What better way is there to determine how good you really are than by seeing how you measure up against the best?
The San Antonio Spurs will get their opportunity to do just that when they face off against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif. on Oct. 25.
Can the Spurs still contend in the deeply talented Western Conference? Both teams made major offseason changes since the conclusion of the 2015-16 NBA season. They will find out sooner rather than later who truly is the best.
The Spurs will hit the ground running; their upcoming matchup with the Warriors is their first game of the 2016-17 regular season. Not only will they be on the road to start the season, but they will be taking on the team that has been the best in the West for the past two years. It is "do or die" for San Antonio.
Spurs head coach and president of basketball operations Gregg Popovich has his work cut out for him to start next season. If history is any indication, the three-time NBA Coach of the Year will be ready to go.
Popovich is one of the most-accomplished and longest-tenured coaches in NBA history. He has kept his teams in title contention for the past two decades with a consistency of excellence. That is rare in sports. His leadership has molded the Spurs into one of the league’s most successful franchises.
In October, however, Popovich will find himself coaching against another man who is starting to shape his own legacy from the sideline: Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. Kerr is already an NBA Coach of the Year award winner and has only been coaching for two years. Going into his third season as a head coach, he is now two Coach of the Year awards shy of tying Popovich’s mark.
Kerr will be overseeing a Warriors team that is headlined by six NBA All-Stars. During their 2016-17 campaign, teammates Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala will be joined by a two-time all-star, David West and the player who was the biggest free-agency acquisition of the offseason: Kevin Durant. With Durant on the roster now, Kerr and company are well equipped to try capturing their second NBA title in three years. Their journey begins at home against San Antonio.
The Spurs are well aware of how big of a threat Durant poses; he was still playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder when the Thunder eliminated the Spurs in the second round of the 2016 NBA playoffs. Durant and the Thunder went on to play the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals and came up just short of making it to the NBA Finals. Now, the team that was good enough to take down a dominant Kevin Durant-led squad has added that very player to their own imposing roster. The Spurs will be preparing for this challenge.
Prior to the Warriors suddenly becoming the best team in the West over the past couple of years, it was actually the Spurs that held that position. Coming out of the Western Conference, San Antonio made back-to-back trips to the Finals in 2013 and 2014 before Golden State made back-to-back trips in 2015 and 2016. A shift of power in the West will no doubt be on the minds of the Spurs players and coaching staff when they visit the Warriors to start next season.
During their 2015-16 campaign, the Spurs had one of the best regular seasons in franchise history; they finished with a 67-15 record, including a 40-1 record at home. Their 40 home wins tied them with the 1985-86 Boston Celtics for the most wins at home during a regular season. Not surprisingly, it was the Warriors that gave the Spurs their one home loss. The Spurs lost to the Warriors three out of four times during the regular season last year.
Although the task ahead seems daunting, the Spurs are never a team to be taken lightly. For the upcoming season, Popovich will oversee a team led by All-Stars Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge. Leonard is a one-time NBA champion, two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year award winner and has come into his own as one of the premier players in the league. Both Leonard and Aldridge were All-NBA Team selections last season.
Seasoned veterans Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are returning next season as well. Both players are All-Stars and four-time NBA champions. Danny Green and Patty Mills are solid contributors as well.
This offseason for the Spurs was not without its losses, though. Boris Diaw is no longer with the team; he was traded away in July. Veteran big man David West is also gone; who ironically signed with the Warriors.
The two most notable changes to the Spurs’ roster during the offseason are the retirement of Tim Duncan and the addition of Pau Gasol. Duncan was the Spurs’ unquestioned leader on the floor; he is a 15-time All-Star and five-time NBA champion. Duncan spent his entire NBA career in San Antonio. Gasol was acquired during free agency; he is a six-time All-Star and two-time NBA champion. Gasol will add even more veteran experience to the Spurs.
Will the Warriors continue their dominance as the best in the West? Will the Spurs be able to reclaim that spot? The season opener in late October might be able to provide everyone with those answers. Tip-off at Oracle Arena is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. EST. The game will be televised on TNT.
