150-727: The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio . The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference . The team plays its home games at Frost Bank Center . The Spurs are one of four former American Basketball Association (ABA) teams to remain intact in the NBA after
300-401: A backboard at each end of the court), while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line , when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws . The team with the most points at
450-491: A Spur because of his prior two-year commitment to serve in the United States Navy. The Spurs seemingly bottomed out in 1988–89 with a record of 21–61, the worst in franchise history at the time. However, the 1989–90 season was notable for several reasons. It was the first season of full ownership for Red McCombs, who was an original investor in the team and helped solidify local ownership for the team. Additionally,
600-404: A backboard that measures 6 by 3.5 feet (1.8 by 1.1 meters) and one basket is at each end of the court. The white outlined box on the backboard is 18 inches (46 cm) high and 2 feet (61 cm) wide. At almost all levels of competition, the top of the rim is exactly 10 feet (3.05 meters) above the court and 4 feet (1.22 meters) inside the baseline. While variation is possible in the dimensions of
750-495: A basket mounted on a wall. Naismith wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto an elevated track. Naismith initially set up the peach basket with its bottom intact, which meant that the ball had to be retrieved manually after each "basket" or point scored. This quickly proved tedious, so Naismith removed the bottom of the basket to allow the balls to be poked out with a long dowel after each scored basket. Shortly after, Senda Berenson , instructor of physical culture at
900-455: A broken foot sidelined him for the rest of the season. Elliott also missed more than half the season due to injury. Forward Chuck Person would miss the entire season with a back injury. Without Robinson and Elliott, the Spurs were a rudderless team. The lone bright spot was Wilkins, leading the team in scoring with an average of 18.2 points per game. The Spurs ended the season with a 20–62 record,
1050-501: A children's game called duck on a rock , as many had failed before it. Frank Mahan, one of the players from the original first game, approached Naismith after the Christmas break, in early 1892, asking him what he intended to call his new game. Naismith replied that he had not thought of it because he had been focused on just getting the game started. Mahan suggested that it be called "Naismith ball", at which he laughed, saying that
1200-405: A dribble, the player cannot carry the ball by placing their hand on the bottom of the ball; doing so is known as carrying the ball . A team, once having established ball control in the front half of their court, may not return the ball to the backcourt and be the first to touch it. A violation of these rules results in loss of possession. The ball may not be kicked, nor be struck with the fist. For
1350-425: A flop, as the coach was fired 20 games into the 1992–93 season with the Spurs record at 9–11. After Rex Hughes filled the coaching shoes for one game, NBA veteran John Lucas was named head coach. It was Lucas' first NBA coaching assignment, although he had gained recognition in league circles for his success in helping NBA players rehab from drug abuse. The Lucas era started out successfully. His coaching propelled
1500-466: A half-time break under FIBA, NBA, and NCAA rules and 10 minutes in United States high schools. Overtime periods are five minutes in length except for high school, which is four minutes in length. Teams exchange baskets for the second half. The time allowed is actual playing time; the clock is stopped while the play is not active. Therefore, games generally take much longer to complete than
1650-524: A kidney transplant from his brother prior to the season, returned and played in the last 19 games. As the season wound down, Duncan suffered a knee injury and the Spurs finished in second place with a 53–29 record. Without Duncan, the Spurs were knocked out of the playoffs by the Phoenix Suns in four games. The long-term viability of the Spurs franchise in San Antonio was, however, achieved during
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#17327732358381800-753: A mediocre 41–37 record. In the playoffs, the Chaparrals quickly fell to the New Orleans Buccaneers . The team suffered from poor attendance and general disinterest in Dallas. In fact, during the 1970–71 season , the name "Dallas" was dropped in favor of "Texas" and an attempt was made to make the team a regional one, playing games in Fort Worth , at the Tarrant County Convention Center , as well as Lubbock , at
1950-512: A name like that would kill any game. Mahan then said, "Why not call it basketball?" Naismith replied, "We have a basket and a ball, and it seems to me that would be a good name for it." The first official game was played in the YMCA gymnasium in Albany , New York, on January 20, 1892, with nine players. The game ended at 1–0; the shot was made from 25 feet (7.6 m), on a court just half the size of
2100-441: A present-day Streetball or National Basketball Association (NBA) court. At the time, soccer was being played with 10 to a team (which was increased to 11). When winter weather got too icy to play soccer, teams were taken indoors, and it was convenient to have them split in half and play basketball with five on each side. By 1897–98, teams of five became standard. Basketball's early adherents were dispatched to YMCAs throughout
2250-462: A respectable 17–10 start during the 1974–75 season , Coach Tom Nissalke was fired as the team's ownership become tired of the Spurs' slow playing style. He was replaced by Bob Bass , who said, "It is my belief that you cannot throw a set offense at another professional team for 48 minutes. You've got to let them play some schoolyard basketball." Gervin and Silas took that style to heart, as the Spurs became an exciting fast-break team. The team finished
2400-577: A second-round series with the Phoenix Suns as the key series in the entire NBA playoffs, as this series featured the teams with the two best records remaining in the NBA. The Spurs went on to win 4–2 in the contentious and controversial series versus the Suns. The series featured a Robert Horry foul on Steve Nash toward the end of Game 4 which resulted in Horry being suspended for two games. Those who said
2550-506: A series of venues, including Catholic University , Georgetown and George Mason . The National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament for Black High Schools was held from 1929 to 1942 at Hampton Institute . The National Invitational Interscholastic Basketball Tournament was held from 1941 to 1967 starting out at Tuskegee Institute . Following a pause during World War II it resumed at Tennessee State College in Nashville. The basis for
2700-570: A shortened 50-game season, the Spurs won their first two games of the season, against the Kings and the Timberwolves respectively. However, the Spurs lost their next three games to the Lakers, Timberwolves, and Cavaliers, the latter a 99–89 road loss. The Spurs finished the regular season with an NBA-best 37–13 record (.740 win percentage), the only season during Duncan's tenure with the Spurs that
2850-423: A standard uniform consists of a pair of shorts and a jersey with a clearly visible number, unique within the team, printed on both the front and back. Players wear high-top sneakers that provide extra ankle support. Typically, team names, players' names and, outside of North America, sponsors are printed on the uniforms. A limited number of time-outs, clock stoppages requested by a coach (or sometimes mandated in
3000-429: A strong performance by David Robinson who recorded 27 points, 16 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 blocks for the Spurs. The next game, Sean Elliott recorded 23 points and David Robinson added 18 points and 19 rebounds as the Spurs got their first win of the season against the visiting New Jersey Nets. The Spurs finished with the NBA's best record at 62–20, cracking the 60-win mark for the first time in franchise history. Robinson
