The NBA has seen its fair share of superstars, but one that gets overlooked often is Tim Duncan. He is recognized as an all-time great, but his former teammate, David Robinson, once said he would have built a team centered on Duncan.
Tim Duncan is one of the best players in NBA history. He is arguably the greatest power forward of all time, a massive achievement. That position has been stacked with all-time talent, but Duncan is widely seen as head and shoulders above everyone else.
He has earned that reputation with five championships, two regular-season MVPs, and three Finals MVPs. Duncan was the focal point of the San Antonio Spurs‘ successful system built by head coach Gregg Popovich. With this level of success, people like Shaquille O’Neal put Duncan in his top 10 list of the best players ever.
For Duncan’s former teammate, David Robinson, he would have loved to build a team around him. Not only does he love Duncan’s potential to be a franchise cornerstone, but Robinson once admitted that he would take Duncan over the great Michael Jordan.
Photo by: Ronald Martinez/Getty ImagesRobinson believes in Duncan enough to pick him over the GOAT
As Duncan’s running mate over the first few years of his career, Robinson got to see Duncan’s development from a promising rookie into a bona fide superstar. Duncan was already good early on, winning the championship and the Finals MVP in his second NBA season.
With this close-up experience of playing with Duncan, the Admiral saw a superstar power forward. That made him respect Duncan even more, as he witnessed greatness every day in practice and during games. Like many other players, he saw why Duncan was such an admired player among big men.
As a player, Duncan was a complete power forward. He could be unstoppable with his scoring, but he could also make the right passes. Defensively, Duncan is one of the NBA’s top defenders ever, even if he was not given the Defensive Player of the Year award.
Since this is a sport mostly dominated by size, Duncan would be the perfect choice for any team to build around. He even picked Duncan over Michael Jordan, which is a massive claim.
“Jordan was spectacular and exciting; Tim is an everyday workman-like. Tim is every bit the assassin that Michael was. I’d go, Tim,” Robinson once said on a 2014 episode of The Dan Patrick Show.
“Big guys are so much harder to find. I think they anchor your team so much better. Obviously, Michael is a phenomenal individual player. He’s a force of nature, but when I’m starting my team, I’m going Tim.”
Duncan has earned his all-time great status
With his resume, Duncan is arguably the greatest player from the mid-1990s through the 2010s. Kobe Bryant is always a contender for that tag, as he also has five championships during that time span. Despite anyone’s opinion between Bryant and Duncan, they have proven they are all-time greats.
Duncan might not be the flashiest name, but players like Blake Griffin were star-struck when they played against him. He was the best player on the Spurs across multiple titles, and that was influential for many players, enough to make them want to play for the Spurs.
Robinson might have invoked Jordan’s name in his opinion for a franchise building block, but he gave a valid reason. A big man is historically the best building block, so Duncan is a valid choice for building a title contender because he proved it five times over.