Twin Towers (San Antonio Spurs)
The Twin Towers of the San Antonio Spurs were Tim Duncan and David Robinson, two seven-foot centers who played together from 1997 to 2003 and won two NBA championships. What made their pairing so unusual was the path that brought each of them to San Antonio. Robinson had to wait two years after being drafted first overall in 1987 just to step onto an NBA court, held back by his active-duty obligation to the Navy. Duncan, drafted first overall a decade later in 1997, chose to stay at Wake Forest for all four years of college despite widespread predictions that he could have left early as the consensus top pick. Two players who could each have arrived sooner, each chose differently, and both ended up in the same place at the same time. How they got there, what they built together, and how they handled the rivals who nearly stopped them along the way is the story of one of basketball's most celebrated duos.
David Robinson arrived at Navy without any expectation of playing professional basketball. By his senior season, he had won numerous national player of the year awards and led Navy to the Elite Eight of the 1986 NCAA tournament as a number seven regional seed. The Spurs selected him with the first pick in the 1987 draft, but Robinson could not join the team immediately. His military commitment meant the Spurs had to wait, and so did he.
The Spurs that Robinson eventually joined had just finished with a 21-61 record, one of the worst in the league. What Robinson did to that franchise in his first season still stands as one of the most dramatic turnarounds in NBA history at the time: a 56-26 record and a second-round playoff appearance. He was named Rookie of the Year unanimously. Over the following six seasons he earned the NBA MVP award in 1995 and was named one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history.
Yet the championship Robinson wanted never came. He led the Spurs to the Western Conference Finals once during that stretch, only to fall to the Houston Rockets in six games, going head to head against his chief rival Hakeem Olajuwon. Then came the 1996-97 season, when Robinson hurt his back in preseason play and did not return until December. Six games after his return, he broke his foot and missed the rest of the year. The Spurs finished 20-62.
Tim Duncan played all four years at Wake Forest despite wide speculation that he would leave early as the projected top pick in any draft he entered. His sophomore season produced one of his most complete performances: he led Wake Forest over a Rasheed Wallace-led North Carolina squad to win the ACC Championship, then helped his team earn a number one seed in the 1995 NCAA tournament. In the Sweet 16, Duncan put up 12 points and 22 rebounds, and still Wake Forest fell to Oklahoma State 71-66.
His junior year brought a more difficult test. With teammate Randolph Childress gone to graduation and the 1995 NBA draft, Duncan led an inexperienced squad to a 26-6 record and a second consecutive ACC tournament championship. Wake Forest reached the Elite Eight, where Duncan had 14 points, 16 rebounds, and six assists. It was not enough against eventual national champion Kentucky, who won 83-64. Duncan was named both ACC Defensive Player of the Year and ACC Player of the Year.
In his senior season, Wake Forest lost in the semifinals of the ACC tournament and fell to Stanford in the second round of the NCAA tournament. None of that diminished what Duncan accomplished individually. He was a unanimous selection for the Oscar Robertson Trophy and the Naismith Award, and was voted ACC Player of the Year for the second time. He graduated, declared for the draft, and went first overall to the team that needed him most.
After the Spurs finished with the third-worst record in 1996-97, they won the draft lottery and used the top pick on Tim Duncan. Paired with the 7'1" Robinson, the 6'11" Duncan gave the franchise a frontcourt that opponents had almost no answer for. Duncan was named to the All-NBA First Team and selected for the All-Star Game in his rookie season, and he was named Rookie of the Year. He led the Spurs back to a 56-26 record, the same mark Robinson had posted in his own debut season.
In Duncan's first playoff game, he had a difficult first half. With the Spurs trailing the Phoenix Suns 50-45 at halftime, Suns coach Danny Ainge decided to pull defensive pressure off Duncan. The result: Duncan finished with 32 points and 10 rebounds as San Antonio won 102-96. The Spurs won that series 3-1 before facing the Utah Jazz and Hall of Fame power forward Karl Malone. Duncan outscored Malone in the first two games, 33-25 in Game 1 and 26-22 in Game 2. The Spurs lost both those games anyway, fell behind 0-2, and were eventually eliminated in five games.
The next season brought a different kind of obstacle. The NBA owners and commissioner David Stern locked out the Players' Association to force negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement. The lockout lasted 202 days before a deal was reached, leaving a shortened 50-game regular season.
