Tim Duncan was Bill Russell’s favorite athlete

I know many — if not most of us — have seen this before; but for me, it’s been a while. Honestly, it feels like something we should post once a year when the basketball gods are in their slumber.

Tim Duncan was sitting and talking with basketball legend Bill Russell in 2009 when the NBA decided to name the MVP award in Russell’s honor.

They are possibly two of the most like-minded basketball legends known for the acumen and IQ.

“The day after (Jackie Robinson) died his wife called me and said ‘I want you to be a pall bearer at Jackie’s funeral’. I said, ‘Of course, but could I ask why? Why me?‘ And she said, ‘You were Jackie’s favorite athlete’…and I feel the same way about you.” -Bill Russell to Tim Duncan

Russell goes on to say “I don’t think you’re finished yet,” and Duncan replies, “I’m not.” I believe he is referencing winning another MVP since it was named in Russell’s honor, but the fact that Big Fun won another NBA title at the age of thirty-eight.

As I was confirming his age in Wikipedia, I came across two paragraphs from his final years. The stat-busting is a thing of beauty:

On December 2, 2013, Duncan became the oldest player to record a 20–20 game in NBA history, finishing with 23 points, 21 rebounds, and the game-winning jump shot against the Atlanta Hawks. The Spurs went on to conclude the 2013–14 regular season with a league-best 62 wins. The Spurs defeated Dallas in seven games in the first round of the playoffs, Portland in five games in the conference semifinals, and Oklahoma City in six games, where game 6 went into overtime, as the Spurs won, 112–107. They set up a Finals rematch against the Miami Heat, which they won, 4–1, setting a record margin for a win in the NBA Finals, for games 3 and 4. Along the way, the Duncan-Ginóbili-Parker trio broke the record for most wins in NBA playoffs history. After winning the Finals in five games, Duncan joined John Salley as the only players to win a championship in three different decades.

The following season:

On November 14, 2014, Duncan scored his 25,000th point…becoming the 19th player in NBA history to reach the milestone. On February 19, 2015, he passed Alex English to move into 16th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. On March 4, he recorded six rebounds against the Sacramento Kings, breaking his tie with Nate Thurmond for ninth in career rebounding. Two days later, he recorded three blocks against the Denver Nuggets to surpass Patrick Ewing for sixth overall in career blocks. On April 12, he played his 1,330th career game against the Phoenix Suns, which passed Moses Malone for 11th all-time. He also scored 22 points and passed Kevin Garnett to move into 14th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Duncan was later named to the All-Defensive second team on May 20 for the seventh time in his career.

Pretty amazing season. Look at the names of the players he surpassed. The variety of stats for which he was landed so high.

All hail Tim Duncan, Bill Russell’s favorite athlete.

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