Tim Duncan Passes Jason Kidd for 7th All-Time in NBA Games Played

Future Hall of Famer Tim Duncan added another line to his sparkling resume Tuesday when the San Antonio Spurs took the court for their game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

According to Jordan Howenstine of the Spurs’ public relations team, Duncan passed Jason Kidd for seventh on the all-time list of games played with his 1,392nd contest.

Here is where Duncan ranks among the top 10 for games played in NBA history, per Basketball-Reference.com:

Rank	Player	Games
1	Robert Parish	1,611
2	Kareem Abdul-Jabbar	1,560
3	John Stockton	1,504
4	Karl Malone	1,476
5	Kevin Garnett	1,462
6	Kevin Willis	1,424
7	Tim Duncan	1,392
8	Jason Kidd	1,391
9	Reggie Miller	1,389
10	Clifford Robinson	1,380

While Duncan could retire soon, especially since he turns 40 years old on April 25, he has not announced when he will hang it up a la Kobe Bryant. He could theoretically climb as high as the top five on that list with another season if he remained healthy, although Tuesday was only his 61st appearance of the season because of rest and injuries.

It may be asking a lot of him to play close to a full campaign in 2016-17.

Duncan has taken something of a step back in the Spurs’ rotation this season and is averaging 8.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game (before Tuesday's game). This will be the first time in his career he failed to average double-figure scoring totals, but his Spurs clinched the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference and still look to him as a veteran leader.

In a testament to his constant presence for some of the best Spurs teams in franchise history, Duncan has done plenty of winning in his 1,392 games. NBA on ESPN highlighted his place in league history after San Antonio’s victory last Tuesday over the Utah Jazz:

In addition to all those wins, Duncan has five championship rings and averaged a double-double in each of his first 13 seasons. He is a 15-time All-Star, three-time NBA Finals MVP, two-time NBA MVP and the 1997-98 NBA Rookie of the Year.

Duncan is one of the best frontcourt players to ever lace it up, and he is sixth on the all-time NBA rebounding list and 14th on the all-time NBA scoring list. Moving into seventh place on the NBA’s all-time list of games played is just another achievement on a lengthy list of them.

The question now for Duncan is whether he will add a sixth championship ring to his resume. San Antonio was 65-15 entering play Tuesday and is loaded with talent outside of just Duncan. Kawhi Leonard is one of the best players in the league, and offseason addition LaMarcus Aldridge is a double-double threat every time he takes the floor.

The Spurs also have a familiar core of Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and head coach Gregg Popovich that has gone to battle with Duncan countless times.

Standing in the Spurs' way are the Golden State Warriors, who already tied the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls’ all-time record of 72 wins in a season and have the opportunity to break it Wednesday. San Antonio is a dangerous team with enough talent to beat anyone in a playoff series, but the Warriors are arguably the best squad in NBA history.

Duncan and his teammates will have to find a way to thwart the defending champions in a potential Western Conference Finals showdown to win a sixth ring.