![]() These were the days when Jay Howard called the game on the radio, and the strangely soothing tones of Stan Kelly introduced the starting lineups, and when a draft pick from the Virgin Islands seemed downright exotic.Įven the mighty B-R database doesn't have any stats or results from that preseason game. As evidence, I look at the number of foreign names on the roster, and observe that every player who suited up in white that October night went to an American college. Buford, but back then, they weren't yet the Pop and R.C. Popovich is there, of course, as was R.C. There's no Chip Engelland on the assistant coach list, though Mike Budenholzer is there, presumably having just completed puberty. Instead of Will Sevening, John Andersen is listed as Spurs head trainer. Some I had forgotten, like Carl Herrera or God Shammgod. Some I know and remember well, even though they're long gone as NBA players. Perusing the rosters within the program, I see a few obviously familiar names on both teams. I can, however, remember when he went by the handle "Merlin." Since this was Duncan's de facto nickname in October 1997, it was somewhat fitting that his first game in front of an Alamodome crowd was against the newly-minted Wizards. That night was the first time a certain Wake Forest rookie put on a home white Spurs jersey in an NBA contest.ī lists one of Tim Duncan's nicknames as "Death and Taxes." Whether this is an actual name someone has given him, or an Onion-style tongue and cheek attempt at humor by the otherwise robotic number crunchers at Basketball-Reference, it is not a Duncan pseudonym with which I'm familiar. But it should have been, and for a very particular reason. For a long time, this monochrome paper program from an October 16th preseason game between the San Antonio Spurs and Washington Wizards in 1997 was not on that list. states and four Canadian provinces my wedding band ("Then why do you lose it so often?" - Mrs. Petersburg, FL the collection of license plates I have been amassing since childhood, which includes all fifty U.S. A ten year old Cake t-shirt I bought the night I saw my favorite band in St. 1 overall pick.Īfter the draft, the big man posted a photo of himself hanging with Duncan (as well as David Robinson, Sean Elliott and Manu Ginobili) and called them his “ role models” in the caption.Ĭouldn’t ask for better role models □ own several objects which I consider somewhat sacred. Wembanyama included Duncan among his starters even before the Spurs called his name with the No. OXBJjrlq2Eīefore the 2023 NBA Draft, we asked Wembanyama to name his all-time starting five. Here is what San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama told us. We asked prospects at the 2023 NBA Draft to name a starting five that could save the planet. ![]() Wembanyama had just one block and five rebounds in a home loss.īut it is still worth acknowledging the uncanny similarities in their games. When he first stepped on an NBA court in 1997, for what it is worth, Duncan did the exact same thing.ĭuncan also recorded ten rebounds and two blocks while securing a victory against the Mavericks when he made his NBA Debut. Wembanyama recorded 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, also adding two assists for the Spurs during a loss against Luka Doncic and the Mavericks on Wednesday night. But what we do know is that these two big men had nearly identical stats during their NBA debuts, which is amazing. We do not yet know if Wembanyama is going to accomplish what Duncan was able to do during his professional career. 1 overall pick twice in the past three decades, drafting Victor Wembanyama in 2023 and Tim Duncan in 1997.
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