Western Conference Semifinals Game Seven (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love/Not Hate the Spurs)

Photo from ESPN.

I'm not quite sure how it happened or when it happened exactly, but it did.

Sometime in the midst of the 2007-2008 regular season and the ensuing post-season, I stopped hating the San Antonio Spurs. It wasn't because they weren't good anymore, it wasn't because Manu stopped flopping, and it wasn't because Bruce Bowen suddenly became less hate-able.

If I had to pick a distinct reason for why I no longer hate the Spurs, I would credit it to growing tiresome of the whole process. I was tired of pointing out flopping and whining about whining. Finally, once you get past the personalities and the league-wide hatred of the "grind-it-out" style that isn't so broadcast-friendly (which as 48 Minutes of Hell points out, is shared by a certain Boston team yet they haven't garnered the dreaded "boring" label), I started to notice all of the little things that make this team great. Scratch that; I started to notice all of the little things that make this the best franchise I've ever seen. On the court, they maintain a level of defensive intensity that is unreal to me. In this system, Michael Finley, Brent Barry, and Fabricio Oberto become capable defenders. The rotations and adjustments are like clockwork. And when the camera shows Popovich's stone gaze you can almost see the flawless calculation that never accounts for failure.

Off the court, everything is handled internally. There is no publicity surrounding feuds between coaches and players or player screw-ups (unless you count Parker's rap career). But let's not kid ourselves - there are problems in paradise. Egos get in the way at some point, someone doesn't understand their role, or someone isn't getting the shots they want. The thing that's so amazing about the Spurs is that cliched "consummate professionalism." We never know about those conflicts because we're not supposed to; those issues are for the Spurs to solve, and they solve them quietly and efficiently.

Read this post and say what you want about it; call it another piece of Spurs praise, pointless fluff, or whatever you want. But for me, this is an important chapter in my NBA life. Maybe the real reason why the Spurs are so hated is because deep down we're all fans: of teams, of players, of plot lines. And somewhere down the line, our teams, players, and stories were quashed by the Spurs. My fan-hood isn't so secretive -- for as long as I can remember, I've been a Mavs fan. For this reason, my NBA fate will always be intertwined with that of the Spurs. From the earlier days of modern Mavericks contention, when they were treated like a disrespectful younger brother by those in black and silver, the hatred began to swell. One playoff elimination became two, and it seemed like the Spurs would be an eternal road block never to be conquered. Being in the same division and same state didn't help matters, and an epic seven-game series in the 2006 playoffs should have only cemented my hatred for the Spurs through the epic rivalry for years to come. But it didn't. Hatred transformed into respect, and the Spurs weren't the enemy that had to be defeated. Maybe it was because I stopped being unreasonable or looking at the league with blinders. But regardless, I've learned to embrace just how unstoppable Tony Parker can be, how poised Tim Duncan is, and how Manu Ginobli is utterly unreal.

Others aren't so self-aware. They are "fans of the league" and nothing else. I call shenanigans. We all pick favorites (both teams and players). It doesn't even have to be one team in particular, you might be a fan of several. But the Spurs have taken your favorite player or favorite team down a peg at some point, and I'm sure that offends some of your NBA sensibilities. You can blame the flopping, or call them boring, but I sincerely believe that the reason we all hate the Spurs so much is because they crush everything we hold true and dear.

And you know what? I'm over it. Power to you, San Antonio. You've proven everyone wrong yet again because you're just that good. I'm just glad that I've finally learned to appreciate it.