Forever rivals, Shaq, Duncan chase 5th title

The words about Shaquille O’Neal sounded strange tumbling out of Tim Duncan’s mouth, something between marvel and melancholy. Once, this would’ve been a night about them, the two best teams in basketball centered upon the Russell and Chamberlain of a generation.

“We’re the two godfathers now,” Duncan said on Wednesday night. “We’re the old players of the league. A lot of history together.”

His words trailed away. “…So much history together, so many battles,” he finally said.

What made O’Neal and Duncan so compelling, such an epic clash, were the ways they flourished in complete contrast.

“I imagine it was a little like what made Wilt and Russell such a great matchup,” Spurs general manager R.C. Buford said.

Over a decade ago, Duncan would come into David Robinson’s life and start to phase him out. This time, there’s no star, young 7-footer, but a bold change of direction out of coach Gregg Popovich to play fast with so much speed and athleticism. In a lot of ways, the Spurs are leaving Duncan in the dust.

“Occasionally, Tim will give that look like, ‘Throw me the ball,’ but I don’t think Pop has spent 15 minutes trying to convince him of the different direction,” Buford said. “I don’t think Pop has spent much, if any, energy trying to convince Tim to play a different way.”

“It happened with David, and Tim saw how David handled it,” said Malik Rose(notes), an old Spurs teammate. “Of course it bothered David, and it probably bothers [Tim] too. But he’s going to find a way to do what he does in whatever role he’s given.”