Tim Duncan ... aiming for a fourth NBA championship crown when his San Antonio Spurs take on the Cleveland Cavaliers in the finals starting tomorrow night. - File SAN ANTONIO (AP):
LEBRON JAMES may be the star of the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the San Antonio Spurs know better than to ignore the other four players on the court.
"They wouldn't be in the finals without LeBron, we wouldn't be in the finals without Tim Duncan," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said this week. "That goes without saying. But they still would not be in the finals, nor would we, if we didn't each have our supporting casts. Everybody else has to fit."
San Antonio lost both of their games against Cleveland during the regular season. The Spurs lost their home opener to the Cavs, where the NBA finals will begin tomorrow night, plus their January match-up in Cleveland.
The Spurs held James to 19 points in the second meeting, but theCavs put three other players in double figures in their 82-78 victory. Two other players scored eight points.
"We lost to them twice this season. They've been playing great," Duncan said. "They're on a high right now, playing with a lot of confidence. And they're going to be a tough opponent. We're going to have to really come out and shake this rust off quick this first game and really try to jump on them."
Beaten utah Jazz
After beating the Utah Jazz in five games for the Western Conference championship, the Spurs will have had a full week off by tomorrow's start to the NBA finals in San Antonio.
Cleveland wrapped up the Eastern Conference championship last Saturday in Game Six against the Detroit Pistons. James scored 20 points in that game, but it was rookie Daniel Gibson's 31-point performance that stole the show.
"Teams get to finals and teams win championships, and their team fits," Popovich said.
So do the Spurs. Their top-three scorers, Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, have been together for the Spurs' last two championship runs in 2003 and 2005. Duncan is healthy and said he's playing better basketball this year than in the last three. And the team turned mid-season struggles around to take off on a 13-game winning streak and compile a 23-6 record after the All-Star break.
Still, the turnaround James has led in Cleveland over his four seasons there is what's grabbed the attention.
"I'm just hoping every once in a while they throw the Spurs in there, in between LeBron highlights, that'd be nice," Duncan said.
The experienced Spurs are going for their fourth championship in nine seasons. Duncan has been around for all three.
"I'm not sure how rare they think it is since they've been there quite often considering their young ages and time in the league," Popovich said. "But they know it's the finals and that would take care of any possible complacency I would think."
