Are the San Antonio Spurs Done?

The saying goes that death and taxes are the only certainties in life.

I'd say the San Antonio Spurs making the playoffs is a close third. Love 'em or hate 'em, you absolutely MUST respect the Spurs franchise. In this day and age of egomaniac athletes and teams, the Spurs seem to be stuck in the gentlemanly old days of winning graciously.

In recent memory, the only time a Spurs player has made headlines during the off season was just over a year ago when Tony Parker wed Hollywood sizzler, Eva Longoria.

It wasn't enough that Tony had just been named as NBA Finals MVP after his team had won the NBA championship, he then went and rubbed every red-blooded man's nose in it even further by taking the hottest chick in the world off the market.

Geez Tony, leave something for the rest of us will ya !

But maybe, just maybe, the Spurs best days have just slipped past.

When the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated San Antonio from last seasons playoffs, it ended the Spurs quest to win back-to-back NBA championships. Despite winning the title in four of the last nine seasons, they have never been able to replicate their success in consecutive seasons.

The Spurs have been the league’s most dominant and consistent franchise over the last decade. They have been to the finals four times, winning it on each trip (1999, 2003, 2005 and 2007). They have advanced to the Western Conference Finals on three other occasions (2001, 2006 and 2008), giving them seven appearances in the last 10 years. The three years that they didn’t make it that far, they at the very least qualified for the playoffs (2000, 2002 and 2004), a record any franchise would be proud of.

Yet, while Spurs fans have had lots to celebrate over the last decade, there is evidence to suggest that the sun might be setting on what’s been a golden era in southern Texas.

Firstly, they are aging. Of their core, Tim Duncan is 32-years-old, Manu Ginobili is 31, Bruce Bowen is 37 and Michael Finley is 35. The only good news on that front is that Tony Parker is only 26.

Head Coach Gregg Popovich refused to use age as an excuse for his team’s demise in the playoffs, but even he must realize that his team will require an injection of youth if they want to continue to challenge for the NBA crown.

The Western Conference was by far the deeper and stronger of the two conferences last year and it figures to get even tougher this season. Teams like the Portland Trailblazers, New Orleans Hornets, and Utah Jazz (among others) have promising young teams, and the Spurs will struggle to keep pace with their current roster.

The only problem San Antonio’s continued success has given them over the last decade, is that they have never been able to rely on a high draft pick to keep their roster strong. Instead, they have been forced to do their homework on lesser-known players and to trust their very reliable scouting staff.

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