On The Ball

The Rich Get Richer

I am going on record right now by saying that, barring a major injury to center, Tim Duncan, or some other catastrophic calamity, the San Antonio Spurs will once again hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy as champions of the NBA come June 2006.

The signing of Dallas Mavericks' amnesty tax casualty, Michael Finley, concluded an offseason for the Spurs in which they bolstered an already formidable roster with the competent acquisitions of Finley and veteran scorer, Nick Van Exel as well as Argentinian power forward Fabricio Oberto during the offseason.

Head coach Greg Popovich contended that the signings will allow him more flexibility and depth to a team that won the 2005 championship by beating the Detroit Pistons using only a seven-man rotation.

"If you think about it and look back at the Detroit series," Popovich said of 2005 NBA Finals, "we played seven people, period. You have to be pretty fortunate to just play seven people in a series like that, so we can use more people, without a doubt."

More people? What an understatement!

How about three veteran players who will easily mesh in San Antonio's no-nonsense, team-ball system. Van Exel and Finley in particular will add instant offense to a team that's only weakness was the ability to score on some occasions.

Finley, who has averaged 15.7 points per game over his 11-year career with Phoenix and Dallas, actually took less money to join the Spurs than he could have gotten from any number of teams that were after his services.

"The money was one of the factors he looked at but in the end the most important thing was the opportunity to win a championship and to have a significant role in that," Finley's agent, Henry Thomas said. "When it came down to those factors, the Spurs were the best fit." The 6-1 Van Exel has also averaged in double figures for his career, scoring 15.1 points and 6.9 assists. Although his career field goal percentage of .405 is pedestrian, Van Exel can go on some absolutely ridiculous scoring binges.

Two years ago when he was a member of the Dallas Mavericks, Van Exel put on one of the most prolific scoring displays I have ever seen and clearly was the best offensive option on a team that featured Dirk Nowitzki and Finley. He is also a threat from long distance as his 1,473 three-point field goals, which ranks him fifth all-time in the NBA and second among active players, surely attests.

The Spurs, much like the New England Patriots, have built their franchise into the model that all other franchise try to emulate.

Although the names have changed during the Spurs' mini-dynasty of three titles in the past seven years, one thing has remained a certainty.

Popovich's smooth hand in dealing with his players and the quiet professionalism of Duncan. Finley, whose quiet personality is similar to Duncan's fits in with the type of players Popovich welcomes.

"We would probably never put him and Timmy in the same room," Popovich joked, "because they never would find out when practice is."

Although Van Exel has been known to be disruptive on several occasions throughout his career, he is much more mature and at this point - wants a championship ring in the worst way. So don't expect any nonsense from Van Exel either.

"We are very happy to have Nick as a part of our team," Popovich said. "His leadership and skills will be assets at both ends of the floor."

Speaking of both ends of the floor, the Spurs now have even more ways to beat their foes in the wild western conference.

Although they showed the Phoenix Suns in last year's western conference finals that they could either play run-and-gun basketball or walk-it-up, half court hoops, the Spurs have made themselves even more dangerous and have firmly entrenched themselves as favorites to win back-to-back titles.

Finley, may have made a prophetic statement when he said, "This team, in some regards, was not talked about last year until they ultimately got to the Finals and won it," Finley said. "I like that. Just go on about your way. That's the way my personality is. It will fit right in. I'm not going to dye my hair and try to get extra attention. That's just not me. I'm just going to come in and play basketball."

That's just the way Popovich, Duncan and the rest of the organization like it. As a matter of fact, maybe they should adopt that slogan as their new team motto. I can see it now. "Just play ball."

Previous Editions

• Heat May Be Colder Next Season - August 9, 2005
• The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Larry Brown - July 31, 2005
• A True Friend - July 18, 2005
• McMillian Leaves Sonics Clutching Thin Air - July 11, 2005
• Cavaliers Land Larry Hughes - July 9, 2005
• Cardiac Kids - July 7, 2005
• Sonics Takin' Care of Business - July 5, 2005
• 2005 NBA Draft Winners & Losers - July 1, 2005
• From 0 to 30 in 60 Seconds: The NBA Draft - June 29, 2005
• Wizards Future Is Bright Despite Sweep - June 21, 2005

About Eric Williams

Eric Williams is an award winning sports columnist and six year veteran writer for the Philadelphia Sunday Sun. Eric was born and raised in Philadelphia and has covered all four major professional sports in the Philadelphia area. He has also covered golf, track and field, soccer, tennis and bicycling.

Lifetime Boston Celtics fan. Basketball and football are his favorite sports. Eric is married with five children and currently resides in Marshall, Missouri.

Comments and feedback can be sent to eklass66@yahoo.com