Despite the shortened season, the Twin Towers pushed the Spurs to the best record in the NBA at 37-13, earning home court advantage throughout the playoffs. San Antonio beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 3-1 in the first round, then swept the Los Angeles Lakers and the Portland Trail Blazers to reach the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history.
In the Finals against the New York Knicks, Duncan and Robinson imposed their will from the opening tip. Over the first two games they combined for 87 points, 51 rebounds, and 14 blocks, while holding Knicks big men Chris Dudley and Larry Johnson to 12 points, 13 rebounds, and three blocks. San Antonio took a 2-0 series lead, then lost Game 3 to New York 89-81 despite combining for 45 points and 22 rebounds. Game 4 swung back: 42 points and 35 rebounds from the duo produced a 96-89 win and a 3-1 series lead.
Game 5 came down to the final seconds. With the Spurs leading 78-77, Latrell Sprewell attempted a last-second shot to win the game. Duncan and Robinson double-teamed him. The Spurs won 78-77. The pair combined for 46 points and 21 rebounds in that game. Duncan was named NBA Finals MVP, and San Antonio had its first championship.
The 1999-2000 season ended early when Duncan suffered a season-ending knee injury. The Spurs, seeded fourth in the playoffs, lost to the Phoenix Suns 3-1 in the first round.
The following year the Twin Towers led San Antonio to the best record in the NBA at 58-24. The Spurs moved through the first two rounds comfortably, winning 3-1 over the Timberwolves and 4-1 over the Dallas Mavericks. Then they met the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. The Lakers, led by Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, swept San Antonio out of the playoffs entirely.
The 2001-02 season produced similar heartbreak. In the conference semifinals against the Lakers, Duncan posted a double-double in every game of the series and the Spurs led going into the fourth quarter in all five games. Kobe Bryant's fourth-quarter performances turned each of those games. San Antonio won only once. After Game 5, in which Duncan had 34 points and 25 rebounds, he stated his frustration plainly: "I thought we really had a chance at this series. The Lakers proved to be more than we could handle. Again, we had a (heck) of a run at it. We had opportunities to win games and make it a different series, but that's just the way the ball rolls sometimes." Robinson acknowledged the same truth: "Tim Duncan was like Superman out there," he said, but conceded that the Lakers were simply better. Duncan was named NBA MVP that season.
Before the 2002-03 season began, David Robinson announced he would retire at the end of it. That year the Twin Towers were joined in earnest by Tony Parker, drafted in the first round in 2001, and Manu Ginobili, who had been drafted in the second round in 1999 and joined the team for this final season. The four together led the Spurs to an NBA-best 60-22 record, earning home court advantage throughout the playoffs for the third time in five years.
San Antonio beat the Suns in six games, then met the Lakers again in the conference semifinals. This time Duncan was matched against Robert Horry. In Game 6, Duncan had 37 points and 16 rebounds to close the series with a 110-82 victory, avenging back-to-back playoff losses to Los Angeles. Head coach Greg Popovich described Duncan's presence in those final two games: "I thought in Game 5 and Game 6, he was astounding in his focus. He pulled everyone along these last two games." The Spurs then beat the Mavericks in six games to reach the Finals.
In Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the New Jersey Nets, the last game Robinson would ever play, the Twin Towers combined for 34 points and 27 rebounds. Robinson had 13 points and 17 rebounds. Duncan recorded a triple-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists and was two blocks shy of a quadruple-double. San Antonio won 88-77. After the game, Duncan said: "We were all confident that something would happen, that we would turn the game to our favor, and it did." He was named NBA MVP for the season and NBA Finals MVP for the series. Sports Illustrated named the Twin Towers its Sportsmen of the Year for 2003.
On the 10th of November 2003, the Spurs retired Robinson's number 50 jersey. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009, in his first year of eligibility.
Duncan's career did not slow after Robinson left. Parker and Ginobili, the two players who had joined during Robinson's final season, became Duncan's primary partners in what was called the Big Three. Together they won additional NBA titles in 2005, 2007, and 2014. Duncan retired on the 11th of July 2016, and his number 21 jersey was retired by the Spurs on the 18th of December 2016. On the 13th of May 2021, Duncan was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame.