3150-490: A teammate's field goal attempt. Goaltending is a defender's touching of a ball that is on a downward flight toward the basket, while the related violation of basket interference is the touching of a ball that is on the rim or above the basket, or by a player reaching through the basket from below. Goaltending and basket interference committed by a defender result in awarding the basket to the offense, while basket interference committed by an offensive player results in cancelling
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#17327732358383300-591: A total of three referees on the court. The table officials are responsible for keeping track of each team's scoring, timekeeping, individual and team fouls , player substitutions, team possession arrow , and the shot clock . The only essential equipment in a basketball game is the ball and the court: a flat, rectangular surface with baskets at opposite ends. Competitive levels require the use of more equipment such as clocks, score sheets, scoreboards, alternating possession arrows, and whistle-operated stop-clock systems. A regulation basketball court in international games
3450-562: A touring Canadian women's team based in Edmonton , Alberta, operated between 1915 and 1940. The Grads toured all over North America, and were exceptionally successful. They posted a record of 522 wins and only 20 losses over that span, as they met any team that wanted to challenge them, funding their tours from gate receipts. The Grads also shone on several exhibition trips to Europe, and won four consecutive exhibition Olympics tournaments, in 1924, 1928, 1932, and 1936; however, women's basketball
3600-627: A winter season (April–September) and did so until the completion of the 20th season in 1998 . The 1998–99 season, which commenced only months later, was the first season after the shift to the current summer season format (October–April). This shift was an attempt to avoid competing directly against Australia's various football codes . It features 8 teams from around Australia and one in New Zealand. A few players including Luc Longley , Andrew Gaze , Shane Heal , Chris Anstey and Andrew Bogut made it big internationally, becoming poster figures for
3750-492: Is 28 meters (92 feet) long and 15 meters (49 feet) wide. In the NBA and NCAA the court is 94 by 50 feet (29 by 15 meters). Most courts have wood flooring , usually constructed from maple planks running in the same direction as the longer court dimension. The name and logo of the home team is usually painted on or around the center circle. The basket is a steel rim 18 inches (46 cm) diameter with an attached net affixed to
3900-404: Is called a shot. A successful shot is worth two points, or three points if it is taken from beyond the three-point arc 6.75 meters (22 ft 2 in) from the basket in international games and 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m) in NBA games. A one-point shot can be earned when shooting from the foul line after a foul is made. After a team has scored from a field goal or free throw, play
4050-585: Is currently no tournament to determine a national high school champion. The most serious effort was the National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament at the University of Chicago from 1917 to 1930. The event was organized by Amos Alonzo Stagg and sent invitations to state champion teams. The tournament started out as a mostly Midwest affair but grew. In 1929 it had 29 state champions. Faced with opposition from
4200-430: Is out of bounds if it touches a boundary line, or touches any player or object that is out of bounds. There are limits placed on the steps a player may take without dribbling, which commonly results in an infraction known as traveling . Nor may a player stop their dribble and then resume dribbling. A dribble that touches both hands is considered stopping the dribble, giving this infraction the name double dribble . Within
4350-453: Is resumed with a throw-in awarded to the non-scoring team taken from a point beyond the endline of the court where the points were scored. Games are played in four quarters of 10 ( FIBA ) or 12 minutes (NBA). College men's games use two 20-minute halves, college women's games use 10-minute quarters, and most United States high school varsity games use 8-minute quarters; however, this varies from state to state. 15 minutes are allowed for
4500-593: Is the WNBA ( NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship is also popular), whereas the strongest European clubs participate in the EuroLeague Women . A game similar to basketball is mentioned in a 1591 book published in Frankfurt am Main that reports on the lifestyles and customs of coastal North American residents, Wahrhafftige Abconterfaytung der Wilden (German; translates as Truthful Depictions of
4650-599: Is usually the center , the second-tallest and strongest is the power forward , a slightly shorter but more agile player is the small forward , and the shortest players or the best ball handlers are the shooting guard and the point guard , who implement the coach's game plan by managing the execution of offensive and defensive plays (player positioning). Informally, players may play three-on-three, two-on-two, and one-on-one. Invented in 1891 by Canadian-American gym teacher James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts , in
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4800-473: The 2004 Athens Olympics , the United States suffered its first Olympic loss while using professional players, falling to Puerto Rico (in a 19-point loss) and Lithuania in group games, and being eliminated in the semifinals by Argentina . It eventually won the bronze medal defeating Lithuania, finishing behind Argentina and Italy . The Redeem Team , won gold at the 2008 Olympics , and the B-Team, won gold at
4950-513: The 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey despite featuring no players from the 2008 squad. The United States continued its dominance as they won gold at the 2012 Olympics , 2014 FIBA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics . Worldwide, basketball tournaments are held for boys and girls of all age levels. The global popularity of the sport is reflected in the nationalities represented in the NBA. Players from all six inhabited continents currently play in
5100-517: The All American Red Heads Team , which competed against men's teams, using men's rules. By 1938, the women's national championship changed from a three-court game to two-court game with six players per team . The NBA-backed Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) began in 1997. Though it had shaky attendance figures, several marquee players ( Lisa Leslie , Diana Taurasi , and Candace Parker among others) have helped
5250-768: The Dallas Mavericks as they held the two best records in the Western Conference all season, battling for first place. In the end, the experience of the Spurs would be the difference as they won the Southwest Division again with a new franchise-best record of 63–19. The Spurs met the Mavericks in the second round of the playoffs, but it would be Dallas coming out on top 4–3, including a 119–111 overtime victory in Game 7. The Spurs struggled during
5400-732: The EuroLeague and the Basketball Champions League Americas . The FIBA Basketball World Cup and Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament are the major international events of the sport and attract top national teams from around the world. Each continent hosts regional competitions for national teams, like EuroBasket and FIBA AmeriCup . The FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup and Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament feature top national teams from continental championships. The main North American league
5550-517: The Lubbock Municipal Coliseum , but this proved a failure and the team returned full-time to Dallas in time for the 1971–72 season , splitting their games at Moody Coliseum and Dallas Convention Center Arena . While the Chaparrals had been modestly successful on the court, they were sinking financially by their third season. The financial difficulties were largely caused by the ownership group's refusal to invest much money on
