Subscribe
Follow Us
The San Antonio Spurs are obviously loaded in the frontcourt, at power forward and center, in their franchise's history, but maybe more surprising is the depth in overall performance at the shooting guard position.
The Spurs have had various eras with mainstays at shooting guard not quite overlap each other but quietly succeed one another, passing the baton between generations. Here are the five best shooting guards in San Antonio history.
5. Mario Elie
Mario Elie came from humble origins NBA-wise, first entering the league officially via 10-day contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, later earning a reputation as a competitor with the Houston Rockets when he was a part of the back-to-back champion teams in the mid-'90s.
Elie arrived in San Antonio as a free agent ahead of the 1999 championship run, helping the Spurs secure their first title that year and staying on another season in an attempt to defend the title. Although never achieving any personal outstanding accolades, Elie was a great plug in that Duncan-Robinson era Spurs team—a veteran presence to add oompf to the early part of San Antonio's burgeoning dynasty.
4. Danny Green
Danny Green, upon his arrival and early days with the Spurs, was a then-D-League prospect still working on his game on the fringe of the NBA. With Gregg Popovich and the Spurs, Green turned into a surefire 3-point specialist and above-average defender for a championship team.
Green spent eight seasons with the Spurs, helping them win the redemption title in 2013-14. He averaged 9.1 points and 3.5 rebounds during that time along with shooting 39.6 percent from downtown.
3. Alvin Robertson
Article Continues Below
The quadruple-double. The only player in NBA history to accomplish the extremely rare feat.
Alvin Robertson was a seventh overall pick by the Spurs in the 1984 NBA Draft out of Arkansas, leaping onto the scene as one of the most gifted defensive players of all time. Robertson was both the Most Improved and Defensive Player of the Year in his sophomore season, in 1985-86, earning his first trip to the All-Star Game that year, too.
With the Spurs, Robertson was a back-to-back steal champion and three-time All-Star, averaging 16.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and an insane 2.9 steals per game over five seasons, appearing in 389 total regular-season games.
2. Manu Ginobili
The most accomplished shooting guard in Spurs history is not the “best” one, though, and for a good reason. Ginobili is clearly un unalienable part of the Spurs dynasty that ruled the first two decades of the 21st century, helping San Antonio win four championships along with two All-Star selections and a Sixth Man of the Year distinction.
Yet, Ginobili was not individually better than George Gervin. Still, that's saying plenty about Ginobili's on-court accomplishments to the franchise. The Argentinian's name is synonymous with the millennium's dynasty, forming a not-too-flashy “Big 3” alongside Tim Duncan and Tony Parker.
In his 16-year NBA tenure—all with the Spurs—Ginobili was a secret weapon off the bench for Popovich and co., picking apart defenses and being one to help proliferate the Euro step into the North American league. Ginobili averaged 13.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game in his career, playing over 1,000 games for the Spurs.
1. George Gervin
George Gervin was the best Spurs wing in their history. He came over to the NBA side with the Spurs upon the ABA merger, introducing the other league to his wickedly entertaining style of basketball. The Hall of Fame shooting guard was a nine-time All-Star in the NBA (he only played 10 years in the league, too) and four-time scoring champion, three of which happening consecutively.
The “Iceman” might go down in NBA history as the face of a generation of Spurs teams that failed to breakthrough in the playoffs, but it's undeniable how important he was to the organization, how great he played for years, and how instrumental he was to the new era of basketball post-merger.