The 21-year playoff streak that began with Duncan's rookie season in 1998 lasted his entire career with the franchise. That unbroken run, which neither Robinson's back nor Duncan's knee nor the NBA lockout nor the Los Angeles Lakers could permanently derail, began the moment the two of them first shared a court in San Antonio.
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Common questions
Who were the Twin Towers on the San Antonio Spurs?
The Twin Towers were Tim Duncan and David Robinson, the two starting centers who played together for the San Antonio Spurs from 1997 to 2003. Both were selected first overall in the NBA draft by the Spurs, Robinson in 1987 and Duncan in 1997, and both spent their entire careers with San Antonio.
How many NBA championships did the Twin Towers win?
The Twin Towers won two NBA championships, in 1999 and 2003. In 1999 they defeated the New York Knicks, and in 2003 they defeated the New Jersey Nets in Game 6, with Robinson recording 13 points and 17 rebounds in his final NBA game.
Why did David Robinson have to wait two years after being drafted by the Spurs?
Robinson was selected first overall in the 1987 NBA Draft but had an active-duty military obligation with the Navy that prevented him from joining the Spurs for two years. He began college at Navy with no expectation of playing in the NBA.
What awards did Tim Duncan win during the Twin Towers era?
During the Twin Towers era, Tim Duncan was named NBA Rookie of the Year, was selected to the All-NBA First Team and the All-Star Game in his rookie season, won NBA MVP awards for the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons, and was named NBA Finals MVP in both 1999 and 2003. He and Robinson were jointly named Sports Illustrated's Sportsmen of the Year in 2003.
How did the San Antonio Spurs get the opportunity to draft Tim Duncan?
After finishing with the third-worst record in the 1996-97 season, the Spurs won the NBA draft lottery, giving them the first overall pick in the 1997 NBA Draft. They used that pick to select Tim Duncan from Wake Forest.
What happened to David Robinson after the Twin Towers era ended?
Robinson retired after the 2002-03 season, his final game being Game 6 of the 2003 NBA Finals. The Spurs retired his number 50 jersey on the 10th of November 2003, and he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009 in his first year of eligibility.
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42 references cited across the entry
- 1magazineTrials Of DavidMontville, Leigh — 1996-04-29
- 3webThe NBA at 50
- 5webGrading Each San Antonio Spurs Draft Pick Since Tim DuncanJared Johnson — August 11, 2013
- 6webBrick by Brick: Tim DuncanIsaac O'Neill — February 7, 2021
- 8newsN.B.A. Will Get to the Bottom of How Tall Its Players AreMarc Stein — September 26, 2019
- 9web'TOWERS' THEORY FAULTY FOR SPURS?Sam Smith — February 14, 1999
- 11webBefore joining the Spurs, David Robinson knew Tim Duncan was a special playerJeff Garcia — April 25, 2020
- 12webShaquille O'Neal: I wasn't Tim Duncan, David RobinsonJeff Garcia — September 14, 2020
- 13webSAN ANTONIO SPURSOctober 26, 2001
- 25magazineDuncan, Robinson lead San Antonio to first NBA titleJune 28, 1999
- 26webLakers Roll Past Spurs, Eye Clash With KingsMarch 14, 2002
- 27webIt's official: Duncan captures MVP awardT.A. Badger — May 10, 2002
- 29webSpurs, Tim, Dunk Lakers, Head to Conference FinalsMay 15, 2003
- 30webFeels Like the First TimeBryan Williams — June 15, 2003
- 31magazineDuncan, Robinson share SI sportsman awardDecember 8, 2003
- 32webDavid Robinson: The Foundation of the Spurs WayJeph Duarte — August 25, 2017
- 33webThe San Antonio Spurs retired David Robinson's jersey at the SBC...11 November 2003
- 35webAvant-Guard Raised in France and only 19, Spurs rookie playmaker Tony Parker is way ahead of the game, running the team like a seasoned proPhil Taylor — 10 December 2001
- 36webManu Ginobili – BioJockbio.com
- 38webSan Antonio Spurs Retire The Jersey Of Former Player Tony ParkerNovember 12, 2019
- 39webSan Antonio Spurs Big Three The Last Of Its Kind12 July 2016
- 41webEmotions Flow as Tim Duncan's No. 21 Jersey Is Retired at AT&T CenterDecember 19, 2016
- 42webWatch Tim Duncan's humble Hall of Fame induction speechMay 16, 2021