5700-682: The National Federation of State High School Associations and North Central Association of Colleges and Schools that bore a threat of the schools losing their accreditation the last tournament was in 1930. The organizations said they were concerned that the tournament was being used to recruit professional players from the prep ranks. The tournament did not invite minority schools or private/parochial schools. The National Catholic Interscholastic Basketball Tournament ran from 1924 to 1941 at Loyola University . The National Catholic Invitational Basketball Tournament from 1954 to 1978 played at
5850-822: The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in New York, was organized in 1938; the NCAA national tournament began one year later. College basketball was rocked by gambling scandals from 1948 to 1951 , when dozens of players from top teams were implicated in game-fixing and point shaving . Partially spurred by an association with cheating, the NIT lost support to the NCAA tournament. Before widespread school district consolidation, most American high schools were far smaller than their present-day counterparts. During
6000-782: The Original Celtics and two all-African American teams, the New York Renaissance Five ("Rens") and the (still existing) Harlem Globetrotters played up to two hundred games a year on their national tours. In 1946, the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was formed. The first game was played in Toronto , Ontario, Canada between the Toronto Huskies and New York Knickerbockers on November 1, 1946. Three seasons later, in 1949,
6150-701: The San Antonio River Walk . The San Antonio Spurs started out as the Dallas Chaparrals of the original version of the American Basketball Association (ABA). Coached by player/coach Cliff Hagan , the Dallas Chaparrals were one of 11 teams to take the floor in the inaugural season of the upstart ABA. The Chaps' second season was a bit of a disappointment, as the team finished in fourth place with
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6300-572: The Soviet Union , Brazil and Australia rivaling the American squads. In 1989, FIBA allowed professional NBA players to participate in the Olympics for the first time. Prior to the 1992 Summer Olympics , only European and South American teams were allowed to field professionals in the Olympics. The United States' dominance continued with the introduction of the original Dream Team . In
6450-521: The Spirits of St. Louis received a portion of all television profits during their NBA tenure, which amounted to approximately one-seventh of the Spurs' television profit every year. This agreement placed particular financial pressure on the Spurs and the other three surviving former ABA teams. In 2014, 38 years after the completion of the merger, the Spirits' owners reached an agreement with the NBA to end
6600-400: The University of Chicago , Columbia University , Cornell University , Dartmouth College , the University of Minnesota , the U.S. Naval Academy , the University of Colorado and Yale University began sponsoring men's games. In 1905, frequent injuries on the football field prompted President Theodore Roosevelt to suggest that colleges form a governing body, resulting in the creation of
6750-478: The University of Chicago , while Adolph Rupp , a student of Naismith's at Kansas, enjoyed great success as coach at the University of Kentucky . On February 9, 1895, the first intercollegiate 5-on-5 game was played at Hamline University between Hamline and the School of Agriculture, which was affiliated with the University of Minnesota . The School of Agriculture won in a 9–3 game. In 1901, colleges, including
6900-724: The Virginia Squires in January. The ABA tried to halt the Gervin deal, claiming it was detrimental to the league; however, a judge ruled in the Spurs' favor and Gervin made his Spurs debut on February 7, 1974. The Spurs finished their inaugural season under that banner with a 45–39 record, good for third place in the Western Division. In the playoffs, the team was defeated by the Indiana Pacers in seven games in
7050-463: The 1976 ABA–NBA merger , one of two former ABA teams to have won an NBA championship (the other being the Denver Nuggets ), and the only former ABA team to have won multiple championships. The franchise has won NBA championships in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014. As of the 2022–23 season, the Spurs had the highest winning percentage among active NBA franchises. As of May 2017, the Spurs had
7200-544: The 1976–77 season. The Spurs and the other three ABA teams added in the merger agreed to pay the owners of two other strong ABA teams that folded instead of joining the NBA. John Y. Brown, Jr. , the owner of the Kentucky Colonels , received $ 3 million, which he used to purchase the NBA's Buffalo Braves and later the Boston Celtics , after selling star guard Louie Dampier to the Spurs. The owners of
7350-486: The 1988–89 season featured the debut of Larry Brown as the Spurs head coach who moved to San Antonio after winning the NCAA National Championship with Kansas in 1988. Although there was speculation that Robinson might choose not to sign with the Spurs and to become a free agent once his Navy commitment ended, Robinson decided in the end to come to San Antonio for the 1989–90 season . While it
7500-548: The 1996–97 season was for the Spurs, the off-season proved to be the opposite. With the third-worst record in the league, the Spurs won the NBA draft lottery, which gave them the top pick in the 1997 draft . The Spurs used their pick to select Wake Forest product and consensus All-American Tim Duncan . Paired together, the 7'1" Robinson and the 6'11" Duncan became known as the Twin Towers. The Twin Towers played together for
7650-465: The 1999–2000 season, as Bexar County voters approved increases in car rental and hotel taxes which would allow for the construction of a new arena next to the Freeman Coliseum . The Spurs finished with 58–24 records for both the 2000–01 and 2001–02 seasons but found themselves suffering playoff ousters in both seasons from the eventual NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers , getting swept from
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#17327732358387800-569: The 2001 Conference Finals and losing in five games during the second round in 2002. Entering the 2002–03 season , the team knew it would be memorable for at least two reasons, as David Robinson announced that it would be his last in the NBA and the Spurs would begin play at their new arena, the SBC Center , named after telecommunications giant SBC , whose corporate headquarters were located in San Antonio (SBC became AT&T after its acquisition of its former parent company). To mark this occasion,
7950-546: The 2016–17 season, 980,673 boys and girls represented their schools in interscholastic basketball competition, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations . The states of Illinois , Indiana and Kentucky are particularly well known for their residents' devotion to high school basketball, commonly called Hoosier Hysteria in Indiana; the critically acclaimed film Hoosiers shows high school basketball's depth of meaning to these communities. There
8100-592: The BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) to form the National Basketball Association (NBA). By the 1950s, basketball had become a major college sport, thus paving the way for a growth of interest in professional basketball. In 1959, a basketball hall of fame was founded in Springfield , Massachusetts, site of the first game. Its rosters include the names of great players, coaches, referees and people who have contributed significantly to
8250-533: The Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. Thus, the sport quickly spread throughout America's schools, colleges and universities with uniform rules for both sexes. Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball . These round balls from " association football " were made, at the time, with a set of laces to close off the hole needed for inserting
