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- With five NBA Championships under their belt and a long history of All-Star players, there's no doubt the San Antonio Spurs are an established, powerhouse franchise in the league. The team is unfortunately in a bit of a downturn as of late; in 2020, the Spurs missed the playoffs for the first time in 22 years; The streak was an impressive feat, but its snapping undoubtedly signified a fall-off.
The San Antonio Spurs were always a competitive team, frequently appearing in the Playoffs, and not an easy team to knock off. However, their first NBA title was slow in coming, which generated frustration among fans. Finally, in the 1998-99 season, under the leadership of Gregg Popovich, the first championship for the franchise arrived. From then on, a golden era began, in which the Spurs won five titles in a 15-year span.
Throughout their rich history, the Spurs have had several iconic players, such as Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and David Robinson. Which begs the question, who are the top 10 players in the history of the San Antonio Spurs?
UPDATE: 2023/09/06 18:00 EST BY LIZZY FLANAGAN
With five NBA Championships under their belt and a long history of All-Star players, there's no doubt the San Antonio Spurs are an established, powerhouse franchise in the league. The team is unfortunately in a bit of a downturn as of late; in 2020, the Spurs missed the playoffs for the first time in 22 years; The streak was an impressive feat, but its snapping undoubtedly signified a fall-off.
In any case, it's always fun to look back on the players that made their franchises so iconic. The Spurs have quite a few names to boast about from the last several decades. Here's hoping some more players step up to join their rankings in the coming seasons.
13 Avery Johnson
Johnson spent a decade with the San Antonio Spurs, playing for the team from 1991 until 2001. He is one of just seven players on the Spurs to have his number retired, which speaks to his value to the franchise. The most iconic moment of Johnson's career (as well as one of the highlights in Spurs' franchise history) came when John hit the game-winning, series-ending shot to win the 1999 NBA Finals, earning the Spurs their first championship.
12 Mike Mitchell
Mike Mitchell is one of the most proficient scorers in Spurs history. He averaged 20.1 points per game, holding the sixth-highest record for the team. It comes as no surprise that he led the Spurs in scoring for the 1984-85 season. Though he never won an NBA Championship with the Spurs, he proved to be an incredible asset in the post season thanks to his level-headedness.
11 Alvin Robertson
While Robertson was a very versatile player, he's undoubtedly most known for his defensive abilities. He led the NBA in most steals per game for two seasons and is in third place for most steals in Spurs history. His adeptness led him to win Defensive Player of the Year in 1985-86. He also earned a spot in three NBA All-Star games.
10 Artis Gilmore
Artis Gilmore was certainly past his prime when he wore the San Antonio Spurs uniform, but he still had a superlative performance. He averaged 16.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game, with a .620 field goal percentage (second highest in franchise history) over five seasons.
Despite being in his 30s, Artis Gilmore was still one of the best centers in the league and was a threat both offensively and defensively.
9 Bruce Bowen
The stats do not reflect how valuable Bruce Bowen really was to the Spurs dynasty. His averages were quite modest, with 6.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game, but his intense, dirty defense and sticky marking were determining factors in many games.
In fact, Bowen was named to the All-Defensive team in each of his eight seasons with the Spurs. In addition, he was quite accurate with his three-point field goals, scoring a total of 661 (fourth in franchise history), shooting 40.5 percent.
8 Larry Kenon
Larry Kenon played only five seasons with the San Antonio Spurs, but that was enough to be considered one of the best players in team history. He scored 8,248 points (ninth in franchise history) and grabbed 4,114 rebounds (fourth).
"Dr. K" was a lethal power forward, one of the best of the 1970s without a doubt. His averages with the Spurs were 20.7 points, 10.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.6 steals per game, with an 18.5 Player Efficiency Rating.
7 James Silas
James Silas played nine seasons with the San Antonio Spurs in both the NBA and ABA, averaging 16.7 points, 3.9 assists, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.0 steals per game, with a 17.1 Player Efficiency Rating.
"Captain Late" is sixth in total points in franchise history, with 10,290, eighth in assists, with 2,406, and sixth in Win Shares, with 57.9. James Silas was an excellent guard, who left his best on the court.
6 Kawhi Leonard
When Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker were in the twilight of their careers, and it looked like the San Antonio Spurs dynasty was coming to an end, Kawhi Leonard came along.
This guy was the spark that reignited the fire, just what the team needed to win another championship after six seasons of falling short. In fact, Leonard was the MVP of the 2014 Finals, averaging 17.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game. On top of that, he had six excellent seasons with the team.
5 Tony Parker
Tony Parker could be considered one of the best European players in NBA history. He built a fantastic legacy over 17 seasons with the San Antonio Spurs. He had many epic moments and perhaps the best was when he carried the team in the 2007 NBA Finals when they swept the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Parker was the MVP, with 24.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game. The "Fiery Francophile" is the franchise's all-time leader in assists, with 6,829.
4 Manu Ginobili
Manu Ginobili is undoubtedly one of the biggest NBA Draft steals of all time. He was drafted by the San Antonio Spurs as the 57th overall pick of the 1999 draft.
Ginobili had a memorable 16-year NBA career, winning four championship rings and ending up in the NBA Hall of Fame. The Argentinian is in the top five in franchise history in points (14,043), assists (4,001), rebounds (3,697), steals (1,392) Win Shares (106.4), and Value Over Replacement Player (47.6).
3 George Gervin
George Gervin was a true scoring machine. In fact, he won four career scoring titles, three of them in a row. In his 12-year career with the San Antonio Spurs, he averaged 26.3 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game.
Gervin scored 23,602 total points (second most in franchise history), third in rebounds (4,841), third in steals (1,159), third in blocks (938), sixth in assists (2,523), and fourth in VORP (38.0).
2
David Robinson
David Robinson is one of the best centers in NBA history, this guy was a beast. He spent his entire 14-year career with the Spurs and left an indelible mark. He was Rookie of the Year, MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, scoring champion, rebounding champion, block champion, and two-time NBA Champion. Robinson won it all.
The Admiral averaged 21.1 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 3.0 blocks per game, with a 26.2 Player Efficiency Rating (the best in franchise history) and 81.9 Value Over Replacement Player (second best).
1 Tim Duncan
The best player in San Antonio Spurs history is Tim Duncan, hands down. He played his entire 19-year career with the team, leading the team to all five titles in franchise history, and being named Finals MVP on three occasions. Duncan was a 15-time All-NBA, 15-time All-Defensive, and two-time MVP.
Timmy averaged 20.6 points, 11.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.3 blocks per game. He is the franchise all-time leader in points (26,496), rebounds (15,091), blocks (3020), Value Over Replacement Player (91.1), and Win Shares (206.4). Tim Duncan is an absolute legend.