2004–05 San Antonio Spurs season

NBA season
team = San Antonio Spurs
misc = Third NBA title
end_year = 2005
wins = 59
losses = 23
division = Southwest
division_place = 1
conf_place = 2
coach = Gregg Popovich
arena = AT&T Center
owners = Peter Holt
television =
radio =
playoffs = NBA Champions
bbr_team = SAS

Offseason

NBA Draft

January

Record: 12–4; Home: 9–0; Road: 3–4

April

Record: 6-5; Home: 4-0; Road: 2-5

NBA Finals

Game One

basketballbox
bg = #eee
date = June 9, 2005
time = 8:00 p.m. EST
report = [http://www.nba.com/games/20050609/DETSAS/recap.html Recap]
team1 = Detroit Pistons
score1 = 69
score2 = 84
team2 = San Antonio Spurs
points1 = Billups 25; Hamilton 14; Prince 11
rebounds1 = B. Wallace 8; R. Wallace 7; McDyess 7
assist1 = Billups 6; Prince 4
otherstat1 = Blocks: R. Wallace 6
points2 = Ginobili 26; Duncan 24; Parker 15
rebounds2 = Duncan 17; Ginobili 9; Mohammed 7
assist2 = Parker 3; Horry 3; Bowen 2
otherstat2 =
place = SBC Center San Antonio, Texas
attendance = 18,797
referee = Mike Callahan; Ron Garretson; Steve Javie
TV = ABC
series = Spurs lead series 1-0

Manu Ginobili was widely considered the star of the night, scoring in a virtuoso performance near the end of the game to lead the Spurs to victory. The Pistons were then left 'in the dust', the NBA website reported. Ginobili scored 15 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter to complement a huge game by Tim Duncan.

Ginobili, a famous Argentine All-Star, already with championship rings from the NBA and Euroleague and an Olympic gold medal (the only player in history with all three), got to work on his second NBA title by taking over in the final period. He scored eight points in a decisive 12-2 surge that gave the Spurs a 67-55 lead, then throttled a push by the Pistons with a swooping dunk, 3-pointer and running hook for an 81-67 advantage with less than two minutes to go.

Having been idle for a week, the Spurs looked weak. With their defense, however, they were able to overcome adversity. Tim Duncan, who had 24 points and 17 rebounds, also contributed. Although the Pistons tend to suddenly come alive in the fourth quarter, the converse was true this game as San Antonio put together a big quarter to take a commanding lead in the game.

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Game Four

"Thursday, June 16, 2005, 21:00, at The Palace".basketballbox
bg = #eee
date = June 16, 2005
time = 9:00 p.m.
report = [http://www.nba.com/games/20050616/SASDET/recap.html Recap]
team1 = San Antonio Spurs
score1 = 71
score2 = 102
team2 = Detroit Pistons
points1 = Duncan 16; Parker 12; Ginobili 12
rebounds1 = Duncan 16; Mohammed 5; three others at 4
assist1 = Parker 4; Bowen 4; Ginobili 3
points2 = Billups 17; Hunter 17; R. Wallace -14
rebounds2 = B. Wallace 13; Hamilton 9; R. Wallace 8
assist2 = Billups 7; McDyess 5
otherstat2 = "Note: 7 Pistons players in double point figues"
place = The Palace of Auburn Hills Auburn Hills, Michigan
attendance = 22,076
referee = Dick Bavetta, Joe DeRosa, Eddie F. Rush
TV = ABC
series = Series tied 2-2

In this game also, as was previously observed in Game 3, the Pistons dominated the Spurs. Reporters began to remark about the tendency in this series for the home team to produce a blowout. Thus far, no game had been decided by less than 15 points.

Seven Pistons scored in double figures, and big games were collected from Rasheed Wallace, Chauncey Billups, Ben Wallace, and all the other élite stars of the franchise.

The outcome was never really in doubt, and the Pistons committed a Finals-record low four turnovers, but even this is often deemed an underestimation of the Pistons' defensive power. The deciding factor appears to have been the lack of possession time for the Spurs. This led to infrequent opportunities to score, and combined with an uncharacteristic scoring slump, the Spurs were only able to manage 71 points. For the second straight game, the Pistons scored more than 90 points against the Spurs.

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Game Seven

basketballbox
bg = #eee
date = June 23, 2005
time = 8:00 p.m. EST
report = [http://www.nba.com/games/20050623/DETSAS/recap.html Recap]
team1 = Detroit Pistons
score1 = 74
score2 = 81
team2 = San Antonio Spurs
points1 = Hamilton 15; Billups 13; B. Wallace 12
rebounds1 = B. Wallace 12; Hamilton 8; McDyess 7
assist1 = Billups 8; McDyess 2
points2 = Duncan 25; Ginobili 23; Horry 15
rebounds2 = Duncan 11; Mohammed 7; Ginobili 5
assist2 = Ginobili 4; Duncan 3
place = SBC Center San Antonio, Texas
attendance = 18,797
referee = Dick Bavetta, Joe Crawford, Eddie F. Rush
TV = ABC
series = Spurs win series 4-3

For the first time in eleven years, the NBA Finals came down to a decisive game. Momentum was on Detroit's side, but the Spurs had home-court advantage. The Pistons were looking to become the first team to ever win the last 2 games on the road, after being down 3-2. The stats were, as expected, heavily in favor of the Spurs. NBA teams are 74-17 all-time at home in Game 7, and 9-0 when leading 3-2 going home.

The game, like the previous two games of the series, was closely contested for the first three quarters. But the Spurs took control in the fourth quarter and never looked back as for the second time in three years, the Spurs celebrated a championship on the SBC Center floor. The Spurs won Game Seven 81-74, winning the franchise's third Larry O'Brien Trophy. For the game, Tim Duncan finished with a game high 25 points and 11 rebounds, while teammate Manu Ginobili pitched in with 23 points. Richard Hamilton, with 15 points, was the high scorer for the Pistons, who fell just short of winning back to back championships.

Tim Duncan won his third NBA Finals MVP Award. Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker, and Bruce Bowen each received their second championship ring, while Robert Horry became only the second player in NBA history (John Salley being the first) to play on championship teams for three different franchises.

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Award Winners

* Tim Duncan, Center, NBA Finals MVP

External links

* [http://www.databasebasketball.com/teams/teamyear.htm?yr=2004&tm=SAS&lg=N San Antonio Spurs on Database Basketball]
* [http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/SAS/2005.html San Antonio Spurs on Basketball Reference]

References