8400-557: The Frost Bank Center hosts the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo during that month. This is informally known as the "Rodeo Road Trip". The Spurs have consistently posted winning road records during this period, including an NBA-record longest single road-trip winning streak (eight games out of nine, achieved in 2003). When the Spurs have won the NBA title, the team's victory parades have been boat trips on
8550-492: The G League has 31 teams. FIBA (International Basketball Federation) was formed in 1932 by eight founding nations: Argentina , Czechoslovakia , Greece , Italy , Latvia , Portugal , Romania and Switzerland . At this time, the organization only oversaw amateur players. Its acronym, derived from the French Fédération Internationale de Basket-ball Amateur , was thus "FIBA". Men's basketball
8700-536: The George Gervin Youth Center. The Spurs set several NBA attendance records while playing at the Alamodome including the largest crowd ever for an NBA Finals game in 1999, and the Spurs continue to sell out the smaller Frost Bank Center (formerly SBC Center and AT&T Center) on a regular basis. Since 2003, the team has been forced into an extended road trip for much of February since
8850-665: The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (IAAUS). In 1910, that body changed its name to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The first Canadian interuniversity basketball game was played at YMCA in Kingston , Ontario on February 6, 1904, when McGill University – Naismith's alma mater – visited Queen's University . McGill won 9–7 in overtime;
9000-721: The Knicks' home arena, Madison Square Garden . Duncan was named the NBA Finals MVP . The Spurs became the first former ABA team to reach and win the NBA Finals. Coming off their first NBA Championship, the Spurs were still among the best teams in the West and battling for first place in the Midwest Division during the 1999–2000 season . On March 14, the Spurs playoff spirits got a lift when Sean Elliott , who received
9150-510: The Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at the Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. These rules, designed by Berenson, were published in 1899. In 1902 Berenson became the editor of A. G. Spalding 's first Women's Basketball Guide. The same year women of Mount Holyoke and Sophie Newcomb College (coached by Clara Gregory Baer ), began playing basketball. By 1895,
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#17327732358389300-587: The NBA imposed on the incoming ABA teams, limiting their draft picks and television revenues during their early time in the merged league. They gained a new rival in the form of the Houston Rockets , who had played in Texas for five years prior to the merger. During the 1977–78 season , Gervin battled David Thompson of the Denver Nuggets all year long for the NBA scoring title. On the final day of
9450-452: The NBA standings. They would battle all year for the top spot in the Western Conference, as they ended the season on another strong note winning their final 11 games. However, they would fall one game short of a division title and the best record in the West, posting a record of 57–25. In the second round of the playoffs, the Spurs found themselves in another showdown with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Spurs would win Games 1 and 2 at home, but drop
9600-435: The NBA) for a short meeting with the players, are allowed. They generally last no longer than one minute (100 seconds in the NBA) unless, for televised games, a commercial break is needed. The game is controlled by the officials consisting of the referee (referred to as crew chief in the NBA), one or two umpires (referred to as referees in the NBA) and the table officials. For college, the NBA, and many high schools, there are
9750-404: The NBA, and U Sports (Canadian universities) play for both sexes, and 30 seconds in NCAA play for both sexes), holding the ball while closely guarded (5 seconds), and remaining in the restricted area known as the free-throw lane, (or the " key ") (3 seconds). These rules are designed to promote more offense. There are also limits on how players may block an opponent's field goal attempt or help
9900-439: The NBA. Top international players began coming into the NBA in the mid-1990s, including Croatians Dražen Petrović and Toni Kukoč , Serbian Vlade Divac , Lithuanians Arvydas Sabonis and Šarūnas Marčiulionis , Dutchman Rik Smits and German Detlef Schrempf . In the Philippines, the Philippine Basketball Association 's first game was played on April 9, 1975, at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao , Quezon City , Philippines. It
10050-462: The Savages : "Among other things, a game of skill is described in which balls must be thrown against a target woven from twigs, mounted high on a pole. There's a small reward for the player if the target is being hit." In December 1891, James Naismith , a Canadian-American professor of physical education and instructor at the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School (now Springfield College ) in Springfield, Massachusetts ,
10200-419: The Spurs bowed down to the home team, the Golden State Warriors, 106–98. The Spurs christened the SBC Center in style on November 1, 2002, by defeating the Toronto Raptors 91–72. The next game, the Spurs were on the road to face the winless Memphis Grizzlies . In that game, the Spurs and the Grizzlies went to overtime. In the first minutes of the OT, the Grizzlies held a 7-point lead before Tim Duncan answered
10350-435: The Spurs defeated the Suns, Lakers and Mavericks en route to facing the New Jersey Nets in the NBA Finals . The series against the Nets marked the first time two former ABA teams played each other for the NBA Championship. The Spurs won the series 4–2, giving them their second NBA Championship in franchise history. Duncan, after having been named NBA MVP, was also named Finals MVP. Coming off their second NBA Championship,
10500-428: The Spurs from 1997 to 2003. Both Robinson and Duncan were skilled offensive players, and the Twin Towers also anchored the Spurs' formidable defense. The duo helped lead the team to NBA championships in 1999 and 2003. Duncan quickly emerged as a dominant force in the NBA during the 1997–98 season , averaging 21.1 points and 11.9 rebounds per game as a power forward. He was named First Team All-NBA while winning Rookie of
10650-417: The Spurs looked forward to the 1998–99 season . Prior to the beginning of training camps, however, the NBA owners, led by commissioner David Stern , locked out the players in order to force a new collective bargaining agreement with the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA). The season was delayed for over three months until resolution on a new labor agreement was reached in January 1999. Playing
10800-662: The Spurs looked to regain the NBA crown. With the acquisition of guard Brent Barry from Seattle , the Spurs would get off to a quick start, posting a 12–3 record in November. The Spurs would stay hot through December as they established a 25–6 record entering the New Year. With the later additions of center Nazr Mohammed from New York (acquired in a midseason trade of Malik Rose ), and veteran forward Glenn Robinson from free agency , alongside regulars Bruce Bowen , Robert Horry , Tony Parker , Manu Ginóbili , and Tim Duncan ,
10950-509: The Spurs lost Games 3 and 4 by big margins as the Pistons tied the series. Faced with a third straight loss in Detroit, the Spurs would play tougher in Game 5, which would go into overtime. After going scoreless in the first half, Robert Horry hit a clutch three-point shot with nine seconds remaining to give the Spurs a dramatic 96–95 win. The series moved back to San Antonio for game six, but
11100-577: The Spurs lost to the San Diego Conquistadors despite attracting a crowd of 6,000 fans. A smothering defense was the team's trademark, as they held opponents to less than 100 points in an ABA-record 49 games. The early Spurs were led by ABA veteran James Silas , and the team grew stronger by acquiring Swen Nater (who would go on to win the Rookie of the Year award ) and George Gervin from
