Tim Duncan wasn't a talkative player when opposing players would talk trash to him throughout his legendary career with the San Antonio Spurs.
Even though he would have been able to back up his trash talk, Tim Duncan revealed why he never trash-talked during his career on an appearance on The Ringer's NBA Show podcast with Logan Murdock and Raja Bell.
When speaking about trash-talking in the NBA, Tim Duncan discussed why he refrained from talking smack to opposing players.
“It just wasn't part of my game. It frustrates people more when you keep coming and coming and keep getting things done and no matter what they throw at you or what they do it doesn't affect you and it actually ends up affecting them much more than it does you so that was my way, it fit with my game.”
In his 19-year career, Tim Duncan definitely frustrated opponents with his ability to consistently dominate on the floor. Throughout his Hall of Fame career with the Spurs, Duncan accumulated 15 All-Star selections, 15 All-NBA selections, and won five NBA titles.
Additionally, Tim Duncan won two NBA MVP trophies and a three-time NBA Finals MVP. Statistically speaking, he was as consistent as they come at the power forward position, averaging 19 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game.
During his playing career, they called Tim Duncan “The Big Fundamental” due to his ability to dominate while not being the most athletic big man.
While opposing players continued to bark at him during games, Duncan allowed his play to do the talking for him instead of barking back.
Duncan embodies an underappreciated truth about sports, namely, that the level of outward emotional intensity displayed by a player or coach is not reflective of how much that person cares about winning. Much as Tom Landry of the Dallas Cowboys cared about winning, even though he was a stoic, and even though K.C. Jones of the Boston Celtics was hardly demonstrative or fiery, he was a tenacious competitor. It's much the same with Duncan, who had plenty of fire beneath his icy exterior.
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