LeBron pays respect to Duncan via Instagram after Spurs beat Cavs
Despite a blistering start that saw his Cleveland Cavaliers hang 32 points on the legendarily stingy San Antonio Spurs in the first quarter of Thursday night’s marquee matchup, LeBron James saw Gregg Popovich and company tighten up their defense, ramp up their offense and eventually outpace the Cavs for a 99-95 win that snapped Cleveland’s eight-game winning streak and improved the Spurs to a remarkable 23-0 at home this season. After the loss, though, James didn’t stew or sulk; instead, he made a point of showing his respect for longtime adversary and fellow future Hall of Famer Tim Duncan, the Spurs’ centerpiece for 19 years and one of the opponents against whom James has most relished competing.
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James took to Instagram early Friday morning to share his appreciation for all Duncan has accomplished, and all he continues to do for his team, as the 39-year-old just keeps posterizing Father Time:
The caption James wrote to go with that post-game photo:
Don’t know how many times we got left to go against one another but I’ve never have and I never will take them for granted! The consistency you’ve shown over the years goes unmatched and as a competitor it’s always a treat to be competing on the same floor as you! Being a professional(professionalism) is so overlooked in our sport but I always knew who I could look to if I ever wasn’t professional about this lovely game and that’s You. From one King to Another and to the Greatest PF to Ever play this game, all Love and Respect Timmy D!
James’ post-game comments echo the reverence with which he spoke of Duncan, Popovich, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili before the contest, according to Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News:
“It’s always special when you can go head to head with greats,” he said. “Their place in the history books is already written. It’s just up to them to decide when there is no more ink in the pen. They have multiple chapters in the history of the game.” […]
“You just enjoy playing against greats, no matter what team it is,” James said. “When you have the opportunity to play against four greats – Tim, Manu, Tony and Pop – you enjoy that. You can never take those moments for granted. You want to get those moments back when it is all said and done.”
After Thursday’s game, James (who finished with a team-high 22 points on 9-for-17 shooting, seven rebounds, five assists and four turnovers in 37-plus minutes) and Duncan (nine points, six rebounds, three assists, two blocks and one steal in 33 minutes) have now squared off 20 times during the regular season, with each player’s team winning 10 of the meetings. In the all-important postseason, though, Duncan has gotten the better of James, with San Antonio winning 11 of its 16 games against James’ Cavaliers and Heat, with the Spurs sweeping Cleveland in 2007 and knocking off the Miami Heat in five games in 2014, one year after James’ “Big Three”-era Heat outlasted San Antonio in an all-time-classic seven-game series.
Back in 2007, Duncan was the undisputed leader of the Spurs’ attack. In 2013, the team revolved to a greater degree around the pick-and-roll playmaking of Parker. In 2014, though, it was ascendant forward Kawhi Leonard who left his massive fingerprints all over the series (and James) en route to winning Finals MVP.
These days, the 24-year-old Leonard — now not only the frontrunner for his second straight Defensive Player of the Year award, but also the league’s leader in 3-point shooting percentage and one of the game’s most efficient scorers — is taking aim at the regular-season MVP honors James has won four times. For his part, though, LeBron seemed a bit reluctant to elevate Leonard to that level after Thursday’s game, once again noting the value of having Duncan — still an All-NBA-caliber defender, even as he nears age 40 — positioned along the back line. From Buck Harvey of the Express-News:
[…] it has been Leonard’s ability to defend and rebound and control games his way that has changed the Spurs. How he defended James in the Finals and again Thursday is part of that.
But when asked if Leonard ever changes how he defends him, James shrugged.
“No, no, never changes,” James said, and then he swerved away from Leonard.
“Their defense did a good job keeping me off balance,” James said. “What also doesn’t change is Tim Duncan behind him, as well. When you have a system like that …”
All valid points. The Spurs have long relied on a smart defensive system that adjusts on the fly, and Duncan has been the anchor of it. Still, doesn’t Leonard have something to do with James’ below-average stats against the Spurs?
James continued to explain all of the advantages that Leonard has: “Also, he’s never left alone. There’s nobody in our league that’s left alone. He also has a great supporting cast behind him, that’s talking to him, letting him know what is going on behind him. Even if I’m able to get around him, I know Timmy D is protecting the rim.”
Sometimes, LeBron can outmaneuver them both:
[INSERT LEBRON GOES TO WORK HERE]
But, faint praise or not, James does have trouble constantly dealing with the best perimeter defender in the world. And while Leonard’s offensive emergence, Parker’s resurgence after a down year, and contributions from a deep bench led by the likes of Manu Ginobili and key offseason acquisition David West have led to Duncan’s further recession on the offensive end, he can still come through with major plays when he’s needed, like this dynamite high-low feed to LaMarcus Aldridge late in the fourth:
… and this classic bank shot out of a left-block post-up on oft-targeted Cavaliers defender Kevin Love with just under one minute remaining:
You’d imagine LeBron wasn’t particularly excited to see Duncan still making those plays against his club, but with the benefit of a bit of distance, he appreciates the fact that the Big Fundamental’s still going strong. He’ll get another chance to see just how strong in just two weeks, when the Spurs travel to Ohio for a rematch … and, if all goes according to plan for the two elite squads, maybe a longer look come June. (Though we suspect Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and the Golden State Warriors might have something to say about that.)
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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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