11250-479: The Spurs revamped their "Fiesta Colors" logo and reverted to the familiar silver and black motif (though, during the time of the Fiesta logo, the uniform remained silver and black). This version of the Spurs was very different from the team that had won the title a few years earlier. Second-year French star Tony Parker , drafted by the Spurs in the first round of the 2001 NBA draft , was now the starting point guard for
11400-418: The Spurs to be mentioned as a potential candidate for relocation to another city. The lone bright spot during this period was the Spurs being awarded the top pick in the 1987 NBA draft through NBA draft lottery. The Spurs used this selection on United States Naval Academy standout David Robinson . Although Robinson was drafted in 1987, the Spurs would have to wait until the 1989–90 season for Robinson to be
11550-399: The Spurs were dealt by the visiting Trail Blazers their first home loss of the season. The Spurs would not get off to a flying start as they had just a 19–13 record heading into January. In January the Spurs began to gel and seemed prepped to make a run, when they embarked on their annual Rodeo Road Trip, a nine-game road trip from January 25 to February 16. However, it would be hardly a bump in
11700-474: The Spurs were unable to close out the series, setting up a deciding Game 7. In Game 7, Duncan had 25 points as the Spurs pulled away late to win their third NBA Title in seven years with an 81–74 win. Duncan was named Finals MVP , becoming the fourth player to win the MVP award three times (joining Magic Johnson , Shaquille O'Neal , and Michael Jordan ). Coming off their third NBA Championship in seven years, there
11850-649: The Spurs were unable to win any NBA championships, losing in the Western Conference playoffs to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the 1981 and the Los Angeles Lakers in four games in 1982 and in six games in the 1983 Western Finals despite getting both wins at the Forum in the 1983 series. They lost every home game in both series in 1982 and 1983 vs the Lakers as Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and co. were too strong. The Spurs did not make
12000-401: The Spurs would be near the top in the Western Conference all season, battling the Phoenix Suns for the best record in the NBA. Just as it appeared the Spurs would cruise toward the playoffs their season suddenly hit a bump in the road when Tim Duncan suffered an ankle injury. The Spurs struggled the rest of the season, finishing just 59–23. However, by the time the playoffs rolled around, Duncan
12150-477: The Spurs. The squad featured a variety of newly acquired three-point shooters, including Stephen Jackson , Danny Ferry , Bruce Bowen , Steve Kerr , Steve Smith and Argentine product Manu Ginóbili , a 1999 second-round draft choice playing in his first NBA season. The Spurs started the 2002–03 season with an 87–81 road win over the defending champions, the Los Angeles Lakers . The following game,
12300-428: The United States, and it quickly spread through the United States and Canada. By 1895, it was well established at several women's high schools. While YMCA was responsible for initially developing and spreading the game, within a decade it discouraged the new sport, as rough play and rowdy crowds began to detract from YMCA's primary mission. However, other amateur sports clubs, colleges, and professional clubs quickly filled
12450-459: The United States, basketball has evolved to become one of the world's most popular and widely viewed sports. The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the most significant professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition (drawing most of its talent from U.S. college basketball ). Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as
12600-454: The WNBA to break even this year." Measurements and time limits discussed in this section often vary among tournaments and organizations; international and NBA rules are used in this section. The object of the game is to outscore one's opponents by throwing the ball through the opponents' basket from above while preventing the opponents from doing so on their own. An attempt to score in this way
12750-610: The Washington Bullets, the Boston Celtics , the Houston Rockets, and the Los Angeles Lakers . As the 1980s progressed, the Spurs would see their shares of highs and lows. For the first few seasons of the decade, the Spurs continued their success of the 1970s with records of 52–30 in 1980–81 (in that season, the Spurs were moved to the Midwest Division of the Western Conference), 48–34 in 1981–82 , and 53–29 in 1982–83 . Despite their regular-season success,
12900-473: The Year honors. The team ended up at 56–26, breaking their own record from 1989 to 1990 for the biggest single-season improvement for wins, but once again lost to the Jazz in the Western Conference semi-finals. While both Duncan and Robinson played low-post roles, the two seamlessly meshed on the court. With a healthy Robinson and Duncan and the additions of playoff veterans such as Mario Elie and Jerome Kersey ,
13050-407: The allotted game time, typically about two hours. Five players from each team may be on the court at one time. Substitutions are unlimited but can only be done when play is stopped. Teams also have a coach, who oversees the development and strategies of the team, and other team personnel such as assistant coaches, managers, statisticians, doctors and trainers. For both men's and women's teams,
13200-415: The ball from a dribbler, intercept passes, or block shots; either offense or defense may collect a rebound , that is, a missed shot that bounces from rim or backboard. It is a violation to lift or drag one's pivot foot without dribbling the ball , to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands then resume dribbling . The five players on each side fall into five playing positions . The tallest player
13350-490: The basket if one is scored. The defense gains possession in all cases of goaltending or basket interference. An attempt to unfairly disadvantage an opponent through certain types of physical contact is illegal and is called a personal foul. These are most commonly committed by defensive players; however, they can be committed by offensive players as well. Players who are fouled either receive the ball to pass inbounds again, or receive one or more free throws if they are fouled in
13500-414: The basketball is also regulated. For men, the official ball is 29.5 inches (75 cm) in circumference (size 7, or a "295 ball") and weighs 22 oz (620 g). If women are playing, the official basketball size is 28.5 inches (72 cm) in circumference (size 6, or a "285 ball") with a weight of 20 oz (570 g). In 3x3 , a formalized version of the halfcourt 3-on-3 game, a dedicated ball with
13650-465: The best in franchise history. They also jumped all the way to first place in the Midwest Division, their first division title in seven years. Robinson had one of the most successful rookie seasons for a center in NBA history, finishing the season as the unanimous Rookie of the Year while averaging 24.3 points and 12.0 rebounds. The Spurs began the 1990s with great optimism. The team became a perennial playoff presence, although unable to advance further than
13800-416: The best winning percentage of any franchise in the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada over the previous three decades. From 1999–2000 to 2016–17, the Spurs won 50 games each season, setting a record of 18 consecutive 50-win seasons. In the 2018–19 season, the Spurs matched an NBA record for most consecutive playoff appearances with 22. The team's recent success has coincided with
13950-516: The champion dwindled after 1954 when Brown v. Board of Education began an integration of schools. The last tournaments were held at Alabama State College from 1964 to 1967. Teams abounded throughout the 1920s. There were hundreds of men's professional basketball teams in towns and cities all over the United States, and little organization of the professional game. Players jumped from team to team and teams played in armories and smoky dance halls. Leagues came and went. Barnstorming squads such as
