Steve Davis: Unheralded Greatness
The Spurs might be one of the most unheralded teams of all-time. They have won 4 titles, and look poised for #5. With their game 2 win on Wednesday, Duncan, Parker and Ginóbili set the all-time record for most all-time playoff wins by a trio. They have partnered for 111 playoff wins.
Kareem-Magic-Michael Cooper had 110, and Magic-Byron Scott-James Worthy had 93. That tells you something about Magic, combining with 2 different trios over his career of winning 5 titles. That said, Magic and the Lakers get plenty of credit. The Spurs fly under the radar regarding their greatness.
As an aside, Jordan won more titles than any of the recent players with six; what is interesting is that it was a two, not three man show. He had Pippen as his Robin, but there was no third wheel. The Celtics of the 80's had Bird-McHale-Parrish. That makes what Jordan did carrying his team even a little more impressive.
Bonus aside-the Celtics of the 50s and 60's won 11 straight titles, and everyone talks about Russell's 11 consecutive championships. He had a number of his teammates along for 8 of those. Tommy Heinsohn, KC Jones, Sam Jones, Satch Sanders, etc. Yet, their ride was a little easier because they didn't combine for anything close to the other trios cited because the league was smaller and they had far fewer playoff games.
