By Michael De Leon, Project SpursBefore the San Antonio Spurs game against the Houston Rockets this past week, Spurs forward Tim Duncan was averaging a career-low 12.9 points per game.
The popular opinion on the 35-year-old Duncan is that he is likely in the last or second-to-last year of his career, that he's lost a step and he is a shell of his former self. But after scoring 25 points, and 16 in a momentum-changing third quarter in the Spurs' recent win over the Houston Rockets, that notion may not be a mutual one amongst NBA players.
"No, look at today. It looks like he has about three or four more years left," Rockets guard Courtney Lee said. "They (isolated) him, they went to him down low and he's able to do what he does great."
While one can point to stats to highlight a player's decline, Duncan is just two seasons removed from averaging 17.9 points, 10 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.
The biggest factor in Duncan's change in game-by-game production has been the addition of several scorers and the transition from a halfcourt, grind-it-out offense with Duncan serving as the first priority to a balanced offense with several players available to take the scoring load. Add to that a drastic reduction in minutes, sitting out back-to-back games, and while there is no doubt that there is some slippage, these other key factors play into it.
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