San Antonio Spurs

SAN ANTONIO SPURS

by Antonio C. Antonio

June 15, 2014

In the National Basketball Association (NBA), the San Antonio Spurs can hardly be considered an All-American basketball team… others will even argue that the Spurs is an “all-world” team.  Fact is, only six players are Americans and the other eight are foreign citizens…

•  Jeff Ayres – United States
• Aaron Baynes – New Zealand
• Marco Belinelli – Italy
• Matt Bonner – United States
• Austin Daye – United States
• Boris Diaw – France
•  Tim Duncan – United States
• Manu Ginobili – Argentina
• Danny Green – United States
• Cory Joseph – Canada
• Kawhi Leonard – United States
• Patty Mills – Australia
• Tony Parker – France
• Tiago Splitter – Brazil

Tim Duncan was not even born in the US mainland but in the US Virgin Islands while Tony Parker was born in Belgium but maintains a French citizenship.

Another peculiar fact about the Spurs is the language barrier among its players.  Tony Parker and Boris Diaw spoke French, Marco Belinelli spoke Italian, Manu Ginobili spoke Spanish, Tiago Splitter spoke Portuguese while Aaron Baynes and Patty Mills spoke English with an Australian accent.  This should have been a communications nightmare for Coach Gregg Popovich, the multi-titled coach of the Spurs.  But, luckily, their foreign players also spoke English (no matter how foreign-sounding it was) and made it their standard mode of communications.  Coach Popovich could himself be considered a foreign national with a Serbian father and Croatian mother.

The San Antonio Spurs’ love for the game of basketball was perhaps their unifying factor.  They typified what teamwork is all about… they showed everyone that teamwork wins championships.  A new basketball offensive science is born… a drive-draw-pass concept/strategy which more often allowed for simple uncontested lay-ups and even dunks.  It’s a new approach and variation to the famous Triangle Offense popularized by Tex Winters (Offensive Coach for Head Coach Phil Jackson’s Chicago Bulls and LA Lakers).  The only difference is that the Triangle Offense freed players for a shot at mid-range while the Spurs’ offensive concept allowed for lay-ups and three-point shots.  Both concepts in offense, however, are anchored on one word: “TEAMWORK”.

But more than the new offensive pattern is the emphasis on teamwork.  Team sports, like most human collegial activities and endeavours, cannot progress without teamwork.  Strict adherence to teamwork negates citizenship, language and other forms of divisive barriers.

Just my little thoughts…