Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports Throughout the playoffs, we will be reliving the Spurs’ magical 2014 championship run, which began with the hardest 1-8 matchup ever. Tomorrow, April 20, is the tenth anniversary of the first Spurs game in the 2014 playoffs. While we know how that season ended (spoiler alert: happily), they came into the 2014 playoffs with memories of the 2013 Finals fresh, and painful, in their minds. The Spurs and their fans knew that the team faced a very tough road to even get back to the Finals, and that LeBron James and the defending champion Miami Heat would likely be waiting ..read more

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports The play-in could have caused a couple of rebuilds already and there’s still a round left to be played. The Warriors didn’t make it past the play-in and Klay Thompson’s contract is ending. Is the run of their Big Three over for good? Marilyn Dubinski: It’s quite possible. Steve Kerr said they’re going to do everything they can to retain him, but my gut says he’s going to demand more than they’re willing to pay, and some middling team somewhere looking for a big name will come and snag him. Even if he does return, I’ve seen people comparing them to the Spurs dyna ..read more

Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports We hardly saw any of the French rookie before the end of the season, but the flashes of potential were tantalizing. Welcome to Pounding the Rock’s 2023-24 player reviews! The series will look at the 15 players that finished the season with the Spurs on guaranteed contracts (so no two-way players because we saw so little of them this year, and no Doug McDermott). Enjoy! Sidy Cissoko 2023-24 Stats: 12 games, 3.8 points, 1.8 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 48.5 FG% Contract Status: 2 years, $4.1 million remaining Age: 20 Despite an extremely long night of waiting between the S ..read more

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports The big man suffered the injury in the last game of the season against the Pistons. The Spurs expect him to be ready to go by the start of next season. Spurs’ center Zach Collins will undergo surgery to fix a shoulder injury he suffered in the season closer against the Pistons, the franchise announced. He should be ready to go by the start of next season. Collins hyperextended his shoulder in the third quarter against the Pistons on Sunday, April 14 in the last game of the year. Collins fouled James Wiseman as he was attempting a shot close to the rim and immedi ..read more

Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports The Spurs superstar expresses faith in San Antonio’s process. Before Victor Wembanyama even stepped foot in San Antonio, some people thought his time with the Spurs was limited. San Antonio Spurs fans clamored for Gregg Popovich, Brian Wright and the rest of the front office to make some moves, or the young big man would bolt. Some on Twitter even photoshopped the 19-year-old into a Lakers jersey. Yes, it’s clear that Wemby is hell-bent on winning. However, to suggest that after a 22-60 season the rookie has a foot out the door is plain silly. Victor Wembanyama ..read more

Photos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images Spurs finish with the same record but a different outlook This time last year, we didn’t know what the future would hold. We had hopes. We had dreams. We had scenarios in which it might play out...but we didn’t know. The Spurs had tanked good and hard. Maybe not in so many words, but the result spoke for itself: a 22-60 record, tied for the second-worst in the league. They were heading into a draft lottery in possession of their best chance for a top draft pick since the ‘90s. We could maybe conceive of a world in which everything fell into plac ..read more

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images The Kings are poised to send the Pelicans on holiday There is a dynamic to the play-in that I hadn’t considered before- a seventh or eighth seed, who would have normally been set to play in the postseason, loses a game and then has to face a hungry outside-looking-in team who just won. The Sacramento Kings go into the elimination game on Friday with all the momentum of besting one of the greatest dynasties in recent history. This win may have been the death knell of Golden State if it, in fact, becomes the moment that Klay Thompson begins to doubt his ..read more

Photos by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images How many awards will the rookie secure following his remarkable debut season? Victor Wembanyama may have concluded his season on the court, but his anticipation is far from over as he awaits the outcomes of three potential awards. In the upcoming week, the NBA will unveil the winners of various prestigious awards, along with announcing the coveted All-NBA teams. It comes as no surprise that Wemby has a firm grip in the Rookie of the Year conversation, with the young Frenchman expected to secure the award. However, what’s more intriguing is where ..read more

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images Best individual defender in a season? Check. Best defender on best defensive team? Check. He met all the “requirements”, so why did he never win? It’s nearly impossible to poke any holes in Tim Duncan’s resume. The Hall of Famer is widely considered the greatest power forward of all time with five NBA championships, two MVP’s, three Finals MVP’s, 15 All-Star appearances (back when the game was taken more seriously), and making both All-NBA and All-Defensive Teams 15 times. He is also the only player in NBA history to make the All-NBA and Defense teams in 13 con ..read more

A blazing hot shooting night by Keegan Murray (echoed by his adoring fans) staked Sacramento to a lead that it would not relinquish | Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports Sacramento jumped out ahead to first quarter lead that they held onto as retribution for last season’s game 7 loss After a hot start by the Sacramento Kings led by forward Keegan Murray, they were able to keep their composure over the last three quarters to eliminate Golden State convincingly. The Kings leveraged a sizeable advantage in second chance points and consistent execution (winning the first, third, and fourth period scor ..read more