SAN ANTONIO – Gregg Popovich has long emphasized the importance of playing great defense.
Fortunately for the coach, he’s had two of the NBA’s greatest defenders at his disposal in David Robinson and Tim Duncan.
Twelve years after those giants of the game played together for the last time, they’re again at the center of conversations about the Spurs’ defensive excellence as Duncan closes in on tying Robinson for the franchise lead in career blocks.
After gaining a pair of rejections in Portland, Duncan needs just four more swats to match Robinson’s 2,954 and rank fifth in NBA history.