via John Raby of The Associated Press).
But athletic ability only accounted for so much of the 23.4 points, 11.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists he averaged during his senior season at Huntington (W Va.) Prep. Multiple comparisons to reigning MVP LeBron James best hint at the versatile skill set of this explosive finisher (via ESPN’s Numbers Never Lie):
He can shoot from all angles of the court, has improved his ball-handling skills tremendously and understands how to maximize his athletic gifts on both ends of the floor.
But it’s his humble approach—he didn’t want to make his commitment a national spectacle, which of course only added to the intrigue—that suggests he’s willing to put in the work to maximize his oozing hoops potential.
The question is, just where does this 18-year-old’s ceiling rest?
If executives are already lining up to roll out the max-contract red carpet, he could be a once-in-a-generation type of talent.
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Will Andrew Wiggins be the best Kansas player ever? KU’s top 10
Will Andrew Wiggins be the best Kansas player ever? KU’s top 10.
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