14100-419: The circumference of a size 6 ball but the weight of a size 7 ball is used in all competitions (men's, women's, and mixed teams). The ball may be advanced toward the basket by being shot, passed between players, thrown, tapped, rolled or dribbled (bouncing the ball while running). The ball must stay within the court; the last team to touch the ball before it travels out of bounds forfeits possession. The ball
14250-504: The conference finals until 1995. After the 1984–85 season , Gervin, who had been the Spurs' biggest star, was traded to the Chicago Bulls in what effectively signaled the end of the era that began when the Spurs first moved to San Antonio. The next four seasons were a dark time in Spurs' history with the team having a combined record of 115–213 from 1985–86 until 1988–89 . The losing seasons and dwindling attendance often caused
14400-439: The court and backboard, it is considered important for the basket to be of the correct height – a rim that is off by just a few inches can have an adverse effect on shooting. The net must "check the ball momentarily as it passes through the basket" to aid the visual confirmation that the ball went through. The act of checking the ball has the further advantage of slowing down the ball so the rebound does not go as far. The size of
14550-540: The development of the game. The hall of fame has people who have accomplished many goals in their career in basketball. An upstart organization, the American Basketball Association , emerged in 1967 and briefly threatened the NBA's dominance until the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. Today the NBA is the top professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition. The NBA has featured many famous players, including George Mikan ,
14700-420: The end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play ( overtime ) is mandated. Players advance the ball by bouncing it while walking or running (dribbling) or by passing it to a teammate, both of which require considerable skill. On offense, players may use a variety of shots – the layup , the jump shot , or a dunk ; on defense, they may steal
14850-833: The ending of the game was replayed three times until the Soviet Union finally came out on top. In 1950 the first FIBA World Championship for men, now known as the FIBA Basketball World Cup , was held in Argentina. Three years later, the first FIBA World Championship for women, now known as the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup , was held in Chile. Women's basketball was added to the Olympics in 1976, which were held in Montreal , Quebec, Canada with teams such as
15000-437: The first European-born player to win the award . Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court , compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately 9.4 inches (24 cm) in diameter) through the defender's hoop (a basket 18 inches (46 cm) in diameter mounted 10 feet (3.048 m) high to
15150-478: The first decades of the 20th century, basketball quickly became the ideal interscholastic sport due to its modest equipment and personnel requirements. In the days before widespread television coverage of professional and college sports, the popularity of high school basketball was unrivaled in many parts of America. Perhaps the most legendary of high school teams was Indiana's Franklin Wonder Five , which took
15300-803: The first dominating "big man"; ball-handling wizard Bob Cousy and defensive genius Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics ; charismatic center Wilt Chamberlain , who originally played for the barnstorming Harlem Globetrotters ; all-around stars Oscar Robertson and Jerry West ; more recent big men Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , Shaquille O'Neal , Hakeem Olajuwon and Karl Malone ; playmakers John Stockton , Isiah Thomas and Steve Nash ; crowd-pleasing forwards Julius Erving and Charles Barkley ; European stars Dirk Nowitzki , Pau Gasol and Tony Parker ; Latin American stars Manu Ginobili , more recent superstars, Allen Iverson , Kobe Bryant , Tim Duncan , LeBron James , Stephen Curry , Giannis Antetokounmpo , etc.; and
15450-430: The first half of the 2006–07 season , which led to discussions of trading away veteran players to build for the future. The team remained intact, and the Spurs would win 13 games in a row during February and March, and were an NBA-best 25–6 in the final 31 games, as the Spurs were able to claim the 3-seed in the West. The Spurs cruised through the first round, while the first-seeded Dallas Mavericks were upset. This set up
15600-507: The first round. San Antonio embraced the Spurs with open arms; the Spurs drew 6,303 fans per game, surpassing the Chaparrals' entire total attendance in only 18 games. Drossos, Schaefer and McCombs knew a runaway hit when they saw it. After only one year, they exercised their option to tear up the lease agreement, buy the franchise outright and keep the team in San Antonio for good. The team quickly made themselves at home at HemisFair Arena, playing to increasingly large and raucous crowds. Despite
15750-406: The first-ever rights fees to be paid to a women's professional sports league. Over the eight years of the contract, "millions and millions of dollars" were "dispersed to the league's teams." In a March 12, 2009, article, NBA commissioner David Stern said that in the bad economy, "the NBA is far less profitable than the WNBA. We're losing a lot of money among a large number of teams. We're budgeting
15900-425: The game had spread to colleges across the country, including Wellesley , Vassar , and Bryn Mawr . The first intercollegiate women's game was on April 4, 1896. Stanford women played Berkeley , 9-on-9, ending in a 2–1 Stanford victory. Women's basketball development was more structured than that for men in the early years. In 1905, the executive committee on Basket Ball Rules (National Women's Basketball Committee)
16050-489: The inflatable bladder after the other sewn-together segments of the ball's cover had been flipped outside-in. These laces could cause bounce passes and dribbling to be unpredictable. Eventually a lace-free ball construction method was invented, and this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith (whereas in American football , the lace construction proved to be advantageous for gripping and remains to this day). The first balls made specifically for basketball were brown, and it
16200-419: The last three games and came from behind to win the seventh game 107–105 handing the Spurs a heartbreaking loss. The Spurs would have to wait another 20 years to make it to their first NBA Finals. The Spurs would go on to capture five division titles in their first seven years in the NBA and became a perennial playoff participant. However, in the playoffs, the Spurs could never catch a break, losing to teams like
16350-556: The league's popularity and level of competition. Other professional women's basketball leagues in the United States, such as the American Basketball League (1996–98) , have folded in part because of the popularity of the WNBA. The WNBA has been looked at by many as a niche league. However, the league has recently taken steps forward. In June 2007, the WNBA signed a contract extension with ESPN . The new television deal ran from 2009 to 2016. Along with this deal, came
16500-423: The mezzanine balcony of the playing court, but this proved impractical when spectators in the balcony began to interfere with shots. The backboard was introduced to prevent this interference; it had the additional effect of allowing rebound shots. Naismith's handwritten diaries, discovered by his granddaughter in early 2006, indicate that he was nervous about the new game he had invented, which incorporated rules from
16650-405: The most important off-season acquisition would be the signing of veteran Robert Horry . The Spurs, playing with nine new players, struggled early as they missed the presence of Robinson while the new players struggled to fit in, as they held a 9–10 record on December 3. However, the Spurs would turn it around, as they ended December on a 13-game winning streak and quickly climbed back to the top of
