God Bless Sporting News...Almost

Spurs fans, and Derek's and my loyal radio listeners, were treated to some news last week that those outside of South Texas may consider to be unexpected. As seen on www.spurs.com, the San Antonio Spurs were given the media credit they have deserved for years in the form of a few awards. Sporting News named the Spurs Team of the Decade, Gregg Popovich Coach of the Decade, and rightfully placed Tim Duncan on the All-Decade First Team. These selections are momentous and historical, but as usual, I still feel like the Spurs got robbed. Let's break it down...

Team of the Decade: Selecting the Spurs for this honor is simple to Bexar County residents, but I am surprised by it. I naturally assumed Sporting News would give this one to the LA Lakers. Don't get me wrong, I think the Spurs deserve it, but I am wholeheartedly shocked that I'm not alone in this assessment. The Spurs and Lakers have an equal number of titles in the last ten years, but not in this decade. However, the Spurs have a better winning percentage and have been true contenders every year of the decade, while the Lakers have not. 2005, 2006, and 2007 saw the Lakers as a good team, but no one's pick to win a title. No one gave them an honest shot until February of 2008 when a certain trade was made. The Spurs have been more consistent and stable, and if not for a knee injury in 2000, bad officiating call in 2004, and 146 bad officiating calls in 2006, the AT&T Center rafters would be even more crowded. Good call Sporting News.

Coach of the Decade: Again, I think I'm having heart palpitations as I write this paragraph. How could the media not pick Phil Jackson for this in the wake of a tenth title and conversations about him being the best coach of all time? Simple questions deserve simple answers: Gregg Popovich is the better coach. Robert Horry said it best when asked about playing for the two last year. "If Pop had the talent Phil had for his career, he would have more than 10 titles." Pop's family mentality and equal opportunity critiquing are far more conducive to winning than Phil's peace pipe favoritism. Yelling at superstar Tim Duncan and demanding his best earns the respect of any player in the Silver and Black - a far cry from giving John Paxson a copy of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Another good call Sporting News.

All Decade First Team: Nash and Bryant at guard, Duncan and James at forward, and the Big Charlatan at center. I have only one problem here: Kevin Garnett ahs played the entire decade and Lebron James has not. Plus I just don;t like Lebron James. Nice move putting Tim on here. You wouldn't want to leave the best power forward EVER off this list. Somewhere a tear rolls off Karl Malone's face and onto a John Deere radiator in the Louisiana heat.

Athlete of the Decade: "Kobe Bryant, Lakers SG, over Tim Duncan, Spurs PF" (spurs.com). Now this is the bias I was expecting to see. This is not only ridiculous, but an egregious error on the part of Sporting News. More MVP's, more Finals MVP's, better defense, and a more complete statistical package warrant Tim Duncan's award of this moniker. Sure, Kobe pours in the points and looks DAMN good in a courtroom sketch, but Duncan has done more over a longer period of time. Duncan has been an MVP candidate every year of the time period in question. Consistency is more valuable on the court than in from of a jury of one's peers. Sure Tim Duncan is not as technically athletic as #8 (or #24 [or docket #357]), but he historically controls the pace of a game better than Kobe, who began doing so over the last two seasons. Duncan's presence has afforded the Spurs the best winning percentage in professional sports over the past 11 years, and this award belongs to him. An NBA player hasn't been robbed like this since Antone Walker got jumped by Chicago thugs a few years ago, but Tim Duncan already knows how Harrah's Lake Tahoe feels. He is owed much, but it is not always given to him. He just keeps working, and just keeps winning. Good call Tim Duncan.