Termine » NG DAVISDevin Davis, averaging 12.7 po

The magnitude of Tim Duncans contributions over his 19-year career are every bit as remarkable as the announcement of his retirement on Monday was understated: Duncan collected five titles with the San Antonio Spurs and 1,001 regular-season victories, all with the same team in a small basketball outpost held over from the ABA-NBA merger.In an era defined by athleticism, Duncan was a master of mechanics. While contemporaries built careers on defying gravity, Timmy deked opponents with jab steps, shoulder fakes and line-drive bank shots, with both feet on the ground. He didnt captivate fans or sponsors with his exploits or charm them with charisma. He was wholly uninterested in the salesmanship required to build a personal brand and didnt give the NBA and its marketers much to work with as the league harnessed its star power to expand its global reach.For Duncan, the postgame podium wasnt a platform, but a sentence.Yet something improbable happened while he was slinking out of the Spurs locker room and dodging the spotlight:Inside the league, Tim Duncan became the most influential player of his generation. Though he had little public appeal outside central Texas over his two decades in the league, Duncan ushered in cultural change in NBA practice facilities, locker rooms and executive suites.The present-day NBA has become singularly consumed with the adoption and implementation of organizational culture. Forever looking for competitive advantages, franchises have turned to workplace culture as a bulwark. We might not be able to attract a top-line free agent, or hit the jackpot in the draft, but there are 44 games in an NBA season that can be won if we value the right things.This is the leagues guiding principle in 2016, from Atlanta and Salt Lake City to Oklahoma City and Brooklyn, where disciples of the Tim Duncan era learned the art and science of team-building in San Antonio. Theyve applied the findings and sculpted them to suit a particular roster or market. Some have enjoyed modest success while others are just getting started. But try as they might to replicate the Spurs recipe, all of them are forced to concede at a certain juncture that theyre missing one essential ingredient:They dont have Tim Duncan.We walk into our houses and thank Tim Duncan, Atlanta Hawks head coach and longtime Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer says. You think about all the coaches and all the GMs and even the assistant video guys who are now assistant coaches, all the people who have climbed the NBA ladder -- we all owe our success, our place in the league to Timmy.The magnitude of that, the number of people in this league who have enjoyed opportunity or found fortunate spots in the league, you can trace it back to this one guy -- to the way Timmy played ball and the conducted himself. The culture is Timmy.Kevin Durant was a credible leader during his tenure with the Thunder -- a founding father of the program, in the words of general manager Sam Presti. Begrudging a first-rate star like Durant the opportunity to forge his own professional path is unwarranted, but his departure from Oklahoma City underscores a truth that owners and execs learn sooner or later. An organizations culture can shield it from disaster, but that culture is only as strong as its leading player.Thats why more measured voices in the Golden State Warriors wince when they read about their owner taking a victory lap for an organizational structure thats light years ahead. Its why every Spurs alum now in a senior managerial role elsewhere understands theres a limit to what infrastructure can do for a team absent a transcendent leader on the roster.And its why Gregg Popovich said a couple of years ago, Before you start handing out applause and credit to anyone else in this organization for anything thats been accomplished, remember it all starts with and goes through Timmy. As soon as he [retires], Ill be 10 steps behind. Because Im not stupid.Theres an ethic of reticence in San Antonio, where Duncan managed to shroud himself in mystery for 19 years. I dont feel comfortable putting myself out there, he told me in 2013. Im just a basketball player. I play the game. I go home. Confidants describe the public relations part of the job as torture for Duncan, an affront to the game. The periphery of the NBA life, everything outside the practice facility, is nonsense.Trying to be something that youre not gets you out of your comfort zone, Duncan said then. Im not that guy. I did a little bit of that. Ive done my share of it, but Im just not that guy. I dont think of myself in that respect. I love playing basketball and thats what I want to do. I dont need the extra stuff.But in the Spurs day-to-day operations, Duncans emotional intelligence was the connective tissue that held together Popovichs disciplined structure. Duncan would readily pass the mantle to Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, then celebrate their success as if it was his own.The thing that amazed me about how Timmy built relationships was how subtle it was -- the touch, the arm around the shoulder, the thing that would look like little or nothing to outsiders, Budenholzer says. It affected people, maybe because it was subtle and under-the-radar.Blake Griffin, who has admired the way Duncan carries himself, sought out Duncans counsel a few years back. Griffin was part of a Los Angeles Clippers team that now had several loud voices and wanted to glean how quiet leadership could make a difference. The thing I took away the most was this idea that a leader isnt the guy whos pounding the chest, or huddles or giving motivational speech, Griffin says. It was really reassuring to me as a younger guy, that you dont have to be something youre not. Of many things you can say about him, thats the thing that sets him apart -- he never tried to see who wasnt. And it works.At any time, theres always the one guy theyll use as an example. Maybe its Russell Wilson for a year or two. Then they