16800-489: The nation by storm during the 1920s, dominating Indiana basketball and earning national recognition. Today virtually every high school in the United States fields a basketball team in varsity competition. Basketball's popularity remains high, both in rural areas where they carry the identification of the entire community, as well as at some larger schools known for their basketball teams where many players go on to participate at higher levels of competition after graduation. In
16950-402: The nearby Smith College , went to Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by the new sport and the values it could teach, she started to organize games with her pupils, following adjusted rules. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played barely 11 months later, between the University of California and the Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at
17100-400: The new sport and the values it could teach, she instantly introduced the game as a class exercise and soon after teams were organized. The first women's collegiate basketball game was played on March 21, 1893, when her Smith freshmen and sophomores played against one another. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played later that year between the University of California and
17250-524: The next two in Los Angeles. In Game 5 back in San Antonio, Duncan seemingly delivered the Spurs a 73–72 win as he hit a dramatic shot with just 0.4 seconds remaining. However, the Lakers' Derek Fisher would launch a game-winner as time expired, giving the Lakers a stunning 74–73 win to take a 3–2 series lead. Demoralized the Spurs would head back to Los Angeles where they would lose the series in six games. After their disappointing second-round collapse,
17400-458: The offense, a violation of these rules results in loss of possession; for the defense, most leagues reset the shot clock and the offensive team is given possession of the ball out of bounds. There are limits imposed on the time taken before progressing the ball past halfway (8 seconds in FIBA and the NBA; 10 seconds in NCAA and high school for both sexes), before attempting a shot (24 seconds in FIBA,
17550-494: The perpetual payments and take a lump sum of $ 500 million instead. Although there was some initial skepticism in league circles regarding the potential success and talent levels of the incoming ABA teams, the Spurs would prove worthy of NBA inclusion during the 1976–77 season with a record of 44–38, good for a tie for fourth place overall in the Eastern Conference. This was done in spite of significant handicaps
17700-502: The playoffs, which led to the immediate firing of Lucas as head coach. Prior to the season, the Spurs traded fan-favorite Elliott to the Detroit Pistons in return for rebounding star Dennis Rodman . Elliott returned to the Spurs at the following year. Lucas was replaced by former Pacers coach Bob Hill for the 1994–95 season . On their first game of the season, they were defeated by the visiting Golden State Warriors despite
17850-659: The retirement of David Robinson left a void in San Antonio's daunting defense, while playoff hero Steve Kerr and veteran forward Danny Ferry also retired. Meanwhile, backup point guard Speedy Claxton left for the Golden State Warriors , and Stephen Jackson left for the Atlanta Hawks . With several holes to fill in their rotation, the Spurs would make several key signings in the off-season. Rasho Nesterović and Hedo Türkoğlu were brought in to replace Robinson and Jackson, respectively. What proved to be
18000-402: The road for the charging Spurs, who won eight of the nine and began to climb their way to first place. The Spurs went on to erase their seven-game deficit and finished the season in a tie with the Dallas Mavericks for the best record in the NBA (60–22). Thanks to a tiebreaker, the Spurs won their third straight Division title as Tim Duncan claimed his second straight NBA MVP. In the playoffs ,
18150-487: The run with a 9-point run by himself. With a tied score of 111–111 with 0.8 seconds remaining, Duncan made a 12-foot jumpshot to defeat the Grizzlies. The following game, the Spurs were down by three points at halftime against the visiting Warriors, but then scored 31 points in the third quarter to put the game away, clinching their fourth win of the season. Tony Parker led the Spurs after scoring 21 points. Three days after,
18300-582: The score was 7–7 at the end of regulation play, and a ten-minute overtime period settled the outcome. A good turnout of spectators watched the game. The first men's national championship tournament, the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball tournament, which still exists as the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) tournament , was organized in 1937. The first national championship for NCAA teams,
18450-603: The scoring title. While Gervin was lighting up the scoreboard the Spurs were winning the Central Division with a 52–30 record. However, in the playoffs, the Spurs would be stunned in six games by the Washington Bullets despite an outstanding series from Gervin who averaged 33.2 points per game. The following season in the 1979 Conference Finals the Spurs led the series 3–1 but the Bullets came back to win
18600-576: The season with a 51–33 record and finished in second place in the West. In the playoffs, the Spurs fell to the Pacers in six games. Even though playoff success would elude the team before the merger, the Spurs had suddenly found themselves among the best teams in the ABA. Moreover, their gaudy attendance figures made them very attractive to the NBA, even though San Antonio, then as now, was a medium-sized market. Although San Antonio proper had over 650,000 people at
18750-472: The season, Thompson took the lead by scoring 73 points in an afternoon game against the Detroit Pistons . That night Gervin knew that he needed 58 points against the Jazz in New Orleans. Gervin got off to a good start by scoring 20 points in the first quarter. In the second, Gervin set a single period record with 33 points. Early on in the third period, Gervin scored his 58 points on the way to 63 capturing
18900-453: The second round of the NBA playoffs under Brown's tutelage. Midway through the 1991–92 season , McCombs fired Brown and replaced him with Bob Bass for the remainder of the season. Without a healthy David Robinson, the Spurs were swept out of the first round of the playoffs by the Phoenix Suns. McCombs made national headlines during the summer of 1992 with the hiring of former UNLV head coach Jerry Tarkanian . The Tarkanian experiment proved
19050-646: The second-round series against the Suns was the true NBA Finals would be proven right, as the Spurs easily dispatched the Utah Jazz in five games to reach the NBA Finals . In the Finals, the Spurs swept the Cleveland Cavaliers and captured their fourth title in nine years. Tony Parker , who dominated in the Finals averaging 24.5 points per game on 57 percent shooting, was named Finals MVP and became
19200-468: The sport in Australia. The Women's National Basketball League began in 1981. Women began to play basketball in the fall of 1892 at Smith College through Senda Berenson , substitute director of the newly opened gymnasium and physical education teacher, after having modified the rules for women. Shortly after Berenson was hired at Smith, she visited Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by
19350-497: The team did not win at least 50 games in a season, a feat that extended through the 2016–17 season. The team was just as dominant in the playoffs, rolling through the Western Conference with a record of 11–1. In the NBA Finals , they faced the New York Knicks , who had made history by becoming the first eighth seed to ever make the NBA Finals. The Spurs won the series 4-1 and the franchise's first NBA Championship in Game 5 at
19500-530: The team for three years with an option to purchase. After the deal was signed, the team was renamed the San Antonio Gunslingers. However, before they even played a game, the name was changed to Spurs. The team's primary colors were changed from the red, white, and blue of the Chaparrals to the now-familiar black, silver and white motif of the Spurs, with the branding taking effect for the 1973–74 season . In their first game at HemisFair Arena ,