move on to Tom Brady or [Kevin Garnett]. But [Duncan] has been the guy you constantly hear about whos constantly doing it right. Hes the guy who deserved the shine, but was riding underneath it.For a man who was so inaccessible to those looking in from the outside, Tim Duncan was an everyman. Most of our lives and careers emulate Duncans: We do the work quietly and diligently and dont have much cause to glory-hound. The job is the job, and if youre lucky, you do it because you love it, but not for any external affirmation, other than you want your partner, family and friends to be proud because its nice to be admired by the people in the world you care most about.Tim Duncan invented the NBAs modern vision of team culture. Now the rest of basketball is trying to imitate the guy nobody found fashionable. http://www.nflcardinalsrookiestore.com/Cardinals-Chad-Williams-Jersey/ . Louis. To which I would say two things: 1. Where there is smoke, there is or perhaps has been a little fire. Or, in other words, the two teams would appear to have at least spoken. And spoken is defined as one calling the other to inquire, no more, no less. http://www.nflcardinalsrookiestore.com/Cardinals-Robert-Nkemdiche-Jersey/ .ca look back at each of the Top 10 stories of 2013. Today, we look back at Boston Strong - a citys recovery from tragedy. http://www.nflcardinalsrookiestore.com/Cardinals-Jermaine-Gresham-Jersey/ . At a news conference Tuesday where it was thought that the fiery Schallibaum may be shown the door after a dismal finish to the Major League Soccer season, team president Joey Saputo said no decision has been made on whether the Swiss Volcano will be back in 2014. http://www.nflcardinalsrookiestore.com/Cardinals-Chandler-Jones-Jersey/ .Y. -- Paul Byron and Matt Stajan scored as the Calgary Flames started a five-game road trip with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. http://www.nflcardinalsrookiestore.com/Cardinals-Jared-Veldheer-Jersey/ .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Dusty Hannahs hasnt experienced all that many shooting slumps in his life, but the Arkansas guard might just have found the answer to his early season shooting struggles by not starting.For a second straight game, the Razorbacks sharp-shooter came off the bench on Tuesday night -- scoring 17 points in 17 minutes as Arkansas (7-1) rallied from a halftime deficit for an 84-72 win over Houston.Hannahs was 6 of 11 from the field and has now hit 5 of 10 3-pointers in his last two games, coming after he was held without a 3-pointer in the two games before that. After leading Arkansas in scoring last season, the senior is now embracing whatever role Razorbacks coach Mike Anderson gives him.I just tried to stop thinking about (missing shots), even though it was impossible to stop thinking about it because I was just watching so many misses happen, Hannahs said. ... I was relaxed the last game and relaxed this game, and I think its smooth sailing from here on, hopefully.Hannahs had plenty of help as Arkansas won its fourth straight game, with first-year junior Daryl Macon adding 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting. Moses Kingsley added 14 points and eight rebounds, while Dustin Thomas finished with 11 points as the Razorbacks shot 59.3 percent (16 of 27) in the second half after trailing 35-34 at halftime.But it was Hannahs who provided the biggest spark, particularly in the first half when he scored 10 points in nine minutes.Look how efficient he is, Anderson said. ... I think the key is getting playing time. Like I said, hes still a starter in my mind.Rob Gray scored 22 points to lead the Cougars (6-2), whose two losses this season have both come on the road against Southeastern Conference opponents. Damyean Dotson had 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Galen Robinson had 14 points and Wes Vanbeck scored 10.Arkansas entered having won seven of its last eight games against its former Southwest Conference rival Cougars, who were making their first visit to Fayetteville since 1991.The two teeams also came in averaging more than 84 points per game, though Houston struggled early while falling behind by as many as 14 points in the first half.dddddddddddd The Cougars rallied, however, to take a 35-34 halftime lead -- with 32 of those points coming from the backcourt quartet of Dotson, Robinson, Gray and Vanbeck.The four finished with a combined 61 points, but it wasnt enough to overcome Arkansas hot second-half shooting.We still had a lead in the second half, Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said. ... This is a game we could have won, but youve got to play a little bit better defense and get a little more production out of our bigs in a game like this.BIG PICTUREHouston: The Cougars had the guards to run with the Razorbacks, but they had no answers off their bench -- which was outscored 34-14. Houston entered averaging 85.1 points, but it shot only 40 percent (14 of 35) in the second half.Arkansas: The Razorbacks failed in their first true test of the season, falling 87-71 at Minnesota on Nov. 22. On Tuesday, they played like the team coach Mike Anderson had in mind when he signed guards Macon and Jaylen Barford from junior college -- with an eye on immediately turning around following a 16-16 season. While Barford struggled with only two points, Macon was in control throughout, a positive sign for a team intent on returning to the NCAA Tournament after missing it last season.MISSING DAVISDevin Davis, averaging 12.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, played only three minutes for Houston and was scoreless after cutting two fingers on his right hand early in the game. The 6-foot-7 junior needed six stitches to stop the bleeding, and Sampson was forced to play a smaller lineup without him.UP NEXTHouston begins a four-game stretch at home by hosting Rhode Island on Saturday.The Razorbacks wrap up five straight games at home when they host North Florida on Saturday. 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