19650-412: The team to a 39–22 finish over the rest of the regular season, and the team reached the Western Conference semi-finals. In 1993, local businessman Peter M. Holt and a group of 22 investors purchased the Spurs from Red McCombs for $ 75 million. In the 1993–94 season, the Spurs' first in the newly built Alamodome , Lucas led the team to a 55–27 record but the team suffered a loss in the first round of
19800-453: The team. After missing the playoffs for the first time in their existence in the 1972–73 season , nearly all of the owners wanted out. The team decided to sell the team to a different city, and the Chaparrals had to choose between San Antonio and El Paso . A group of 35 San Antonio businessmen—led by Angelo Drossos , John Schaefer, and Red McCombs —worked out a "lend-lease" deal with the Dallas ownership group. Drossos and his group would lease
19950-486: The tenure of current head coach Gregg Popovich and with the playing careers of Spurs icons David Robinson (1989–2003) and Tim Duncan (1997–2016). In the 2022–23 season, the Spurs celebrated the club's 50th anniversary. Spurs players are active members of the San Antonio community, and many former Spurs are still active in San Antonio, including David Robinson with the Carver Academy and George Gervin with
20100-572: The three players who many credit with ushering the professional game to its highest level of popularity during the 1980s and 1990s: Larry Bird , Earvin "Magic" Johnson , and Michael Jordan . In 2001, the NBA formed a developmental league, the National Basketball Development League (later known as the NBA D-League and then the NBA G League after a branding deal with Gatorade ). As of the 2023–24 season,
20250-512: The time (and has since grown to become the seventh-largest city in the United States ), the surrounding suburban and rural areas have never been much larger than the city itself. In June 1976, the ABA–NBA merger took place, moving San Antonio's sole professional sports franchise into a new league. The Spurs, the Denver Nuggets , the Indiana Pacers and the New York Nets joined the NBA for
20400-657: The void. In the years before World War I , the Amateur Athletic Union and the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (forerunner of the NCAA ) vied for control over the rules for the game. The first pro league, the National Basketball League, was formed in 1898 to protect players from exploitation and to promote a less rough game. This league only lasted five years. James Naismith
20550-438: The worst in franchise history—and the last time they missed the playoffs until the 2019–20 season. Hill only lasted 18 games as coach that season, eventually being fired and replaced by general manager Gregg Popovich , who had also served a stint under Brown as an assistant coach. Wilkins would play his lone season in 1996–97 for San Antonio, knowing his minutes and playing time would greatly diminish next season. As disastrous as
20700-482: Was a sense that the Spurs were the class of the NBA, and once again would be the team to beat in the NBA for the Championship. For the 2005–06 season , the Spurs acquired the two-time All-Star Michael Finley and one-time All Star Nick Van Exel . Not surprisingly, the Spurs would come flying out of the gate, winning 16 of their first 19 games. Once again, the Spurs would get challenged within their own division by
20850-403: Was common by 1896, with a rule against the double dribble by 1898. The peach baskets were used until 1906 when they were finally replaced by metal hoops with backboards. A further change was soon made, so the ball merely passed through. Whenever a person got the ball in the basket, his team would gain a point. Whichever team got the most points won the game. The baskets were originally nailed to
21000-632: Was created by the American Physical Education Association . These rules called for six to nine players per team and 11 officials. The International Women's Sports Federation (1924) included a women's basketball competition. 37 women's high school varsity basketball or state tournaments were held by 1925. And in 1926, the Amateur Athletic Union backed the first national women's basketball championship , complete with men's rules. The Edmonton Grads ,
21150-506: Was first included at the Berlin 1936 Summer Olympics , although a demonstration tournament was held in 1904. The United States defeated Canada in the first final, played outdoors. This competition has usually been dominated by the United States, whose team has won all but three titles. The first of these came in a controversial final game in Munich in 1972 against the Soviet Union, in which
21300-661: Was founded as a "rebellion" of several teams from the now-defunct Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association, which was tightly controlled by the Basketball Association of the Philippines (now defunct), the then-FIBA recognized national association. Nine teams from the MICAA participated in the league's first season that opened on April 9, 1975. The NBL is Australia's pre-eminent men's professional basketball league. The league commenced in 1979 , playing
21450-485: Was instrumental in establishing college basketball . His colleague C. O. Beamis fielded the first college basketball team just a year after the Springfield YMCA game at the suburban Pittsburgh Geneva College . Naismith himself later coached at the University of Kansas for six years, before handing the reins to renowned coach Forrest "Phog" Allen . Naismith's disciple Amos Alonzo Stagg brought basketball to
21600-490: Was named All-NBA Third Team for the Spurs that season. The Spurs finished the 1995–96 season under Hill at 59–23 and lost in the Western Conference semi-finals. Few observers could have predicted how far the Spurs would fall during the 1996–97 season , especially with the signing of Dominique Wilkins . Robinson missed the first month of the season due to a back injury. He returned in December, but played only six games before
21750-632: Was named the league's Most Valuable Player. The Spurs reached the Western Conference Finals, but lost to the eventual NBA Champion Houston Rockets . Throughout the season, and particularly in the playoffs, there appeared to be friction developing between Rodman and several Spurs' teammates, most notably Robinson. Rodman was traded to the Chicago Bulls after the season, and helped the Bulls win three titles from 1996 to 1998. Rodman
21900-476: Was not an official Olympic sport until 1976. The Grads' players were unpaid, and had to remain single. The Grads' style focused on team play, without overly emphasizing skills of individual players. The first women's AAU All-America team was chosen in 1929. Women's industrial leagues sprang up throughout the United States, producing famous athletes, including Babe Didrikson of the Golden Cyclones , and
22050-424: Was only in the late 1950s that Tony Hinkle , searching for a ball that would be more visible to players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball that is now in common use. Dribbling was not part of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the asymmetric shape of early balls. Dribbling
22200-495: Was ready to return. In the postseason , The Spurs went through the West relatively easily, culminating with a 5-game victory in the Conference Finals over the Phoenix Suns . In the NBA Finals , the Spurs would face the defending champion Detroit Pistons . The first two games in San Antonio were both Spurs' victories as Ginóbili led the way with 26 and 27 points respectively. However, as the series shifted to Detroit,
22350-475: Was thought that Robinson's arrival would make the Spurs respectable again, no one expected what happened in his rookie season. Led by Robinson, 1989 draftee Sean Elliott from Arizona , and trade acquisition Terry Cummings from the Milwaukee Bucks, the Spurs achieved the biggest one-season turnaround in NBA history, finishing with a record of 56–26–vaulting from the worst record in franchise history to
22500-402: Was trying to keep his gym class active on a rainy day. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the long New England winters. After rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums , he invented a new game in which players would pass a ball to teammates and try to score points by tossing the ball into
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